Rita Montgomery

This morning, like many other mornings, I walked with the younger children to their school.  We follow a path through the back yard, climb steps up a hill, walk out by a corn field, cut through a grass plot, travel down a dirt road, and wah lah, we are at school!  The children all meet on the playground and get some play time in before school begins.  They are so cute!

Our days are busy!  We usually are up at 5.30am or 6.00am as the house is hopping.  There is play time, breakfast, and time to complete any homework that has not been completed prior to preparing for school.  The last two mornings we hurried up to the rooftop to see the mountains - gorgeous!!  The rains have been heavy along with strong winds, which has created very clear, spectacular mountain views early in the morning!  The mountains are usually hidden throughout the monsoon so it has been a real treat to see them.

While the children are at school, I am involved in some work for the foundation like preparing packages of holiday cards (6 cards which were made from the children's artwork), and then with the help of the children, we tied strings around each packet - lots of fun with my little  helpers.  Have also worked on some inventory, filing and other office tasks.  We have also been touring and seeing more of Nepal.  One stop was Bhaktapur which was beautiful - very well preserved architecturally. Yesterday four of us toured land looking for a new site for the children's home which was very interesting.  We also toured another children's home, Shangrila, which has solar power and a program in place to transition the children once they turn 17 years old, again very interesting.  I've been on some beautiful hikes through villages, forests, a pine forest, rice paddies, corn fields, all over the countryside - really enjoyable!  Nepal is a beautiful country.

I am feeling like a local and can easily get in and around the parts of town that I know.  I can ride the micro-bus into town, which is similar to a van back home however here they can fit 25 or 26 people into them.  Being a wide-hipped American, I don't quite fit into the Nepali seats so usually am hanging off the end of one seat and holding on very tightly.  Today I counted 25 people with 3 people standing hanging over others and they picked up one more - pretty funny!

Typical Nepali meals consists of dahl (lentil or corn soup), baht (rice) and some vegetable and spices.  This is always served for breakfast and dinner.  I have had some grilled chicken sandwiches when we were out touring and am getting hungry for more protein.   Looking forward to a barbecue, Pops!

I am doing well, although have been a tasty snack for the mosquitoes.  The nights are really cool, which is great, so have a blanket to cover up with.  I am totally covered, head included, except one side of my face, which gets chomped on.  And if I have an arm outside of the blanket, which I did last night, it gets chomped on.  So I am looking pretty funny!  I did see a gecko last night so I am hoping he is really hungry and eats all the mosquitoes!

My time is going so quickly here!  I have been working with the children on their spelling, their reading, their math, and time for lots of games and story telling.  The other evening, the children put on a show for all of us.  It was great!!  The boys all sang a traditional Nepali song, some of the girls performed a Nepali dance, others performed a bollywood dance, there were a couple solo singers, all the boys sang a song, they were very entertaining.  When the show was all finished, and the applause died down, they cranked up the music and invited us to join them dancing.  We had a riot!!  Never a dull moment!! 

Many of you have asked that you would like to send something to the children.  Some items that they could use include:  head lamps (the kind you use when you are camping) due to many power outages; digital cameras in good working condition, or if you would like to donate a new one (great to teach the children a new skill); and hearing aids - this one is  for the villagers - they refurbish the old models and give them out in the villages.  Anyone who knows anyone with a connection to hearing aids, please let me know.  Thank you. Oh, and check out the latest pics!

Hello again!  Today is Friday and I am in town as we listened to a very interesting speaker this morning on the subject of "Unequal Citizens."  The caste system is very hard for me to understand and I will share more on that another time. 

I am staying at Ama Ghar which means Motherly Home in Nepali.  It is located outside Godavari, which is south in the Kathmandu Valley if you are looking at a map.  It is amazing! 

Last Sunday evening I arrived and was greeted with a red dot blessing in the middle of my forehead and flowers placed in my hair, along with tons of "Namastes" and smiles!  What a welcome!  This home has 36 children, 6 full time staff members, Bonnie who is the Managing Director, and Tommy the dog.  There are two ladies visiting, Anna Marie who is a kindergarten teacher in California, and Christine who was recently hired as a fundraiser for the foundation and lives in California.  They are all great!

