Nepal Pixelated

Because pictures are loquacious, or something like that.

The plastic greenhouse I built with a farmer, with some pretty healthy tomato plants. Whereas many of the tomato plants outside the house died from disease during the monsoon season, not a single plant inside did (although the yield was a little lower than I’d hoped because farmer was too busy with other work to properly tie many of the plants to the stakes). He wants to build another house next year in an area with better airflow, and one of his friends stated he wants to build ten of them (I’ll believe it when I see it).

My garden’s doing pretty well these days. Right now I’ve got cilantro, basil, dill, fenugreek, spinach, mustard, lettuce, watercress, onions, garlic, radishes, carrots, tomatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, kidney beans, snap peas, and cassava. The bugs and chickens are still a big nuisance, though.

Another volunteer and I returned to the heavenly hills of Sindupalchok to celebrate the Tihar festival with our former host family.

My aunt’s cow ambivalently receives tika during Tihar.

We were put to work the day after we arrived. Here I’m bundling up the rice and then threshing it to separate the grains from the chaff. We concluded our day by each carrying a sack of about a hundred pounds of rice up the steep, slippery path to our house. The Nepalis took it in stride—we were exhausted.

Banji likes to dance.

Tika during bhai tika of Tihar.

Firecrackers.

A quail that was caught in one of our rice patties. We later ate it for dinner. In the words of my host sister, “Not much meat, but it makes a nice curry.”

My spoiled nephew has an extravagant, westernized birthday party.

A spontaneous afternoon “dry picnic”, which is ironically named because “dry picnics” necessarily include alcohol) with some guys from my village.

The only turkeys we’ve ever seen in Nepal. And just in time for Thanksgiving.

A bullet embedded in the wall of a friend’s house, left intact from a decade ago when shooting broke out in the streets of my nearby bazaar during the Maoist insurgency.

D is for Dang. And occasionally debauchery.

Our baby buffalo. And our baby goat. And our baby chickens. All born in the same week!

For the Dang-est Time

I now have just about a year of service left, so your time to visit me in Nepal is running out! If that's not enough, perhaps this ironical post will entice you to drop by my district of Dang:

Today we offer you an exclusive treat as we uncover the mystery that is the great district of Dang. Thus far, Dang has miraculously managed to elude inclusion in Lonely Planet, Fodor's, and other popular travel guides, making it the best-kept secret of Nepal.

Is Dang in the Terai or not? That depends on which Peace Corps staff you ask. Dang is home to not one but two municipalities, Tulsipur and Gorahi, which have just been declared the “New Pokharas of the Midwest.” These thriving metropolises offer an expansive array of activities for both seasoned and novice travelers.

From Lamahi, hop aboard one of the homey purple buses heading west. After ascending the switch-backing road that leads up the countryside, you will enter Dang Valley, the largest valley in all of Nepal. In the rainy season, when the flatter portions of the road tend to flood, the journey in is like a jungle safari ride at a theme park, except more real.

Soon you’ll arrive in Gorahi, Dang’s booming district center. The bazaar’s centerpiece is the iconic martyr’s gate, which can be spotted from the bus on the ride in. The old-fashioned hotels here don’t take reservations, so you’ll want to book a room when you arrive. We are split on which of Gorahi’s lodging venues offers superior amenities: Hotel Three Star is cheaper and has speedy wi-fi, whereas Hotel City Plaza has hot water and fewer bugs. Another classy option is Hotel Green Valley (not to be confused with Hotel Dang Valley, which is a considerably less reputable establishment).

For some refreshment, head to Butwal Bakery, located across the way from Hotel City Plaza, for tasty pastries, cow cheese and fresh curd. The curd only comes in one-liter bags, but its unrivaled taste makes that tummy ache worth it.

If you’re looking for more than a snack, Gorahi’s dining options leave little to be desired. The recent opening of Eat-O-Clock has been a source of great excitement. Along with local delicacies such as momos and chow mein, the restaurant offers the best pizza and pasta for many miles around. Another mention-worthy eatery is Center Point Family Restaurant, which features outdoor seating in quaint little bamboo huts with doorbells that you can ring to call a waiter. Order their famous cheeseburger, which is literally a hunk of melted cheese on a bun.

