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Same, same….but different.
This is apparently what travellers arriving from India say about Nepal. It is also what Indian vendors say when you ask for a product in a different size, colour…and then they produce something that bears absolutely no resemblance to the item you wanted (er….since when did a lime green and purple patterned nightdress look like the light blue top I asked for in a different size?).
Personally I think Nepal is very different to India. It certainly wants to be, and to hammer home the point there is a fifteen minute time difference with India! Other changes were noticeable as soon as we left the border town. The physiognomy of the people altered immediately; faces broadened out, angles rounded off, skin acquired a creamier complexion and builds became stockier. People were less in-your-face, there was less of the hard sell and flagrant staring of India's streets.
I liked Kathmandu instantly. The first day I wandered through the back streets of the old town. It was littered, not with debris, dirt and animals as in India, but with temples and shrines and buildings made of intricately carved wood - much closer to how I imagine the architecture of China or SE Asia to be. It was like a treasure hunt searching out the places highlighted in the guide; temples would be tucked away down alleys, ancient carvings incorporated into a modern shop façade, shrines hidden under the awning of a roof or popping up when you least expected.
There is a lot of hustle and bustle here, but after Delhi, it feels positively relaxing! Intriguingly the pollution feels worse - many people wear filter masks. Perhaps it is that the streets are narrower, so they contain the fumes more - or something to do with altitude because I cant conceive that there is more traffic than in Delhi…or maybe I have just become acclimatized to Delhi's own particular brand of pollution.
The food is different; less spicy with more Tibetan influences. The presence of Buddhism is also very visible, although it sits comfortably alongside Hinduism; the two have comfortably rubbed shoulders here for centuries, and even got a bit mixed up in the process. The extraordinary Buddhist stupas with the 'all-seeing eye' and sympbol representing oneness, stand next to Hindu temples dripping in images of their gazillion gods.
Hospitality here is as legendary as it in India, as I discovered when on a whim I accepted the invite of an old guy I met to meet his wife and children. He came up to talk to me on the street as a lot of people do (here as in India, I feel as though I am public property) and I sensed he was a sound bloke. In case you're worrying Mum, I did take the precaution of waiting until his wife materialized before going in! Which she did, and after recovering from their astonishment at finding a strange English woman in their house she and their grown-up children sat around talking, exchanging Facebook IDs, discussing their studies, the father's travels and the current social/politcial situation in Nepal.
I was plied with numerous cups of sugary tea and Horlicks, and departed with an apple (produce of India apparently), a bunch of grapes (also from India), half a packet of biscuits and a list of phone numbers and email addresses through which I was beseeched to stay in touch. Although, I think this is just part of the hospitality ritual because despite my emails of thanks to them, I have heard nothing in reply!
An observation that a friend I met made was that people seem more aware of their predicament and the difficulties they face here than in India. Tourism is really suffering. Restaurants, hotels and shops are often half empty, even desolate and the staff are very happy to talk about it with you, to tell you about their troubles and anxieties. Shop keepers have implored me to buy something because business is bad, likewise people selling tours and treks have asked me to consider the mouths they have to feed. Last night a kid was begging me for some money (you are strongly advised here not to give) and a rickshaw driver looking on said, "He's hungry - if you have warmth in your heart give him something".
This is not something I have encountered in India. For all its hard-selling, this is not a tactic they employ. In India it's more of a steam-roller or battery ram approach - I think the aim is simply to wear you down. The Nepali people on the other hand, have learned the art of emotional manipulation….and why on earth not? It is only right that visitors should be aware of the problems facing the local people. Why should we swan around in our brand name clothing, pigging out on pizza and buying souvenirs for a fraction of the price we'd get them at home without having to consider the hard times facing the community here. I just find it intriguing that Indian people haven't cottoned onto this strategy yet…god help us if they do as it is extremely effective in my case!
In my opinion, Nepal is a sparkler to India's rocket. Nepal is luminous and enchanting. It is easily wielded with a gloved hand; there is perhaps just a slight apprehension as you wait to see if it will ignite safely. There is pleasure to be had in creating and writing patterns onto a velvet black sky. Whereas India is more unpredictable, there is more caution to be exercised, a greater risk. India is a loud explosion of in-your-face sound and colour. India won't let you sleep; scares you silly; delights and dazzles you. But you know what?….I reckon all the best fireworks parties have both.
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