Nepal: Where nursing homes don't exist.

The family tree is built differently in Nepal than in the US. It is a patriarchal system that took me a while to grasp. I guess it goes to show the true feminist within me! The daughters are transferred from their own family tree and added to their husband's. After marriage the daughters become a bigger part of their husband's family than their own. Cousins do not exist because their is not a Nepali word for cousins. All the children of brothers and sisters are not cousins, but bothers and sisters as well! Sneha has only one true brother, but she has very many other "brothers" and one little "sister!" On Saturday, the only resting day in Nepal, Sneha's family and I went and visited many of her relatives. This was not much different that any other day, because Nepali families are very loyal and visit each other most everyday! Almost every day I have visited with Sangita's parents, and now Rajan's parents are living with us so I hope to get to know them better as well! Here, the children are responsible for taking care of their parents when they are not able to do so themselves. Although I have seen firsthand the stress it can create on a family, I like this approach much more than what occurs so often in the US; sending elderly people to a nursing home. Sometimes the language causes a barrier, but with smiles and laughter I communicate pretty efficiently with her grandparents! Her grandfather, Hikmat, is especially intriguing and is fascinated with the fact that I live on a farm. He too, runs a farm in Nepal and we swap stories of how things are done and what typically goes into being successful!

"Misty? Why not Sunny?"

"Misty? Why not Sunny?" was the response from Sneha's Uncle when I was introduced to him. Tonight we had dinner at his house and then went and watched salsa dancing! We watched him dance, and then Sneha, Rohit, and I sat in wonder at the others dancing. I want to tell you about public transportation in Nepal. The population is so great and traffic is so congested that the more people that can fit in a vehicle the better! There are two modes of public transportation, microbus and tempu. A microbus is just a little bit bigger than a minivan and has a driver and a conductor. The conductor pounds on the outside of the microbus, yelling and signaling to the driver when to stop. It's quite fascinating, but even more intimidating because they yell in Nepali and I don't understand! Thank God for Sneha my personal translator! Then there are the tempu. Imagine a full size bed on wheels....3 wheels! Tempus are giant tricycles with two benches inside a cab. The wheels are soo narrow and the vehicle itself seems so tipsy that I haven't yet rode in one! Tempus are filled so full that sometimes people just hold onto the roof and stand on the bumper....needless to say, seatbelts aren't a priority in Nepal. Children here aren't required to sit in carseats, but rather are usually carried or stand between their parents legs on a scooter! Scooters and motorbikes are very popular modes of transportation. They even have parking lots for them! Drivers of scooters and motorbikes are required to wear a helmet, but not passengers. I prefer to get around on a motorbike above all. From there I can see in every direction to take pictures, zip in and out of traffic, but a mask must be worn because there is so much dust and pollutants in the air. However, we are fortunate and Sneha's grandfather and father have SUVs and drivers who take us around, so we don't have to wear masks that often!

Generosity of the Nepali People

Yesterday, Sneha and I picked up a collection of donated items for Making Lives Better from Rupy's International School where her brother Rohit attends school. All the items were donated by the school children and they did a fantastic job! We completely filled an SUV with all the items. Just as when I was in Belize, I thoroughly enjoyed talking with the children. They are so intelligent, most of them being trilingual! We took pictures with them and I even played a little basketball...well....tried to! I met Sneha's grandfather who lived in the US while he served in the Nepali Army. I like him very much and he likes to talk to me about farming in the US because he oversees a farm here in Nepal. He introduced me to my favorite treat since being in Nepal; geri and swari. Its similar to a funnel cake, but smaller and brittle and oh soo SWEET!! (Everyone comments on my name here, because Misty means sweet in Bengali, a language spoken in India). This morning we visited Sangita's school again. I absolutely love the children there! I sat in on music class again. I just can't capture enough of their spirit! I also watched my first 3-D movie in a theatre that puts most of the theatres I've been to in the US to shame! It was Kung Fu Panda 2. I guess I should go watch Kung Fu Panda 1 now...haha. We then rode motorbikes, I rode on Prateek's orange one, to the Monkey Temple. It was a very interesting place with the most spectacular view of an on-coming storm and a rainbow! We went grocery shopping and then Sneha and I had dinner with her aunt, uncle, and cousin. I was literally showered with gifts from a handmade necklace and bracelet, to a favorite jam of the little cousin. When preparing the meal, they made it especially bland for me, knowing that I cannot tolerate any spice! Sneha's little cousin took a liking to teaching me Nepali words, something I cannot say I excel at pronouncing! lol Her aunt also painted my fingernails and toenails with the cutest little flowers! We rode scooters home and I starred at the full moon the whole way, trying to imagine what it would look like from Missouri.

