nomadsally

NEPAL HABITAT HOUSE DEDICATION

THE DEDICATION OF OUR NEPAL HABITAT

BAMBOO HOME

MEHENDRA, SHANTI, AND CHILDREN AT NEW HOME DEDICATION

HABITAT WORKERS SHARE THEIR JOY

THE DEDICATION OF OUR NEPAL HABITAT BAMBOO HOME

What a joyful day!

RASHME BRINGING GIFT TO OUR FAMILY

SINGING ALONG WITH RALPH

THANKS, RALPH

SHANTI IN FRON OF HER NEW HOUSE

BRUCE, OUR WONDERFUL HABITAT LEADER
HOW HANDSOME IN YOUR TOPI AND TIKA!

MARTIN AND CRAGG CELEBRATE

JERRY AND BUZZ ENJOYING THE DAY WITH BABY GOAT

VIEWS OF HOUSE FROM THE FRONT

ANOTHER VIEW

SHE IS EVEN CELEBRATING!

HABITAT BUILD - WEEK 2

HABITAT BUILD - WEEK TWO

WALKING THE REST OF THE WAY TO WORK SITE. NOTE THE ROAD CONDITION

IMAGINE WHO GREETS US EVERY DAY!
FISHTAIL PEAK

NEIGHBORS GREET US AS THEY WALK TO SCHOOL

The weaving activity keeps us occupied. By the time we finish we will have all areas of the house filled with woven bamboo except for the windows and doors. Roof preparation for the tin roof continues.

RAISING THE WALL TAKES TEAMWORK

Place bamboo posts for the roof . Continue making bamboo slats for the walls. The bamboo challenge is having the appropriate width, length and flexibility of slat to fit the varied wall sections.

PEGGY PREPARING BAMBOO

ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!

SYLVIA IS PROUD IF HER WEAVING

CATHY, JIM AND ANIL ARE SHOWING THEIR WALL

CAROLYN, ARE YOU HAPPY OR WHAT?

MAYBE WE WILL GET A HOUSE BUILT!

LUNCH IS ALWAYS A TREAT

CHEF PREPARES PASTA WITH VEGETABLES ON SITE

HABITAT TEAM ENJOYING THE LUNCH BREAK

LINDA, PRITI, AND MARTIN AT LUNCH

WHAT IS LEFT?

We need to weave more bamboo wall board sections. Placing bamboo strips together in a woven format is an incredibly labor intensive activity. It is necessary to cut the accurate length for the area as well as use a piece that is sufficiently flexible to fit into the size of the section. Almost everyone is preparing the bamboo.

Another activity is transporting sand (needed to mix both plaster and concrete) from the path below the house to the work site, chain gang style.

LOOK AT PRITI AND PAM CARRY THAT SAND!

TEAM WORK

Then we can sift and mixed it with water, slop the plaster on the woven bamboo walls, and later smooth it.

Meanwhile, we hear the sounds of a drill as Lula, the local building expe) and partner are preparing to attach the metal roof.

GETTING READY FOR THE METAL ROOF

LULA (FROM HABITAT NEPAL) IS ON HIS TOES!

RASHME, HABITAT NEPAL LEADER, AND LALU DISCUSS ROOF CONSTRUCTION

LALU APPEARS TO BE A ROOFING ACROBAT

PROGRESS IS VISIBLE

NOW FOR THE CONCRETE FLOOR

EVERYONE ON TASK!

HARD-WORKING RALPH SURVEYS THE PROGRESS

THE HOUSE IS NEAR COMPLETION....MAHENDRA AND SANTI AN FRIENDS WILL

COMPLETE THE HOUSE WITH PAINT, WINDOWS AND THE ONE CONCRETE FLOOR.

THE HOUSE DEDICATION WILL TAKE PLACE SOON. CHECK THE NEXT POST.

HABITAT BUILD - WEEK 1, NEAR POKHARA, NEPAL

HABITAT BUILD NEAR POKHARA, NEPAL

OUR BUILDING SITE

VIEW OF LAKE FROM BUILDING SITE

ANOTHER VIEW FROM OUR SITE. NOTICE THE HIMALAYAS

Finally the day had come to start house building for a family in Nepal. What a delight it was to meet our new family who would work with us throughout the build.

Ashaunti and Mahendra with three children, Rajan (9), Rajiv(4), and Rituk (4 months), live in the rich terraced foothills of Fishtail Peak and the Himalaya Range in a municipality called Lekhnath outside of Pokhara. They are the lucky ones Habitat has selected to participate in building a new home. Their new home will consist of two rooms located next to their present tiny structure. Their bathroom will continue to be located outside the home and water will still come from faucet located on the road near their home.

