oct. 2004, year 3 issue 6 - pdf format

Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.nepalseattle.org

Dear all, On this auspicious day, please accept my sincere best wishes for a Happy, Prosperous Vijaya Dashami 2061 to all.

Vijaya Dashami Ko Hardik Mangalmaya Subhakamana!!

While we gather to celebrate together - away from our families in Nepal - we pray for their well being, prosperity and peace. I also

want to thank all those who were directly or indirectly involved in making our Dashain pro-gram and "Lali Gurans newsletter" a grand success. Lastly, may Goddess Durga Bhawani grace her blessings to each one of us for continued love and support in our community. Thank you.

Ravi SJB Rana

Year 3, Issue 6 (Oct 2004) Rhododendron — National Flower of Nepal State Flower of Washington, USA

(2003 - 2005 AD)

Executive Committee:

President- Ravi Rana

Vice-President- Sita Gurung

Gen.Secretary– Dhan B. Pun

Treasurer- Sachin Pradhan

Executive Members:

Sampurna Prajapati

Madhu Dahal

Shanti Thapa

Anna Hauksdottir

Madan Shrestha Board Of Directors:

Mr. Atul Regmi Mr. Bijit Giri

Mr. Karma Sherpa

Mrs. Lily Laemmle Mr. Nil Bahadur Tilija

Mr. Shree Ram Dahal

Mr. Tirtha Khanal

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E

LALI GURANS

Newsletter of Nepal Seattle Society

Message from NSS President

Letter from H.E.Ambassador 2

NSS News... 3,4,5

Greetings from the fair land 6

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gy{j]i6 g]kfnL hd36=== 11

Addressing the needs for... 12

s7}a/L=== 13

Pilgrimage to Kailash... 14

Journey to Nepal... 16

Linking Nepal and Oregon... 18

NSS Upcoming Events... 22

NSS Life Members... 22

Life is butterfly... 23

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News from Alpine... 24

INLS Seattle Chapter... 25

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Year 3 , Issue 6

Letter From His Excellency Kedar Bhakta Shrestha Royal Nepalese Ambassador to USA


September 5, 2004: 3rd Northwest Nepali Jamghat The Nepali Association of Oregon (NAO) hosted a Northwest Nepali Jamghat (gathering) at Blue Lake Regional Park, Portland, Oregon on September 5, 2004,. Members were given the opportunity to take a chartered bus to the event. On the bus we sang and danced to our favorite Nepali songs to pass the time and make the bus ride an enjoyable trip. Once we arrived in Portland, we enjoyed the festive mood with NAO mem-bers/friends. After the games, activities and delicious food, NAO provided a Token of Love to NSS. Next year, the Nepali Jamghat will be in Vancouver, B.C..

August 22, 2004: FUND RAISING MOMO PARTY On August 22, 2004, NSS organized its first formal Fund Raiser event at the Himalayan Sherpa Restaurant. We made around 900 pieces of MOMOs and sold $749 dollars worth. During the party we projected “In The Shadow of Himalayas: How People Live in Nepal” as entertainment for our members and friends. We thank all of the NSS officials, volunteers, members and friends from the bottom of our hearts who gave their valuable time to make and sell all those momos to make our Fund Raiser a big success. We thank Ms. Tamara Plush for providing her movie for the event. Our very special thanks goes to Mr. Mani Chhetri of Himalayan Sherpa Restaurant and his staff for all their help and for providing the premises to NSS at no cost. We hope to get this kind of continued help and cooperation in the days to come for the betterment of NSS. We hope to host more Fund Raising Events in the future as we are planning to establish a Revolving Fund to serve our members in need as well as children and elderly people in Nepal. We also hope that we will be able to support victims of natural disasters if we are successful in establishing this kind of Fund.

NSS NEWS

Year 3 , Issue 6

July 17, 2004: Potluck Picnic - NSS DAY On July 17, 2004, NSS hosted a Potluck Picnic Day (NSS DAY) at the Golden Gar-den Park, in Seattle, WA. We had a great turnout of people as well as a variety of delicious foods prepared by our NSS members. The Nepali Soccer Team was honored with 6 soccer balls, 1 air pump and 17 scrimmage vests for their job well done at the World Cup Seattle 2004 Soc-cer Tournament. Golden garden park pro-vided a beautiful background to our excit-ing day which included fun-filled activities like Tug-of-war, Children’s Blind Jack and Volleyball. We thank all of those who at-tended this picnic and made this event a grand success.


Year 3 , Issue 6

June 4 to 6, 2004: World Cup Seattle 2004 Soccer Tournament The qualifying game for this year’s World Cup Seattle 2004 Soccer Tournament was held on June 4th, 5th and 6th at Starfire Sports Soccer Complex in Tukwila, Washington. The Sister Communi-ties of Seattle founded World Cup Seattle in August 2003 as an ave-nue for cultural expression, strengthening diverse leadership, and creating connection between the diverse communities of the Puget Sound region. This year 31 teams including Nepal represented their country. The Nepalese Soccer Team of Seattle proudly participated in this World Cup Seattle 2004 Qualifying Game. The inauguration ceremony was on 4th June at 7pm. There were many cultural activi-ties from the participating countries. Our team captain Mr. Bishal Gurung spoke at the inauguration about the Nepali Team, Nepal and the future goals of our team. On the first day, 4th June, Nepal played against China and won 1-0 with Mr. Dawa Tuladhar's winning goal. It was indeed a very good start for us and felt great to come home with a win on the very first day. This was an exciting game and a lot of fun to watch. The second day, 5th June, Nepal played against Laos and lost 4-1 (Mr. Tenzing Thinley scored for Nepal.) Unfortunately, in this game, one of our players from Portland, Mr. Kabir Pradhan was injured with multi-ple fractures in his right arm. We hope he is doing better now. The last day 6th June, Nepal played against Japan and Japan won 5-0. Japan was a tough competitor but our players displayed amazing team work and played tirelessly till the end. Even though the Nepali Team did not make it into the sec-ond rounds, the team showed great pride, dedication, and class in each of the games. It was a tough competition but everyone played impressively giving their best and above all, everyone had fun partici-pating in this competitive tournament. We are proud of our Nepali Soccer Team who represented our country Nepal in the international community throughout this competition. Many people are not familiar with Nepal and Nepalese, however this competition provided an op-portunity for many people to recognize us. Our Nepali Soccer Team Cast: Bishow Adhikari, Chandika Bhandari, Satish Chand (Coach), J. Dorjee, Som Ghimire, Bishal Gurung (Team Captain), Krishna Gurung, Chet Khadka, Bhushan Khanal, Prasoon Khanal, Dave Laemmle (Goal Keeper), Kabir Pradhan, Pan Tamang, Diwakar Thapa, Tenzing Thinley, Dawa Tuladhar, T. Wangyal (Goal Keeper). Mr. Bishal Gurung is the team captain for the Nepali Soccer Team, Mr. Satish Chand and Mr. Sabin Pradhan helped out as the coaches and our invaluable goal keepers were Mr. Dave Laemmle and Mr. T. Wangyal. In all the three games, we saw a lot of support from our Nepali community and thank everyone who came to watch the games and cheered for our team and boosted their confidence. Spe-cial thanks to Mr. Dawa Tuladhar and Mr. Kabir Pradhan who came from Portland to represent our country in this tournament. Let us continue to support our budding soccer team and hope to see them competing in the finals at the Seahawk Stadium some day!

