Nepalese cultural exchange in the village of Changu Narayan, Nepal

Details

• 

  Description

  My family and I welcome you to our home in the village of Changu Narayan, located about 20 km from Kathmandu and 6 km from Bhaktapur. It's where I grew up and spent my life with my wife Menuka. We have three children, who are working and studying, and one granddaughter.
  
  We want people to stay with us so they can experience the authentic life of the village and discover the Nepali culture. Here life is really traditional and it is the perfect place for anyone wanting to escape the noise and fast paced life of the city. We encourage you to get to know us and spend time with us! The longer you stay, the closer we become. You will live like a family member with us.
  
  Together with the volunteers we try to continuously improve our house. We also have a hotel that we run with the help of volunteers. there is still a lot to do to improve the reception of customers.
  We can share our culture and spend some nice moments together.
  
  The fee you are giving (USD 6, or 720 Nepalese Rupees) will cover the cost of three meals a day and the accommodation and also helps to put our children through college, and for this we really value your contribution. With the help of volunteers, we were also able to crowdfund solar panels for warm showers and WiFi.

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Charity Work

  Art Projects

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Teaching

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Farmstay help

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance

  Help with Computers/ Internet
• 

  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

  ×

  ...

  ...

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  What's this?
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  If you stay for a shorter period of time, you can experience a glance at the rural life of the village, as well as learning how to cook local food like dal bhat.
  
  Depending on the season you can attend different religious ceremonies, and even work in our rice fields.
  
  If you stay for a longer period of time (at least two weeks), you will be able to experience what it's like to be part of our Nepali family, learning our language, going to our celebrations, becoming known in the village and helping with our daily tasks.
  
  We are very excited to learn from you as well. As I always say, "The many people coming here is my way of traveling without going anywhere.

• 

  Help

  The most important aspect about our workaway is the experience you are going to live as a part of our family, in a Nepali home. We would like some help with the daily tasks around the house. You can also be a part of our seasonal farming and community projects. We still need help with many projects, from the simplest to the most elaborate. If you have an idea whatever it is, do not hesitate to tell us about it and to realize it
  As it is difficult for me to ask for help, it is appreciated if you are proactive.
  
  All the small Projects and daily task of the house are listed in a Book, created by former Volunteers. there is another one for the hotel.
  
  While you stay here, you can:
  
  - Help with the daily tasks, such as filling the water tank, helping in the kitchen and washing dishes.
  
  - Help me to manage our homestay, answer emails with me and teach me how to work with emails and internet in a better way, work on our Facebook page and other administrative work. Especially for the hotel, we need your help and advice to manage reservations
  
  - Help in the garden, weeding, digging all the ground, plant seeds, harvest etc. During many months of the year there is a lot of work in our garden.
  
  *Updated 20.07.2022* The main project I work on the guesthouse in the village for tourists. This is what will provide me with income in the future.
  Help in this project is very much appreciated!
  
  This part of the work is done first on the internet. Help me understand and learn how the internet works. Skills in this area will be highly appreciated. Besides that, any project to improve the experience of our guests is welcome. Management assistance is appreciated. At the moment we are working on the terrace. There are still plenty of things to do such as the development of the rooftop
  
  Our 3 long-term projects to support the village are:
  
  - Help villagers with construction projects or anything they may need (help me organize groups to do this, but you can also help villagers on your own)
  
  - Teach English at the school (you have to commit fully to this and stay at least 2 months)
  
  - Continue the waste management project. There is more and more rubbish, mostly plastic in the village but nothing to collect and recycle properly. So a project just started with a company to pick up waste from the village and take it to a recycling centre, there is a very basic system put in place to collect the trash. Help improve it & the frequency it is used.
  
  Every little help is appreciated, even the daily small task.
  You do not need any specific experience to work here, if you come to try and help, that is all we ask for!
  
  If you want we can go on hikes or day trips. I was working as a Trekking guide back in the days and I know the area pretty well.
  
  To get here, you can catch a bus every hour from Kathmandu or Bhaktapur. The bus should cost about 50 rupees. If you want to take a taxi, it will cost around 1500 to 2000 rupees.
  
  If you have any questions, you can call me or send us an email, I'll answer it with pleasure !

• 

  Languages spoken

  English: Fluent
  Hindi: Fluent
  Nepali: Fluent
  French: Beginner

• 

  Accommodation

  Usually you stay in a single room or in a room with your travel companion. We have Wi-Fi in the house, electricity and hot water.
  
  You can come with more people if you want, just request it by message before.
  
  We usually eat vegetarian, but on nights we can eat meat, which is always cooked in a separate pan.
  
  We eat three meals per day. For breakfast we eat roti and an egg, and sometimes pancakes. For lunch and dinner we eat dal bhat. First dal bhat is around 11am and second dal bhat is at 8pm. Those 3 meals are included, if you need to eat more in between (it is usually enough), you can buy snacks/fruits in the village. Or you can tell us, and we'll be happy to cook something.

• 

  What else ...

  Changu Narayan is an old village, 6 km from Bhaktapur, home to one of the oldest temples in Nepal, and is close to the forest which you can explore. We have a good view of Katmandu Valley from the house and the village, and you can enjoy a beautiful sunset, when the weather is good.
  
  My wife can teach you how to cook Nepali food, like momo and dal bhat.
  
  You can also support local craftsman, which are happy to show you their art. You can discover many Nepali handcrafts in the village, handmade by locals.

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

• 

  Hours expected

  Around 2 to 3 hours/5 days a week

• 

  This host charges a fee

  read more

  Why does workaway.info allow listings of hosts who charge money?

  In developing countries (Where most hosts are involved in charity work or community development) some of our hosts may ask for a small donation to help the host family or charity (often less then 5 dollars per day) Workaway will allow this listing when the donation goes directly to the family or charity and is just to cover the cost of the volunteer‘s stay.  (This will be clearly marked on the host listing).
  We will strictly not allow listings posted by agents, “middle men” or projects who we feel are looking to profit from a volunteers stay.
   

   

   

  $6 per day contribution towards food costs

Feedback (75)