Cindy Lauper

If you haven't guessed, I have made a few changes with my hair.  This was not by choice it was mere necessity.  Hairdressers in Nepal are not overly familiar with blonde, which has gotten me in a lot of trouble over the past year.  

The last time I went to a salon I left with 30% of my hair gone, burnt, down the drain.  The stylist was trying to correct the green hue in my hair from this fun day.  It also didn't help that I did this when I first arrived to Nepal.  

Instead of pouring more chemicals on my poorly dyed hair, I decided to use Aveda Color Conditioner.  Great stuff.  One wash and my hair was brown.  I don't love brown, but it is a hell of a lot better than partially brunt blonde hair.  

I was looking for a change and decided to go back to blonde today.  What a great idea.  Not really.  I should have known it was going to be a bad day when both my babies were sick, my driver lost his phone, and the tailor was not done with my dress (oh the frustrations of Nepal).  

The result was not pretty.  This is what my hair looks like now:

What you see is a reaction between the Aveda conditioner and the bleach.  Note to self: DO NOT USE AVEDA COLOR WITH BLEACH.  

That is pink you see.  A sweet raspberry hue.  It is reminiscent of the '80s.  I loved the '80.  It is almost as cool as stir-up pants.  Maybe I could have my tailor make a pair of those too.   Then I would be totally rock'n out.  Or at least worthy of trying out for American Idol. 

So, I am back to square one.  I see brown Aveda Color Conditioner in my future.  It isn't all bad news though, I have become quite popular with my daughters, what with the close resemblance to Strawberry Shortcake and all.  

Sorry about the Sari

I bought a sari in India. At the time, I didn't realize that it was just a 6 meter sheet of fabric. I took it home and it sat in my closet for well over a year. Where the heck do you wear a sari, being white, in Dubai? I didn't think it was such a practical purchase, but you can't travel to India without buying one.

Luckily, Nepal has fantastic tailors who can work their magic with saris. I took mine in and told her I needed a LONG shirt to cover my Gs. She looked at me strange and said okay.

Apparently okay meant, 'I think that is weird and, as a Nepali, I refuse to make something that is not traditional.' Therefore, the shirt underneath is a postage stamp barely covering anything. As I was trying it on at the tailor, Axel picked me up to go to a work event. I had no choice but to wear it for 4 hours.

Sari observations:

saris are HOT (both meanings)

saris are fun but hard to walk in

saris are one of the most feminine things you can wear

local people LOVE it when a white person wears one

and if your Mormon, tailor your own blouse.

Summer Wardrobe

A much needed tailored outfit. White? What was I thinking?

All my kids need new clothing. The life of a child's shirt or pant is short in Nepal. There are very few options for cute clothing here. It is almost impossible to find something cute. I have resorted to using my tailor to make everything for my kids. The only downfall is the machines they use here cannot handle stretch cottons or jerseys. My machine can, but I am too lazy to make play clothing for my kids. The cute factor must be very high for me to spend time with my machine.

The risk in making clothing from a tailor is that you never know how it is going to look when it comes back. Between the language barrier and my poor drawing skills, it is always a surprise. Yesterday I got an outfit back that I designed for Sedona:

It is cute, it is fun, it is colorful...it is UP SIDE DOWN:

It cost me 2.00 and totally worth the laugh.

Tailor Made

I have been wondering how I am going to clothe my children while they go through their various growth spurts here. The clothing they have is a little difficult to look at let alone dress my kids in. It has been a concern of mine, until a couple of days ago.

Nepal has fabulous tailors and I heard that they make great copies of existing clothing. It works out well for me as I have so much fabric that I have accumulated over the years. So, I hunted down a nearby tailor and tried it out.

To my surprise the prepubescent boys who I gave the fabric to were the actual tailors. I didn't ask their ages, cause that would mean I would knowingly be contributing to child labour (In my mind, they are young looking 25 year olds).

They made some cute PJs for the kids. Heavah's pants were short because the message, 'The pants need to be an inch longer' got mixed up in the translation. Regardless I think they did a great job. They asked for $2.00 for each PJ set. I gave them a good tip and a promise of a lot more business.

Returning Home

Visiting my home. Not much has changed except it is missing my children riding their bikes and our 100 chickens.

Axel's Zen garden today.

Nepal took me by surprise this time. I never thought it would be such an emotional ride. While waiting for my friends to arrive from the Everest flight, I found myself welling up thinking about my life there and all the memories that I cherish. My driver joined me in the cryfest as he thought about Sedona coming outside every morning calling for her 'dai, dai'. We sat reminiscing of all the fun memories we shared together. It was unexpected and bittersweet.

Afton with Kumari girls

I have never been so connected to a physical place like Nepal. It spoke to me the minute I first arrived off the plane and I have never been the same since. I have told Axel that if I die, I would like to be cremated (however NOT in Pashupati) and I want my ashes to be spread throughout Nepal. It is a morbid way of me wanting to be back in the country I love. Plus, the extra dust would mix in just fine.

I think the reason why I have such love for Nepal is because it stretched me. For the first time, everyday life required strategy and creativity. Simply buying groceries was a feat. There was no neighborhood Albersons or Smiths. First, I had to go to the meat shop, then on to the fruit and veggie market, and finally, to the store that sold can and dried goods. Even my rice had to be purchased in a special section of town. For many people this would be an annoyance. But for me, it was an enticing challenge.