Pictures from Pokhara

Misty finally got to see the mountains! 

Up in the air!!

Meeting with new friends 

At the peace pagoda...

Finally, I get to see the Mountains!

It’s currently 6pm in Kathmandu and I don’t even know where to begin this blog! It seems like I’ve done so much in the last three days that it will take a novel to tell everything, but I’ll do my best to catch up and not go on for too long. Saturday we went out as an entire family; Sneha, her brother Rohit, her mother Sangita, and her father Rajan. We traveled for about an hour to a second Dubar Square. There are three total, one for each of the kings who used to rule the Kathmandu Valley. The ruins are amazing! They are made primarily of brick and wood, with exquisite detail. We watched pottery being made, as well as made some purchases. There is an art to buying things here. I tell Sneha (or anyone who I happen to be with who speaks Nepali) what I want and they bargin for it. If I were to do the same, the price would increase significantly, so I just stand by and act ignorant as they talk the price down for me! I wish I could speak Nepali fluently. It would be great to see the look on the shopkeepers face if I could, instead of speaking in English! I also had my first mishap with dog poop…stepped right smack on a big pile of it! Sangita got water and washed my foot with it. In Nepali culture a mother washes a daughter’s foot during their wedding ceremony, so even though I’m not getting married soon, Sangita says she is my mother. The next day, Sneha and I packed up and headed to Pokhara. We met up with three of her friends and took a 7 hour bus ride through the hills of Nepal. It was gorgeous country, but not such a pleasant ride. I could never drive here, I would die of a panic attack! There were times when our bus was only inches from dropping off the side of the “hill” and if it were to do so, I’d hate to try to estimate how far we would drop, but there would be absolutely no chance at survival. We drove next to a river most of the way. I was fascinated by the cable/rope bridges that were constructed across it. Even though I am adventurous, I don’t know if my good judgement would let me walk across one. We met up with three more of Sneha’s friends once we reached Pokhara. One of them also had an American friend with him, so I wasn’t the only pale person traveling! I thoroughly enjoyed my time with all of her friends and their kindness toward me. We ate out a lot and they were sympathetic to my inability to tolerate spicy foods and would first test things before I was allowed to take a bite! We got up at 5:30am one morning and trekked up a “hill” to see the mountains. It was probably taller than the mountains I climbed in Belize, although there were stone steps most of the way, but we climbed it in flip flops! Flip flops are the all-terrain shoe here. If I were in the US, I wouldn’t consider wearing flip-flops in half the places I go here, but it’s the culture, so I go with it! I finally saw MOUNTAINS!!! And so I now understand why they make a distinction between what I thought were mountains and the actual mountains. We rented a paddle boat on the lake, visited many temples, climbed to the Peace Pagoda, looked at Davis Falls, and went into a cave. I do have to say, I wasn’t a fan of the cave we went to. It was dimly lit and very wet, with water constantly dripping. It also isn’t like any caves in the US. Here it’s a free for all: pay the admission and you can do whatever you want inside the cave, and of course, tennis shoes aren’t worn… flip-flops. For the great time I had in Pokhara, I’d like to give a shout out to my new friends KC, Prateek, Manish, Pramish, Brian, Sne, Ayush! Thanks for taking such good care of me! I sincerely appreciate everything! And a warm thank you to Sangita and Rajan for treating me as if I were their own.

Misty in Patan Durbar Square

"That is not a mountain, that is a HILL!"

Thanks to Pradipti, I made it safely to Nepal on Tuesday night! It was dark when we left the airport and I was then introduced to something I have not had to deal with much in my life: TRAFFIC! I've been to New York, I've been to Chicago, and they don't hold a candle to the traffic here. Scooters + Bikes + Cars + Narrow Roads + Uneven lanes + Pedestrians + Cows in the road + No Traffic Signs= Absolute Chaos! I'm so glad that we have a driver! Wednesday morning I awoke to realize what a beautiful place I am in. I have a breathtaking view of what I call mountains, but I was told were only hills. I am told I will get to see mountains before I leave though! Sneha's mother has beautiful flowers, many to my surprise, similar to what we have in the US. Sneha has taken me around the city, to the airport to pick up her grandmother, to meet many of her family members, and to Durbar Square where one of the three kings once ruled. It is all so mesmerizing to me. I will admit, although it was a bit scary I loved riding with Sneha on her scooter! I could see in every direction and was able to take pictures as we rode down the street. Yesterday we visited Maatri Shishu School and delivered books that Westminster College's Making Lives Better had collected during the school year. They students stole my heart. I sat in on their music class and my grandma would be pleased to know, that indeed music knows no bounds as I sang with them "We Shall Overcome."