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Yesterday marked 3 months in Nepal, and it occurred to me that while I've done and seen some pretty incredible things, I haven't actually seen any of the country beyond the Kathmandu valley. This weekend, in an attempt to escape the pollution, dust and noise of the city, which has seemed to increase in the last few weeks, all 5 of the INDEVOURS from Waterloo took a trip to Bhaktapur and Nagarkot.
Nagarkot is still within the valley though, which brings me back to my initial woe of not having explored outside the valley yet. Lucky for me, my office will be closed Thursday and Friday of this week (yes, MORE time off!) giving me a lovely 4-day weekend that I plan to spend in Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha near the Indian border. It's supposed to have a zen Buddhist atmosphere and be very sunny and warm (yes mom, I promise to bring sunscreen), offering a break from this inescapable cold, which I could not be more pleased about. And of course, once I'm done meditating with Buddha, I only have 2 more days in the city until I can kiss Nepal goodbye and see all of my wonderful friends and family again for a few weeks! I set a countdown on my computer the day the tickets were purchased, and as I write this, it's slowly ticking away the seconds. 8 days, 16 hours, 43 minutes, 17...16...15 seconds until take off. As usual, pictures from this weekend are up in the gallery!
Before I left Canada I was told all kinds of things to prepare me for life in Nepal. I knew what to expect when I got here, and while the experiences I've had were eye-opening, I haven't had any that were truly unexpected. One of the important things I've learned over the past 3 months is that expecting something does not mean being prepared for it. I expected the election to cause national insecurity, but I was not prepared for the turmoil. I expected a more polluted environment, but I was not prepared for the constant dust and smog. Facebook, the marvellous product of our shrinking global village, has informed me that a lot of the other INDEVs feel like their new cities are 'home', with their days becoming routine, and considering themselves members of their respective communities. I expected a lot of them to feel this way at some point about their placement, but today I realized that I was certainly not prepared.
Kathmandu does not feel like home. Maybe that's because I have had so much time off that I haven't fallen into a daily routine, or maybe it's because my home will always be with the people I love. I think one of the strongest factors that contribute to this discomfort though is the staring. People staring at me is something I expected, but not something I was really prepared for. Like riding a tuktuk to work or dealing with the excessive stray dogs, I thought that seeing a white person in Nepal would be a novelty that would soon wear off for the Nepali people. I was wrong. Even a lot of the people who see me on a regular basis continue to stare at me, 3 months into placement. On my way into work one morning, it dawned on me that people aren't just looking at me, but judging me as well. It wasn't hard to figure out the conclusions they had probably come up with. The flag on my bag obviously made me Canadian. The fact that I'm white automatically makes me rich. Riding the tuktuk meant I was trying to conform to their culture, but the way I dress means I'm clearly not trying that hard. Pointing at things out the window and the confused look I gave the other intern when the driver said something in Nepali meant we haven't been here all that long, but we are familiar enough to know how and where to stop the tuktuk. Wearing pants means I'm going to work, which means I'm not married. And of course, with no husband at my age (I've had a full 20 years to find a man by now), there must be something terribly wrong with me. Realizing that people were coming to these conclusions based only on my appearance made me uncomfortable at first. Growing up, I was painfully aware that I was a non-white child living in a very white town, but this was still the first time I've been the subject of racial or cultural profiling. It occurred to me then that we do the same thing at home all the time. While Canada is significantly more culturally diverse than Nepal, we all still make snap judgements about people, even when we make conscious efforts not to. A muslim woman who is covered up is oppressed. A guy with visible tattoos is a rebel or a threat. An Asian student is a math wiz. I was alarmed to realize that we look at people and decide things about them as if we know all about their lives, and that other people, regardless of where we are in the world, do the same to us. [Sorry. End of lecture.] I was concerned that I wasn't feeling the same intimate connection with Kathmandu, but I've now accepted that I will always be a visitor in someone else's home as long as I'm here. I surprised myself to realize that I'm actually okay with that because it means that I will forever know where my home really is. That being said, I'll be back where I belong in 