After 36 hours of traveling, I have made it to Kathmandu and the Shalom Guesthouse in Patan, where I will be spending the next six weeks. Course was complicated by struggling through completion of my visa application (Apparently you need to fill out TWO forms – small one and large one. When you have a question, in my experience, the immigration officers just grunt at you…), first run-in with a drop/squat toilet (more to come on this subject later), a near break-down in the Kathmandu airport when I thought the airlines had lost my luggage, being bombarded by offers for taxi drivers outside the airport, and a pitch black drive back to the guest house (as this was a scheduled time for a blackout – more to come on this subject later, too).
The Shalom Guesthouse is absolutely adorable. They have six guest rooms, a common room, a kitchen, and a very nice rooftop deck complete with views of the surrounding mountains. And, despite scheduled load shedding, we still have internet access 24 hours a day. It’s a miracle. There is a medical student here from Stanford, Krista, who is very sweet. I am so happy that there is someone here with me to help me find my way around and to explore Patan and Kathmandu with me.
Today was a bit tough for me, given my lack of sleep over the past few nights and the time change. It was my first day at Patan Hospital. I think it will take a while to settle in and figure out my role, as I’m still not sure where I fit in to the picture of things here. But one of my goals is to try to figure it out while I’m here and set a little more groundwork for the other residents that will be coming here after me.
We had a delicious dinner tonight with Olga, an 86 year old female originally from Sweden, who moved to Nepal over 25 years ago due to her love for Nepali children. She has since set up two orphanages in the city, one for boys (The J House) and one for girls (The K House). It was a delicious dinner, good conversation, and a great way to end my first day here in Patan.
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