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Nepal Spice Build

  • Update for 22/10/2013

      22 October 2013

    So I made it back from Nepal and it was definately the most amazing experience! Thanks to everyone who supported me and helped me get to Nepal, I couldn't have made it otherwise. The good news is that we nearly finished 5 houses which is 2 more than we were originally going over to build. The 5th house still had a bit of work left to do, but Habitat for Humanity in Nepal had engaged contractors to finish this off after we left. So a pretty awesome result :) The houses were made out of bamboo framing with bamboo slats to make up each wall. There was then a mixture of mud and straw (which we mixed in mud pits with our feet) which was applied to the bamboo walls. So there were 3 layers of this mud/straw combination and then a 4th layer of mud and cow dung. This was a sealant layer and pretty stinky!! Good times. The last layer was paint, which included the windows (also bamboo slats). There were 2 rooms to each house with the internal walls having the same mud process without the final layer of paint. The floors consisted of sand compacted down and then a thin layer of straw with another layer of mud on top to seal it down. We were split into 5 teams (you can see a photo of my team on here) and worked on the same house for the week. The family who we were building for also worked on the house, which was great to get to know them too. The 5 days of building was pretty full-on but the days went so fast that the week was over before we knew it. There was a lot of hard work, laughing and singing. A really amazing week. It was quite sad leaving the village at the end of the week, as we had all made great connections with other women on our teams and in the village. Nepal is a beautiful country, with such beautiful giving people. The poverty there is heartbreaking and I had a few tears at times but all part of it. I would definately do it again, no hesitation. If you would like to ask me about my trip in greater detail please email me directly. I'm more than happy to bore you with the details!! Thanks again for your support :) Robyn

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  • Update for 22/09/2013

      22 September 2013

    Sorry for the lack of updates in the last couple of weeks. Things have been pretty crazy, trying to get everything sorted at work and continuing to fundraise. But as my departure date is quickly approaching I feel that I'm nearly ready! Thanks to everyone who participated in and/or donated goods for my quiz night last Sunday. It was a great night; really successful and everyone seemed to have a great time :) So the countdown is on! Only a few more days left before I fly up to Auckland and then onto Nepal. It seemed so far away when I first registered to do this and now I can't believe that I'm leaving in a few days. It will be one crazy adventure - can't wait to get into it but also a bit nerve racking :) So this week will probably be a mad panic of last minute preparations and a flurry of packing! Will try and post a couple of updates while I'm away but it will obviously depend on the reliability of the internet over there. And they also have regular power cuts so I'll just roll with it! Right - off to continue my list making and organisation.

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  • Update for 01/09/2013

      1 September 2013

    Well the count down is on... just under 4 weeks to go til we leave on a jet plane. Little bit scary but pretty exciting too. This week has been the first week of my running program which I've started in order to increase my fitness for the work we'll be doing. It's gone a lot better than I had anticipated, and I've already noticed a difference in my fitness. So that's good motivation to keep going. My goal is that I'll be able to run 5km by the end of the program. Fingers crossed! Last week I had my vaccinations done which was good, but hurt for a whole week afterwards! I'm feeling good to know that I'm getting organised though. I enjoy ticking things off my list :) I still have a few things to organise in the next couple of weeks, as well as make sure that I get everything in order at work before I leave. A little bit daunting at times, but I know that once I get on that plane I'll forget all about that stuff. So this week is all about keeping things in perspective and ticking things off my list one at a time. I can do it!

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  • Update for 26/08/2013

      26 August 2013

    I thought in my first update I'd share a bit more information about the history of this group that we are going to help. The Nari Chetana started with a group of 15 women who wanted to improve their financial situations. So they committed to saving 5 rupees a month which could be used (with group approval) and repaid with minimal interest. This helped the members to avoid borrowing from banks and paying high interest which was compounding their situations. Other women started to hear about what they were doing and they started to receive requests for help from members within their community. So they began to learn about women's legal rights and issues relating to domestic violence, addictions and community development. They also received assistance from the government with various agricultural projects including cooperative tomato and cucumber farming and organic fertilisers. Over time they registered as a formal cooperative which was established six years ago. After hearing about Habitat for Humanity they sought partnership to help with their housing situations. The group then started to save and loan funds for housing. Community members were able to replace thatch roofing with tin sheets. After hearing about these housing projects, 5 other villages joined the cooperative and the small group turned into a 300 member cooperative.

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