Children of Nepal - Part 1

Once again I am on a plane headed for Kathmandu. This will be my fifth visit in six years as I am drawn again to the majesty of the Himalayas, the remote quiet villages and the gentle friendly people of Nepal. But the story of my current journey begins with my previous visit and that too was a consequence of other actions.

Many people throughout our lives influence the decisions we make. Over twenty years ago my friend Guenter introduced me to the idea of trekking through the Himalayas. It was Liam, whom I met in Vietnam who recommended the Annapurna region. And when I went to Annapurna it was Dawa, my first guide, who gave me the experiences that caused me to want to return for more. And even this time it was Michelle, whom I met in Borneo, who has directed me to the Langtang region that I plan to explore.

I met Nicky years ago through my sisters. She was a friend of theirs and I would run into her at parties or events and we would often have a chat or a dance. When she was headed to India I lent her a couple of maps so that must be going back about five years now.

She was concerning herself with some beggar children in Varanasi where she met Narayan.

Narayan was from Nepal and he recommended that if she wanted to help children there was an orphanage in Nepal that he knew of that needed assistance. Misfortune can lead many people to become career beggars but the orphans in Nepal were determined to improve their situation. They were victims of civil unrest and many of them had lost their parents to conflict. They were working hard to get an education and needed help to build their future.

So Nicky went with Narayan to Nepal and embedded her life in those of the children, staying with them when she could and returning to her life in Melbourne and returning again to her orphan children when possible and Nicky's own stories are rich and fascinating and encouraging.

So when Nicky heard I would visit Kathmandu after my time in China and Tibet she implored me to visit the children. I did not expect to have much time in Kathmandu but as it happened my time in Tibet was cut short so I arrived in Nepal a week earlier than I had planned.

A year ago

Photo from my hotel room in Zhangmu - border town of the Tibetan Autonomous Region PRC. On the right hand side of the river is Nepal.

I leave Tibet walking across the Friendship Bridge into Nepal. Before I cross my bags are inspected by Chinese customs agents looking for any illegal contraband propaganda such as pictures of the Dalai Lama.

Things feel much more relaxed in Nepal. Five hours later I am in Kathmandu.

Nicky had given me Narayan's contact number. I call him and the next day he takes me out to the orphanage near Bhaktipur. He introduces me to Satish, the young man burdened and blessed with the arduous task of running the orphanage with more than 30 children mostly between 10 and 15.

Satish speaks to me of the enormous difference that Nicky has made to the lives of the orphans. Before she arrived the orphanage had run out of funding. The children had limited food of poor quality mostly donated by the local community. The children had difficulties with their studies because of the stress of worry over their predicament.

When Nicky came to help, within a month the situation had changed entirely. The children were fed and clothed. Those that needed medical attention had it. Nicky had organised some funds from people in Australia. The children's outlook changed from despair to hope for a bright future. And Nicky had brought all this along with love. The children loved their Nicky mum and she loved them and looked after them.

While Satish and I sit and chat the children return from school and go about their daily activities. I am eager to meet them but Satish knows it would be best if I didn't disrupt their normal routine. This is an event for them and they need to prepare. When all is in readiness Satish takes me into the common room where all the children are sitting on the floor around the walls of the room. They have bare feet as is common indoors and I feel big and clumsy in my enormous trekking boots with two inch thick rubber soles and deep vicious quality treads.

The children come up to me one at a time and introduce themselves. I tell them how much I like Nepal and trekking and the Nepali people and how much their Nicky mum lives them and all the wonderful things she has said about them and how much she missed them and how proud she is of them.

We have questions and answers and the children ask if I will be their uncle and be part of their family and I agree.

Then the children put on a dance show with the traditional dances they have learnt at school and they invite me up to dance and then everybody gets up to dance and all formalities are dropped as we shift to celebration.

Nepali and Australians have very different pronunciation of the English language which can make communication difficult at times. The children roll their Rs wonderfully. So when the children ask if I like "prroun" I don't understand. But it becomes clear when a plate of prawn crackers is brought out. "Look uncle. They are prrown." "have a prrown crracker uncle." The children insist on hand feeding me prawn crackers one at a time. Soon I am full but this makes no difference. "Uncle, uncle, have another prown cracker. Just one more uncle."

We continue to dance. Satish warns me to be careful with my steps. It is clear that my boots with all my weight on top could do considerable damage to little feet. The night is warm and I am sweating profusely. A young boy brings a damp cloth and mops my brow with great concern and care. The children take my hands and lead me around their home. They show me their rooms and the area where they play. They show me some plastic zoo animals that their Nicky mum has given them. They show me how they can fit the plastic figure of a crane between the jaws of a plastic lion. "Look uncle! The lion is eating the crane."

I have a wonderful time and when I leave I promise to return at the end of the week after my trekking.


I spend four days trekking in the hillside area outside of Kathmandu.

I catch a bad cold. On the fourth day my guide takes me to Nama Boudha. Because of my illness we take a bus part of the way. The bus is crowded so we have to sit on the roof - all part of the adventure of Nepal. The temple is the traditional site of where a holy man sacrificed his life so that his body could feed some starving tigers. I heard of this a couple of Weeks earlier when I saw the same story depicted in the details of a Mandela in Lhasa Tibet near where the monks debated.

 Riding atop of the bus.

 Buddhist monks kicking around the soccer ball.

When I return to Kathmandu I very much want to return to the orphanage but I know it is not a good idea. There is too much risk I will pass my illness on to the children and in the small cramped conditions many children would become sick. So I call Satish and regretfully make my apologies and a few days later I am back home in Melbourne.

 Travelling means visiting other places. The places may be within the country or outside the country. Travelling is for many purposes. It may be seeing sights or studying, the geography, history, culture of the place or spending the holiday. Travelling has many benefits. It removes the monotony of life. It makes the mind fresh. It broadens the mind. It adds to knowledge. Travellers know the customs and traditions of a community. The wrong notions and narrowness of mind are gone. The realities become evident. Travelling establishes friendly relationship with other countries. Political disputes are settled. It is useful for students. What they read may not be clear to them. They may forget what they had studied. But when they see things with their own eyes they understand better. The knowledge become solid and permanent. They never forget the things which they have seen. So travelling should be encouraged. Rosan Shah - class nine.

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Several months pass.



In September I visit Paris and after Christmas I travel to Borneo.

It's over a year later now as my plane lands in Kathmandu. There is a warm heavy rain as I disembark from the plane and make my way towards customs.

Continue to Part 2 ...