Thailand: Beautiful & Delicious

5/13

Not that leaving Nepal was “problematic”, per se, but I will say that the journey out left us with one last bit of typical Nepal. Up before the sun (in an effort to meet our pre-arranged taxi before the day-long strike would officially start), we wandered down the road from our flea-infested hotel to wait for our ride. (Sidenote: the fleas acquired during trekking seemed to reappear again in Kathmandu. Bites covering the side of my face? A little unpleasant.) We waited for a few minutes, then a few more. The stray dogs in the neighborhood weren’t happy that we were in their territory and they were continuously creeping in closer and closer as their incessant barking increased in volume. Eventually, our taxi did finally arrive, and off to the airport we went.

The goodbyes continued. After saying bye to Junes, Amrit, Rama, and Karen back at the hotel, next it was Amita. A big bear hug and many goodwishes later, it was Jack and I – ready for the next adventure ahead.

Landing in Bangkok, it seemed that a bit of culture shock was already setting in. The airport here is huge. (At the very least, a huge difference from the two-wing airport setup in Kathmandu.) Stepping outside to get a taxi, a wall of heat hit us, announcing the arrival of pre-monsoon season in Southeast Asia. It’s hot.

We made it to our hotel successfully, and the next day involved some quality exploring time in the city. After figuring out the train system and crowding in with hoards of locals, we found our way to the Siam City Center – a huge mall that puts all the big ones I personally know of back in the States to shame. We arranged a busride down south for that evening, then the travels continued. We arrived back at the travel agent around seven that evening… then a tuk tuk, a long time sitting on a bus, a few vans, a ferry ride, and twenty-one hours later, we finally made it to our first stop: Ko Lanta. The travels were an adventure as always, with all of us tourists being directed here and there, from this bus to that bus, without much of a clue of what was really going on. (Funny, it’s interesting to see how little variation there is amongst the tourist culture in the area. Every single person traveling seemed to be white, and in their twenties. Still with enough energy to deal with the uncertainties and adventures of certain South Asian travels, I suppose.)

5/15

Ko Lanta was the least tourist-populated of any of the places we stayed, but it was beautiful nevertheless. On our first day, we wandered our way through a jungle a little ways inland (one that shared an uncanny resemblance with Jurassic park) until we found a waterfall and perfect water hole to jump in to find brief relief from the sticky heat. But most of our time was spent on a rented scooter that provided quick access up and down the coast, from “Old Town” to the beaches and back inland. We even met a local on the pier in Old Town with his pet otter. Seriously the cutest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Handing his furry friend over to us, he explained her name is “Mec” and that he’s had her for a couple of years now. I want an otter.

5/17

After Ko Lanta, we spent a couple more hours on a boat ride to the island of Phi Phi (pronounced “pee pee”). Talk about a tropical paradise. We joined a half-day snorkeling trip where locals take you out on their “longtail” boats. (Big wooden vessels with motors that are clearly not made for life in the water.) We were driven around some of the smaller surrounding islands and let out to jump into the ocean as warm as bathwater. Between leisurely swimming and looking at some beautiful fish, we made a stop at Maya bay. It turns out it’s the same beach where DiCaprio’s The Beach was filmed – and after seeing just how picturesque the whole setting was, it made perfect sense that it was the site of a major Hollywood hit.

Also on Phi Phi, we got our first taste of Thailand rock climbing. Jack was stoked of course, and though I didn’t really have much of a clue of what to expect, I was excited to learn. The thing about climbing in Thailand? Besides the fact that there are perfect rock faces all over the place, when you get to the top, the view is incredible. You could see the entire main bay of Phi Phi and the tropical paradise below. That much more rewarding, for sure.

5/21

The last stop of our journey away from Bangkok brought us back to the coastal mainland to Krabi. After rock climbing the famous beach of Tonsai, more exploring via scooter, and plenty of beach and poolside lounging, it was suddenly time for another long busride back to the city.

Thailand was good.

Oh and something else I forgot to mention? Dherai, dherai phalphul paainchha aajabholi!! (Lots and lots of fruit available these days!) Arguably one of my favorite aspects of life in Thailand and on its islands is the seemingly never-ending abundance of mangoes, watermelon, and pineapple on virtually every street corner. In the more tourist-populated areas there are also fruit “shakes”. Literally just a coconut, pineapple, papaya, or some kind of fruit mixed with ice and water in order to make one authentically delicious smoothie. Of course, all of this is simply to top-off the Thai food just as readily available. Its incredible how we never managed to find a place with “bad” food. And conveniently, most often, the cheapest places along the road typically provided the absolute best noodles, curries, and Thai iced teas.

