Nepal Trip December 2000 - page 7
Bob Schmidt & Rupa Hamal
1 Jan 01 - Happy New Year
Rajesh had talked with us about going cycling sometime before we left. However, due to the country-wide strike, he was unable to travel to meet us. He kindly asked that Roshan arrange to rent bicycles and go cycling with us. Rupa, Roshan, and I walked over to the Thamel area and picked up some mountain bikes.
We found one small enough for Rupa, and one large enough to fit me. They were well used, but all the gears and brakes worked.
Chairman Mao, Benevolent Patron of Cyclists Everywhere
I never thought I'd have much good to say about communists, but the strike resulted in a great day for cycling. The rain had taken care of some of the dust, and the air quality was good. Only pedestrians and a few cyclists were on the streets. We rode out of town, heading Northwest. The road climbed uphill for about 4 miles, next to a forested hillside where the King has a summer palace.
We passed several groups of hikers and school kids on bikes. Some were on school holiday and wanted to race me up the hill.
After we reached the pass leaving the Kathmandu valley, the road curved around and followed the hillsides with terraced farms and small towns. The views were beautiful. We could see tour buses still stopped outside the town from the strikes.
We passed school children who either shouted "Hello!" or "Goodbye!" when they saw us, or tried to figure out how to ask for money in English. After we turned around, we found a roadside convenience store and stopped for coke and biscuits.
The descent back into Kathmandu was chilly since the hillside was in shade. We finally emerged from the shade at the bottom of the hill and warmed up on the way back into town. Roshan returned the bikes and we walked home. A very satisfying day of cycling, thanks to Roshan and Rajesh.
Although the strike was enforced by leftist coercion, it would be kind of nice to have a planned "vehicle holiday" every so often, say one Sunday each month. On these "Earth days" pedestrians and cyclists could enjoy the city without so much congestion and pollution. Maybe the Nepali parliament can try doing something constructive like this instead of messing around with No Confidence motions and such.
The Wisdom of Granny
During the course of our stay Rupa and I had several conversations with Granny. She often misses life on her farm, but stays active with prayers and dispensing wisdom to anyone who will listen.
She often tried to speak to me in Hindi, reasoning that since I was a foreigner I would understand it (Hindi is the only foreign language she knows). She sometimes referred to me as "American Son in Law".
At one point I tried to "apply" for a job as foreman on her farm. She wasn't too interested, but seemed encouraged later when she saw me painting the window frames. She also lectured me on "stealing" Rupa from Nepal - Rupa's formative education years having been spent there. She suggested that Rupa had now spent "enough" time with me, and she should stay in Nepal with Granny. I could come back in a year and visit if I wished (and presumably do some more house painting!)
Granny says that we are born, and we die, with nothing. Why then should we put so much importance on material goods, since we can't take it with us, so to speak.
2 Jan 00
Today the general strike continued. We packed most of our luggage and walked over to Rita's house for breakfast. Again, walking was easy because of the general strike.
We talked and played with the computer for a bit. Ashok and Rita are planning to build a house and we talked about their plans for that. Walking back toward home, we stopped in a cousin's house and had cokes and snacks. Rita had to walk to her clinic to check on a child with suspected food poisoning.
We walked back home and finished packing. We had some concerns about transportation back to the airport because of the strike. Occasionally we saw vehicles with a sign marked as "Tourists only" on the streets.
Rupa and I visited the houses of some cousins who lived down the road. Then we went back home for a "farewell meal" prepared by Rupa's Mom.
Leaving Nepal
Rajesh arranged for a friend who owned a taxi to take us to the airport. He was quite brave, wearing a motorcycle helmet while driving his car to protect against the possibility of thrown rocks. He also brought a large friend along for protection.
We had our last dinner with Rupa's family, and said goodbye to everyone. The drive to the airport was uneventful. We checked all our luggage, then called back home to Rupa's mom while waiting for the plane.
Leaving was emotional and hard, especially with such a long plane ride ahead of us.
Arriving in Amsterdam, we found that the Air France flight we were scheduled for had been cancelled. Hurrying from one desk to another, we finally determined that we had been re-booked on a KLM flight to Paris. We made it with just a few minutes to spare. Once again, the Paris airport was chaotic, with huge lines. Finally we took off for the transatlantic flight to Philadelphia.
Philadelphia was cold but familiar. Our luggage failed to arrive with us, but did arrive a day later. (I am starting to notice a pattern on this happening when passing through certain European airports).
Acknowledgements
Rupa and I would like to thank her family for a wonderful trip - taking good care of us, and making sure we saw so much of the country. Our thanks and love to Rupa's Mom, Granny, Rakesh, Rajesh, Rita, Ashok, and Astha. We look forward to your visit to our home, and the chance to extend the hospitality to you that you gave to us.
