Mixed Emotions

Hello!! We are back in Kathmandu so we have Internet service now. We became so attached to the people in Butwal it was so hard to leave. The first couple days we were almost in tears. We didn't like it, it was sooo different! We were in a village, ya know the very rugged kind with the cow dung houses and people with tough lives. It is actually different being part of it than just watching it from the car window. But we have started getting accustomed to it and really became attached to it and all the people. Even the people who didn't know a word of English, just a smile does enough. The children opened up and we loved playing games with them and sharing our differences in lifestyles. We showed them our pictures and when we came across a picture of our house they were so surprised, it was like we showed them a picture of the White House and we said, "Yes this is where we live." We have done so much Nepali dancing, that is one big pastimes here. Sitting around singing and dancing, oh and tea drinking is a must. I wonder how many gallons we have drank? The longer we are here the less we are craving American food. Now we thinking oh, I'm excited for dal bot and chicken curry, instead of wishing we had spaghetti or pizza! We have had a roller coaster of emotions, we have seen so much that no one else will experience, the good, the bad, the exciting, the boring, we've been through it all. We both feel like such stronger people, and we really feel like we have done something good. At first we felt kind of guilty thinking, "Hey this is kind of like a vacation." But then we went other places and we did all that two teenagers could do,Which was mostly sharing information and giving a smile. Oh and the school was soooo thrilled with all that they could do with the money that you donated! It is a wonderful school with wonderful students and teachers! When we left Butwal me and alesa had to use all our strength not to start crying, we became so close to everyone in the past 2 weeks we were here. Especially Sujhata, the wife of the family we were staying with. We became soooo home sick about half way through, but now we don't even want to leave. There is a spot in our hearts that has been touched that I didn't even know existed. Yes we have seen way too many homeless children and people without food, and even some images that will haunt me for a while, like when we saw a couple men with their tongues and limbs cut off, begging for money, and were told not to give anything to them because they did it to themselves for people to feel sorry for them and give them money. But jeeze, cutting off your tongue and leg! Then you see smiling children and families sitting in their huts with less then nothing, but perfectly happy and capable of living. We walked through the village and saw all this poverty, but now didn't feel bad for a single person, but I bet they all felt sorry for me thinking, "Poor Americans. They don't realize what it means to be happy with what they have." Well we are thinking about everyone!! and can't wait to see u! Love, Kayli and Alesa

After The Trek

We just left Chitwan, the safari place and are in a village called Butwa where another school is located. We are staying with a different family, they are very friendly. Trekking was a lot harder than we thought it would be! So much travel up steep hills. One day we took 3,001 steps in a row. Then we had to go down them all again, so we were sore after that. It was an amazing experience though. We saw a lot of monkeys on the trek! Chitwan was beautiful! It was a suprise when we got there because we were used to staying in the hotels that were a little empty rooms with holes in the roofs, paper thin walls, and just a little wooden bed. The toilets were outside and they were just little holes in the ground. Surprisingly we didn't really mind the lack of luxury. Chitwan was like a tropical paradise with hammocks and lemonade and all. Mommy, can I please get a baby elephant? They are so cute!! Riding the elephants was definitely a highlight! We came only a few feet of a huge rhino while riding them, it was awesome! Some wild animals we saw were alligators, spotted deer, wild boar, lots of exotic birds, some little leopard type of thing. There are so many people that we have become very close with every place we go. It's always so hard to leave! These are definitely people that we will never forget. We went to the school today. They welcomed us with a ceramony. They are very organized here, and the children are very well behaved. It is sooo different from our school! They don't have much of anything. We definately chose the right cause to raise money for. The children were so excited to see us and they drew us pictures and made us little crafts. This is just a brief sample of what we have been up to. The Internet is very slow here and we have had very little access. Well, we are doing great and learning sooo much, along with teaching people a lot about our country. This is is such an amazing experience. We are not going to take America for granted anymore though. We love you guys so much, and miss you a lot. We have already gotten you a lot of gifts mommy, cause you are so cute! talk to you later! xoxoxo

:)

Well today was very chilly, we just stayed at Tulsi's house. We were planning on going on a tour but there was a protest and some government issues, so schools were closed and a lot of people just stayed in. ( Nothing dangerous.)
We are starting to feel more at home here, it doesn't seem as strange, and we are fitting in more.
The cow is sacred here so no one eats beef, and they can wander where they like, if one is in the middle of the street people can not move it. ( I just thought I'd add.)
Tomorrow we head to Pokhara for a couple days, sight seeing. After that we head on our Trek, then the safari. Then it's back to the school that we had the fund raiser for. Thanks again to all the people who donated or bought tickets!! We raised a lot of money and everyone here is so excited. They were in big need of supplies.
It may be a couple weeks before we can post again.
Talk to u then, we are thinking about you all :)

We are here!

We arrived in Kathmandu last night. The plane ride was very long, but it wasn't as scary as we thought it would be. When we exited the Kathmandu airport we were greeted by an amazing family and brought to their home. The most scary thing was the driving. The roads are so different than ours. They are small and probably shouldn't even be called roads. They are more like little paths, with no signs or any form of organization. It is sooo beautiful, so different from the U.S. There are tons of dogs on the streets, also a lot of cows wandering around everywhere. Most people speak English but not the strongest because Nepali is their first language. I have a couple funny stories to share about us misunderstanding them when we get back. We do love it here! It is so different, but the people are very nice. We visited a school today, we were each in a different classroom and helped teach the children. They were so sweet and eager to learn. (Kayli) I am called Barbie by a lot of the children because they have not seen blond hair, It's cute. When we get our meals we don't really know how to eat them or what they are but I think we are kind of catching on. I would tell you what the meals are like but it is like nothing we have. It is a rice base though. The view is amazing from everywhere, you can see the mountains and hills in the distance, and most of the houses have a walk on roof or terrace so you can really appreciate it. It is very sad seeing the children on the streets, or homeless people digging through garbage, it breaks our heart. We have never had to see that before. But for the most part everyone is very happy here and loves their country. It may be 10:30 in the morning there, but it is 10:30 at night here, so we are off to bed and will blog again as soon as possible.

Getting Ready

Today we are finishing up our last minute things, we leave tomorrow morning. Our flight plan is Mpls. to Chicago, Chicago to Hong Kong, then Hong Kong to Kathmandu, Nepal. We are extremely excited!
We will try to post as often as we can, we won't always have access to the internet though.