CONGRATULATIONS AND THREE CHEERS TO OUR NEPALI SOCCER TEAM!!


Year 3 , Issue 6

April 17, 2004: Nepali New Year 2061 Celebration

The Nepali New Year 2061 celebration was held on 17th April 2004 at Happy Medium School in Seattle, Washington. About 250 members and guests attended the celebration. The cele-bration started with a welcome speech by NSS President Mr. Ravi SJB Rana and New Year Wel-come poem by Mrs. Jyotsana Rana. She read her poem titled Sabailai hatar chha...., which touched everyone's heart by focusing on daily life situation in America.

Ms. Lily Laemmle and Mr. Madhu Dahal took on the stage for us all with their graceful presence as Masters of Ceremony. The audience enjoyed laugh after laugh by the muktaks and sayaries (Nepali jokes) Madhu Dahal presented.

We all enjoyed the exciting cultural program performed by our talented local artists that evening. The cultural program began with a patriotic song "Yo man ta Nepali ho..." by Atul Regmi, Sunil Joshi, Bhushan Khanal, Sushil Bogati and Madhu Dahal. Ms. Parvati T. Brown performed a beautiful solo dance on the modern song “Choli ramro palpali dhakako...” Mr. Tsering Lama sang a folk song “Dharanko purano bajaraima...” For the first time, he showcased his ability as a singer that evening. Mr. Lama is also a very good dancer and he has performed in many NSS programs before. Mr. Tak Gurung and Mr. Prem Gurung accompanied him by playing the Madal (Nepali drums).

A romantic duet dance was presented by Mr. Madan Shrestha and Mrs. Bandana Shrestha on the song “Kafal gedi kutukkaai, nahou bhutukai…” It was an incredible performance. This was Bandana’s first performance in NSS program. Madan has performed dances before for various NSS programs. Mr. Madan Shrestha and Bandana Shrestha are going to represent Nepal Seattle Society with the same dance sequence on the 3rd International Taekwondo Championship in Portland on June 19th 2004.

A folk song in pop tune "Nakkalai kali maya..." and a love song "Jahan jaau priya timi..." were sung by Atul Regmi, Sunil Joshi, Bhushan Khanal, Sunil Bogati and Krishna Gurung. These talented artists are the icons of our successful musical shows.

Our talented dancers Sita Gurung, Parvati T. Brown, Tsering Lama and Kiran Shrestha performed an incredible group dance to a folk song "Launa mero jovana gayo dhalkera..." These artists including Shanti Thapa, Sampurna Prajapati, Tak Gurung, Prem Gurung, Krishna Gurung, Anupma Gurung, Madhu Dahal and Pushpa Shrestha sang a dohoree geet "Simsime paanima..." The song was compiled by Sita Gurung and Kiran Shrestha with the interesting love story between Gurungseni and Newar.

Sampurna Prajapati and Anupma Gurung performed an entertaining duet dance on the song "Kaalo choli makhmali jhalala..." Sampurna is a very good dancer and he has performed in various NSS programs. For Anupama, this was her first performance on stage and she did a spec-tacular job for a first time dancer. Other talented dancers Kiran Shrestha and Mingma Sherpa per-formed a duet dance on the song "Chaudha anchal makuri pachattar jilla..." Mr. Pushpa Shrestha recited a heart touching Nepali poem. We have seen him perform on stage at various NSS pro-grams in the past as well. A special highlight of our program was when Tom Lapham and Jacob Kalenderian sang a song “Mayale maya gasideu…” with Anup Kafle.

Our popular DJs Krishna Gurung along with Shree Ram Dahal and Shruti brought the house down with lively Nepali, Hindi and English beats using a computerized musical system. It is a great help to use the technology in our programs as it helps us make our programs systematic and more professional sounding.

Besides the interesting cultural program, another highlight of the evening was the raffle drawing. The first raffle prize was for 4 elevator ride tickets at the Space Needle which was won by Mr. Tak Gurung. The second raffle prize was a gift certificate to dinner at Annapurna Café won by one of our guest. Annapurna Café is a Nepali café/restaurant owned by two of our NSS members. The GRAND raffle prize was a ROUND TRIP AIR TICKET to Seattle-New Delhi-Seattle from Asiana Airlines which was won by Mr. Chong Karma Sherpa. Mr. DJ Ahn from Asiana Airlines was with us at this event. He handed over the ticket to our president. We thank Mr. Ahn for his time and support to our society and thank Asiana Airlines tremendously. We hope to get their continued support in the days to come.

All the members of the New Year 2061 celebration organizing committee would like to thank all the artists and volunteers who helped and dedicated their valuable time and efforts to make this New year 2061 celebration memorable and successful. All of them deserve great appre-ciation for a job well done. Our special thanks goes to Mr. Hum Bahadur BK of New Delhi Restau-rant for providing delicious appetizers and a hearty Nepali buffet dinner. Please visit our website: www.nepalseattle.org and click on the Photo Gallery to view some of the photos snapshots taken at the from the New Year 2061 celebration.