All the children are in school Sunday through Friday so we are busy in the mornings, late afternoons and evenings.  Time with the children includes a variety of activities - for example one morning we made "Happy Feet" penguins out of construction paper which are now proudly posted all over one room, we have had yoga classes at 6.15am for the older children and again at 8.30am for the younger ones which Christina taught, we have had wonderful performances as the children acted out the stories of  "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" and "The Billy Goat's Gruff" (I so wish I had a video recorder for that one!), lots of reading story books, playing frisbee (Baird frisbees rule), running around outside, all the fun things children love to do!

I know you will not be surprised, but the most challenging for me is reviewing their homework!  Just trying to figure out what the workbook is asking!  I can help with some of it however it has been difficult.  The children have to use a pen for all their homework, no pencils, and they have to rewrite every question before they can answer it.  They can use up a pen in one day and often do!  When is the last time you used up all the ink in a pen in one day!  Crazy! 

My other challenge is to talk English instead of American.  "We are going to head into town" doesn't work.  "We are going to town."  I am working on it. 

You would fall in love with all these children.  Bonnie and her staff have been able to create a true family.  The children are well taken care of, it's a home filled with chatter and laughter, they receive nutritious meals, are all in good schools, taught hygiene, are respectful, speak every time we come in contact (they all speak English and Nepali), they love and help their brothers and sisters, and are really a joy to be around.  And with any family, you have issues that need to be dealt with, especially as these children often arrive without knowing all their specific background or their family history.  Many were left with a grandmother who could not care for them, many have families who are too poor to care for them, and many are orphans.  I understand that many uneducated women can only survive if married.  If there spouse dies, they need to remarry and the new husband won't accept their family, so they abandon or leave their children with a parent or another family member who usually can't support the child.  It is hard to understand all that I am learning.    

The other night, there was a buzz among the children and Uncle (one of the male staff members) told us to go up on the roof top.  So we all headed up to see a beautiful clear night sky with a very bright venus star right in front of the moon - it was really neat!  And we were told that at 8.45pm it was to shine the brightest.  So we hung up on the roof and talked about wishes and decided to all make a wish at 8.45pm.  Exactly at 8.45pm we all made a wish (while a huge cloud covered the moon and venus) and similar to blowing a kiss, sent our wishes out into the night sky.  Immediately following, one of the boys said, "Look Auntie, our wishes are flying to the moon!"  We all looked and there was this huge bright light flying across the sky!!  It was beautiful!!  And they were so excited!  And so was I! 

I want to tell you about each of the children and will mention a few - PoPo loves clothes and dressing up and probably will end up in fashion, Sanjanath loves to sing and she will probably win Indian Idol (yes, a take off of American Idol which they love!), one of the young boys wants to be in the army to protect his country, Benita is studying to be a nurse, Sardeka wants to be a doctor and she asked me to read her letter to request a grant to continue higher education and she will be a great doctor - they are just like our kids.  I will share pictures and more in my next post.  All is going very well.

Back to Work

I only volunteered for the morning and I am wiped out!  I think I was on holiday a bit too long!

This morning I had the opportunity to assist the Sisters at the Home for the Elderly.  They are doing some great work and it was a joy to be with them.  There were two Sisters, two Brothers with the MC's, one young man, one woman and myself volunteering.  Quite a few less volunteers than in Kolkata.  Remember the picture of the brooms in India?  Well I got to use one this morning.  And they work pretty well! 

The sheets were changed on about fifty beds, the floors were scrubbed, the laundry was washed, and then the laundry was hung out to dry.  The beds line two sides of a very long narrow hallway, with a walkway down the middle.  All the beds were moved into the middle on one side, buckets of cleaning agents were dumped on the floor, and then we used the brooms to scrub the floor.  More buckets of cleaning agents were dumped, followed by buckets of clean water.  And I was scrubbing away.  The beds were then moved back, and the same steps were repeated on the other side.  Then the scrubbing and sweeping was done down the middle aisle.  The last step was the men using a big squeegee to dry the floors. 

We didn't have the pools we used for laundry in Kalighat so we used buckets to wash the clothes by hand.  After scrubbing and rinsing, the clothes were hung out on a clothesline.  No rooftops for drying here.  And then Sister said we are finished - all done.  Assisting 50 people takes a lot less time than 150 plus.

While we were walking back to the MC's Home, one of the young men pointed out the Bodnath Stupa, which is the largest stupa in Nepal.  I decided to visit it before I left the city and it was beautiful - very peaceful, not so crowded, and had a lovely view of the surrounding area.  I will post pictures soon.  And I definitely think I have been in the city too long, as one man came up to me and said remember me?  I do remember the children however I couldn't place him.  He went on and on, smiling, talking, and I smiled and nodded, and then he left. 

