My first day

When I arrived with the Fulbright program team in my new village, there was little fanfare. The village leaders and school staff expecting me had waited from 1pm, but at around 7:30, when the sun set, they gave up and went home. When we finally arrived at 8, I stood in front of the locked gates. We finally found a custodian who opened the school buildings, and I uncomfortably poked around at the various classrooms. Entering a classroom, I felt incredibly nervous. I visualized all of the benches being filled with students, and I really felt overwhelmed by the challenges that lay ahead.

It had gotten very late, but we still managed to visit two options of home-stays for me. One was with a mother and son who took in a few unmarried male boarders who were also teachers. The location of the home was absolutely beautiful, overlooking this gorgeous valley (my entire village is stunning). The other one was with a family that sleeps in a room a quarter mile away from their store/living room (the sleeping portion of their store/living room had been destroyed in the earthquake). I really liked the family, especially the mother. I just had a really good vibe from it. The surprising thing was that even though the homestays were vetted, they really had no idea about anything. I’m not convinced they knew I was coming. Nepal has this culture where people welcome their homes to strangers so quickly and without reservation.

My new home

The next morning, we arrived at the school really early, but the principal and teachers were waiting. As an aside: a few months ago, my HR friends were asking me about this moment. I distinctly remembering one of them saying something along the lines of, “so you’re just going to show up and tell these people that you’re going to be working there?” And that question gave me a lot of pause at the time. But yes, that is sort of what happened.

I had assumed the school officials had some knowledge of my role, but it was clear by their questions regarding what I would be doing and how long I would be staying that they were not warned (or at least that they had forgotten). They  were familiar with the Peace Corps though, which has an outstanding reputation in Nepal, so they were very happy to have me when it was explained that the program had some similarities. They even asked if I could stay longer than a year (I like to think it’s because of my stellar first impression, but it was probably because they know the Peace Corps is two years). At the end of the meeting, the principal hugged me and said very sincerely, “you are my daughter now.”

The team!

Then, the program team had a very serious conversation with my chosen host parents, explaining and reiterating all sorts of expectations and requirements, down to what an emergency helicopter evacuation would entail. It was actually very fascinating, the types of things they really emphasized. Having been sick a few times already, I was glad they really emphasized the importance that I could only come in contact with boiled water (including residual water from recently-washed plates).

I said goodbye to the staff and walked into my bedroom with my stuff. I closed the door and it really hit me. After over a month of trainings and meetings and being with English-speakers in big cities, I was alone. The aloneness wasn’t a bad thing, it just felt all-encompassing in that moment and for the rest of the day.

Here are some pictures of my village! Every day I am completely in awe of the absolute beauty of this place.