Bryony Bowles , Nepal

It is almost 4 months now since I left Nepal . I had some of the most memorable moments of my life there and I often think of the smell of fresh mountain air; the sound of chattering Nepali voices; the hair-raising bus rides on Nepal 's steep-banked, winding roads; the friendships and culture we shared. Etched most on my heart and mind are the unstoppable, enthusiastic smiles found on the faces of every child. But I will never forget the reality of widespread poverty, the pollution problems and the many other environmental and social problems that Nepal faces.

As a volunteer for the SPW Nepal Education Program I arrived with 9 other overseas volunteers. It was just at the end of the monsoons and during our first month the skies gradually cleared and the Himalayas could be seen all the way from Kathmandu , in their full awe-inspiring glory. Every glance towards their snow-capped peaks induces a feeling of complete reverence. We joined our 10 Nepali partners for the 7 week training period, where we were introduced very gradually into this entirely different country, culture and way of life.

There was so much to learn about the culture – it was like encountering a second up bringing as we re-learnt how to eat, how to wash, how not to offend people – we even had one lesson on how to go to the toilet! Along with this cultural awareness training we spent all of our mornings desperately trying to get a grip of the language so that we could converse more easily with our hosts. We all learnt at different paces, and there was no pressure, though we all felt that being able to speak the language of the people we were working with would not only be useful, but also respectful.

During our teaching training we played lots of language games which could be used in the classroom with our pupils and we were given plenty of advice about what to expect in a government school. Without any of this I would have felt even more lost on the morning I faced my first class. There was never any need to worry though, as Nepali children are so easy going and forgiving. To them, any lesson that is not dictated at them is good. During my 6 months teaching Classes 4 and 5 at Shakine Primary School we played many games, sang some English songs ("Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" was always a favourite), read lots of stories, drew pictures and did our fair share of dancing too.

The fourth aspect of the training program was to learn Appropriate Rural Technologies (or A.R.T.s). These included kitchen gardening, paper recycling (and ideas for reusing the new paper) and pit latrine building. The A.R.T. we became most familiar with was the smokeless stove that can be built in many different varieties depending on the needs of the cook. It is very important for this skill to be used by villagers, as traditional stoves give out the equivalent smoke of 200 cigarettes a day, so many women suffer from terrible respiratory and eye problems. A woman's average life expectancy is lower than a man's in Nepal ; there are only 4 countries in the world where this fact is so.

After the intensive training we were full of ideas and enthusiasm and felt very prepared to immerse ourselves into our host communities and carry out all the objectives we had planned for the next 6 months. Through volunteers, SPW has initiated ‘Green Clubs' in all the schools where volunteers have worked. The aim is that through the Green Club, school-children can develop the skills that they do not get in the classroom and for young people to then become actively involved in their community and aware of the social and environmental problems of their village and Nepal as a whole. Through the Green Club they realise their own potential, build up their confidence, strengthen their aptitude to learning and have fun. It provides an opportunity for school-children to voice their ideas, be able to put them in to practice and use their creative skills to some benefit.

I lived with another overseas volunteer and 2 Nepali volunteers in our village called Makaibari. Makaibari (literally meaning maize fields) is set in the middle hill district of Dolakha, 7 hours (on the bus) east of Kathmandu in the direction of Mount Everest . Almost every household in Nepal lives by agricultural self-sustainability, ours was no exception. Unlike most of the other SPW Nepal placements, Makaibari is situated along the road, and we didn't have to endure the daylong climb to reach our new home, unlike most of our peers. We were just 5km from the market town of Charikot where almost anything could be bought, even chocolate at certain times of the year. There was a telephone, bank and it was the base of our partner NGO (non-governmental organisation) CEEPAARD, who looked after us, sorted out our money, and provided any support that we needed, along with endless cups of tea. The partner NGO partner plays an important role after we have left our placement. The SPW-appointed Green Club co-ordinator (a Nepali ex-volunteer) ensures that the Green Clubs in the district are running effectively and provides them with advice, resources and training, if they should need them.

