Namaste!

It’s incredible to believe that I’ve been here for ten days. I have mixed feelings on the matter – I really can’t decide if it feels like I just got off the plane or if I’ve been here forever. A week and a half ago, on January 27 2011, I officially departed the United States for a semester studying in Nepal and a summer of traveling and interning in Bangladesh. After months of deciding, planning, and packing, it was difficult to believe the time had come to begin the adventure. With granola bars, my camera, good wishes and prayers from family and friends, and a heavy backpack in hand – I was finally ready to go.

Over seventeen hours of airplane food next to a large snoring man, a layover in Thailand, and a quick flight over the Himalayas later, I landed in Kathmandu, Nepal. After weaving through the hustle and bustle of men offering taxis, car rides, hotels, and even houses I was able to make it over the group of Americans crowded around a huge pile of luggage. There are two SIT study abroad groups here in Nepal, so before long the directors arrived and we were split into our respective sections. Our group loaded into a big van and began the hour and a half drive to Pharping, a village in the hills on the edge of the Kathmandu valley.

We spent four days in orientation at the “resort” where our eleven-student group received seemingly endless information on safety, health, travel, homestays, school, and the Nepali language. On our first morning, we got up before the sun for a hike down the hill for puja (offering) at Dakshinkali, a famous Hindu site. People travel from all over to give their offerings – all different depending on the family and situation. We received tika (red and yellow paint on the forehead) for the coconut we broke and offered. (A much less bloody option than the chickens and goats they were killing right in front of us.) Then, as we walked out, there were lines of bells to be rung along the walkway. It was a lot to take in and a little intense, but a really beautiful beginning to the trip.

A couple of days later we had our first opportunity to go exploring in a Nepali city. We were given the assignment locating at temple in the area and learning as much as possible about it. Of course, it would’ve been a little easier if anyone on the streets spoke English, but with lots of hand signals and some basic Nepali words we were able to successfully make it to a beautiful temple on the hill. We hiked up the steep steps and got ripped off by the woman at the top who charged us way too much for the candles she sold, but we were successful nonetheless.

From our stay in Pharping you could see a mountain strung up and down with what appeared to be telephone wires. When you get closer, you can see that the “wires” are actually thousands and thousands of beautiful prayer flags that have been carried up the hill and strung through the trees, all the way to the top of the mountain.

On Wednesday morning, it was time to head back into Kathmandu to be introduced to the program site where we have class each morning. The school is actually a converted house, and it gives a homey feel that was much welcomed from the freezing (and admittedly uncomfortable) setup in Pharping. I must say, the cold is something I didn’t come prepared for. It definitely gets warm during the day, but with all the buildings made out of concrete, no heating systems, and poor insulation, being indoors is often colder than being outside. And at night, the only real option is to bundle up with layers of leggings, socks, jackets, and blankets. But back to the point – after a tour of the location and introductions to the on-site staff, we all got ready to be picked up by our homestay families.

We were all a little nervous, and regardless of the days of orientation it was nearly impossible to know what to expect. It felt a lot like being a child at an orphanage, anxiously waiting to see what kind of parents would soon arrive to pick us up. And of course with only three days of Nepali under our belts, there was really no telling of whether we’d even be able to communicate with our new families!

Finally, it was time for introductions. My daai (older brother) Manav arrived. We all offered our new family members chia (tea) and then headed off to our new homes. Manav came on his motorcycle (a very common form of transportation here) so me and Rebecca (an SIT student whose homestay is in the same neighborhood) followed in a taxi.

I really couldn’t have asked for a better family. Manav lived in the United States for eight years, so he’s fluent in English (very convenient at times when I really need to give or receive vital information). Also in the house live mother and father (aama ra baa), Manav’s wife Vinu, and a helping girl. They live on a flat above a daycare (yes, that means I walk right through a playground of adorable toddlers before getting inside). On the first floor is the kitchen, living area, and aama and baa’s room, and outside on the terrace there’s a set of stairs that lead to the next floor where I have my own room and bathroom next door to Manav and Vinu. The view is incredible. There doesn’t seem to be a spare inch of space in the city, and being so high up I can see flats just like ours in all directions.

After he showed me around the house, we sat down for tea then Manav walked me down the road a ways and showed me the little shoe store he just opened. I walked back to the house with his wife and went inside to sit on the couch with aama. That’s about the time I truly felt like an exchange student. Like I said, Manav speaks fluent English, but the rest of his family doesn’t speak more than a couple of basic words like “friend, mother” and “father”. The awkwardness began to set in as we sat there, looking around. Aama would sporadically speak to me in Nepali, and I would do my best to pick up a word here or there until without much luck. We began pointing things out in the room and labeling them in each of our languages and eventually I ran up to my room and grabbed my Nepali dictionary and notebook in an effort to actually put together a couple of sentences, but I have a feeling my accent is so bad she probably didn’t understand a word I said.

After awhile I sat outside by a little makeshift fire and through a bit of sign language Vinu offered me dinner. Figuring the rest of the family would be joining, I agreed and was sat down at the table with a big pile of rice (baat) and little bowls of chicken and dhal (lentils). I tried to explain that I could wait to eat, but she insisted and proceeded to sit across from me, watching intently as I tried all of the food and attempted to express my gratitude (mostly through facial expressions). Before long it was time for bed and I’d officially made it through my first night with the fam.

The view of Kathmandu from right outside the door of my room!