5/25

So that’s it. As suddenly as our Nepal program seemed to end, our journey to Thailand has come and gone as well. The whole trip was over so quickly, and here I am finding myself on the next leg of my journey. When Jack flew out last night, saying the last goodbye to a fellow SIT-er seemed to give me this “ah-hah” moment of, “oh yeah, I’m kind of on my own now”. It was time to sit in the airport for the night to wait for my flight early the next morning. Time for Bangladesh.

Goodbyes

Goodbyes: I really don’t like them. It’s pretty safe to say they’re never particularly enjoyable – but they also solidify what an incredible time I’ve had in Nepal. Honestly, it was a big risk coming here as excited as I was. I had no idea what to expect of the country and my time spent studying here, but at the same time, I was so ready to get away and I had very high hopes for a successful, enjoyable semester. But somehow, Nepal managed to exceed those expectations

Sure, there are definitely things I miss at home. The simple things, for the most part. A bowl of cereal with cold milk, consistently hot showers, frozen yogurt, a soft pillow, or constant electricity? Luxury items! I can’t wait. And to see the fam bam and friends back home? Another thing I’m excitedly anticipating. Or to be able to blend in while walking down the road without taxis yelling at you, people trying to sell obnoxious instruments, or dodging traffic. But that’s not to say that I’ve become accustomed to a daily life in Nepal that I’m already aware I’m going to miss. The inability to walk down the road without something exciting going one, tea breaks, a lifestyle more laid back than I’ve ever been able to experience in the past, and some amazing people.

After two days of ISP presentations and discussions reviewing the semester, we’ve made it back to Kathmandu. Moving back into Sakura hotel, down the road from the program house, was certainly a bit of a “welcome back to the real Nepal” kind of wake up call. And after a night of swatting at the mosquitoes buzzing in my ears, I woke up to find my arms, legs, and side of my face covered in flea bites. (Yes, fun fact of the day – fleas aren’t just for dogs these days.)

Tonight we will have our “final dinner” (daalbhat, of course), receive our grades for our oral and written Nepali finals, do our final “safe travels” puja, and begin our goodbyes.

So its down to this: less than twenty-four hours of packing and last-minute loose ends to tie lie between me and exiting the country. It’s insane! Time should not be able to fly by this quickly, that’s for sure. Since we just got news of a bandh (country-wide strike on just about every kind of business there is) from 5a.m. to 5p.m. tomorrow, we’ll be getting our taxi to the airport at 4:30 a.m. then it’s off to Thailand. Let the adventures continue.

And for now, Nepal? Pheribetaula.

Siddhyo!

"Finished!"

Soon after Juni, Amita, and myself returned from our epic ABC trekking adventure, it was time to head back to good ‘ol (smelly, crowded, polluted) Kathmandu. We spent one last morning with our saaThi (friend) at our absolutely favorite breakfast spot in Pokhara (tea, toast, eggs, potatoes, spinach, and delicious museli with fruit and curd for an impressive 100 rps. Yeah, that’s about $1.70) and jumped back on the bus for another long ride.

Making it back to the city, we each decided to head to our respective homestays to spend a couple final days with our families. I had mixed feelings about the matter (its pretty incredible to realize just how much freedom you have being out on your own, ie. On ISP), but I was definitely so excited to see Vinu (my didi) and my dearest Aama. I trudged up all the flights of stairs up to our flat of the building where my house is, and was instantaneously greeted with excited Namaste’s. Before long I was sitting in front of a hearty plate of homemade daalbhaat – clearly back “home” at last.

But after unpacking/repacking all of my stuff and spending a couple of great days with the family, it was time to head out to a very different part of Kathmandu (so close, yet so far) – Thamel. Thamel is the tourist district of the city. Crowded and loud, it’s a huge change but it also has some convenient amenities not available in other parts of the city for us Westerners – and that combined with some impressive food options make the situation difficult to complain about.

