Strike bound in Chitwan

Mom, Dad, Sita and I left for Chitwan National Park on Wed. March 4th on the bus. There was a strike going on in the plains area along the border with India, but as of when we left, there had not been any problems with the Chitwan area. We got into Sauraha, the town on the edge of the park with only slight delays, and stayed the night.

We got up the next morning to learn that the strike had moved into the Chitwan area as well, and the road out of town was blocked. This was very disappointing, as our plan for that day was to visit Sita's village and see where she had grown up. So Sita left to go to her brother's house nearby (by rickshaw, since vehicles were not running), and we tried to figure out what we would do for the day instead.

The reason for us being in Chitwan at this time was a conference with all the InterServe people working in Nepal. InterServe is the organization I came to Nepal through, and there were going to be about 60 of us converging on Chitwan for a weekend conference/retreat. I was quite looking forward to seeing everyone, and having a fun weekend in Chitwan. We were still a day early, but we went to the hotel that we'd be staying at for the conference to figure things out. As the day wore on, it was looking more and more like no one else was going to be able to arrive in Chitwan for the conference, as the strikes were continuing. By evening it was confirmed - I was the only conference member to actually make it to the venue, and the weekend was cancelled.

We stayed that night in a tower in the jungle, where we could view animals at dusk and dawn. We got to see a male rhino lumber back from the wallowing hole, (did you know male rhino's pee backwards, and not down like most animals? We didn't) as well as some deer, wild boar, and a peacock that perched in a tree nearby and squawked all night long.

The next morning was the most serious of the bundh (strike), as even in our little tourist town all stores were shut, and no vehicles were running. Outside, 2 protesters and 1 policeman had been killed. We weren't going to go anywhere, and besides, we were in Chitwan, and wanted to enjoy it. We booked into a three day package deal (suddenly everyone was desperate for business, with no new tourists arriving), and enjoyed our surroundings.

Highlights include: Bathing with the elephants (left). Elephant and Crocodile breeding centres with babies of both there (the elephants were cuter). Elephant safari in the jungle, where we saw 11 rhinos, many deer at very close range, and a peacock dancing with his tale open for his peahens' approval. The ban on vehicles due to the strike worked in our favour for this, as instead of taking a jeep out to the jungle, we were picked up by the elephants at our hotel!



We went out in a dugout canoe, and saw many crocodiles. (including the man eating Marsh Mugger - apparently this animal is where we get the English word mugger from. We were a bit confused, as our guide seemed to be saying Mass Mugger, which brought to mind a serial robber, and seemed an odd name for a crocodile, no matter how fierce.) On all of our activities, we saw so many beautiful birds, including several types of brilliant blue kingfishers, brilliant green bee eaters and parakeets. Chitwan is a beautiful area.

I hope to post some more pictures online, but in the mean time, Julia and Jan also went to Chitwan when they were here in November, and Julia has posted some pictures of their time ni Chitwan starting here. (all of her Nepal pics are here, if you want to see more of our trekking together)

We got to the end of our package tour, and the strike was still going on. By now we were getting a bit worried, and ready to move on. However, negotiations had started between the government and the protesters, so we thought we'd wait another day, and see if things improved. By now Sauraha was beginning to feel like a ghost town, as no new tourists were coming in, and slowly people were leaving by whatever means they could - carts, rickshaws, vehicles in the middle of the night - to get to planes or other tours they had to catch. We were starting to recognize everyone left, and we all had lots to talk about, in figuring out what we were going to do.

Monday morning, we heard the talks had fallen through, so there was no clear end in sight. We decided to take a horse cart through the country roads (fording a river and over some fields even) as far as Sita's brother's house, where she was also still stranded. Her brother hadn't made it home from where he works in another part of Nepal, because of the strike, but his wife and two daughters were there. It was lovely to meet them, and to stay there with them for a night. It was particularly fun, as Monday was the first day of Holi, the festival of colours. The children were running around smearing coloured powder on each other - here are some of the results, Sita's neice (middle of the three girls), and her very cute younger sister.


Tuesday morning, we were in luck. The strike was called off in our area for 2 days for the celebration of Holi. So we were able to get a local bus home to Pokhara. It was actually only one day later than we had planned to arrive home, so we weren't inconvenienced that much by the strike. Still we were really relieved to be home, and not having to deal any longer with the stress of figuring out how to get there! Holi was still in full swing - our bus got water bombed by kids along the way, and when we arrived in Pokhara, we weren't able to get home unscathed either!

Mom and Dad had a few days to say farewell to the folks at the hospital, who had adopted them into their community with great hospitality. We had meals out at several Nepali's houses before they left too. And then they were off by bus on Friday, to start their journey home. They fly from Kathmandu today (Sunday). It was so great to have them visit, and it was fun to show them my life here. And it was only goodbye for a few months this time, so that was easier too.

As for the strikes, they started up again after Holi, and there is no end in sight. Negotiations continue, while things like gasoline are starting to get scarce (since most things come in from India). Businessmen are now having their own strikes to protest their losses due to the ongoing strike. Other groups are waiting in the wings, to see how these negotiations go with the government, and perhaps may strike themselves to get their demands heard. All of this doesn't affect my daily life, but it makes travel in the country very difficult, and it's hard to know how it's all going to end.