The Chronicles of the 2024 Youth Corps Adventure and its Impacts on the Travelers
Our Travels
And so our adventure beginsGreetings from Kathmandu! We made it to Nepal safely with only a few minor hiccups. First, we ended up missing our connection from Doha to Kathmandu so they rescheduled us to a flight that left about 10 hrs later (3:00 am!) and whisked us off to a hotel for dinner and a few hour nap. The second issue was, because of poor visibility around Kathmandu, they had us circling about an hour before they finally let us land. Everybody handled the changes well. We were met at the airport by Sunita and Dinesh and Louisa and then took a large taxi/bus to the Tibet Guest House. Because we had gotten 1-2 hours of sleep during our layover in Doha we didn’t have jet lag so headed off to see Monkey Temple.
Yesterday, we had an opportunity to visit several UNESCO World Heritage sites including Pashupatinath, the oldest Hindu temple in the country (built in the 5th century!) where we were able to witness the preparation and cremation of several departed family members. We also visited the Boudhanath Stupa, the largest (by diameter) Buddhist temple or shrine in the world. We engaged in the 2nd Annual Rickshaw Rumble which was won by Ella and Eva! A highlight was walking through the slums trying to find some dear friends of Mark that he had met over 15 years ago and helped them build a latrine during a summer. Despite destitute poverty, their hospitality was overwhelming. They brought out tea and biscuits and did mehndi (henna) on our hands. They also enjoyed playing hackey-sack with a young boy. A truly magical bonding experience! Our visit to the Hamalian Education Center
Yesterday we flew to Tumlingtar and then hiked the 4.5 miles to HEC (about 2000 of elevation gain in very hot conditions). We were warmly welcomed by Sunita and enjoyed a wonderful dinner with all the girls. Today we helped to clear the corn (to make way for planting of millet) and then shucked all that had been left. Such a fun group bonding experience! Tomorrow we head out on our trekking portion of the trip to dedicate a library. And now on to the Hopeful Home Orphanage
Meet the 2024 students who traveled to Nepal
2024 Ten Friends Trip to Nepal - Slideshow |
The trip to Nepal continues to go extremely well! After touring Bhaktapur (and Cooper got to try his hand on the potters wheel) we had a fabulous time at the Hopeful Home Orphanage (we spent a fun evening passing out shoes and gifts, dancing and having dinner in the newly expanded community room. We also took the kids swimming in a pool - something most of them had never done in their life!
