Nepal is a predominantly rural
society, and its rich culture and ethnic diversity
are best experienced in its villages. A growing number
of programe's enable visitors to stay overnight in
private homes in traditional villages far from the
tourist trails.
Village stays (or village tourism,
as this relatively new activity is called in the business)
offer a unique opportunity for comfortable cultural
immersion. The idea is that a tour operator contracts
with a whole village to accommodate and entertain
guests; rooms in local houses are fitted with bathrooms
and a few tourist-style comforts, host families are
trained to prepare meals hygienically, and a guide
accompanies the guests to interpret. Participating
villages tend to be located a couple of hours' walk
from the nearest road - close enough to be easily
accessible for less-than-fit visitors, yet far enough
to be culturally intact and shielded from outside
influences. (You'd never find these places on your
own.)
Village tourism differs from trekking
in a couple of important ways. First, although some
walking is involved, and a trekking permit may even
be required, exercise is secondary to the cultural
experience: the whole point is to stay in one village
and get to know its people, not to cover distances
between villages. Second, accommodation is in an actual
home, not a trekking inn filled with other backpackers,
so the cross-cultural exchange is more authentic.
And while participating villages obviously do get
tourists, they get far fewer than even the most minor
halt along a standard teahouse trek, and are completely
un commercialized.
Tourism and its economic benefits are
far too concentrated in a few areas of Nepal, so village
tourism is seen as a promising way to disperse visitors
and spread the wealth. Under the best program's, local
people get to keep 50 percent of the proceeds - that's
big money, given the high rates charged by operators
- and since all food and services are locally produced,
virtually all of the money stays in the community.
However, if village tourism catches on, get-rich-quick
operators can be expected to dive in with cut-price
packages that give locals a much smaller portion of
the cut, so if you're considering a village stay,
question prospective operators closely about where
the money's going.
So if you're an individual or couple
you should contact the companies well in advance and
adjust your schedule to coordinate with already-scheduled
departures.
A few language institutes and other
organizations in Kathmandu also organize informal
home stays with individual families in and around
the valley. Most of these are intended specifically
to provide Nepali language immersion, but at least
one programme is set up for tourists just wanting
to spend a weekend with a Nepali family.
Clothing and the body
Nepalis are innately conservative in their attitudes
to clothing. Not a few are still shell-shocked from
the hang-loose styles of the hippy era, and wary of
all budget travelers as a result. A woman is expected
to dress modestly, with legs and shoulders covered,
especially in temples and monasteries: a dress or
skirt that hangs to mid-calf level is best; trousers
are acceptable, but shorts or a short skirt are offensive
to many. A man should always wear a shirt in public,
and long trousers if possible (men who wear shorts
are assumed to be of a low caste). It's equally important
to look clean and well groomed - travelers are rich,
Nepalese reckon, and ought to look the part. You can
flout these traditions, but you'll only shut yourself
off from the happy encounters with locals that make
traveling in Nepal so pleasant.
Nudity is a sensitive issue. Only women
with babies or small children in tow bare their breasts.
When Nepali men bath in public, they do it in their
underwear, and women bath fully clothed. Foreigners
are expected to do likewise. Nepal has some idyllic
hot springs, but most are heavily used as bathing
areas; don't scare the locals off by stripping. Paradoxically,
it's deemed okay to defecate in the open, as in many
villages there are no covered toilets - but out of
sight of others, in the early morning or after dark.
Men may urinate in public away from buildings - discreetly
- but women have to find a sheltered spot.
Still other conventions pertain to the
body. In Nepal, the forehead is regarded as the most
sacred part of the body and the feet the most unclean.
It's impolite to touch an adult Nepali's head, and
it's an insult to kick someone. (The Nepali equivalent
of tarring and feathering is to force a person to
wear a garland of shoes.) Don't put your feet on chairs
or tables, and when sitting, try not to point the
soles of your feet at anyone. On a related note, it's
bad manners to step over the legs of someone seated:
in a crowded place, Nepalese will wait for you to
draw in your feet so they can pass.
Nepali views about displays of affection
are the opposite of what most of us are used to. It's
considered acceptable for friends of the same sex
to hold hands or put their arms around each other
in public, but not for lovers of the opposite sex.
Couples shouldn't cuddle or kiss in public, nor in
front of a Nepali host. Don't shake hands with a Nepali
woman, as this form of contact is not traditional.
Temples and Homes in Nepal
Major Hindu temples or their inner sanctums are usually
off-limits to non-believers, who are technically outcastes.
Respect this: what seems like elitism is just Hindus'
way of keeping a part of their culture sacred in a
country where nearly everything is open to inspection
by outsiders. In most cases, you can see everything
from outside anyway. Where you are allowed in, be
respectful, take your shoes off before entering, don't
take photos unless you've been given permission, and
leave a few rupees in the donation box. Leather is
usually not allowed in temple precincts. Don't touch
offerings, nor people when they're on their way to
shrines or are in the process of worshipping. The
front of a shrine is usually marked by a pedestal
supporting the deity's carrier, and/or a lotus-carved
stone embedded in the ground: these define the territory
of the shrine, where it's particularly important to
be reverent.
