November 16, 2004: Headlines: COS - Nepal: Climbing: Everest News: I stayed in the Layalu many a night on walks back and forth from Lamidanda to Nirmalidanda when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal. The Layalus are a Newar family and both the mother and father were still there. I gave them a photo I had made 20 years ago of their daughter Lamas who is now a teacher in Kathmandu.
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November 16, 2004: Headlines: COS - Nepal: Climbing: Everest News: I stayed in the Layalu many a night on walks back and forth from Lamidanda to Nirmalidanda when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal. The Layalus are a Newar family and both the mother and father were still there. I gave them a photo I had made 20 years ago of their daughter Lamas who is now a teacher in Kathmandu.
I stayed in the Layalu many a night on walks back and forth from Lamidanda to Nirmalidanda when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal. The Layalus are a Newar family and both the mother and father were still there. I gave them a photo I had made 20 years ago of their daughter Lamas who is now a teacher in Kathmandu.
I stayed in the Layalu many a night on walks back and forth from Lamidanda to Nirmalidanda when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal. The Layalus are a Newar family and both the mother and father were still there. I gave them a photo I had made 20 years ago of their daughter Lamas who is now a teacher in Kathmandu.
Dear EverestNews.com, This is John talking: I'm typing this in a tent in the village of Nirmalidanda. A lot has happened since we last sent a dispatch. After climbing the huge 2-hour hill from Lamidanda on the trail to Diktel we reached Nuntalaa high on a ridge overlooking the Rawa Khola 5,000 feet below. It seems as though every valley in Nepal is at least the equivalent of the Grand Canyon in terms of elevation differential. Nuntaalaa is mostly a Thamang town. We sat around for quite a while and had daalbhaat cooked by the Sherpas. We've been using various tea shop kitchens to cook our own meals which is working out well since we have more control over sanitation.
After lunch, two more hours of walking mostly on the level on a partially constructed road with no motor traffic, followed by a 1,000 foot gradual descent, brought us to the large ridge top town of Diktel Bazar. I couldn't recognize things as we descended into town since there's been so much construction including a prison (presumably for Maoists). We had to pass through a military checkpost; only some of the Sherpa's packs were searched and only superficially. The westerners were waived on through. As we walked through the single street town, I asked someone if the Layalu Hotel is still here. They indicated that it did so we marched on down to the Layalu. I stayed in the Layalu many a night on walks back and forth from Lamidanda to Nirmalidanda when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer. The Layalus are a Newar family and both the mother and father were still there. I gave them a photo I had made 20 years ago of their daughter Lamas who is now a teacher in Kathmandu. Diktel has a curfew from 7pm to 4am so we had to finish up daalbhaat and get back across the street to our rooms. Diktel still has all the morning sounds I remember - dogs barking, roosters crowing, and people clearing their throats. Shortly before we left town, a Khotang journalist found me. He asked if he could interview me for local Khotang television, so I agreed. The jist of the interview was "Khotang then and now". It must sound and look pretty funky since all the questions were in Nepali and my answers were all in my limited Nepali. It would be a hoot to see it aired but it will be after Tihar celebration which is after I go home. This poor journalist never leaves Diktel where he feels safe; he says the Maoists don't like him. One of the questions he asked was if I detected the tension in the hills these days due to the Maoists. I sort of dodged the question by saying things still seem quite nice for a tourist.
In the morning (Nov. 11), we began walking to Nirmalidanda at 11:30am, descending steeply down 2,000 feet to the Miya Khola on a familiar trail where we crossed a good suspension bridge. Then we had to ascend for a long time up through rice terraces in the hot sun, sweating profusely. Two or three more hours of walking brought us finally to Nirmalidanda along a trail I had walked many times. As we rounded a corner, we encountered a group of men who stopped us and asked a few questions. Given the Nepali grapevine, I'm sure they knew we were coming. I told them that I had helped build a water system in Nirmalidanda 20 years ago and we had come to visit and look things over. They seemed alright with this and suggested we go on to the next house along the trail to stay there tonight. I immediately recognized the old Rai man living there along with his extended family. His son - Jit Man Rai - is now the water committee chairman for the village of Nirmalidanda. So we set up all the tents in their front yard and we had a great meal of tarkaari bhaat (vegetables and rice) along with chicken - yes they killed a couple of roosters for us. We had sort of restless night because their young dog would howl a very loud high pitched howl like a coyote every few hours. Then the roosters and hens set in toward morning.
I pulled out my people photos from 20 years ago, and wow how happy it made them. I would ask if so and so was still alive, etc. and with the exception of only 2 or 3 people, everyone in the photos is still alive. This morning, we moved our camp up to the center of the village about 1000 feet above Jit Man Rai's pitched tents in dry rice terrace below a Chetri's house. More people came around who remembered me and I remembered many faces. They looked at the photos and I've now given away over half of the more than 200 I had brought. They seem very happy that we came. This afternoon, we walked along rice terraces up to the spring source for the water system, another 1000 feet above our current camp - vertical country, Nepal! Jit Man Rai, the water chairman is going to make a list of parts and supplies (pipe, fittings, cement, etc.) needed to maintain the water system since UNICEF pulled out of this work several years ago. Maybe we can find a source of funding so that the needed supplies can be purchased.
When this story was posted in November 2004, this was on the front page of PCOL:
| The Birth of the Peace Corps UMBC's Shriver Center and the Maryland Returned Volunteers hosted Scott Stossel, biographer of Sargent Shriver, who spoke on the Birth of the Peace Corps. This is the second annual Peace Corps History series - last year's speaker was Peace Corps Director Jack Vaughn. |
| Charges possible in 1976 PCV slaying Congressman Norm Dicks has asked the U.S. attorney in Seattle to consider pursuing charges against Dennis Priven, the man accused of killing Peace Corps Volunteer Deborah Gardner on the South Pacific island of Tonga 28 years ago. Background on this story here and here. |
| Director Gaddi Vasquez: The PCOL Interview PCOL sits down for an extended interview with Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez. Read the entire interview from start to finish and we promise you will learn something about the Peace Corps you didn't know before.
Plus the debate continues over Safety and Security. |
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Story Source: Everest News
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Nepal; Climbing
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