I am off to the country to meet 36 children.  Wish me luck! 

My Next Steps....

Things are finally falling into place.  After a week of trying to change one airline ticket and purchase a round trip ticket, it just isn't going to happen.  Unfortunately I will not be traveling to Sri Lanka at this time, possibly later this year.

Today I found the Missionaries of Charity in Kathmandu and will spend tomorrow with them again.  They take care of about 50 elderly people who reside near the Pashupathi Temple.

I have met some neat people in Nepal and will remain here until early July.  Bonnie Ellison is an American who grew up in Nepal, has since retired, and is now running a children's home in Godavari which is about one hour south of Nepal.  There are 36 children ages 6 to 18.  The children all attend school and I will be working with them before and after their school hours.  I think I am going to be very busy!!  And I do not know what internet access I will have so will update you as often as I can.      

Kathmandu

After returning to Kathmandu from Pokhara, we decided to stay at the Kathmandu Guest House which is located centrally in the Thamel area.  Next stop was to explore the Pashupatinath Temple.  This is a very well known Hindu Temple which was recommended as a must see.   It is pretty amazing.  This temple is a famous pilgrimage for Hindus, where they actually come to die and be cremated.  There is a hospice and a home for the elderly located on the grounds.  We were not allowed to enter the Temple, you must be a Hindu.  There are many temples on the grounds, with frolicking monkeys and Hindu prayer men or Sadhus.  These Sadhus are something to see.  They are holy men, many sporting dreadlocks, tangled hair, brightly painted faces, and smoke marijuana.  They ask you for money and then you are allowed to take their picture.  John took a picture of one Sadhu, and then was whacked by another Sadhu with his cane for money and a picture!  It was pretty funny!  We were later told by our guide that that Sadhu was one of the oldest and was very innocent.  There is one Sadhu known as the Milk Baba, who you guessed it, only drinks milk.  He was not present as he was traveling in the states.

On the sides of the quietly flowing Bagmati River, there are ghats (cement slabs) where they cremate human remains daily.  One side is for the common man and I believe there were 7 ghats, while the other side is for the royal family, government officials and other VIPs, where there were only two ghats.  Hindus are often cremated the same day they die.  We saw a number of cremations in process while we toured - the ambulance arriving with the body, the family preparing the body, walking around the body three times, laying wood on the body, the first lighting placed within the mouth, and the final dumping of the ashes into the river where they flow downstream eventually to the Ganges.  It was very moving. 

John was returning to the states the next day and was hungry for a steak.  We had heard from some travelers that the Everest Steak House had the best hamburgers so we decided to dine there.  And the animals in Nepal look much healthier than any I saw in Kolkata.  I hadn't had beef in over a month and his filet and my hamburger were great!  My burger was enough to feed two people and I could not eat all of it.  The funny thing is that on a sign in this restaurant, they proudly proclaim that all their beef is from Kolkata!  Do you believe it?  There must be some very healthy animals that were hidden in another part of the city! 

This past week I have been very busy with two things - determining if I am able to fly to Sri Lanka and exploring volunteer opportunities in Nepal.  Changing airline tickets is nothing like back home where you make a phone call and they will hold a ticket for 24 hours.  Over here, there are travel agents all over the place who often work online, they make a few phone calls, and then they ask you to come back in a few hours.  Then you are told you need to go to the Thai Air office which is a 40 minute walk, which you don't mind, however when you get there, you need to come back to the Thamel area to email a travel agent in Bangkok who is assisting you with part of the ticket as there are no Internet Cafes in the nieghborhood where Thai Air is located.  It is extremely time consuming and a bit funny, although I have not been able to coordinate Sri Lanka travels yet.

I have met many volunteers and am exploring opportunities.  I have also been warned by many to be careful as there are many NGO's (non government organizations) here who are not legitimate.  There was actually a cartoon in the paper on this subject.  Many of the opportunities involve teaching children in the villages.

The Missionaries of Charity were quite a challenge to find, however I have found them.  After countless inquiries, I finally was given an address of Metra Park.  A taxi driver left me off in Metra Park where I walked and asked many of the business owners and no one knew of them.  After walking and asking for about 30 minutes, I found them!  One of the Sisters welcomed me, took my hand and led me to the home where they work, near the Pashupatinath Temple and showed me around.  I will return there again tomorrow.

