Team Cooper Nepal Re-Build Project Diary - Sunday 27th March 2016

Sunday 27th March 2016

*More pictures will be added when Parentals get home*  :)

We both had a reasonable sleep last night. Getting up at 6.30 we showered and went for breakfast which consisted of a buffet with a selection of fresh fruit, cereal and accompanied with bread, nam and croissants. 

We met our guide Ram downstairs at 8am, our 4x4 was loaded, our cook and porter joined us and we set off on our journey. Kathmandu was busy with lots of poor and damaged buildings all around, but it was hard to say whether or not it was earthquake damage. As it's the dry season, everything is very dusty which made it often hard to see in front. The sun is there but blocked by so much dust in the air.

 

We head out of Kathmandu and drive slowly on the Nepal/India highway. The road is very windy and steep and we are held up many times. This is the same road we took to Chitwan in 2012 after we had completed Everest Base Camp.

After a couple of hours, we leave the highway and head into the mountains. An hour later we stop in a town to get vegetables before leaving the road and continuing on a dirt track.

Around 12.30pm we stop in small town for lunch where we have the traditional Daal Bhat (rice with curried vegetables and pickle) which tasted good.

Ram and the others sat elsewhere, but Ram came back after lunch to chat. We learnt that he had been with Ace Himalaya for 7 years now but was also studying in commerce. He really enjoys his work at present as a guide but would like to go into banking later. Soon it was time to get back in car and head, still a long way to go.

For the next few hours, it becomes very bumpy and tricky, especially when the track is narrow and you meet a convoy of trucks and buses. Children wait at the side for their school bus, it is exam time.

Passing many villages you see the destruction of the earthquake, there is clearly so much work to be done.

Goats, cows, chickens and children roam the roads. Stopping at the last small town for a drink we see a house more or less on its side. No one was in at the time, which was good.

After a nine hour journey, we arrive at Prem's and Ram's village and we see 2 of the new houses, Ram shows Prem's family home that was badly damaged by the earthquake, no one can stay there now. His brother lives nearby. Collecting the camping equipment at the 2nd house, we head for final destination and camp is set up next to house number four that we will work on. We sit at an old couple's house and are given the traditional red dot on forehead and flowers while we wait on tents being set up. 

We later talk to Ram about Nepal, the politics of the country, the work to do on the house etc.  We learnt that it was only in secondary school that Ram learnt English, but now English is part of the schooling from grade 1.

There is no water here and it is brought up in metal canisters.  While waiting for tea, lots of family members arrived, not sure if they stay at the house or came to investigate us as they rarely see foreigners.  We have tea around 7pm and during this we witness a huge thunderstorm, power is switched off and we eat by torch.  Our cook had made lovely soup followed by omelette, noodles and veg which was lovely.  While we ate, the old woman ground up maize for animal feed which increases the milk they yield whilst the old guy settled to his out door bed.

Once we have finished out tea it's after 8pm and we say goodnight and head for our tent.  We will have breakfast at 7.30am to start work just after 8am.

Our first day has been dusty and tiring but also interesting.  The real work however starts tomorrow.

We go to sleep listening to bugs chirping and the old guy coughing and spluttering.

Team Cooper Back in Nepal Re-building Homes Destroyed by Last Year's Earthquake in the Gorkha Region!

Compassionate people of the world....I love Geology....but as fascinating as earthquakes are, they really do suck balls for the people unfortunate enough to live on the surface of the boundary of two massive tectonic plates, in this case the Indo-Austrailian and Asian plates.  Strain on the boundaries of tectonic plates is the reason we have the Himalayan mountain range in the first place, but unlike 50 million years ago when the Himalayas were first formed, today we have settlements and people  living in the mountains as well as climbing them.  

In response to the horrific earthquakes in Nepal in 2015, the Parentals are off on a new mission to help rebuild homes destroyed by the 2015 quake that completely flattened whole villages, killed thousands and affected millions.  This will be done through the company Ace the Himalaya, more information of which can be found at their website. 

Anyhoo, as I wrote the piece that went along with their fundraising campaign, I figured I might as well just copy and paste what I wrote for their GoFundMe campaign.  :)

Roy and Gail Cooper became very fond of Nepal and its people after their trek to Everest Base Camp in October 2012.  The Nepalese people made this trek possible with their amazing assistance on the trek and Roy and Gail developed a strong affection towards their people.  

On the 25th April 2015, Nepal was hit with the most devastating natural disaster since the 1934 Nepal-Bihar Earthquake.  An earthquake that would prove to be the deadliest day in recorded history to strike Mount Everest.  Also known as the ‘Gorka Earthquake’, over 8,000 people were killed with several thousand injured and millions affected.  A major aftershock on the 12th May led to another 200 deaths with a further 2,500 injured.  

This level of devastation would be difficult for any country to recover from, but for one such as Nepal where people already struggle to get by; the past year has been absolutely horrendous.  Many villages in the region were completely flattened and families have been forced to spend their time since living in temporary shelters.

Roy and Gail are currently in Nepal to take part in rebuilding a family home and whilst they are away, I am raising money for them to present to the village at the end of their trip.  They left on Friday and travelled to Kathmandu before taking the incredibly dusty and bumpy 9-hour journey to the Gorkha region. Their guide Iran has been really friendly and very informative. En-route to the Gorkha region they have been stopping at a few of the worst hit villages in the earthquake zone so as to see the true level of devastation that this earthquake caused. Almost a year on and the air is still grey....even in the hotel in Kathmandu.

They are working in the village as I type this, and are sleeping in a tent in someone's garden and living very basically, which I guess is a great way to appreciate what these people have went through, to a little extent at least. Despite living with so little, the villagers have all been really lovely. :)

Approximately £250 each of their total holiday cost will go towards materials but it takes approx £3600 to build a nice strong house for a family.

They have travelled to the Gorkha district of Nepal to help build a home for Chitra Bahadur and his family.  

“Chitra Bahadur lives in Ward No 6 Ratamate village of Arupokhari Village Development Committee (VDC) in Gorkha district.  His family of 4 includes he himself, his wife, daughter and son.  He is the only one in the family to earn something as his son is away from home and doesn’t have an income to help the family.  He is a poor farmer who earns very little from his farming and doing things here and there. There is no one to help him.  He completely lost his house during the earthquake and now lives in a temporary shelter which he built from Rs 15,000 (£105).”

The more money Team Cooper raise, the more they will be able to help both Chitra and his family build a safe, strong home.  Depending on how much they raise, it might be possible to help other families as well.

At this time, there is no closing date, but the quicker money is raised, the faster Team Cooper can help contribute as much as possible to the vital rebuild of the Bahadur family’s village.  

Roy and Gail would love to be able to present a collection of as many donations as possible from compassionate individuals to the Bahadur family and their village, no matter how big or small.  Whilst they are away, along with the GoFundMe campaign, my sister Cat and I area also collecting donations and will be having a raffle in our pub in Arbroath, The Fisherman's Inn. All donations are gratefully appreciated.  :)

You can follow the rebuild progress from their trip on Team Cooper's Adventures on Facebook, as well as on here. www.facebook.com/CoopersMountainAdventures.

Huge thanks to everyone that helps us with our goal.  Jennifer xox