Final Post from Nepal

If I had to sum up Nepal in one word, it would be this: Beautiful. The landscape is beautiful, the people are beautiful, the culture is beautiful. Maybe it’s the highest mountain range in the world, or the abundant gold jewelry and colorful fabrics that decorate the women, but I think the real reason Nepal is so beautiful is because of the spirituality that guides every life here.

I once had a conversation about development with a student in Bastipur. He pointed out that developed places have so many good systems and facilities, but the people are too busy to be kind to each other. At first I was taken aback, but then I began to think. Not that Americans are exceptionally unkind, but when you witness a Nepalese person drop their cartload of rice patty to invite you in and fix tea, you can see his point. In the USA, we have great facilities that care for elderly, disabled, and impoverished individuals. In Nepal, these individuals are equally cared for, not by institutions, but by family and neighbors. I wonder whether we have stopped caring for our needy because we have institutions, or if we have institutions because we have stopped caring?

Any Nepalese person will tell you, Nepal is poor in money but rich in heart. It is true down to every last detail, but these are a few ways it stands out to me most:

-In Nepal, people address everyone, even strangers, as “brother” and “sister.” Of course this makes things difficult when you want to find who someone is. When you ask “Who is that?” (Is it your school friend? Your work friend? The new cook? Your father?) the response is always “Oh, he is my brother.” But still, they dont just say those words, they mean them. It demonstrates their care and connection with ALL people.
-The words “yes” and “no” don’t even appear in Nepali language. They only use negative and positive forms of verbs. So when you ask a question, you have to be prepared for an actual response, not a one-word answer. [To be fair, the words “please,” “sorry,” and “thank you” don’t appear, either! But that’s only because kind deeds are mutually expected, not thought of as a generous offer requiring acknowledgement.]
-They greet each other with “Namaste,” which means “the God in me recognizes the God in you.” If you ask me, that is a lot better than a simple “Hi.” Namaste means “bye” as well. And in the case of leaving Charikot, this farewell was accompanied by tika, flower garlands, and blessings for a fruitful life.


And if that one word (Beauty) isn’t enough, here are a few more words that explain why I love Nepal:

Squat toilets
My brothers
Hand washing clothes
Dal Baht Tarkari
Rooftops in Kathmandu
Spice tea
Nepali language
Baby goats
Riding on buffalos
Hindi music and movies (Krish, anyone?)
Women cutting grass in Sarees
Eating right out of the garden
Mountain views
Homemade raksi
Old ladies with gold bull rings in their noses
Nepali “doughnuts”
Eating with your hands
Riding on motorbikes
Squoosh (It’s a vegetable. It’s delicious. Trust me.)
And more and more and more.

On the other hand (perhaps to ease the sting of leaving), I have scraped up a list of EVERYTHING I dislike about this country. Here it goes:

The continuous hacking/spitting/vomiting of Nepalese people
Cold bucket-baths
Burning trash
Being asked to buy ganja everyday (Do I really look that grungy!?)
And that’s it.

Oh well it was worth a try.


So long Nepal!
While thoughts of friends, family, and Christmas trees cant even boost my mood right now, I’m sure after 30 hours of flying I’ll be ready to be home.
I leave in less than 12 hours. The next report of my Nepali adventures will be coming straight from my mouth!

Christmas in Charikot

I just escaped from being kidnapped by class 9 at The Rising Star School. They stole my bag and wouldn’t let me out of the door! They begged me not to leave. It took two Christmas songs, one English pop song, and one Arabian dance before I could finally leave. But to be honest, I wouldn’t have minded if they never let me go.
Yes, I’m still in Charikot. I was supposed to return to Kathmandu two days ago, but I refuse to leave until tomorrow. After all, I’d rather be here than anywhere else in the world. The only problem is the longer I stay, the harder it will be to leave.

I really didn’t expect the week to fly by as fast as it has. I actually thought it might go by slowly, since I didn’t have another volunteer to pass time with. But I am dealing with being alone really surprisingly well. I’ve hardly had to deal with it at all because being alone hasn’t made any difference!
Teaching alone has been no problem. It turns out I have more confidence than I thought: I can sing, dance, and act like a goof in front of a class of 15 year olds and it doesn’t phase me one bit.
When I sit alone at a tea shop (an activity I thought would make me feel a little awkward), I don’t even realize that I’m alone.
And I’m so comfortable with Auntie/Uncle/the boys that I don’t need an “escape” from them…they are my escape!

I’ve been busy the past week: Studying with the boys each morning and night. Doing “speed yoga” before breakfast. Walking with them to school. Teaching each day, which I love. Having tea with friends in Charikot and eating tiffin with various school principals. My favorite part of each day is sitting with my brothers around the fire each night as the rice is cooking. But after the rice cooks, we have to stay inside…two tigers have been seen in Charikot! And a few nights ago Dai thought he heard one on the property!

