kathmandu

well.....so sorry i have not updated - it has been a bit of an overwhelming week with the heat, the millions of ants in our apartment, the rat, the cockroaches, gekos, the howling dogs, the huge the jet lag...
we arrived last thursday to beautiful chaos. we felt somewhat accustomed to the time difference since we had stayed overnight in soeul (at the hyatt regency hotel - a gift from the airline!!!!!) the rooms were like walking into an ikea showroom. had freed dinner and breakfast and then boarded the flight for our last leg of the journey. when we arrived at the airport (or should i say a small bus terminal) there was another 747 unloading its passengers so this little place was crammed with tourists. we stood in line for 2 hours waiting to get our visas. there was a nice man who helped us and we ended up bypassing the long line up (so just imagine how long we would have been standing there!!!). we got a visa for three months and the children were free. (because they are cute :)
the first 3 days was horrible...rod and i walked into a fairly dirty place so we had to scrub and disinfect the whole place. it has been overwhelming trying to teach the girls not to touch everything they see, not to put their fingers in their mouth, not to pick their nose, not to touch their feet, always wear your indoor shoes inside....blah blah. oh, and always use hand sanitation - the joys of living with a nurse. but i must say rod has been amazing...never seen him clean so much and i think it is pretty hot :) and so far we have been doing very well. it helps that we have our own kitchen and we cook our own food.
it is amazing what sleep can do with your outlook on life. i feel now that we can do it....we can make it thru. and it is amazing what a schedule can do...we wake up between 6 and 7, eat breakfast, start school at 9 till 11, play time, lunch and then a family outing. we bought a year membership at the zoo (about $15 canadian) and it is an incredible zoo that houses black bear, tigers, monkeys, hyennas, hippos, rhinos and more that we haven't had a chance to see yet.
noel (the pastor) has encouraged us to take our time before we embark on any thing big. rod has already started setting up the medical clinic and has been able to take care of a few people. Noel has asked for my help in communicating with the west and in time i will get more involved with the women here.
well, i must get back to school....