25 days and I couldn't be more excited for the Christmas season (and my birthday and New Years of course)! As negative as this all might sound, I don't hate Nepal. I've come to enjoy the time I'm spending here and plan to make the most out of it, but if there is one thing I have come to appreciate even more from this placement, it's the joys of home. Everyone who isn't living under a rock has heard about Rob Ford's crack video and Typhoon Yolanda devastating the Philippines. Most people have probably seen the article on facebook that went viral about why marriage isn't for you, and some people may have even been following the XL pipeline agreement between BC and Alberta. While the news has been busy covering important stories like these, the world seems to have ignored the fact that Nepal will be holding a national election in just 6 days. Without getting into the nitty-gritty politics of it, this will be the second election since the end of the country's 10-year civil war, and it is highly controversial because of the utter failure that came from the results of the previous election. Nepal has over 120 political parties, and a consortium of 33 of these parties have decided to boycott the election and have called a nationwide bandh (strike/protest). We've known this was planned for the past month, but everyone in Nepal seemed convinced that it would blow over and be called off. They were wrong. I've been confined to my house and places within walking distance since Monday. On the first day, government offices, businesses and institutions were forced to close. Since then, they have been allowed to reopen, but there is still a transportation strike being enforced until November 21st to prevent people from getting to voting polls. Stories are surfacing of bombs being thrown into buses, cabs being set on fire, cars being pelted with rocks, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) being planted on roads. As the election draws nearer, rallies and protests go by my window on a daily basis. I find it frustrating that electoral candidates are being assassinated over here, but the world is still too preoccupied with Rob Ford's coke addiction to notice.
In my office, we celebrated Tihar the day before the festival began. I learned how to worship goddess Laxmi, finger-painting some yellow and red substances on her picture, before throwing rice at it and waving incense around the room. I can't say the process meant anything to me, but I'm still excited to have been able to participate in the festival in such a concrete way. Besides, my colleagues promised the goddess would bring me some wealth, and I won't say no to that!
The first thing we realized upon arriving in Thailand is that we were officially among the nicest people in the world. 7eleven customers were eager to give us directions, shop owners offered us discounts because we're volunteers, and a taxi driver offered his services to take us around the city all day for a whopping total of...50 cents! In each country we visited after that, we renounced our previous statement, and decided that place actually had the nicest people. In short, we spent our time surrounded by some of the kindest and most friendly people I have ever met.
Four countries and just as many languages made us nervous to travel at first, but I found that communicating wasn't as much of an issue as I'd expected. Fortunately, Starbucks barista's everywhere understand grande, non-fat, and frappuccino! Generally, shop owners understand 'how much?' and people tend to get 'yes' and 'no'. Other than that, we were pretty much on our own, but we still managed to communicate with the Indonesian soccer players and get equally enthusiastic about the game as they were. We could joke around with our taxi driver in Bangkok, become fast friends with the hotel concierge in Singapore, and become girlfriends with a sales clerk in Malaysia. When I think about it, I realize this was all possible in the same way that we've been bonding with people in Nepal. It's cold outside tonight, and the guard at the gate of our complex is bundled up in anticipation of the long and lonely night he has ahead of him. I brought a piping hot bowl of noodles out to him, and neither of us needed to say a word to understand each other. No matter where you are in the world and no matter what language you speak, everyone understands a smile.
Today is October 6th, which means my plane left Canadian soil exactly one month ago. The experiences I've had so far make it seem like I've been in this country for much longer than a month already. I think about a month and it sounds like such a long time. Then I think about 7 more months, and the single month I've spent so far seems like nothing at all. The worst part is that I can't decide if time seems to pass quickly or slowly, and I can't figure out if I'm happy about it or not. Instead of endlessly pondering the speed of time and sifting through my emotions, I've realized my energy is much more needed elsewhere, and so, I've decided to simply be here. Whether for a long or short time, whether happy or sad, I am here for exactly 200 more days.
