Week 0.5
Phil here,
Well, there is allot to say this week, seeing as we have finally arrived in Kashiem (the village that we will be teaching in). Now that we have finally seen the town and the people i can begin to conceive what teaching will be like in the months to come.
to begin with, the people of the village are not in the traditional sense Indian, in fact they adhere to Nepali customs, speak Nepali, and generally consider themselves to be Nepali. this means that Eliza and I are going through culture shock all over again before we have even recover from our last bout. there is indeed a great deal to be shocked about. we happened to arrive on a Nepali holiday that can be compared to a week long thanksgiving. there is a great deal of food that is far fattier than what i am used to, as well as a strange drink of dubious content that is served from a bamboo cup . Normally i am all for trying new and different foods, but this case is an exception to that for, you see, trying is not an option. The culture has deemed that when something is offered to you, it is rude to refuse (by "refuse" they mean "you stop when it is finished") this coupled with the heavy nature of the food means that Eliza and i feel slightly nauseous at all times of the day. Also during the festival it is typical to visit peoples houses. Upon arrival you are offered beer (they do not care we are only 18, we are "adults") Again, we must drink what is offered and the foul brew only adds to our nausea. it is no coincidence that the first word i have learned is "boiyu" (enough\ i am full)
other than these strange customs the people here are extremely friendly, every one seems keen to show off their English. The only truly fluent people we have met are SM (the headmaster who we are living with) and his brother-in-law, whose name i cannot pronounce let alone type. Eliza and I have talked with the latter extensively , and he has been more than happy to tell us all about the people and customs here.
because of this holiday we have not yet attended school, but we will on Monday. To give us some foresight, we have read the final exam of class 3. personally i was quite impressed. the question span a wide variety of subject from math, foreign customs, and even ethics . the English used can be considered at least fourth or fifth grade level. Again, i am impressed and highly anticipate meeting the classes.
Well, there is allot to say this week, seeing as we have finally arrived in Kashiem (the village that we will be teaching in). Now that we have finally seen the town and the people i can begin to conceive what teaching will be like in the months to come.
to begin with, the people of the village are not in the traditional sense Indian, in fact they adhere to Nepali customs, speak Nepali, and generally consider themselves to be Nepali. this means that Eliza and I are going through culture shock all over again before we have even recover from our last bout. there is indeed a great deal to be shocked about. we happened to arrive on a Nepali holiday that can be compared to a week long thanksgiving. there is a great deal of food that is far fattier than what i am used to, as well as a strange drink of dubious content that is served from a bamboo cup . Normally i am all for trying new and different foods, but this case is an exception to that for, you see, trying is not an option. The culture has deemed that when something is offered to you, it is rude to refuse (by "refuse" they mean "you stop when it is finished") this coupled with the heavy nature of the food means that Eliza and i feel slightly nauseous at all times of the day. Also during the festival it is typical to visit peoples houses. Upon arrival you are offered beer (they do not care we are only 18, we are "adults") Again, we must drink what is offered and the foul brew only adds to our nausea. it is no coincidence that the first word i have learned is "boiyu" (enough\ i am full)
other than these strange customs the people here are extremely friendly, every one seems keen to show off their English. The only truly fluent people we have met are SM (the headmaster who we are living with) and his brother-in-law, whose name i cannot pronounce let alone type. Eliza and I have talked with the latter extensively , and he has been more than happy to tell us all about the people and customs here.
because of this holiday we have not yet attended school, but we will on Monday. To give us some foresight, we have read the final exam of class 3. personally i was quite impressed. the question span a wide variety of subject from math, foreign customs, and even ethics . the English used can be considered at least fourth or fifth grade level. Again, i am impressed and highly anticipate meeting the classes.
posted by Eliza and Phil at 11:35 AM
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