Why did I wait 6 years?

This summer I went back to Nepal with one of my sisters after six years. It does sound like a long time but I don't know where time went. My dad would always ask if I wanted to go over the years and things like A-levels, uni and work always got in the way. Family were waiting and friends were back in town so it seemed like a good time. I got my holidays booked in advance and all that was left was to finish my second and last placement for uni. I was done by the end of June and then came July. Aaaah July July and even August, these were two good months. Sun, no assignments (placement report postponed until I could be bothered) and I had really got in the spirit of healthy eating and exercising. Every other day I'd do kettleworx from home and when my sisters came back from work in the evening we'd go out running along the canal route. Once we got into the routine we kept it up and even my dad seemed a little bit surprised, thanks dad! Let me not ponder on this too much. It's been several weeks since I've returned from our trip and I am about to share my experiences with you all. I've only put up a few pictures and might put up a post purely of a collage of pictures of my time there. Now let me first say that I did not want to come back! Why did I wait 6 years to visit? I really don't know and I wish I hadn't. Life there is so laid bad back. For the first time in my 22 years I got to actually experience life in Nepal as a young adult. I understood things better and was able to take things in properly. During my time there in the past I was a kid and in between school, family, friends and home there was not much else I thought about. Going back to "visit" meant that I saw things, places and people from a different perspective. Things have changed drastically; housing, malls, the lifestyle, people yet I found myself slipping right in.

The moment we landed I looked out and saw this. I remember it so well. It had just
hit me we were back on home soil. A warm, sunny day and I could not wait to get out.

It was mid-August and we were due to fly out very soon. P rang and told me that she herself had just found out she was going to be flying out on the same day as us! Sadly via a different airline and terminal at Heathrow. We were still excited and giddy at the prospect of being in Nepal together after so many years. The last time we were there together was during our Malpi days. After I moved school we never got to meet up. We flew out on a Wednesday evening and had made plans to see friends that Saturday. My only regret is I didn't take pictures of everyone and with everyone. Oh well, I now know for next time. Our days there were hectic and apart from a couple of times we were always up to something. I met up with friends, visited places and how could I forget, woke up at 6am everyday to go to my kickboxing class. My sister couldn't understand why I would want to suffer the pain (the good type) and not sleep in everyday. Well eventually I convinced her, my cousin who was also back in town and her friend to join me. I now had my very own kickboxing gang with me every morning. Very different to the previous  mornings when my cousin brother would drop me off.

One of the places we went to outside Kathmandu valley was our village or gau. Dad's request was that we go visit family and go back to our roots. I had been a couple of times before in the past and had vague memories. Rewind several years back, everyone was at different stages in their life, all of us kids were "kids". Thirteen years later and this time round it was different. Different because I saw it from a new light. I was no longer the little girl that would ask people to carry me because walking around was tiring. I took it all in. I looked around at my surroundings and imagined what life must have been like in the past when our ancestors were around. Oh what I would give to be able to get a glimpse of life back then there. It must have been tough but that is where it all started. I was very happy mingling with people and elders in the community who knew exactly who I was, but I had no idea who they were. A sense of belongingness. We were only there for one night but I'm glad we got to go. It was very humbling and I hope the next time I go I get to explore more. Yes there will be a next time!

The two full weeks we were in Nepal we explored Kathmandu itself. I hung out with friends frequently and saw some new faces as well as old. We giggled and laughed so much whenever we were together and talked endlessly as if we'd known each other forever. Everybody seems to know everybody in my friend circle…I'll never get over that. I also went to the Garden of Dreams and just like I had been told, it was a couple's dating spot. I saw it for myself and P, Bidhata and I were hardly there for more than 15 minutes or so. Don't get me wrong, we just had nothing to do there and our friend was waiting for us. I met up with friends from school Sahara, Sudat and a few others. Everyone was busy with work mostly, sigh. I think I was in this place called Jhamel nearly every other day, if not more. We also had dinner there when P came to visit us. Thamel, Narayanhiti Palace, Patan Durbar Square, Swayambu, Sanga, Boudha, Dakshinkali and Basantapur were amongst the places and sites we went to see. 

Patan Durbar Square

Again, I found myself in Basantapur quite frequently. Something about that place. A lot of people seem to hang out there, especially in the evenings. This one time I had dinner with P and her sister.  My own sister was having dinner at the same place in Nanglo, Durbar Square. Pure coincidence I promise! Lucky for me as I got to join them when P and her sister left. Where did we head up after that? Basantapur of course. I spotted loads of pain puri stands there even at night time. My cousin is very funny about street vendors' pain puris.  She wasn't with us so I thought I'd have a sneaky taste. Unfortunately I was extremely stuffed and forgot to get back to it. I was lost in awe of the ongoings of my surroundings. Nothing spectacular or out of the ordinary for people there but I couldn't help look around constantly, taking everything in and snapping pictures from my phone. After all, we were due to fly back home to England very soon. Chilling in Basantapur just like everyone else Our initial plan of going to the tourist destination in Nepal, Pokhara, fell through and the only way we would be able to go was if we extended our trip. Thankfully things worked out and we were able to stay for just under a week longer. We would also be going to Chitwan, Chitwan and Pokhara 2013 was about to become a reality! I'd never been much further out of Kathmandu valley, so although it may not seem like a big thing for others, it was for me. I would finally be able to ride an elephant. I'm not the kind of girl that squeals at touching mud and am quite happy to help out my parents in the garden. I also find nature and wildlife fascinating so it was going to be a treat. Chitwan was hot, humid and sticky. We weren't there for long. It was last minute, but it was incredible! I'll forever cherish the experience and hope to go back one day soon. People kept saying things like you won't be able to stand the heat and will get bored after a few days. Well I wasn't there long enough to testify these things but next time I'll definitely stick around for longer. There was one moment where I thought if only I could just live here for a few months and experience life the local way. Between our gau and there I think I'd learn a lot. Get an insight into the daily lives of others and just escape the city, hectic schedules and how could I forget my placement report that awaited me back home. I guess it's easier said than done. This is how we felt days and hours before our trip demonstrated by the lovely P. This is exactly how I remember my time in Nepal this past summer. I could go on writing about my trip in more detail but it might be a bit overwhelming all in one post. I'll tell you about what we got unto on our trip to Chitwan and Pokhara another time. That way I get to revisit the experience too as I put it all down in words and how we lost our car keys on the way...

Suja