Year 3 , Issue 6

Namaste! And greetings from the fair land of Nepal! My name is Dawn Bove. As you read this I will be huffing and puffing up a well worn trail in the beautiful Himalayas in far western Nepal, one of the most remote spots on the earth and one of the most scenic as well. You see, I left my heart there on my last trip in October of 2003 and I have to go get it! This area is not strange to me... in fact it is my MYETEE... my homeland. I was raised here as child from age 10 to age 17, most of my formative years. My parents, Dr. and Mrs. Maynard Seaman came here in 1968 to minister to the sick and impoverished in the Doti district. They initiated their first week in a little valley next to Pokara (means Lake) about 8 Kms. from Dadeldhura the district center. Back then it was a 100 mile hike from the end of the last motor-able road. And hike it we did! It was the only way to go back then! We used to do the hike over 6 days initially but as we became older and more surefooted as teenagers we were able to manage the same distance in three days. Now, thank God, there is a decent road all the way from Dhangadi to Dadeldhura and I shouldn't have to walk much at all! It's a good thing as I'm no longer the hiker I once was! My father pioneered not only that first hospital 36 years ago, but many years later, a second hospital in Dadeldhura, itself.(He retired after 30 years of service but still volunteers whenever he can.). I will be volunteering as a nurse for 2 months at this facility in Dadeldhura. I will be also teaching Natural Healing classes to the staff of that hospital and hope to also do some village health training courses if all goes well. As a result of my latest trip to this location last October, I have had a tremendous burden for the widows and orphans of Nepal in general and Doti in particular. The devastation the war has left on too many families, pulls at my heart strings and I cannot sit idly by and act as if it does not exist. So I have been collecting funds and started 2 orphanages as of February 2004, one in Kathmandu and the other in Dadeldhura. In both cases, couples approached me and expressed a huge desire to take in orphans if they just had the funding. One couple had already taken in 2 orphans into their own home along with their own 2 children. That home has now exceeded their capacity with 9 children and many more clam-oring to come if they just had resources. The new Children’s Home in Dadeldhura has also taken in 9 children and just moved to a larger facility last month. My recent move to Port Orchard, WA, 2 months ago, has forced me to get to know many new people here. It has been astounding to me to see total strangers rally around the cause of reaching out to these precious little ones as we conducted a warm clothing drive. I am taking as much as I can carry, to help these little ones get through another cold winter. But there are many needs yet. Some of them are better met in Nepal with funds from here, i.e. things that are too heavy to carry, like shoes and blankets that can be obtained in Kathmandu. This assures a better “fit” as in shoes and promotes the local economy as well, (something Nepal can really use, as tourism is declining due to the volatile nature of the war.) But funds are needed for food and shoes and blankets etc. My heart also goes out to the widows! I have a desire to help these women be independent and develop income generating strategies and imple-ment them for the benefit of the whole family. I hope to institute some of these kinds of programs as well on this trip- as the need is so great in this area! So as you can see… I have my work cut out for me! So I will polish my “kichardee” language skills (I seem to confuse my Hindi and Nepali too readily!) and put on my kurta/sulwar and get myself to the uttermost part of the world and try to make a difference in the life of someone half a world away! If you would like to assist me and my brother Dave Seaman in our joint venture to bring aid to Nepal in a tangible way, your monetary gift would be so appreciated. We guarantee 100% will go directly to ministering to the sick, homeless, fatherless and destitute or to the delivery of your gift. Won’t you help us meet the needs of these beautiful but needy Nepalese! They and I thank you from the bottom of our heart! Please visit our website at www.daretocareinc.com to see what we are doing and to get connected with our staff or to sponsor a child or project. Dare to Care Inc. is a not for profit (with 501(c) (3) relief organization meeting tangible needs for the destitute and needy of Nepal.). Also feel free to call me at (630) 272-0512 after my return December 10th or Dave at (847) 742-7115. Either of us be happy to answer your questions re: this important work. Wishing you the best of health, peace and prosperity! Dawn PS. I enjoyed meeting many of you at the Nepali New Years Celebrations in Seattle in April! I trust I can reconnect with you again soon at a near future NSS event!

Dawn Bove


Year 3 , Issue 6

Atul Regmi

(Board of Director)

Bijit Giri

(Board of Director)

C. K. Sherpa

(Board of Director)

Lily Laemmle

(Board of Director)

Nil Bahadur Tilija

(Board of Director)

Shree Ram Dahal

(Board of Director)

Tirtha Khanal

(Board of Director)

Ravi SJB Rana (President)

Sita Gurung (Vice-President)

Dhan B. Pun (General Secretary)

Sachin Pradhan (Treasurer)

Shanti Thapa (Executive Member)

Madan Shrestha (Executive Member)

Madhu Dahal (Executive Member)

Anna Hauksdottir (Executive Member)

Sampurna Prajapati (Executive Member)


Year 3 , Issue 6

MERO NEPAL -d]/f] g]kfn_ By Nabita Khanal Beautified with the greatest heights of the Himalaya, Nepal is a land of sublime

scenery, time-worn temples, and some of the best walking trails on earth. It is rich in scenic majesty and cultural treasures. Nepal is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of bio-diversity due to its unique geo-graphical position and altitude variation. The country is located between India in the south and China in the north. At the latitudes 26 and 30 degrees north and longitudes 80 and 88 degrees east. The elevation of the country ranges from 70 meters above sea level to the highest point on earth, Mt. Ev-erest at 8,848 meters, all within a distance of 850 kilometers west to east nd 145-241 kilometers north to south. Thus, resulting in climatic conditions from Sub-tropical to Arctic. Not only does it have the world's tallest mountains, including Everest and Annapurna, it also has the youngest - and they're still growing. Apart from its four mountain ranges - Chure Hills, Mahabharat Range, Himalaya and the Tibetan Marginals - Nepal also has vast plains in the south, fertile valleys in the midlands and high-altitude deserts in the north. Eight out of 10 Nepalese are engaged in farming and it accounts for more than 40 percent of the GDP. Rolling fields and neat terraces can be seen all over the Terai flatlands and the hills of Nepal. Even in the highly urbanized Kathmandu Valley, large tracts of land outside the city areas are devoted to farming. Rice is the staple diet in Nepal and around three million tons are produced annually. Other major crops are maize, wheat, millet and barley. Besides food grains, cash crops like sugarcane, oil seeds, tobacco, jute and tea are also cultivated in large quantities. Whether you get your adrenaline kicks from some of the world's premier white-water rafting, kayaking and mountain biking, or from the sight of a tiger or rhino through the dawn mist from atop an elephant in Chitwan National Park. The park is especially re-nowned for Royal Bengal tigers, one-horned rhinos, and gharial crocodile. Kathmandu valley, a fabulous capital of friendly peo-ple, carved rose-brick temples, statues, stupas and many other pieces with magnificence history behind it. The city of Pokhara which is renowned for its setting. Lumbini (Buddha was born in Lumbini, twenty-five hundred years ago.) is a small town where the ruins of the old city can still be seen. At the same time you can find increasing modernity. Nepal is destined to make a big impres-sion on you. Many visitors, drawn to Nepal by the promise of adventure, friendliness of the Nepali people and their amazingly rich and diverse culture. Nepal – occupying only 0.1% of the earth – is home to: - 2% of all the flowering plants in the world - 8% of the world's population of birds (more than 848 species) - 4% of mammals on earth - 11 of the world's 15 families of butterflies (more than 500 species) - 600 indigenous plant families - 319 species of exotic orchids Full country name: Kingdom of Nepal Population: 23 million Capital city: Kathmandu (pop. 535,000) King: Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev Prime Minister: Sher Bahadur Deuba Area: 147,181 sq. kilometers Language: Nepali is the national language. Currency: Nepali Rupee (approximately US$ 1 equals Rs. 74.65) Political System: Multi-party democracy with constitutional monarchy Religion: Nepal enjoys the distinction of being the only Hindu Kingdom in the world (86.2% Hindu). However, there are 7.8% Bud-dhist, 3.8% Muslim, and 2.2% other.

Contd. on page 21...


Year 3 , Issue 6

My Doctor said… I have a border line of high blood pressure, high sugar and high cholesterol; I need to watch my food, reduce animal products, dairy prod-ucts, and junk food and take more vegetables, fibers and regular exercise on top of that..

Oh my God… my life and my family are the most important things to me in this world, but how can I do that when I have to work so hard to support my family and myself. I have no time to cook quality food at home, so I have to eat whatever I get outside. Here is a solution…You can have such kind of food at The Everest Kitchen which was established to serve healthy food with commitment. You can take out or dine in. Delivery and catering service is also available. Just give them buzz or write them at:

The Everest Kitchen USA (Formerly Known as New Delhi Restaurant)

14561 Bothellway NE Seattle WA 98155

Phone # 206 440 0321

Website: www.theeverestkitchen.com (coming soon)

Email: [email protected]

Lunch Buffet 11am to 2.30pm Dinner 4.30pm to 9.30pm

• Saturday is especially for Nepali, friends

of Nepal and Nepali food lover. You are always welcome.

