Per Request...

Dad said I need to write a new entry or come home. I don’t want to go home.

Since my last entry, we’ve had A LOT of class, I’ve done laundry once and despite four meals a day I am considering buying a smaller belt. We’ve had one self-cook day that involved a peanut butter-banana sandwich, about 30 donuts and 12 leftover momos (aka dumplings from God.) Hopefully when I return to the states I won’t make such a poor showing in the kitchen.

I suppose it has been over two weeks since I first arrived in Nepal. I’m starting to get a little nervous about our research projects. They already have us conducting interviews (with the help of our Nepali roommates as interpreters) but John and I (as the beginner Nepali speakers) are making some serious progress. We have finished the alphabet, and I can even read signs if the car is driving slow enough. I can make basic conversation at mealtimes and even pick up on a few words here and there. The Nepali students are quite proud of us.

Some highlights from the past week:

1. I absolutely DESTROYED Kamal at tigers and goats (a Nepali strategy game that is like checkers, only on crack.) Kamal is to tigers and goats what Yoda is to the Force. You may now call me Skywalker. Anakin Skywalker.
2. Kamal, Kavita, Mel and I climbed to a temple at Cho-something. It was absolutely beautiful out and it was so nice to escape our small area in Kirtipur and get some serious exercise.
3. Not only is my GI tract back in business, but the food seems to get tastier every day. Daal bhaat (rice and lentils) every day at 10 am, crepes with pomegranate for breakfast, and even lasagna for dinner a few nights ago.
4. My application for the Udall scholarship is finally in and over with!
5. YOGA! Believe it or not, the contact-sport fanatic has, against all odds, fallen in love with the Tuesday/Thursday afternoon yoga sessions. Our teacher always adds “please” to the end of each sentence - “please relaaaaax your left side, relax, relax.”
6. Our newest acquisition into the CNSP family is a neon blue guitar Mel, Joanne and I purchased on a side trip to Thamel (tourist district of overpriced hippy clothes and french fries.) Instead of Hulu and YouTube I am instead slowly learning to jam. Typing this blog is far more difficult than I expected with overworked fingers.

In the next few weeks, we will start preparing for our independent research projects. I was shocked at first to find that my research would probably involve mostly interviews rather than empirical research. All I’m working with now is I want to study water. I have books and documents to peruse, but without a focus it sometimes feels like an overwhelming wave that gets bigger and bigger every day (granted I’m not doing much to help it, playing guitar or doing Sudokus when I could read or study.) Today, for the first time in a while, I missed High School with its clear structure and defined benchmarks. Now I want to change the world with less than a month of isolated research on an undecided topic... uh oh.

This entry would not be complete without a serious shoutout to Melanie. With only 4 Americans here, and John separated from the girls’ hostel by gender taboos, Mel (“Mello” to the Nepalis) and I have quickly become attached at the hip. I am so thankful she’s here, whether it’s teaching me guitar, joking about old school TLC songs or simply having an outlet for our small, daily frustrations. As we decided today, not being best friends is impossible.

Up next: bed time. We have a quiz tomorrow and being out of my sleeping bag this long could mean a serious case of pneumonia. This week will be exhausting with the amount of class and research prep thrown in, but the weekend is a 3-day trek in Nargarkot where we have been promised a mountain sunrise.

There you go Pops. Love you.