We are often asked what our work entails in Nepal. Whilst every single day is different, we thought it would be interesting to give you a snapshot of a day in the life of Durga, who spends six months of the year in Nepal overseeing First Steps Himalaya’s projects.
Monday
It’s 5.30 am and I get the first message of the day on my phone. The NZ office who are 7 hours ahead of me and have already had lunch, urgently need some information for the report they are preparing on the projects.
I am just about to get dressed, when the phone rings twice more. The first is a wrong number (very frequent in Nepal) and the second is a teacher who attended training recently, wants to know if she can attend the next training and where and when will that be. Another call is from a headteacher of a school in Gorkha District who has heard of our work and wants to know how he can get our project in his school. I explain the application process in the hope that we can find a donor.
I am due at our Nuwakot projects at 10am, so quickly grab some breakfast from a Kathmandu bakery before collecting our project manager and her assistant who by the time i reach them have been waiting by the side of the dusty road. The traffic is building up already but still so much better than it would be a couple of hours later. We head westwards out of Kathmandu.
Nuwakot is one of our newest project areas and I am keen to see if there have been any changes in the schools since my last monitoring visit a few months ago. As the crow flies, Nuwakot is just 28km from Kathmandu. By road it is 56km and yet it is another world away. The roads are in a terrible state and in fact the most direct route has been blocked for months. So I drive up and over Thankot Hill renowned for its switchbacks and trucks heading to and from India and the Terai part of Nepal. Once we reach Galchhi, we turn off the main highway and enjoy a few minutes bliss on the newly built stretch of road. This is short lived as we reach an incomplete section and we bump over rock and gravel with dust flying- quickly we wind the windows up! The last section of road to Bidur is outrageously rough and we arrive dripping in sweat, exhausted and ready for a nice cold drink. No luck- there is no power today and hasnt been for the last three days. It is already 10.30am and if we are to visit all the schools on our list, we need to start immediately.
Seeing the changes at the first school we visit, makes the whole journey worthwhile. Last time I was here in May, I really wondered if anything would ever change here. The children were taught by rote with shouting teachers who had little idea of our methods. However the last training workshop has obviously totally inspired the teachers who now take great pride in their classrooms which are neat and tidy with walls decorated with children’’s work and posters created at the training. I sit down to observe a class where the children are sitting quietly in a circle about to sing a Nepali rhyme.
Our Nuwakot supervisor joins me and we drive the short distance to a much more deprived school. The teacher missed the recent taining and the building has small dark classrooms which are not conducive to play based learning. The headteacher however is keen to bring about change and we discuss some options. Binda, our supervisor promises to come back in a few days to spend more time with the teacher.
There is no such thing as lunch in rural Nepal. Traditionally people eat dal bhat tarkari ( rice, lentil stew and vegetables) at 10.30am and then again in the evening. This is not so easy for school teachers who have to tend their animals, cook an early dal bhat and walk some distance to school before 10am. Today I am offered dal bhat at the house of the local ward chairperson, Dal Tamang who originally contacted First Steps Himalaya for support. He is thrilled that we responded and talks to me over rice about his plans for the area.
Next we are off to check on progress of the earthbag building that was constructed in October by FSH volunteers. To get there, we cross a very dilapidated suspension bridge, climbing upwards to the site of Pragitsheel School. Dal wants to show me the plaster work that has happened since I was last here and to discuss the plans for the school once it opens in 2020. I pop in on the children studying in the temporary learning centre and can’t wait to have them move into the new school.
For the rest of the afternoon, we are collected by a 4 wheel drive vehicle that is required to access the more remote schools in the project area. Our own vehicle would not make it. There are three more schools to visit, all showing progress which is wonderful. We hand out learning materials and Binda and I observe classes, making notes of further improvements needed. Binda will return to each of these remote schools on foot next week as she makes her regular visits vital to project success.
We end the day back at our Nuwakot project accommodation. This is a modern house with twin bed rooms and when the power comes on there is a fan. It is hot and my clothes are now beyond filthy. The day is not over however, I reply to missed calls, transfer photos from my camera to my laptop.
In the evening, there is a call from a supplier in Kathmandu who is making bookshelves and shoe racks for our next set of school projects. They are ready and I need to collect them tomorrow when i get back to Kathmandu, assuming the road is not blocked and the threatened national strike does not go ahead. The power is still not on but I finish the day by sorting through all the expenses for the Nuwakot projects. I am looking forward to a shower when I get back to Kathmandu tomorrow.
For more information or to donate visit: www.firststepshimalaya.org