Photographs of Annapurna Sanctuary Trek

Leaving Pokhara for the trailhead during the national strike


Trailhead after 5 hour walk from Pokhara


Our guide Pasang (L) and his brother/assistant, Sonam (R)


Entering the town of Birethanti on Day 2


Pasang, Doug and Jackie atop Poon Hill


The lovely hosts at a guesthouse near Annapurna Base Camp










The scenery
Blooming rhodies


Daulaguiri


Terraced fields near Chommrong


Hinchuli


Annapurna


Machhapuchhare


Annapurna South


Phewa Tal (Lake Phewa in Pokhara)

Photographs of Kathmandu

My Host Family


East Kathmandu - closeby to where my host family lives


Dal bhat tarkari (Lentils, rice and veggies) - our daily meal - yum!


Young fruit vendor


Children at a school outside of Kathmandu supported by Hope and Home


My "niece" Rachna and me


Vegetable vendor in Thahity (pronounced "tahity" really!)


Sadhu at Pashupatinath temple (Hindu temple) on Shivaratri


Bouddhanath temple (Buddhist temple) during Losar (Tibetan New Year)


At a friend's wedding (celebrated in traditional Tibetan way)


Priest presiding over a Bratabanda (Hindu coming of age ceremony)


Another Bratabanda


Washing and playing in the holy Bagmati River


Empty street during the nationwide strike


Jubilation after the strike


Happy taxi driver after the strike - "now I can work"


Volunteer organizers (Rabyn-white shirt back row & Bijen non-striped blue shirt front row), host family members and Volunteers

Photographs from the Disabled Rehabilitation Centre (DRC)

Photos of the children at DRC:

Children enjoying the donated books















He's 6 years old and tons of fun!















Jackie and pals





Friends learning about the world!


The Three Musketeers


Jackie with more of her pals















Doug with the children on our last visit with the folks that volunteered after Jackie















Photos of Holi Celebration at DRC: (see earlier blog for details)

Celebrating Holi


House mom being doused in true Holi tradition


House mom with some of the children


A sweet smile


Tikka being placed by house mom

Goodbye Nepal, Hello USA!

Aloha!
Greetings from Hawaii! After two days of flying, Doug and I are back in the U.S.. We arrived on April 30th - on Doug's birthday. Luckily for him, he got to celebrate it for 41 hours if you call celebrating - sitting on a plane, going through customs, and suffering from extreme jet lag. Fortunately, we felt good enough in the evening to go out for a wonderful Filipino meal at a new restaurant that my folks wanted to treat Doug to. The restaurant, Max's of Manila, is part of a chain of restaurants that originated in the Philippines, and it was the place in Manila where my mom and dad enjoyed a wedding dinner over 30 years ago!

It has been quite odd going from Nepal to Hawaii. Believe it or not, there are some similarities between life in Nepal and life here at my folks (the crowing of roosters, eating lots of rice and veggies, buzzing and biting mosquitos, and the speaking of another language - fortunately this time, I understand and speak it). So really, the odd thing is that it doesn't feel weird to be back. Not much of a culture shock - except for order on the highways, high-technology, etc... BTW, DSL feels like lightning speed after Nepal's very slow internet access. But, I sure do miss Nepal already - the people, the cultures, the language. The last couple of days there were spent visiting friends, saying goodbye to the children at DRC, and binging on Nepal's national dish- dal bhat tarkari (lentil/rice/veggies). "Aagayo!" (I am full!) was the common exclamation for those two days.

So to wrap up this blog, I must say it was a great couple of months in Nepal despite all that was going on there. If you've been keeping up with what has been happening there, you know that only time will tell what will come of the restoration of democracy. One thing for sure, the people of Nepal are full of spirit and are proud of their beautiful country and many of them are hopeful for a better Nepal. Doug and I are with them in that hope. Until the next travel blog, let's hope for peace and the restoration of an effective democracy in Nepal.

Namaste, Jackie