Nepal so far has been great. Currently we’re flying to Bhadrapur where we will then go to Ilam for a night. I’ve heard lots of amazing things about this place and I’m excited to see this beauty come to life. On the plane right now we can see the vast mountains of Nepal and it’s absolutely breathtaking. No words can even begin to describe what I am seeing.
So far in our trip we’ve had a layover in Dubai. We spent the night in a super fancy apartment, which was an interesting experience…Dubai sure is extravagant. After that, we flew to Kathmandu and waited about 2 hours for our 10 bags of donations and the 17 bags from all of us. We landed a little late so I missed seeing my dear friend Ganga but we still had delicious daal bhat at the Singapore Hotel in Sundhara, Kathmandu. I slept deeply until 6:30AM, my internal clock is still very much alive.
Ganga came to visit during breakfast and speak through some business decisions regarding Nari Alliance. It was quite a pleasure to see her but we both had our own work so we parted ways but I would see her again soon.
Later on that day we visited Swayambunath. Seeing the expression on the students faces was priceless. They were in extreme awe, jaws dropped, looking at the intricate designs of the temples and the large eyes of Buddha. Funny thing to see when we entered was a foreigner man with a bag of Khukuri masala chips but a monkey jumped on him and stole them. The lesson there is to not eat around monkeys ehh?
I had my first interview with Asha today and her impressions matched her expectations matched. She’s east Indian so she’s heard many stories of India and watches the Indian soap operas so she had a good idea of what things would be like.
That night we went to Boudhanath. It was a full moon, so every full moon they have a celebration to hold candles and walk around clockwise while praying. Luke’s birthday was also that day so we celebrated with a lot of momos (Nepali dumplings). Bhupal and I also snuck off and bought him a cake which was a great surprise to Luke, he was happy though.
Later that day…
The air was warm, the sun beating on my face with that familiar humid feeling. This is what we arrived in when we landed in Bhadrapur. We went and had the best version of top ramen or otherwise in Nepal known as, chow-chow and it was very tasty. Bhupal called a few friends to arrange vehicles for us. We got a bus to Ilam which took about 4 hours.
During this ride Shikar was teaching me more Nepali which I found rather useful. After some time I fell asleep, throughout the trip many students were jealous of my vehicle sleeping abilities. It’s a great distraction from being uncomfortable. The roads we were on were extremely curvy and full of slopes—the kind that makes you queasy. The students having to take a pit stop to go to the bathroom was great. Their reactions on the side of a cliff aiming off or squatting in a bush trying to hide were priceless. Some would yell, “No shame!” as they wrapped up their business. Soo funny… I remember when I had my first experience stopping on a bus on my trip in Laos—Now that was funny.
Upon arrival in Ilam, I could see my breath. It’s crazy how much the temperature can change within a few hours. Nepal may be the size of Tennessee but it sure is a million times more diverse. Once I got up to my room, I was very happy to have my big pack…Time to bundle up! No indoor heating allows for lots of layering and probably some form of mismatching. That’s okay by me though!
During dinner, Bhupal and Shikar came with another cake for us all to sing Happy Birthday to Jessica, ohh what a wonderful day. There was a sparkling top that literally POPPED. That was the best cake I’ve seen so far.
~ Josolynn Jones