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Year 3 , Issue 6

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Mankaji Shrestha

Professional Engineer British Columbia

Vancouver, Canada E-mail: [email protected]


Year 3 , Issue 6

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Krishna, Anita & Mahima Gurung

We would like to extend our warmest wishes to everyone on this auspicious festival of Happy

Vijaya Dashami & Deepawali.

Dave, Lily & Supriya Laemmle


Addressing the Need for Education in Nepal By Deep Roots Nepal Today in Nepal, where the average annual household income is $250, the $25 it costs a family to send a child to school for a year is often an impossibility. Only 16% of all eligible Nepali students are able to over-come poverty and political instability, corruption and chronic under-funding to remain enrolled in school through grade ten. Yet education is not a luxury; it is a right and a requirement for a prosperous, promising future—whether for a child or a country. Deep Roots Nepal (DRN) was created in 2003 to provide a secure source of funding to outstanding Nepal-ese students who could not otherwise afford to attend school. With the help of carefully selected local NGO partners, DRN identifies students in rural areas of Nepal who have demonstrated academic excellence, but who are at risk of leaving the public educational system due to economic hardship. DRN subsidizes the tuition, textbook, and school supply expenses faced by these students and their families, while monitoring their progress throughout the remainder of their educa-tion. Because of the special challenges and inequities they face, DRN is committed to providing half of their scholarships to orphaned children and two-thirds of their scholarships to young women. Program Description Deep Roots Nepal (DRN) identifies secondary school (grades 6 to 10) students from rural areas of Nepal who demonstrate both aca-demic excellence and economic disadvantage. DRN pays or subsidizes the minimal tuition, textbook, and school supply expenses faced by these students throughout the remainder of their secondary education. To identify potential scholarship recipients, DRN asks selected local NGOs in Nepal to nominate students who have displayed academic excellence but who are at risk of leaving the educational system due to economic hardship. The NGO worker or organization that nomi-nates a student is committed to assist with monitoring the student’s progress through the remainder of his edu-cation. The renewal of a student’s scholarship each year is contingent upon his attendance and satisfactory performance in the prior year. The Morning Star Orphanage Sponsorship Fund The Morning Star Orphanage, located just outside the city of Kathmandu, is a locally organized and run or-phanage with 56 impoverished, abandoned orphans. Though these children are fortunate enough to have found a caring home, the orphanage is still mainly funded by Bishnu Parajuli, the founder of the orphanage. By providing for the educational needs of these 56 children, Deep Roots Nepal is helping the Morning Star Or-phanage be more sustainable and allowing it to expand to take in more unfortunate children. Rural Student Scholarship Fund Though Nepal's physical size is small, it is tremendously diverse both culturally and economically. Leaving the Kathmandu valley, brick houses give way to mud huts, paved roads dwindle to dirt footpaths, gas stoves yield to traditional fire "chulos". The average daily salary is about 60 US cents, but in rural areas it is even lower. School fees of 100 rupees (about $1.50) are a luxury much of the rural population cannot afford. In the spirit of other Deep Roots programs, Deep Roots Nepal seeks poor but talented students in rural areas and supports them financially through the completion of their schooling. Deep Roots can provide one year's worth of school fees, textbooks, and school supplies for a student for as little as $25. You can find out more about Deep Roots Nepal by visiting them on the web at www.deeproots.org/nepal or by emailing them at [email protected].

Year 3 , Issue 6


Year 3 , Issue 6

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Rakesh Rimal &

Kamala Rimal


PILGRIMAGE TO KAILASH

By Ravi Rana

"In the first pages of poetry, written in the second millennium BC, the Aryans sang hymns to Gods in the Himalaya. For centuries man has journeyed through these forbidding and forlorn mountains and valleys in a timeless quest of the Divine. These great mountains, from the Tien Shan to the Himalaya, lie at the heart of Eurasia, the Mother Continent, from where man stepped out to inhabit the far corners of the earth.

In this spectacular setting of nature, man located the scene of Creation from the primordial waters, the great Tethyan Sea, a remainder of which is Lake Manasarovar. In the form of Mt Kailash, 22,028 ft, on the Tibetan plateau, he envi-sioned the celestial stairway by which the Gods descended from heaven and here he beheld the Supreme Being, Lord Shiva. He found the universal themes of the Garden of Eden, the Mountain of the Ark and the Churning of the Ocean reiterated here in geographical fact, echoing the symbolic legends of the origin of life.

Sages and thinkers came away to these remote heights to inhabit secluded hermitages and caves to ponder the ultimate truth. They wrote of their spiritual experiences in the immortal words of the scriptures and gave rise to a wealth of philosophical thought and belief, proclaiming the omniscience of a Supreme Power. The recognition of this Divine became the force which moved the hearts and minds of millions of people and made this region a land of a powerful, living faith. "

• Rommel and Sadhana Varma, Ascent to the Divine, THE HIMALAYA, KAILASH - MANASAROVAR In Scripture, Art and Thought.

Kailash - the sacred mountain and abode of the Hindu God, Shiva. One of the world's greatest pilgrimage destinations visited only by those locals dedicated enough and hardy enough to make the long trek across the high Tibetan plateau with its windswept passes and endless barren plains. But to set eyes on this exceptionally unusual and beautiful mountain and to make the required circumambulations of the equally sacred lake of Mana-sarovar is to attain the ultimate goal for Buddhists and Hindus alike - a lifelong dream and surety of greater reward in the next reincarnation.

For us there is now the chance to join this pilgrimage and be among the very first people to be in the presence of these sacred places. It is not a com-fortable trip; the road distances traveled are great. Yet to stand at the foot of Kailash and to touch the icy waters of the holy lake, Manasarovar, will be an experience few will ever have.

We provide a 30 day itinerary only as a guide and could change for many reasons. Patience and a real sense of adventure are vital to the success of this trip. Also the weather is highly unpredictable in Tibet and roads may close due to unseasonal snow falls etc.

Since much of the trip is at altitudes of over 4000 m you may feel breathless and lethargic for a few days. In some cases you may even suffer mild headaches but there is no need to worry. If these symptoms become worse and you begin to suffer extreme headaches and nausea inform the Group Leader at once so that she / he can ascertain whether or not you are suffering from altitude sickness.

TIBET We head off for Tibet. Our bus climbs up over the rim of the Kathmandu Valley and heads north following the Sun Khosi River to the small village of Tatopani - the Nepalese customs check post. A short drive from here brings you to the Immigration Post at the Friendship Bridge. From here it is about 10 kms uphill to the Chinese Customs and Immigration post at Zhangmu. This town, our first in China, is also known as Khasa in Nepali and Dram in Tibetan. Landslides often block the road up to Zhangmu and it may be necessary to walk. After customs/immigration formalities we begin one of the most spectacular road journeys in the world. From Zhangmu the road winds its way through the narrow gorge of the Sun Khosi. We climb 2000m to Nyalam (4100m), making the dramatic transition from the green forested hillsides of Nepal into the high, dry and wild Tibetan plateau. This is where we spend our first night in Tibet. From here we commence the marathon road journey west towards Kailash. The views back south to the Himalayan Range, which rises straight up from this great plateau, are absolutely breathtaking.