Although I've been in the country for 4 weeks now, today was only my 12th day of work, and already I'm planning for some major time off. Dasain is the biggest festival of the year in Nepal and is celebrated by both the Hindu and the Buddhist population in the country. When locals try to explain it, they always say it's like our Christmas at home (they also all pronounce the holiday differently so I'm still not exactly sure how to say it!). The festival officially started yesterday and lasts for 15 days. My perception of it so far is not nearly as large scale as Christmas, although they do hang lights across a few streets. Most people in the country work for the first week of the festival, with offices and stores closing this coming Friday until the following Friday. This means that, counting my weekends, I have 10 days off. With limited vacation time, and so many things to do before we go back home, Rasha, Kelsey and I decided to take advantage of the days off. We have officially finished booking our 9 day Asian Adventure! 3 flights, 4 hotels, 1 train ride and 2 ferry trips. That's what it takes for the three of us to see Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. We are unbelievably excited! I probably won't be taking my laptop with me, so you'll have to wait until I'm safely back in Kathmandu to read our epic tales, but I will be sure to post about the trip as soon as possible! I'll return to work on October 21st, but only for 2 weeks, because the first weekend in November marks the beginning of Tihar. This festival is the equivalent of Diwali, the Hindu festival of light, but it is slightly different in Nepal, as it is celebrated for 5 days by the entire country, regardless of religious background. Each of the five days is devoted to the worship of something different, but I'll explain this in November after I've experienced the festival firsthand. As for that time off, I have no major plans other than to stay in the country and enjoy the festivities. Three working days later, a national strike has been called in protest of the elections on November 19th, a topic that, to my understanding, has deeply divided the country. If the strike is carried out as planned, the election will not take place, as the bandh (literally meaning 'closed' but used to describe strikes) will shut down the entire country from the 11th to the 20th. That's right, including weekends, I'll have another 12 days off work. Exactly one month later, I'm flying home for Christmas! I'll be in Toronto from December 18th, until January 1st, beginning work again on the 4th. With so much time off, and more bandh days surely to come after the election regardless of the outcome, it's a wonder anything gets done around here! Sorry no pictures with this one. Hopefully I'll get around to posting some from our version of Thanksgiving, celebrated early because we'll all be galavanting around the continent on the day itself.
The actual crafts that are produced by New Saddle residents and workers are very similar to those offered by other fair trade organizations in Nepal, but this organization is fundamentally different in its primary and initial purpose. Since its creation in 1997, New Saddle has been a refuge for people living with leprosy and polio, originally used as a medical and rehabilitation centre. All of the crafts made at New Saddle are produced by people living with or recovered from leprosy or polio, or by a spouse or child of one of the patients. The production of fair trade crafts allows the organization to be self-sufficient, while providing individuals with a source of income, skills training, and opportunities for social reintegration. Until now, my knowledge of leprosy came exclusively from the Bible, and was limited to an understanding that it led to social banishment and a life of isolation, but I assumed that, like most things from the time of Jesus, the disease was long gone. As a child, I made the then logical assumption that the terms leprosy and leopard were similar, therefore people who are infected must have funny coloured spots. Without ever correcting that theory, I went to New Saddle envisioning people with blisters or sores on their bodies, but instead found people missing their fingers and toes, the tips of their noses, and usually their eye sight.
The workweek lasts 6 days in Nepal, and the whole country takes Saturdays off. It’s the quietest day of the week, with fewer cars on the road, less hassling from shop owners, and even some of the dogs seem to give their vocal chords a rest. The views are more breathtaking because there’s so much less smog, and as I write this I’m sitting on the roof of my apartment looking at a clear view of the stars. As cheesy as it might sound, the past two weeks here have made me realize the importance of some of the smallest things in life: Saturdays are meant to be enjoyed, rainstorms to be danced in, mountains to be marvelled at, and the natural soundtrack of the city to be listened to rather than tuned out with earplugs or music. As much as I may dislike them, I’ve even learned to coexist with the dogs. Perhaps the most important lesson the Nepalese people have taught me though is to slow down and change my perception of time. They believe that human interaction is always the most important thing and that there will be infinite time to get everything else done. That means being on time isn’t a very common thing here and waiting for people is, but I find that refreshing compared to the ‘time is money’ mentality at home.
