The Trek - 7 April 2007

Thank goodness Ali had a good sleep and her energy levels steadily improved through the day. Lena was at her lowest this morning and seriously struggled for the first hour. We managed however and came to a nice place above the river with a breeze blowing and small waterfall nearby. We stopped there for about 2 hours to give Lena a good rest and also ate some chapati and cheese. Lena started picking up after this, but only had enough energy to get to the tiny village of Syanje, about 3 hours short of Chamje our original destination for the day.

As we walked I saw the road building activities on the other side of the river. I had reflected on this since talking to the two brothers at Bahundanda. My view is that this is a road to nowhere. It is being built in the wrong place for the wrong reasons. The problems of deforestation and landslides are clearly evident on our walk so far. With a real likelihood of more snow melt and more intense rainfall events I think landslides will become a far greater issue with climate change. It is very evident that the road that is being built will be severely affected by the combined effects of intense rainfall, deforestation and landslides. I don't believe the resources will be there to maintain it, maybe not even to successfully complete it. I might be proved wrong, but that is my view. I think it would be far better to put the money being used to build the road into a concerted reafforestation programme.

The Trek - 6 April 2007

The girls seemed better this morning as we left Khudi, although I was concerned with Ali who didn't have much appetite. Lena seemed stronger. The first couple of hours were good, but the girls started losing energy after then, Ali in particular. Once we got past Bhulbhule I got the camera out and started doing some filming, the first I've done in Nepal. It was good to finally get back to doing this after two weeks. The challenge, however, was with Lena and Ali, particularly over the last leg, uphill to Bahundanda. This was particularly tough for Ali who was really struggling. Some food and rest seemed to do the trick, or so it seemed for a while!

Meanwhile I got talking to the owners of the Mountian View guest house, Bahundanda. They talked about past efforts at reafforestation, about 20 years ago, which have proved to be unsuccessful. The forest around their village was cleared as more people moved there. The problem now is that people are continuing to cut trees and burn the grass, with reafforestation efforts often negated with uncontrolled spread of fire. They have tried to talk to local people to stop cutting trees near the village, but to no effect. The other issue affecting them is the road that is being built to Manang, which will negatively impact on the environment and tourism. They would like support for a community development project in the area. Education is clearly the key.

Just when I thought things were coming right with Lena and Ali, Lena started going down again with diarrhoea. Our primary concern had been with Ali as it seemed Lena was OK, but this proved to be incorrect. Ali's big need was for a good nights sleep. Lena was very distressed to be having diarrhoea again. It greatly distressed me as well to be seeing the girls so low.

06-Apr-2007 18:35 (NZ time)

Hello all,

I can do the blog again after being sick, I am OK again now. Yesterday, Gavin and the girls went off in their van to go trekking - it was strange to be waving them off and staying in Kathmandu by myself for 10 days. I will join them in 10 days time, for the downward part from Jomsom.

It has been nice just to stay put and read and be still for a while, not filming, travelling or being a tourist.

Even so, I went to the Monkey Temple yesterday and walked up lots of steps and saw the beautiful white Buddhist Stupa with the big eyes painted on the side of it. I saw lots of small monkeys scampering around in the surrounding trees. The prayer flags are hung everywhere and look great fluttering .

A couple of days ago it was full moon and hundreds of people were up there at night to see and join in walking around the temple three times. As Gavin has the camera I got a small one though forgot to take it when I went up there, so we will all have to go up again,

At the bottom of the hill there are prayer wheels all around set into the wall. Lots of people walk around touching each one. There are even some gigantic ones that you can walk around and turn. Before the others went trekking, we walked to Durbar Square, to see lots of temples and I took some photos.

My internet time is running out so bye for now.

The Trek - 5 April 2007

It was a tough start to our journey around the Annapurna circuit with Lena and Ali both having had food poisoning yesterday. As we drove out of Kathmandu I reflected on the changes I have seen since I was there in 1983, 24 years ago. More people and a lot more pollution. The rapid change in temperature that occurred over the last week, and affected ourselves with food poisoning and apparently many others, is a clear warning sign for the future. I see a serious deterioration in the environment of the Kathmandu valley.

The other thing that I noticed as we drove east is the level of haze, far worse than I remember. This was a major disappointment for Lena who had imagined us journeying into clear mountain air. Our road journey ended at Besisahar and then we walked to the village of Khudi, where we stayed the night. Not many trekkers stop here now, with the road for buses continuing to Bhulbhule. More on the road later. Our guide, Karma Lama, thought that Lena and Ali might be better for some walking, but they really struggled... even with only day packs to carry. It was a relief to get to the tea house.

