Wondering Where

I wonder, wonder where

I will stand with the children

Where village vistas bring vitality

I wonder, wonder where

I will find a foreignly familiar family

I wonder, wonder where

Belonging soothes the searching soul

One of the most unique things about the Fulbright ETA program in Nepal is that we get to choose the school and homestay family that will shape our experience. There is something beautiful about choice. The Fulbright commission selected six schools and six homestay families—three in the Gorkha district near the Bazar and three in Lalitpur near Lubhu. All of the schools are government schools and many of the students come from marginalized backgrounds. 

Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow, I can’t wait until tomorrow. We are going to Lalitpur to visit three schools and three homestay families. Last week at this time, I was packing my bags to go to Gorkha. We visited three beautiful schools and three wonderful homestay families there. After tomorrow we will have seen all of the possible schools and families that could tentatively be our home for the next eight months. Among ourselves, the six ETAs will decide where each of us will be living and teaching. 

The view from Gorkha

The view from a hilltop in Gorkha

The Lower Secondary School in rural Gorkha

The Lower Secondary School in rural Gorkha

Students at the Higher Secondary School in Dashkilo, Gorkha

The Higher Secondary School in Dashkilo, Gorkha

The Primary School in Gorkha

A Primary School Classroom in Gorkha

The view from our hotel