It became home

GIVE Nepal was better than I ever hoped it would be. After attending WILD, I knew that I needed to attend a true GIVE trip. This trip was truly incredible. I learned a lot about the country of Nepal and myself during it. Some of the trip highlights included building a house, white water rafting, a safari, and exploring the atmosphere and culture of Nepal. The village of Paslang, where we did reconstruction, is a beautiful and welcoming area. Starting the first day there we were welcomed with a traditional ceremony. I thought that only certain people would welcome us wholeheartedly, but the entire village showed up that day to welcome us. This sight made me sure that we were working in the right place. Over our time working we were fed traditional lunches of dal baht and were offered refreshments of tea and bananas often. Although most villagers spoke little to no English, we had Pasang, who is a Nepal native from the Everest region, and pekash, who is a native from Paslang, to help translate anything that couldn't be communicated through physical gestures. In my opinion working in Paslang was the most rewarding and enjoyable thing on this trip. Continually, we had a chance to do some fun adventure activities in Nepal as well. We went 2 day whitewater rafting down the Trishuli river. This was my first time whitewater rafting, and I am so pleased that I was able to experience it on this river. During slow points on the water, I would just look around and be astounded at where we were. Truly breathtaking views. Following that experience we visited Chitwan National Park, which is home to a number of incredible animals. Sadly we did not get to see any tigers in the park, but we did get to observe a few rhinos and crocodiles (from a safe distance). We concluded the trip the same way we started: exploring part of Kathmandu. This time we looked at the ancient city of Bhaktapur, and boy was it astounding. The ancient architecture scene in this place was incredible. Overall I would recommend this trip to anyone who is looking to explore a different side of themselves and the world. Namaste!