Greetings from KTM, Nepal!

KTM, Nepal (2014)

Nepal and I are going to get along wonderfully. The flight in was beautiful and the reality of being reunited with the Himalayas again made my heart race. There is something magnetic for me about the landscape. The rolling foothills that led our plane, valley by valley, into Katmandu were totally different than the bitter cold and drastic peaks that greeted me in Ladakh, but there is the same energy that drew me to them before. I can’t believe I get to spend the next five months here!

My ride from the airport to my new home was wonderfully uneventful. There was no traffic, no nail biting driving maneuvers. I exclaimed to my fellow passengers in the car, “It’s so orderly!” They laughed, commenting that no one ever says that about Katmandu. But seriously, compared to Dhaka I practically felt like we were in the USA!

Ladakh, India (2011)

My hosts warned me again about the noise of their house, but frankly it’s the quietest environment I have been in since leaving the States. The dog does bark and the rooster crows, but its calm. I can feel my thoughts in my head settling, no longer having to compete with the noise and rush of Dhaka. There is a courtyard with a garden and the area is residential, so I think I will have more freedom to explore and go for walks, as there are no crowded sidewalks!!

Starting Sunday, I will embark on a totally different internship. I don’t know what to anticipate, but I have a feeling it is going to provide me challenges, experiences and questions that I have never had before. I’ll do my best to update the blog more faithfully than I have been, as I think I will have much to say. Plus, I still have Bangladesh adventures worthy of recording!

Playing Catch Up: Week 1 Dhaka

Time to break the silence! I am very much alive, but have simply avoided blogging due to the overwhelming number of items I want to share. A bit illogical I'll admit, but so be it.

It seems crazy, but I have just one week left at Grameen Bank and Dhaka/Bangladesh. I won’t lie – I am very excited to be making me way to Nepal! Dhaka is an experience unlike any other, and I certainly do not regret my time here. I have made some amazing friends from across the world (and Bangladesh!), learned a great deal about microfinance/Grameen Bank/women’s empowerment, and experienced first-hand the difficulty of being a female foreigner in a developing Muslim country.

My home base is the Grand Prince Hotel. I never thought I would say this, but I have actually become a bit fond of the place and staff. It is what you would expect of an accommodation where you pay $12 a night (+ breakfast!). I have a silent understanding with my room that it will deliver what I wish given I try a magical number of things and wait long enough.

When I first arrived, I turned on the A.C. and water coming pouring out onto the bed. I quickly called Housekeeping and used all my Bengla (“No Balo! Pani! A.C.! aka “No Good! Water! A.C.!”). Many visits from hotel staff and a day later my A.C. works! I’ve decided to forgo the effort of fixing my slow flowing drain by taking quick showers and my squeaky room phone by making short calls. But hey, it’s really not all that bad!!!

My first week was much of an orientation on GB’s microfinance program and adjusting to Dhaka. We made our first trip to a Center Meeting, which is where the women borrowers gather and make their weekly installments on their loans. It is so insanely cool to see something you have studied, read and written about for six months actually occur right in front of you! I was in awe and filled with gratitude for the opportunity I have been given.

One of the women was totally transfixed by my glasses and traditional style dress and practically tried to kidnap me! She pulled me next to her, squeezing my elbow, before plucking my eyeglasses off my face and trying them on. Shortly after she produced a wad of money from her sari, which she placed in my hand and pushed me to the front of the center. It took me a minute to realize that she had given me the responsibility of handing her group’s weekly installment to the Center Manager! Way cool!!!

I’ll stop here for now, as the following weekend and week was packed full with adventure and microfinance!

Adjusting to Dhaka

View from the top of the Grameen building (21st Floor)

I was brushing my teeth the other morning and out of habit dipped my toothbrush into the faucet’s running water before putting it into my mouth. About .5 seconds later I yelped, and started to violently spit out the toothpaste-y foam. I grabbed the bottled water sitting on the counter and rinsed by mouth and toothbrush carefully.

That’s kinda how it goes here…even normal routine requires extra thought!  

In mentally preparing for my trip, I anticipated a great amount of struggle. My days here so far have been significantly easier than I predicted in some ways. My time abroad in other places, particularly India and China, prepared me far more than I thought they would; driving experiences, language barriers, food discomfort, jetlag, etc are not so different.

