Nepal - Chicken Soup For The Traveler's Soul?

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Namaste!

It's not quite chicken soup for the soul...but perhaps something like it...for my soul at least. As was well documented in my past few entries, I had reached a point where I needed a change of scenery and climate. The visit from Tim and being a lazy bum in Laos with Rory helped get me through the last couple of weeks while I kept my fingers crossed that Nepal would be just what I needed.

I'm back. Back in the sense that the fist-pumping, involuntary smile, and giddy with excitement state has returned. I don't know if it was the humidity or just needing a change of scenery/pace/etc...but it felt right to be leaving SEA and coming to Kathmandu. Though I would have needed many more months to see and do all I was interested in back in SEA...I'm satisfied with my time there and glad to be here in Nepal.

It was a bit rough getting here as I had a 5hr delay at the BKK airport. I could have done without the delay, but at this point I think I'm fairly capable of shutting my brain off for hours on end during my transport from place to place. (Some out there may argue that my brain is rarely "on" in the first place...).

In any case, I finally arrived at the KTM airport at 2am and was saved from the swarming masses of drivers and touts when I found Bhupi, who ushered me into a taxi he had arranged.

"Who's Bhupi", you ask? Typically I haven't been saying too much about what's coming up next because I often don't really know much more than what I'm doing a week or so in the future. But I suppose I'll share one bit of the Nepal plan with you.

Professor Nestor
I had a goal/desire to find a place to volunteer in some manner during this journey and I had researched a bunch of different organizations and opportunities. There are conservation projects, building projects, health care projects (though I'm not qualified for most of these), and various teaching projects. Unfortunately, there weren't any projects for telecommunications equipment designers nor were there any for middle of the pack triathlon competitors. So I started to dig into the teaching opportunities. One of the programs I found had an appealing gig in Nepal in which I could teach English to Buddhist monks for anywhere from 2-16 weeks. This sounded like a rather unique experience and I earmarked it as a high probability for what I'd do in Nepal. I also figured I'd be in Nepal somewhere near the 7 month mark and anticipated that this is when I'd want to plop down somewhere for a while and not move to a new bed every few days. So way back when...I was thinking 8 weeks would be a good amount of time.

As the trip evolved and I got so jazzed about my trekking in New Zealand, I started to look more into some treks in Nepal. As that gained interest in my mind and as I was considering a few other activities here (which I don't think will pan out in Nepal, so I'll save that for another time), I was thinking that perhaps 6 or 4 weeks of teaching would be a better fit. I didn't want to simply extend my Nepal time because it would squeeze the time in the countries that follow. So I'm trying to stick with 2 months here.

During my last month in SEA, due to the lack of complete certainty of how much I wanted to go on, I hadn't yet committed to the organization I had been in contact with. And then as I reviewed my budget and realized how I'm a tad ahead of my plan, I started to look for other orgs that were cheaper. (Yes, I actually have to pay to volunteer. Fees typically go towards program costs - food, lodging, training, staff, etc). There weren't many choices since there aren't too many that offer the teaching of monks. But I came across one called Volunteers Initiative Nepal (or VIN...feel free to click on the link and read all about it) which was much cheaper and after talking to the head guy (Bhupi), I figured I hook up with them.

One of the services of VIN is that they pick up the volunteers from the airport. Right...and now after 3 paragraphs you know why I was picked up at 2am by some dude named Bhupi.

I thought I'd be heading off to go trekking after a few days and then come back for my training and teaching. But it worked out best that I spent my first week in Kathmandu doing training along with two German girls who arrived the day after me. So here I am still kickin' it in Kathmandu rather than off getting lost in the mountains somewhere.

Hanging out in a city doesn't really make for many stories of great adventure...but I'll share a bit of what the week has been like.

Thamel
First of all...the main tourist area in Kathmandu is called Thamel and is a hippie version of Khao San Road in Bangkok. It's certainly not as annoying as KSR, but isn't the type of place I want to spend too much time. The crowd here is certainly different than in Bangkok though. It has a larger hippie element...a much older element...and a much more purposeful element. KSR was just loaded with a bunch of nutters who were seemingly aimlessly wandering around the backpacker circuit. The folks here range from uber-mountaineers who are gearing up for Everest to the more casual trekker like me who just wants to get a taste of the Himalayas.

A walk down the streets of Thamel basically consists of the following:
- Being run over by rickshaws/taxis/motorbikes
- Being offered hash/weed
- Passing a clothing store exploding with highly colorful hippie-wear
- Passing a trekking gear shop the size of my kitchen but loaded up with tons of fake North Face gear
- Being offered hash again
- Passing an internet cafe or tourist office

And that's about it. I suppose there are some decent restaurants as well, but in general, Thamel has limited utility. Mercifully, the hotel Bhupi has an arrangement with is a few blocks away on a quiet side street.

