More From Bal Kendra and A second tour of temples

07/04/2019

At the mother's group at 6:30a.m.. This is an enjoyable time for us to observe and to asked to participate. They are all so friendly and welcoming to us and each other. They laugh and talk and have a wonderful bond. Some moms are working on the eye glass cases on the big machine and some rotate into reading/ writing activities as well as their learning of bead work and knitting. What a fantastic service that Palmo and the staff at Bal Kendra offer! As we left after the hour to get our breakfast before returning for school, we met some moms near the school's sign. one mom started reading the letters and asking me to read them. As we went through the letters and words she smiled at the word Nepal. Letters/ words/ and comprehensible input! (See photos below)

We returned for the start of school. For the morning exercise time in the schoolyard, one of the teachers from the workshop got one of the drums and as the children counted she hit the drum. The children smiled and it was fun to see they are already thinking of ways to use the instruments. This same teacher does the library groups and she also went right into singing and using Brown Bear and instruments with the children. Mrs Woronecki assisted her with the first class and then she tried it on her own for the next class. What a beautiful voice she has and how attentive her students were! 

After lunch Palmo and our guide took us to a sacred Hindu Temple site, Pashupatinath Temple. This is a World Heritage Site. It is on the banks of the Holy Bagmati River. This river flows to the Ganges River in India. Here we learned about their process of cremation as well. There are live cremations happening in this space, and 2 were happening during our visit. This site occupies a large space and has many small temple structures. It was peaceful to walk among them. Also present were monkeys who loved Mrs Woronecki's soda! (see photos below)

Our guides to us next to Boudhanath, one of the largest a Buddhist Stupas in the world. What a beautiful place. This is also a World Heritage Site; it was founded around the 5th century. We loved being in this space. The Buddhist prayer practice is interesting to learn about and see. Our guide told us many things about their practice. Surrounding this Stupa, in a circular enclosure were many shops and businesses. Also a Tibetan Monastery. Nepal was hit with a large earthquake in 2015 and one of the first structures to be rebuilt was this temple, through private money. We ended our tour and sat at a rooftop eatery with Palmo; she shared many stories with us over refreshments and food. What a wonderful afternoon spent visiting these special places in Kathmandu. (See photos below)

© 2019 Traveller Tom, 12 Pike St, New York, NY 10002
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