Calling our boss in Kathmandu is a challenge. We can't make long distance calls from the hangar or our house. Sometimes Cathy can call Kathmandu on her cell phone. The reception is so poor, that she requests Shivendra to call us back. If she can't get through, we call the School and have them call Kathmandu and tell them to call us. It takes about 10-15 minutes to finally get connected.
We try to contact Kathmandu at least once a day to get updated on various events. The students have not taken their written exam yet. Maybe tomorrow. Yes, we like the new cook, so Shivendra will inform him of his salary. (Imagine starting a job not knowing what you will be paid!) Where are the aircraft? What new things have CAAN come up with for us to perform?
We discovered that the CAAN person in charge will be out of office at the end of next month. He has been giving everyone a hard time, including the airlines. He has been a big roadblock for our progress and on getting the aircraft fixed. He has also decided all our aircraft need ADFs. I am not sure when they will fit.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Saturday, March 15, 2008
How to Run a Flight School
Our aircraft is still grounded and untouched. We are not allowed to fix anything, or even look at the airplane until the insurance company releases it. This could take months. The home office is in Singapore. We have a run-out engine which we sent to India to be overhauled. By the time the engine comes back, we should have a new prop and nose gear. Soon after that, the airplane will be ready to go.
We have 2 other aircraft coming in. They were in Singapore on the 10th, and are expected to be in Calcutta by the 18th. They will be here by the 21st, and soon after that, we will be flying again.
The students are in Kathmandu taking their written exam. We hope. They were scheduled to take it last Monday, but when they showed up, CAAN (Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal) did not have the questions prepared yet. CAAN had told our boss two weeks previous that the questions were ready to go. I guess not. Now they have said that they are ready, and the students are scheduled to take it this afternoon. We are keeping our fingers crossed.
The CAAN people are appointed by the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Civil Aviation, not for their expertise, but for their contacts and influence. Therefore, most of them have no idea of what to do. They don't seem to want to become educated on the subject of aviation or flight schools, and make arbitrary rules.
We had a very experienced instructor scheduled to come over. Every instructor must be approved by CAAN before they are allowed to teach in Nepal. Yesterday, they made a new rule that prohibits an instructor aged 65 or older. Our new instructor just turned 65, and is highly disappointed he can't come. He turned down a high=paying job offer for the chance to come here, and now they won't let him come.
All of Nepal is subject to scheduled power outages. This includes the airport. When the tower expects a flight in, and there is no electricity, they turn on the battery back-up to run the radios. Fortunately, they only have 3 or 4 flights a day. The Tower Chief has permission to get the electricity permanently hooked up, but is waiting for CAAN to give him the Rs 400,000 to give to the Power Ministry. They are all government agencies, but nothing runs efficiently here. The Tower Chief was told it will happen soon. In Nepal, that means in a month or so.
Sunday is a regular work day here. Saturday is the only day off each week. There are plenty of holidays, however, and Nepal has recently recognized 18 more holidays each year. I am not sure how many days off per year there are, but it's a lot - at least 4 or 5 days per month. Some holidays are better than others, depending on how it affects our job. We have learned to be flexible. Time to spare, go by air.
The weather has turned warm. Around the low 70s at night, and in the mid-90s during the day. The humidity is around 50%. We still have a lot of haze, unusual for this time of year. Only one real rain storm so far. A month ago, I was shivering, and now I am sweating. Is is better to be hot or cold? I think I like hot better.
We have 2 other aircraft coming in. They were in Singapore on the 10th, and are expected to be in Calcutta by the 18th. They will be here by the 21st, and soon after that, we will be flying again.
The students are in Kathmandu taking their written exam. We hope. They were scheduled to take it last Monday, but when they showed up, CAAN (Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal) did not have the questions prepared yet. CAAN had told our boss two weeks previous that the questions were ready to go. I guess not. Now they have said that they are ready, and the students are scheduled to take it this afternoon. We are keeping our fingers crossed.
The CAAN people are appointed by the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Civil Aviation, not for their expertise, but for their contacts and influence. Therefore, most of them have no idea of what to do. They don't seem to want to become educated on the subject of aviation or flight schools, and make arbitrary rules.
