Personal Narrative

One of the requirements for the Center for Global Health grant requires is a personal narrative. I think of it as a good opportunity for me to compress all I've experienced in one page, or a few paragraphs. Man, that's hard, especially when there are just so much I've experienced. But I'll try:

I knew nothing about Nepal or the project when I took up this internship. I came in with an interest in databases and healthcare, and the NNIPS internship description seemed to fit what I was looking for. I wanted to get out of Baltimore for the summer. And there I was, thousands of miles away from the East Coast. Nepal welcomed me with a golden sunset and a hearty “namaste” (a greeting that means “I see God in you”). I quickly got used to the narrow, hilly roads, and the constantly congested city. Kathmandu Valley, the capital of Nepal, stands at an astounding 4000 feet above sea elevation. No wonder some people get altitude sickness when they land!

Some people call Nepal “the highest place on Earth” – the peak of Everest (Sagarmatha) lies in this ancient Hindu kingdom. Besides having the highest peak and an above average general elevation, Nepali’s spirits also seem to be way up high. People smile all the time. People are generally happy and do not rush. The sun rises around 5.40am. Shops open around 10am, and subsequently close around 5pm. There are many tea breaks in a usual working day, but people work 6 days a week instead of the conventional 5 in the West. The work days go by slowly, but people seem to work all the time. It was a whole new culture I had to get used to.

Although based in Kathmandu, I visited Sarlahi, the field site three times. The madhesi, native people of the Terai (flatlands), look very different than the mixed ethnicities in Kathmandu: they look almost Indian. Sarlahi is very close to the Indian border, so it is no surprise. It was great interacting with the field workers to learn more about the data collection process – so many intricacies often unknown to the outside consultant!

Load shedding is one of every foreigner’s nightmare while working in Nepal. Only about 30% of the country receives electricity, and for those who do, it is on a strict schedule. Houses in Kathmandu do not get electricity twice a day for a total of about 12 hours. In the villages, work hardly goes on without a generator. Our offices have working generators, but sometimes the internet breaks down for days. At times, I would be staring at a program bug, frustrated that the internet ceased to work, but eventually worked it out using the good old trial-and-error methods.

For a week or two in the beginning, I genuinely worried that I would end up homeless on the streets of Kathmandu at the end of my stay. I underestimated the cost of living in Kathmandu and overestimated the stipend I would receive from the program, and didn’t have access to instant money in Nepal. I almost had to take out loans to complete the program had I not found a cheaper place to live in! Like many young adults, I have always taken food and shelter for granted. It was a nasty feeling to be homeless, but it certainly made me appreciate the little things in life.

This land of the birthplace of the Buddha certainly left a lasting impression on me, even though I was only there for 10 weeks. I wished I had more time to fully immerse in the culture and language. I came out a shade darker, speaking another human language (Nepali) in addition to the programming tools I had to learn for the project. You can read more about my travel experiences here: http://travellingsapphiredragon.blogspot.com/.