Day 4 was a day of rest. Dipendra and our cousin departed for Lingtep in the early morning, leaving Dhirendra and I behind to rebuild some strength after Dhirendra's bout with food poisoning.
We rested and took short walks around the Taplejung Bazaar. It had been 7 years since either of us had been there, so it was fun to see it again. Last we'd been there was during the height of the Maoist insurgency during the on-going warfare between the Maoists and the National Police/Army (one of the important eastern stations is in the district headquarters). Also highlighting our last trip was the huge fire that burned down half the bazaar (ignited by children studying by a candle that fell over). When we went to look at the devastating effect of the fire, we nearly got injured by the sudden explosion of a cooking gas cylinder that was buried underneath the remains of burnt houses. The newer part of town has broader roads and some solid looking concrete buildings.
Dipendra rushed on to Lingtep in order to attend to some family 'business.' Dhirendra's beloved father (Tulsi Prasad Nalbo) was a respected leader within the region. Since his passing in 2005, the family has planned to build a memorial bench within the village in his honor. This winter was nominated the best time to do it. Dhirendra's oldest brother who lives in the village (Madan) had done much of the planning, but activities were scheduled to start immediately...another motivating factor to get us to the village in time to help with the construction of the 20 foot long stone memorial bench.
Thanks to Meg, Dipendra and other relatives' love and care, Dhirendra regained his strength this day; we were relieved to know that we'd be able to continue on with our journey to Lingtep (only a couple of days delayed).
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