The Lei Thar Gone Guesthouse and
The Light of Love High School in Yenangyaung, Myanmar
Eric Trutwein - his projekts and his dream!
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“Lei
Thar Gone“, a “Gentle Breeze“ welcomes us when we get out of
Nye Nye's car after a two hour drive down South from Bagan. It's more
than a guest house, a garden on a hill with breathtaking views onto
the mighty Ayeyarwaddy River and its banks, just outside the small
town of Yenangyaung. The rooms are spacious and well furnished, most
of them in semi-detached bungalows with little terraces and
air-conditioning – in case you come during the hot season.
Mid-November, the beginning of the “cold” season, opening the
mosquito-proof-windows brings sufficient gentle breezes to sleep
well.
Eric
Trutwein, despite his German great grandfather's surname, is a true
Burmese. Eric used to be a well established engineer and manager in
the Myanmar Petrol Industry, who after retirement returned to his
home town and started several projects to improve the poor living
conditions in the villages. There are not enough jobs available to
allow families to earn a living. There is never enough food and they
cannot afford to repair their houses.
People
fled their villages because they had to walk miles with heavy
containers for their daily supply of water, a task mostly carried out
by children. Today several villages are connected to the water system
which Eric built and families are returning to their old homes. Eric
helps to build houses and provides rice for the poorest of the poor.
Goat-banking
is one of his fascinating ideas: Families receive five goats and
start breeding them. When their herd reaches the magic number of
fifteen, five goats are passed on to another family in need.
Because
of malnutrition, diseases, AIDS, no affordable medical care and in
some cases the backbreaking work people have to do in order to
survive, a lot of them die young and little children are left without
their parents.
Eric
started his engagement with thirteen orphans.
In
July 2013 the “Light of Love High School” opened with an official
license by the local government for a pre-school and eleven grades.
One hundred pupils, most of them orphans or with only a single
parent, are brought to this beautiful site on the hill next to Lei
Thar Gone by a school bus every morning.
Beautiful
stone houses, well designed and solid. Everything is so clean and
tidy. Something we admire Burmese people for. Despite extreme poverty
they look after themselves, their houses and their yards are swept
regularly.
Marie,
the French Head Mistress decided during a visit in 2012 on the spot
to come and do the job voluntarily for one year and will most likely
stay on. She welcomes the kids before they go to their classes and
many give her a long cuddle to start the day at school. It is
obvious, Marie is dedicated, she loves the children and is very
enthusiastic about her job and the whole project. In the future, when
business at the Lei Thar Gone Guesthouse will have picked up, its
profit is meant to finance the entire school. At the moment funding
for the pupils, their families and the school is provided by Eric and
several foreign associations. (www.kin-bir.de
/ www.hirtenkinder.ch
/ www.enfants-de-birmanie.org)
On
our arrival at the guest house we meet Therese from Switzerland who
helps to run the place for two months and trains the local staff so
that they will be able to take over and run it themselves. Two months
seem short but Therese is sure it will be a successful start, we
already profit from her work and the staff's progress. Therese also
works voluntarily.
At
3:30 pm we walk over to the school.
At
the gate we are met by a little boy. He has seen us while playing
with his friends. He takes Hanne's hand and leads us into the school
yard. Again we experience this extraordinary friendliness that comes
natural to Burmese people.
A
few trees provide shade, we sit down and look around. Some of the
girls artistically hop in and out of a rubber band. Some boys play
football. All of them magically come closer to the tree under which
we are sitting. Then a few boys sit next to Hanne and engage her in a
conversation in English. It works! We learn their names and tell them
ours, find out about their age and which grade they are in, that they
like the school and which subjects they learn. A few minutes later
two of the older girls dare to sit next to me, one is in grade six
the other in grade seven.
All
the pupils, most of the teachers and the head mistress wear a simple
but beautiful school uniform, a purple longyi for girls and most of
the boys, plus a white blouse or shirt. The longyi I bought for
myself still causes considerable hassle when I try to fix it round my
waist. For women it is easy, they just wrap the thing around them and
tug it in. Men have to produce a big knot in front of their belly.
Without this knot I am afraid to look like a woman and without a
proper knot the garment just drops. One of the older teachers feels
sorry for me and he gives me a lesson in: “How to fix a longyi …..”
The
following day we are at the school early. Some of the children live
locally and arrive before the bus. Temperatures are definitely well
above 20 degrees C. but some kids wear jackets and cardigans – the
cold season has started!
After
nine Marie shows us around the school, we are introduced to all the
students and teachers, the time table, subjects, etc..
It
is an enormous task to organise everything from scratch, but we are
certain Marie will succeed. Even if problems should come up –
everybody is so friendly, staff and pupils. We never saw anybody
being aggressive or even upset – paradise compared to most schools
I have been to. During the visit we are careful not to stand in the
sun, every little draught is welcome – the cold season still feels
extremely hot!
One
morning Eric drives us around a few villages, we meet some of the
families, see the goats, Eric's water works and the houses made of
wood and bamboo-mat-walls which preserved with oil will last up to
forty years. A new house costs between 800 to 1200 US$. Why can't we
all put some of our Xmas money together and sponsor a new house for a
Burmese family?
On
the way back we pass one of the government's water tanks, its
leaking, the water runs down the unpaved road and produces big cuts
in the sandy surface, simply destroying the road! In moments like
this even Eric, our gentle host, can show anger.
One
late morning, the sun is blazing, we walk into the town centre of
Yenangyaung. Along the main road and in the streets around the market
we pass endless little shops and eating places. Unlike in other Asian
countries nobody tries to sell us anything, we are free to look
around and even taste, everybody smiles, we are invited to take
photos and of course we smile back and buy things. Communication is
difficult, even asking for a bottle of water shows no direct
response. But it is so easy, just follow them to the fridge and get
out what you want!
These
freshly deep fried vegetables and other things, which come in
different batter and forms, simply taste delicious. The traditional
Burmese soup “Mohinga” we experience on our last morning for
breakfast – prepared by Eric – we appreciate the treat.
One
late afternoon we climb down the hill and walk through the villages
in the woods below to the Ayeyarwaddy. It is not so easy as one
would think – this isn't a direct walk as we cannot cross the muddy
area between the sandstone hills and the water, but we get there in
the end. The river is always lively with people farming on its
shores, fishing or simply enjoying the scenery as we do.
During
all our excursions we do not see any other Caucasian faces except
those of Therese and Marie and our own!
Eric
tells us he has one dream: that all his students speak English, good
enough to build and live a better life for themselves and their
families.
We
are sure Eric, your dream will come true – your love and dedication
will let things happen and dreams will be fulfilled.
Thank
you all you lovely people of the Lei Thar Gone Family – we so much
enjoyed every minute of our visit.
