The Top Five Hardest Things About Living in Nepal
Trip Start
Apr 03, 2007
1
8
17
Trip End
Jul 31, 2007
Kathmandu,
Nepal
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
1. EATING- It's not as if I'm a picky eater. I'm not. In fact I
actually really like rice and curry. Ask anyone, everytime I am
out at a restaurant, whether asian or not, what do I order?
Curry. I can tell you what the curry is like at Milestone's,
Earl's, Joey Tomato's, I've had 'em all. I don't mean to be
repetitive, I am just trying to make a point here. Let me just
illustrate it for you. Say you really loved spaghetti and
meatballs. It was your favourite thing in the whole world.
Now imagine eating it three times a day, everyday. For the first
time in my life I truly understand what it means to be sick of
a certain food. I will be starving, my stomach growling and a
plate of curry is placed in front of me. I tell you I instantly
feel like vomitting. And even worse is what it does to our poor,
western digestive system. Never mind that I am eating carbs
(potato curry) piled on top of carbs (white rice) everyday. I am not
worried about the weight gain though... nothing stays in the system for
longer than twenty minutes anyways! A few bites of this
always-spicy-as-hell dish and I can feel my guts begin to churn in
agony. I am used to it actually, it just wouldn't feel like a
normal day without a hurried trip to the bathroom haha. I am jealous of
all those smart asses who brought their pepto bismal though. But
no, all my bragging about having a cast iron stomach has certainly
caught up with me.... And I don't know if I will ever be able to enjoy
another plate of curry again!
2. GOING TO THE BATHROOM- Okay, again, it's not the squat toilets
I mind so much, they say it's better for the digestive system.
And the fact that they don't use toilet paper? Well hell, I can get
used to that. All the toilets have this little water gun next to it,
and in the hot temperatures you dry off pretty fast. (Although I must
add here that trying to go in a sari is a whole new challenge!).
It's the smell. And the grossness level. Trust me, it's
high. Squat toilets don't really flush, they are mostly just
holes in the ground. And the bathrooms are all open. The shower,
the sink, nothing is closed off by a door. Just try to imagine
the stench of it while you are brushing your teeth in there! The
first time I saw the bathroom at my place I was like "There is no way
that they shower in there!" But oh yes, it's true. I have to
relate a funny story here... In our first place when I was staying with
Amelia, she related an experience to me that was as horifying as it was
hilarious. On one of our first evenings, she was taking a shower
and accidently dropped her special, expensive facial soap. And
can you guess where it landed? Ha, that's right, right into the
squatter! Well of course she couldn't just leave it floating in
there, so she had to REACH IN AND GRAB IT! I can't even relate how
digusting it must have been! And because there are never any garbages
in the bathrooms, she was left there holding the soap and wondering
what to do with it. She finally out of desperation threw the soap out
the window and spent the next ten minutes washing her hands.... nerves
of steel I tell you. Which leads nicely into number three...
3. TAKING A SHOWER- I have already related the smell and absolutle
manky-ness of the bathrooms (manky is a british word but so apro-pos,
don't you agree?), but then there is the other matter of freezing cold
water. Am I spoiled? A little too pampered? Perhaps. But I
challenge you, when you wake up tomorrow, still cozy from your bed, and
stumble down to the bathroom, still blurry-eyed from sleep, leave the
water on cold. Most mornings it takes me five minutes just to
force myself into it, and my heart literally jumps out of my
chest. Interestingly, I don't feel I need coffee anymore to wake
up. Hair washing usually has to happen on a totally seperate day
because I can't stand to stay in it that long....
4. SLEEPING- Okay I know I have already complained about this but I am
literally sleeping on a bed of plywood. Plywood, laid on top on
wooden slabs, covered by a very, very thin mattress. Now they say
that this is good for the back. Maybe so. Or maybe I just don't
know how to sleep on it properly because most mornings my neck is so
stiff I can hardly move. The next problem is the dogs. Back
home, if a dog is barking incessantly at four in the morning, it's
really acceptable for you to stick your head out the window and yell
"Shut the f**k up!" But here, no one seems bothered by the fact
that every dog in the neighbourhood is barking it's damn head off ALL
NIGHT LONG. It doesn't help I guess that most of the dogs are
strays and don't have owners, but even the ones that do are never told
to be quiet. It drives me crazy! Me who loves my silence and dark
rooms.... And when the dogs finally do shut up, that's when the
mosquitos come out to play....
5. RANDOM ILLNESSES- I am normally not a sickly person. But I
have found in the past that when you go to a new country, the body can
react in funny ways. But this is a whole new level I tell
you. If it's not the raping of the intestines or a mosquito-coil
induced migraine, it's some other random thing. Lately I have
been plauged by these weird jabbing pains in my neck, which I thought
were from the bed but now I'm not so sure, and a throat that is so sore
I can feel it in my ears. I thought maybe I was getting a cold but
apparently oh no, it's simply from all the exhaust fumes and
pollution. It's frustrating because it would be so nice to wake
up for once and just feel healthy, not to mention I think my family
thinks that I am some sort of hypochondriac, but other white people
have been telling me the same stories...oh except for the neck thing
which I just can't figure out. My whole bottle of advil is
gone... and my carefully rationed sleeping pills are dwindling too...
It's one thing to feel ill, but not having all our little western
goodies just basically sucks the big one. There wasn't much I wouldn't
have done for you if you had come up to me last night with a cup of neo
citron....
So there you have it. If you don't care about stuff like eating,
sleeping, going to the bathroom and keeping yourself clean, than Nepal
is a veritable paradise! No, I am just ranting now, there are
plenty of amazing and wonderful things here. And they do say, you
don't go to a country to change it, you go to be changed by
it. Plus I guess I am learning how tough I am. And how the
little things don't matter all that much. And why a night in the
most touristy area of town with a steak, a beer and a soft bed is
enough to keep you going for another week or two!!!
Comments
THE QUEST FOR HAPPINESS
Within your late experiences there seem to be a lot discomfort and depravation. This come to mind two books written by Andre' Gide that perhaps are of relevance to the predicament you find yourself in. One being STRAIT IS THE GATE and the second one THE IMMORALIST. The meaning of both volumes is how happiness is achieved.
In strait is the gate the claim is that happiness can occur through self denial. Perhaps meaning that there is a contentment within the lack of a complicated life style. It seems that this is your present situation. So tap in to it, soon you will be on the other side.
In fact within two months you will find yourself within the pages of The Immoralist. In this case happiness is found through self indulgence and a bit of Hedonism. You know...Plenty of cold beer.
Your favorite quote: Happiness is not laughter comes to the surface, but then sometime it feels good to laugh.
By the way good prose. You and Sunshine should get together and write the ultimate novel. Suggestion.....' The Human Comedy Revisited'
Well ciao for now and a special HUG.
a