Lovely ladies in Patan

Life in Nepal was void of commercialism and competition. I don't think I ever thought about how I looked or what others thought of me (which is very apparent from all of my photos during that time). My worries were focused on whether we would be warm for the evening, or could I bathe my children in that water, or would the food spoil after 18 hours of no electricity? Strategic thinking was always in play. Rarely, if ever, did I ponder the color of my eye shadow or whether my house was clean enough.

A lot of my focus shifted during my time in Nepal. My family became such an important priority in my life because we only had each other. I also had more time to teach my kids and there was a lot of hands-on learning. My children rarely, if ever, watched television. (We often had no electricity anyways). Instead, my kids would learn about skinning a chicken, experiencing the cycle of life, or planting their own food. It came down to the basics. And basic living it was.

Nepal pushed me to deeply connect with my creative self. When I needed clothing for my children, I didn't have the option of driving to the mall and picking up something cute. Instead, I had to sketch something out, buy the fabric, and take it to a tailor. My creative juices were constantly flowing. It challenged me to look outside of, 'Oh I like that, let me buy it'. I was able to create something in my mind and do all the leg work that was required for it to be actualized, whether it was a sofa cover, a piece of furniture, or a piece of jewelry. I found that my right brain was in constant motion. I loved tapping into that, something that isn't nearly alive in me as it used to.

I think I love Nepal so much because I loved the me in Nepal. I loved the me that could get my hands dirty and explore the jungle, I loved the me that would be willing to jump off a bridge, and I loved the me that found opportunities to serve. Had I not lived in Nepal, I would probably not have known that side of me, as a mother, wife, individual, and citizen of the world.

Visiting Sarita's family. They hosted a very special Tihar puja for my gang. The generosity and kindness was immense.

Most importantly, I miss my children and family in Nepal. I miss the unique experiences we had there and the relationships that we developed. We have reminisced about our lives in Nepal several times since we have moved to Qatar. We are often moved from laughter to tears as we recall the many joyful experiences we had there. Inevitably, the conversation ends with the kids smiling, sighing, and then saying, 'I wish we were still there...'

The lessons I learned in Nepal are many--too many to list. But, the most important one I learned is that I am fortunate. No one can drive the streets of Kathmandu or visit a Nepali village without feeling overwhelmed with gratitude and thanks. While I lived there, I felt that way every single day. This was not because I had material wealth, because anyone can obtain that. Instead, it was because I was fortunate enough to live in such a beautiful country, with beautiful people, living a beautiful life. For that, I am truly blessed.

PS - More can be read about our girlcation adventures on Afton's site here.

Shopping

Since the minute Deondra got off the plane, we have shopped, shopped, shopped. We have spent countless hours in the tailor shops and I hope to have a great post about all our creations.

In about an hour we are off to Chitwan for two days.

Thailand Lag

I am so ready to wrap up this trip and what a shame because Thailand deserves more than two posts. But alas, I am sick of the travel log and I am sure you are too.

By the time we made it to Thailand we were all pretty tired. We had tickets to go to Koh Samui (a small island in southern Thailand) and tickets to Phenom Penn in Cambodia. We were hoping to visit Angkor Watt, but the trip was going to be too taxing on everyone so we cashed out on both destinations and settled in Bangkok. The kids were happy to have time to sit, relax and do nothing.

Hanging out at the hotel

Swimming some more

Sareta (one of our didis in Kathmandu) joined us for the Thailand part of our trip. We were so happy we could get her a visa. She LOVED Thailand. Imagine seeing paradise through a Nepali's eyes?

Exploring the temples

Strangely, all the tailors in Thailand are Nepali. Many of them have never even been to Nepal but they all speak perfect Nepali. I find it quite funny that Axel had to go to Thailand to have a Nepali make him a suit. But really, it is a great deal, you pick the fabric, they come to your home, and you have the finished product in 24 hours. The tailor not only got the suit finished in time but also 4 custom-made shirts and 4 ties for under $300. It was better than what he could have done in Nepal, and Axel looks like a million bucks in the finished product.

Where we got the yummiest Som Tum for less than a dollar.

Purple, pink and yellow rice in the supermarket. I got busted for taking this photo. It was so worth it.

Bangkok street scenes

We ate tongue thinking it was beef. And yet, it was still seasoned soooo yummy.

Riding the skytrain. A first for Asa, ever.

A real playground without sharp metal edges! Yeah!

Daddy putting on the worst puppet show I have ever seen.

In case you need a specific kind of haircut

The sex trade in Thailand is worth noting. It really gets to you after while. There are so many different scenarios and so many gender confused people there. It was difficult to be around because there were so many middle aged, fat, American men with young girls or young boys. What is most amazing is the fact that they have no shame. In the malls, on the streets, in places you would never expect--there it is. At first you can't help but say, 'Oh my gosh! Look!' Then, after about the 20th case, you try not to look anymore. It really is the dirty secret of Thailand's thriving economy. And sadly, it isn't much of a secret.

Thailand at its finest

Roaming

Eating the yummiest food court food ever

We did ALOT of this during our trip

The time in Thailand was surprisingly relaxing. We didn't feel like we needed to do too much because we know we will be back. It is our refuge. It is just a short plane ride away. It is a place where we can feel human again. It was a great place to charge up before we left for home.

On to the aquarium...