Good Morning Kathmandu

As I am slowly adjusting to the near ten-hour time difference, the other morning I woke up at 6 a.m. and, for the life of me, could not go back to sleep. So, just before the city began to stir awake with its familiar sounds of incessant honking and barking, I crept up to the rooftop of our volunteer house in Naya Bazaar to steal a glance of the morning sun as it spread across the sprawling city.

Morning scene of Kathmandu from the rooftop of our volunteer house**

Many of the homes in Kathmandu have water tanks on the rooftops because the hot water is solar powered. Although I have yet to take a hot shower, I have been told that in the early afternoon if I let the water run for a couple minutes the water eventually heats up.

Our volunteer house in Naya Bazaar

There are currently three other volunteers staying with me in the house: Agatha from Mexico, Danielle from Minnesota, and JoAnne from Holland. There are also two house caretakers who are Nepali, Meena who does all of the cooking for the home, and Ram Dai who tends to the upkeep of the house, gets water, etc. We have dinner every night together and attempt to teach other English and Nepali, with the occasional dance party, which can be quite amusing.

Both Ram Dai and Meena are from rural Nepal and work in Kathmandu to earn money and send it back to their families. This seems to be fairly common among the Kathmandu population, as the country is experiencing a shift toward urbanization. Furthermore, remittances from Nepalis working abroad has become a growing generator of income for the country, accounting for approximately 25 percent of Nepal's GDP.

Typical house in Naya Bazaar

The Kathmandu District, where the volunteer house is located, is within the larger Kathmandu Valley, which consists of the Kathmandu District, Lalitpur District and Bhaktapur District.

The city of Kathmandu comes alive during the day when motor bikes, cars, bicycles, and even tuk-tuks weave in and out through the bustling streets. As a pedestrian, crossing the road could be compared to the Frogger video game because you have to cross in front of one car, then wait, then go behind a motor bike, and then in front of another car... but it seems that there is a method to the madness as drivers go just slow enough to stop when needed and honk as they come up behind another vehicle or person. There are no lanes, very few traffic lights, and loads of honking.

Street scene a few blocks from our house

One of my favorite pastimes has become wondering the streets of Kathmandu and just embracing the scenes of daily Nepali life. Market stalls line the streets filled with fruits, vegetables, and—most often—fried foods such as samosas and doughnuts. Many vendors set up shop on the side of the road selling everything from spices, cut fruits, and roasted corn, to children’s toys, balloons, and shoes.

Although at times the city can seem hectic and crazy, as I experience more of Kathmandu the mystery of such a foreign place is beginning to unfold before me like a very colorful, complex puzzle. Each time I venture out, I am able to see a bit more of the bigger picture that makes up the masterpiece of Nepal.

**I tried to download a video of the morning sun from the house rooftop, but the Internet connection here is very slow, so most likely the blog will just have photos and no video.