We had a very experienced instructor scheduled to come over. Every instructor must be approved by CAAN before they are allowed to teach in Nepal. Yesterday, they made a new rule that prohibits an instructor aged 65 or older. Our new instructor just turned 65, and is highly disappointed he can't come. He turned down a high=paying job offer for the chance to come here, and now they won't let him come.
All of Nepal is subject to scheduled power outages. This includes the airport. When the tower expects a flight in, and there is no electricity, they turn on the battery back-up to run the radios. Fortunately, they only have 3 or 4 flights a day. The Tower Chief has permission to get the electricity permanently hooked up, but is waiting for CAAN to give him the Rs 400,000 to give to the Power Ministry. They are all government agencies, but nothing runs efficiently here. The Tower Chief was told it will happen soon. In Nepal, that means in a month or so.
Sunday is a regular work day here. Saturday is the only day off each week. There are plenty of holidays, however, and Nepal has recently recognized 18 more holidays each year. I am not sure how many days off per year there are, but it's a lot - at least 4 or 5 days per month. Some holidays are better than others, depending on how it affects our job. We have learned to be flexible. Time to spare, go by air.
The weather has turned warm. Around the low 70s at night, and in the mid-90s during the day. The humidity is around 50%. We still have a lot of haze, unusual for this time of year. Only one real rain storm so far. A month ago, I was shivering, and now I am sweating. Is is better to be hot or cold? I think I like hot better.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
A Rain Storm
Romi crashed the airplane on landing. It will take a month to fix. In a couple of weeks we should have our new airplanes, but until then, we are grounded. We have been giving the students ground school, getting them ready for their written exam next week.
The visibility has been too poor to fly, even if we did have an airplane. The locals keep telling me that when it rains, the air becomes clear and you can see forever.
It rained the other day. The first real rain since I arrived last November. Thunder, lightening, torrential downpour - it was very spectacular. The winds gusted over 50 mph, and the rain lasted about an hour.
It left behind clean trees, plants, roads, shallow puddles, and air. I had not realized how dusty everything had become - even the air. Now the air was clean, and the colors of the earth were brilliant.
The visibililty was still bad, so we still are not able to fly.
The paper reported that several people were struck by lightning; one died and the rest seriously injured. If you are on the road, there is no where to go for shelter.
A UN helicopter went down in the storm, killing everyone on board. The official cause has not been released, but I can guess that they got caught in the wind and slammed against a mountain. The chopper burst into flames. Photos of the wreckage show blackened bits and pieces on a pile of ashed. The crew was Russian, and there were 3 Nepalis aboard. They have not told us who else was there.
A couple of fallen branches took out the power that night. I expected to be without electricity for days. We were up and running by noon the next day. What Nepal lacks in technology, they make up for in manpower. There is no labor shortage here.
The visibility has been too poor to fly, even if we did have an airplane. The locals keep telling me that when it rains, the air becomes clear and you can see forever.
It rained the other day. The first real rain since I arrived last November. Thunder, lightening, torrential downpour - it was very spectacular. The winds gusted over 50 mph, and the rain lasted about an hour.
It left behind clean trees, plants, roads, shallow puddles, and air. I had not realized how dusty everything had become - even the air. Now the air was clean, and the colors of the earth were brilliant.
The visibililty was still bad, so we still are not able to fly.
The paper reported that several people were struck by lightning; one died and the rest seriously injured. If you are on the road, there is no where to go for shelter.
A UN helicopter went down in the storm, killing everyone on board. The official cause has not been released, but I can guess that they got caught in the wind and slammed against a mountain. The chopper burst into flames. Photos of the wreckage show blackened bits and pieces on a pile of ashed. The crew was Russian, and there were 3 Nepalis aboard. They have not told us who else was there.
A couple of fallen branches took out the power that night. I expected to be without electricity for days. We were up and running by noon the next day. What Nepal lacks in technology, they make up for in manpower. There is no labor shortage here.
