All well with us here in Pokhara. Elle, Evie and Ursie have had a relaxing time shopping and seeing some of the local sites. I had a couple of donors visiting and had to arrange a series of meetings with people around the organisation that they wanted to see. It was the first time that either had been to Nepal and when one of them turned up in a Hawaiian shirt and a very relaxed attitude I was worried that they had actually come for a holiday. It turned in to a very useful time however, with them asking some very good questions about INF and making renewed commitments to our work.

We went on a two day trek over the weekend to try and give Ursie a feel for the mountains, going up to Gandruk, a village with fantastic views and some lovely little hotels where we were very well looked after.

We also came across this group of kids who were delighted to play up for the camera.

As well as paying a lot of money for park entrance fees (~£12 each) we were also stopped a couple of times at Maoist checkpoints and asked for a 'voluntary' contribution to their cause.

We managed to get away without paying anything, but on arrival back in Pokhara we read about another trekker who had got into an argument with Maoists about not paying fees and had received a nasty beating for his efforts - we felt very grateful for a safe return.

There are some worrying signs in the rest of the country with the alliance of parties in government unable to agree on anything and seeming to lose interest in trying. The response from ordinary Nepalis appears to be either apathy or anger, with a growing sense that something is about to happen. Events in Pokhara reflected this mood - this week two students were killed in a motorcycle accident (rumours say that the driver of the bus they hit reversed over them to make sure he didn't have to pay hospital fees) and the town centre has been closed off for the last two days while students burn tyres and clash with the police.