Sauraha, second day

Up early and had breakfast.Today is a full day. Very hot at 8am!
Jeep came at 9.30 to take us to the village where the Women's Project is run. A very dusty, bumpy journey ofetn along dirt tracks to the Project. On arrival we were presented with flower garlands for festival.
All the rest of Kashav's family where there. They were preparing lunch for everyone.
Cooking on bricks and using logs/tree branches. Water comes from a hand pump, drawn from a bore hole.
Everything is done outside in the back garden.Difficult to comprehend unless you see it.
Lunch was chicken curry, rice, salad and fruit. This would be a real treat for the children, bit like our Xmas dinner! Most of these kids very rarely eat meat. Normally only rice and vegetables, occasionally fish.
The butcher arrived on his pushbike with the chicken and cooking began!!

The project teaches women skills that will help them be self sufficient.
They have sewing machines that the women rent for 5 Rupees a week, appox 5p. This money is saved for them and when they have sufficient skills a sewing machine is bought using the proceeds of their rental money!
All the clothes that they make are sold in the Project shop in Sauraha, run by Kashav.
Most of the houses are made of mud, some have brick/stone sections. All have a stable next door where cows are kept.Goats and chickens are also in abundance.

The girls arrived one by one, some brought their parents, and we took photos of all of them with Sue and on their own. It was hard work as they are all very shy and not use to posing for the camera. However, once they saw the results they relaxed and became a little bit better.Some have had serious health issues and looked very sad.

Lunch was served and about 80 people were fed!! No mean feat cooking for that many in such basic conditions.
Group and family photos wre taken and then we went to visit a family that Kashav had discovered living on the streets of Kathmandu. They were a family of 5 + his mother.
They live in the most basic of conditions in the fields. He grows crops of bananas
and soya beans.
He wanted a photo of his mother as she is 74 and he wanted to put it on the walls of his mudhut in her memory for when she is dead.
Hard to understand how these people have nothing yet the smallest thing gives them the greatest pleasure.
We then all piled into the jeep to drive the girls toi the nearest big town, Anji Bazar, to select the material for their clothes. They had great fun picking out their colours. The outfits will be made by a lady who leart to sew at the project and now has here own machine.
See it does work!!!!
Due to my height and hair colour I was a constant source of interest to the locals.They do not see many white people where we went. Not the normal tourist areas.
Returned to Sauraha, hot, dusty and tired. Made arrangements to meet Krishna and family later.
Finally got to call Sandra today,good to hear her voice. Talked for some 18 mins, with the time delay, both missing each other but a week has already gone by. It seems much longer to me and Kathmandu now seems so distant.

Had a good meal at K.C's with good company. Have to admire these people, life is not easy, but they really enjoy themselves.
Wandered home and flopped into bed exhausted!