The road to Mt Kailash and the holy lake of Manasarovar is as wild as the country it traverses. It is a dirt road, which crosses streams, high snow-covered passes and vast plains. At times it is easier to drive across grasslands than keep to the road. We often pass groups of pilgrims on their once-in-a-lifetime journey to this ultimate religious destination or perhaps we will come across herds of yaks and sheep being herded by Tibetan nomads. Every day the tedium of the driving will be more than compensated for by the spectacular scenery and the encounters with the Tibetan people who have seen few foreigners and who lead a lifestyle which is all but lost in the 20th century. We are privileged to be among the very few who will ever experience it before it disappears forever.

The route followed affords a variety of scenic wilderness - high altitude desert, snowy, high passes, dramatic and vast grassy plains and misty rolling hills which change colour with every light change. It is truly a remarkable place. As we descend into the Wesak Valley we catch our first glimpse of the sacred peak itself - Kailash. A unique pyramid shaped mountain, which rises dramatically from the north end of the valley. The journey to the foot of Mount Kailash is a great achievement and the ultimate for pilgrims both Western and Eastern. However for those wishing to receive an even greater blessing there is the option to walk the sacred circuit of Mount Kailash. This walk is called "KORA" (which means the Holy walk of Kailash),the 52 km circuit will take us 3 days. The trek takes us through some beautiful wild landscape and also includes crossing the holy Dolma-la Pass (5500m). The walk can be quite strenuous and only for those who are well acclimatized. For those who choose to remain in the base camp can undertake small pilgrimage around the Wesak Valley.


Year 3 , Issue 6


— the Taste of Shangri-La !

Year 3 , Issue 6

We are pleased to introduce our delicious food from ‘Top of the World’. We serve cuisine from Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan and India.

Open Time: Mon– Fri : 11 AM — 10 PM (includes regular Lunch Buffet)

Sat : 12 PM — 10 PM (includes SUPER Saturday Nepali Lunch Special) *** INTRODUCING FAMOUS FOOD ‘GYAKOK’ - THE HOT POT ***

*** Pure Nepali Food ***

Location: 4214 University way NE, Seattle WA, 98105 (Parking available at back).

Tel. (206) 633-2100, Fax: (206) 633-6224, Email: [email protected] Visit us at: http://www.himalayafood.com

Please remember us for Dine in, Take out or Catering service ! Thank you!

"Happy Vijaya Dashami & Deepali 2061" Mani R. Chhetri


Film & Discussion: Journey to Nepal By Tamara Plush (Smudge Production, LLC) Thurs., Nov. 11 - Journey back to Nepal through film and discus-sion at 7 p.m. at the Mountaineers, Thursday, Nov. 11 (300 Third Ave West in lower Queen Anne).

Local filmmaker Tamara Plush will show her 30-minute film: In the Shadow of the Himalayas: How People Live in Nepal. In addition, she will be joined by guides from a local trekking company and Sushil Bogati from Katmandu to talk about the state of Nepal.

Tamara videotaped the film in 2002 in the Katmandu area, Pok-hara, the Dahding District, and the Annapurna Circuit. In addition, the film show video from trekking in the Everest and people from the Terai.

The film is targeted at fourth- through sixth-grade students and features the Hamilton International School in Seattle Washington, learning about Nepal because they have a sister school in the Katmandu Valley. At the beginning of the film, the Hamilton students pack up a care package complete with cameras to send to the students.

Throughout the film, the Hamilton students introduce different aspects of living in Nepal – geography, culture, religion, challenges, play – while answering questions about their perceptions of what life is like in Nepal. At the end, they see the photos that the Nepali students sent back and have a better understanding of the country.

“Nepal is a spectacular country with a unique religious history, beautiful ancient architecture, and one of the most di-verse cultures of people in the world, “said Tamara, the video’s producer, director and camera operator. “Mt. Everest though is the only thing most children know about the country. We hope to change that with this video.”

The funds from the sales of the film are going to support girls’ scholarships through www.roomtoread.org. “In Nepal, Room to Read gives scholarships to girls from first grade through tenth grade,” John Wood, Room to Read CEO, said. “Since about half of all girls in Nepal drop out of school by grade six, this long-term approach helps these girls beat the odds and stay in school long enough to go on to vocational school, or a university.”

If you are not able to attend the Nov. 11 screening, but want to order the film, send $22 for VHS ($20 + shipping) or $27 for the DVD ($25 + shipping) to Tamara Plush, 1320 NE 62nd St, Seattle, WA 98115. This is a $5 discount for Nepal Seattle Society.

Learn more about the film at www.sidff.org/in_shadow.html and send questions to: [email protected].

Year 3 , Issue 6


Year 3 , Issue 6

Coming Soon...

for all the news about Nepal

If you have any question or comment

please e-mail

Tirtha Khanal at

[email protected]


Year 3 , Issue 6

Linking Nepal & Oregon

Daya R. Shakya

President

Nepali Association of Oregon (NAO)

The number of Nepalese-Americans is not as high as other hyphenated Ameri-cans in Oregon. However, the historical fact indicates that contribution of Nepalese peo-ple in building up their own community is very interesting to know. On the other hand, the Oregonians’ contribution on development of Nepal is also highly praiseworthy. This short article aims to explore some of the facts that how the Nepalese community was estab-lished in the State of Oregon.

Historically, Nepal became success-ful in establishing the democratic form of government and became free from 104 years of family based Rana autocratic regime on Feb 22nd,1950. After that Nepal was known to the world in various ways. The very first step of making the country known to the world was its membership to the United Na-tions Organization (UNO) in 1953. In the same year, Sir Edmund Hillary and his Nepali assistant Tenzing Norgay Sherpa conquered the Mount Everest. During this period the diplomatic tie between Nepal and United States of America was also established. Since then the US paid special attention in development of the Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal. The then University of Oregon Profes-sor of Education Dr. Hugh Wood was ap-pointed as the advisor to the newly formed Ministry of Education in Nepal. Under his guidance various educational projects were introduced. One of the most important events that took place in between Nepal and Oregon is visit of eight Nepali Students, Mr. Trailokya Natha. Uprety, Mr. Krishan Raj Aryal, Mr. Narendra Bahadur Basnet, Mr. Shyam Raj Dhoj, Mr. Bhuvan Lal Joshi, Mr. Dirgha Man Shreshta, Mr. Ram Sunar Shreshta, Mr. Rama Prashad Tandukar, to Eugene for teacher training education at the University of Oregon in June 1955. In addition, the royal visit of late King Mahendra and Queen Mother Ratna at the University and decora-tion with award of “Distinguished Service citation” on May 6th 1960, were remarkable events in the history of Nepal and Oregon relationship.

Dr. Wood lived in Nepal for several years and guided extensively to build a col-lege of Education and to establish the Tribhu-van University in 1959. The building of the site was planned and designed by the Oregon Architect Mr. James Tuley.

