Kathmandu - Week 1

Like Tracy Jordan’s column in Ebony, I am going to call this long, long overdue post “Musings.”


I have been in Kathmandu for a week now and it his been enlightening. Like most Americans that travel overseas, you don’t realize how good life is until you can’t go to a Target. Shopping aside, I am slowly adjusting to life on this side of the world. Of course, I am completely spoiled over here, so adjusting isn’t super difficult.

Here are little things that I have noticed on my trip:

• The McDonald’s at the Bahrain airport has a Big Mac made of chicken patties.

• They drive on the left side here and there are no traffic lights, crosswalks, or street signs. You could not pay me to drive here.

• I saw a monkey in a metropolitan area. A monkey!

• The people here, like people everywhere, are very friendly.

• The grocery store is an adventure, with items imported from India and Europe. It is very eclectic.

• The power is usually out at least 4 to 6 hours a day due to load sharing. Our apartment is set up to work on some reserve power. Gary and I are getting very good at recognizing the different beeps that indicate how much power is being turned on. Ordinarily this kind of thing would provoke a rant, but I am slowly learning to work around the outages.

• Walking on the street is a full on obstacle course. You are constantly dodging holes, uneven pavement, more holes, trenches, buses, motorcycles, bicycles, dogs, cows, and other pedestrians. I am probably missing all kinds of cool stuff going on around me because I am looking at the ground and trying not to fall.

• Most stores look like they were once storage units that someone turned into a store.

• Only one of my students has seen Star Wars. I have a lot of work to do.

• There doesn’t seem to be a Nepali word for “nerd.”

• A lot of people here wear masks on the streets because the pollution is so bad. Kathmandu is in a valley, but you can only make out the outlines of the mountains due to the smog.

• Homosexuality is illegal here in Nepal. Gary and I were a bit surprised to see men holding hands while out in public considering it is a crime. Men here hold hands as a sign of friendship.

• Kids love to stare at me and Gary. They wave, say hello, and can’t take their eyes off of us. I have told myself it is because I am so beautiful, but I think it might be my white skin and curly hair.

• Cows rule the world.

• Mike’s Breakfast is where we go everyday for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It is really the only place where we have seen other Westerners. We have the same waiter everyday and he takes good care of us.

• It is considered immodest to show legs. I really miss wearing shorts. When Gary and I return to the apartment we immediately change into shorts.

• Indian TV puzzles me.

• The first two words I learned in Nepali are right and left, so I can tell people to either right of left click the mouse.

• I have taught my class the “thumbs up,” which they now use liberally. I love it



More to come…