Food, Culture, and a little dash of Perspective.

I am a firm believer that food and culture go hand in hand. You can learn so much from taking part of the food anywhere you go. Today has been full of culture, and also food.  Today we had one of the most delicious breakfasts ever. It was Puri (a Nepali fry bread), a lentil/chick pea/curry soup and some curried potatoes. If I had to choose one meal to eat for the rest of my time here it would be that. It was not what you think a breakfast should be. You see, I grew up in America with the typical breakfast of hashbrowns, eggs, bacon. Yet this was so nice to eat and simple. When we came back from Yoga we were starving. Just over an hour in a humid studio with incense burning the whole time can really work up an appetite. We came back and had at least two plates of it.

After breakfast we went for some straight culture back at the Patan historic center to be blessed by a living goddess, Pumari. It was really interesting to dive deep into this cultures beliefs and traditions. It makes me wish I brought shoes that were easier to take on and off as we enter classrooms, homes, and temples. Luckily things are cheap here so it will be easy to get some more. I am taking big drinks of this culture and I love everything I am seeing and participating in.

Today we spent time here at the LA group observing kids and playing with them. Seriously though these kids love cameras. I wish I was joking with this but i’m not. The kids had such goofy smiles and addicting laughs. Once one of us would start laughing it would carry on to the others around. The new application for this program should ask “Are you able to be a human jungle gym for kids? Why/why not” because that is what we end up being.

We were able to have a good conversation with one of the runners of the program here, Shristi. I was curious since I am an ambassador at SUU, how much is their tuition. Her answer still makes me think more and more. She said it was 2000 Nepali Rupees per month for the tuition, plus another 100 Rupees per month to live in the hostel. 2100 Rupee’s for their education at a very strong institution here in Nepal. That comes to about $25 USD per month. That shocked me. As a college student, my paychecks are maybe 200 or 300 dollars per month and I run out of that money quickly.

To end this post today I want to share one of the many quotes that are displayed all around this beautiful campus. “Live gloriously, not glamorously.” This describes the Nepali people I have met perfectly. They do not have much, but they have it all. And then here I am, thinking before my trip everything I need to keep me entertained for a long flight and not about the experience that is happening before my eyes. Namaste.