Inspired by the India success stories/advice thread, I am wondering how many Nepali-American couples there are and what stage you are at in the journey - it would be nice if we could have a thread where we could share our experiences, advice, favorite MoMo recipes... My husband Govinda and I are just putting our papers together, so we need all the advice, prayers and moral support we can get - I am sure there are others in the same boat... Dhanyavaad daididiharu!

I'll second that... great idea Pattu Rani!

And may I say that the wedding photo you've added to your profile is beautiful!

Cheers,

Maya

Thank you - it's one of my favorites - I love the look on G's face. If only his Didi was not adjusting my tikka when the photo was taken...

I am worried now that he hasn't emailed/IM'd in 2 days - just checked ekantipur.com, no bandha, so ke chha??? It's about 10PM there so most of the cybercafes should be closing... I am at work now so I can't phone him or his family but will try before I go to bed, early morning NP time. Damn I hate not knowing if he's OK or not...

very nice picture n a good thread pattu rani !
hope to hear lottts of successes from our neighbouring country too

Now I'm hijacking the Nepali thread.

Have you guys tried PMing the new Nepali VJ members? I have not seen them on the South Asia forum at all, maybe they don't even know it exists!

Maybe electricity problem is a factor in not hearing from your honey in 2 days, Pattu Rani. I'm sure he's OK!

You could just airbrush his Didi's hand out of the photo... (I didn't even realize it was there till you mentioned it! Both of your beautiful, shining faces made the hand non existent for me! )

Update: I had a nice long chat with him this morning - apparently his Baa is sick with what sounds like the flu(in August??) - body aches, coughing - and G took him to the doctor yesterday, so he wasn't able to get to a cybercafe. But yes. electricity problems are always an issue - my nickname for Nepal is 'land of Never Ending Power cuts And Load-shedding'. Lots of eating dal bhat by candlelight until the power would come back on

Thanks Doc! I really like the thread you started - always nice to read other people's stories and experiences!

thanks pattu rani lots of good wishes n prayers for your faster reunion with your G
-Mala

Hey advice seems like ya both in same situation like i was. I am white my wife being indian this is main reason we didnt get visa and got that denial crap two times. be carefull get lawyer i would say something i should have done long time ago. I am so pissed now grrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Hi everyone! I'm on what seems to be eternal standby for NOA2 (or an RFE) to get to me. My app hasn't even been touched since June 19th! It's been 5 months since I've seen Rajan and he's getting antsy too. The worst thing is I can't even take a short trip out to see him as I'm 6-months probation at my new job until December 25! We talk everyday and chat everyday... still not enough. Thank goodness for others in the same boat. How can you stand it?! I have to remember I'm not the only one and to be less whiny. Unfortunately, I have no advice to give.

Hi Putali! Glad you stopped by. I know we're poor substitutes for your sweetie, but we can keep you company while you wait for your NOA2. If it makes you feel any better, when it comes to Removal of Conditions, CSC is fast and VSC is slow... I know, I know... it doesn't make you feel better. But hang in there...

Glad to hear you got a job, though... that's great.

Hey, do you guys all know about this site:

http://www.newsnow.co.uk/newsfeed/?name=Nepal

I enjoy keeping up with what's going on in our other home, and sometimes there are articles about expat Nepalis in the US and elsewhere, too.

Our son is at soccer camp this week, learning how to be even more American than he has already become in the past 2 years We were singing a Nepali song in the car the other day and he announced that he didn't want to sing a Nepali song, that he is an American and he wants to listen to 99.5 FM (rap station)! Ke garne??

Ah well, the only certain thing in life is change....

*sigh*

Maya

Cool site - do you know Nepal now has a new, king-free national anthem?

I am trying to get G to teach me some Nepali songs - I have lots of Nepali CDs but cant sing along to them Does your son ever listen to Nepali rap? Yes, it does exist

OMG, that does sound like a long time... If it's any comfort, I probably wont get to see Govinda until NEXT MAY(unless, of course, he comes here first)...... I work at a college(not as a teacher, unfortunately) so can only take my vacation during school breaks and maxed out my annual vac allowance so need to wait to accrue more time.... I am hoping I can be there with him for the interview. Just curious, how much do you pay to go from CA to KTM? How many hours travel time?