Friday was my first day of work, and I went in with a mixture of nerves and excitement. The office is a half hour taxi ride from where I’m living right now, and while it only costs about $3.50 each way, I plan to gather my courage and take a tuktuk in on most days. Apparently it’s an experience I need to have while I’m here, although I’m still skeptical that it needs to be a daily experience. The work environment here is just as different from home as the culture itself. Every office has an employee whose sole purpose is cleaning the office, cooking lunch and bringing tea. This person is called the Didi or Daai, which literally translates to older sister or older brother. In a 7-hour work day, which seemed to fly by, we were brought black tea, milk tea, and a lunch of momos (famous Nepali dumplings), with some additional breaks to meet the staff and tour the area for restaurants and bakeries.
Darrelle and Sumbal just joined me on the roof and decided to start barking and meowing at a dog on the street. Cue the orchestra of stray dogs, as I wave goodbye to my quiet Saturday night.
From the beginning of our time here, everyone has made us feel incredibly welcome both from the organization and throughout the city in general, even though a group of 7 white people tends to cause a scene. For every picture I have of Nepal, a Nepalese person likely has a picture of us. I've never been considered so interesting in my life! We finished our first day of language training and have another week of learning ahead, but soon the locals that are so confused by our appearance will be even more thrown off by our knowledge of the language (hopefully!). Our third day here was a national religious holiday called Rishi Panchami. I'm not exactly sure what it was for, as it was explained to me in several different ways, but I know it is very significant for Nepalese women in particular, who wear festive red saris and dance in the squares. Kumari is the practice of worshipping pre-pubescent girls as manifestations of divine energy and virginity in the Hindu religion. On this festival day, we were told that the Kumari shows herself in the top window of her home, which is located in the Durbar squares of each city. She is supposed to be seen by the public only once each year, and only for a few seconds before retreating into her home. During the festival, we were able to see the Kumari of Kathmandu, and while we weren't allowed to take pictures of her, I have some images of her home and the festivities in the gallery. We've arrived in Nepal just in time for festival season, so there will be many more fascinating traditions throughout October and November that I look forward to participating in. As well, of course, I'm eagerly anticipating the start of my working mandate here, my travels within the country and the continent, and a generally amazing 8-month experience. That's all for now. More pictures to come soon from our city tour today!
There’s no way of writing about beginning a new chapter of my life without sounding cheesy so I’ll skip over that part with the knowledge that this journey feels like a whole new book, forget about chapters. Of course I owe tremendous thanks to all the people who have supported me enough to be on this adventure in the first place, but these same people are the ones who make it so difficult for me to leave now. At least I can go with the knowledge that I have a strong supportive family to come back to.
Right now, I’m on the first leg of my journey from Toronto to exotic…Montreal. We had a bit of a rough start with a gate change and an hour-long delay, but we’ll still make the connecting flight to Doha, Qatar, so overall no major speed bumps yet. I have to say the hardest part so far has been goodbyes. I’ve never been one for goodbyes or emotional exchanges of any kind really, so over the past few weeks I’ve told each of my friends that I’ll ‘see them later’. Today I had to do the same with my parents, brother and grandparents. That’s a whole new scale of difficult for me, but I am proud of both my mom and myself because I think we both did a pretty awesome job of keeping it together. We’re landing in Montreal now. Less than 2 hours from now I’ll be taking off for Qatar, and around this time tomorrow, I’ll be landing in Nepal, where most people are waking up when everyone at home is going to sleep. As much as I’ve been dreading this day I think I’ve finally come to grips with the fact that this is going to be amazing. This is an opportunity to have the experience I never even dreamed of. Here we go! See you at Christmas Canada. |