So, after 1 month of training, we all moved in with a young Hindu family. The mother was just a year older than we were, she had 2 fun, lively children and another one on the way. We also lived with 5 goats, 2 buffalo, 1 sheep, 300 chickens (with fleas), a dog and the odd rat to keep us company at night. The village high school was just a two-minute walk away - getting to school in a hurry was never a problem. After a cup of tea at 7am , most mornings we would take a walk around the village, familiarise ourselves with the landscape and network of pathways that thread through the terraced fields. Then before our morning "Dal bhaat" (the staple meal of lentils and rice) we would wash ourselves at the village tap, wrapped in a tube of cloth called a "lungi". It was a skill to wash under this garment and then slip into dry clothes while staying fully clothed. Two white girls washing in such a public place was always good entertainment for the local children, and an audience would gather as we performed our daily routine. We would sometimes share our water with the thirsty buffalo or cows. The tap is quite a meeting point and place for socialising as the women gather to wash clothes, fill up their water jars or rinse the pots scrubbed clean with ash and leaves.

As the months move on from the monsoon, a dry spell takes over and as the climate gets increasingly hotter after winter finishes, the ready availability of running water begins to falter. Water shortages are worsening year after year as the winter rains become scarce. Deforestation of the hillsides is an affecting factor in this and in some areas community forests have been introduced to try and lessen this affect. Wood is the main source of fuel and at the moment there is little alternative to this. The smokeless stoves (chulos) retain heat more effectively and are therefore a small solution to this. We trained our Green Club Environment/Social Unit the skill and theory of chulo making so that they could raise awareness of their benefits, and build them in their own homes and those of their neighbours if they required. Our students decided to charge a small fee to households for a chulo demonstration so that they could raise funds for the Green Club and at the same time promote the smokeless stove. The Makaibari Green Club ran activities to improve their school area such as weekly litter-picking, repainting the classrooms and blackboards and keeping the school area tidy. We had a day, organised by Green Club members, when school-children and teachers came from Green Clubs all over the district to help dig a pipeline and build a new tap to bring water down to the school toilets. In the spring the students planted flower gardens in front of each classroom, to brighten up the schoolyard.

The students' creativity was endless and this was demonstrated at the cultural program held on the Martyrs Day festival in January. It began on the school field at 11am and gradually villagers, passers-by and families gathered to watch on the steep bank above. There were 25 different dramas, dances, songs and poems most with an important message as its theme including hygiene and sanitation, girls' education, proper medicine and clean water. Almost 700 people came to watch and stayed until the end at 5pm . The students were so proud of themselves, it was talked about for weeks after and will never be forgotten. We did a similar small-scale similar program just before we left outside the teashop and in Charikot in partnership with another Green Club. For both these events, the Art Unit made paper mache masks painted in weird and wonderful designs. This was one method of recycling old paper, although usually we used our recycled paper for greeting cards – especially at the Nepali New Year. There is the intention that eventually the Green Club magazine will be written on the paper, although the quality needs to be improved first. It is published fortnightly and contains articles, quizzes, poems and reviews.

Just before we left our placement a designated Green Club room was being refitted with donations from SPW, the N.G.O and the school. This room will provide a central point for Green Club activities, executive meetings and contain the library we have built up. Having this special space emphasises the importance and permanence of the Green Club at the school.

Leaving the school, the community and the area was a very sad time. We were smothered in the traditional red paint and presented with an orchard of garlands and flowers. We looked like tearful clowns as we processed from the primary school to the high school. We felt that there was so much left that we wanted to do, but that the 7 months were completed at a time when the Green Club was strong enough to keep going and the school-children were ready for a bit of independence. The timing was right for letting-go!

I would go back at any time and do it all again. Every day was unique and there were always surprises to be had, the good ones exciting and the less good – a challenge! We always had to be prepared for the unexpected and learnt to take things as they happen – nothing can be planned ahead in Nepal . My time working for SPW in Nepal were fun, challenging, and an amazing learning experience – all in just 8 months.