It is interesting to find out that Mahendra and family are of the Newari ethnic group and Brahmin caste, the upper level caste. I had imagined that being a Brahmin meant that you were both well educated and of means, but caste is a complex social divider and is still strong in Nepal. A college educated person told me that it is possible to identify a person's caste by their facial structure. He said the pointed nose is a sign of being Brahmin. An add that to the fifty some ethnic groups of Nepal and it is all quite confusing1

We twenty-one Habitat builders will hopefully complete their bamboo and plaster structure in our two weeks here.

The magnificent Himalayas met us at our work site. Can you imagine working at the foothills of a peak more than 20,000 feet high? It was an unbelievable moment standing on the ground where we would be building and seeing nothing but magnificent peaks all around us and a beautiful pristine Lake Begnas directly below . We couldn't stop taking photos of the sights.

MAHENDRA, OWNER OF OUR BUILDING SITE

SANTI, WIFE OF MAHENDRA

SANTI AND DAUGHTER, RITUK

Our first jobs were to clear out the work site, move all supplies and materials away from work area. measure for the placement of the new building. and begin measuring, marking, and cutting bamboo which will serve as the frames and slats for the exterior walls of the new Habitat home.

CONNIE AND CAROLYN PREPARING THE BAMBOO FOR WALL WEAVING

CAROLE, THE BAMBOO SPLICING EXPERT

GETTING THE WALL BEAMS READY

PRITI AND MARTIN ON TASK MAKING THE WALL BEAMS

The next projects were digging the trench and holes to support the wall beams.

DIGGING THE TRENCH

LOTS OF DIGGING FOR THAT TRENCH, PAM

Finish the wall framework and place all wall panels in designated locations. Even all sections of the framework and pour cement into the prepared foundation wells. Begin cutting, smoothing, and measuring the slats for the wall weaving. The approaching week-end will provide plenty of time for the concrete to dry.

ARRIVAL IN POKHARA

POKHARA ARRIVAL

Arriving at Pokhara was a mountain thrill of our lives. The entire Buddha flight provided us with mountain peaks to examine. And then arriving at the airport with the Annapurna massif as a backdrop was inspiring.

Our Taj Hotel was awaiting us and we quickly settled in to the rather quaint setting. Then we walked to a restaurant next to the Phewa Lake on street named Lakeside. This would be our hangout after work days! It looked great with shops of every kind and restaurants of almost every food of the world.

YAKIMA TEAM IN POKHARA

Now the work begins in Pokhara. Our wonderful Habitat Yakima leaders, Ann and Bruce Willis, explained the schedule and work site information. A 45 minute bus trip would take us daily to reach our worksite. Breakfast was at 7:00 and departure at 8:00 with water bottles, gloves, sunscreen, and anything else necessary for a day's labor in the sun.....We were ready, it seemed. All twenty-one of us from Yakima Washington was wondering what the day would bring and what kind of a house would we build in two weeks?

We would soon know.....

MANDALA PAINTING, TIBETAN REFUGEE CAMP, AND PATAN

MANDALAS

TIBETAN REFUGEE CAMP

PATAN

We were able to explore more cultural life of Kathmandu and the region. The following is only brief view of these fascinating but brief visits.

Mandala Painting.

This style of painting represents the geometrical or astrological representation of the path to enlightenment. As you can observe here it is most detailed, precise, and colorful. We also saw mandalas created in sand.

MANDALA PAINTING IS HIGHLY VALUED IN NEPAL

PAINTING OF THE BUDDHA'S LIFE

MANDALA

Visit to a Tibetan Refugee Camp near Kathmandu

WEAVING SILK THREADS FOR A BEAUTIFUL SHAWL

CARPET WEAVING

BEAUTIFUL PATTERNS EMERGE FROM THESE TIBETAN WOMEN

PATAN

Once a fiercely city state, it is now a suburb of Kathmandu with a population of 200,000. Some still call the city by its original name, Lilitpur (city of beauty).

It is known for its beautiful Durbar Square with the finest collection of temples and palaces in the whole of Nepal. As you might remember, the ancient ruling city states of the Nepal region had its own palace and temple complex.

Patan's history dates back to the Buddhist emperor who erected the four cornerstones for the city in 250 BC. It was ruled by noblemen until om 1597 King Shiva Malla temporary unified the valley and a building boom ensued.

Views of Patan follow: