Hindu monk in Durbar Square

Yarrow and I have had a wonderful few days exploring Kathmandu and letting it sink in that we really are in Nepal. There are two items of good news: the strike has ended (for now!) and we have a new placement at the Maternity Hospital in Tapathali starting tomorrow. We are excited to start there, as it is a busy hospital and we were given permission to observe births for four days.

We have a backlog of photos to share! The first few are from Durbar Square, which is a beautiful and ancient Buddhist holy site very near our guest house in Kathmandu.




















































This photo was taken on the last day of the Maoist strike (May 7th). You can see the Nepali police in the bottom right. The actual protests were much larger, hugely crowded, and lined with riot police. It would have been crazy to take photos of those, but there are some in the news.













This is an antenatal checkup bed in the APS Kendra Birth Centre, which we toured today. They offer ante/intra/postpartum care, comprehensive abortion care, and family planning (including copper IUD & Norplant insertion). The centre is the first of its kind in Nepal, and the people involved in it are passionate about providing accessible, quality health care to women.













After visiting the birth centre, Yarrow, Matthew and I went to the Monkey Temple (Swayambunath) in the evening. It was gorgeous. There are 365 steps up to the temple, and along the way are many little monkeys, playing in the trees and swinging on the prayer flags. We were so happy to be there.




















































Sorry these are sideways! Can't be helped.






















Yarrow and I will update after our hospital experience tomorrow. Especially today (Mother's day), we both send all our love to our mothers and grandmothers. We are so thankful for your support and unconditional mother-love, which keep us going every day.
- Lauren