Today I arrived in Banepa from Kathmandu. It's about an hour's drive, but feels much further away than I was anticipating. This is actually a good thing, because I have missed the mountains (probably "hills" in Nepal)and am thrilled to be within walking distance of areas away from the city. Banepa itself is a large town, with most everything you need right here.
My homestay family (consisting of Tikaji, his wife, 2 sons, 1 daughter, 2 daughter-in-laws, and 2 grandsons), is wonderful and has been extremely welcoming. When I arrived, I was met with many people gathered near the kitchen and found out that one of Tikaji's sons teaches a cooking class. Today we got to try potato soup and fried rice! One thing I'll soon be getting used to, however, is the fact that I can't just go where I feel like it and stay where I want. In general, Nepali families are very much a unit and very involved in each other's life. Privacy is not valued here as it is in America. Not that this is a bad thing - close families are great - but it will certainly take a bit of getting used to! To make things worse, I found out that one of the Fulbright staffers called Tikaji when I got sick at Indra Jatra, so I'm not only a western woman (2 strikes against me) I'm also "sickly"! Sigh...
I look forward to exploring Banepa and the surrounding areas and getting to know the people here. I should begin my work at the Kavre-Banepa Deaf School on Sunday. I'll post pictures soon!
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