So, weighed down by two backpacks and a camera bag, I headed downstairs to the kitchen to say my goodbyes. Vinu was so incredibly sweet – she taught me to make her version of dudh chiyaa (milk tea) just earlier that morning and, after saying good bye, turned up again – holding a shiny necklace for me. I couldn’t get over the thoughtfulness, really. And as I turned to my Aama and received the biggest hug I’ve received from a Nepali (hugging is certainly not a big part of Nepali culture), I was sent off with one huge bag full of apples and bananas. (Previously, I hadn’t been entirely sure that my love of fruit accurately translated, but it seems that was clearly wrong.) The last thing Aama and Vinu both kept asking me was “Kahile pheri aunuhunchha?” When will you come again? And all I could tell them was “Malaai tahaa chhaina, tara ma auchhu. Pheribhetaula.” I don’t know, but I will come back. I will see you again.

Of course, saying goodbye is never very enjoyable, but saying goodbye to my Nepali pariwaar also meant being reunited with the rest of the students who’d been gone on ISP for far too long. It was so, so great to see everyone again. It keeps coming up in conversation amongst us – it’s really difficult to get over how lucky we all are. Having only eleven people in a study abroad group (and unfortunately after Kaleigh and Nikki have had to leave, that’s down to a mere nine people!) certainly could be the perfect set up for not being able to get along or relate to people. But in our case, it’s quite the opposite. I mean, don’t get me wrong, we’re all very different – from all across the States with completely different backgrounds. But the people I’ve met here are some of the most incredible people I’ve had the opportunity to meet in my life, and I feel so lucky to be able to say that.

We all got rooms in the Prince hotel in Thamel, and set into a routine of getting up for breakfast, working on/writing our ISP’s until lunch, hitting up the delicious 150 rupee falafel wrap stand, and working a bit longer until there was absolutely no motivation left for the day. Evenings were much more enjoyable – like I said, there’s actually some good food available in Thamel, and we even hit up some good Mexican for Cinco de Mayo! Then, suddenly, it was time to head back to the program house in Naxal before being relocated to another hotel outside of Thamel. One night there (and a delicious meal of momos at a holeinthewall place on the side of the road – some of the better ones I’ve had in Nepal) and we hopped on a bus to Dhulikhel, an hour or two outside of Kathmandu.

It’s always great to get out of the valley and away from the heart of the city, and Dhulikhel is certainly no exception. We’re currently staying at the Dhulikhel Mountain Resort, and all I can say is that it feels a bit like we’ve left Nepal altogether. The buffet meals are delicious, the rooms have pillows that are actually soft, there are multiple rolls of toilet paper available, shower curtains in the bathroom (wow!), and even little flashlights for our convenience when loadshedding strikes.

It just feels so far from everything/anything we’ve experienced thus far in Nepal – and it really feels like an actual resort. (Make sense, since it is one.) But its someplace I could actually see people vacationing. At the same time, its amazing to think of people vacationing here and not having a clue how much of Nepal they’re really missing. It’s similar to the situation with trekkers. Before talking to people we ran into on our own trek, I really hadn’t realized just how many people come to Nepal to trek, stay in Kathmandu for a day, maybe two, then head on their way. On one hand, there really isn’t much to see in Kathmandu, so it makes sense. But at the same time, trekking in Nepal is really a completely different side of the country. So different from city life, and even far from true Nepali life in the villages that many people pass right through as they’re hiking.

Our first day here, (yesterday) we settled into our rooms and enjoyed a huge lunch before beginning our ISP presentations. It was a long day. Though interesting to hear about the research everyone has been working on, it was also exhausting to sit through it all (let alone give your own presentation). Then, suddenly, it was over.

We’re officially done with school in Nepal. Language lessons are long over, ISP’s are written, final presentations have been given – Siddhiyo! (Finished!)

So suddenly, we’re down to a few final days in Nepal. A few are staying longer to go trekking, and some of us are leaving right away (I’m personally beyond excited to head out to Thailand with Jack for ten days of adventure!) Then, for me, it’s off to Bangladesh for six weeks. I’ll be doing an internship for Hand & Cloth – a nonprofit cooperative for women in the area, meant to employ them and get them out of brothels. I’m stoked for the opportunity, though I really don’t know what is in store at the same time. Yet, that’s how things have been for the majority of the last three and a half months. The future is a mystery, but I’m so excited.