A Nepali Wedding
My friends Doris and Roger came to visit from California. They were headed for India for a month of sight-seeing, and decided to spend some time in Nepal, since they knew someone there. I met them at the airport in Kathmandu and they were introduced to Nepal traffic. After a fifteen-minute ride through narrow streets, we arrived at our hotel.
We spent three fun days in Kathmandu. We flew next to Mt Everest, climbed the steps to the Monkey Temple, explored Durbur Square, and did a little shopping. We hired a taxi to take us to a couple of local villages, living in traditional Newari style.
We flew down to Bharatpur, and after one night there, we headed for the jungle. We rode elephants and hiked through the jungle (with guides) trying to spot the local wildlife. We saw 2 hippos (they were HUGE), a few crocodiles (from a distance), monkeys, birds, and other assorted animals. Lots of fun, but exhausting.
The last day in Bharatpur, the neighbors across the street started dancing and singing aruond 7:00 in the morning. I went out to see what was going on and saw the house gaily decorated. A troupe of traditional Nepali musicians were playing traditional Nepali music, and four past-middle-aged women were dancing traditional Nepali dances. I started taking photos, and the family invited me inside.
A young man came up to me and told me this was a wedding. His brother was getting married. He asked if we would like to come along.
Of course, I said "Yes."
I called up Doris and Roger at their hotel. "How would you like to go to a wedding?" I asked.
Doris thought for a moment, then asked, "Do we have time for breakfast?"
I told her to eat and then come right over. Meanwhile, friends and relatives from all over town began arriving. A Tuk-Tuk appeared, and like a clown circus act, out poured 10 people - adults and children - and three adult goats. The goats would be sacrificed in honor of the bride and groom.
Doris and Roger arrived in a pedi-cab, and soon after, the whole party started walking down the street led by the musicians. The women were still dancing. I kept looking for the bride, but saw no likely suspects. The groom was wearing a new suit, new shiny black shoes, and a necklace made from pine needles and feathers.
At the end of the street, everyone stopped. Two huge buses drove up, and the people got into them. The groom and his father and sister and assorted other relatives piled into a car built for 4. Some people rode motocycles and had a passenger on the back. The musicians sat on top of one of the buses, and continued playing, even after we started driving down the street.
The wedding party wheeled down the main market area, crossed the big bridge, and headed out of town.
"Where are we going?" Doris asked. I had no idea.
We stopped at a toll booth, and a bunch of the bus passengers climbed onto the roof of the bus. Roger decided to join them. Why not.
About 30 minutes later, the buses, motocycles, and groom's car finally stopped. In the middle of the country on a busy highway. Everyone got off the bus, and we followed the crowd. We could see a decorated house up ahead, and several men waiting in the front. This was the bride's house.
We paraded to the house, musicians playing and women dancing. When we got there, everyone began talking at once. It was hard to figure out what was going on. Nepali weddings are not like western weddings. There is no priest or rabbi at the front of the audience, no silent crowd witnessing the ceremony. It's more of a free-for-all; everyone talking at once, each one telling someone else what to do. One older man was reading ancient sanskit text, while another was anoiting the groom with milk and flower petals. The bride appeared. She circled the groom 3 times, pouring water from a brass jug onto the ground. Rings were exchanged and vows were spoken. Then she was whisked away and the ceremony continued without her.
There was so much going on, it was difficult to see everything.
I noticed some of the women going around to the back of the house, so I motioned to Doris and we followed them. We had no idea where Roger was.
We went down some steps and found ourselves in the back field. A tent had been set up and food had been cooking in giant woks. Doris and I were placed in front of the food line. It was pretty good, although a little spicy. The bride and groom were there also, but not eating. The groom was smiling. The bride was not. She would not look at the groom or at anyone else. Doris and I went to them to give our blessings, then left to look for Roger.
We found him on the road walking around. We didn't know how long the party would last, so we flagged a bus going back to town. Roger rode on top again. Two old men gave up their seats for Doris and me. I took their pictures.
Back in the market area, the bus got stopped by traffic. After about 15 minutes, we decided to get off and walk the rest of the way - about a mile. Everyone else decided to get off at this point and walk also.
Around 6:00 that evening I was walking around outside my house when the wedding party arrived. The groom recognized me and gave me a wave. The musicians were still playing and the women were still dancing. Around 10:00 that night they stopped.
