Help the plight of the old in Nepal
17/03/2010
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With little social care in Nepal, the family network is often the only form of welfare and support for the elderly. Yet many elderly people, through family loss or poverty, find themselves abandoned in old age; with no form of income, no home and poor health.
Near the sacred cremation grounds of Pashupatinath in Kathmandu lies a hospice for the old: for all their last refuge. It’s in an ancient stone building near the Hindu pilgrimage site of Shiva’s Temple – one of the most important in Asia.
Entering down the old stone steps one enters an open compound area. Surrounding this is a series of long dark dormitory rooms; there is little lighting here. Many lie sick on wooden beds, either in the stifling summer heat or the piercing cold of winter. There is little sanitation or even running water.
Others sit outside on benches or blocks of stone, eating what food they have; usually dhal curry and rice – the same, cheapest staple diet, three times a day.
There is an old TV under an enclosure, where those well enough sit crossed legged on the floor, this, the only form of entertainment shared by the hundred or so residents; there is little else stimulation here.
The home is funded on a meagre budget by Nepalese government. Kindly faced Calcutta nuns, dressed in the traditional Mother Teresa white and blue, go about their work; offering basic medical aid, bedding and comfort: without them, who knows what would happen to these elderly.
Angel Holidays, led by BBC presenter Steve Carver, will be visiting the hospice, as part of a two week holiday to Nepal this October. Travellers will be able to give what they can, the company too will be donating £50 on behalf of the Mature Times for each reader who mentions the ‘Mature Times Nepal’ on booking. The holiday does involve walking in the Himalaya so participants should be reasonably fit. If you would like to find out more about the holiday or about the home, you can simply contact Steve through the website linked below.
The company’s slogan is ‘Journeys that change lives’. I think they do.