this isny exactly the beginning of my landing in nepal, but its starting somewhere and keeping with the flow of writing, which i am hating at the moment and not at all enjoying what is coming out of me, so sorry if this is crpytic. will write more soon...
from the safety of a crate on
top of an elepant, we saw the jungle. each clumsy heavy movement
brought us further from the dusty crowdd road and closer to the wild.
with each step i thought either i would fall off or the elephant would
relent to the weight and roll over. but on she went, for two hours. as
we wntered the park, local women threw bananas at us to feed the
elephant, trying to make some money off our entertainment.
we saw a rhino with her baby, and cicled around them to get a better
view. their bodies looked like they were pieced together, like some
kind of man made machine. we carried on and heard the mating cris of
the female peacock and the male flaunting and doing his dance. a wild
chicken was in the distance, watching.
We walked to the river for elephant bathing time which brought out
the most childish sense of playful wonder. I had to hold on to the huge
floppy ears and wrap my leg around the trunk of the elephant in order
for it to bring the trunk up and pull me on top of its slippery back.
After commands shouted in nepali, the lephant would squirt water
all over the place- the best sprinkler ive ever had! They seemed to be
having such a grand time playing in the water, going under for a while
and laying still while they were scrubbed. I heard the people work with
the same animal its whole life- i wonder how deep the relationship is
between them. I hope they dont drug them.
I went ofr a walk around the village after, shuffling my feet in
the flimsy flip flops along the many rocks in the way. I passed by
goats of all sizes, water buffalo , dogs, and chickens. The smells
emanating around me were so, real. From mud huts with thatched roofs
came namastes in many voices, my reply full of desire to say more. Past
women breastfeeding, children playing, and elders resting- I walked. It
struck me that every other hut doubled as a makeshit store with
everything from bottled water to carlsberg beer to snickers bars. it
was so incongruent to the surroundings and yet seemingly so neccessary.
For our canoe ride we sat in a hand carved canoe made from a type
of big tree in the area that I didnt catch. IT was naturally
beautiful.One mane stood in the back and rowed with a long
stick. Within moments we saw a huge crocodile partially submerged in
the water. A moment later, just a small head peeking out, and after
that a young one lazing on the sand. From here we continued on land for
our jungle walking tour, protected by one guy our age and one who
looked around 14 carrying bamboo sticks. Immediately we were walking on
charred ground that continued for most of our walk, some fire that
people started I guess because in the end we saw it was still going but
nodoby seemed to mind. It was really awful to see the damage.
Deer ran ahead of us and mnkeys climbed to our side. Wild boar feces
created a field in front of us. Deeper we went, crossing foot bridges
and murky swamps. Eventually we came to a clearing and saw flames
ablaze, albeit seemingly unthreatening- the cause of all the
destruction, there were three of them going, and we couldnt do much
about it. I noticed my reation differed from their more apathectic
response, as I was trying to explain we had to find some way to put it
out.
IT was nearing sunset and the sky was alive with colors like the fire,
but much friendlier. We departed the forest and headed for the tall
grasslands when the dark clouds rolled closer. WE continued on when
suddenly darkness threatened and the sky opened up. At first it was a
refreshing drizzle, then it came down thicker and faster until it was
huge pellets of hail. We took cover under a tree initially, in between
its massive trunk, but this was a hopeless move. We began running full
force as the rain turned into a fierce hail and the ground seemed to be
spitting the water back at us, sitting open mouthed without gulping. We
found shelter under a tin roof at the elephant breeding center and
watched the elephants play in the mud as the babies roamed about
freely. Only the adults are chained up, and I watched one female bend
down in the mud and pull herself up with practiced grace, despite her
front two legs being chained together. After half an hour of jogging in
place to keep warm, the pitter patter on the roof died down. We trudged
through the deep puddles to the riverand waddled in a canoe across to
the awaiting jeep. There was a mystical feeling in the air, that of the
first deep rain of the season and the people preparing for the monsoon
ahead. THe women and children had emerged from their houses and were
huddled together telling stories or wading in the puddles. The
inexplainable scent aafter rainfall wafted through the air as people
started moving about their business, refreshed.
At night we went to the Tharu Cultural Programme. It seems like a
wonderful way to keep the children involved in the community and out of
trouble. Village life certainly is so different than the city. They
performed different dances, using sticks for defense, the harbest, and
even a peacock dance with an excellent costume that looked real.
I will think fondly of the noices of the night here once back in the city.
-----
Today I met the group of people that I will be living with for the next
few months. We walked together to the house and stopped at the Monkey
Temple where we used all our strength and stamina to climb the endless
steps to the top, rewarded with a stunning veiw of the city and many
samples of the converging shrines for both buddhism and hinduism.
Tomorrow we being our nepali lessons....
I will write more on the program soon.