We spent three fun days in Kathmandu. We flew next to Mt Everest, climbed the steps to the Monkey Temple, explored Durbur Square, and did a little shopping. We hired a taxi to take us to a couple of local villages, living in traditional Newari style.
We flew down to Bharatpur, and after one night there, we headed for the jungle. We rode elephants and hiked through the jungle (with guides) trying to spot the local wildlife. We saw 2 hippos (they were HUGE), a few crocodiles (from a distance), monkeys, birds, and other assorted animals. Lots of fun, but exhausting.
The last day in Bharatpur, the neighbors across the street started dancing and singing aruond 7:00 in the morning. I went out to see what was going on and saw the house gaily decorated. A troupe of traditional Nepali musicians were playing traditional Nepali music, and four past-middle-aged women were dancing traditional Nepali dances. I started taking photos, and the family invited me inside.
A young man came up to me and told me this was a wedding. His brother was getting married. He asked if we would like to come along.
Of course, I said "Yes."
I called up Doris and Roger at their hotel. "How would you like to go to a wedding?" I asked.
Doris thought for a moment, then asked, "Do we have time for breakfast?"
I told her to eat and then come right over. Meanwhile, friends and relatives from all over town began arriving. A Tuk-Tuk appeared, and like a clown circus act, out poured 10 people - adults and children - and three adult goats. The goats would be sacrificed in honor of the bride and groom.
Doris and Roger arrived in a pedi-cab, and soon after, the whole party started walking down the street led by the musicians. The women were still dancing. I kept looking for the bride, but saw no likely suspects. The groom was wearing a new suit, new shiny black shoes, and a necklace made from pine needles and feathers.
At the end of the street, everyone stopped. Two huge buses drove up, and the people got into them. The groom and his father and sister and assorted other relatives piled into a car built for 4. Some people rode motocycles and had a passenger on the back. The musicians sat on top of one of the buses, and continued playing, even after we started driving down the street.
The wedding party wheeled down the main market area, crossed the big bridge, and headed out of town.
"Where are we going?" Doris asked. I had no idea.
We stopped at a toll booth, and a bunch of the bus passengers climbed onto the roof of the bus. Roger decided to join them. Why not.
About 30 minutes later, the buses, motocycles, and groom's car finally stopped. In the middle of the country on a busy highway. Everyone got off the bus, and we followed the crowd. We could see a decorated house up ahead, and several men waiting in the front. This was the bride's house.
We paraded to the house, musicians playing and women dancing. When we got there, everyone began talking at once. It was hard to figure out what was going on. Nepali weddings are not like western weddings. There is no priest or rabbi at the front of the audience, no silent crowd witnessing the ceremony. It's more of a free-for-all; everyone talking at once, each one telling someone else what to do. One older man was reading ancient sanskit text, while another was anoiting the groom with milk and flower petals. The bride appeared. She circled the groom 3 times, pouring water from a brass jug onto the ground. Rings were exchanged and vows were spoken. Then she was whisked away and the ceremony continued without her.
There was so much going on, it was difficult to see everything.
I noticed some of the women going around to the back of the house, so I motioned to Doris and we followed them. We had no idea where Roger was.
We went down some steps and found ourselves in the back field. A tent had been set up and food had been cooking in giant woks. Doris and I were placed in front of the food line. It was pretty good, although a little spicy. The bride and groom were there also, but not eating. The groom was smiling. The bride was not. She would not look at the groom or at anyone else. Doris and I went to them to give our blessings, then left to look for Roger.
We found him on the road walking around. We didn't know how long the party would last, so we flagged a bus going back to town. Roger rode on top again. Two old men gave up their seats for Doris and me. I took their pictures.
Back in the market area, the bus got stopped by traffic. After about 15 minutes, we decided to get off and walk the rest of the way - about a mile. Everyone else decided to get off at this point and walk also.
Around 6:00 that evening I was walking around outside my house when the wedding party arrived. The groom recognized me and gave me a wave. The musicians were still playing and the women were still dancing. Around 10:00 that night they stopped.
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