Now that you've met Vikash, please meet his wife and daughter.

Bill Martino

Bill Martino

Joined
Mar 5, 1999
Messages
34,096

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top -- left to right -- Yangdu, Rajkumari, Bandana, and Uncle Bill.
Rajkumari is the wife of Vikash, Bandana is 7 year old daugher. 3 year old son, Denny, will not stand still long enough for picture.

bottom -- in typical Nepali older home ceilings are not very high. 5' 11" Uncle Bill's head touches kitchen ceiling.

This is typical Nepali kitchen for city dwellers. Vikash has home in Bagh Bazaar, the quarter where Yangdu and I had our first apartment in 1984. Propane range, no oven. Water is hand carried from outdoor faucet. (White water buckets). Water must be boiled and filtered. Notice filter on shelf just left of Yangdu.

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Blessings from the computer shack in Reno.

Uncle Bill
Himalayan Imports Website
Khukuri FAQ
 
Love to see pix of everyone and family uncle Bill. Please keep on posting pictures!
 
Uncle Bill, How much work did you get done over there? Almost every picture of you has a glass of beer in it as well.

Just kiddin'. Thanks so much for all the pics. They tell the story of HI so very well.

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Life is short, art endures.
 
In Nepal, beer is much safer to drink than water. And, the boiled and filtered water has a somewhat "dead" taste to it. So, coffee all morning and beer starting with lunch and on into evening. I kept bottled water in jola and room for emergencies.



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Blessings from the computer shack in Reno.

Uncle Bill
Himalayan Imports Website
Khukuri FAQ
 
That is quite true about beer and other fermented beverages being drunk.

On a historical note, before the advent of water treatment, beer was widely drunk as one was less likely to get sick from it. Not only the alcohol content, but the hops contributed to making beer a safe and wise beverage choice to drink.



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Harry

Toujours l'audacite!
 
Tea is usually safe because they have to boil it.

Soda can be problematic, as some vendors open the bottles and dilute with water.
 
It is a sobering thought to see that so many people, even those living in a fairly well- developed urban area, live in conditions that many of us consider "roughing it" when we go camping in our tents and RVs. In America, it's usually considered a joke or a scandal when someone has outdoor plumbing. In many parts of the world, plumbing of any kind is a luxury.

On the other hand, there are places in the world where extreme conditions are the result of poor planning and social forces virtually out of control. In Ethiopia, they are again on the verge of famine, despite the last major relief effort nearly two decades ago, and continuous efforts by international agencies to stabilize the region. Sometimes the relief efforts simply delay the effects of poblems, instead of really helping solve them.

What's this got to do with khkuris?
Everything!

That's what I like most about Himalayan Imports. The money goes directly to the people who are doing the work, instead of being swallowed up in bureaucratic infrastructure, TV spots, and lots of hand-wringing on All Things Considered about why so much of the relief aid isn't getting where i'ts supposed to.

HI helps people who have a strong desire to help themselves in a society where there are no social services to speak of, and they are marginalized by their caste. They also have a strong desire and justifiable pride in keeping their honorable craft alive, and sharing their skill with the rest of the world.

Thank you, Bill.

Tom
 
I can see the Nepal experience creeping in, Howard. One also needs to know his sauji when purchasing bottled water as some shopkeepers simply fill used bottles from the tap and sell them as new, pure bottled water.

I worry about tea due to the washing of the cups. If cups are not air dried a single drop of contaminated wash water left on the cup can give you the runs at both ends for days.

I have always thought my own purified water (bleach) was the safest thing for me to drink in Nepal and next to that was beer. But, I've had amoebas and other stuff so many times they hardly bother me these days.
 
I try to avoid "me-toos" but sometimes I just have to say it. The pix and the culture and the caring are what make this forum special (or, that is, more special than usual
wink.gif
).

Keep 'em coming, Uncle Bill. And I've got to say the same to TomF. Right on, Bro!
smile.gif



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Paul Neubauer
prn@bsu.edu
If the odds are a million to one against something occurring, chances are 50-50 it will.
 
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