Nepal March 2021
We are made of dreams.
We are the imagination of the future, we plan, organize and, in less than no time, we dream that everything will happen as soon as possible, to enjoy the joy we have experienced in organizing everything.
Over 12 months have passed since the beginning of the pandemic, caused by a small being who snuck into our lives, causing mourning, sorrow and a lot of apprehension.
At first we got lost, we didn't understand what was happening to us. To defend ourselves, they isolated us, we closed ourselves within the borders, until we were no longer able to leave the house, avoiding human contact, avoiding meeting other people, avoiding hugs, handshakes and pats on the back… avoiding everything that could be the object of contagion and death.
Thinking about it with a cold mind, it is as if we were living on a film set, where one of the great directors of the earth was narrating an unknown epidemic, which has decimated the human race and, as in the best Hollywood productions, humanity will emerge victorious.
We are made of dreams and we have never stopped dreaming.
March 2021 we left once again for "our" Nepal, for yet another beautiful mission.
We never stopped, despite the great difficulties caused by the pandemic, we managed, together with our Nepalese volunteers and friends, to complete our projects.
The warm and exciting welcome at Kathmandu airport makes us feel immediately at home. Our friends hug us and welcome us with garlands of colorful flowers. On the way from the airport to the hotel there is a succession of stories and updates, of how we spent the 12 months following our last mission.
The chaotic Kathmandu welcomes us, our arrival at the hotel is punctuated by the honking of the car horns and the whistles of the many traffic wardens intent on directing the traffic.
In the evening, as per tradition, all our Nepalese volunteers and friends join us in a typical Nepalese restaurant for the much desired Dal Bath.
Early in the morning, the air is still fresh and the capital is slowly waking up, a nice jog to the central park fills you with energy, before leaving for Benighat, where we will find the many children who are guests of Happy Home waiting for us. They are waiting for us and the newly built schools will be inaugurated.
The road that winds from the capital to Benighat is always surprising, full of colors, lush vegetation, with colorful bougainvilleas. At this time of year the air is clear and at times you can see the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayan range. All this overshadows the traffic, which winds its way chaotic and slow along the road bordered by the river.
Happy Home! An emotion that every time has no equal! The children hear the bus trudging up the long, winding hill and suddenly, at the sides of the road, they appear, holding bouquets of flowers freshly picked in the fields, as a sign of welcome.
They are all fine and, after a year of absence, we can still be surprised at how they have grown. Some, the little ones are still recognizable, others, the older ones, we find it hard to believe our eyes, we left them as children and we find them again as teenagers.
The days pass pleasantly with them, we organize games and walks in the nearby hills. We verify, together with all the children of the distance support project, the scholastic results and with the older ones, the possibility of being able to continue their studies at the College.
A big party, the inauguration of the Shree Irang Richok Primary School, totally rebuilt following the serious damage caused by the earthquake. The new school, finally made up of beautiful and large classrooms, built with anti-seismic criteria, has made it possible for the many students in the area to resume lessons in complete safety.
After the inauguration ceremony in the presence of the authorities, the whole group gets carried away in songs and dances, in which the whole community and the many children are involved, are all enthusiastic about this beautiful and powerful school.
The days in Happy Home and in this handkerchief of Nepal go by too quickly. The day of the grand opening of Shree Chandrodaya Multiple College has arrived. Following the damage suffered by the earthquake, the school underwent several interventions to strengthen the foundations of all the load-bearing walls of block A and block B with the construction of an additional floor at the conclusion of the project which began in 2006.
Lots of people come from all the adjacent villages. Many authorities were present for the inauguration of this great College.
At the end of the day we are all exhausted, I don't know if more from the big dances or from the many hours spent listening to the political representatives who have come to the inauguration.
We have joined efforts and, g