July 1972

Hello

Greetings from Katmandu, Nepal.

It is now a bit over 4 months since I arrived in Katmandu. I can not say that I ever got bored; I was too busy for that. The first seven weeks were taken up by a field training course (FTC), which is a must for all new members. During these 7 weeks I roamed all over the Katmandu Valley, uphill, downhill and occasionally on level ground; lived in a village for 2 weeks in the hills, where I gave first, second and third aid to people; got my knees decorated with a baby's breakfast on a bus - after it had been eaten, the breakfast, that is, not the bus; went on a trek in the Terrai, Nepal's lowland; crossed the Bagmati river 8 times; got sick that same night; had to be rescued by helicopter; ended up in hospital - which also ended FTC for me; lost 20 pounds ... no, not in English currency - in weight.

After I had recuperated from my illness I went to Calcutta for a week where I ate ice-cream, steaks and pastry - yes and looked for a shipping agent to clear my luggage for me.

Upon my return from Calcutta I started on a Hindi course which I just now completed; the only thing left for me to do now is to learn Hindi. The reason why I learn Hindi and not Nepali is that I am assigned to the India section of our branch. This has nothing to do with my good looks, rather with the fact that I am a member of a common poverty – oops! I mean Common Wealth country.

Yes, I have a partner. He is an Englishman, but one can't be choosy. His name is Peter Grainger; he is 25 years old, tall, dark ... I was told to say nothing if I couldn't say anything nice. He loves to play the guitar and likes to sing. We get along fine and agree on most things except such minor matters as who did really win World War II.    

Nepal is the only Hindu monarchy in the world; it has a population of ca. 11 million people which speak about 45 different languages. The national language is Nepali. The capital is Katmandu which is located in a fair sized valley bearing its name.

Apart from Hinduism, Buddhism and Animism are also well represented. Since Nepal has an anti-conversion law, the number of Moslems and Christians is negligible. Nepal is a beautiful country.

In the north, along the Tibetan border are the famous Himalayas which include such names as Everest, Kanchan Junga, and Nekula etc. amongst their numbers. Nepal's economy depends solely on its agricultural resources and tourism. One of the most distinguishing features is the terraces which convert even steep mountain slopes into fruitful corn, millet and rice fields. The bulk of its agricultural resources however come from the Terrai, the lowlands along the Indian border. The difference between hill country and Terrai is not only of a geographical but also one of racial nature. While the hill people are Mongoloid in feature, slightly slanted eyes, high cheekbones and light complexion, the Terrai people are of Indo-Aryan stock and differ from us only in the color of their skin.

Look there are sooooo many things I could still talk about, but ... What was that? Yes! We have hippies, non-Nepali though. Our main staple is rice and lentils. How many temples are there in Katmandu? What do you think? Am I a mathematician?  Let's say plenty. Yes we have rickshaws and taxis ... No, no oxcarts, at least not in Katmandu valley. The valley is especially sacred and people are not permitted to use animals for work. 

Child marriage ...? No, that's against the law. The King? His majesty's name is Birendra; he is young, married and has a one year old baby. The Queen?  Is beautiful! Water? Is bad! Sanitation?  What sanitation? Money? Please don't send any by mail. If I want to share my support with the mailman at least I like to be the one who initiates the transaction and not leave it up to him. Our office in Calgary handles ALL my finances. Films? Tapes?  Stamps? Sure you can send them, but please register the letter. How would you feel if you went to a restaurant for a meal and suddenly you hear your mother's voice wishing you a merry Christmas over the owners tape recorder, and to top it all of pay $1.00 to get YOUR OWN tape back? It happened. Yes you can send me parcels and I love you for it. But I would hate to come all the way from my village on a three days trip by train, bus and oxcart, spent ca. 100 Rupees, stand in line at the post office for 4 hours - for a piece of wedding cake. That too happened. In this case I would love you even more if you just write me you had good intentions ... but don't overdo that either. Oh yes!  One Rupee has 100 paise and is worth $0.10 U.S. The mail takes 2 weeks one way.

What was that...?  Happy out here? Certainly I am happy out here. I am involved in the greatest and most worthwhile endeavor anybody could ever be engaged in - telling people about the love of God. And so whenever I am unhappy I tell myself that and I am happy again. Getting encouraging letters sure helps sometimes too!

Well I must run along now. It was nice talking to you ... And just in case you find yourself without something to do, a little word of prayer for me ... I appreciate that.

Lots of love

Frank