Since the first batch of Nepali students was returned to homeland with the Masters degree from the U of O and with high qual-ity of experience and knowledge of teacher training, the Nepalese Education System took a different approach in providing a qualitative education to Nepali people. After returning to returned to Eugene, Dr. Wood established the American-Nepal Edu-cation Foundation, ANEF) that consists of educators Chales D Byrne, Federick Hunter Paul Ackerman, Wallace McCrea and Mrs.H.B.Ferrin, as directors, to help Nepali people by providing opportunity to study in the American institutions. The foundation was run by Dr. Wood until he took his last breathe in 1997. Since then a flow of Nepali students were continuously took place in various educational institutions in the state of Oregon including University of Oregon, Oregon State University, Portland State University, Willamette University, Concordia University, Western Oregon Uni-versity, Oregon Institute of Technology, Linfield College, Lane Community College, Portland Community College, Reed College and so on. In lieu of the dedication to Nep-alese Educational development Dr. Hugh Wood was honored with the high ranking “Birendra Prajnaalankar” award by the late King Birendra in 1993. This is certainly an extraordinary contribution from the Orego-nians in the educational development of Nepal. Until Today several research works have been already completed through Ore-gon institutions on various topics of Nepal. Currently, the geography department at the Portland State University (PSU) publishes the Himalayan Research Bulletin (HRB) that focuses research on Nepal and Hima-layan region under the Association for Study of Nepal and Himalayas (ASNH). In addition, the International Nepal Bhasha Seva Samiti (INBSS) publishes ‘Newah Vijnaana’ the Journal of Newar Studies since 1997. The teaching of Nepalese lan-guages to Oregonians was started in 1992 through various institutions in Eugene and Portland.

Turning the subject to different area, the Oregonians have contributed not only in educational development but also in other fields of volunteer activities. In 1975, the then mayor of Eugene Mr. Anderson took an official visit to Kathmandu and in return he proposed to establish a sister city relation with the people of Kathmandu. It was the second sister city to Eugene. The first one was established with Chinju, South Korea in 1970. Currently there are four sister cities linked with Eugene including Kakegawa, Japan and Irkutsh, Russia. Since the beginning of Sister City relation-ship Eugene people created lots of projects

for Nepal. One of the successful projects was scholarship to less privileged 22 girls of Siddhi Pokhari High school in Pokhari Village of Eastern Nepal. The pro-ject was started in 1990 and gave scholarships to pay their tuition and supplies for 5 years until they finish their high school education. It was terminated in 1996 due to recognition of free public education to girls until high school. In 1992, the first Sister city delegation of 10 volunteers was led by the then chairperson of Eugene city council Dr. Shawn Boles and the committee president Mr. Daya Shakya. In return, sister city com-mittee invited three people’s delegation in-cluding Deputy Mayor of Kathmandu Mr. Nabindra Raj Joshi, Kathmandu chapter President Bhikkhu Maitri and an environmen-talist Dr. Shree Shaha in 1993. The result of this delegation exchange brought a concept of launching the Safa Tempo Project (STP) which helps to keep control of air quality of Kathmandu City from excessive exhaust of carbon mono-oxide from three wheel vehi-cles. Currently there are hundreds of electri-cal vehicles running in the streets of Kath-mandu and the Government banned on im-porting non electrified three wheels. This project was successfully completed under the supervision of Global Resources Institute (GRI) established by Dr. Peter Moulton and Marylyn Cohen in Eugene. In addition the solar electrification project of Gompas Mon-asteries locatd in remote villages of Nepal was initiated by Dennis Ramsey in Eugene and partially funded through the sister city committee. The second delegation was taken place in memory of 25th anniversary relation-ship between Kathmandu and Eugene in 2000. A symbol of friendship between two cities is depicted by installation of the Nepali style Dhara ‘water fountain’ in vicinity of Me-tery Bagaicha ‘Friendship Garden’ in the premises of city office of Eugene.

Due to large number of flow of Nepali people in the state of Oregon they have realized to form a formal organization to foster Nepali Cultural heritage and social bondage to help each other. Currently over two hundreds of Nepali people have been living in Portland, Salem, Eugene, Corvallis, Bend, and Ashland. The Nepali Association of Oregon (NAO) was formed with nine executive members under the leadership of Mr. Raju Mali as the first President on April 13, 2001.



Year 3 , Issue 6

Namaste! Happy Vijaya Dashami

And Deepawali 2061

From Annapurna Café

Annapurna Cafe 1833 Broadway Ave.

Seattle, WA 98122 Tel. 206-320-7770

Website: www.annapurnacafe.com

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Ram B. Malla and Shobha Malla

Hemanta Rana & Shova Rana


Year 3 , Issue 6

Contd. from page 14... PILGRIMAGE TO KAILASH From Kailash we head for the holy lake of Manasarovar. In Buddhist/Hindu tradition one should circumambulate the lake seven times to gain a better reincarnation in the next life and blessings in this one. We will have time to explore its shores if not to quite make seven times around. It is a remark-able sight - a lake this size in the middle of a vast high altitude desert plateau. After almost a week in this hallowed area we head east towards Shi-gatse and ultimately the forbidden city of Lhasa.

A three to four days on the road then brings us to Shigatse on the main Lhasa - Kathmandu road. Shigatse, with a population of over 43,000, is one of the largest towns in Tibet. We have a day here, most of which will be spent on a visit to the famed Tashilumpo Monastery, built in 1447 by the first Dalai Lama. Although the monk population of Tashilumpo has dwindled from over 4,000 in the early 1950's to around 700 now, it is still a very active monastery and you will often see the monks pursuing their very lively religious and philosophical debates in the main courtyard. Time permitting, a walk to the local Tibetan markets is well worth while. There is not a lot to buy but the chance to watch the Tibetans bargain is always great entertain-ment! Then, Lhasa ! Your first view of the Potala Palace, perched atop Marpori ("the red mountain") is one of those sights you read and dream about from the first time you ever read a word about this mysterious land. It is no disappointment. Begun in the 7th century but not reaching its full glory until the reign of the 5th Dalai Lama, the Potala is built entirely of wood, earth and stone and its 13 storey rise 117 m. It has over 1000 rooms and one of our main aims in Lhasa is to explore those of them open to the public. Apart from visiting this great palace, our three days in Lhasa are spent taking in the other great sights in and around the city. The Norbulingka -Summer Palace of the Dalai Lama - was begun by the 7th Dalai Lama and rebuilt by the current Dalai Lama in the 1950's. It was from here that His Holiness fled in his escape to India in 1959. We will also visit the Jhokhang Temple, the religious and geographical centre of Lhasa and the most important monastery in the world for all sects of Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetans, many of whom are very old or infirm and have walked hundreds of kilometers to see the Jhokhang once in their lives, cue for hours to enter this temple and perform their ritual circuit of its many and sacred shrines. It is quite a moving experience to be able to join them in the dark hallways lit only by butter lamps and accompanied by their low chants. The market area around the great Jhokhang is called the Barkhor and is a real slice of old Tibet. Whilst many of the goods on sale are Chinese those buying them are definitely not! People from all corners of Tibet come to Lhasa - striking Khampas from the east with their hair plaited and caught with red braid, or pilgrims from Amdo and Chumbi. The Barkhor is the real Tibet and you could spend hours just sitting and watching the passing parade. Be warned, however - the locals are not always pleased about having their photos taken Be sure to ask first. Our tour of Lhasa in these four days will also include visits to monasteries outside of the city, notably the famed monasteries of Drepung and Sera. There will also be free time to allow you to just wander around Lhasa and get the feel of the place for yourself. You may like to take a walk down to the Kyichu River and watch the locals fish from their yak-skin coracles or perhaps return to spend a few hours rediscovering the Potala or Jhokhang. From Lhasa we take one of the most spectacular flights in the world - south across the Great Himalaya to Kathmandu.

