Our Nepalise group is comprised of 9 lovely young and hopeful girls; Bea, Esther, Jane, Kiri, Megan, Nicole, Rachel, Suza and I (although we have christened ourselves the ‘Daal Bhaats’). Definition: A lentil curry served with rice. This staple food is what we learnt to our dismay, would be our one and only meal, twice a day, every day served with chai tea.
On our introduction camp, we learnt a number of imperative behavioural acts to abide by. The following:
Lesson #1: Nodding our head means yes – and no.
Lesson #2: Shaking our head means no – and yes. Seems simple? Let’s put this into practice with a head bobble (a nod from side to side) which means “okay”.
Lesson #3: Do not accept, eat or give food with your left hand. Easy again? Only if you don’t get your lefts and rights mixed up!
Lesson #4: If a bus is due to depart at a certain time, be prepared that it may leave anywhere between an hour before hand, and an hour after, give or take 5... Okay, so far so good.The Daal Bhaats
The training camp also allowed friendships to form and personalities to mesh. It gave us a greater idea of others motivation, ideas, expectations and goals for the placement. Bouncing ideas off one another such as visual, audio, and kinesthetic teaching techniques was enjoyable and insightful. Apart from the occasional freak out about our financial situation and the occasional “Oh my gosh! There is only 10 weeks till we leave! I’ll never be ready!” and “This camp food is too good I think I’ll just stay here” phrases, we managed to formulate our own lesson plans, come up with satisfactory danger scenario plans and not to mention coming out of the ‘I like being in denial about going’ phase as this was definitely an adrenaline pumping and information awakening weekend. Thankyou antips!
A Few Minor Hiccups
The Daal Bhaats arrived in Bangkok to the beginning of a bumpy start to what we would like to call ‘our adventure’. The cultural barriers were immediately evident due to the basic lack of communication to find the internet. At arrival we all exclaimed “facebook!”; the one comfort of a familiarity in a place so foreign. However, after walking for a good kilometer, we had come to terms with the fact that this quest was way too hard a language barrier to overcome. Oh well!
Next stop sleep. Finding our hotel proved to be the 2nd small AKA large hiccup to our transitional adventure. It seemed like no retailer knew where anything was except where their products were on the shelves.
Soon enough, we were finally heading in the right direction. However, the concierge insisted Esther and Jane were staying at the opposite side of the airport, (and that airport is no small shoebox!) after having already walked from the other side. This news brought Esther to frustrated tears. “I hate Bangkok airport! I never want to come back! I’ll be happy to never see it again!” So Jane and I set off on our 2nd quest to find facebook while others decided a thai massage for the night was the go.
It still remains that we are all full of hope, each with different personal missions, yet united by the same goals. We hope to assist the lives of the villages, host families, orphans, students, teachers and ourselves! I personally hope to gain a larger sense of empathy by living in the conditions the Nepalise are. When I return to Australia I hope to realize the value of our lives after gaining an appreciation of the way of life in Nepal.
Culture Shock
Arriving in Kathmandu was perhaps confronting to some of us. The car trip was silent as we let our cameras take the memories of all the hectic streets. I was prepared for a culture shock with the amount of poverty, yet I had mentally prepared myself well so I was silently enjoying watching the different people carry out their different duties all with a different purpose.
At the hotel we met our puzzle piece fitter; Bea. She had arrived 2 days previously from France. As introductions were carried out with a massive bear hug and friendships built, we set off to explore the town. Colour surrounded us as did street sellers, impatient drivers and small, yet healthily stocked shops. I would like to say I have personally, as have all the Daal Bhaats, overcome this (often scary) hurtle. Weaving our way through crazy and frantic Nepali drivers is an art! I hope I don’t adopt too many of these habits as I return to Australia!
