Happy Dashain

A happy and auspicious Dashain to everyone from here in Nepal.

We have spent the last few days touring various schools, meeting volunteers and sweating under the intense heat of the sun. Over the next few weeks we shall be visiting many of our sponsored children, making sure that our program are going well and putting together a number of new projects to support and enhance our current work.

Here in Nepal is the main festival season and people are enjoying a few days off work to visit their families and take part in ceremonies. Much of the festivities revolve around meeting and blessing ones family and giving gifts to those ‘below’ you in the family hierarchy.

In just over a week’s time is the second festival called Tihar (orDiwali in India) which roughly translates as the “festival of light”. People burn many candles to attract a good future, often as many as 100,000 candles are placed around the home in order to attract the most future benefit.

It is also the festival of brothers and sisters, whereby sisters elaborately decorate their brothers and in return girls receive precious gifts from their brothers (often a new set of clothes).