Last night I threw a small Christmas celebration for all the boys. I made gingerbread and (not to toot my own horn) it was really good! I wasn’t sure how it would turn out since I lacked an American supermarket and an oven, but it tasted pretty authentic and the boys (and Uncle!) LOVED it! So I was happy. I also made personalized Christmas cards for everyone, including the Dais. They were so cheesy, with my photo and lots of red and green cut paper, but everyone loved them still.

And in Christmas spirit, I got small presents for the boys. I bought sweaters for the five smallest boys, because it is getting really cold now and they didn’t have sweaters for school. Auntie/Uncle haven’t been able to afford to buy them any, so I was happy I could help. I also got new socks (two pairs each) for all of the boys, because they haven’t been able to afford socks since last year. I thought my gifts were small, but the boys’ and Uncle’s reactions said otherwise. Uncle told me, “Your gifts are big because we have no money to buy these things that you have provided.” And even the older boys, who didn’t receive sweaters, were so thankful that I purchased them for the younger boys. It was so sweet and is a perfect example of how amazing these boys are.
It still hasn’t hit me that I’ll be leaving Charikot tomorrow. It especially hasn’t hit me that I will be leaving Nepal the day after. Yikes! I’m not ready to believe that I’m actually leaving.


[*Edit: This blog is a day late! I am now back in Kathmandu. The electricity cut off as I finished this post in the Charikot cyber café yesterday.]

Happy to be Back

I'm so happy to be back in Chaikot!

The first thing I did when I got off the bus on Friday was go straight upstairs to Hob Nob for tea. My friend was gone (teaching, as I knew she would be ) but her husband was there and her adorable nephew, who gave me the biggest smile when I walked in! It felt like coming home.
Then I left Hob Nob to pick up a doughnut at the sweet shop. I didnt even have to ask! The man knew exactly what I wanted. [I love being a "regular" here!] He asked where I had been the past few weeks, and I told him about my time in Bastipur.

When I arrived at the home, Odaspi was waiting (with Sapkuda Dai) outside the gate for me! How sweet! Uncle said she insisted on sitting there all morning to wait for me.

The boys slowly trickled back from school in the afternoon. I loved watching their faces light up when they saw me sitting inside the gate. They didnt know I was coming! All of the boys (and the Dais, too!) seem so happy that I am back! Of course, I am a million times happier than they are. It feels like I am finally home!!!!!

Everything here is, as the Nepali say, "same, same, but different." Odaspi is a little bigger, and Shambu has a broken arm (thanks to Rajesh Hamal, who ran into him playing football the day before I arrived). But Samip is a wild as ever: he found a thick metal chain and has recently taken to tying Odaspi up with it and dragging her around like a prisoner.

The home hasn't received money from central office since Dashain, so now there is no money to buy gas to cook with. Instead the boys are busy collecting and cutting wood to fuel the fire that cooks their twice-a-day rice. I swear the boys look thinner, but maybe I am just the worried big sister.

The boys had a holiday yesterday, so I enjoyed spending all day with them! Mostly I sat around while they did their chores: washing clothes, cutting wood, doing homework. But I wasnt bored at all; I was so happy to be around them! And of course we did yoga, like always.

Spending time with the classes at school. Talking with Auntie and Uncle. Playing with my brothers. Visiting my friend in Charikot. There is too much I want to do and not enough time. If this post seems a little sporadic, its because Im rushing so I dont waste any more time here! Im off to enjoy my last few days in Charikot (and Nepal)...

Kathmandu Update

Its been a good few days in Kathmandu. Spending time with the other volunteers, exploiting all the western comforts in touristy Thamel district, eating more falafel than is good for me, and drinking lots of juice. I even went for a run this morning, which felt amazing! It's been a nice break after so many weeks in a dung house.

AND I just ate a bowl of chocolate cereal with dairy-free milk...why do I ever need to come home?!

Yesterday I spent the day volunteer with the young babies at Bal Mandir orphanage. It turns out that this Bal Mandir is the same Bal Mandir that is Central Office for the home in Charikot! The babies were so cute, but of course it is really sad to see the condition they are in. There are never enough diapers, there are no toys, they are rarely clean, and they have rashes that would make you cringe. The Didis (staff) are sweet and they try their best, but it is a hard life. Many of my brothers grew up at Central Office before being moved to Charikot, and it is amazing to imagine them in the same place as the babies I was helping with.

Today I went into town to renew my visa. It was quite a long experience because the motorbike (I LOVE riding motorbikes now, by the way) blew a tire and we had to get it fixed. I only needed an extra 7 days, but the man gave me 15 for the same price. I wish I could stay that long! I cant believe I leave in only 10 days.
And the next week is going to fly by because...

IM GOING TO CHARIKOT TOMORROW! I cant wait to see all of my brothers.

