The angel

The sunset is leaving the Lukla airport where the small Twin Otters every days carry happy people and bring back tired people. Here in Lukla where the richness of the western countries stops in front of the evidence of a third world country where in order to survive people has to carry out simple works (to ourselves basic and unrespected, but surely extremely efforting) as that of the porters. One morning we meet Julie, a sparkling english girl with an explosion of rebels hair wich’s popping out from the forest.

She’s going to the opposite direction compare to what you should normally expect.

She is not looking as a tourist, than I’m curious to know what’s she’s doing here.

P>Hey, what you do here?

J>I’m going to Lukla to teach at “Porter Progress”.

P>What’s it?

J>A non profit organisation doing different activities in order to develop the working and economical conditions of the porters.

P>And what "you" do for them?

J>I teach english and also attend to train them for first aid.

Enteresting I thing, but our weather station is waiting and I cannot spend more time with that smiling enthusiastic face.

P>What about an enterview, Julie? (expecting “no” or “may be” or “I don't know when”)

J>Yes! Yes, on my day off...

TWO DAYS LATER...

Five pm she has been punctual and also we have been meeting (naturally becouse of the common dayly way), different times and now she's ready for other questions.

P>Julie you cam from England, where?

J>Yorkshire,

P>How old are you? 28.

P>And Why you're doing this activity within the highest mountains of the world?

J>It may sound like a cliche’, but i really like the mountains...

P>Like or Love?

J>Love mountains, and the outdoors.

P>You could love the mountains like others does here, with a trek and a flight out, but do you want more?

J>One of my dream has been always to come to NP and climb it's mountains (she tould me about her hypotetical goal (fantasie) about Everest climbing) but not only to come here for my pleasure but also to combine my love for the outdoors and work a charity were I would be helping underpriviledged people.

P>So you're not only a nature-lover, but also you have a sensitive soul for the difficult living conditions of some human being (so many around us in Nepal). But what about your private life? What you're leaving in England waiting for you?

J>My private life has been very simple, I'm a simple (adventurous I'll add) girl, and I love travelling to different countries and working and living in this country. The only thing I truly miss is Yorkshire tea (but also my family and friends of course) and my highland in

Scotland...

In addition i would like to say that I'm missing my really good friend in Mongolia...

P>So you did'nt pop out from UK directly here to discover your passion for underpriviledged people, but you had a previous experience in Mongolia?

J>I was teaching English in M for three months as volontary work, which was the most amazing EXPERIENCE and something I will never forget...

P>WHY? There I had the opportunity to work in a truly cultural nomadic environment, experiencing sleeping in many "gers" (basic houses for nomatic family) riding camels, and horses in the Gobi deserts...

P>Wonderful, but also a hard experience as you told me during the hprevious meetings...

J>It was a hard exp but not pers speaking, I found it an extremely fullfilling and educational time...

You know I'm teaching here to low class people, I've been teaching there to street girls who previously worked as prostitution on the street of Mongolia and lift underground in (sues) fogne. Another experience was seeing young poeople as soon as 5-6 old bagging in the streets of the capital UB. All this reality pushed me forward for a work in the humanitarian field.

P>You love places and people, how you found the approach with the nepalese porters? (you are coming here reacting to an emotional wave, they are trying to survive in a local reality fast changing)

J>At first i found some of the porters quite reserved about speaking, and attending an english class, but the more I became familiar with them, and they become familiar to me then start to open them up and then they began attending english classes.

P> And now, after... how many month? One already and one to came.

P> How it is now, do you get their confidences?

J> No, because their english is still very limited...

P> Y, but we know very well how they do communicate in other ways, what came out?

J> They communicate by smiling, and by their positive body language (I mean they want to learn eng lang) and they show enthusiasm. Which is a good sign!

P>You're determined to continue your "mission" (can I call it like this?) as a volonteer, for shure, but how are you thinking to carry out your incom need?

J>I'm hoping to continue working overseas as for a charity or missionary, but I need to turn my volontary experiences into a payed charity worker, working in the most obscure (difficult&dangerous) countries were they disperately need people. I like to be challenged by the esperiences arising by travelling and working in remote countries.

P>You're not afraid of anything?

J>No, I'm not afraid of anthing, anymore, I've use to be but since travelling I've experienced and seen many sad things which in the future need addressing and changed for the better.

P>Anything I didn't ask you that you want to say?

J>There's one thing, I'm looking for a future career in charity work overseas, if anybody can help me (or ask any questions about this article, I'll be very happy to reply) please could contact me through my email: julieross1974@hotmail.com 

Tomorrow I'll probably meet Julie on her way to the school for the last time, I do not if I'll "hug" the angel whic is in her person, or handshake strongly the hand of a person with so much generosity. May be I'll just look deeply in her blue eyes and wish her to see also so much blue deep mountain skyies, in her futur life.

GP

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