Nepal: Part I

Words couldn't describe how excited I was, sitting, squirming on the airplane chair, counting down the hours to land in Katmandu and meet all the people. Yes, I was nervous, but excitement pulsed through my veins as I thought of the snow-capped Himalayans, all the people I was going to meet, and all the adventures that awaited me. Sitting on the 5 hour flight from Guangzhou, I prayed for my mother, asking God to ease her heart and to not worry so much about me - I was about to embark on a whole new adventure. An adventure I knew that was going to change my life.

I know what you're thinking - this is as cheesy as it gets - and you're so right. I would like to think that maybe I'm not the kind of person who needs soul searching or weird cleansing trips - but I think at the end of the day, everybody does. Everybody needs time to themselves and everyone needs to escape the life that they know for a little bit. Taking care of yourself means putting yourself first every once in a while. That should never ever be a crime. 

I took out my little plastic notebook, telling myself that I would journal everyday once I'm there. Oh how ambitious was I! (lol) I think I knew in my heart that that was never gonna happen. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

These were the original words that I wrote in the pre-soaked-through-thanks-to-fucking-monsoon-season journal: 

"Well God, I'm off to Nepal! 16 days of hopefully beautiful moments and genuine happiness. I can't say I'm not a little bit nervous. But what I really really hope is that I make really good friends. This summer has started off pretty horribly, and I hope things can turn around and teach me great happiness, and show me real love - Your love, Your beauty and good friendship."

How lucky am I to recieve all those things?

hehe.

Nepal.. Where do we even start?

I mean, Nepal itself was rough. The country is seriously struggling. There is some serious poverty, some serious littering and some seriously weird stuff going on there that I have never ever seen before. I know culturally I will just never understand what's going on, but still, driving down the roads, you feel like you're going to have a heart attack every four seconds. Because cows are sacred in Nepal, and eating beef is not allowed, there will be cows just standing around in the middle of the god-damn fucking roads! l even encountered a woman just casually cracking a cold one with the cow, pouring the cow a nice, chilled bottle of Mountain Dew. And even on slithers of mountain-side roads, people will still try to pass one another on the road WHILE THERE'S A COW SITTING RIGHT THERE!! Like no sir!! NOT SAFE!! GO BACK!! 

Oh my god - and civilised honking is not a thing. No sorry, I should say it's more of a 'I'm honking because I have nothing better to do' kind of a thing. They honk at everyone and everything!! No matter if there is anyone there, everyone is just trying to keep passing one another and I swear to God it's like the damn Grand Prix here. Oh yeah, I didn't even mention all the people hanging out of buses trying to guide the bus on the way. Yeah that's a thing too. Knowing the mom in me, I want to tell them to put on their damn seatbelt and sit the fuck down. Safety first people!!!

Even though I am a Christian, I honestly learned so much about Hinduism and Buddhism - and I really learned to respect the religions. It's truly fascinating to see the commitment that every person in Nepal has to their religion and how much effort and trust they have in the Gods above them. They even have living Goddesses that they worship in their temples. Their process of picking the goddess is truly interesting. Something that I know if I were apart of the religion could not trust. But the process of picking their Kumari (their living goddess) is truly a difficult and meticulous process - the Kumari must be around 3 to 5, she must be from Nepal, part Hindu and part Buddhist descent. She is chosen strictly based on her look, and is chosen based on the Nepali belief of their perfect version of beauty. She must walk on dead animals after she is chosen and not cry. She is put in her temple and is unable to come out unless it is her holiday, or on special occasions. The Kumari is only freed after she becomes a "woman" (awkward I know, wait for it - when she gets her period), and is then able to live her life normally under governmental funding. She is then replaced and the whole process starts again. It's strange to me because all Kumaris look rather similar. They wear sooo much eye makeup, and seeing such a young girl, a baby, wear that much makeup kind of made me upset. When we visited the Kumari, we were not allowed in because we were not Hindu, so we waited in the courtyard where she comes to the window sometimes to see visitors. After waiting for a solid twenty minutes, she appeared at the window. She looked so young. Her youthful, smooth face seemed disdained with angry and impatience. When someone ignorantly tried to snap a picture, she looked even more angry and immediately flung her robes and whisked away from the window. I can't imagine living up there at such a young age. Not allowed to meet other kids, I think I would grow and look pretty impatient too. Learning about this tradition was truly an experience for me. One that I still can't really grasp as I type it out to you. I wonder if you are as amazed as I am. But that's the whole thing about Nepal - they never cease to surprise me.  

Anyways, moving on...

Nepal is beautiful.

