by Janet Smellie
Northern News Services

NNSL (Nov 05/97) - Watching this year's annual freeze-up in Yellowknife was the thrill of a lifetime for Sangey Sherpa.

At 22, Sherpa, who's from Katmandu, Nepal, was not only enamoured with the onslaught of snow that started falling a good two weeks earlier than normal, but he was absolutely "thrilled" to watch the lake freeze.

"It's nothing I've ever seen before. It was incredible to see. It happened in one day, so quickly. I came here and everything was green. Then it changed so fast. Back home we only have two seasons all year long."

Sherpa is taking part in the Canadian Crossroads International program, which offers an exchange of volunteers between developing and developed countries.

Throughout his visit, Sherpa was able to bunk with four host families in Yellowknife. A librarian who works with a private school back home in Katmandu, Sherpa was also placed with the Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development where he worked in the library.

"It was a great experience for him," said Karen Johnson, Yellowknife's Crossroads co-ordinator, who noted one of the biggest differences Sherpa found was between the role men and women have here compared to his country.

"In Nepal, women's and men's roles are completely different," she said, adding that Sherpa commented that, "In Nepal men go to the office, do their business, and come home ... take off their clothes and it's the woman's job to pick them up."

"This whole idea of men helping out and doing the chores was different to him. His awareness has been raised a great deal about the roles men and women have here."

An avid runner back home, Sherpa admitted he found the cold temperatures a bit too much for running, but he did fall in love with cross-country skiing, which he learned from Johnson.

He also was able to travel by plane to do some fishing during his stay.

Sherpa said he was also able to get a taste of caribou, which "was really different than meat at home, but good."

"Back home we have water buffalo and chicken, you won't get beef meat in Nepal."

Johnson said another benefit of Sherpa's trip was that he was able to stay with Elaine Whitford and her family.

Whitford, come January, will be boarding a plane headed to Sherpa's country, where she'll spend a few months. Another Yellowknife volunteer, Samantha Naidoo, is currently in Kerala, India.

As for Sherpa, he left Yellowknife on Monday headed to Lethbridge where he will stay for two weeks, then it's back to Calgary where he'll prepare for his long journey home.