1 December 2008
I’m just back from a day of walking in the hills to visit
some other villages neareby, in which the only way to earn money is for men
to be trekking porters. They are indeed in Langtang National Park, which is
famous for mostly easy low altitude treks.
I can now tell that despite the apparences, my home here is actually very luxuous!
Indeed, there is tap water, hard walls, floor and ceiling, and electricity which
is far from being the case in most homes I’ve seen today which are only
tiny huts, in which a whole family can live, at some distance from any water
supply and of course without electricity. These people are so poor (they earn
less than 15 euros per month and they have at least 4 to 6 children to feed)
that they can’t send their children to school. Very sad. And on top of
that I could check myself that all the fuss about mountain porters which are
badly treated is justified: I met one porter with his two big toes amputated
and another one with the whole right hand amputated, both because of frostbite.
Dreadful!
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Here are now a picture of the school, which shows quite well
my daily environment, and a picture from one of my classes which let you imagine
the conditions in which I work!!! ;-)
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I have three classes: one for mainly teenagers and adults from 6.15 to 8.15 every morning (before people go to work or to school), one for children from 4 to 5.15 in the afternoon and one evening class from 5.15 to 6.30 for teenagers who are a bit more advanced. In total, I have almost 150 registered students although only 100 have turned up the last two days. And I had to refuse about 50 students at the beginning as there was really no way to fit more people in the classroom!!! Everybody here is so eager to learn English, it’s crazy! The classes take place in a classroom of Jhyanlang school, but people are coming from all the villages neareby, and I and Hari took care of the organisation.
However, during the day, I help the English teachers at the school with their grade 3, 4 and 5 students. So I’m quite busy! All the more that I teach everyday!
As I suffer from a huge cold and sore throat, I’m dead
tired now, so I won’t write more about my teaching experience, I’m
afraid.
Tomorrow, I’ll try to send this letter as I have to use Hari’s USB
stick before he leaves for Kathmandu again. So to conclude, I’ll say that
my life here is quite tough by many aspects but is fascinating by many others.
The three things I love are:
• No noise at all except the murmur of the stars, the breath of the cattle
and the laugh of the children
• The generosity of the people here: although they have nothing, they’re
happy to share this nothing
• How my students are so willing to learn.
So it’s really an incredible experience!
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