The Nepali people are very friendly and often invite me to their home to meet their families and for tea.  I have not visited any homes yet however I do meet them at their businesses for tea.  I feel a bit like a socialite - it is very enjoyable to sit and learn more about them.

I am drawn to the street kids in the evenings and can not figure them out.  One is cuter than the next, although quite dirty.  I have befriended a young man at the corner store who tells me they are all orphans and do not go to school.  He says not to give them money as they will only buy glue, and only give them something to eat now or they will sell it.  I haven't been able to locate any groups that really focus on these kids or have any programs established for them so I will keep asking.  They are easy to feed and are happy for the food and drink. 

All is well.  I will keep you posted as to my next volunteer opportunity. 

Holiday

It will be so nice, holiday.... fresh air, mountains, rest.  That's what I am looking for and Kathmandu is not any of that!  The air is dirty, fumes, dust, smog, many people wear face masks.  The city is noisy, horns, cars, trucks, horns, motorcycles, taxis, rickshaws, bikes, loud.  And because the air is so nasty, you can not see any mountains.  But I am here and I am excited.

My first hotel is Hotel Sugat, located in Durbar Square, which is the oldest square in Kathmandu.  Durbar Square is the original home of the royal family, however they have since moved into a new palace.  The temples and buildings are beautifully decorated with intricate wood carvings.  The Living Goddess, Kumari Devi, resides in one of the temples with her family.  The story goes that when they are looking for a goddess, they take prepubescent girls from a specific caste, age 2 on up, and put them into a room.  Men dressed with buffalo heads and masks surprise them by screaming and dancing and moving all around.  Whoever is not frightened is clearly a goddess as a true goddess would not be afraid.  We saw pictures of Kumari Devi however we did not see the Living Goddess.

My hotel, recommended by Emilio, is probably as old as the royal palace.  Raju, with the hotel, gives me a room facing the square.  It is really noisy as a Hindu festival is in full swing on the square - lots of people and loud, really loud music.  I head out to explore the square and find Thamel.  I had heard from many volunteers that Thamel is the tourist hot spot with great food, music and shopping.  I find it and while dining, a huge storm picks up and all the lights go out.  The waiters bring lighted candles to all the tables and it is really cozy.  A table of 12 begins singing happy birthday just having fun.  I pay in the dark and learn this is the only restaurant that will take big Indian rupees bills.  As I exit, it is raining buckets and thundering and lightning.  I find my way back in the dark, along with many other people.  Back in my square, there are a few buildings with lights, and I enter a very nice book store and browse.  A man next to me begins speaking, a fellow traveler named Gavin from Singapore.  As we are talking, a big fat rat waddles into the store and just walks right in.  Ewww!!  Gavin invites me for a drink to the bar next door, which is lit with candles, and he shares his travel experiences in Nepal.  We have tea and I get some good advice.  I return to my hotel, hit my head on the entrance, and head up to my room.  The festival is still in full swing and Raju tells me it will be the last day.  Not much sleep.

Early Monday I am awakened at 6am by the Hindu music in the square.  This must be the last day!  Today my friend John is arriving from the states to travel with me for a week.  As I head to the airport, I really notice that the poverty is nothing like Kolkata.  People are not living on the sidewalks, and they are not begging as openly.   John arrives safely bringing all sorts of goodies from the states - thank you Sister and John!  After he is settled, we head out to explore and find the Swoyambhunath Temple, a Buddhist temple, also called The Monkey Temple.  It is beautiful, and is also quite a hike up to reach it.  There are monkeys all over.  Buddhist prayer flags are flying all around the temple.  I have learned the Tibetan word for prayer flag is "Lung Ta", meaning "Wind Horse."  When wind blows (expressing the quality and nature of mind) the sacred prayer flag flaps in the breeze.  The traditional five colors represent the five Buddha families and five elements.  Blue-space, white-water, red-fire, green-air and wind, yellow-earth.  Prayer flags have the Ghachenchemoh mantra content scripts on them.  The mantra speaks in favor for all lives in this world without exception.  You see the prayer flags everywhere.  And while at the top of this temple, I actually met one of my friends who was a volunteer with the MC's in Kolkata at the top of this temple!  It is such a small world!  We returned to Thamel for a nice Italian meal, I am loving the food here.  The music is still blaring when we return to the hotel, Raju once again says this is the last night.

