Pre-departure to Nepal

So ...... I am working in Nepal for a year!

This is a volunteer position with Australian Volunteers International (AVI). It is funded by the Australian Government. I will be helping the only government vet school in this country to develop its teaching, diagnostic, surgical and extension capabilities. The correct jargon for this is ... capacity building, skill exchange and institutional strengthening!

The vet school is called the Faculty of Animal Science, Veterinary Science and Fisheries (FAVF). It is part of the Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU). This is located in the Chitwan area. That is in the southern central region of Nepal, about 6 hours drive SW from Kathmandu. You can take a coach for less than $20. (This includes a complimentary bottle of water and a newspaper!) ... or you can fly for about $150.  The weather is described as humid subtropical... so fewer people travel in the monsoon season (June to September).

Chitwan National Park is the only place that the One Horned Rhinoceros lives. It is also the home of the Royal Bengal Tiger, the Sloth Bear ... and heaps of other wildlife and birds. Not sure if I will be treating any of these ... but I will certainly have a field trip there. Do you want to join me?

Before leaving Lismore, I stayed with friends Kathy and Gary. Here is a photo taken during one of our frosty morning walks.

The last weekend was spent with Phoebe and Eric on the Sunshine Coast. Henry took us camping on the Great Walk where we slept under the stars after watching a gorgeous sunset over the Mary River valley.

This is my first attempt at writing a blog. So I will stop here now. Any comments gratefully received ... as long as they are helpful! The next blog entry will be about preparing to go to Nepal. Bye for now!