As for the non-Thamel parts of Kathmandu...I'd actually say there's limited utility for me there as well. The traffic isn't quite as nutty as in Vietnam or Cambodia...but it's the first place where I actually feel in danger from the traffic. They're just not as good at the Chaos Method of Traffic. And it's truly dirty here. I bought a bandana on my second day to cover my mouth as I walked down the street because there was so much dirt in the air. There are some sites to see, but I'm still a bit burned out on "sites" at this point.

One will also see the occasional cow picking his way through a pile of garbage on the street. Being an 80% Hindu country, the big fellas get to roam as they please, I guess.

Don't get me wrong...I've mentioned some negative things, but I'm quite happy being here. Whether that's because there's something about Nepal that I like or whether it's simply because I'm not in SEA anymore remains to be seen. But I am much happier with the climate. Mid 80's during the day and cool mornings and evenings...with nary a trace of humidity to be found. Quite perfect.

Dal Bhat
I've decided that Nepal will not likely be world renown for its delicious cuisine. This is because they don't have much delicious cuisine. They have one meal...Dal Bhat...which literally means "lentils & rice". One is served a large metal tray containing a pile of steaming rice and then a few metal cups containing a variety of veggies, "dal", and perhaps another sauce or two. Pour the cups over the rice, stir it around with your fingers, scoop some up with your hands, and jam it in your mouth. They eat this morning, noon, and night like it's going out of style. It can actually be quite entertaining, but the lack of other options limits my praise for Nepali food.

I've generally been rather adamant about eating mostly the local food...but perhaps that's because up until now the local food had enough variety to eat it all the time. The DB can be quite good, but not morning, noon, and night every day of the week. It's only been a week, but I'm guessing that Thai food isn't in danger of losing it's place as my favorite food.

A Contributing Member of Society Again?
It's pretty much been Saturday or Sunday for me since the 30th of March. But this week I actually had days of the week. I woke up at 6:30, walked 20 mins to "work" or "school" (VIN's office), came home in the afternoon, and generally had a semi-normal routine. We'd have Nepali language training from Dinesh (a local school principal who volunteers his time to teach VIN folks) in the morning for a couple of hours and then would spend the rest of the day either with teacher training, tours of the city, or other VIN related discussions with Bhupi.

Perhaps this isn't a disclosure I should make, but let me tell you...it raised some concerns with me about how I'll ever get back into the swing of "real" life whenever I get back home. This structured day thing can be exhausting. (Yeah, I know...you're all groaning right now and not feeling any sympathy). I'm completely used to basically doing whatever the heck I want whenever I want. Having my day scheduled for me was a bit of a shock to the system. Oh, and having material to study at night rather than just being able to go home and chill...yikes.

But on the flip-side, it also felt pretty good to be doing something like this. I haven't been in school for ages...and despite being really frustrating, it was cool to spend a few hours every day in Nepali class. And it's cool to talk to Bhupi about his projects and strategies or helping the folks he's involved with...I feel like I'm on the verge of being useful to someone other than myself for a bit. I suppose I'm pretty far removed from standing on top of a pole and jumping into a river in Laos right now.

We took one trip to the monastery so far and it really piqued my curiosity about how the teaching thing will pan out. They're mostly Tibetan and have widely varying language skills...both in English and Nepali. Some could understand what we said in English...and some don't know the English script. Some are fluent in Nepali...and some not so much. And since we ("we" being myself and the two Germans) hardly know any Nepali after just 6 classes, this presents and even bigger challenge. We'll have to give them an aptitude test and sort the into different classes and see where we go from there. But this will largely be handled by Romy and Marie (the German girls) since I'm going trekking first. Oh - and I guess I forgot to mention that we're the first ones to teach at this place...it's a new program. Should be interesting.

You might be thinking..."Marc, you're not a teacher...let alone an English teacher...how will you teach people English?" Right, I'm not. Nor are the German girls. But we speak the language, and at this point that's a pretty good skill to bring to the table for these guys. For the ones who know some English, they mostly can just read and write it. The opportunity to practice speaking and listening with actual English speakers should help them immensely. And as for the beginners...I don't think our lack of ability to properly diagram a sentence or immediately list all the parts of speech (who knows how many there are? i can come up with 6 off the top of my head) will come into play for quite a while. Actually, I think the Germans have an advantage over me to some degree...they actually know what it's like to be taught English as a foreign language. They know what the present perfect tense of a verb means. I haven't a clue.

