Hope you enjoyed the previous read...here's part II.
1) Now let’s talk about how they treated me. This will never cease to amaze me because I have never met people that were so hospitable. When we got to the homes, the first thing that they would say is “you must be tired. Go get some rest.” They would take us to their rooms and tell us to rest on the bed. This amazes me because in Kathmandu and in the Western world, you would probably not like it if some stranger rested in your bed. I have to say I’m not entirely comfortable with this. At first, I sat on the floor but they insisted that I relaxed on the bed. In Nepal, guests are treated like gods (“atithee deva bhawa”) but in the villages it was definitely grander than the traditions of Kathmandu.
2) Then they brought us cold jug of water with some peaches or pears that were freshly picked off the tree. I swear the taste of something that’s freshly picked off the tree is way better. It will definitely suck big time when I go back to Vancouver where almost every fruit and vegetable is imported from California or Mexico. Part of this FSI project involved providing seeds for local and in-season vegetables and fruits and giving them the technical background as well. I wish I was there to learn all this as well. I told the villagers how fortunate they were to have their own kitchen garden and that lots of the fruits and vegetables in KTM are injected with all sorts of things to make them look bigger and better.
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| Banana Tree |
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| Kitchen Garden |
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| Egg Plant and Corn |
3) Then the food just kept coming. They brought us tea and when we told them it was time to leave for the next village after the FGDs and questionnaires, they would not consent. They would say “nashta garera janus” (have a light meal before you go). Yes, nashta=light meal but was it really a light meal? A BIG FAT N-O! There were lots of items: rice and lentils (dalbhat), several different vegetables from their kitchen garden (beans, eggplant, potatoes), chicken curry (the chicken was just killed for us...no big deal). On top of that, they provided us with home-made yoghurt. This is all happening at around 2 pm after lunch. Let’s just say this was lunch #2 and not a light meal whatsoever. It was like this pretty much in every village we went to. So yes, my plan for losing some weight by walking those hills on this trip didn’t quite work out because it was obviously cancelled out by all these feasts. I’m just going to have to postpone working out and weight-loss to when I get back to Vancouver.
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| Don't worry, this wasn't the chicken that was made for us :) |
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| Some beans for our meal |
I’m just amazed at how selfless these people are and how much they provide guests regardless of the situation they’re in. They’re in debt, have to walk an hour or two sometimes to get water or send their kids to school yet they treat you like they have everything. Also, they seem so content and satisfied with their way of life. The children there just eat what they’re given and don’t even have to be force fed by their mothers as opposed to my cousins who are constantly being pampered at to eat the food otherwise they won’t get the chocolate or the game they’ve been promised. So strange.
4) I could really go on and on about how hospitable they were because that was one of the things that amazed me the most. However, I do have to mention the good-byes. First, they made me dance to some Nepali songs while they sang and played the madal. Then each of them performed their dance. Then the funniest part came. They asked me to dance to my type of dance in ktm or Canada. Someone had Akon’s “smack that” on their cell phone and a bunch of these other ones which I refused to dance to so instead I danced to some old hindi song and I was probably cracking up 1/2 of it. Apparently they enjoyed it and I’m glad I could do something for them.
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| Dancing... |
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| FGD |
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| Singing and playing the madal |
Then they put tika (red powder on forehead) on us and made these beautiful flower garlands. It was a sad moment for me because I felt like they did so much for me yet I was unable to provide them with anything. Seeing the conditions they live in, such as kids with diarrhea having to walk an hour before reaching the clinic, women having to fetch water which is at least an hour away and knowing that a lot of the women have husbands in India and Saudi Arabia to earn money (to name a few), has inspired and motivated me. Hearing such things in the news makes me feel sorry but it's passive. However, being there and seeing it has really fueled the motivation in me to help in some ways when I return. I may not be able to provide immediate solutions to these issues but I know for a fact that I would definitely like to come back to Nepal and alleviate these situations.
I am so thankful that I’ve been provided with this opportunity to explore my own country and learn about the people’s needs, ways and their culture. It has also made me realize where my passion lies -which is back in Nepal designing and implementing interventions to help the most vulnerable citizens.
My 4 days in the villages were spent talking with the village locals, running FGDs, conducting questionnaires, eating all the delicious food they made me and observing. Here are two things I found fascinating other than the things I've already mentioned above and in my last post:
1) They never have to buy vegetables because their kitchen garden provides them veggies all 12 months! This is one of my goals for when I'm settled and have my own place. Local, organic and sustainable :)
2) One of the questions for the survey involved asking for the costs of children's education. It was really interesting because the women said education costs are the most expensive, similar to food, but "k garne (what to do) we have to educate our children even if it means taking a loan." This surprised me and made me happy at the same time because I always thought that education was not a priority for many families in the villages, however, it seems to have changed at least in the homes I went to. The fact that they said "have to educate" made me feel like there were changes taking places -thanks to many projects, t.v shows, community motivators etc.
I guess this is it for now. I definitely encourage you all to travel and get involved and discover what it is that fuels you (you don't necessarily have to travel to the rural areas to discover your passion -it's really about trying out new things and meeting new people)
We will be in touch.
xoxo
Chandni
4. Kitstaya Sushi (Vancouver, Canada)
This place has some delicious sushi (*mouth waters already) and a wide variety as well. It's not that expensive and very close to UBC :) I usually end up getting a couple of these ones: miso soup, gyoza, spicy tuna roll, smoked salmon roll, Philadelphia roll (smoked salmon +cream cheese), scallop roll...there's definitely more....I'm totally craving sushi right now. I miss it!
These are the things that makes this restaurant to die for: elevator ride up to the top floor, the spectacular view from the restaurant, the class ambiance and of course, the delicious food. I might have to add that this one is on the pricier end and say save this restaurant for that special occasion or whenever your parents visit you :) When I was there, I had duck trio which is duck breast, duck confit, and duck confit risotto served in sour cherry, orange, red wine sauce....mmm your mouth watering already? MINE IS! 
Yes, mango trees and delicious mangoes! Oh how I missed them . The terai or the plains of 
