kathmandu update

• i have no doubt i will come home with a.) an extra suitcase full of fabric and beads, b.) a real monkey {monkeys and stray dogs are everywhere, in everything} c.) a nepalese child {they're all cute}
• i still don't know what tomorrow holds. . . mandy is off to kenya tomorrow morning and i'll be all alone then. mo left the other night and now mandy is leaving me. i have a place until i get kicked out tomorrow at noon. after noon, i will have to find a place to stay {thinking the crazy cool but touristy thamel area for a while}. the rest of my plans here are still up in the air as well, but the good news is that there are lots of options {yoga/volunteering/trekking just to name a few. . . but i need to be wise with just how i spend the last of my savings!}
• i have friends here now! most of them work for psi nepal, but still, i have friends!
• the weather is gorgeous {cool in the mornings, mild to hot in the afternoons, and cool again at night} . . . but the pollution makes me sad {i choose pics that don't really show the pollution, but i'll have to post more later}.
• i'm fully surprised that i haven't been more sick in nepal. i've done nothing right! i've eaten street food, radishes, carrots, and even a little lettuce, drank the milk/water/yogurt from the townspeople, and i've even brushed my teeth with the water! apparently food from nepal is notorious for getting foreigners really, really, sick {mandy has already experienced this}. other than an upset stomach, i'm doing just fine {for now}. . .
• i've had a rough day {sarcasm}. slept in until 7:00, had tea and breakfast at the hotel buffet and read newsweek for almost two hours, tried to post pictures on fb {five photos alone takes about an hour, so i gave up quickly}, checked emails, went to the gym, to the sauna, took a shower, hand washed my laundry, and then mandy and i went to get massages at this lovely little place near the hotel. because the massage packages were so inexpensive, we both opted for an hour massage and an hour facial! it was pure bliss. i think i smiled through the whole two hours. i definitely have a future in giving/receiving massages. . . after the massages, it was a typical newari meal {chewy buffalo meat, fermented lentil pancakes, and everything in between. it might sound a little strange, but it is really good, i promise! a little less spicy than indian food, but still packed with flavor}
• yesterday, our day off, turned out to be a little shopping day too. . . i didn't buy much and i had to keep reminding myself that i'm here for several more months, but i did come away with a rocking turquoise ring {it might just be a bit too big for my finger though}, a pair of long embroidered purple cotton shorts {they kinda resemble lederhosen!}, and get this. . . a yellowish, greenish fanny pack!thanks to mo, i've seen the beauty of the pack and i cannot wait to show nc hipsters what they're missing out on!
• i've loved feeling connected to each place i've stayed {long term/or at least longer than a month}. in nz, i felt connected to the ground/the earth/the land thanks to wwoofing and the other farm jobs, and in nepal, i already feel like i'm getting connected with the women and women's issues here {primarily thanks to the docu. work and research}. . .
• today was also the first day i've used conditioner and shaving cream this entire trip! i felt like a queen.
• that's all for now, i need sleep and mandy does too . . . her flight is out at 7:00 tomorrow : (

{photo: 1.) mo and me at dinner in thamel, 2.) all the lovely prayer beads, 3.) view of ktm and valley from the monkey temple, 4.) ktm's durbar square, and 5.) the jamal neighborhood}