[/quote]

Cool site - do you know Nepal now has a new, king-free national anthem?

I am trying to get G to teach me some Nepali songs - I have lots of Nepali CDs but cant sing along to them Does your son ever listen to Nepali rap? Yes, it does exist
[/quote]


Yes, I read about the new national anthem on that Nepal News Now site! I just found a link to an audio of it from BBC:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6930099.stm (look in the upper right hadn corner of the page for the audio link)

You may have to wait until you have your own personal translator in residence to figure out the words to some Nepali songs. There's still one verse of Resham Firiri that has me stumped! But I'm learning. That was the first Nepali song I learned... S wrote it out for me in Nepali and English when we were first getting to know one another.

Yeah, we have found some Nepali rap online, but I only have high speed at work and we didn't buy any Nepali rap when we were there in June, so that'll have to wait, I guess. He just wants to listen to what all of his friends are listening to, so I'm not even sure that Nepali rap would fit the bill. He's all into BLENDING, just like every other 11 year old, I guess. I vaguely remember what that felt like, so I try to humor him to some extent. But NO gameboy!!! He says I'm mean. I remember saying that to my mom, too.

This too shall pass.

Maya

Sorry you are going through that David.

Just wanted to add some encouragement though because I am white and my husband is Indian and we had no problems.

Maya! Welcome back from Nepal! I so envy you! Good to hear you are doing well... As far as the topic goes, I love Nepali songs! Mero Raj is somewhat of a minstrel of the mountains. He sang and sang to me during trek and one particular song stuck with me. I am learning this song now to sing at our wedding... Ritu Haruma Timi by Arun Thapa. Amazing lyrics... nothing in English can compare. My biggest concern with Rajan is that he will assimilate too fast and too completely. At work I keep pictures of his humble farmhouse and his three buff to bring me back to earth once and a while.

I have to ask Govinda if he this song, sounds beautiful - maybe we can sing it when we have our wedding in NY... I have the same concern with him - we had a lot of talks and he has said he would never forget his family values, his Nepali ways... There are a lot of Indian and Nepali people here who somehow assimilate enough to get by but definitely do not become 'typical American guys'. I am not assimilated - I wear salwar kameez every day to work, eat desi food almost daily and go to mandir at least once a week and G has said he loves this about me...

He loved to sing to me all the time too, I miss it, so sweet... Does Rajan also like to dance? I call Govinda 'the dohori king of Jayabageshwori' because I have never met a guy who loves to dance as much as he does - there is a song about a woman named Dolma who goes to Pokhara - he would always request it at dohori clubs when we would go dancing. I put a photo of the view of Pashupatinath from his apartment terrace as my computer wallpaper so when he comes he will always feel like he is home.

OMG I am feeling SOOO technologically challenged right now. But after MANY attempts, I finally uploaded a few photos to my profile.

If it makes you guys feel any better, mero maya is holding on to his culture and sweetness just fine. We still sing in Nepali and dance around the house and eat lots of dal bhat and speak in a strange mixture of Nepali and English. We have pictures up and a little Buddhist shrine in the living room, and prayer flags and marigolds on the porch. Feels like home. I'm sure you'll all be fine. In fact, there are probably a lot more cultural "touchstones" available to your SO's in your more urban settings than there are here.

I am so excited about both of your visajourneys... I'm re-living the whole thing through you guys! Pattu Rani, hurry up and send in your paperwork!! Not to add any pressure...

There's a video of that song Ritu Haru Ma Timi on YouTube (typed the title into google). Very pretty!

Stay cool (it's hotter 'n blue blazes here in VA right now!)

Maya

It feels like Chitwan here in NYC - hot and muggy!!!

Your photos are gorgeous, thank you so much for sharing them! I can relate to speaking 'Neplish' with G Do you know how to make chili momos? See - I was not kidding about the recipe part - I've been craving them like mad and I've seen recipes for momos but not for chili sauce - I think Tabasco or something like that would be too thin. If I could get some yak cheese I would be in heaven - yak cheese 'C' momos are now my favorite food!!! I can make pretty decent dal but not like G's mom - gotta work on that.

