Momo?

How many of you have been hearing about Momo? A Momo is actually a dish which comes from the district of Ha. On our first days in Paro many of us loved the name “momo”. Doesn’t it sound so cosy? So yummy? It tastes just like its name. It is a piece of dough wrapped around cheese or beef and it is delicious. On one of our first days in Paro we were on our way back to the hotel but had to stop by a village because our guide Tse Wang had forgotten his camera. As we were waiting for him, our bus driver jumped out and started to play with the children (I love how so many people feel comfortable interacting around anybody. Every time we’d stop somewhere our driver would be speaking to people nearby.)

By Ellie Angerame

Some of us stayed in the bus because we were exhausted, but others came out and joined him. I was sleeping, but the noise of a high pitch yelp woke me up. I looked up and saw that I was not the only one who was alarmed; everyone in the bus was looking out the window to find a puppy being hit. Our driver said something along the lines “that’s that first dog’s lesson.” I am not sure, but I think she was trying to grab some food from somebody’s plate. The dog ran under our bus and Nurit immediately got out of the bus and went to grab her. We brought her to the hotel, washed her, fed her and put her into a box with some garlic to keep the flees away. The next morning we had an intensive conversation about whether it was wise to keep her. We concluded that it would be best for her to be put back where we found her. But as soon as we went to find her, most of us fell in love with her again, our feelings got in the way of the wise decision.

By Ellie Angerame

By Ellie Angerame

After some people collectively suggested that they would try to bring her home, we decided that it would be reasonable for us to domesticate her and bring her to the Royal Thimphu College. On our arrival to RTC I realized I should have probably listened to my inner voice telling me it was a big mistake as I saw all the dogs from school gather up and run towards tiny Momo. Where were we going to keep her? How were we all going to fit her into our schedule? These were questions we hadn’t thought about in such a thorough way. But guess what? It all turned out to be fine in the end- or should I say until now.

By Miranda Joy

By Ellie Angerame

She was part of the group. It took a team effort and occasional arguments to educate her, and it was mostly fun. Adam and Billy coordinated every day to make sure that she was fed and walked every morning before going to class. I can tell you, this dog has gotten a lot of love. Between the walks, the brushing and washing, all the cuddling at night, the playing and running and the care taking by Adam who makes sure she gets her “anti-warm” cream rubbed on her belly, she is really spoiled. 

By Ellie Angerame

Even though she is domesticated, she will always be a stray dog. She has gotten to know all the other dogs on campus and has made friends. When she is with them, we don’t really exist to her. She does everything they do, and begs for food behind the canteen during tea time. At the end of the day however, she comes back to us to get fed and get a warm place to sleep in. Watching her play outside with the other dogs is such a treat. I can tell she is really happy. In a way, as strange as this may sound, she is like our child. I can’t tell you how many times we have worried for her if when we can’t find her after dark. Everybody on campus knows her as “the Wheaton dog” since she has a blue collar and is mostly seen around us. People have been really friendly around her. When I go for a walk with her, students will be calling out her name and asking me why we called her Momo. When I tell them that we just all loved Momo’s they start laughing.

By Ellie Angerame

By Ellie Angerame

The fun thing about having a dog is she is great company to go on walks with. I have been trying to wake up at 5:30 am as much as possible to go for walks in the mountain but it can get a little scary on my own in the forest. So the other day I went to get Momo and we went for a walk up the mountain. Waking up early here is fantastic! The cows are all over campus eating the grass, and it is so quiet-well, until the dogs hear your footsteps and start running behind you (which is really scary at first). And my favorite of all is that when the sun starts coming up, the Himalayan Mountains appear as if by magic, and that’s really something.

Momo has almost been a bridge for our social relationships with people and the other dogs. As soon as we are out with Momo all the dogs around will come and join us. Yesterday on our hike up, two dogs followed us all the way up. It was amazing, considering they didn’t seem to appreciate us very much on our first days here. When we had to cross the river by going into the river, both dogs were determined to get onto the other side. We kept on thinking they would turn back to school, but they wouldn’t give up. In the end, both dogs ended up jumping in the freezing water so that they could join us.

By Ludivine de Rancourt

By Ludivine de Rancourt

By Ludivine de Rancourt

By Ludivine de Rancourt

What I am trying to demonstrate with this entry, is that there is really something about these dogs. I’ve learned a lot from them. When I first came here I thought these dogs should be taken away from the campus for hygienic and safety reason, but now I wouldn’t want them to go in a million years. Each of them has been named: Dalmatian (he is the macho alpha of the band) Sexy, Condom (She was found by the girls’ dorm chewing on condoms)…and each of them form a special part of the campus for the students.  Now I feel a lot more respect towards dogs because I realize they are not so different from us in the end. In a way my whole attitude towards animals and insects has changed since I am here. I even chose to become a vegetarian and that’s quite a step for me.


Ludivine de Rancourt