And if they get bored with English, I'll just start teaching them some 2-phase heat transfer stuff...or something equally stimulating.

A Window Into American Culture
I've generally been against having a room with a TV. I've noticed that it makes me much lazier and less motivated to experience the cool stuff around me. But the room Bhupi set me up with did indeed have a TV...and who was I to complain? The main benefit of this is that I was able to watch some of the following:
- Episodes of "The Office"
- Game 3 of the NLDS to see the Cubs get swept...sorry Cubbies. Next year is your year...
- College football replays...the same game twice (South Carolina vs Kentucky...I think)...but it still was great
- Star Wars - Episode I
- Episodes of "Seinfeld"

Yes, I shouldn't be spending my time in Nepal watching TV...but it's nice to have a few "normal" experiences from time to time.

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Right...so I started out saying I'm pumped...and then proceeded to paint a mediocre picture of Kathmandu. But I really am excited to be here. I'm looking forward to trekking and am really curious to see what it will be like to hang out with some monks for a month. I'm thrilled to not be sweating at all moments of the day. I'm thrilled to be surrounded by a new culture...a Hindu dominated one.

I was joking with Bhupi that I needed a Nepali name...so we came up with Mahendra ("Mero nam Mahendra ho")...which he told me was the name of the King. After digging into this a bit more I learned that it is indeed the name of the King...but he's been dead for several years...and his younger son (Gyanendra) massacred the successor (Birendra - his older brother) and 8 other family members a few years back. So I went from being excited about being the king to being a bit bummed that now I'm a dead guy who's family kills each other. Can't have everything I guess.

A note about that...the official story is that the successor got drunk and gunned down the family members and then himself, but all the Nepalis say that's crap and they all know that the younger brother did the whacking. Maybe Paulie Walnuts was involved too...

The Nepali government is in quite a state of flux these days. The King no longer has any real power and they're in the process of holding their first elections among the 8 prominent political parties. They were scheduled for late October, but the infamous Maoists pulled out of the agreement. Thankfully, due to this evolving political landscape, the Maoists have largely deserted their strong-arm tactics of the past in order to curry favor with the masses. While being positive for the Nepalis, this also greatly reduces the chances of me being extorted for some money by Maoist "donation" collectors while trekking.

Speaking of trekking...I'm done with my training now and am heading off in a couple of days for a 3 week trip around the Annapurna Circuit. I really dug my treks (tramps) that I did way back in New Zealand (seems like ages ago) - but those were only 3 day treks. The AC is supposed to take somewhere around 17-21 days to complete and will take me to elevations I've only experienced inside an airplane. I shudder (or perhaps shutter...) to think of how many pictures I'll have taken after 3 weeks of mountain scenery. The trek is almost a complete loop and will take me around a variety of mountains...the tallest being Annapurna I (8091m - 26,545ft) - the 10th highest peak in the world.

Some other Nepali information:
- The world has 14 peaks that reach over 8000m and Nepal has 8 of them...including the tallest - Mt. Everest (or Sagarmatha in Nepali) which stands tall at 8848m (29,029ft)...which is actually a bit of a science project to even explain due to the varying measurement methods. Some measurements include the snow and ice...and some do not. But 8848m seems to be the accepted height. For those of you wishing to summit Everest, start saving up for the $25,000 permit and other associated costs. You also might want to start practicing survival on 1/3 the normal amount of oxygen.
- Not surprisingly, Nepal has the highest range of elevations on earth...from roughly 100m above sea level in the Terai (the plains near India in the south of the country) all the way up to 8848m.
- There are just shy of 30 million citizens and the culture is rather diverse...many religions (though mostly Hindu)...many mini-cultures in all the various people groups scattered around the rural areas.
- The electricity goes out nearly every day at some point. No biggie...but it happens.
- They're on a different calendar here. It's 2064 and the months are lunar. So all the months are listed as Sept-Oct, Oct-Nov, etc. From what I hear, the monastery is on yet another calendar - the Tibetan one. Life was so much easier when it was just Saturday every day...

Namaste,
Mahendra

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Photos

Prayer Wheels
As Eddie Murphy said in the Golden Child..."I-I-I-I want the knife....please..."

Prayer Flags
Think they have enough...?

Tibet Peace Guest House Room
I guess I really haven't been taking photos of my accomodation. So here you go...a couple of small hard beds...and that's about it.

Guest House Garden
This was a perfect place to eat breakfast and chill and enjoy the non-humidity.

View of the Valley
Taken from one of the other monasteries in town.