And the music begins again at 6am.  Not much sleep - horns, dogs, you name it!  Breakfast is served on a rooftop with a beautiful view of the city.  Nepali tea is quite nice, with ginger and other spices.  We explore Freak Street, aptly named from all the hippies visiting in the '60's and '70's, and see an elaborate parade moving through the parade led by a huge elephant all decorated and painted for the finale of the Hindu celebration.  Nepali people are very friendly, want to talk, want to know where you are from, and want you to buy from them.  We decide to fly to Pokhara, Nepal which is where the clean air, less noise, and mountain views really are.  It is an easy 25 minute flight, however due to the monsoon season, you can not see the mountain ranges.  You can see a beautiful plush deep green valley and rolling hills along a lake. 

The air is clean and the noise is turned down a couple clicks.  Pokhara Palace, recommended by another volunteer named Britta, was perfect.  Off the beaten path, you have to walk down an alley and pass a cow or water buffalo along the way to get there.  Raju and his wife run the hotel and they couldn't be lovelier.  Britta also recommended Lama Cafe for some traditional Nepali food which consists of rice, dahl bat which is a lentil soup and goes on the rice, a curry vegetable, another vegetable, pickles, cole slaw, and water buffalo curd.  It was really good until about four hours later when I had my first bout of traveler's illness.  While eating, it started to rain and did not end for hours. This evening there were cows mooing, and dogs barking, and the melatonin did not work.

The next couple days were spent biking, hiking, boating and climbing around Lake Fewa which was beautiful.  The farmers were busy preparing fields with their water buffalo and plows.  Monsoon season is rice planting season.  Almost all of the land is farmed, much in tiered fields.  On one hike, we went through the Queen's Forest and there were monkeys all around in the wild.  This is the off season, and I think only two other tourists passed us while climbing.  As you walked down a path, there were monkeys just sitting there watching you.  It's great.  We have some fun video of them playing around and swinging from tree to tree.  Although at the top of the climb, John had picked up a couple leeches on his foot and they had a pretty good meal on the way up.  Yuck!! 

I finally gave in and took a sleeping pill - thank you Dr. Brian and Sister - it was the best nights sleep in about 5 weeks.  The food here is really good, again all kinds trying to meet the tourists needs.  There was a great German bakery that had really good cinnamon rolls.  On one of the days, we were returning on a bus and ran into a road block.  There was to be a bahnd, or strike the following day and groups were starting early with road blocks.  We had to get out and find a taxi, then get out of the taxi and walk.  Eventually we found another taxi who knew the back ways through alleys and returned us safely to our hotel.  The next day,the bahnd, was the quietest!  No cars, no trucks, no taxis, no school, just people out in the streets.  I wish we had more time to do overnite trekking in the mountains so I will just have to come back.  On the return flight to Kathmandu, the clouds opened and we had a view of two mountain ranges.  There were amazing! 

My Last Days in Kolkata....

My last days in Kolkata were just amazing!  At times I felt like I was in a movie the way things were happening all around me.....

At Friday's morning mass, my favorite Italian Father said mass, "hah-vah fai-tha".  At Kalighat, we served breakfast, did the dishes, laid the laundry out, and on to massages.  I was given the biggest smiles!  Many of the arms and legs are too thin for any grown adult.  It was good to finally be able to have some face time with the ladies.  Then we folded laundry, served lunch and cleaned up the dishes. 

I rushed to have a quick lunch with Susie and Emilio as I wanted to see the children at Shishu Bhavan in the afternoon.  It was day eight of the nine day novena at the Mother House.  They were little angels once again.  I was very popular with them as I had just purchased a cold 2 litre bottle of water and everyone was thirsty.  Little Miss Personality kept me entertained as she was into my bag, camera, shoes, anything I had.  You will see a picture of them on the bus, and sitting around Mother's Tomb. 

I rushed from the children to see my first Bollywood movie - Ta Ra Rom Pum.  It was crazy!  Everyone talks in the theater, they are on their mobile phones, they cheer loudly, and there are vendors walking around with chips and chai tea.  The movie was in Hindi with no subtitles and you can kind of understand what is going on.  And then out of the blue - they speak in English.  This movie was shot in New York City and at the very beginning, the racing sausages were in the movie!  It was about a family where the Dad was a race car driver.  The music and dancing were a hoot.  It was an experience. 

