After arriving into Kathmandu, getting my visa and clearing customs I was met by Major David Bennett who is the New Zealand, Fiji & Tonga (NZFT) Territorial Emergency Services Secretary, M J who is a member of the International Emergency Services (IES) Team from America & the local Corps Officer Sanga. After loading my bags into the car we braved the traffic in Kathmandu, although they appear to have lanes hardly anyone sticks to them and from time to time we were even driving on the other side of the road. It makes the traffic around the Arc de Triomphe tame in comparison.
Upon getting to base camp which is located on the top story of Sisters Cafe & Beauty, I got settled in and had lunch with the team leader Andrew from Australia. Sisters Cafe & Beauty provides young women with training and life skills development to increase their employability so that they don’t get lured into the sordid world of human trafficking. The rest of the team were out on assignment so I didn’t get to catch up with Ralph until later in the afternoon.
In the afternoon Ralph, M J & I along with our driver Vim headed to one of the camps in Sunakothi which was home to about 40 families until recently.
This camp is coordinated by a young woman called Renu who is a teacher and she has been encouraging families (especially the bread winners) to actively pursue employment and start rebuilding their homes so that they are prepared for the winter season which is fast approaching.
That evening after dinner I eventually crashed as the rest of the team organised a distribution of materials which is due to go tomorrow morning. It would appear that when discussions start about how we move supplies from one place to another it takes quite some time and we need to ensure that information doesn’t get lost in translation.
The life and times of Perry... 