Once my mom starts to push me to engage more with social media venues, I know it is time to get with it and jump on that band-wagon. So, here I am...my first blog.
It's difficult to know where to begin as I have now been in Nepal for nearly 3 months. I am certainly not going to even humour the idea of re-capping this entire time, at least not in any significant detail, as the thought of extending my commitment to working on my computer is a thought I find unbearable. Between the load shedding, a.k.a. power outages, for at least 9 hours out of the day, in addition to the unreliable internet connection, and dealing with a computer screen that will periodically turn half-black, I exhaust my patience for anything electronically related on a daily basis.
Instead, I have found myself often longingly gazing at those working in their fields or guiding their water buffalo down the streets, wishing that were me. Had I stayed in Kathmandu, I think I would have abandoned the 'civilized world' (and yes, I use that term rather generously), to try and work in the small farm behind where I was living. Every morning, I would watch the cows ushered out of the barn (again, a generous term given the wood posts precariously held upright with a tin roof secured by large rocks, and a tarp covering the entrance), an old bathtub filled with water for the cows to drink as they stood bound in place by a rope threaded through their nose which was then attached to a nearby post, and both the women and men working their vegetable plots. I am sure I have managed to conjure a romantic image in my mind of returning to the simpler times, but I still feel that is the Nepal I want to get to know. Not the westernised, or even affluent Nepal, which I will not deny being infinitely grateful for initially...especially going several days with the fear that I would find myself homeless on the streets of Kathmandu, but that is a story for another time. Once I settled in, however, had a place to live, learned how to cross the streets, shop for food, and communicate on a very basic level, I didn't want to be an outsider looking in. I wanted to understand and get to know the culture and the people on an intimate level.
This is now my 5th time to Nepal, and I will say that this experience has giving me a better understanding of the area, and I am proud to say that I have managed to pick up on a decent amount of Nepali since being here. That's not to say I have mastered the pronunciation, but I can at least occasionally convey my message, and with a bit of imagination on the part of the other, even be understood. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges I have been confronted with that has taken me a bit by surprise after having lived in five different countries on three different continents, is how lonely I have felt since being here. It's not that I haven't met or interacted with a variety of people during this time, and I am sure it would have been infinitely better if things had worked out with the NGO I was supposed to be involved with while here, but at the same time, there is this pressing void lingering in the background that makes me yearn for the company of my family and loved ones. I spoke with a friend of mine who is living in Kuala Lumpur -- he's Haitian/ German -- and he said it's been the same for him, as well. I suppose a lot of it comes down the complete lack of familiarity...with anything. A completely different language, culture, lifestyle. Heck, even the vegetables and fruits look different here! Half the time I didn't even know what I was buying or cooking with in Kathmandu, and sometimes this turned out more successfully than others. I don't regret coming here, but I am looking forward to seeing everyone again nearly 5 months from now. Wow, that is a long time. Especially considering I didn't even know how long I would be gone for when I left. I figured at least 1-3 months, but the side-project I was working on started to take shape, and now, well, I will be gone from the States for a total of 7 1/2 months. Funny to think that over the past four years, I have spent essentially two years outside of the US. But again, I think this experience has provided bigger and more obstacles to overcome. In theory, this will be a good thing.
It's difficult to know where to begin as I have now been in Nepal for nearly 3 months. I am certainly not going to even humour the idea of re-capping this entire time, at least not in any significant detail, as the thought of extending my commitment to working on my computer is a thought I find unbearable. Between the load shedding, a.k.a. power outages, for at least 9 hours out of the day, in addition to the unreliable internet connection, and dealing with a computer screen that will periodically turn half-black, I exhaust my patience for anything electronically related on a daily basis.
Instead, I have found myself often longingly gazing at those working in their fields or guiding their water buffalo down the streets, wishing that were me. Had I stayed in Kathmandu, I think I would have abandoned the 'civilized world' (and yes, I use that term rather generously), to try and work in the small farm behind where I was living. Every morning, I would watch the cows ushered out of the barn (again, a generous term given the wood posts precariously held upright with a tin roof secured by large rocks, and a tarp covering the entrance), an old bathtub filled with water for the cows to drink as they stood bound in place by a rope threaded through their nose which was then attached to a nearby post, and both the women and men working their vegetable plots. I am sure I have managed to conjure a romantic image in my mind of returning to the simpler times, but I still feel that is the Nepal I want to get to know. Not the westernised, or even affluent Nepal, which I will not deny being infinitely grateful for initially...especially going several days with the fear that I would find myself homeless on the streets of Kathmandu, but that is a story for another time. Once I settled in, however, had a place to live, learned how to cross the streets, shop for food, and communicate on a very basic level, I didn't want to be an outsider looking in. I wanted to understand and get to know the culture and the people on an intimate level.
This is now my 5th time to Nepal, and I will say that this experience has giving me a better understanding of the area, and I am proud to say that I have managed to pick up on a decent amount of Nepali since being here. That's not to say I have mastered the pronunciation, but I can at least occasionally convey my message, and with a bit of imagination on the part of the other, even be understood. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges I have been confronted with that has taken me a bit by surprise after having lived in five different countries on three different continents, is how lonely I have felt since being here. It's not that I haven't met or interacted with a variety of people during this time, and I am sure it would have been infinitely better if things had worked out with the NGO I was supposed to be involved with while here, but at the same time, there is this pressing void lingering in the background that makes me yearn for the company of my family and loved ones. I spoke with a friend of mine who is living in Kuala Lumpur -- he's Haitian/ German -- and he said it's been the same for him, as well. I suppose a lot of it comes down the complete lack of familiarity...with anything. A completely different language, culture, lifestyle. Heck, even the vegetables and fruits look different here! Half the time I didn't even know what I was buying or cooking with in Kathmandu, and sometimes this turned out more successfully than others. I don't regret coming here, but I am looking forward to seeing everyone again nearly 5 months from now. Wow, that is a long time. Especially considering I didn't even know how long I would be gone for when I left. I figured at least 1-3 months, but the side-project I was working on started to take shape, and now, well, I will be gone from the States for a total of 7 1/2 months. Funny to think that over the past four years, I have spent essentially two years outside of the US. But again, I think this experience has provided bigger and more obstacles to overcome. In theory, this will be a good thing.
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