Still in Nepal and Soaking up the Adventures

I know that it has been over a year since I wrote anything about our lives in Nepal. Some highlights include that I got a job at the Embassy that keeps me extremely busy. Yes, after five years of being a mostly full-time stay-at home mom, I joined the workforce. Not just any job but one that includes helping wayward Americans in Nepal find their way. I also help Americans to get passports made, make new American citizens and take lots of fingerprints of Nepali's who would like to visit the United States ( I have no idea what this skill set will help in my future career choices but in seventh grade every survey I took said I would make a great veterinarian or podiatrist).
We also decided to raise our own urban flock of chickens with one rooster. Chiclet was born on January 1st of 2010 and continues to rule the roost. Chicky was born the day before and her demise can be blamed on our overzealous, fun-loving dog Gertie. We tried a couple more egg hatching, chick raising education opportunities to no avail, so on Mother's day I decided to get two hens. Our driver Shree said that there was no market for hens but I said let's drive around and look for a flock of birds. We finally found one and I told Shree to ask the owners how much for two hens. The lady came back and said 600 rupees for the younger hens and 1200 for an older hen. She said in Nepali of course that these were Nepali birds and worth more. I bought two younger hens and Ethan and I held them on their trip to our house. We took many days to name them and finally settled on Laverne and Shirley (Shirley has black legs and Laverne yellow).
It took many months but Shirley started to lay delicious eggs (of course they were tiny and it took 2 of her eggs to equal one large egg but they were very good). the photo above is her first egg. After about one week of laying she became broody (wanting to sit on her nest until her eggs hatch). She only had one egg and an old antique glass egg to sit on but she was a wonderful sitter and took her job very seriously) On the seventeenth day she left the nest and the single egg was dirty and crawling with little bugs (not good). I cleaned the egg and brought it inside to see if it might hatch. Shirley then became ill and died a couple of days later, her sister Laverne died this morning. R.I.P. Laverne & Shirley.
The monsoon had started and the rice planting began. I asked my co-worker and very good friend Saraswati if I could go rice planting. She looked at me like I was crazy or as they say in Nepali, "pagull". I said that I have never been rice planting and as they say while in Nepal do what the Nepali's do. Saraswati's family owns some farmland that they plant rice, corn and other crops. The rains never came at the right time to plant at her paddy so she asked her cousin-brother (first cousin) if we could plant at his paddies. He agreed. Saraswati had never planted rice before. Normally, she would serve the food and chang (rice alcohol) to the workers but this year, she said she would plant rice with me. I was excited. Mike said he could come along to take photos. I love to have my own personal paparazzi.
Rice planting is one of those things you just dive into or rather step into. There are typically about 3 inches of water on top of the mud and you sink about 5 inches into the earth after you step in. You get a bundle if rice seedlings and plant about three stalks of rice every 5 inches. Every once in a while you feel some creepy crawly on your foot but I chalked it up to experience and kept on working. I had a lot of gawkers that wanted to know "what was the white lady doing in the rice-paddy." It was hot, humid and the next day back hurting but I have to say it was a memorable experience that I will never forget.

This summer Ethan spent the entire summer in the United States, with both sets of his grandparents. Ethan had and is having a wonderful time. Last year he was so bored in Nepal that we thought the U.S. would be great for him and it was. He is spending the last couple of weeks there until Mike comes and picks him up.

Mike and I re-discovered each other and had a wonderful time but we also missed Ethan to no end. We look forward to the reunion.

An Incredible Friday in Kathmandu with My Husband

I love it when my husband doesn't have to work. Today was a wonderful day. We dropped Ethan off at the bus stop for summer camp and then Mike and I grabbed a taxi. Now I must explain a taxi rider in Kathmandu. First the taxi pulls up and you tell the driver where you want to go and then the haggling over price begins. You ask them if they use a meter and usually you're told the meter is broke, so some arbitrary price is negotiated. If negotiations fail then you try with the next taxi driver. The taxi's are small white Suzuki cars that remind me of the Volkswagen Rabbits of the 1990's. They are small and bumpy but they do get you where you need to go or close.

We started off going to the Pashupatinath Temple which is a sacred Hindu temple and also the place where the dead are cremated. The color of death here is a crimson red and a light orange. The vendors along the route sell flower offerings, coverings for the dead body, spices and incense. It is an amazing, colorful route. Many calves have made their way to this temple in order to get offerings. I noticed many people touching the sacred creatures in order to receive blessings. I petted one that reminded me of the brown swiss cows I used to show in 4-H.

