The landscape is so different from Charikot (mountains) or even Kathmandu (valley). Bastipur is a village in the terai, so everything is totally flat. There are rice patties everywhere and you can see for miles and miles and miles.
The climate is tropical, so much so that I keep forgetting I am in a landlocked country and not on some Caribbean island! There are papaya trees everywhere. And all the buildings have that 'weathered' look you only find in tropical places. And despite being winter, it is hot here!
The family I live with is amazing. So sweet and welcoming. But in reality I am living with about 4 families, because the whole extended family (grandmas, aunts, uncles, and cousins) all live together in one compound that opens up to a central (dung covered) patio.
Did I mention the home is made out of cow poo? Literally. And the best part is, when a baby makes a mess on the floor, they wash it off with water then put MORE poo on top of it.
Not only is there no shower here (I've gotten used to that, after all!) but there isn't even running water. Only a water pump outside used to fill up buckets and jugs. I have an outdoor squat toilet to use, but the family doesnt even use that! The field is good enough toilet for them...
My life here is awesome; unlike anything I've ever experienced. Teaching at the tiny run-down village school is great, but my favorite thing here is taking part in chores with the family. I've really been living village life here. In the morning and evenings I help make roti (chapati bread) for meal. We cook and eat on the floor! And during my free time I play with the three adorable kids.
I've even been cutting rice with all the women! It is wild: hours and hours of squatting in the field, cutting the rice patty by hand with a small sickle blade. I always attract an audience of villagers who come to see the foreigner working in the field. It is really fun, but it is also really, really tiring! But I am glad to be helping my family and experiencing their lifestyle, if only for a short while.
The village is wild. It has been so untouched by development. To give you a brief picture, these are some of the questions I have been asked since being here: 1.) Miss, what caste are you in? and 2.) How much milk does your buffalo in America give you?
Seriously. Wild.
Thats it for now, and I cant promise another entry soon. The nearest town (where I am right now) is over an hour-long walk from Bastipur!
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