If you’re reading this, you’re either a member of my family, or you’re a future World Racer who might be going to Nepal! I say “might” because routes often change… two of mine have so far! I have to say, if you are a future racer, just know that no amount of research on these countries will prepare you for the race. Be flexible and okay with the fact that you will be blindsided during the race, and that’s okay! Also, my experience in Nepal was a little different because we had our debrief here, so we spent a few days in a hostel in Thamel just chillin’ around the town and going to sessions, and some of you won’t even go to Thamel at all (but pr@y that you do! It’s so fun!). Also, in many ways Nepal is very similar to India, so if you want, go check out my blog for India! Here ya go! Enjoy!
1. Watch your spending in Thamel. Our first debrief was in Thamel, a very cool touristy area of Kathmandu, so we had a lot of free time during those few days, so we had a lot of time to spend all of our money… It’s okay because there are a lot of cool things to buy, and it’s relatively cheap to send things home to the U.S., but just watch what you spend. Before you know it, you’re broke because you went to try out every hip coffee shop in Thamel or bought too many momo’s… both very easy to do.
2. Look out for tourist m!nistry opportunities, especially in Thamel. There are tons of tourists in Kathmandu, and they all gravitate towards Thamel. The tourists are usually looking for some kind of meaning, and are often on some kind of “spiritual journey”. Many have a very wonky idea of the g0spel, and have often been told lies about who Jesus really is. The cool thing about this is that they are almost always super open to what you have to say. It’s also completely legal to ev@ngelize in Nepal… take advantage of this. Check out my blog called “Seeing Through The Smog” for more about this subject.
3. Enjoy talking about J*sus freely. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve been censoring all of my past few blogs, that’s because I’m currently in V!etnam, and it’s 100% illegal to ev@ngelize here. This is not the case in Nepal. It’s totally legal to speak about J*sus to anyone you want! Take advantage of being able to do this without risking getting your hosts thrown in jail. It’s a very real threat.
4. Keep on bargaining! Similar to India, the vendors here expect you to bargain. I suggest taking their original offer and cutting it in half (at least), and work your way from there. If you start to walk out, or if you start bringing your friends to their shop, they’ll appreciate that, and possibly go down on their prices. It may seem harsh, but I’ve made lots of friends by doing this! One vendor really admired my bargaining skills (I like to believe) and gave me and my teammate free headbands and invited us to come back and have tea with him (we told him how much we missed Indian chai, so he offered to make it for us). The bottom line is that you should pay what you think is fair, no more, no less.
5. Get prices before you buy. You can buy the exact same things in a bunch of different shops in Nepal. NO shop is unique. You may find a price you like, but ask around and even tell other vendors what others are offering you. They’ll usually offer to match it. But expect varying prices all over the place, also….
6. Skin-tax is a real thing. “Skin-tax” is something that one of our contacts in India told us about. Essentially, if you don’t look Nepalese or Indian, you will be charged more. This is pretty much true all over the place. If you don’t look local, they’ll assume you’re a super-rich tourist… little do they know.
7. Squatty potties are also a thing. I mentioned this in my India version of this blog post, and many of those points apply in Nepal. Squatty potties are essentially holes in the ground rather than sit-down toilets. You’ll find these in many places here, and don’t expect to find toilet paper.
8. Get your poofy pants in Nepal! You’ll find great, cheap elephant-style/harem pants here, so don’t worry about finding them all at home!
9. Marijuana is always offered. This has been a struggle for many current racers. People on the streets of Nepal are constantly asking you if you want to buy weed or “hashish”. Just prepare yourself for this, especially if you’ve struggled with substance abuse before. Even if you’re way past doing drugs, it’s still a struggle and temptation for many people on the race.
10. A jacket is necessary here. The mornings are pretty chilly here, especially when we were in Nepal in February. Since Nepal was only my second country, I brought a sweater with me, and sent it home after Nepal, since I have all hot countries from here on out.
11. Buy your fake Patagonia’s and North Face’s here! They have some super cheap knock-offs… so no need to go buy an expensive real one for the race. It’ll probably get ruined anyway.
12. Let out the air in your sleeping pad. Since the mornings are chilly and the days are warm, let some air out of your sleeping pad every morning when you get up. Since it gets warm, the air expands, and it could pop your pad… and that SUUUUCKS.
13. Nepali busses are… interesting. We took a Nepali bus to Urlabari, and village near the Indian border, and it took about 16 hours there and 19 hours back. It really just depends on your driver how quick the trip takes. It can be pretty scary too. We drove along mountain-sides at night, going super fast. They’ll also try to play super loud Nepali music over the speakers at all hours. Just nicely ask them to turn it off and they will (In our experience, they’re not this nice in V!etnam… take advantage!). It can also be pretty bumpy, so if you get carsick, make sure you’re prepared. Also, do yourself a favor and bring your headlamp and toilet paper, because they don’t always stop at restrooms for you to go to the bathroom.
14. Hope you love chow mein and momo’s! Many restaurants, especially smaller street places, only have two things on their menu: chow mein and momo’s. Luckily, these are DELICIOUS, and usually the best at smaller restaurants.
15. Look out for service charges. Just know that many places charge a 10% or 13% service charge.
16. Check out Kairos! Kairos is a coffee shop in Kathmandu (there are some locations in the states) and it’s Chr!stian owned. The people who work there are SO sweet! Get to know them and buy coffee there to support their cause!
17. Make friends with the locals. This is usually pretty easy to do, since people are super sweet in Nepal, but really make it a point to get to know the people around you!
18. Get your produce at the street stands, not the grocery store. You shouldn’t have to pay much more than 150 rupees per kilo. Like I said above, make friends with these guys. They’ll probably stick to a low price if you go to them regularly.
19. If you want to get country flag patches for your backpack, get them in Thamel for super cheap! I got 13 patches for less than $8, and many people got them sewn on for even cheaper… just make sure they do it well. Sometimes they’ll sew your backpack pockets together so you can’t put anything in them, that’s why I just decided to sew mine on myself since I have such a thick backpack.
20. Human trafficking is a huge issue in Nepal. For the most part, “dance bars” are a front for prostitution. If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to do dance bar m!nistry.
21. Chr!st is MOVING in Nepal! Our contact told us something that was just SO cool, which is that Nepal is the second fastest growing country when it comes to Chr!stianity. We get to be apart of that!
