Sirubari, Lamjung

I'm starting to be able to tell time by when I get hungry! Meals are much more consistent here than at home, intriguing to me how my body has come to expect food at certain times. At home I rarely ever eat at the same time each day..

Anyway, I started the day out by "showering" as tomorrow a group of Japanese will be arriving and I won't have any privacy I imagine. 12 people are coming to stay here! I don't even know where they will sleep, or where I will sleep. Maybe I'll volunteer to sleep outside so I'm not crowded in a small space with a group of strangers...

School today was fun and busy. I spent the morning helping my friend with some internet stuffs and just chatting. I also had a good conversation with the English teacher about home and how we do things there. That's why the thought about the regular meals, because while talking to him is when I had that realization that I don't eat consistently at home. I'll have to rectify that on my return! Strangley enough discussing what kind of foods we eat didn't give me any cravings. Even writing about it now I can't think of anything I'd rather have than dal baht. I really need to find a Nepalese Cookbook before I leave because I can't remember all the variations that Bobita makes here!

I also spent some time explaining how someone might come to visit Canada, how the visa process works etc. There were a few people very interested in that information. I think it would be great to have visitors in Canada! Very expensive for them though as our dollar is worth much more than the NPR. Maybe one day. If all else fails I will have to come back because I definitely love this group of people!

I did a lot of teaching of English today too. For class 5, 6, and 7. (No computers today because the keys have been misplaced...) The levels of comprehension vary so much in each class it's quite difficult to make sure everyone understands. I understand my previous teacher's perspectives now... I think I definitely prefer one on one instruction, or when everyone is interested in the subject. There's a lot of copying of answers that goes on and a lot of the time the students don't want to think about the answers they just want me to give them the answers. Some students are so bright and eager to learn though it makes a big difference! Wish I could help more.

After school I went with Bed to a tree somewhere in a field so he could cut branches for the goats to eat. I sat and enjoyed the view and the peace and quiet of the mountains while he did his work. It's amazing how much sound echoes and travels though! I could almost hear a conversation from across the valley clearly. It reminds me of how sound travels across the lake... Gotta remember that for future phone calls home. Also watching him climb the tree and cut those branches was impressive! I don't think that I'd even make it to the first branch lol. But maybe I should try, it's been many many years since I've climbed a tree ;) Again, I kind of wish I could stay longer and really learn to live this lifestyle instead of mostly observing. There are some things that I help with but there is still so much I don't know!

After dinner we watched some tv and I managed to copy some videos from my phone to a flash drive that we connected to the tv. So nice to hear english being spoken! We didn't finish the movie though because it was late, maybe tomorrow. I gave the Maple syrup that I brought from home to Bed and Bobita and they were very excited about it. I hadn't thought of it, but the bottle is really pretty too! They were excited about that as much as the syrup itself. I explained how we use it and maybe I'll try making pancakes before I go.

On the note of leaving, I cancelled my 3 day trip to Pokhara because I don't want to miss any time here. Plus it will be interesting to see the Japanese group and what role they'll be playing here. The group is only staying for three nights and then they head to Chitwan. I might go with them for a few days and then head back to Kathmandu before continuing my journey. Really, everything is up in the air and I'm just going with the flow. It's such a nice change from the rigid, structure of home! I really love just seeing where things take me and not having a plan :) I've had some feedback from people telling me I should see as much as I can while I'm here, but that's not what the purpose of my travels are. I'm here to experience the culture, learn about the people and myself, not to see a different city every few days. I'm making connections and building relationships, and to me that's more important that checking off must see's from a list. Plus, the next phase of my trip will have enough moving around I'm happy to stay put for now!Leggi altro