Ascetics live in caves along the river and there are many. Many want to bless you in order to receive money, and we bypassed many. It seems that when you are Caucasian, it is assumed you have money and will pay. I hate standing out among many, it is probably my one big complaint of living in Nepal.


We proceeded to the counter and because of our diplomatic status we got in for free. The experience was mind blowing. The colors, the historical Newari temples and architecture, the people, the incense, the smoke and sweet smell from the burning bodies, the monkeys, the ascetics and the look upon the mourners faces as they watched their loved ones move on to their next incarnation.
We walked pass sacred Hindu temples that we could not enter and then across a bridge over the Bagmati river. This river is sacred because it eventually goes into the Ganges, the most sacred river to Hindus. Many people were placing leafed bowls of rice, various spices and a lit candle in the river and watched as they float away.

This was only the beginning of a wonderful day, more to come in the future.

Namaste

Neighborhood Wanderings

OK, I know it has only been a week and I really don't want to be one that complains, but what is there to do in a foreign country when you have no idea what to do; wander the neighborhood!!! This usually means getting Ethan and our respective cameras and walk up the street hoping that you do not get run over. Lots of horns and double takes, but I enjoy seeing the various shops and watching Ethan try to explain to anyone that will listen to his important fact for that moment.
He is really fun to watch when he has his camera. What is important to an five year and their perspective is quite interesting. He loves animals and tries to capture their image whenever possible, but quickly becomes upset because they won't stand still.Today we saw small chicks scrambling along the street and saw their predecessors dead and plucked awaiting a dinner tonight. The lady of the shop tried to gather the chicks and Ethan of course wanted to help. He got the last one and wanted to keep it, I said "No".We passed the local temple which always seems to have wandering animals, a goat here, some chickens there, and everywhere a cluck, cluck. Ethan took a picture of the chickens but they were blurry. He loves to take a picture and immediately look at and scrutinize it.At the end of the street (I will post a blog on getting around Kathmandu later, not for the light-hearted) there was a couple of shops and a small black puppy. Ethan "needed" the puppy and the shop owner handed Ethan the puppy many times to take. I had to say "No" at least 6 times. I asked the shop owner how to say dog in Nepali and I learned that she was from Burma and didn't know.All of the neighborhood kids gathered round and had their pictures taken by Ethan. I love the picture of Ethan taking their picture.That is just one of our many wanderings, we will soon have to move and wander another neighborhood. Until then.

Nemaste

Welcome to Nepal, Here Are Your Stool Cups.

I visited the embassy yesterday to do my inprocessing: badges, an immunization, security briefing and meeting lots of nice people. The facility is really new and quite nice.
I guess when you live in a third world country, the threat of illness is prevalent and staying clean is essential. I am learning more about bacteria, viruses and other bugs than I guess I ever wanted to. When you see signs posted at every eatery patronized by Americans that says beware of the Cyclospora, you need to be cognisant of those little things you can't see.
The "D" word is also spoken about openly and frequently. That word being diarrhea. Complete strangers have provided their experiences with the "D" word and every grumble in my stomach is turning me into a closet hypochondriac. This may be the ultimate weight loss success story or a story of worshipping the porcelain god; I hope neither but only time will tell.
The funniest thing that happened yesterday though was when I was leaving the health clinic and the nurse said "Let me get you some stool cups so you will have them when you need them." I responded "Okay." When I got home and opened the black bag and pulled them out and they immediately reminded me of "Tall" Starbucks coffee cup with top. I hope we never have to use them.
This wasn't meant to gross anyone out but I am providing a forthcoming experience of our lives in Nepal.
I thought I would include a picture of a toilet since it is different and in what other blog spot would it be more appropriate.

Nemaste

Day 2: A Yard Sale, A Protest and A Father's Day Brunch

I knew when I married my husband that he was one who never could sit still but really... My third day began with a yard sale at the Ambassador's house. We bought some neat things from many locales to help decorate our new house.

Then a taxi ride to some nice shopping turned into an adventure. We passed some police in riot gear and looked down a street that was filling up with people with Chinese flags and sitting in the middle of the street. Soon we came to a traffic jam with no place to go. We payed the taxi driver and decided to walk back the way we came. After a long walk we found another taxi going the opposite way and left the scene. The protesters apparently wanted to shut down the government but succeeded in disrupting the city. Life in foreign country...what an adventure!!!

