Goodbye Nepal and Hello Bhutan

I spent my last night at a dinner for the Tewa staff and board. It is difficult to say goodbye to everyone, but I have a lot of visitors from Nepal during May. The President of Tewa, Sadhana, and Razeena are coming. For those that don’t remember Razeena, she was my friend last year and she recently married and moved to the states. I get to meet her husband, Subir, who is Sadhana’s son. Ok, if you are not confused by now, you are really sharp.

I will be hosting a high tea for the Nepali group that live in LA to help generate donations, while Sadhana is here. Anyone that would like to attend from the OC group is more than welcome. It will be a great event. Obviously, the goal is to generate funds for grants to rural women’s groups.

Also Tara, the lady I stayed with in Nepal, will be visiting the end of May. It will be a hectic month, but I am really excited to have them visit.

I had to get up early to catch the flight to Paro, Bhutan. It was an amazing flight with spectacular views of the Himalayans including Mount Everest. The plane did a dive into Bhutan, because it is in a valley. The flight is an event in itself.

Everyone was taking pictures of the airport; it was so pretty. All the buildings are decorated in a similar manner. The traditional outfits that the main wear are their suits and the women have beautiful dresses.

All my concern is gone. I have a great guide and driver and Bhutan is beautiful. I am anxious to see as much as possible in the 13 days. The guide, Palden, speaks perfect English, so I am learning a lot about the people. My next blog will include pictures of Palden and my driver, Numguy.

Some interesting tidbit: the women and men are treated as equal. There is no difference in how they are treated.

I am tired, so I will close now and write more tomorrow.

Namaste, Paula

Last Days in Nepal

My dinner was somewhat of a success, since the group had nothing to compare my gnocchi against…. It is a win / win until they get to taste someone else’s. The difficulty was the lumps of potato. Since there is no mixer, the potatoes are mixed by hand and there is no way to get them totally smooth. I preferred fresh potatoes over boxed.

All in all they were light and my sauce must have really been good, since they were licking their plates. It was a lot of fun.

I actually found all the ingredients I wanted except for good Parmesan cheese. The super grocery store is really fun. I am tempted to buy but realize I leave in 1 ½ days. Too bad I did not find this place when I arrived.

I met with Mike Wallam and his associate from the National Democratic Institute. I would really like to work with them, so next year I will give them plenty of notice. I may be able to do some consulting for them with Nepali government. They are working with the Nepali Parliament to understand how to work in a democratic society. Perhaps we could use this consulting in America??

Janaki and I are going to Kopan Monastery today because she has never been there. It is a great place and I am anxious for her to see it, although she is Hindu and not Buddhist. I really don’t think it matters.

There is a big dinner tonight for all of Tewa and I am trying to get all the washing and packing done before I leave. I really want to give gifts to everyone, but it is really a large group and I would not know where to start.

There is so much need in Nepal. Today on my way to the European bakery there was a man going through the garbage and collecting all the food particles including the maggots. I am just so thankful for what I have and wish I could do more to stop the suffering in Nepal. I must have good Karma.

Namaste, Paula

Typhoid Scare

The day was a very interesting one. First off, I was informed that there was a breakout of Typhoid Fever at the Orphanage where I have been going on Saturdays. I opted out of the Typhoid shot when preparing for the trip, so I am on my own .

I spent the day with the photographer trying to get good shots for the brochure at Tewa. The internet is really bad, so I was ready to come home early. Sita was going down the hill and offered me a ride on her scooter. There was already a passenger so I had my first three-person scooter ride. It was a little hairy. NO HELMET and the traffic is amazing. All I could think of was how I could be helicoptered out if I was really hurt bad. I survived!!

That evening I learned how to make Momos. It is the food of Nepal. They are like pot stickers, but slightly different shape. The shape is a killer. You could definitely tell mine from the others. It was a lot of fun and the girls were so helpful and had a lot of patience.

It is now morning and I am at my usual morning spot, Mike’s Breakfast, having eggs (my only protein for the day). They have great coffee and the people are so nice. Actually everyone in Nepal is nice until they get behind a steering wheel or motorbike or have to wait in line. There is no such thing as taking your turn.

I am making spaghetti sauce and gnocchi for dinner tonight for the group at Tara’s home. It is my way of saying thanks to everyone. So I have to go to the super grocery store and attempt to find the ingredients. Not sure how everything will work out but it is the thought that counts.

I can’t believe I only have a couple days left before my trip to Bhutan. I am already counting on my trip back in March. Sorry Eric, I am really hooked on this place.

Namaste, Paula

Wrapping Up

I spent the morning trying to find coffee. Every place I went was closed or no electricity. It is really hard to start a day without my wake up medicine.

I had a meeting at 11am in Patan with Rita, founder, and Janaki of Tewa. We reviewed the marketing plan, brochure, letter, and presentation for “The Tewa Center”. We made some minor changes and are ready to move forward.

I really hope that we can implement my suggestions and get the occupancy rate up to 20% in a short period of time. This will be a breakeven point for the expenses of Tewa.

After the meeting, Leslie and I went to Dhurbar Square Kathmandu and did the tourist stuff (or she did, since I have already seen it). We are still in search of a Kurti for Leslie, so we had to do some walking and I was in low blood sugar.

We stopped at the hotel yesterday to try and finalize my trip to Bhutan. I still have not been able to get my itinerary. Apparently they have not purchased the visa, since they needed my passport and airline confirmation. Interesting that they did not tell me this and it was only my initiative that I found out.

I had to go back to the hotel today (walked over an hour) to give them what they needed and now have to wait to see what is next.

I saved $500 but it is not worth the effort or aggravation. I have to stop worrying as Venerable Palzang would say. Can’t worry about what has happened or what may happen in the future. Enjoy the moment. Actually what he does say is the everything is impermanent and that you should eliminate attachment so you stop suffering and can be happy. He is definitely right. I am suffering over this decision.

I am working on finalizing the brochure and the other sales tools so that I can leave on Thursday feeling like I have accomplished my goal. There is a lot to do once I am gone and I hope the momentum continues.

I am half way through the last book of the Hunger Games and have seen most of the new movies. I guess it is time to move on.

Namaste, Paula

Help the Orphans

I am still engrossed in the Hunger Game books. I have already completed two and very upset because the Internet has been down all day and can not buy the third book. It is Saturday and not much is going on.

I am really venturing out and have been able to walk to most places through the maze of Kathmandu. I am focused on my 10000 steps, but also I really enjoy seeing the people and the general atmosphere of the city.

I spent the afternoon at the Orphanage playing Uno and trying to help with math. I definitely will need some brush up before I can be of any help with my grandkids. The kids are terrific. It is amazing what Christine has been able to accomplish. But it has been at a price. She lives in a little senior apartment complex in Laguna Beach and had to sell her only mode of transportation, her car because the Orphanage needed money.

She is a terrific lady that needs a hand. She has given everything to helping these 23 at risk children. They are so thankful that they have a home and are not on the streets or a slave. I mean that literally. Many kids end up as slaves and are forced at age 5 plus to do hard labor for the rest of their lives. Or worse they end up as a prostitute or sold to a circus as an animal show, which happens in both Nepal and India.

I hope that this blog reaches out to those that can help by donating clothes, food, equipment, or money. All those with children and grandchildren can save the outgrown clothes to help Christine.

It rained again this afternoon, so I decided to stay in and read and watch another DVD. Remember that you can get the latest movies on DVD for $1.50 in Nepal. I would love to see my regular programs: who is in the lead on the Amazing Race? Who are the finalists on American Idol? Oh well!!

Namaste