Be on the lookout for updates from Charikot. If I dont post any, dont worry! I'll be back to the states to tell you about it in person very soon!

A Portrait of Bastipur

I am finally back in Kathmandu. And I am sick. I think it mostly due to the garbage that was burned outside my window in Bastipur each morning at 3 am. Or it could bit some disease acquired from the rats that left poop on my bed every day. It may even been malnourishment from eating plain roti (bread), no protein or nutrients, and only horrible, overcooked, week-old vegetables once a day.
After a terrible 13 hour bus ride, Alicia and I went straight to Thamel for salad (real vegetables!), falafel, and, uh, coke… It was amazing!

Okay, it may not sound like it, but I really did enjoy time in Bastipur! Besides the smoke and the unappetizing vegetable curries, everything was really great. The family was wonderful, teaching was fun, but the coolest part was experiencing the true village life. It was even more real than the rural experience I had hoped for but never thought I would see! I have already mentioned some of this in my previous post, but here is a brief picture of Bastipur and my life while living there:

Bastipur is truly a rural village; there are more cows and buffalos than there are people! My family alone had three and they lived right outside my window. These creatures are useful because they are good for, well, everything! The houses are all made out of buffalo dung. The floors are buffalo dung. We cooked sitting (squatting, actually) on the dung floor, cooking over a dung fire pit, burning logs of dried dung. Buffalo, ox, and cows are also used for plowing, pulling carts, and even riding! I was lucky enough to ride a buffalo myself! It was certainly a unique experience.

If there is anything else as important to this village as cows, then it is rice! Rice to eat, rice to make flour, patty to feed animals, patty to make rugs, patty to make roofs. While I spent the mornings teaching, I spent each afternoon working in the rice patty. For the first few days I cut rice, and once that was finished we spent a few hours each day carrying the cut patty back to our home. It turns out, rice patty is heavier than you would think! It is also bulky and awkward, so carrying it on my head (which is the ONLY proper was to carry it!) was pretty challenging! I could only manage half as much as the Nepali women carry, but it was still exhausting. By the time we finished after dark, I was ready to make some roti (bread), eat, and go to sleep!

Bastipur is the most “backward” (I hate using that word) place I have ever experienced. The caste system still dominates the society. No one ever introduces themselves with out their caste, but it is visible even without their words: shaved heads, gold piercings, and tattoos make it pretty visible.

The lives of women are also pretty shocking. They do all the work (in the home, in the field), but the men get the credit. I’ve never seen such physically fit women. Even the grandmother at my home spent all day long in the field cutting and carrying rice. Young girls stay home from school to stay at home and work, then marry young, then move in with their mother-in-law to do more work. My home was actually a compound one big extended family: two grandmothers, their sons and their wives. My “neighbor” in the compound was the newest wife: an 18 year old Class 10 student (not that she attends school anymore…) with a new baby. To top it all off, the women do all of this work while wearing sarees! They cook, clean, cut rice, and even sleep in sarees. Seeing the women walk through the fields with their bright sarees over their head, carrying a baby in one hand and a sickle in the other, is just like the postcards. It is amazing!

To give a few more examples: One sister-in-law at the home had never heard of dinosaurs. And when money was stolen from the home, my family skipped the police and went straight to the “saru”- a medicine man/fortune teller- to help them solve the mystery.

I had fun experiencing village life, and I think the villagers enjoyed the presence of a foreiger just as much! I couldn't walk down the street without people coming out of their homes to watch me. I was even taken on a "tour" to a neighboring village so that I could sit in a chair and be watched (literally) by the locals! Yes, it was really uncomfortable, but what can you do? It was certainly neat to be somewhere so untouched by foreigners.


Of course, I haven’t forgotten about teaching. The school was tiny: a few rooms that are open to the outside, and about 180 students in nursery to class five. Teaching was difficult at times because the children, especially the younger ones, speak almost NO English. We also had few resources and supplies, but we did what we could. We had to draw our own world map, from memory, to teach geography; it wasn’t very accurate but at least it had the right number of continents, so it served its purpose! The students were sweet and I realized I really enjoy teaching.

In addition to the family, there were so many wonderful people in the village. Our last day there, some of our friends took us out for a picnic-the Nepali equivalent of a party- which was really special. We trekked 3 hours into the hillside then spent the day cooking chow chow and dal baht over a fire on the river bank. They even cooked chicken! [By the way, when Nepali people want chicken at a picnic, they bring a chicken. A REAL, LIVE CHICKEN. The whole walk there, I had NO idea we were carrying a chicken until one of the small boys pulled it out of small totebag, still flapping, and cut off its head right along the river bank. Woah.]


…So, I hope this gives a bit clearer picture of my time in Bastipur. If you are still curious, you can check out my photos in the link on the right margin of this page!