Meeting the Children for the first time.

Today was the day we were all sent to our placements. There are about 6-7 Children's Homes that VSN works closely with to place volunteers in the Kathmandu Valley area. Since I wont be placed officially until I am well, I went along for the ride to meet the children and my host family. Purvi (England- we call her "P") and I are placed together in the Swayambu Temple area, 25 minutes walk to Thamel. There are 19 children living there and three of them are disabled needing 'physio' daily. I think this is why I was placed here because of my physio background.

The first thing I noticed about this home was it is anything but posh. Previously an abandoned building, it is old with only the bare essentials. The charpi (toilet) smells and the walls, once white, show rust and dirt stains all over. But, the first thing I noticed about my placement was the children. They were so bright and friendly when we showed up, waiting for us at the door. They immediately put their hands together and said with enthusiasm "namaste didi!' (Hello sister!). Every single one of them said this with a smile. What a warm initial meeting.

We were then walked to our family's home. P and I will share a room, totally do-able. The walls are sky blue! That made me smile. Our aamaa and baa welcomed us with smiles. They speak no English, so our Nepalese we know will definitely get better! We were instructed to sit in our room as the other family members brought us chiyaa and snacks. (cut up apples and bananas). Our family was very hospitable. I can tell the language barrier is going to definitely be a challenge. Thank goodness for our training book. P and I will definitely be referencing this pretty much anytime we want to communicate with them. I laugh at myself thinking of those initial moments. No one really knew what to say because we all knew we could not understand each other. Lots of awkward silences. The charpi is outside and its definitely a whole in the ground. P and I have schemed a way to utilize toilet paper and a brown paper bag. We just have to figure out where to hide it. :)
There are 6 others livin in the house: Mom, Dad, Sister, sister and 2 babies. One is 3 (Dibya) and one is 4 months. I promise not to steal them ;)

Our Dai (brother), who is the house manager, speaks fluent English. He wants to teach us Nepalese, so that comforted me and P. He seems so nice and helpful. I could not have asked for a better initial meeting. I can't wait to feel better and be able to spend my time with the children there. They impressed me with their glow.

I took a taxi back to Thamel. We have our monthly volunteer meeting tomorrow at the VSN office. I am so looking forward to the next weeks!

PS- Around the children's home, we have access to internet and phone. Not quite the 'village' experience I was hoping for, but a blessing in disguise. I really feel I can utilize my skills here and have comfort that I am not too far away from society.

much love
J