But first! Sunday morning love you! (See here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cvfvn27Akxk) This is like Rebecca Black's "Friday" for Nepal (thanks Iris!). :)
Sunday afternoon I went for a walk (foot reference) to pass the time. :) There is a really nice bakery around the corner that has chocolate almond cookies! YUM!!! I am going to miss those! :)
In the late afternoon, I decided to get a pedicure (foot reference). I feel like this needs justification considering that I am in a third world country and expending money on something purely cosmetic, so here goes:
- I had originally planned to get a massage (yes, I know, another non-essential) with a house guest, but work kept her longer than expected and so she couldn't make it!
- I wasn't ready to handle my first massage by myself! That whole touching thing is scary.
- I had about 6 layers of nail polish on my toenails (foot reference) and no nail polish remover.
- Pedicures (FOOT) are super super cheap. Only $5 for the whole thing (which will probably make more sense after I explain the process!)
- ...I wanted to go out...
- And that is the end of the list of reasonable reasons. I hope that was at least partially persuasive and justifying.
Anyways! The place I was directed to is by the pool by Cafe Ghangri (the open momo place!). You enter onto the pool deck and go up a spiral set of iron stairs. Then another set of stairs to get to the room (no one was at the desk) (this is also stair-climbing and thus inherently a foot reference). I peeked in, and seeing no one -- but hearing some rustles -- I cautiously asked, "hello?"
There was a rapid Nepali response.
"Do you speak English?"
Another rapid Nepali response, and a woman appeared from behind a set of curtains. We stared at each other for a moment, realizing that we were unable to communicate. I mimed a pedicure (with my feet) and she pointed at the chair as she left the room (on her feet, of course). I sat down (finally off of my feet) and waited for her return. A minute later she rushed into the room (let all future movement verbs presume a use of feet) with a menu of sorts for different services they offer. I pointed (well, not this verb) to the pedicure and she was off again!
This time, she reappeared with a luxurious and sturdy lawn chair. She placed it in the middle of the white-walled room and beckoned me over. I re-situated myself as she was again zooming around gathering supplies. At one point, she moved back the curtains and I saw her filling the foot-pan with water from the shower. It was delightfully warm!
She set the mini-tub in front of me and plunged my feet in. The usual pedicure routine ensued:
- removal of current nail polish (which turned everything dark blue for awhile)
- scraping off of calluses (which tickled!)
- scrubby-massages (which have left my feet very supple)
- lotion-massages (which hurt a little less than the scrubby ones)
- cuticle removal (which was incredibly anxiety-inducing)
- nail bleaching (I wasn't really paying attention at this point...)
- toenail shaping (which included a lot of scraping)
- bristly brushing of the toes (is this normal...?)
- one last massage of pressure points (which thankfully didn't last too long!)
I wouldn't have been able to effectively communicate this, but I had slightly rolled my ankle during futsal (no biggy, don't worry!) and it was still quite tender. But she didn't know and plunged in. I assumed a high degree of self control trying not to grimace from the shooting pain while simultaneously trying not to burst out laughing (my feet are so ticklish). I should also mention that I really don't like people touching my feet. Why would you get a pedicure, then? You must be asking. Trust me, I still ask myself the same thing.
It was an experience.
Finally, we came to the easy part! The actual painting of the nails!
The decision of what color to get was made even easier because there were only four colors to choose from: light pink, dark pink, glitter, and shimmery beige. I ended up painting my nails a different color when I got home...
But for the time being I flaunted the dark pink. Base coats, top coats, and buffing (I used to spend a lot of time on nail art and am pretty familiar with all the basics) weren't used, but a dried-up and gloopy nail polish was. It didn't look...smooth. Sadly. But you can bet that my feet were very very clean! :)
She rushed out of the room again, then back, then out, then flitted around some more. At one point she started working on her own hair as I sat in that lawn chair in the middle of the room. When she did come back, she started to fan my toenails with a magazine to dry them more quickly (to those who fan their nails after painting them, I advise that you don't -- many a nail artist youtuber has said that it causes air bubbles and...less smoothness). She accidentally hit my legs. And my toenails. Multiple times.
Eventually she declared them dry, so I slipped my shoes (where your feet go!) back on, paid the 500 Rps, and headed back to the guesthouse!
On the way, I ran into Neha (figuratively)! We sat on the roof of Sports Cafe (between Sun Cafe and Cafe Soma, but not as far as Cafe Ghangri! So many cafes!). We decided to have a drink (and by drink I mean papaya smoothie!) and chatted for awhile. It was great, and we made several plans for the week! :)
After that, I went to Dragon Restaurant with Prabesh; he had claimed that their buff (meaning water buffalo) momos were superb (well, in other words!). They definitely were worth the high praise! I had also brought up some previously observed sexist behavior--specifically, men shaking hands with other men but not women. Prabesh explained that this was part of Nepali culture; it is a sign of respect not to physically contact a women you are not partners with. A question to the readers: Would this not-touching-because-you-are-not-in-a-relationship custom be respectful or disrespectful to you? I would love to get your opinions!
Later that night, I skyped with Lisa Fleming (the one and only! She coordinates the Borlaug-Ruan internships!). It was really nice video chatting with her -- she is so incredibly sweet! :)
That wrapped up my Sunday! As this is a semi-long one, I'll post on the first half of the work week tomorrow! :)
Peace and love,
Abby
Hey, about the touching thing - I wouldn't call that sexist at all
ReplyDeleteHere (in Bangladesh), it's seen as a measure of respect - if someone indicates that it's okay to touch them, then you can. But out of respect for the other person (and any religious or personal objections they might have to contact), you wait for them to say it. It eliminates discomfort on the part of both parties. It's definitely a respect thing, like, respecting people's space and body
all physical contact follows those rules. In Muslim culture (at least as far as I've been exposed), any contact with other genders without the consent of that person is considered INCREDIBLY disrespectful. touching arms, shaking hands, hugging - it's all under that umbrella. But within the sexes, consent is implied. It's honestly all about respect. A lot of times, instead of shaking hands, people place their right hand over their heart and bow slightly when greeting another gender.
that way, it's still acknowledged
and if the woman (or man) then decides to extend their hand (the person who was greeted initiates any further contact) then you go shake hands
it's just a cultural thing rooted in different traditions of respect. I initially thought it was sexist too, but then I realized that it's meant to increase your control over who touches you. In a way, it's empowering