First Week

Hello Nomadism followers.  I have now been in Nepal for one week.  From the moment I arrived here, I felt completely welcomed to this country and this place and this culture.  

Top three (ok, four) moments from my first week:

     * My first (and second, and third, and fourth, and fifth) meal of Dahl Bat - the staple diet of Nepalis, always eaten with your hands.

     * My first view of the Himalaya - seen from our orientation site at Bakhtapur, a small town about 20 minutes outside of Kathmandu.

     * With two Nepali friends and Dragons instructors, stopping in the heart of Bakhtapur town square for Nepali tea, Sal Roti (i.e. Nepali donuts), and people watching.

     * Stopping in the streets of Kathmandu to visit a barber set up next to the main road.  His mirror was nailed to a tree.  He was barefoot.  Scattered at his feet were razor blades.  He shaved by beard and my head - a fresh start.

In two days my semester students arrive and things begin to truly ramp up.  And so, down the unknown and thankfully unexpected muddy path of education, experience, and culture I go....

Haikus - the Nomad's prose

As my brain begins to prepare, few haikus....

The urge to move on -
The mountains' rising peaks call.
10 days - to Nepal.

Confidence to lead
Without knowledge of the place,
I will teach from heart.

The extreme present.
Everything around us now
Is all that I need.

Scattered belongings -
Soon, everything in boxes,
I have what's needed.

A new adventure -
To mountains of mindfulness!
Nepal awaits me.

Where does technology fit in?

Nomadism (n.) - A way of life in which a community [or person] has no permanent settlement but moves from place to place, usually seasonally and within a defined territory. Nomadism does not imply aimless wandering, but suggests an organized rotation of settlements to ensure maximum use of available natural resources.

The definition does not mention keeping in touch with others through the use of higher level technologies while wandering, but perhaps the times they are a changin'. I have been living the modern-day nomadic lifestyle for years, but I have never blogged until today. I'm not sure how regular of an event this will be, but I'm going to give it a try.

My impetus for beginning this blog is my latest nomadic adventure - to Nepal! In just less than three weeks, I will fly to Kathmandu to begin a four-month contract as an instructor on a semester program in Nepal. With 12 American students and 2 co-instructors, I will experience cultural and environmental extremes, physical and emotional challenges, ideological and spiritual learning, and so much more. Clearly, a blog will not be able to define or encompass my experience, but hopefully it will be able to provide you all with some small insights in to what the heck this nomad is up to.

And so, "Nomadism" begins....enjoy!

Namaste,
Paul