"Home is where you are"

This week our host family has been preparing for Diwali/ Tihar, the Festival of Lights. According to our host father, Dashain (the last festival we celebrated) is for eating (hence all the goat that took us 2 weeks to finish), and Diwali/Tihar is for dancing. We were slightly relieved when we discovered that we could not eat meat on Thursday because after the last festival we were nervous to be served more goat. Each day of Diwali celebrates a different thing; the crow, the dog (each dog on the streets is adorned with red Tika and a necklace of flowers), the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, the the New Year, and Bhai Tika, when sisters put Tika on their brothers.
Thursday morning we took a trip to a beautiful monastery where our friends Toby and Gillian are teaching English. It took us a while and a lot of backtracking, walking up steep hills, and asking directions from locals who had never heard of this monastery before, but we eventually found our way. It was a beautiful monastery, with sparkling gold coloring on the Gompa, the main building, and an amazing view of the surrounding towns and hills. It was so peaceful and quiet up there, so different from our life in the city, and a great way to start off our holiday. Getting lost adds color to the day and makes the end destination way more satisfying.







We retuned home after a long day of walking and noticed a significant increase in the amount of street vendors and people milling about, buying and selling Tika, strings of marigolds, bundles of sweets and candles. People were in the streets dancing and singing, and the houses were all decorated with lights and candles. Each doorstep welcomed us with a beautiful design made with different colored Tika (called Rangoli) and a trail of candles and footsteps leading inside the house, welcoming the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. We arrived at our house to find it decorated in sparking lights (the word "jilly-milly" in Nepalese means the sparkle/twinkling of lights -so far it's my favorite word that I've learned). Shikha, our oldest host sister made a Rangoli with colorful Tika and flour and then spread cow dung along the floor in a path up the stairs to the main floor of the house. Along the trail of cow dung we made yellow circles and then added little red footprints in each circle. Finally, placed on each footprint was a small candle with marigold petals around it, all to lead Lakshmi into the house. The family spent the night chatting and sharing many laughs. These are the moments I realize why I'm addicted to travel and being part of a home away from home.




Preparing the candles.






Visitors peeking in!



Tika!



Maybe I'm not the best at making footprints...I hope that didn't prevent
the goddess of wealth from paying a visit.

Saturday our friend Yasoda invited us to her house to celebrate with her family. She lives in a small room with her brother on the bottom floor of her landlords house equipped with 2 beds, a small stove for cooking, and a shrine for prayer (puja). I realized how different it was from what I'm used to, always a looking for more space, and especially how much we value privacy. Yasoda is always so happy and she has this loving spirit about her that just makes you smile. We celebrated with her brother, sister, and her sisters husband and their baby. We each received Tika, a necklace made of marigolds, and a plate of food. It was so nice to celebrate with a new friend and to meet her family. She is probably the best cook I have met in Nepal, next to the lovely Sirita, so of course our meal was fantastic.







7 colors of Tika.



Our dear friend, Yasoda.

This festival was just another reminder of the kind hearts that Nepali people have and their willingness to share their traditions and culture with others. Pico Iyer said in his TED talk, "home is where you are", what a great way to live, making a home wherever you go. Happy Tihar everyone!

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Food, Glorious Food! (Plus some random photos)

It has been a long time since I last posted. I apologize for the delay. I was feeling uninspired to blog lately, until today. Tonight Beth, Crystal, Shikha, Priscalla (my host sisters), and I decided to make dinner together. We begged Shikha to let us cook with her and she decided to teach us how to make Alu Paratha, stuffed roti (Indian tortilla) with potatoes, tomatoes, chili, and onions. Makes my mouth water just thinking about it. I had learned how to make Roti yesterday night and tonight we decided to add some more flavor! Most of the time we don't eat this because it takes a long time and it's slightly fattening so it was a nice change from our usual meal of dal bhat.
Despite the fact that we eat basically the same thing every night for dinner I still have not grown tired of it. A typical meal includes dal bhat (rice with lentil soup), a curried vegetable or meat, and pickle (a spicy and bitter mixture with veggies and lapsi- a plant that can only be found in Nepal). And of course, the best way to eat it is to mix it all up and eat with your hands. We have recently started eating like this (like real Nepalis) and it makes the food much more enjoyable. Some people say the food tastes better when you eat with your hands but I think it's just more fun :) ). It was so fun to have all the girls cooking together in the kitchen and experimenting with new recipes. We all laughed at the fact that if Sirita was here she would have been appalled at our cooking skills. Unfortunately for us, Sirita went home (a 12 hour bus ride away) this morning to be with her family for the upcoming festival, Dewali/Tihar. We miss her already!
In other news, a band showed up in front of our house this afternoon and started playing music. They wouldn't leave until we have them money. It was sort of like a Nepali Christmas Carol, except without the snow.
And in other, other news, the weather forecast this weekend projects...Internet! Apparently because of the festival we will have electricity all weekend :)
Please enjoy some photos of our recent cooking adventures and other things.



