Beautiful people, spiritual culture both Hindu and Buddhist, laughter and pride amoung the poorest of poor, incredible scenery and landscapes, and a strong work ethic make Nepal a delight to visit. At every turn I witnessed hard working people with the desire to please, if also to sell you something in hopes of making a little extra money for their families. There was very, very little begging where I went, except for the children who have obviously learned that the Trekkers carry "choco let". Evidenced by the strewn candy bar wrappers along the trail in the mountain villages, you know that the children have been successful in their quest for sweets. It is hard to ignore the big eyes, bright smiles, and the softly spoken "namaste" they utter before asking for the chocolate. The women, both fairly young, and the very old work hard all day long in the fields harvesting rice, carrying the loads back to the village on their backs, or endlessly doing laundry in a pan next to a small outlet from a stream or mountain spring. The men, well, the men work too. They play cards and smoke together in groups, do the business deals, heard the goats, and stack up the drying hay and rice into large domes to dry and store. In the cities, it's mostly the men who run the shops, wait the tables, and do the restaurant cooking. The men bathe first. And eat first. The driving is left to the men as well, except for the motorbikes. There is no distinction with who rides motorbikes in Nepal. Bicycles and motorbikes are fair game; cars and busses are for the men. Power outages are the norm, called "power shedding" to conserve electricity. Most people in the hills don't have electricity. They rely on solar. At the end of a long day trekking, in the tea houses along the way - you are very lucky if you get a hot shower. In the cities, generators are the rule when they turn off the electricity. The familiar hum of the generators can either lull you to sleep, or cause you to wake up your roommate and beg for a pair of earplugs. The food in Nepal is delicious, if you enjoy a diet based high in starch. Breads, potatoes, noodles, and rice make up the bulk of their diets supplemented by lots of Dahl (lentil soup), curried garbanzos, and for the brave - bits of chicken. I found the food quite to my liking, as it was a blend of both Northern Indian and Tibetan, both of which use all the spices I really find interesting. I never went hungry as the staff was always gladly refilling your plates as long as you kept eating. As poor as they are, they feed you and feed you for pennies (few rupees). The Nepali lifestyle is generous and hospital, and always warm and friendly. From my perspective, they live in a country of abundance, and they seem quite happy with what they have. And what little they do have they are more than willing to share! Shangrila?