First off, The nature - I was breath taken. The mountains were like they were straight out of painting. The kind of paintings that show every brush stroke and detail of the muscular, tall built mountain. Green filled the world, and there, that was the most green I've ever seen in this planet. Unharmed, untouched and innocuous. I could recite one of my very Chinese poems about how goddamn beautiful these mountains were in that moment. As I river rafted with my team, although the water was murky brown, almost like caramel coffee, I reminded myself to put down my paddle, look up and take in the view. These long suspended bridges never ceased to amaze me. They were delicately pulled from mountain side to mountain side, and we waved as children jumping up and down on the bridges waved back to us. You see houses and houses built on stilts, you see some of the houses affected by the terrible, terrible earthquake that Nepal had to face in 2015, and how people were still full of courage and full of heart to rebuild and move on.

The rapids around us were thrilling. This was my first white water rafting (or should we call it brown water rafting ha), and the waves were gnarly bro!!! It was extremely fun, and my team couldn't be any better. Later that night, Rachel told me at the river camp how when we rafted, you could notice that your mind was thinking about nothing but the water - that there were moments in time where you stopped thinking about the things that have been weighing your heart for weeks and weeks - and for just a moment everything is not important - it's just you and this poopy coloured water - and you're here. Surrounded and cradled by the towering mountains. In Nepal. One of the most beautiful places in the world.

Then the trek began.

Watching the waterfalls fall from one high point to another, swifting from left to right, falling from the boulders and connecting at each delta is truly a sight. A sight like no other. I remember the sunbeams falling through every branch and seeing the bright blue water, so clean and glass-like. When the water overflows, it overflows onto the rock formed stairs that we have to climb down - and man, is that a sight. As the water falls from stair to stair, it's like the stairs were putting on their water capes. So pretty. And then suddenly while I'm stuck in this trance of fairytale ladida waterfall world - I remember seeing a FUCKING water bottle in this very, very deep cave below me.

Okay, so I don't know if you're this kind of person - but when I see something that really, really bothers me and I know no normal person would do anything about this because it is such a hassle, I literally cannot go or leave the premises without trying to make it better.

So there I was, looking at this leech filled and probably fire plant (bitch of a plant that makes you itch and makes your skin feel like FIRE) filled cave - and that one damn. big. ass. water bottle. Curse you, litterer!!!!!! I found myself lowering my body into this deep, deep cave, feeling the dirt slip into my shirt and the wet surface on my skin. I felt the scratches on my legs and the blood dripping down my thigh as I dove down to get this stupid ass water bottle. 

I told Chris my terrible climbing experience and how I just couldn't possibly walk past things like this, like come on, this place was filled with crystal waterfalls, it's untouched and should be kept untouched. I mean I would like to think that my kids could see this one day! So, Chris, was so quick to point out a water bottle that I had missed trapped under a rather vicious waterfall. Thanks Chris. I forced myself into the waterfall, getting my feet all soggy and pruny like an old grandma and felt the freezing cold water as I waddled to get this other stupid stupid water bottle. 

I got them. But please people, DON'T FUCK WITH NATURE! Leave it as it is. Like we have so few coral reefs. Don't you want to travel the world and be amazed? Don't you want to see the world as it is, be taken back by just how beautiful the world can be? I know I do. So let the world continue to be amazing. I watched as the water overflowed onto the stairs, and falling onto each step after the next, I couldn't stop thinking how beautiful it is, that our world can hold something so spectacular. 

Then came the one thing that changed me.

Looking at the snowy Himalayans, staring at the Fishtail and the Annapurna. The roaring mountains surrounded me with snowy powder perfectly sprinkled on each mountaintop, my whole world was turned upside down -

Wow.

I felt the tears in my eyes start to form and I think to myself - ew, when did I become this kind of person who cries at extravagant, beautiful, and most magnificent views?!? - But I did. I felt the tears rolling down my cheeks and I thought:

God is truly magnificent. 

The snow-capped peaks are untouched. They are untouchable, bounded by the spiritual laws of Nepal, no one has ever climbed on top of it. No one wants to. No one wants to touch or mess with perfection. I love that. That even after years and years, people keep to this one tradition. A tradition that preserves the good and the pure. A tradition that preserves what rightly isn't ours. A tradition that preserves what we've been sooo lucky to be granted and blessed by God.

Well, my friends, we have come to the end of Part Uno. I know I just used a gazillion words to describe my experience, but truly, I can't tell you how much this trip had affected my life, how it moulded me to forget certain things, to grow stronger in my faith, and to gain something so important right now - perspective.

Peeps, I'll tell you more about perspective another time. ;)

Love ya lots.

OH yeah, you're never alone.




                                                                                     


                                                                                                  - teeny, tiny & terrified.






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