I’m not going to go so far as to say I’m starting to fit
in…I am still the American girl running around reeking of bug spray and wearing
a permanent smile of confusion, but I am beginning to feel more comfortable.
I’ve definitely made an impression on the sisters: the Nutella obsessed, Nepali
speaking wanna be who has an unnatural amount of bug bites and is the most
likely to be having a Disney dance party when they walk into the house. But I
suppose my reputation could be worse!
Today’s transportation to the school went quite
smoothly…relatively speaking. No hour long trek or high speed, fruit thief
chase. However I think I’ve now encountered the most dangerous situation in the
whole city of Kathmandu. Brace yourselves… territorial cows!! But really… I, the
amateur that I am, assumed that if I just minded my own business I could sneak
between the two seemingly harmless street grazers and the 3 feet they so kindly
left between them and the traffic moving 40 mph. Oh I couldn’t have been more
wrong! A man 3 feet in front of me attempted the same maneuver I had envisioned
and was almost knocked to the ground by the whack of the cow whipping his head
at his torso as he passed.
So now I know. Avoid the cows. They own the sidewalks and
they will head clobber you.
On a lighter note, Ishwor and I had an incredible lesson
today. I created a “Game of Questions” and he got a kick out of asking me
questions about my favorite dance moves and all of my boyfriends. I was quite
flattered. However when I created questions of my own for him to answer, he
somehow managed to generate answers that all incorporated his love for
“pissa”…pizza. “Ishwor, what do you like to do?” “I like to eat pissa.”
“Ishwor, what is your favorite sport?” “My favorite sport is basketball and
eating pissa.” “Ishwor what did you do last night?” “Last night I dreamed of
pissa.” Clever kid.
Tonight some friends and I headed into Thamel, the
tourist-run village, to a music club. We all sat on the floor on pillows,
looking out three stories above the street, and ate “pissa.” There was a Nepali
band playing recogizeable Western hits, like “Sweet home Alobama” and “Wilcome
to the Jungle.” But dad you would have especially appreciated their rendition
of Petty’s “Friy Fowling.” Classic!
And last exciting update of the day, because I know you’ve
all been anxiously waiting to hear…I found a “Birds of Nepal” field guide!! So,
my friends learned more about the birds of Kathmandu over the noise of our
dinner than they ever wanted to in a lifetime. But hey, that’s what they get
for hanging out with this clown.
Off to bed for me but thanks again for reading!
-Al
Some cows I dodged:
Matt putting up with my bird lesson over dinner:
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