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During our shooting time in Urthu-Chautara, even though we didn't have access to email, Sophie would write notes home while downloading footage, to be sent when we returned to Jumla Bazaar.
Here are some extracts:
Here are some extracts:
27 February 2013
We finally landed in
Jumla last Thursday after our plane to Jumla Bazaar was delayed. After
landing in Pokhara to refuel, (and steal a couple of shots) we took off from
Pokhara airport, flew over the lake with the beautiful hill top temple and
along the Himalaya. The mountains were wearing deep capes of snow, which
almost seemed close enough to touch and were shrouded in monumental sledges of
thunderous cloud. Our pilots discussed a particularly ominous bank that
we were approaching and made the decision to return to Pokhara. It was a
quick decision and we were soon back at the airport to stay the night until the
weather cleared. Our extra afternoon in Pokhara meant some unplanned filming,
which was useful, and an additional "last" dinner of meat!
We noticed when disembarking that there was an extra
passenger - a woman who had been initially refused a seat because someone had
made a mistake and oversold the flight in Kathmandu. The weeping and wailing
had delayed the flight by an hour but we had assumed she had been turned
away. Since we were also massively over our excess baggage limit -
to the point where we were almost refused - we knew they had been very
carefully weighing every passenger’s luggage to see if the plane could manage
with the extra (large) foreigners and their extra large camera bags.
When we saw that she had been squeezed into the back of the plane we
wondered how they had managed all of our stuff AND an extra person. The
answer was that they had decided to fly on less than a full tank of fuel.
My first thought was how marvelous that we had all got to fly, even with all
our stuff and extra people. The second was, hmmm… that doesn't leave much
room for mistakes! It certainly makes for a very different kind of
journey than the 747 - but it is easily the most incredible flight I have ever
taken. When we finally took off the next morning the sky was cloudless,
and we were treated to the most spectacular views along the Himalaya that I've
ever seen.
Arriving in Jumla
Bazaar felt much less strange this time around - friendly faces were there to
greet us and we soon packed a jeep and headed up the mountain pass to
Urthu-Chautara, where we quickly moved into our old familiar rooms. This
year they had added a few more hooks in the wall (small things become suddenly
important), correctly wired the light and added a nice mat to each bed, as well
as laying some "carpet" which keeps the dust down a bit. We can
actually stand up in this house, which means both Miranda and I have a lot less
head bruises than the first time around.
The weather has been
cold, but generally bright during the day. We're bundled up - it hasn't been
bitter during the day time yet, at least. We had one rainfall during the
night, and though the hillsides are still coated in snow, we've not had any
snowfall. Generally, trudging up and down the hillsides with gear keeps
one pretty toasty during the day. I finally had a hot bucket wash last
night, which was well needed, and we came armed with hot water bottles, which
certainly makes bed time quite snug. Soraj came down with flu a few days
in, and has now mildly twisted his ankle, so our shooting days have been
adjusted accordingly. I've been a bit under the weather too, but am
pounding the vit C and trying not to think about hot baths and lemon
toddies. There's plenty of hot spicy soup around though, so I've been
drinking hot ginger water and feeling determined it won't turn into
anything. Thankfully the fried rakshi (local alcohol) is quite "medicinal"
as it's got garlic and other unknowns and definitely helps sleep.
Our original plan to
travel back down to Jumla Bazaar in the middle of the shoot was hampered by our
schedule and the logistics of the Jeep availability. Apparently some road
had become inaccessible and a few jeeps were stuck in another region.
Petrol was also scarce. At the moment we've had no power for 24 hours, so
batteries are low and we've been conserving our shooting, though I'm using the
last of my computer battery to download the footage we shot this morning, so
I'm taking advantage of that to sit and write for a minute or two. It's
starting to get dark, and it's really cold, but the hardy children are outside
my window using their engineering skills to make a see-saw out of several large
pipes that are intended for a local hydro power project. Laughing little
filthy urchins left to their own devices!
3 March 2013
Miranda and I tried
pounding corn the other day - which was interesting to the whole village
apparently, and we caused quite a scene. They found our incompetence very
entertaining. It was a beautiful afternoon on a rooftop overlooking the
whole valley - and the rhythm of watching other women do this task in pairs is
very mesmerizing. Our attempt was more like a comedy routine - and we
only felt we had worked of a fraction of the rice that we've been gorging
ourselves on the last couple of weeks. Our hopes to become slightly high
altitude slim have been dashed by the good cooking in this household, and the
local potatoes, which are served deliciously for breakfast, elevenses, lunch,
tea and dinner.
Anyway - we've now got
only one more day of shooting - and we've a got a few key interviews to cram
in, so it shall be a busy day. This evening we showed some footage to Nisha's
mum - who is really sad that we are leaving. I think our entertaining bideshi (foreigner) ways have brought a
different kind of stimulation to the household. They have been so
welcoming and open. Meantime - we are also REALLY looking forward to a
hot shower in Jumla Bazaar - which is probably where this email is coming from
though it means the end of the shoot - and that's always sad.
5 March 2013
Tearful goodbyes today
as I left Urthu. Beautiful necklaces of Rhododendrum leaves, red tikkas
and me sad to leave my lovely Jumla home. Now we are back in the
"big city" of Jumla Bazaar and have procured some whiskey and are
slightly dazed by our room with sheets and pillows and carpet and doors tall
enough to walk through without cracking our skulls. And Norbu, the proprietor of our hotel/building site is making
apple pie for dinner. And supposedly, roast chicken… Let's see how that
turns out!!
Fingers crossed our
flights are on time - the weather has been quite clear and bright the last few
days but tonight some ominous clouds drew in. (nice time-lapse though!)
xxx Love you all, talk
to you soon.
Soph