Priscalla always has a sassy pose for photos.



Priscalla and Beth making balls of dough.











Garlic, garlic, garlic!




Part of our walk into town.



Some Saris hanging out to dry.



Evidence of our 2 hour can ride after the driver took is to the wrong
place. Not a comfortable ride.

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Elephants and Momos

This week we took a trip to Chitwan. It is a national park and one of the only places in the world with a elephant breeding center. There, although I hesitate to admit this, we rode elephants. It was such a fun experience and I got to explore the jungle on top of an elephants back. Above the tall grass and most importantly the swampy ground with creepy crawlers. Although I hesitated because of the consequences for the elephant (it takes a lot of abuse and breaking down to make an elephant easily rideable...) it was still very fun and a once in a lifetime experience. Rather than chat too much about my week this post will mostly be a visual experience. Enjoy!









A 21-day-old elephant.





My French friend, Anaelle :)


Before Chitwan, Crystal and I spent a day sightseeing. We went to Boudhnath and Swayambunath- two famous Buddhist stupas.




















And today we took a cooking class! We made Dal Bhat (lentil soup and rice) and momos.






Lentils!








Spinach and cheese and veggie.






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Happy Dashain!

This week was the beginning of a 15 day Hindu holiday called Dashain. We have the week off in the office so we decided to spend the first part of the holiday with our host family. The festivities started on Monday with a fabulous party at the VIN office. During the day we played games and ate food with the kids from the orphanage that VIN sponsors. At night we ate even more and danced to some upbeat Nepali music.


Bhupi and Rosemary pose for a crazy photo!

We were not sure how our family would celebrate so we thought we would stick around for the week to see what would happen. We were told that Today, Friday, was the big day but we weren't sure what the plans would be. Sure enough, Thursday night we retuned from a days worth of walking and sightseeing to find our entire family cooking a giant meal in the kitchen. The main course was cooking in a huge pot in the middle of the kitchen floor...the goat they had slaughtered that day. Our grandmother was sitting on the floor cutting the stomach and intestine into pieces, and dinner for Thursday night was being prepared on the regular kitchen burner (the usual dal bhat- lentil soup with rice- and some veggies seasoned with an amazing mixture of spices). The goat was being prepared for today's feast. Our grandfather is the eldest in the family so family members traveled here today to receive Tika, a Hindu blessing (otherwise known as that red dot on everyone's foreheads) and to share a meal, and maybe play some cards.
Oh, and I forgot to mention, Thursday morning Sirita waltzed into the kitchen during our morning tea proudly carrying a very large rooster, which apparently we will also be eating eventually. Hey, at least we know the meat we are eating is fresh! It took a couple minutes of people taking turns holding until it decided it was done and it pooped all over the floor!



Goat meat. Yumm.


Various parts of a goats stomach and intestine.

This morning the kitchen smelled delicious and we ate a savory meal of goat meat, fat, and intestine. After breakfast we put on our new 'kurtas' (Nepali outfits) and waited for a couple hours to receive Tika. We received a blessing and some money from our grandfather and then we we gave Tika to the little ones. It was supposed to be spiritual but what I appreciated the most about it was that they treated us like a part of the family and we got to be a part of such a special celebration for them. The smell of incense, smiles all around the room, giggles at our silly American mistakes, and an overall sense of cheerfulness was what really made the day special and reminded me of the strength and connectedness of families in Nepal. No matter what occasion, holidays always make me feel at home. Happy Dashain everyone!













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