Adventures, Journey, Surprises 🇳🇵
We had heard stories, yet until you experience it you don’t fully embrace it. Kathmandu was a bit of a challenge in terms of pollution and dust. When talking with locals they shared that it was not like this 15-20 years ago. Nowadays, mostly everybody has to wear a mask when they leave their homes. We did a lot of walking within different areas, probably not the smartest idea given the conditions, but it is the fastest way of getting to know a place. By looking, hearing, smelling, and feeling…the key is to just observe it. There are moments that get to you, if you are not fully alert, and you can be thrown off.
On the second day, we learned our lesson and decided to take a taxi. As we were waiting on a small corner, buses, cars, bikes, and pedestrians were passing chaotically, we saw a car with a sticker of the Brahma Kumaris (BK) symbol. We recognized it immediately and said “Om Shanti” to the driver who had his window down. “Om Shanti” is how we greet each other within this spiritual organization, it means I am a peaceful soul. The man that was driving stopped immediately and turned around with a huge smile. He asked us where we were heading to and was kind enough to give us a ride.
Later on we tried a yoga class, and explored around a little bit. Mitch felt drawn to a little shop, in between another million shops, that seemed to have Nepali dictionaries. As we were deciding among a few dictionaries, Masé noticed the BK symbol again and greeted the shop owner with an “Om Shanti”. After a short conversation, the shop owner directed her brother to lead us to the BK center down the street. We arrived in the tranquil part of downtown and walked into the open-air plaza of the center. One of the BK’s welcomed us and allowed us to enjoy some time for meditation in a very powerful and uplifting space. It is incredible how everything happens so quickly sometimes, as if there was a higher energy in charge of it all. As if yes, we are in control, we write our own scripts, yet there are things that are meant to happen and they will happen!
Fully recovered after the lovely hospital experience, after being able to cook our own food and feeling stronger and healthier, we decided to head to our first workaway in a small village near Gorhka called Patiswara. Great decision to do it on the Saturday when everybody goes back to their villages to celebrate Dashain...
Dashain is the longest and most auspicious festival in Nepal. It commemorates a great victory of the gods over the wicked demons. The main celebration glorifies the triumph of good over evil. Every home is cleansed and many luxuries and gifts are acquired to offer to the gods. Thousands of animals are prepared for slaughter in order to share among family members. During this time, lots of stores close down and it gets harder and harder to find groceries, which we obviously did not know. On the tenth day family members from far away are reunited and receive tika and jamara, along with the blessings, and some money, of the head of the family. It is the two red marks in the forehead, symbolizing protection and abundance for the upcoming year, being red as a symbol of blood that ties family together. This function continues for four days. After four days of rushing around and meeting your relatives Dashain ends on the full moon day, the fifteenth day. The whole country is in festivity, wearing their best outfits and all slowly you notice how everyone is wearing the tika and jamara. It is beautiful to see.
We arrived at 5:15 am to the bus station, thinking it was pretty good for a 6:00 am bus. However, poor calculations on our part as there were already over 2,000 people there running frantically around. We were running from one counter to another, finally got tickets, it seems like you really have to make your way or else you won’t be able to get to where you need to go! The next step was to find the right bus, it was still dark and there were so many buses in such a small space and so many people moving, talking, music on the background…a little intense. With a lot of persistence we found the bus and got on, just to wait an extra hour until they decided to leave an hour after the scheduled departure. Such a great lesson to let go of time and control. This was probably the most surreal, intimidating, chaotic, confusing, bus ride, while at the same time a confident and trust building experience. It was almost like, so many things were happening each moment, and when you thought that was the craziest thing of the day, something more impressive or scary would happen. Then we laughed and said alright we have to fully surrender and accept.
Second bus, even more people here, not sure how this bus is able to drive. In moments of confusion, it has been extremely helpful to listen to recorded meditations and spiritual talks that one very special soul in Sevilla has been sharing with us daily. It feels like we are protected. Interesting also that the crazier it gets outside, the more powerful thoughts that are created inside:
We need to have enthusiasm and contentment no matter what. If you maintain your energy you can share it with others, without losing your stage. The mind is so powerful. Some thoughts can take you somewhere completely off, and so that means that you can also take it to wherever you want. Bring it back! Being in the moment, observing, aware of what is happening and unplugged from it. Your thoughts create you attitude and your energy vibrations towards others. Behind every moment there is a positive lesson. Acceptance, understanding, and transformation needs to take place. How wonderful it is when you can’t communicate with words and your communication reaches another level. You share with your presence, your face, your eyes, and your energy.
All of the sudden, the bus stopped, turned off the lights, and everyone got out of the bus. Again – no idea what was going on. We asked an older man and he said in his thick Nepalese accent “Last stop”. At this point is was pitch-black out and we were never indicated which stop was ours, so at this point you could say we were in a bit of a pinch. We got off the bus and instructed the driver to throw down our backpacks that were secured on the roof of the bus. Once we got our bags, now it was time to figure out where the heck we were. We explained to the man who was standing outside of his house where we were trying to go and he said we were very far away. We called the workaway host and told the same story, thus leading to his immediate laughter. We had no idea where we were or where to go. We were instructed to walk 30 minutes into the woods to meet Maki (the workaway host).
Do we walk 30 minutes in the foothills of Nepal to find a man we have never met before with our heavy bags in the middle of the night? Do we try to convince this complete stranger to allow us to sleep in his house?
Right when we were gathering our bags to make the trek into the woods, a truck was slowly passing the house. Everyone standing outside of the house, including us started yelling “Hey, hey, hey!” The truck stopped.
The owner of the house and a man from the full truck exchanged a few words, when all of a sudden the man from the truck said to us – “Maki? Friend of Maki?” We were thrilled to hear a familiar person’s name and we replied “yes, yes, we know Maki.” His response was the biggest relief we have felt yet, “I am friend of Maki, get in truck, we go to Maki.”
This man just saved us.
We threw our bags and our bodies into the bed of the truck, trying to squeeze into the little space there was between the three people already in the bed along with the bags of rice, food, and beer.
The truck started up and we were off to friend the mystery man of Maki.
Up and down, left and right, we maneuvered through the dirt/rock roads of the village. We stopped and they said to get out as we waited for Maki. In the distance we saw a flashlight wobbling down a path. The man from the truck shouted – “Maki?!” and there he was, it was Maki!
Maki and his friend hugged one another. Maki said “Hey guys, let’s go to camp.” We followed Maki with our headlamps illuminating the pathway. We arrived to the camp about 10 minutes later to a small camp fire with a group of people huddled around. We quickly introduced ourselves and stepped into the kitchen area where two full plates of dinner were waiting for us. We dropped our bags, ate, and went back into our sleeping quarters. We were exhausted, a little dazed and confused as to what exactly just happened that day, but completely relieved that we managed to find ourselves sleeping together in a safe place.
Published in Pohkara, Nepal.
Next Post - Workaway Experience in Patiswara, Nepal
Namaste and lots of love to you all.
M&M
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