Happy New Year

I know it’s been ages since I wrote. So many times I’ve thought “I’ve got to put this in my blog” but it never seems to happen. The truth is that with the power off for 12 hours per day, when I do finally get to sit down at my computer there is so much to do that blogging gets put on the back burner. Right now the power is off so I can’t really do anything else, and I have a bit of battery time left on my laptop so I thought I’d write a bit and post it when the power comes back on.

New Year’s Eve was a bizarre day for me. I wasn’t at my best physically and I was in a total funk emotionally. On top of a bunch of little irritants, I was convinced that I had had yet another cell phone stolen, and this time on campus. I started questioning everything I was doing here and wondering why I would stay in a country where I was trying to help and was rewarded in this way. The good news is that by the en d of the day I was proven wrong (my phone had fallen behind a bookshelf) which helped my mood considerably. Of course I felt guilty for suspecting the students but fortunately I hadn’t made it public so no harm was done. I wasn’t sure if I felt like celebrating the new year or not, but since the power was off at home, I decided I should at least go somewhere where the lights were on. (I often take myself out for dinner when the power’s off at home – it just gets so dismal sitting and eating in the dark night after night.) When I finally found my phone, there were a few texts from the young girls I had spent Christmas Eve with, so I decided to join them in Thamel. It was a fun night of pub crawling and I’m glad that I made the decision to go out. Still, it didn’t totally lift my spirits and I am only now returning back to the land of the light-hearted.

I am not oblivious to the fact that we create our own moods, so I knew I couldn’t totally attribute my blues to the season, the darkness, the cold and the power cuts. I made some resolutions to look after my emotional health and have started to put them into practice. Last Saturday I went out to Bouddhanath, the temple in the Tibetan refugee part of town. Once you pass the gates onto the grounds of this temple, you truly feel like you’re in Tibet. The stupa is frequented mostly by Tibetans, and all the shops in the vicinity sell Tibetan goods. There is a wonderful vibe there and it’s nice to escape into the Buddhist world. I plan to visit as regularly as possible.

Later that night, I went out for dinner to find some light and warmth. I’m getting to know the local restaurants and often don’t venture as far as Thamel if I just want to escape the darkness. There’s a great pizza place around the corner that has gas heaters and a very cozy atmosphere (and also a decent house wine!). I enjoyed a really nice meal and could feel my spirits lift as I sat there. I’m not sure what element of the day held the magic: the visit to Bouddhanath, the two glasses of wine, the beginning of a new year, the 10 extra minutes of power we had that evening or the leather loafers and socks I was wearing. Whatever the reason, it was great to feel happy again.

A note about the loafers. I had a friend at home box up some of my winter clothes and shoes and send them to me. They sat in Canadian customs for ages before finally being sent here, and for some reason the two boxes arrived about a week apart. Only one of them has made its way to the post office, and I spent about 2 hours in yet another Nepalese ritual of insanity trying to pick it up. I can’t tell you how wonderful it feels to have warm clothes that fit and aren’t trekking gear. I wore the loafers out with my regular jeans and felt like a princess simply because I wasn’t in flip-flops or ratty old running shoes. I’m now wearing pumps and pantyhose to work, which has similarly boosted my sense of self-esteem. I’ll pick up the other box on Friday – can’t wait to find what’s in it.

As for work, it is definitely proving interesting and challenging. There is just so much that we take for granted that cannot be taken for granted here. The culture and education systems are entirely different and I often feel like I’m banging my head against a brick wall. Obviously there are some big issues, but I’m talking mostly about little things, like when you create a calendar you arrange it in 7-day weeks, preferably starting on a Sunday. The class schedule for this semester was arranged starting on Thursday, January 1 and running 11 days across. (And yes, they do operate on 7-day weeks here just like we do.) Anyway, you can imagine some of the obstacles I’m facing, given that my main role at the college is to organise everyone and keep them in line. As one friend at home said, it’s like pushing a rope uphill. On the plus side, I am getting to know the students better and am helping to implement processes and activities that are definitely having a positive effect.

Okay, the power is back on so I have to do some work. I’ll try to be more diligent in my blogging, but if you don’t hear from me it’s likely just due to the constraints of load-shedding.