I was just telling G this morning that he needs to send me his PP photos so I can get the ball rolling -

'Resham Firiri' - *sigh* that brings back memories... When G and I were staying at the Boudhanath Guest House there was a house or store nearby that used to play a beautiful flute music CD every morning - 'Resham Firiri' was the first song... I remember those mornings, just G and I together, cuddling, talking, drinking masala chiyaa, listening to the birds and the music... Please tell me we will have more mornings like that???

You will have a lifetime of mornings like that!

When are you planning to file for K3?

I am waiting for Mero Raja to send me his passport photos and his mailing address written in Devanagari - I have everything else ready to go, except I have some concern about the 'evidence of bonafide marriage' - I think some newlyweds skipped this part and didn't get RFEs, but I am a little confused. I am sending some photos of us with G's family, at our wedding, honeymoon, engagement, etc. If I need to submit affadavits from G's family that will slow things down even more. I want to get it started now!!!

Today I went ape-wild at the Indian market and bought everything from Chana Besan (chickpea flour) to asefetida. Don't know exactly what I'm going to do with it all but I'll figure it out. I can make a mean veg momo and the tomato achar to go with it. Gotta be a good Nepali wife you know. The other dishes I'm missing from Nepal are the curried pumpkin leaves, the spring rolls at the tea lodges during trek, those super-sweet suntalas on the way to Ghorepani, and caramelized buf milk. I second the yak cheese comment! I LOVE YAK CHEESE! Did anyone go to BK fries in Kathmandu?

It's a funny thing about Nepali love songs. Rajan translated a few of them to me and I found them to be so tragic! There was one lyric by a male vocalist singing something to the effect of "I went to your wedding and saw another man put the sindoor in your hair". I forget that a society of arranged marriages would of course produce music with another set of problems unknown to us westerners used to love marriages. So sad.

Anyways, here's my favorite picture I took of my mother-in-law-to-be and mero prem in their home in Chitwan:

Click to view attachment

Putali didi,

Do you have 'The Nepal Cookbook'? I've made a few things from there - it has a good basic dal recipe and i think a pumpkin leaf tarkaari recipe. I want to learn to make our favorite dessert, sikarni - of course you cannot find that heavenly Bhaktapur dahi here, but I will try my best with the 'Desi Dahi' from the Indian store. Basically it's sweetened yogurt with ground cardamom, haldi and cinnamon - you drain some of the water from the yogurt so it has more of a custard-like consistency. Some recipes call for almonds and/or raisins. It's very addicting stuff and not served at most restaurants in Nepal - G and I tried it at a fast food place in Jamal and both loved it.

I think Nepali spring rolls would be pretty easy to make - basically you make some veg chow mein, roll it up in the wrapper and fry it... I want to try to make some cheese and spinach momo - can't get yak cheese here of course but I am going to try paneer crumbled and see how it comes out - any tips on making tomato achaar? We both love chili momo so I need to figure out how to make a nice chili sauce.

BK fries - that is my favorite place in Thamel!!! Now I am craving some frites with tandoori mayo...

So your sweetie is from the Terai as well? Maybe he and G are distant cousins?? I love the photo - so cute!!!

Check this out: http://www.amazon.com/Tibetan-Yak-Cheese-O...m/dp/B0000D9N9O

Haven't tried it (I'll be darned if I'm paying $20/lb for ANY cheese), but it's here...

I've tried several things from the Nepali Cookbook. I've also taken liberties with one or two of their recipes... they came out well even so. Our favorite, and an easy dinner, is a kind of fried rice with whatever veggies you have on hand, or chicken if you eat chicken. Yum.

Never ate at BK Fries. We've gone to Thakali Kitchen the past few times, which is good, imo, especially if you are treating numerous relatives!

Cute pic, Putali!

Y'all bhainis have a good Monday, y'hear? (that's southern Neplish)

Maya

Mm, fried rice - sounds like biryani - nice to make with any leftover steamed rice you have around.

There's this guy on another board(YetiZone) who was always raving about Thakali Kitchen so I had to try it the last time I was in Thamel - went there with G one evening - very nice place, excellent for Newari food. The one complaint I have about Newari food is it's very hard to find veggie dishes. Sekuwa looks so delicious I wish there was a version made with paneer of tofu...

Are you observing Tij? I don't know if Buddhist Tamangs celebrate it or not, maye just a Hindu festival... G's family are fasting every Monday(until evening) until the full moon(I think) and then on the full moon day married women wear red and go to the temple to pray for their husband's long life and happiness - a nice custom I think. Raksha Bandhan is also coming up.

