Oct. 22/23rd 2013

Real life

Exactly a week from today we were planned to be sworn in as official Peace Corps Volunteers (we're currently trainees) but now PST has been elongated and we haven't been told when our official swearing in ceremony will be. My guess is that it has been pushed back to the beginning of December.

My body has learned a very interesting schedule which I'm trying to teach my body to stop. Every night between 3:30-4:30am I wake up and have to pee. Then at 5:30am I have to poop. It's become a habit but if my permanent site has an outdoor charpi/toilet, I'll have to start peeing in a bucket in my room. this is getting graphic so I'll stop.

I also continue to have absurd absurd dreams. I dream about people from home mixed with people I met in Nepal and the activity is always very wacky. 

Not much new has happened recently. Because of the upcoming Nepali elections we are sort of stuck in Sindupalchowk (our current district) and aren't free to travel unlike our previous plans had said. Lots of language class and not much else this week.

Love you all at home <3

Bora

PS- happy birthday Jacob Rivera! Look at that, another shout out.

Oct. 18th sukrawbaar

Respect is given when it is received.

Everything is everything,

What is meant to be will be.

After winter must come spring,

Change comes eventually.

Happy birthday to two of my favorite boys, Jacob Rivera and Derek Corpus! Happy 24th and 23rd birthday! Wish I could celebrate with you both and the Team.

Plus, shout out to my main squeezie HK Huynh. Kick butt in your med school interviews!  I have nothing but faith in you.

Chhaap birthday tomorrow. May the weather Gods be on our side as we hope to go on a hike to one of the temples in the morning before we hit the bazaars to celebrate Freeman's 26th birthday. 

We were supposed to visit our permanent sites this coming week as well as meet our Nepali counterpart, the person we will be working alongside with throughout the next two years, but lots of political and government "stuff" has caused the Peace Corps training and programming team to cancel our planned excursion. There is an upcoming election on the Nepali government side planned for November 19th. Because of this, along with other recent political affairs, lots of strikes and political rallies are planned throughout the country, causing government officials to be on lockdown as the elections get closer. Our counterparts are unavailable for travel to meet us in Nepalgunj, thus, trip canceled. On the American government side, the federal furlough and shutdown of the federal government caused Peace Corps to resort to emergency funds to keep volunteers abroad and staff members on duty.  It was crazy to find all this out so late in the game since I've been living in Chhaaptown eating buffalo and being extremely disconnected with the world. What the heck happened America?? But I hear an agreement has been made, whatever that means. 

Jivan yastai chha. Ke garne?

Love you all,

Bora

Oct. 16th, 2013

Gravity

Just came from a beautiful short stroll through the nearby pine forest with my girl Nekeia.  Today I feel a bit under the weather, getting a fever and a cold (but don't worry mom I'll be fine!).  Today I am beginning to compile one of the main reflections I've concluded over the course of PST/my Peace Corps experience thus far: He will provide.  It's interesting how its when I am striped of so many necessities/luxuries that I feel most provided for.  No matter how many times my mind begins to worry and formulate possible future disasters that may arise, the worries are forced to be diminished. I wish this post wasn't so abstract, but there are too many moments to describe to emphasize this point: that I mustn't worry, that I must put my worries aside and have faith in the course of my life, faith in God.  Every little thing that I begin to worry about has received an answer, and some answers take a lot longer than others.  There are still many areas of my life unknown and unanswered, but I'm beginning to fully learn and understand the truth in trusting my God and having faith in order to go forward into the unknown positively and full heartedly. He has provided and will continue to provide. 

And so, "I shall not worry".

With love,

Bora

Oct. 13th, aaitabaar

Another day in Chhaap

Singing acapella to "My girl" in front of everyone in the village and dancing to Jessie J's "Pricetag" and then "Gasolina". 

It was yet another one of those, "is this real life?" moments in Chhaap town. We made an awesome realization though when we were dancing to "Pricetag". As we were listening to the music, it truly was our real life that we were singing. We don't need no money, we just wanna make the world dance.

Earlier in the morning I watched my family kill a chicken for their worship ceremony in my grandpa's bedroom. It was one of those moments that reminds you of that fact that our lives are temporary. It was disturbing. The chicken was definitely screaming shrieks of torture and before you know it, my grandpa is squeezing its blood onto the puja. Then we ate the chicken for dinner.

At night, I drank lots of weird corn based alcohol which wasn't all that bad. Afterwards I played Nepali card games with my two daais (big brothers) and their wives. It was fun hanging with a group of nepalis who are all relatively my age (I usually hang out with kids or adults). They were acting like stupid college kids which was hilarious. My brothers tried to feed our dog roksi (homemade alcohol). Then one of them was seriously trying to pull Joey Tribiani magic card tricks. He would hold up a card but bend it so much that it was obvious he could see it too. I laughed very hard. 

