5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

My, how time has flown! When I came home to New Hampshire in December, I had more spare time than I knew how to use. Now, of course, I'm wishing I had somehow set aside a bit of that time since I only have five days left before I fly out of Boston (to London to Doha, Qatar to Kathmandu) with Emily and Jessie, two of the other Cornellians in the Cornell-Nepal Study Program. There will be seven of us in total: the three of us, three grad students, and another undergraduate from Haverford College. I'm so glad to have people I know coming with me; we had great fun together this past semester in Shambhu's Nepali class and will make a fun and cohesive group in Nepal, I'm sure. The real challenge will be getting along gracefully with our Nepali roommates, whose cultural backgrounds are vastly different from our own. A few examples:

-People in Nepal generally eat with their hands (the right one only, please! Your left hand is your bathroom hand). Now, considering that a typical meal consists of dhaal-bhaat (lentil soup and rice), I'm not exactly sure how one is supposed to accomplish this. I'll find out soon enough!
-Americans tend to be very casual about sharing their food and drink - you can reach over to someone else's plate with your fork to try their food and it's no big deal. In Nepal, however, nobody shares food, not even within families. Once your food touches your plate and you start eating it, it is considered jutho, polluted, and must be thrown away once you're finished.
-In Nepal, your feet, being the lowest and dirtiest part of your body, are subject to many rules and customs. Any footwear that has been worn outdoors is jutho, so when you come inside you switch to a pair of slippers. In general, it's best to sit with your legs folded underneath you somehow, because pointing your feet at people is considered rude as well. Finally, if you're walking by someone who is seated, it is extremely rude to step over them, because in doing so you have put your feet, the dirtiest part of the body, above him or her. I'm afraid I'll end up forgetting this rule a lot and having to concoct many an impressive apology!
-Everyone is much more conservative about exposing his or her body. In the U.S. you might change clothes in front of roommates or teammates, but definitely not in Nepal; if you want to change, you lock the door. American men don't have to worry too much about their clothing, but women need to be very careful not to expose their shoulders, chests, stomachs, or legs (calves and above). Tight clothing and shorts are also no-nos.

I'd love to go on, but:
a. I feel silly writing too much about Nepali customs when I have yet to experience them firsthand
b. It's late, and I have a long day of errands with my dad tomorrow. Time to start all that last-minute shopping...

So,
Arko post pheri bhetaulaa (until my next post)!!!