While walking home that evening, I noticed so many babies sleeping on mats placed on the sidewalk with no one around them.  I stopped a number of times to sit on a curb and just watch what was going on.  No one appeared to be watching the child from a distance.  Later when discussing this with some volunteers, they shared that this is very common and that no one was watching nearbye.  The parent probably had to run an errand or whatever and just leaves them alone.  They believe it teaches them independence at an early age.  Can you imagine?

I returned home late and ordered moo's moo's which is a vegetable steamed dumpling and is very good. 

Saturday began with Mass and a very upbeat singing of "Thank you, Miss you, Love you" from the volunteers.  It was also Jon Mathew and Charley's last day.  I received a photo pass from Sr. Carina to take a few pictures at Kalighat which you will see on the site.

The last four days at Kalighat, I have been asked to show new volunteers around - I am feeling so experienced.  Today I was introduced to Father Simone (Si-moe-nay) from Italy who was such a delight.  A whole new bunch of us departed to Kalighat.  While visiting with Fr. Simone, he blessed my Saint Christopher medal and me for safe travels.  We distributed breakfast, did the dishes, laid out the laundry, and had time with the patients.  We then were asked to clean onions, garlic and ginger for lunch time.  Eva and Rob (Canada friends)were back from Darjeeling so it was fun having time with them.  There were many new faces, Laura and Garrett (brother and sister) from Oregon, and Justin from Florida.  It's good to know that there will be lots of assistance at Kalighat. 

I only had time for a quick shower and then met Emilio, Susie, Frances, Eva and Rob for lunch at Flurys - my favorite!!  When we walked in, the manager said we could not come in with slippers - which are flip flops which Frances, Eva and Rob were wearing.  We quickly looked around and noticed many guests with slippers and asked him about each one.  He had a story for each one so we just waited and eventually he seated us.  We had a wonderful lunch with brownies for dessert - another treat!!  It was great to have time with all these friends before I depart. 

Frances and I walked back to the Mother House where Father Simone was serving mass with the children - day nine of Bobbi's novena.  We joined in and pray for a successful eye surgery for Bobbi.  I then find Sister Carina to thank her for the opportunity to serve along with her.  She is a truly gifted woman.  She asks me to wait a few minutes and returns with a packet of medals and pictures of Mother Teresa.  What a special gift!  I ask if I may have her picture and she says yes.  Following mass, Frances, Cristina, Justin and I meet Candace who teaches how to make a rosary out of franciscan knots.  It is so cool.  We sat up on a roof top in Kolkata, listening to music, making franciscan knots.  Frances gives me the rosary she just made - a beautiful gift.  What a wonderful send off.  It was now about 9.00pm and I had not packed yet.  Lots of hugs and goodbyes!  Cristina and I walk back to our hood and order fruit plates.  After eating, I quickly run to the I Cafe to post some pics for Pops.  While walking home, I see the three little puppies playing on the sidewalk - they are so cute - all happy and wanting to play - such a great day.

My Sunday wake up call comes late - 5.45am so I am not able to make mass.  I walk to the Mother House and see many volunteers that I am able to say goodbye to and wish them well.  I find Candace who wanted to give me a rosary she made the night before with a medal blessed by the Pope in Rome.  She is pretty neat!  I also find Frances to return a book, see Emilio, Eva, Rob and others, more hugs and well wishes.  On my walk back to my hood, I hear Bon Journo!  And there is Father Simone for one last goodbye.  I am so happy I had this time with all these people in Kolkata.  I stop at our local hangout, the Blue Sky, for some toast.  There was the newspaper man who I see every day and only buy papers on Sunday so he calls me "Sunday Two." I also see Jon Mathew and wish him well.  Next is a quick run to the I Cafe to send a few emails and then return for a shower.  I am able to thank all the men at the Guest House for their assistance and it's off to the airport to Katmandu, Nepal for seven days of holiday. 

Kolkata has been a truly amazing experience - one that will be with me forever.  God bless the Sisters and Brothers with the Missionaries of Charity, the volunteers, and all the children and adults who are being assisted.  Please keep them in your prayers.  Thank you.

It is about 9.00 am Sunday morning and I will depart to the Kolkata airport in 90 minutes, flying into Kathmandu, Nepal.   These last two and a half days have been amazing, much like my entire time in Kolkata.  I just posted some pics of the Mother House for you, Pops, and will post more pics and an update later this evening.  I am well.  I leave Kolkata with a very thankful and joyful heart.  Much love!