Since we started sponsoring little Tashi,
every day we’ve been asking
to each other “I wonder what Tashi is doing now?”.
Our visit to Manasarovar Academy
The curiousity to meet this little kid, coming from such a distant and different place, was so strong that we decided to go and visit him.
Our annual trip to Australia (Cadel is Australian), was already planned but in October 2008 we made a detour, choosing to pass by Nepal. Before doing this, we had a long email exchange with the Manasarovar Academy principal, Ms. Tsultrim Sangmo, to organize our visit; since that first contact, we immediately had a good feeling and we started looking forward to meeting her too.
After many adventures, we finally got to the Manasarovar Academy in Boudha, Kathmandu, where a shy little girl was waiting for us outside the main gate. We got off the taxi wondering if we were in the right place. Then the girl gestured us to follow her, we passed through the gate and met a radiant lady who welcome us with a big hug: Tsultrim Sangmo! And, with her, little Tashi Norbu. How thrilling! Tashi was the smallest kid of the school, he was so cute that we would have loved to squash him with our hugs.
What happened later was the confirmation of how well we did in paying visit to the Academy. We spent a wonderful day with all the kids and their teachers; the kids were all dressed up in their colourful dresses and they were getting ready to perform their local dances.
Their music teacher (we later discovered he was a famous local singer and musician) was looking after the songs. Tashi was sitting on our lap all the time, with that big smile on his face that could melt your heart. Every now and then, we squashed him with our hugs, we couldn’t resist! He was laughing even more and kept on eating the biscuits they made for us. It was a big feast for him and it was so obvious he was feeling like a king!
Just before lunchtime, we went into the kitchen to see how they were preparing the delicious meal; we both love Asian food, so we were very curious to know some new secret.
After lunch, we did a tour of the school, then Tsultrim Sangmo took us to pay visit to some Buddhist temples in the surroundings. We got to spend some time with the teachers, they told us about what they do, the children at school and, unfortunately, all the problems they often have to face.
We also met Tashi’s aunt when she came to pick him up after school; Tashi lives with his aunt because she’s the only relative in Kathmandu. Tashi’s parents live far away, at about one week walking from Kathmandu, and the flight ticket would cost his father as much as a year salary.
Going to Nepal and visiting the Manasarovar Academy was an experience that totally changed our point of view on many things in our every day life. And the image of those happy smiling kids will stay in our memory forever.
Chiara e Cadel Evans
