Nepal - The City Experience

Kathmandu, Nepal: It's shockingly underdeveloped i.e. unpaved roads, mandatory sporadic daily blackouts, extreme poverty (mostly children on the streets), road kill being cooked on the side of the road, aggressive monkeys, wild dogs, civil unrest (it seems to follow me wherever I go), hygienic uncertainty, plumes of dust, cows grazing in the streets, a lacking infrastructure... all this within the capital city limits of Kathmandu!

Upon my arrival, there were children running around the tarmac and the recently parked wheels of the 747 I was stepping off of. The airport building wasn't much bigger than my grade school cafeteria. 'This was the international airport?' For a brief second I thought we had landed in a alternative spot, 'Maybe I missed the announcement that we were making an emergency landing,' which wouldn't of been too difficult since all of the chatter was in Nepali? Chinese? 'Where was I flying in from again?!?' It was either that or I got on the wrong plane. "There's NO WAY that could have happened." All these thoughts racing through my head as I descended the roll up staircase while taking in the new hazy surroundings of an unfamiliar city. But oh no, I was right where I was suppose to be.

The national pass time here is picking noses (seniors even grow out a finger nail specifically to aid in nasal extraction), clearing throats, and coughing up phlegm. Side effects of the unhealthy environment of dust and allergens. Oh, you get use to people coughing directly into your face... however, just try not to think about the word 'tuberculosis'.

A culture of extremes, I'd say, lost in retaining the old ways while clumsily embracing the new. On one hand they have high-speed internet and on the other they don't use toilet paper. Monks congregate together wearing traditional robes while listening to MP3 players and answering cell phones. Armed security guards are posted in front of restaurants and popular bars, even the ATMs on the street have guards sitting on a stool watching your back. There's a strong visible police presence but don't be surprised when illegal drugs are offered to you by pushers while standing in front of them.

(Incidentally, the ATM I had to use at the airport, the ONLY one in the airport, had to be 'turned on' by a guard so I could use it to extract funds to pay for my visa, which I then had to convert local currency into US dollars to pay for it. How's that for economic confidence? Their own government doesn't even except local currency.)

You can be sipping on a Starbuck's coffee from a balcony looking down through the spaghetti filled sky of electrical wires while limbless beggars pan for scraps on the dusty streets below. Late at night it wasn't uncommon to see shopkeepers, hotel employees, and restaurant staff bedding down for the night on their own reception desks, serving tables, and tiled floors.

Ask a question three times, and you'll get a different answer every time. I learned to stop asking when I heard what I wanted to hear knowing fully well it wasn't the correct answer but at least I had brief satisfaction. Ask for directions from a person who doesn't know the way, he'd rather tell you the wrong directions before admitting to you he doesn't know 'the way'. It's fascinating.

Kathmandu is a place of raw poverty and widespread pollution; a landscape of rubbish and concrete, holy shrines and ancient history; it's a culture of warm fellowship, affectionate comradery, and religious dedication.

If you're overweight, be prepared for people to take notice. It's not common in their culture at all and weight usally translates into wealth. I overheard a monk saying to a female volunteer at the monastery...

monk - "You must like to eat a lot of rice?" while motioning to her belly.
girl - "You shouldn't say that to someone. It's not polite."
monk - "What should I say? You ate all the cupcakes?"

You can't help but to appreciate their good humored honesty. No minding your P's and Q's or worrying about PC. There's no time for all that bullshit, nor is there time for anyone to take things personally either. Not here. I mean, just walking down the street everyone is in everybody's way. Whether you're on foot, riding a bicycle with a cage of six chickens on the back, a taxi driver playing slalom with tourists and locals, a motorcyclist bumping people out of the way while he's laying on the horn, or having your shoes spit on unintentionally as you squeeze through the bedlam... you are a part of this fantastic maddening scene. But no one gives a shit. For as much as the ten people around you are in your way, you're in the way of 15. Lessons in tolerance and acceptance were being taught 24/7. Oh, and personal space... it doesn't exist.

All in all Nepal was the most beautiful yet challenging destination thus far. If you slip away from the tourist trap development of Thamel where everyone wants a piece of you cause all you are to them is a walking wallet, you experience the true beauty of the people and the land. Although the differences in culture are many, they are minor.

I saw a tee shirt which read, "This is Nepal. It won't change. You change." That about says it all. I hope it doesn't change. It's magical to be emmersed in something so different.

FYI - Death to a cow carries an automatic two year prison sentence. Respect the cow.

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