First Week Experience in Nepal
I am Nicolas a 24 year young enthusiast from Austria. I have been dreaming of touring Nepal for 5 months for more than a year and finally I could make this dream come true. My main concern for touring in Nepal was to make a real lasting difference in the underprivileged communities and I was very much excited to do such selfless work in such a beautiful country. I was nervous and a bit worried when I arrived the Tribhuwan International Airport in Kathmandu. However, thanks to the professional and ultimate caring services of ICYE-Nepal, I felt home away from home and got so relaxed. While I was outside of the airport, standing confused together with a lot of people, ICYE airport representative was waiting already outside holding a sign with my name on it. The representative transferred me at the hostel, and I received a humble welcome. I immediately felt home and everybody treated me so nicely. You can see the grand welcome I received at the hostel in photos below, one of the best memories of my life.
My room was big, with two windows also very bright. Every window had his own fly screen so I could open the window without worrying about mosquitoes and I had my own bathroom, very tidy and clean. Also, the room has several fans on the walls to provide me with a cool time!
The food was amazing, and always enough for a second or third portion. In fact it was so tasty that I was asking my host to teach me her recipe of Lentil Soup ( Daal in Nepali) and so she did. I was never bored even though I had to stay in quarantine and could not leave the building. My language class was very good because of my excellent teacher. Not only she teaches me the basics of the Nepali language, she also told me about the important do’s and don’ts regarding sustainable travel & Nepali culture, festival, castes, transportation and climate. Whenever I had a question, I could ask her for advice. At the end of quarantine, she even helped me with buying a Nepali SIM-card. At the end of my stay, I got invited to the Holi festival and a sightseeing tour through Kathmandu.
I would recommend a stay to everybody, no matter how long his/her stay is. It’s always a great time! I love visiting new places in Nepal once you will be here, you will be in love with Nepal, its culture and language. So, I highly recommend a visit, but that being said, you need to be careful, social distance maintaining and hygiene because of covid 19.