Hehe - southern Neplish pheri betaunla y'all...

I'm still dreaming of spring rolls. Spring rolls on trek are monstrousities... huge fried vegetable turnovers, as big as calzones! I think I must have ordered one of those at every lodge we stopped at. I've been getting my recipes from Rajan's older sister. She and the rest of the women in Rajan's family are amazing cooks. Granted, she can't give me amounts, only can tell me what's in the dish and what order to cook them in. Thanks for the yak cheese link Maya! I'm a huge cheese freak and I love yak cheese. I'm dreaming about grilled yak cheese and tomato sandwiches right now. I know it's expensive, but I swear I'm going to order some!

Rajan told me that the Thakalis are famous for their cooking, not that they cook very different foods from any other ethnic group in Nepal. I understood them to be masters of flavor and food preparation, the Thakalis in Nepal are what the French are to European cuisine. In Tatopani, I had the tastiest meal ever... best dahl bhat tarkari and grilled fish prepared by a Thakali cook. You know how they say the way to man's heart is through his stomach? I think Rajan's really marrying me because he says I look Thakali. Hehehehehe...

I didn't try sikarni, but it seems very similar to a yogurt dessert in India, so it goes for many dishes in Nepal.

Ok, so enough about food already! It's damn near midnight here and instead of raiding the fridge, I need to go to sleep. I have serious separation anxiety. I talk to Rajan everyday, sometimes twice a day and it's not enough. I heard that writing your congressperson helps the process along tremendously. I made a first draft to Senator Barbara Boxer. Do you think it'll work? What if I get my friends and family to sign a petition with the header "Please find below signatures of support from wedding guests and your constituents."

I'll go recite my mantra...

I believe Tij is Hindu... I haven't heard of it before so I searched it. It does sound like a nice idea...

The guy raving about Thakali Kitchen is probably Yakshaver (Daniel Ionita from Australia, but now living in Romania I believe). He actually had a role in how I met S!

Putali, I'm not sure if writing to your Congressperson will help at this stage... you might want to ask on the main K-1 forum. But here is a thought from our experience, with a little background first: S and I met in Sept 04. I went back to visit him in March 05, which, if you remember, was a month after King G declared sort of "martial law". We had lost touch for a week that first week of February, along with the rest of the world, when G cut the phone/internet/mail/everything. I was fairly freaked out about the situation, having lost touch (like everyone else in the world) with S for several days, so we attempted DCF. We failed, and when that happened, I spent an afternoon firing off emails to both US Senators and our Governor (what was I thinking... the Governor??). I wrote about how unstable the country was and how worried I was about S being there. Both Senators' immigration aides wrote to the Consulate in Kathmandu and received essentially the same reply, which was copied to me. Basically, it said I didn't meet the residency requirement to do DCF and we should file for a K-1. So that's what we did. And from there, our process was very fast.

All of this had nothing to do with USCIS, so I can't really comment on whether contacting a Congressperson will help you now at the petition stage, but I have a sneaking suspicion that our emails helped us get through the Consulate in Ktm lickety-split. But we'll never know!!

Gotta run and get to work! Hang in there, you guys...

Maya

FYI, in case you didn't know already, the US Embassy in Kathmandu is moving to a new location. Here's a quick link to the news, as well as info about the new Ambassador (link to her bio in the upper right hand corner, too).

http://nepal.usembassy.gov/

Cheers!

Maya

Thanks for the info - G mentioned the move to me a few days ago but I didn't know there was a new Ambassador, interesting...

There was an interesting article in this week's Economist about economic inequality in Asia - I glanced at out of curiosity and guess which nation has the most unequal distribution of income? Sadly, Nepal, by a wide margin. China is #2. It certainly explains the popularity of the Maobadi movement. Kind of ironic though, that China is moving away from Mao's philosophy while many in Nepal are embracing it.

How do you guys call each other? I've been using prepaid phone cards but it's a pain and there's no call record. I learned the hard way not to call direct from my home phone - I called once and the cost of that 30 minute call was... are you ready??? 230 DOLLARS!!!! Not rupees...dollars So I've used the cards ever since but I'm looking for a cheap way to call where the company will keep a call log that I can submit at the time of G's interview.

