Blog 7 -- Day 1 in Pokhara

It is time to share more with all of you about our trip to Nepal!  On our third day there, we woke up very early to head to the airport (which is really NOT necessary in Nepal, because flights are NEVER on time but usually delayed by a few hours.  We got rather used to this, and personally I enjoyed not being in such a fast-paced, time-conscious country as America).  So Day 6 of our mission trip (without a shower yet!) was another day of travel. 

This trip was beautiful!  The Himilayan Mountains are so tall that we could see them out the window of our airplane during the entire flight from Kathmandu to Pokhara.  Pretty amazing.  The only not-so-pretty part?  Asha throwing up on me.  I think she had so much drainage from her runny nose that her body just needed to get rid of it.  Oh well.  When someone that cute regurgitates all over you, you just don't mind.

We arrived at the Pokhara Airport--a very small airport where there is usually only one or maybe two airplanes on the ground at a time...and sometimes none at all.  It was nice to walk right up to a table and collect our luggage.  Then we met Om Maya's younger brother Arjun, who had two taxis waiting for us, and we were whisked off to the homes in which we would stay.

This was a beautiful drive!  Pokhara is completely different than Kathmandu--not nearly so crowded, noisy and dirty.  Kind of like the difference between New York City and Colorado Springs.  The further we drove, getting into the more rural part, the more beautiful it was.  Om Maya pointed out the house where she and Abraham used to live when they worked with YWAM Pokhara and pastored the church they planted there.

Finally, we slowed down on some dirt roads next to very rural homes that belonged to the family Michael and I would stay with.  Fresh air, farm animals, bee hives and beautiful scenery thrilled our senses!  Now this is what we were looking forward to experiencing in Nepal!

We met Bir and Somjana Lama, Abraham's brother-in-law and sister, in whose home Michael, me, Om Maya and Asha would be staying.  We also met their son Rabin and daughter Ranjana, who would do the interpreting for Michael (preaching) and Sasha (children) at worship the next day.  Purdimaya, a friend from church whom Sasha and Gil would stay with, was there also to welcome us.  They served us...you guessed it (if you've read previous blogs)...dahl bhat and chicken for lunch, with a delicious homemade pickle relish.  It's actually not anything like American pickle relish.  It's a relish made from pickled peppers (and I'm not sure what else)--some versions spicier than others, and very delicious!

Then...drum roll please...I got to take a hot shower!!!  Yes, they had a hot water heater in their home, praise God!  Now, you need to know that a Nepali hot shower is nothing like an American one.  You do not stand under a shower head with hot water flowing continually all over your body.  You fill a large bucket with hot water, then use a cup with a spout to scoop it up and pour it over yourself.  I'll tell you what, though, when it's been six days without a shower, it feels like luxury. 

Asha got a bath too...but a little differently than the rest of us!

Unfortunately, after my shower and Om Maya's shower, the electricity went out (which frequently happens in Nepal).  So no one else from our team got to take one yet.  I felt bad for them, but since I had throw-up on me from Asha and they didn't...I didn't feel too bad.  Later on, we discovered it had just been the breaker.  As Om Maya frequently said, "Oops!"

 

That evening we went to the YWAM base for their "Friday Fun Night."  Om Maya really enjoyed seeing some of her old friends there.  Michael was roped into the games immediately, so we all had fun watching him play their goofy games.  Then we had a surprise treat--the YWAM staff was hosting a traditional Nepali meal that night, like their ancestors!  We went into a candle-lit room and sat

 on the floor in one huge circle.  Plates and bowls made from leaves were set before us, and...you guessed it...rice and lentils were served onto our plates.  We also were given chicken and rabbit to eat with our dahl bhat, plus a strange addition that looked really out of place--M&M's.  Several community drinking containers were placed around the room, and we were shown how to drink out of then without touching our lips to them.  And of course we ate Nepali-style...with our hands!



 

The staff were all dressed up in traditional clothing, the men wearing a curved knife around their waist, in clothes similar to a toga.  The women had on beautifully colored dresses and saris.  It was an incredible experience.  Bir and Somjana were both there because he is on staff at YWAM.

We walked home that night with a beautiful sky full of stars and the

mountains peaking down upon us from behind the trees.  I slept hard for a while--it was so peaceful in the Lama's home.  Then I woke up around 2 am with thoughts running through my head of what I would say to the women later that day when I taught the women's fellowship after church.

I can hardly wait to tell you about our time at church the next day!



a friend of the Tamangs, on our walk to YWAM, separating the rice from the chaff