Asia: Nepal walk

Oke I can do this, yes I can! Anxiety and nervosity. It’s my first time out of the country, hours away from my parents or any family. All I can think about is what’s it going to be like? Well it was for sure something else. My name is Latisha (17), an intern at MasterPeace and this is my Nepali story..

Day 1

After a long flight we were finally in Kathmandu. ‘So many People’ was my first impression. Santosh, Punam and Heidi were waiting for us. Traditionally greeting us with a typical Nepali scarf made of orange flowers and a beautiful Nepali red scarf. With a big smile I gave them a big bear hug and thanked them for the beautiful gifts and welcoming. I was so excited to meet the other participants. On the way to the hotel I looked through the car window and I saw lots of people walking, many cars, scooter, shops and more shops. It was so different but yet so interesting and beautiful. After the arrival at the hotel and meeting the participants who were already there. Later on after a fresh shower we decided to go for a walk in the neighborhood and get know Kathmandu a bit. After that we closed the night with a group diner near the Hotel.

Day 2

After an early breakfast at the hotel Manang, we went for a tourist tour. IT WAS AMAZING! I got to see many beautiful streets. The people there My God the most beautiful people and so kind. We learned about many things like the local architecture and Nepali Buddhist & Hindu religious traditions. I remember seeing a old woman carrying a big basket on her back full with vegetables and I thought ‘that must be heavy for her’ I wish I could’ve helped her. A few minutes later she saw me taking pictures of her, she gave me a big smile. I waved and smiled back at her. I also got to see so many temples, like the Swayambhunath Stupa (also known as ‘the Monkey Temple’). Not so far from the temple there were so many kids playing with fireworks, well I was running for my life hahaha, I’m really scared of fireworks. How could this tiny little human not be scared? Then I learned a new word ‘Namaste’ so I would walk around and proud and say Namaste to everyone haha. After 20 minutes of walking we finally arrived at the monkey town. There were lot’s of monkeys and we got to see the most spectacular view stretching across the entire Kathmandu Valley.

After lunch we all gather together on the roof of the beautiful Manang hotel so we can start with our first MasterPeace program. The purpose of the program was to get to know each other, share compliments  talk about what you want to achieve during the walk and what your scared of. After the program it was diner time and I got to learn how to eat with my hands for the first time. Food tastes so much better when you eat with your hands. Tip: Never eat with your left hand!!

Day 3

At 9:00 AM our bus arrived at the hotel so we could put our bags on the bus, after breakfast it was time to leave to the Dhading area. I was very tired so I fell asleep on the bus. The next thing I knew was us arriving at the resort, we than had lunch and a few drinks. We had some time to enjoy the view. Afterwards we had our second program. We Played a game that everyone has to stand in a circle and one person stands in the middle, the person in the middle must name things he likes and whoever likes it too has to step forward. It was a way to see with whom you have things in common with. After that we seperated into groups and talked about a specific country on a particular theme. I was Venezuela and Bonaire (because I’m Venezuelan and Bonairian) and our theme was education. Lastly there was a workshop from Jeweetzelftv.nl about vlogging and how to take the perfect picture.

Start of the Nepal walk 2018

Today starts our first MasterPeace walk. I can’t wait to be out in the nature and meet the Nepali participants. After our breakfast we got in the bus to go celebrate the Tihar festival at Santosh’s Family. Seeing all of his family waiting for us and greeting us, was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I started crying because I was so happy then I said NAMASTE and they started talking to me in Nepali language, and I was like oh nooo I don’t speak your language. I speak English. They all thought I was one of them at that moment and I felt at home,happy to be there with them and celebrate their festival. Words can’t describe how thankful I was for their kindness and hospitality. After the lunch and celebrating the festival it was time to say goodbye. I started walking and then it hit me that I didn’t say goodbye to santosh’s mom I turned back and gave her a big hug. I started crying, these people gave me a warm feeling, a feeling that I was one of them. They gave me so much love it made me realize that back home we’re so busy with school and work that we don’t gave our family or the people we love the love that we should be giving them.

We got to walk in the nature, climb to the top, sleep under the stars and wake up every morning with a view of the beautiful Himalayas. The walk was definitely something I wasn’t used to, but walking with everyone and getting to know the Nepali and the international participants, connecting with them made everything easier and worth it. The Nepali and the international team became a big family. Sitting together every night around the campfire to eat, talk, laugh and enjoy the night. What I’ve learned from the Nepali was that music has no language and no rules. If we couldn’t understand each other we had other ways to connect and that was music and dance. I was dancing like there was no tomorrow, happy like I’ve never been before. During the walk these people showed me what happiness means. You don’t need much to be happy, but what you do need is family and each other. It doesn’t matter from where your from, what you have and don’t have, WE are all people and WE take care of each other as we are all equals. At the end of the week it was time to say goodbye. I was sad and emotional but then a guy name Pawan came to me and gave me this big hug and said: you know I have two brothers and I always wanted a sister and now I have one, don’t say goodbye and don’t cry because we will see each other soon! And at that moment I knew for sure that the MasterPeace Nepal walk was a life changing experience!

NAMASTE!