Living in Bangladesh is, however, an adjustment. While I cannot tell if it is my own inhibitions or cultural standards or a bit of both, I simply feel I have less freedom. Even traveling to Dhaka it was clear that I was the only solo woman. No one said anything, but there were certainly looks and just a general feeling of discomfort. Here in Dhaka, as a woman and a foreigner, it is especially vital to be cautious as it is not a particularly safe city for foreigners, or even for locals. And of course, it always takes some adjusting to be casual about that dead cockroach on the stairs! :)

Being a predominantly Muslim country, local dress is very conservative, so despite the hot and muggy weather I’ve been wearing pants, long-sleeve shirts that cover my butt and a scarf. You hear the prayer calls across the city five times a day. I’m not yet adjusted to them so the first call (somewhere between 3 am and 4 am) has been waking me up. It’s a pretty sound, almost like a song.

Riding in a CNG (automated rickshaw)

Today marks the start of Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting! Before the first call Muslims eat their breakfast as they may not eat, drink or smoke from sunrise to sundown. It’s not acceptable for anyone, Muslim or not,  to eat, drink or smoke in public during the month and many food places are closed during the day. The few food carts I did see open today had fabric around their stands, blocking off a passerby’s view of food.

Walking in the botanical garden

So far I have not been caught in the torrential  monsoon weather! (I probably just jinxed myself.) The sun has even come out and a few of us visited the local botanical garden! It was incredibly nice to be somewhere quite and peaceful, and we could walk without dodging people or being harassed.

I feel like there is much more to add, but I will blog again soon! 

This photo is really for my mom and her goat obsession! Taken in the botanical garden.

Perhaps I will try the state-of-the-art "Jim!" I've heard there's a fold out treadmill :) 

 TK
Posted from Dhaka, Bangladesh

The Where and What

Nepal & Bangladesh

I'm not really sure where to start writing. There's a sense of deja vu in my excitement, tinged with uncertainty, much like my first few attempts at blogging during the India trip. I suppose the most logical place to begin is an overview of where in the world I am going and what the heck I'll be doing over there.

So, this is the beginning of six months of travel. (Even just writing that gives me butterflies, I'm so flipping excited!) My trip essentially has two parts. I received a grant from the RI Foundation and an APEX Fellowship to study micro-finance, which will manifest in a month interning at Grameen Bank in Bangladesh and a month interning with EDWON/ADWAN* in Nepal. In September, I will begin a study abroad program with SIT, the part two of my travels. 

(EDWON is the American branch of the NGO, ADWAN is the Nepali branch)

Whoa! They look so tiny here! Nepal = Green, Bangladesh = Orange

I don't really know exactly how these experiences will entail, but here's my best attempt to summarize what I do know! 

Grameen Bank: GB is often referred to as the founding place of micro finance - seems like a pretty good place to get acquainted with real world micro fiannce, beyond the academic realm, right? My time at GB will hopefully add to my understanding of the theoretical perspective and introduce me to the many organizational components that make up such an NGO. I will be paired with a supervisor and will do a few village bank visits. Most of my time, I believe, will be working at the main office in Dhaka. 

EDWON/ADWAN: I am totally and utterly excited for this portion of the trip! So far, this NGO models several values that I believe are really important for successful operations. It seems to be truly run by the Nepal organization, while the American organization provides monetary support. My role will be to explore two components, their newly set-up cooperative village bank and the possibility of implementing an altered, and improved, micro finance program. Additionally, I will be following-up on other programs to witness their efficiency and effectiveness in order to help with grant writing. There will be village stays and lots of relationship building, which I'm looking forward to! I have been working with EDWON's director, Eva, and she has been incredibly resourceful in preparing me to live in Nepal and to work for EDWON/ADWAN. 

SIT: This portion seems like forever away! I'll be with a group and will be enrolled in classes. I'm nervous and pumped to be taking intensive Nepali (for three hours a day!!!). There will be an extended home stay, with several trips. At the end I will be conducting an Independent Study Project (ISP) on a topic of my choice! 

TK

Posted from Rhode Island