I had decided to volunteer in Nepal after hearing wonderful things about the country from friends and colleagues who had visited the country. I wanted to experience a country rich in history, tradition and culture. WWOOFing gave me the opportunity to experience the daily lifestyle as a member of a warm Nepalese family in a small village in the Chitwan area. My program included orientation around Kathmandu, and living with a family allowed me to learn about Nepalese customs and their way of life. I spent the days volunteering on the farm, where I was able to exchange ideas and knowledge in agriculture with my Nepalese colleagues. In my spare time I went sightseeing around the Chitwan national park, visited friends and attended a traditional Nepalese wedding and other traditional festivals. I thank WWOOFing Nepal for giving me an unforgettable opportunity to make some amazing friends and be a part of a culture and way of life in Nepal.

I thought what I have experienced in Nepal would be just as all the other trips I had in any other places which, as time goes by, will fade. But I was wrong, right now when i am under big pressure, or i am so tired from a day’s work, the peaceful views of sunset, the unforgettable meals without electricity, the forever dancing of the girls and so many laughing moment will float up and calm me down. Elva from China

Krish From America in Nepal from October 2004 to December 2004: I came to Nepal after 8 months of traveling through South East Asia, and it has been so great to meet Fanindra and his family. They have been so welcoming and I have learned so much from my time with them. WWOOFing has been such a good way to meet Nepali people who aren’t connected with the tourist industry and to see how people live in rural areas. I was lucky enough to be in Nepal during the festival of Dashain, and I spent this in a small village in the Chitwan area. People treated me like a member of the family, and I met people who will remain dear to me. I have to say it was difficult to leave! Thank you so much to Fanindra and his family who made my experience of WWOOFing in Nepal amazing and unforgettable.

“WWOOF Nepal is an amazing experience. I miss my Ama and Bua’s in Chitwan and Begnas Tal very much every day. I cannot wait until my life allows me to be back in Nepal. A little about our experience at farm. There are 6 goats on the property. Two that are pregnant with 2 goats each right now, one will be giving birth soon, they expect December. I believe they sell those goats though. The farm has 3 buffalo. We spent our time picking coffee beans, pulping coffee beans, washing, and spreading/drying coffee beans to ship off to Everest coffee in Kathmandu. He has orange trees, lemon trees, macadamia nuts, papaya trees, pineapple, as well as many other herbs, plants, and trees. They also have a bio gas system that was installed by engineers about 15 months ago. They throw all of the buffalo dung and other waste into this well that then sends this waste to a tank to ferment. Thus giving off methane for them to power two burners in their kitchen….it works great. Other chores for us at farm involved gathering the goat food, putting the goats out and in everyday.

I had a wonderful stay with Basu and Puspa and would definitely recommend them! As it was monsoon season there was not a lot of work to do, but they welcomed me in as one of the family! Basu let me help with cooking, and taught me to cook Nepali food and to make paneer! I also got to help a little with feeding the cows, fertilizing the fields, and planting. I definitely had a little bit of culture shock, mostly with adjusting to a muuuuch slower pace of life than I’m used to. It was such a positive experience though, I was very far outside my comfort zone- spreading cow poop with my hands, the language barrier, huge spiders and creatures and everything unfamiliar- but out of my comfort zone in the best possible way. I felt personally challenged, had my beliefs questioned and re-thought my own life and culture and sense of normalcy. All of that and some farming skills too Basu and Puspa were very sensitive to my needs, never forced me to work too much, and took care of any minor injuries and blisters I got on my soft city hands They also took me to see some temples and rivers and scenic things in the area. I enjoyed meeting a lot of the neighbors and learning Nepali dancing too! I will always remember my short yet very intense and rich experience in Prembasti This is the story of Jenzi from America:

I had a wonderful time on the farm in Dhikura, Arghakhanchi. I learned a lot about farming, and about a way of life so different from the one I was accustomed to. The pace was much slower than what I was used to, and at first that was hard for me, but after some time I grew to appreciate it. I was so well fed and taken care of—Pompha put a mosquito net up around my bed when I was being eaten alive in my sleep. I really enjoyed painting the house with fresh clay for the upcoming Dasain festival, planting a potato field, cutting grass, going with Pompha to sell milk in Sandhikharka, and removing all the kernels from piles and piles of dried corn! That gave me blisters so I had to stop, but after a few days I was able to do it again without getting any new blisters.

My name is Mari- Line and I am from France. After WWOOFING in Syangya, I came to Rukum and did 2 weeks WWOOFING to Rukum. This is also no nice place surrounded with mountain, river and jungles. I have now all the information to give about my volunteering in Rukum, a remote district of Nepal which was one of the active district of 10 years of Maoist war. I had a very good time in this remote area. The family was very joyful and always laughing. It was sometimes a little bit difficult because I was really deep inside a very different culture even though I enjoyed my experiences very much.

We are glad to get the support of WWOOFers like Nina and Jörgen here in Nepal. Thank you for your kind words. All Nepali people we have met have been very friendly and welcoming. We got treated like a part of the host family. The work at the kindergarten was from around nine to five. It’s perfect for wwoofers who likes children. It felt like we inspired with some new English words. It was good for the teachers too, to practise their English. This wwoofing- experience have been fantastic and the biggest memory from Nepal. We already miss the children and our lovely host family!

“Hi WWOOF Nepal team, we have just returned from host from Pokhara. They are fantastic people and treated us like a family members. Please send more volunteers there – they would love to have more.”

“Wwoof Nepal made it possible for us to make great experiences to learn from all varieties of gardening and farming skills through WWOOFing. We are very proud of some of the things we’ve done and learned and that we got the chance to do so. We feel deeply fascinated for WWOOFing in Nepal which we felt a great way to experience “real” Nepal. We want to thank to WWOOF Nepal Team, as well as all our hosts in Illam. We felt no difference than our family members. We never forget these great Nepalese experiences in our life”.