Back to Riviera

Friday was the final day of the volunteer program for our visitors from Australia and after two extremely chaotic picnic days I think they were very relieved to be returning to the relative peace of an afternoon spent at the Model School with the teachers and some students!

Some of the group continued with their workshops from Tuesday but there were some new workshops on offer this time as well. We had a workshop for Social Sciences, a workshop for primary teachers, but the star of the day was Heather from Flinders St Primary School in Adelaide who hosted a fantastic art workshop for around 20 students. In less than an hour the group were churning out all kinds of colourful works that were used to decorate their classroom! It was obvious that as well as brightening up the place the kids were really enjoying what they were doing.

A group of Year 9 and 10 boys joined the Science workshop as word had got out from Tuesday's workshop that Science could actually be fun! And as I walked past the English workshop I was sure I heard them reading a story about a platypus?! There was much excitement in the Maths workshop as not only did we have electricity but someone actually got the internet to work. This was important as Keith from St Catherine's School in Waverley had arranged for the school to be given user codes for HOTmaths, an online Maths education program. The teachers were instantly engrossed in trying to complete the questions online and were amazed at the way the system would enable them to track their students' progress - a lot more fun than learning from a textbook! We must thank Keith and HOTmaths for organising the licences for us.


With visitors, teachers and students all having so much fun the afternoon passed far too quickly and it was soon time for our farewells. It was clear the advances the school had made since MLC's visit a year ago so it is exciting to think of how this trip will have benefitted them even further. After a quick thank you speech from the principal and the presentation of a 'token of love' in the form of Riviera school badges for everyone, it was time to once again board the bus and return to Thamel.

This concluded the formal program for the group. However that evening there was a quick trip to the tailor to collect some traditional outfits that some of the group had ordered. Then on Saturday morning I took a small group to visit Kathmandu Animal Treatment (KAT) Centre, where street dogs are taken in and 'cleaned up' before being adopted or returned to the street. This was of course a confronting experience for the group but by the same token it was great to see that things can and are being done and that there is hope. Those who did not join the visit to KAT no doubt spent the morning doing last minute shopping in Thamel, hunting for that 'special morning price'!

On Saturday afternoon I waved the group farewell as their bus left for the airport. I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone in the group for the amazing contributions they made throughout the week, all of the programs ran like clockwork and gave some insights into life in Nepal and how we can help. I would particularly like to thank Rosemary King from MLC School who organised the trip and did a great job of keeping everything in order for them once in Nepal!

Mitrataa in the news!

On our recent visit to Nepal we ran the third pets as therapy afternoon at Bal Mandir. As always, the kids and the dogs had loads of fun and it is becoming even more rewarding as many of the kids now recognise the dogs and show enormous enthusiasm when their furry friends arrive.

A journalist and photographer from Nepali Times, one of Nepal's major English language newspapers, visited us during the session and you can read the resulting story at http://www.nepalitimes.com.np/issue/2008/10/17/Culture/15306.

Plans are now in place for the program to be run on a monthly basis and we are also investigating expanding it to include other institutions so stay tuned...

Day with dogs and a donkey...need therapy anyone?!

Yesterday afternoon provided us with one of the most enjoyable experiences here as we visited the KAT centre, just north of Kathmandu city. KAT is an organisation that rescues street dogs, provides them with vaccinations against rabies and other health care and also gives them the ‘family planning’ operation. When appropriate, the dogs are then fostered out to families or in some instances returned to the street. Kathmandu has a relatively large street dog problem although this has noticeably reduced in the past few years thanks to the work done by KAT. It is very important work as rabies is a serious problem when you have dogs roaming the streets amongst people and particularly children. It also helps to reduce the spread of other diseases which has to be a good thing for everybody.

We are working with KAT to introduce a Pets as Therapy program to Kathmandu. You can read more about this on our website - http://www.mitrataa.org/projects/pets_as_therapy.htm. In 2 weeks time we will be taking 3 of the well trained dogs from KAT to the Bal Mandir orphanage to let a small group of children play with them. The long term plan is to have these dogs provide stimulation and support to the disabled children at the orphanage, and then to expand to other orphanages and maybe even hospitals around the valley. We will also be providing a fun education program to the kids on appropriate ways to treat animals and the importance of looking after the health of animals to protect all of us.

As a part of this project we are also helping KAT with their animal education program that they give to school groups who visit the centre. In order to help them with this work we will be taking a small bus of around 10 children to the KAT centre to see the work that they do and also to learn about the importance of this work.

When at the centre yesterday afternoon it was so much fun to see all of the rehabilitated dogs and play with them for a while. Of course there were a number of less healthy dogs and this was difficult to see. In some instances their situation was the direct result of human abuse, an extremely disappointing and frustrating thing to witness. An unusual patient at the centre is a young donkey. It was found discarded in a rubbish pile with a broken leg – the result of being overworked and underfed in a local brickworks. Its situation was dire when it was rescued however it is responding very well to treatment and is surprisingly comfortable with human contact. We are looking at various possibilities for a long term home for her and already have some great potential locations!

If you are ever in Kathmandu, a visit to KAT is well worth your while. It gives you an uplifting and rewarding experience as well as a very different insight into Nepal and its culture.