Ada Bhayo

Halfway done with my initial 3 months at site, halfway to to spending almost 2 weeks with my fellow peace corps volunteers, and halfway to seeing my first host family again for a night, and halfway to my second language assessment. I have now been at site for almost 7 weeks! It has absolutely flown by, I can't believe it has been 7 weeks here, and over 100 days in Nepal. In most ways it seems like it has flown by but when I think back to April, to saying goodbye to my family, friends and favorite foods it seems like an eternity ago.

How to capture life at site? We are encouraged to spend the first few months learning about our community, making friends, and practicing Nepali. I am happy to say that I have been making progress in all those tasks! I feel incredibly lucky to have been placed at this site. In my first week here, I met one of the most warm and welcoming people I have ever met, and she immediately embraced me into her family and has quickly become my closest friend at site. She is patient with my Nepali which allows us to go beyond the usual questions of "how many siblings do you have, are you married, can you take me, my husband, my child, to America with you in 2 years." She also makes really delicious khaja, or afternoon snack. I think knowing that I have at least one close friend makes my time here feel much more natural.

Exploring a green tea farm

During our training, the country director talked to us about the benefits of being an English teacher in peace corps, brought in to do a specific job, at a specific time and place each day and the benefits of being a Agriculture volunteer, a job that we are tasked with designing as we see fit to beat improve food security. For teaching English, you are largely spared the awkwardness of having no idea how to fill your days. You can tell people a concrete job that you're doing, and they will understand, and you can feel like a professional. I on the other hand have to tell people: "I'm here to do agriculture and health work" and try to explain that I will try to improve the soil health and access to a variety of nutritious foods, but often this explanation is greeted with a blank stare. Other times, this explanation is greeted with people pulling up or down an article of clothing and asking me to identify a strange looking rash. I am learning my place within the community, just as the community is learning my place within it. As one of my fellow volunteers said during training: "seek first to understand, then be understood." I am patient with myself to understand how I can begin to make strides toward increasing food security in my community, the first step of that being to understand my community itself.

There are many waterfalls near me

And what an enjoyable task that is! Some days I work on this task by hiking, meeting people on the way and going to their house to talk. Some days I work on this by helping my family with farm chores and cooking. Other days I go to the health post to learn about what sort of health problems are common, and to spend time with the great staff who works there, and always make me laugh and feel welcome.

On his day in particular, I am actually leaving my community for the first time! I am going to the district capital, besi sahar, to spend 2 nights with my fellow lamjung volunteers. I am eager to hear about their sites, as each brings different challenges and joys. I am also eager to eat brownies, ice cream, and momos which are all available in the district capital. Just after writing that, I just received a text from my friend who I am meeting there that there is a bhanda on pasals (the shops are on strike) today. So to be determined as to the availability of those treats, but allowing you to read those sentences back to back as I get information allows you to get a sense of what it's like to be here. Unsure of plans, adjusting to new information, and understanding that everything will work out. Even if you may not get ice cream or brownies.

Merro naam Samana Ho

During pre service training, my Ama gave me the name Samana. We were walking together up to the barri (non-irrigated field) to water the cucumbers, and she wrapped her arms around my shoulders and said "you are Samana." The name Samana means one who faces challenges with strength and bravery. It's a name that fills me with power as I remember it's meaning, remember my Ama telling me as I left to permanent site: "Samana, Samana huncha." Samana is Samana, reminding me that she recognizes that peace corps is challenging but repeatedly telling me that she is confident that I am strong and capable. 

My name serves as a constant reminder or bravery in the face of unknown and of all the love I have been shown in Nepal so far. I have been at site now for almost 3 weeks. My site is in the district of Lamjung, which is in the western development region of Nepal. I live in a sea foam green room, under the mosquito net that makes me feel like a princess, my walls peppered with photographs of family, friends, and cards of encouragement (but I didn't bring enough to decorate with, so if you wanna send me photos or things that make you smile...), and my door opens to our courtyard and a view of the Himalayas. 

Learning to plant rice in Panauti

The first week I was here, I attended a 9 day training for the new female community health volunteers. These women are the backbone of health in village, they come from all around the vdc, a section of the lamjung, some walking 3 hours to attend the trainings. Once they have received hear trainings they serve as a liaison between the health post in the bizarre and their own village communities, spreading awareness about preventative and curative health. They're powerful people, and it was a really great group to start my time in village with. Also the kajah (snacks) was always really delicious, which as anyone who knows me knows was a huge selling point. My government counterpart was leading these meetings, and every so often would ask me to contribute where I could to the discussion. I talked about AIDS in America and how it's spread, various immunizations, that I eat bananas and drinks more water if I have diarrhea, among other things. 

This past week I have been planting rice with my family. Rice planting is hard work, first the fields must be prepared: plowed using o

Rice paddies and a peak of the himals in the background

xen, the grass growing in the field removed, holes and passages for water to pass through dug, and walls surrounding the field built. Rice seeds are planted in nurseries, and these seedlings must be collected- removed from the ground beaten against a rock to remove the soil from the roots, and bundled into little handfuls ready for transplanting. Then comes the actual transplanting! Several women stand in a line in about 6 inches of mud and water and plant the seedlings in the khet (irrigated field). The lines must be straight, evenly spaced, and the appropriate number of seedlings added. The first two days it felt like I was never going to get it. My lines were all over the place, I would try to jump in only to become immediately confused, and have to have someone correct me. On the third day however they said: "ropne ayo!" Which roughly translates into "it's a miracle! The American isn't as spatially challenged as we thought! She can kind of do it!" The time in the kheta was a good opportunity to get to know my family better, be present in my community, and assert my interest in krishi ko kaam, agricultural work. 

So there you have it, Samana being Samana. In honor of July 4th, I want to say that I'm thankful to come from a country who's government supports an organization that exists solely to promote peace through cultural understanding and community based development. I'm thankful to be here, it's not without challenges, but I'm surrounded by people who are eager to know me and welcome me into the community. I am Samana