My friend Joti doesn’t understand why the monkeys at the Swayambu Buddhist Temple aren’t all over the city. Joti may only be five years-old, but he makes a good point. I can only figure that they monkeys are smarter than people and prefer not to walk through the crazy streets of Kathmandu. After all, Buddhists are very nice to animals and tourists love to feed them – so who needs to doge cars, motorcycle, cows and water buffalo to get try to get a banana?
Joti was born a Nepali but adopted by a French couple at a very young age. He has a two or three year-old brother as well who I think might be his genetic brother. I didn’t get the details from his mom and Joti really was more interested in discussing my iPad, monkeys, Swayambu and beaches.
Joti speaks only French and doesn’t respond to Nepali at all – although the staff at our guesthouse made their best effort to see if he could understand them.
Apparently, French values have already set in very strongly because Joti is also unimpressed with English and despite me showing him the illustrated Alice in Wonderland book in my iPad, the fact that it was in English made it of no interest to him. He clearly understood that I wouldn’t be spot translating it to him, so he preferred to return to viewing our photos.
But ever since Joti found that I speak French and will share my iPad with him, we have become good friends in the last three days. Joti quietly ignores the fact that I have trouble remembering to use the informal tense one is supposed to use with children and I quietly ignore the fact that he can’t read English and has absolutely no idea what he’s doing on my iPad.
We both ignore the fact that his younger brother always runs up and says things that I clearly can’t make out because he’s about three years-old and I have no ear for baby-French.
Besides our Little Prince and Fox routine in which we have replaced a wheat field with an iPad, Joti and his family are also interesting because they are an aspect of something wonderful in Nepal – adoption of Nepali children. With all the cute and disadvantaged orphans here, it is wonderful to meet a Joti and to see a success.
It’s also phenomenal to see how French this little adorable Nepali kid is and that if I met him somewhere else, it wouldn’t run through my head that he’s Nepali. Mindset and outlook are such environmental and culturally acquired things. It’s amazing.
But this morning I had to say goodbye to Joti. Emily, with her determination and persistence made miracles happen and got us into the Hotel Vajra. So, we awoke with a newfound spring in our step, said goodbye to cold showers, musty rooms and slow Internet and moved on up like George and Weezy.
Sitting here on the rooftop garden of a hotel that feels like a small Newari-style palace surrounding by tree-filled grounds, Kathmandu feels like a completely different place. We have a clear view of the Swayambu Buddhist Temple and its cheeky monkeys on the hill above us, and looking down into the valley below, we can see all of Kathmandu sprawling in every direction.
We were given a choice of rooms. The one we took is on the ground floor, in the corner of the building with big windows, beautiful dark-wood furniture and a separate sitting room. The owner’s son thought we would like it so we could work there.
“We’ll take it!” flew out of my mouth as I nearly teared up at the sight. We are now working with the best Internet we’ve had here. And the place feels like a palace. The hotel was built in 1979, but was constructed of fixtures and decor far older. So, it feels like a historical gem with intricate woodwork and traditional Nepali brick and hardwood decor with gorgeous stone floors and accents. We have stepped back in time in one sense, and jumped lightyears ahead in another.
There are also people cleaning – everywhere.
Vajra saved Nepal because as of yesterday, it was so hard to work, we seriously questioned if we could stay at all. Things are now looking promising.
We have learned several things from our first week in Nepal. The first and foremost is that we aren’t doing what many tourists do in this part of the world. Working and traveling is not common in a country like Nepal. We are swimming against the stream here.
This will prompt us to be more careful and inquisitive as we go through India, Laos and Vietnam – the places we suspect we will have the most high-speed Internet difficulties. It may change some of the places we travel, or determine the places we stay. We may need to go a little more high-end than we had anticipated. We are not traveling the way we did five to eight years ago.
We have also answered some of our own existential questions. Although Internet and work were the primary impetus for our logistical change, we cannot deny how grateful and happy we are to have changed lodging. We like comfy beds with clean comforters. We like hot showers. We like clean.
Unlike my twenties, I find myself very into my spray hand-santizer. I can’t wait to wash the Kathmandu off me before bed. Nasty restrooms no longer just bother me – but they often disgust me. Instead of thinking “Well, that’s Nepal….”, I think, “Really, someone can’t get out a little cleaning chemical? I know they have it in every store and it’s cheap….even here….” I long to grab a bottle of X-14, spray the restroom silly, and run for my life – because that stuff is really like bathroom cleaning nepalm.
At the same time, we’re blessed. We have so much. I refuse to think that we couldn’t make do and be happy with less. Life has its ups and downs and we’re not royalty. But for now, I think we’re both becoming comfortable with the idea that we work and plan to have certain comforts and abilities. They shouldn’t get in our way of experiencing and enjoying the world – but it’s okay to have them.
Maybe that’s the lesson of Kathmandu at age 33. The lesson of Kathmandu at age 5 is that 33 year-old Americans and the monkeys have something in common.
Sent from my iPad