Mmm, grilled yak cheese and tomato sandwiches... and you're in CA where you can get some nice crusty sourdough..... Oh malai kasto bhok laagyo....

From some brief history lessons in a my distant past, the reason why Mao Tse Tung's particular brand of communism was popular was because he sought to assemble and empower the peasants/farmers (who lived in extreme poverty and of which most of China's populations is comprised of) against the Nationalist government that really wasn't doing the country any kind of good. This is a very similar situation with Nepal's poor and the current monarchy. The reason why Maoist ideals failed is because they displayed too radical ideals that were manifested in agendas and practices that resulted in the killing of many innocent Chinese and the blatant destruction of anything seen as a clinging to the old ways (temples, statues, cultural events). As long as there is poverty, radical ideals will always appeal to a population that has no other hope. The main reason why China has changed its ways is because of the influence of capitalism and its needs to play nice in the global arena. It's a catch-22 really. Nepal is the poorest Asian country with the average life-expectancy around 50-55 years (I believe it's even less if you're a woman). All these facts put Nepal on par with the poorest of the sub-Saharan African nations. For people to embrace Maoists ideals shouldn't shock anyone. While on trek you see Marx quoted in Nepali and in English (to make a point to travelers, I'm sure). The women, I'm constantly reminded, have it the worst. No rights, little legal recourse, no hope. Is it any wonder why Nepalese women are the most eager to join the Maoist movement?

When I was in Kathmandu, I went to the Yak and Yeti location for consular services and I immediately thought, "Who the hell would put an embassy here?!" Did you know there's a casino in Yak and Yeti? In any case, I think it's a good move. The site where it's located now is a real hike since it's near Tribhuvan Teaching Hospital, but at least it's away from the madness, like the Indian embassy.

Pattu-didi, to answer your question about the phone card. I don't use one that logs phone calls (at least I've not asked if they do). I'm not too concerned about that since Rajan and I are very regularly in touch by snail mail letters, g-mail chat, e-mail, etc. I do get a receipt for every phone card I purchase. Log on to www.pinonsale.com. There are several cards I use, but my all-time favorite is the L.A. Unlimited Aggressive. This "card" is the greatest. I think I spoke to Rajan for 2 hours straight for $5. You can even make two separate calls and make it stretch farther. There is a trick to this "card". The first call should be relatively short, say 15 minutes. Then you'll still have reserve funds left. But the next call can be unlimited. It's great. And the sound quality is amazing. One caveat to this card is that you must be calling a Kathmandu number. If your honey lives outside of Kathmandu, it should still work, but you won't have unlimited. This goes for most of the "cards" this site offers. If you want to try it, I can give you a pin number and you can call G. Good luck with it!

Thanks Putali for the history refresher!

If the Maoists can move into the mainstream without further violence and/or intimidation (a big IF), and get representation for the agendas of women, ethnic minorities, and other under- or un-represented groups in the Nepali government, then perhaps all those innocents who have suffered and died at the hands of the Maoists will not have died in vain. Was it necessary to go this route? I don't know. What country has gotten to some kind of political equilibrium (with representation of most/all constituents) without bloodshed?

I am concerned about the elections in November because S says that intimidation at the polls is very common, and the Maoists certainly haven't shown any signs of playing by the rules so far. And some of the numbers I've seen are just ridiculous. 300K+ Maoist surrendered 3K+ weapons? C'mon! And how many poll monitors will there be? A few dozen? What good will that do???

I don't know... I just don't know. I want to have hope, but some mornings when I read the headlines, I just get so discouraged.

Maya

Sorry I haven't logged on in a while - G's family is going through rough times - mom has been sick and they also have been having trouble with their landlord. My own health hasn't been great either - I picked up some hitchhiking parasites(Giardia) which haven't wanted to leave - finally went to the dr. to get meds. Thanks Putali didi for the phone info - will take your suggestions - $5 for 2 hours - kasto sasto chha!!

Recipe update: ever in the quest for 'something like Bhaktapur dahi' I tried Fage Greek yogurt for the first time and it is the closest thing I have tasted - expensive but tastes like 'real dahi'. Also it is strained like the recipe for sikarni calls for so I think I am going to make some this weekend - I'll let you didiharu know how it comes out!

