Infrastructure in Nepal-1 year later

We always hear about police in developing countries and how bad they are for corruption and such. Being an expat here in Nepal I had been curious about the police and have been pleased with most encounters that I’ve had with the police here in Nepal.

After the first earthquake last year I went to the police department with a guest so she could see about getting evacuated. The police department in Changunarayan is located on a hill at the front of the village. There had been about 5 small buildings there, but they had all fallen quite badly the day before. 

While we were there another earthquake began! The officer who was talking with us started telling me to sit down. I couldn’t, the earth was moving so violently beneath me. The shaking seemed to go on for quite some time, even though it was actually less than a minute. 

From this vantage point, I could see plumes of smoke where more homes were falling, and where more people must have been losing even more. It would rain soon, which would mean more loss, more trauma. 

That was almost a year ago. Last week a police officer came to the guest house and requested a donation to help rebuild. I was surprised when Kamal and I went up to the police department to see how we could help. 

These pictures are as the police department looks now. The small office buildings have no concrete foundations, nor do they have concrete and re-bar construction; they will not be safe for the next earthquake. 

Note there are no concrete pillars or even a concrete foundation.

As I watched the chain of events happening around me for these past 11 months I continue to be amazed by several trends: few complaints about the day to day hardships, the slowness of help for the people and the sadness of the landscape that surrounds me. 

I do not want our brave police officers being among the first casualties when the next earthquake comes. We lost 9 during the first hours after the first earthquake as a building came down on them. This was the earthquake story that touched my heart the most deeply.

 

This is the kitchen and dining area

Our police chief told me they only need $10,000 to fix it to the way they plan it to be. Such a small amount to protect so many people. There are 15 officers who work there and sleep there. They will need to be our first responders when the next disaster comes.

Please help us to keep our first responders safe. If you’ve been to Nepal and got help from our police department or our Tourist Police Department I know you understand the kindness they show tourists. I thank you in advance for your support. We will have the crowd-funder for them soon. In the meantime, please use Our Fundraiser Link

Police officers often do 24 hours at a time. Here's where they sleep.

This gazebo is the only thing that was there from before the earthquakes.

 

This aluminum shelter is also used for sleeping quarters

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Here's my spoiler alert: Do not eat the street food in Nepal, nor should you eat at any buffet. The eBook addresses such things as this and what to do if you become ill, etc. Whether or not you get my book, please read this short, free eBook. It will help you get your time here off to a great start. http://bit.ly/2aGxcuHIf there is a problem with the download or code please let me know at FrugalTravelsNepal@gmail.com 

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A Volunteer’s Take on Our Projects

Goto Mah on one of the streets of Bhaktapur. Note the boards holding the buildings up.

A Volunteer’s Take on our Projects
Guest Writer Goto Mah

It all started as a call through C$. I was in Pokhara taking a break from volunteering and using some time for myself to sort out my own life while making friends. I was enjoying a sense of community that's hard to achieve when you live on the move.

So that said, I was starting to feel like I should move my ass again and help Nepal with the relief effort after the earthquake.

That same day I got a call from a friend who told me we were going to do a cleaning/demo action in Kathmandu, so I took an overnight bus that day and I was ready at the Fireflies to finish the banners in Kathmandu.

Got the guy's faces painted and off we went to the streets of Thamel to let'em hear us. Then we marched to the temple nearby carrying brooms and shovels. Once we arrived we cleaned what were layers of plastic that had been dropped there for years. Nepal has little infrastructure so plastic is a major problem in Nepal.

Then I was going to move on to Bhaktapur to help Shelters 4 Nepal, the Couch Surfing call, but started feeling a bit sick due to travelling conditions and tiredness. I checked into the Star View guest house and I woke up next morning ready to join the group building shelters. Next morning I was feeling better, but I woke up to a banda (strike) so the mission was postponed 2 days. It was nice to have a private room for a night or two with a private bath and a bit of rest, at least until the next volunteer came.  

Although these protests can disrupt things, I am happy to say democracy is alive and well in Nepal.

When I finally arrived to the workshop where the rest of the people were I found that we were going to work with metal structures, something completely new to me. That day we cut many metal bars into bits that would be the building blocks for structures that we'll assemble and cover with corrugated tin. So there we were, making bundles for the different parts of the shelters. Sparks everywhere.

We ended up with enough for almost 5 shelters. But we were lacking materials so called it a day. Went to have some coffee and meet the local link for Jagadati, the neighborhood in Bhaktapur where the shelters were being built.

Many buildings in Bhaktapur are held up with wood like this.

The guys left for the hospital to check on a friend, a tangka artist, and I came to Changu to meet Ama. On the way from the bus stop this young girl that came in the same bus was waiting for me on the path and told me that we were going to the same place. And there we arrived, to the Star View Guest House.

Ama was sitting in her living room crouched in front of a laptop and welcomed me with a broad smile. I told her my story and that I was broke due to all my previous volunteering help and the lack of donations and she offered me to stay free of charge in exchange for some help with her own projects.

Ama has this amazing concept on how to rebuild what once was an amazing village with the oldest Hindu temple in the Kathmandu valley. She also writes a blog and wrote a book about Nepal with tips on how to find your way around.

She showed me around the house and explained how to work my way around it. I got a small room with a bunk bed and there I was, set to volunteer around Changu Narayan.

The house is full of kids, about 5 of them that sleep in the room in front of me, plus two more mature guys that sleep on the ground floor and have their own garden space. This is due to the earthquakes because many people have lost their homes here. 

By night we had a party as it was Ama’s 62^nd birthday. We sang and ate cake and drank local spirits. The neighbors were there, and also all the kids and teenagers, even the street dogs came to celebrate.

And right now I'm sitting next to her and some other lovely local girl helping towards Amanda's goals of making Changu a beautiful, authentic, ancient village, even better than before.

We're sorting out the problems with her book, creating a website for the new NGO that's going to take off soon, discussing the matters about project planning. I'm even going to show the guys downstairs interested in computing how to reinstall their operating system and have a dual boot so they could get a taste and feel on Linux/GNU.

Keep tuned for more info to come on improving Changu and its surroundings or you have the time and energy you can just come by and help out.

Life is everywhere