I visited Nepal twice in 2012 and 2013 and I simply fell in love with the tiny nation. It feels like my other home. Like so many others my trips to Nepal have been for trekking- Everest Base Camp in 2012 and Annapurna Circuit in 2013. I was able to complete the EBC trek and I had to give up the Annapurna Circuit Trek due to bad weather. In between these two trips I feel head over heel in love with Nepal. It is so difficult to believe that Nepal Earthquake is a reality now and the nation is facing such a tough time.
Yesterday I did not feel the tremors at all. My husband asked me if I felt the quake to which my reply was a firm no. But whenever we have felt minor shakes, I know somewhere else it would be bad! After a few minutes thanks to Twitter I realized the epicenter was close to Kathmandu and the magnitude severe- 7.9 on richter scale. Today I was at my sister’s place. As she lives in a high rise and I was sitting on the bed, I could feel the effects of the aftershocks which were once again centered in Nepal at 6.7 on the richter scale. We all tumbled out of the building when the tremors were felt. If it feels so scary with minor shocks I can only imagine how bad it would be in the affected areas.
The next question was what could I could? Of course it is tiny, miniscule but I wanted to donate immediately. After mulling over it for a while I decided to donate to PMNRF (Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund) as India announced immediate aid to Nepal. Even though the website says the money will not be used for foreign calamities I still decided to donate to them, hoping it would be of benefit indirectly.
In the long run, a few months after the media attention would have moved elsewhere, I sincerely hope I would be able to volunteer in Nepal. This is more of a wish than anything else with a thousand logistical issues, but I hope I will be able to pull it through. I feel very close to Nepal. I have a schoolmate there, I remember people from my trekking agency. They all are safe. But my heart goes out to the people of this fabulous nation, may they recover fast and gain peace.
What happened was very sad. My heart goes out to all those who suffered it.
Stiletto Maniac
Me too Bushra, I feel so shaken.
It was a horrible thing to happen. Our prayers with all the affected! May god be with them.
God speed for the recovery.
That’s really horrifying . I have been in continuous touch with my friends in Nepal and current state is really bad. Last night quakes were continuously happening and most of the folks were out. Hope that things get settle down soon and god give strength to folks who had losses in last 2 days.
The same story was told by my friends. And so many homes have been damaged!
A tragic calamity of such a huge magnitude!
It is beyond my comprehension.
I understand how you feel since you have been there twice.
It feels so trgic!
Prayers ….
I donate for NepalQuakeRelief at http://ketto.org/HelpRehabilitateNepal [ Initiative by Angaraag Mahanta (Papon) ]
Hope all well soon.
Thanks for sharing the link Rupam. I went with PMNRF.
I have been to Nepal after my marriage . what ever happened was very sad and scary.
Yes Mahesh it was so scary as well. When the earth starts moving, it is a damn jittery feeling.
Such a small, quaint country. And, now looks devastating 🙁
I’ll donate through the link given by Rupam… I think it will reach faster…
Whatever you feel is the best Maniparna. I guess every bit counts!
It is devastating for humans, animals, infrastructure, economy both in long and short term. We should all do whatever little we can.
I so agree with you Abhijit.
It is horrible and we feel that our own people are being affected. In our college , all the employees are donating their one day salary to Prime Ministers Relief Fund.
So nice to hear that Yogi, I personally donated to PMNRF too.
At one point I used to visit Kathmandu every month or so as we had an office there, I still have many friends there.. I hope they are all ok…
Thanks for sharing the information…
I think many from India would have some ties with Nepal. I too hope your office mates are safe.
My heart & prayers go out to the survivors and their families. I’ve shared the info with my followers on Facebook and hope to rally some support! Every little contribution counts, as does every ounce of positive energy. Nepal will recover strong!
Thanks Neil, as you say every bit counts.
I am not immediately donating. The Government of India is doing its bit a great job. At this point in time there are many Government’s who are engaged in relief work. Once the dust settles down, there would be needy ones and will donate to those agencies who are engaged in that work. In the past, I have donated immediately during the calamity and found that most of the money going to these NGOs basically don’t get utilised for the purpose. Way too many NGOs come up and the money is mostly spent in building their own capacity (read buying bikes, building office, buying car etc).
I plan to go to Nepal later, even though it was not in the schedule. Not many tourists will want to go there. However, their economy needs to be rebuilt. So I will take many friends and members later. The Nepali people are hard working. They don’t need alms. They just need our help to lead a life in dignity.
I so agree with you Sabyasachi! Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I too will go to Nepal sometime for sure. I would like to volunteer but if not just as a visitor.