I got a mini care package from G with some 'pustakari'(mmmm) and blessed rudrakshas from Pashupatinath, also he sent me his pp photos and copies of citizenship and passport, so I am almost ready to file - I think I just need affadavits from his family supporting our marriage which I hope won't slow things down too much more - I miss him so much...

Do you read ekantipur.com daily? I used to but it gets my blood pressure going so much sometimes. I am also afraid about the elections - remember a couple of years back when they had elections, I forget how few people showed up to vote but everyone was afraid.

Hey Pattu-didi! You look too happy to be a Nepali bride

True - I have seen some Nepali wedding photos that look like mug shots...

It was the happiest day of my life so far - I think it will only be topped by the day when G finally arrives at JFK, visa in hand - so much to do until that day...*sigh*

Nice new wedding pic, Pattu Rani! Sorry to hear about G's mom and the landlord ickiness. And I hope you're feeling better.

I have taken hundreds of photos now (in two separate visits) of family and friends in S&A's village and his sister's village, and I've really tried to resist encouraging people to smile, but sometimes I just can't take all the serious expressions and I foist my cultural bias on them and tell them to smile! They smile a lot anyhow when there isn't a camera around...

About the news, I just about drove myself crazy in the months following Feb 1, 2005, after losing touch with S for that week (almost) I began reading obsessively and worrying about each new assertion or speculation. Once S&A were here, I calmed down quite a bit. We all still worry a bit about family and friends, but things do seem better lately.

I haven't read eKantipur as much as Nepal News and Himalayan Times, but I checked it again recently and it does have more local stories and more detailed political reporting than most things I can access through that nepalnewsnow link.

cheers
Maya

It's interesting about smiling for photos in Nepali culture. I noticed the older generation dont seem to smile as much for photos(though I have a priceless shot of my FIL with a huge grin on his face at G's birthday party when we were all horsing around putting cake frosting on each other's faces, including his - he is typical dignified Nepali man in dhaka topi and kurta surwal, with frosting on his chin and a huge grin... My MIL didn't seem to smile as much and it worried me at first, made me think maybe deep inside she didn't approve of my marrying her 'Balakrishna' , you know after my previous experience with Kumar I didn't know if I could trust a Nepali MIL... but G told me it is because her leg hurts her very much after an injury - she is very happy that we are together.

I can't imagine how you must have felt in 2/05 when King G cut Nepal from the rest of the world and you cannot have any contact with your Maya... I would have been hysterical!!! I worry about G's grandparents in Dharan - there have been monsoon floods in that area and demonstrations and strikes by Madhesi groups, but G assures me they are fine.

About Feb 1 2005... I never saw it coming. I wonder if anyone did. I just went in to work that morning (here) and checked my usual everything-Nepali sites and it dawned on me what had happened. Then I did become hysterical for the first couple of days. S and I had been emailing almost daily (between treks), so of course I thought the worst when I didn't hear from him. The word got out pretty quickly, through trekinfo, yetizone, and thorntree about the lines being "snapped", and then slowly there were anecdotal bits that things were actually peaceful on the streets of Ktm. Of course I had been imagining some sort of SS troop scenario with house-to-house searches etc.... (I had only been to Nepal once at that point and did not have a good feel for the political climate/culture yet, except an understanding that it was volatile). Then I got an email from S on Thursday (Feb 1 was a Tuesday), at a time when NOBODY on any of these forums, some of whom have good friends and/or family in Nepal, was getting any word by any venue. I was SOOO surprised! He had found an open line somehow, by scouring the city... all the internet places he knew of. I wept with relief. He was fine. So we went ahead with our plan for my second visit in March. A month later, I was back in Ktm. I met my stepson for the first time on that trip... sweet, quiet, little 9 year old (ah, how much has changed!! ) He came to visit in Ktm and reported in a matter-of-fact way that several of his teachers had been kidnapped by the Maoists and taken away for the weekend to a remote location for "re-education" and then returned unharmed. So we didn't get to go to the village as planned, and I had to wait another 6 months to return and meet my in-laws.

Well, I'm rambling. It was a nerve-wracking time. And that, coupled with the ensuing visa process and ultimately our trip back to the US together (and settling in, and getting married), made for a very exciting and challenging year in 2005. Gee, life is so sedate now! NOT. Nothing like a pre-teen to keep you hopping!