CLIMATE

Because most of Tibet is above 4000m and in the rain shadow of the Himalaya the weather tends to be dry for most of the year. Being a high altitude desert temperatures can fluctuate wildly between day and night and even if, during the day, the sun disappears behind a cloud. In summer -May to September -daytime temperatures on a clear day may reach as high as 35 C but may drop to - 10C at night. In winter daytime temperatures may drop below zero if it is overcast and even when it is sunny, it is usually very cold. The climatic variations are as applicable for the trek as for Lhasa. Natu-rally, nights will be colder at Wesak and at higher altitudes- perhaps as low as -15C - but the days, if sunny, will be mild to hot. You need to be pre-pared for everything ALL the time.

At any time of the year the sun is fierce and you must be extremely careful to protect yourself against it. High altitude sun is deceptive, especially when it is cold, and can burn you badly before you realise it. The wind is another unpredictable element in Tibet. We recommend you bring a rain jacket, not so much in case of rain as this is unlikely, but as a windbreak as dust and wind storms are not uncommon and can blow up at any time of year with little or no warning. And, of course, as this trip begins in Nepal and you could encounter monsoon rain there - a rain jacket is well-advised.

Please note : It is unlikely but possible that weather conditions may cause the route of any trek or tour to be altered. The operator reserves the right to do this and at all times a route change will be made at the discretion of the Group Leader. Mr. Rana can accommodate any requests you have for FIT/Group Travel to Kailash/Mansorover and Tibet from the USA. Tel. 206-440-7419.

“ Happy Vijaya Dashami 2061” From Yours

Ravi SJB Rana President

Nepal Seattle Society (NSS)


Year 3 , Issue 6

Contd. from page 8... MERO NEPAL -d]/f] g]kfn_ Climate: Nepal has four major seasons, namely, (1) Winter: December-February (2) Spring: March-May (3) Summer: June-August (4) Autumn: September-November People: Nepal has more than 61 ethnic groups and 70 spoken languages: Newars, Brahmins, Tibetans, Gurungs, Magars, Tamangs, Bhotias, Rais, Limbus, Sherpas. Time: Nepal standard time is 5 hours 45 minutes ahead of GMT. FESTIVALS: Nepal's festive calendar is hectic. Dashain, celebrated na-tionwide in October, is the most important of all Nepalese celebrations. It is the longest and most favorite festival of Nepal. Everyone stays home, offices are close. Families and friends unite; feasts and blessing are passed on. The skies are filled with kites and the marketplaces are filled with shopper, farmers bringing their buffaloes, goats and chicken to sell. The animals are to be sacrifices to goddess Durga. On the day of dashami, everyone puts on new clothes and goes to honor their elders and they receive red tikas.

Running a close second is Tihar (November) know as festival of lights, animals (crows, dogs, cows and oxen) are honored rather than slaughtered. On the night of lakshmi puja, gar-lands are hung and lamps are lighted to invite lakshmi (goddess of wealth). Mha puja, the New Year’s Day according to the Nepal Era, is the day when people give themselves blessing. Women play “Bhailo” and men play “Deusi”. Tihar ends with bhai tika, when sisters make offerings to their broth-ers.

Other festivals celebrated nationally include Basanta Panchami/spring festival. The water-tinged Holi and Chaitra Dasain (April).Maha Shivaratri, the Gai Jatra and Ghode jatra, the Krishna Jayanti, teej/festival for women. Buddhist celebra-tions include Mani Rimdu, Buddha Jayanti and Losar (Tibetan New Year). Though small in size Nepal has immense cultural and natural diversity, is one of the most beautiful countries on the world. The friendliness and hospitality of the Nepali peo-ple, where guests are treated as Gods, has variety of exciting adventure activities, history, and many other to share with. Welcome to Nepal...........!!! Nabita Khanal

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Bada Dashain 2061 Ko Subhakamana !

Anupma Gurung


♦ November, 2004: His Excellency Ambassador Kedar Bhakta Shrestha is visiting Seattle. NSS is planning to organize a welcome evening. We want your support to join us. Dates and venue will be informed later.

♦ November, 2004: Tihar Festival / Deusi Bhailo

♦ Winter Fund Raising Program

♦ April 2005: Nepali New Year 2062 Celebration

♦ April 2005: Welcome New NSS Committee

For details about all upcoming events, please continue to check our website: http://www.nepalseattle.org and we will send emails to our members and friends.

Year 3 , Issue 6

NSS is indebted to your guidance at all times of need. We seek your

support in the days to come. Thank you.

NSS L I F E LO N G ME MB E RS NSS UPCOMING EVENTS

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Madan, Bandana, Mabin Shrestha & Family

Arthur Hrin

Bijit Giri

Chhong Karma Sherpa

Evangeline Erskine

Lalu Chhetri

Tashi Sherpa

Tirtha Khanal

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Year 3 , Issue 6

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By Ram Raja Shah (Dhakre) Kathmandu, Nepal

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Contd. from page 18... Linking Nepal & Oregon

Since its formation NAO successfully organized the public shows and participated in Asian heritage activities in Eugene and Portland. It also publishes the ‘Namaste’ newsletter twice a year and establishes a web site www.nepaloregon.org to update the association’s activities in regular basis. The NAO organizes community gathering three times a year for New Year celebration, summer picnic and Dashain festival. The Asian Reporter local newspaper has recognized NAO members as the exemplary volunteers among the other Asian communities. Beside all these, a link with Nepal can not be completed without ex-amining the business entrepreneurs that focus on promotion of hand made beautiful Nepalese crafts. The Nepalese artists are well re-ceived around the world and they produce high quality of fine art pieces in metal, wood, papers products and paintings. Gifts from Afar, Kathmandu to you, Himalayan Gifts, Shakti Blues in Portland, Potala House, Greater Goods in Eugene, Kathmandu Gift Shop in Salem, promote Nepalese arts and crafts in Oregon.

Another area of linking Nepal and Oregon can be viewed under Nepali people’s contribution in building up the Taekwondo Martial art in the state of Oregon. The Founder of Nepal Taekwondo field Grandmaster Mr. JK Shin was moved to Oregon and established the US West Coast Taekwondo Association in 1988 and invited few players from Nepal and resume Taekwondo Training Schools in Port-land. The current trend of International Championship was first initi-ated in 2000 by Master Diwakar Maharjan in Kathmandu, Nepal as a result of success and popularity gained through the training center located at the Hollywood district. The contribution made by this school is highly credible. It has been realized by Portlanders that the Taekwondo is not only a game but also a part of life that fits for all ages. Its seven moral characters are the guiding principles for the success of life. The participants and players certainly appreciate your understanding of true meaning of Taekwondo and its technique of keeping healthy, moral and peaceful society. Apart from the Taek-wondo, Nepalese people also have formed the Nepal Sports Club of Oregon (NESCO) to promote sports activities in the community.

Life is a Butterfly By Avishek Rana Life is a butterfly you got to catch it before it flies away, but if you catch it too hard it fades away...

Life is the Sun that shines & the Moon that falls, Life is all about troubles & the daily 911 calls...