25 March reflections

(Gavin has some observations, gathered over the past few days, the balance of which will be published later today - Michael)

It is difficult to write a brief summary of our time in Viet Nam and what we observed and experienced. There are very strong contradictions in the relationship between people and the environment. Viet Nam is developing rapidly. The negative side of this are large open cast mines as we observed in Thai Nguyen, intensification of agriculture and the negative consequences of this as we observed in the Mekong. There is no apparent focus on the appropriateness and consequences of such developments. On the other hand there are official programmes to protect and enhance the environment, many of which are supported by NGOs and foreign government aid programmes. With people offering contacts and then not helping us at all it became impossible for us to see any of the more positive initiatives. However, informally, we found evidence of people acting and working positively for the future in their local communities.

If I think about the challenges posed by climate change in the context of the above then it is clear to me that solutions won't come easily for Viet Nam. Some of the government programmes, such as reafforestation efforts, are having positive impacts as we saw locally in Hue. However, in the 'rice basket' of Viet Nam, the Mekong Delta, the challenges will be very great. There are no easy solutions there. Before we came to Viet Nam our Thai friends expressed concern about intensification of rice production and we heard about the consequences of this. There are areas already affected by drought and seasonal effects of salinisation. Insect pest problems, pollution of waterways, erosion of canal banks, are all local issues that will be further compounded by climate change. The push for increased rice production, with three crops a year in many places now, is not sustainable with these multiple challenges.

The Viet Nam situation is in strong contrast to the growing momentum of the self sufficient economy approach in Thailand. People there, albeit a minority still, are awakening to the consequences of unsustainable practices and there is a groundswell for change, along with a growing awareness of the challenges posed by climate change. In Viet Nam the pressure for economic development is creating all sorts of tensions. The most positive impression I carry is the natural warmth and wisdom of the rural people we encountered. This is where the real hope lies for Viet Nam in my view, if positive ways can be found to empower these people and somehow minimise or overcome the real desperation for money that is so evident to a foreigner in the urban areas. I believe the lessons we carried from Thailand could be of great benefit to Viet Nam.

From Michael 2 April 2007

I have made a modest change to the layout of the blog - mindful that not all of us are on broadband and some may have been a little put off - especially when there are a large number of photographs in view - by the time it takes for the home page to download.

Now instead of the latest 10 posts I have reduced (downsized?) the home page to the latest 5. Your enjoyment of the blog will be unchanged - just follow your nose when you get to the bottom of the page to find older posts.

Alice's email to her teacher

Hi Mr Ryan

It is amazing to be here. I am so excited now to be going trekking in a few days time. Karma Lama is a very nice man and is looking after us well already. This morning he took me, Lena and Dad shopping for some extra shorts and polyprops. He was very patient with me and Lena as we went to different shops and walked from the tourist area then to the local market area and then back again, Finally we found something!!

Here in Kathmandu we are staying in Thamel, the main tourist area, which you probably already figured out. Yesterday afternoon Dad took us to Durbar Square where you now have to pay 200R to be able to walk around and see everything there. Dad says it is much busier and way more crowded than it was 24 years ago. All the shops in Thamel are amazing. I got really upset yesterday when I discovered that someone must have stolen US$40 from my wallet. It was a hard lesson for me, and must have happened one time when I left my bag with my money in my room. I worked so hard delivering pamphlets to earn that money and I just hope the person who stole it does some good with it.

I hope everything over there is going well. I miss my friends, my great teacher, my own bed, our dog and cat, but I know already that I'm a different person. It is amazing to think of all the places I've already seen and the things I've done. Sometimes it has been so fast that it has seemed unreal to me, but afterwards I stop and think about it all and I just really appreciate having such great parents. I also really appreciate so much more how lucky we are in New Zealand and how important it is for us to look after our environment.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll have heaps to say to you when I come back from trekking. I already have so much I could say from everything we've done, almost so much that I don't know where to start!!

Take care and very warm wishes, and please say hi to the class from me and if they are ever giving you trouble you please say from me just to stop for a minute and think about how lucky we all are to live in such a beautiful country and with such a good life compared to what I have seen.

Love
Alice
(Thanks Alice for giving me permission to post this email to your teacher at Taikura Rudolf Steiner School in Hastings NZ - Michael - received earlier this evening )

Photos from India - taken last week

Rajgat, where Gandhi was cremated

An auto rickshaw (for those wondering)

Scene from old Delhi

Scene from old Delhi

A very famous view

View from guest house, Ganges River, Varanasi

We're in Kathmandu now

We're in Kathmandu now... and already feeling a much more relaxed atmosphere than anywhere we've been since Thailand, in my opinion. The good thing is that there is some time to rest and catch up on things. Tomorrow, Sunday, we're taking as a complete rest day. I'll make some time to do a proper update for the blog Lots of internet cafes here, but will look around tomorrow to see if I can find a place where I can sit with the laptop and use a wireless connection. We're all buzzing with being here... more soon

(email to Michael)