Get your game face on

Per landing in Kathmandu, I was whisked away into car with Tendy from The Small World (the Nepali NGO with whom were partnered). As soon as I had cleared customs, about twenty Nepalis or so had tried to carry my bag, sell me water, or pretty much do anything at my bidding in order to earn a Rupee note. Even though it's not the first or probably last time I'll land in a similar situation, it's still a reminder to get my game face on. Everyone wants a Westerner's money, but with a smile and no Dhanyabad, you should be able to stay in the clear. The game face by the way is not the game face of a football player about to face off in the Superbowl. No, not that kind of game face. This face is one that will ward of those relentless efforts from those wanting your money yet will also allow you to keep your sanity through a prolonged period of time. Think of it this way: if your game face which is designed to protect you is cold and harsh and caracterizes one who is going into battle, well, as the fable has it, it might get stuck that way if you keep it on too long- and three weeks of that kind of gameface would definitely leave some wrinkles- so one needs to adjust the game face.

This game face is welcoming...yet still sends a message that money is not coming out. But it's important to note that it's one of warmth. Yes, twenty people are after my money. Yes, they are all trying to rip me off. But the way I've attempted to train my game face is hopefully one of compassion- one that says- yeah- if I were in your shoes, maybe I'd try and rip off white people too- because let's get real, I probably would. Anyways, it's extremely important for anyone considering travelling in Asia to get a game face. It's important in order to be able to keep your money but also keep your sanity. It's like a semi-permeable membrane in a way. You want to keep some stuff in (like the money and valuables) but you still want to spread and let in warmth to connect with anyone no matter where you are or the circumstances.

Anyways- the game face comes back later, and so does this idea of a semi-permeable membrane. (Yes, I am a medical student so I tend to compare everything in life to cells and the human body and illnesses; there is just no escaping it anymore - I'm officially a nerdfighter - but I'm pretty sure I've always been one.)

Moving on, Tendy dropped Ann, the 17 year old rockstar volunteer from Colorado, and I at the hotel in Kathmandu where we both passed out for about 10 hours. The real adventure was to start the next day.

5:30am we were up and had a delicious breakfast of white bread and jam and then headed right back to the airport where we would wait for our flight to the Solu-Khumbu (Lower Everest) region of Nepal. The airport we were flying out of was nothing like any airport you've ever seen- but just wait for the one we land in. Check in consisted of us dropping our backpacks into a pile of other luggage, walking through a "metal detector" and then hanging out watching our pile of luggage move on to get ready for boarding. Because it was monsoon season, we were informed flights are canceled all of the time and hence, we waited about two extra hours before taking off because they needed to essentially deflood the runway.

The plane was a tiny 18 seater, and I sat in the back row with Tendy. It was by far the most turbulent yet exhilarating flight I have ever been on. I could feel every gust of wind and every turn of the wheel. Not to mention, the view over the Himalayas was something to feast my eyes upon. After 45 minutes of lush mountains, valleys and waterfalls, we approached Paplau "airport." This was a dirt runway on the edge of a mountain where if the pilot had not gauged it precisely, we would have glided right off the mountain into oblivion.

We were greeted by Karma and a group of high school volunteers from Shoulder to Shoulders who looked simultaneously bright eyed and weary as they were headed back to Kathmandu, and I knew it was time to once again get my game face on. After a brief orientation by Karma and his wife, Sonam, about the project site, TSW, and what we were to expect the next two weeks, we hiked about an hour and a half to the project site. During the hike, I was the equivalent of a sponge: soaking up the new sounds of mountain village life, the new terrain, the sites of the valleys. It was breathtaking. We were literally walking in the clouds. There was not a motor vehicle in sight. Men and women were carrying goods on their backs in huge baskets that they held up with their foreheads. These were called Namlos, and we were informed that porters will carry sometimes between 25-35kg on their backs for long treks. Two weeks later and every time I see a man half my age or three times my age, my jaw still drops.

After the hike, we reached the project site. Quick note on the project. Edge of Seven has teamed up with The Small World (TSW) to help fund sustainable and community driven projects that help empower girls to lift their communities out of poverty within their generation. This particular project is the building of a hostel for 40 11th and 12th grade girls so that they have a pace to live and continue their education. 7/10 Nepali girls do not make it to college (grade 11 and 12) because the colleges are located sometimes a few days walk from the girls homes. The girls are also discouraged from attending school because they would be leaving their families which means losing a part of the family's workforce. They would then be spending money to rent a room without adequate living capacity solely to finish 12th grade. Afterwards, they are still left without tangible skills to bring back to their isolated communities. The hostel, which is partly funded and built by Edge of Seven's American volunteers will really start to turn the tide for the girls and their communities. Not only will the hostel be a living area, but it will be a place for vocational training, life skills training, confidence building and health workshops- not to mention a place of community and a place where girls are encouraged to dream up dreams they were previously not permitted to.

Upon arriving at the project site, I immediately breathed in a gust of kindness and humility as I was greeted with Namaste after Namaste (literally meaning I greet the divine within you). Here, I met Kacey, a 21 year old volunteer from Colorado, and Ram, the project manager of the site and the liaison between the volunteers and the skilled workers. After a couple of hours of "leveling" (carrying blankets worth of mud from a high part of the ground to a lower part of the ground) and 2-3 cups of tea, it was time to meet our host family.

Ram took Ann and I to meet our family which consisted of Buwa (father), Aama (mother), the oldest Didi (Pashi-16), the younger Bahini (Nema-14) and the youngest brother or Baai (Tashi-8). We had a delicious cup of du-chiaa (milktea), headed downstairs to pack, and then returned upstairs for one of the most memorable dinners of my life.

Point of information- everyday between 9-10am and 6-7pm, the power is out.

It was about 6:30pm when we went upstairs for dinner. The wooden large rectangular eating room and kitchen was just barely lit by the fire burning in the corner under the stove. At the opposite side of the room were two benches aligning the walls facing each other with corresponding tables. We sat at the table on the right side and faced the one on the left. That is when we saw it.

Cue the Bullfighting music.

There she was... Hajuraama (Grandma). A few missing teeth in her warm yet terrifying smile, as she held a sharp hook-like knife. Ann and I looked at each other puzzled. She then went into her knapsack and pulled it out. The largest femur bone I have ever seen... and she just started hacking at it. At this point, my host family wasn't aware I was a vegetarian, but I was just in way too much culture shock to say a word. Then Buwa smiled at the femur bone and then back at us. He said, "Buffalo!" And there the buffalo went... right into the soup.

It was time to get my game face on.

Dinner was a little awkward to say the least. I ate the buffalo, quickly, and then even more quickly shoveled in some rice to hide the texture. My family looked at me like I was an alien, but I was determined to be a good guest and be a part of Edge of Seven's Clean Plate Club (CPC).