Searching for happiness, we only find sorrow, knowing that there may never be a tomorrow...


News from Alpine Ascents Foundation, Sherpa Education Fund By Alison Gardner-Shelby

Sherpa Education Fund offers an Everest Base Camp Trek Want to visit one of the most exciting travel destinations on earth and help Nepali children? The Sherpa Education Fund will be offering a fund raising trek to Everest base camp. If you have not yet made the trek, this would be a wonderful opportunity to visit the Sherpa region of Nepal while meeting sponsored children at our school and taking part in other cultural activities. Please contact Kathy at [email protected] for details, or call Alpine Ascents International’s of-fice at (206) 378-1927, and check out the Everest Trek page of Alpine Ascents International’s web site at www.alpineascents.com/everest-trek.asp. The trek runs from April 17 – May 9, 2005.

New Executive Director for the Foundation We are pleased to announce Kathy Fowells as the new Executive Director for the Sherpa Education Fund. Kathy will be taking over from Alison Gardner-Shelby, adding her own unique flavor to the ever growing SherpaFund. Alison is step-ping down from her position and will be an active member of the Board of Directors. Kathy's email address is [email protected]

Fun, fund-raising event in New York The SherpaFund hosted a Nepal and Mount Everest slide show presentation by Chairman and acclaimed mountaineer Todd Burleson, help at the Pink Pony restaurant in New York on 14th September. The evening started with an “insider’s tour” of the lower east side by local legend Timothy "Speed" Levitch. The evening was a great success, raising $1,600 for educating children from struggling Sherpa families, and was tremendous fun.

Alpine Ascents Foundation, Sherpa Education Fund was established to provide education for children from disadvan-taged Sherpa families in Nepal. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we are now supporting sixteen students for full tuition, room, board, uniforms and books at Dorji private school in Kathmandu. By enabling the students to gain a good education, we are supporting their families and by extension their entire community. Alpine Ascents Foundation is a 501(c)(3) corporation and all donations are fully tax deductible. See www.SherpaFund.org for details.

Year 3 , Issue 6

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International Nepali Literary Society (INLS) Seattle, Washington Chapter International Nepali Literary Society/New Hampshire Chapter (INLS/NHChapter) has extended facilitations and best wishes both to Mrs. Jyotsana Rana as the founder president INLS/Seattle, Washington Chapter and to President Mr. Madhukar G. Amatya in Huston, Texas Chapter. Our important responsibility has been placed to Promote Nepali language and literature and also to celebrate Bhanu Jayanti as well as Devkota Jayanti. We all look forward to working closely with all chapters to further strengthen the understanding, cooperation and promotion between us (INLS Global Network) to transition School of Language and cultures of Nepal as well as conduct other literary ac-tivities. We will together be able to take off to new common objectives in the future. We would like to congratulate both of offi-cers and members of INLS Global Network. We wish all of you good health and Nepalese residing in the area of the fulfillment of their personal and INLS Global Network's aims.

Founding Executive Members of INLS, Seattle, Washington Chapter: Advisors: Mr. Tirtha Khanal, Mr. Amodh Karki, Mr. Anil Shrestha President: Ms. Jyotsana Rana Vice-President: Ms. Darlene Silliman General Secretary: Ms. Kalpana Shrestha Secretary: Ms. Bandana Shrestha Treasurer: Ms. Satya Karki

Active Members: Mr. Madan Shrestha Mr. Diwas K.C. Ms. Sita Bhattarai Mr. Basudev Bhattarai Mr, Pushpa Shrestha Mr. Shreekar Rana Mr. Shiva Shah Mr. Sushil Aryal Mr. Kiran Shrestha Ms. Shova Rana Mr. Hemanta Rana Contd. on page 26...

Year 3 , Issue 6


Contd. from page 25...

International Nepali Literary Society (INLS)

Year 3 , Issue 6


NSS MEMBERSHIP FORM Nepal Seattle Society a 501(c)(3) Corporation

Your First Name: .................................................. Your Middle Name:............................................... Your Last Name:................................................... For family membership only, Spouse’s First Name: ................................................. Spouse’s Middle Name:............................................... Spouse’s Last Name:.................................................. Full Mailing Address: .............................................................. .............................................................. Tel. Number (..............) ................................. E-mail Address : Membership Type: (Circle one) * Student: $5 per year (full time only) * Individual: $10 per year * Immediate Family: $15 per year (includes spouse and children) * Life Long Membership: $200 one time fee (applicable per person) Membership agreement: By becoming a member, I hereby declare that I will follow the constitution of Nepal Seattle Society (NSS). Signature: ........................................... Date:......................................... Application: Please fill out form and send it with your check to following address:

Nepal Seattle Society

P. O. Box # 45633 Seattle, WA 98145 (Please make your check payable to Nepal Seattle Society. Thank you!) NSS officials use only Membership number.................... Fee received..................................... Received date......................................... Received by ..................................... Signature ...............................................

Note: You can register/renew your NSS membership online and pay membership fee through Paypal also. This is very easy and takes only few minutes to complete. To register for the NSS membership online sim-ply go to NSS official website http://www.nepalseattle.org and click on "Join NSS". Fill the application form and Pay through Paypal or send check to NSS address.


Year 3 , Issue 6

Nepal Seattle Society P. O. Box # 45633 Seattle, WA 98145 Official Editors: Ms. Lily Laemmle Ms. Anna Hauksdottir Outline Designed by: Krishna Gurung Type Setting and Graphic Designed by: Dhan B. Pun Proof Read by: Ravi SJB Rana Feedback: Send us your comments or suggestions about “Lali Gurans” at [email protected] Please contact us if you are interested to publish your articles or advertisements in the next NSS newsletter. On the Web: Visit our website at http://www.nepalseattle.org for up-to-date NSS news and upcoming events. You can also subscribe to our mailing list by sending email to [email protected]

To:

……………………………….........................

……………………………….........................

……………………………….........................

Congratulations

New Couples:

♦ Bina Bogati and Paramjeet Singh

New Born:

Welcome to the world! Congratulations to the proud parents:

♦ Simran, daughter of Niraj and Sovita Poudyal

♦ Sammi, daughter of Sanjay Hamal and Bimala Silwal.

New Arrivals in Seattle:

♦ Kripa Upadhyaya ♦ Alice Bhattachan ♦ Hemanta Rana ♦ Mr. and Mrs. B.B.Tamang ♦ Kiran Udas, Bhagwati Kumari Shrestha(Udas), Albina Udas and Ankit Udas

♦ Mohan Kumar Shrestha and Buddha Laxmi Shrestha

♦ Raju Bikram Adhikari, Sharmila Adhikari and Prabeshika Adhikari

♦ Sindhu Nath Pyakurel and Gyanu Pyakurel

♦ Sanjya Hamal and Bimala Silwal ♦ Birendra, Madhula, Baibhav and Bibhan Shrestha

Disclaimer: Opinions ex-pressed by the authors in their articles do not necessarily represent NSS official viewpoint.

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N E P A L I P O E M

By Madhu Dahal Bellevue, WA, USA

Cell: (206) 226-5242 E-mail

[email protected]

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LALI GURANS

Newsletter of Nepal Seattle Society

Place Stamp Here

oct. 2004, year 3 issue 6 - pdf format

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