Eating all this crazy mess of meat has been treating my tummy funny, as it rightly should.

Love you and miss you all! I wish you all could've witnessed some of what I saw today. There was lots to laugh at and make fun of :)

Keraa syau maywa bhuikatahar suntala angur aap.

Love, 

Bora

PS- happy 24th birthday Charles Asamaphand!! I tried to call you but you didn't answer.

Oct. 12th, saneebaar

Dashain; Nepali initiation day

Today was the eighth day of the festival Dashain, and I suppose it is when the parties start really happening. Today was our day of from training so I had all day to wander and be taken around, where I saw lots of coocoo things. The list is long, so I'll try to keep it brief but informational.

Woke up, drank tea and ate biscoots with the fam then was taught how to cut grass by my bahinis.

Followed my eldest bahini (she's 15) to take the grass to the buffaloes and goats (bakraa). Watched one of the buffaloes poop while another one peed next to it.

Watched my bahini climb a guava tree that hangs over a ledge to get me a guava. She was standing on a limb that was around 15-20feet high and was about 3 inches thick. I held my breath but realized its an American thing to be scared.

Stood directly under a giant spider hanging on its web, and realized I'm quickly shaking off the culture shock of spiders.

Watched the Nepali men of Chhaap cut up buffaloes on the village streets. Watched my grandpa and some other dude squeeze out the poop from the intestines. This guy knew enough English to say, "diarrhea". 

Ate a common Nepali snack that's served off of old classroom scratch paper with cut up pieces of a microwave box as the spoon. Then like true Nepalis, littered it on the floor when we were done.

Played ping, which is a giant rope swing. While we were playing, a wild buffalo was running on the trail and got freaked out by the swinging of the ping and made a dash at the crowd of spectators. Lucky for us one of the boys ran at it and scared it off in a different direction.

Watched a woman smoke a stog while carrying a doko full of grass off her forehead. Just thought that was ironic.

Ate lots of weird puja (worship) food, but the best was smushed rice with banana. Yum.

Everything was pretty fun and super interesting, but I was also continuously tired because we kept drinking throughout the day. sleepy bora was alive today.

Happy Dashain! The celebration continues for the next few days.

Na jaane,

Bora

Oct. 11th sukrawbaar

Santa Cruz

This post has nothing to do with Nepal, but I just called Antonio (my little brother) right now and found out he's in the hospital awaiting surgery! Ahhhh! He was skateboarding and dislocated his right leg which they popped back into place, but has a fracture on his hipsocket that will need surgery. 

Good luck through surgery and be safe! I love you lil brother!

If anyone has his number shoot him a call or visit him in the hospital for me.

-Bora

October 8th, 2013 mangalbaar

The night I fell in love with Nepal

Today was a very long day and I could spend a long time talking about the series of events, but I'd rather describe in detail about how I fell in love with Nepal.

The past couple of nights my bahinis (my four little sisters) have been coming home super late. I found out it was because they have been at dance practice from about 6-9pm to prepare for a performance on one of the days of Dashain (sort of like Nepali Christmas). Tonight the five trainees (including me) of Chhaap decided to check out what all the fuss was about.

When we first showed up we messed around with the kids that were there. We had wheel barrel races and I gave out a bunch of American names to the kids haha. They loved it but kept forgetting what their names were (except for John, he got his down). Later I was sitting on the floor with a bunch of kids on/around me. They were playing a game that looked like it could be called, "slap that kid", and I joined in. I started slapping kids around and we all had a good laugh. They were all such good sports.

The party really kicked off with us Americans as the opening act. Our homie Kumar Bhaai had a little set up with a laptop and played Gasolina for us. Sudeep, Dikshya, and I were showing off our more modest dances moves and the crowd loved it. I was loving it too. It was seriously HELLA fun (I miss saying hella) and we even started an, "Aye! Aye! Aye!" chant with the crowd. When we were done messing around the mahila manche aka women of Chhaap dropped it like it was hot. If I knew Nepalis got down like that I would've jumped into the dancing scene way earlier. My bahinis were all a part of a dance as well, separated into their respective age groups.  Plug to KP, it was like PCC practice all over again! The rehearsal went til about 9:05pm and then the electricity in the village went out, as it does on a somewhat regular basis.  Everyone left to go home and I walked home in the dark with my little sisters and my Didi. 

I really can't describe the experience into words. It was one of those nights that you "just had to be there".  And I wish you all could've been there.

These young, fun, awesome villagers of Nepal showed me a great time. And so that is how tonight I fell in love with Nepal.

Nepaali nachna sikkaidinus na.

Love,

Bora