Today, our in-country agent Sharmilla kindly took us to a Nepali restaurant none of us would have second glanced if she wasn’t there to guide us. It proved to be the best satay chicken in Kathmandu. Another of our favourite is the steamed vegetable momos. We thought we should stock up our fat before entering the village… just in case!
She also took us to the 4 main temples in town. My favourite is the monkey temple also known as Swayambhunath which you guessed it, has so many wandering monkeys. It is one of the holiest Buddhist temples, although open to everyone. I went wild in my camera taking of the magnificent valley below. Around the gardens of this temple are many red, white, yellow, green and blue flags. Each flag holds a prayer written on them by a different person.
At the temples we saw ceremonies carried out by young and older monks using percussion instruments – symbols, drums and horns. We also participated in turning the prayer wheels clockwise while walking around the temple in a clockwise direction to symbolize steady forward movement in the Buddhists lives. As each spins, it is said the wind carries them on a direct line to heaven, or alternatively, as smoke rises, it takes the prayers on a direct line to the gods. While there, we participated in taking many photos of the ill strategically placed buildings.
In Nepal, the main 2 religions or philosophies, Buddhism and Hinduism, share a mutual respect for the other and many worship at the same temples. At many of the Buddhist temples, or ‘Stupa’, the lowest level is the ‘Plinth’. The Plinth signifies the earth and all four sides symbolize love, compassion, joy and equality – the 4 immeasurable. Above the ‘Kumbha’, resembling a pot of rice and symbolizing fresh water, is the ‘Harmika’. All 4 sides of the Harmika reveal a painted version of Buddha’s eyes. The air is represented by a narrowing spire. It characterizes the 13 phases to achieve paradise. A void beyond space is also characterized by a protective umbrella.
One of the places in Kathmandu that proves to be a favourite of us all is the serene ‘Swapna Bagaicha’; ‘Garden of Dreams.’ This gorgeous enclosed pocket of serenity shows no signs of it suffering neglect in the 1920’s. It parades of its original gates, new ponds and fountains, statues of lions and elephants, flowers, footpaths, hidden gardens and its classy bar and restaurant. We treated ourselves to a delicious array of nibbles and cocktails in the laid back, mellow mood of the bar with bemusement at the so called “contemporary” (Elvis) songs playing. The dinner was very romantic, filling and relaxing compared to a crazy day I shared with Suza.
After planning for many a day with Suza to dye our hair, we braved ourselves the monsoon (almost Tsunami) rain walk from our hotel to a salon across town. We were exasperated and disappointed when the salon told us they could only dye our hair black. Suza: “No Deal!” We laughed merrily and set off in high spirits to find another one. Shortly, Suza and I found a Korean salon after walking in the floods and managing to achieve pools in our shoes. We had a few miscommunications as shown by my hair turning very red instead of a subtle purple, and Suza’s turned a grey colour while her roots were golden. She demanded it was done again so not to scare the villages. It was hilarious! Listening for 3 hours to the terrible Nepali and Indian pop music really was the cherry on the top to a very red and grey day.
Leaving Kathmandu is sad, but we are lucky to call Kathmandu our home away from the village.
Favourite moments in Kathmandu:
1. Steamed vegetable momos and satay chicken. Mmm.
2. Bamming cows on the side of the road.
3. Eyeing off pig heads on the side street markets with more than slight disgust
4. My ‘Room with a view’ at the hotel.
5. A hot breakfast every morning including pancakes, porridge, toast, scrambled eggs, hash browns and black tea. Hotel food you will dearly be missed.
6. Jane and Rachel receiving ill directions and thus getting lost in a taxi.
7. Drinking cocktails and eating cheese sticks with the girls at the ‘Garden of Dreams’ – highly recommended.
8. Eating icecream on the side of the road with Suza and Sharmilla while waiting for the monsoon rain to stop.
9. Attempting to find a salon with Suza in a monsoonal storm, finding a Korean salon and mis communicating our desired hair colour of purple instead of red and honey instead of grey.
No comments:
Post a Comment