Post from my friend, Helen

Sharing this from my friend, Helen. Please note that yes, traveling in Nepal sometimes means that you aren't near restrooms. But rest assured that cultural norms dictate that men and women go far from each other and - while out in the open - there is a certain sense of "privacy" between the sexes that is insured!

A weekend in Hetauda

September 10, 2010 by Hels

Last weekend I went to Hetauda to stay with my VSO friend Tiffany. Hetauda is small town about 5 hours south of Kathmandu, heading towards the Terai region of Nepal (the hot bit that borders India). As its not quite in the Terai, its lush hills and greenery make it a really beautiful place to be, and I felt like I was on holiday for the weekend!

As Tiffany was in Kathmandu for a meeting we travelled down together on the 7:30am Jeep on Saturday morning. Taking the jeep is about three hours quicker than taking a bus as it follows dirt tracks a lot of the way. With 13 people packed into a jeep, it’s no more or less comfortable than a bus, however it does make for a slightly more scary and bumpy ride, and is definitely not for the faint hearted. Taking public transport is not only a great way to see more of the scenery of Nepal but also gives a great insight into the culture. People live so openly here and as you pass through small towns you really get a brief insight into their daily lives.
We arrived in Hetauda around midday after one tea stop and one amusing toilet stop, in which we were forced to bare all in front of a fellow female passenger who did nothing to hide the fact that she was happily watching us relieve ourselves in a not so concealing bush!

A couple of hours later, after venturing into town to get some food for dinner, we found ourselves at a Teej party. Teej is a three day festival for women which involves singing, dancing, fasting and puja (praying). Women typically dress up in their best red saris, bangles and decorate their hands with mehendi and either pray for the good health and long lives of their husbands, or future husbands.
Not happy to just let us watch, they ushered us in, sat us down, gave us food and much to my dismay, pretty much forced us to dance. Fortunately Tiffany is a fantastic dancer so this took the attention away from my awkward attempt and no one noticed when I slunk back to my chair to watch from the side lines!

On Sunday we headed back into town to buy some material – Tiffany wanted to buy a sari for another Teej party (for this weekend) and I decided to finally get myself a kurta surwal. Apart from the sari (mostly worn by older women), this is the traditional dress for Nepali women and is still worn across Nepal by the majority of women, with only the younger generation opting for western clothes. It is basically brightly coloured cotton baggy trousers worn under a matching or coordinating long top and scarf. It is currently at the tailors being made to fit but I will let you know how it turns out. I’m sure I will feel a bit silly wearing it, mainly as I’m not used to wearing such bright colours but, when in Rome…

I left Hetauda at 6am on Monday morning to make it back to Kathmandu for a meeting. The journey back was great and I spent much of the four hours marveling at the stunning scenery.

I am pretty busy this week preparing for the upcoming international youth exchange. 7 young people from a London based youth organization are coming to Nepal for 10 days. I first initiated this back in February and I can’t quite believe it is actually happening! You can find out more about this group and their visit by reading their blog – http://lic-youthexchange.blogspot.com