Similar sensitivity is due at Buddhist
temples and monasteries. If you're granted an audience
with a lama, it's traditional to present him with
a kata (a ceremonial white scarf, usually sold nearby).
Walk around Buddhist stupas and monuments clockwise
- that is, keep the monument on your right.
If invited for a meal in a private home,
bring an appropriate gift such as fruit. Take your
shoes off when entering, or follow the example of
your host. When the food is served you'll be expected
to serve yourself first, so you won't be able to follow
your host's lead. Don't take more than you can eat
- it is polite to ask for seconds. The meal is typically
served at the end of a gathering; when the eating
is done, everyone gets up and leaves.
Eco-tourism traveler's code:-
These tips come courtesy of the Nepal Tourist Watch
Center, an organization established to preserve Nepal's
heritage and environment through responsible tourism.
Travel in a spirit of humility and with
a genuine desire to meet and talk with the local people.
Be aware of the feelings of other people, thus preventing
what might be seen as offensive behaviour. Remember
this especially with photography.
Get acquainted with local customs; respect
them; people will be happy to help you.
Remember that you are one of thousands of visiting
tourists. Do not expect special privileges.
Make no promises to local people unless you are certain
you can fulfill them.
Cultivate the habit of asking questions instead of
knowing all the answers.
If you really want a home away from home, why travel
Privacy
Nepalese do not have the same concept of privacy that
Westerners do. Nepali families are large and close-knit,
and houses are small. Nepalese grow up constantly
surrounded by other people (and noise). They like
to be with other people, and they will assume you
do, too.
Moreover, as a foreigner you will be
an object of great curiosity as soon as you step off
the beaten track. People may stare, point at you and
even talk about you (in Nepali) among themselves.
Nepalese will constantly be befriending you, wanting
to exchange addresses and extracting solemn promises
that you will write to them. Sometimes they will ask
you point-blank to help them travel to your country,
assuming you to be wealthy enough to pay their airfare
and powerful enough to fix their visa.
There will be days when you feel that
if you're asked the question "What is your country?"
one more time you'll hit someone. Give yourself time
off when you need it. But Nepalese are the best thing
about Nepal, so don't close yourself off to meeting
them
Other things
Try to convey an accurate impression of your home
country - both its good and bad points - and play
down materialistic standards of success. Don't rub
Nepalese' noses in technology and fashions they can't
afford. Nepali society is rich in the traditions of
family and community that are so often mislaid in
the West, but like traditional societies worldwide
it is under attack, and we are only now beginning
to see that tourism is a corrupting agent.
You may be dismayed by the amount of
rubbish in the streets. There are few rubbish bins
in Nepal (although they're starting to appear in tourist
areas), and people throw their litter on the ground,
where it may or may not be swept up by other people
whose job it is to do so. Where they exist, toilets
range from "Western" (sit-down) flush jobs
to two planks projected over a stream. In lodges -
tourist ones aside - the norm is a squat toilet, usually
pretty stinky and flyblown. When traveling by bus,
there will almost always be a bathroom available at
rest stops, but sometimes the public toilet will be
nothing but a designated field. When in doubt, ask
Chaarpi kahaa chha ? ("Where is the toilet?").
Don't throw paper down squat toilets: put it in the
basket provided. Toilet paper is not provided in more
basic guest houses and restaurants, so bring your
own. Nepalese use a jug of water and the left hand
(try it yourself - it's no more or less disgusting
than the toilet paper method).
Finally, be patient. Nepal is a developing
country and things don't always work or start on time.
It's unrealistic to expect things to be like they
are at home, even if the menu or brochure makes it
sound as if they will be. If a restaurant is slow
in filling your order, it may be because they've only
got one stove. Getting angry or impatient will only
confuse Nepalese and won't resolve the problem. The
Nepali way of dealing with setbacks isn't to complain,
or even to keep a stiff upper lip, but to laugh. It's
a delightful, infectious response.
You can't change Nepal, and even if
you could, it is not yours to change. Many things
in Nepal are slow, inefficient or downright nutty,
but that's just the way things are. Taking the attitude
that "somebody's got to teach them a lesson"
or "if nobody complains it'll never change"
(real-life dialogue overheard in Kathmandu) will only
make you and everyone around you miserable. Go with
the flow. It's Nepal you've come to experience - let
it be Nepal.
To get by with a minimum of disappointment,
the best strategy is to scale back your expectations,
always double- and triple-check important arrangements,
take all assurances with a pinch of salt (Nepalese
will sometimes tell you what they think will make
you happy rather than the truth), and find something
interesting to do while you're waiting .