Y'all have a nice day now...

Maya

Pattu-didi, I only say you're too happy to be a Nepali bride because most of the Nepali brides I've seen look absolutely miserable on their wedding day. Rajan told me it's normal because the bride has to leave the home of her family and probably won't see them again for a very long time. She now "belongs" to the husband and his family and must now live her life under a completely different set of rules with well-defined expectations from her in-laws. http://www.flickr.com/photos/phitar/10241020/ (According to the caption, it's all an act)

If I lost contact with Rajan, I just don't know what I would do. I still go crazy when he's out on trek and keep telling myself that I'm going to attach some kind of GPS device on him... maybe one day I can track him with google earth. Either that, or train a pigeon. Maya, I can't imagine what you went through!

I read eKantipur once in a while but especially when Rajan tells me something is going on... another bandh, extreme weather, etc.

Putali-didi, I'm just laughing picturing a pigeon tracking Rajan - wish I could do the same with G, hehe

Did you didiharu get the email from the KTM Embassy? I posted it as a separate message in case future VJers are looking for it.

Maya, Putali, hope you have a great Labor Day weekend - I'm going to be writing the affadavit lettrs for G's family and friends to sign and also be busy with eBayage - they are waiving most listing fees through the end of Sept. so I'm telling myself I will hunker down and list the rest of the stuff I broght back from Nepal - how do you think I pay for my trips??? It's a lot of work but fun, especially when you've got a good business partner overseas(hopefully not overseas for long)...

did you guys catch this thread? Like I said, I saw the title and I knew it HAD to be in Nepal...

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...=86265&st=0

Have any of you ever traveled with (formerly R)NAC? Can't be any worse than a local microbus ride from KTM to Pokhara, no?

I didn't see the thread before - OMG officials doing that in front of a PLANE! Uh, why don't they just repair the thing or trash it for a brand new one? Oh yah, cuz it's in NEPAL!

Nope, I've assiduously avoided ®NA thus far. I've heard too many horror stories.

I can't speak for the microbus ride from Ktm to Pokhara, but I have fond memories of the microbus ride from Ktm to Trishuli, AKA the vomit-mobile. I've never seen so much vomiting in the span of 3 hours ever before or since. Poor things... especially the kids. But that microbus had blood on the front of it, too, as it was just after Dashain. It was a wild ride, and having done it several times now, I'm much happier when I don't look out the window unless S says it is safe. And we ride the big buses and buy tickets ahead so we have seats. Last time they even showed a (really goofy) Nepali video.

The scariest, though, was Ktm to Dhunche this past June... bouncing across a semi-rebuilt, boulder-strewn, half-finished road bed with a coupla thousand foot drop just outside my window and the driver chatting and laughing with the Tibetan woman next to him and NOT LOOKING AT THE "ROAD".


Gotta love it!

Maya

That sounds scarier than the Indian roads... because of the mountain drops. But we have the same vomit-inducing buses and roads in India too.

Have you ever traveled in Uttaranchal or Himachal? Probably the scariest experience in my life was a bus trip from Delhi to Rewalsar, HP - 18 hours long, mostly on narrow mountain roads with no guardrails...

Speaking of dangerous roads, here's some interesting reading(the photos brought back memories) :

http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2006/11/mo...s-in-world.html

The pictures on that website made my head twirl and stomach churn! You will NOT get me on those roads!!

The closest I've been to those are mild trips up to Indian hill stations like Ooty, Kodai Kanal and Kotagiri. They have two lanes at least and not much to drop down on. (Once I went to Kashmir and to Badrinath... but even Badrinath had pretty good double roads from what I remember, I went in 1985...)

They should sell T-shirts with scary pics and I SURVIVED NEPAL written on them!

You guys who went there are tough as nails, the visa process must be a breeeeze!

Just thought I'd bump this up with a few headlines...

Chinese news outlets are reporting that the CPN-M has reunited with the CPN-UML. No western outlets are reporting this.

Some western pubs are reporting that NC-D is about to reunite with NC.

The king is not planning to seek a blessing this year from the Kumari. Big mistake if you ask me... he needs all the help he can get!

And, for all you Indian idol fans, Prashant Tamang won this year!!!!!! Go Tamangs!!! Time to reclaim Darjeeling! Hehe

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