Just down the road from Center Point is Gorahi’s movie theater for a midday or afternoon showing of the latest Hindi or Nepal film. Its reclining chairs and colorfully decorated hall make for a highly enjoyable viewing atmosphere.

In the northern part of the city, you’ll find a Hindu temple and park that are famous throughout the district. Nearby, you’ll also find Shayne’s favorite plastic store, which sells synthetic tarps, bottles, clothespins, rubber bands, and twine at affordable prices.

If you desire spirits, head to one of the city’s many liquor stores, which sometimes offer free packs of playing cards with your purchase. Their selection of five different bottles of wine—the best between Butwal and Nepalgunj—seems to fly off the shelves, as they are rarely in stock.

Before retiring for the night, be sure to stop by our favorite didi’s snack pasal, and be amazed at how much variety one can fit in a space slightly larger than an elevator. You’ll find Aerin’s beloved Indian chocolate bars, a chocolate cake called “Cake” that tastes just like a Yodel, and many other local favorites.

You’ll want to leave early the next morning in order to have a full day in nearby Tulsipur. Continuing west on the highway for thirty to ninety minutes (depending on your bus driver’s definition of “local”), you’ll arrive in the Tulsipur bazaar. Tulsipur touts a Nabil bank and ATM, an Ncell center, and a handful of places to eat and sleep—everything a Peace Corps Volunteer could want, really.

If you’ve managed to retain your appetite after that didi you were sitting next to vomited in your lap, pay a visit to the renowned Delight Family Restaurant. Delight is nestled away in a quieter part of the city, just past the vacant lot where Nekeia and Maria deposit the bags of garbage they’ve accumulated at site. Sprawl out in the upstairs lounge for a Peace Corps laptop party, or enjoy an intimate dinner in the plush VIP booths. If you’re feeling grungy from the bus ride in, you can even take a shower in their upstairs bathroom. Delight’s international menu boasts chow mein, momos, sizzlers, pizza, burgers, chop suey, and more; the non-international options are more highly recommended. Remarkably, they do not serve daal bhaat. Be sure to pronounce your order very clearly, or you may end up with chili momos when you asked for them steamed or a sausage fry instead of a cold sprite.

Another first-rate option is the Sunrise Family Restaurant—the dim lighting sets the mood just right. Sunrise offers complementary, fast wi-fi service every fifth time you visit (at least, in our experience). And if you’re a mouse, you eat here free!

Tulsipur’s “American store”, located just around the corner from Sunrise, carries a wide selection of luxury items including cow cheese, pasta sauce, oatmeal, canned mushrooms, skin-whitening creams, and fluorinated toothpastes. Ask the cashier for a special volunteer discount, but he’ll probably just blink his eyes and look at you curiously.

Hotel Ekanta is the best-rated hotel in town. Every room comes with a TV, bed, and bathroom, in which there is sometimes running water. Ekanta’s power sockets are the highest in all of Dang—in fact, most people cannot reach them even when standing on the bed. Be forewarned that noise carries through the cavernous halls and oddly situated windows of this establishment, and there is a small chance that a police detective will show up at your door telling you to keep the noise down.

Hotel Western Palace is another favorite. No need to travel across Nepal for that swimming pool—Western Palace is famous throughout all of Dang for its recessed concrete container of water. Western Palace also has a badminton court, without the incessantly barking dogs of Pacific Guest House. The rooms are elegantly decorated with abstract art, including pieces of stained chow mein and patterns of mold. Western Palace is located in the western outskirts of the city, just past the Gorahi bus park. If you reach the pile of steaming garbage, you’ve gone too far and should turn back.

As you make your way down the hill to the bus park to catch a ride home, be sure not to miss our favorite attraction: the goat with the broken leg wandering between the rusted vehicles and decaying rubbish. As pitiful as it is, it’s important to note that it keeps on enduring in spite of its harsh environment. And so, dear traveler, have you.

This brief synopsis represents just a sliver of all the possibilities that await you in Dang. We strongly encourage you to visit Dang for yourself, and write to us with additional recommendations in the area. The opportunities for discovery are truly limitless.