I was a little miffed at what just transpired and wanted to return home to Ethan. Mike decided to go Bhatbhateni- Kathmandu's "smartest" department store. I would call it the American equivalent to Wal-Mart but with much higher prices. Philadelphia cream cheese is $10 a stick but when you consider what it took to get that product from America to Nepal and keep it refrigerated, and you want it... you buy it.

We then returned home, picked up Ethan and went to the Hyatt Resort for Mike's Father's day brunch. The food was great, a jazz band played (Ethan showed some of his best Elaine Benes dance moves) and we had a euphoric moment of peace and calm. Which may explain why I wanted to head to the Bouddhanath Stupa.

A short walk to the Stupa from the hotel reminded both Mike and I of the little streets in Florence, Italy. It was such a nice day and walk did us well after some great food. A Tibetan monk befriended us and led us around the Stupa. We prayed at various points and then wrote our names on prayer flags that drape over the large Stupa. We were told to prayer and we were blessed by the monk.

This area is home to many Tibetan refugees and the colors of the flags and their dress puts a box of Crayola 96 crayons to shame. They were so vivid, indescribable. Ethan decided he needed something so we obliged with a fossil of a shelled creature.

We made it back home and of course took a nap and did not wake up until 3:30 the next morning. I hope to be getting over jet-lag soon.

The Adventure Begins

Who would have thought that a small time girl who grew up in a place that doesn't exist on a map would be living in Kathmandu for two years, not me, but here I am. I thought that I would share my adventure with all of our loved ones we left behind and whoever else may stumble upon my blog.

Preparing for any move is an arduous process but throw in the fact that you are moving half way across the world (and yes this is half way across the world). Makes the move an almost impossible task. Throw in the fact that you have a five-year-old who insisted upon bringing everything, the four months up to the plane trip to Kathmandu was very busy. Did I mention the fact that my husband was gone 4 weeks of the last 6 weeks before the move? But I must let bygones be bygones and say that I arrived in Kathmandu after a 22 hour trip with Ethan and 4 cats with my sanity in tact and a smile on my face when I saw Mike (he requested the smile so I obliged).

The first day was pretty much left to naps for both Ethan and I. Mike had arrived 10 days earlier and had over gotten over the jet-lag. Ethan and I both woke up at 2:30 in the morning and hungry. Mike got up too but was still tired . Our first morning we watched a quiet city wake up to a cacophony of roosters crowing, traffic and the buzz of urban living. I am not a morning person but I enjoyed watching the transformation of our new city.

After a very early morning breakfast, we grabbed a taxi and headed to the Patan Durbar, a UNESCO world heritage site. The architecture is a fine example of the ancient Newari style and there are many temples to visit. Morning Puja (worship) was taking place when we arrived and Ethan enjoyed spinning the prayer wheels. The smell of incense was intense inside the temples and the smoke from the candles and incense had blackened the ceiling and walls. The ringing of the Puja bell interspersed with prayers being recited created a noise that had hung in the air and never changed.

Pigeons are abundant in the square. They are well fed and watered and until Ethan arrived probably at peace with life. The chasing of the pigeons commenced when Ethan yelled "pigeons." Fortunately, children are highly regarded here. He chased the pigeons for many minutes and provided an unusual site for passersby at such an early hour.

Watching people take part in their early morning rituals: brushing their teeth, getting water from the communal well and getting their early morning libations was fascinating. Ethan told everyone "Hola, that is Spanish for Hi," of course no one knew what he was saying. We corrected him by saying "Nemaste," but I believe the Dora and Diego influence has provided no turning back in his greetings.

We checked out the Phora Durbar, the "country club" of the embassy. It has a pool that Ethan tried out, soccer fields, a commissary (with American items) and other various activities. It is a nice respite from the hectic life outside the walls surrounding the facility. A neat place right across the street is "The Garden of Dreams." A former palace garden, the place is a beautiful oasis. Beautiful flowers, lily ponds and a beautiful restaurant. Mike had mangoes with ice cream and Ethan had a milkshake. I think both Mike and Ethan liked the mangoes and ice cream because they left nothing on the plate.

After a long day, we were all tired and came home to take a long nap.