Group mentality. This concept does not applies to the children of Nepal. I don't know how much it applies to the educational system in the states, but here, if someone else is doing it, YOU WANT TO. It's not a small desire, if someone gets noticed, then you have to as well. I gave them an assignment out of the book. Read the words (we did this one at a time), then colour the pictures. Whenever one of them would say "Teacher look." Then the rest of them would say "Teacher look", and wow, everyone needed me to look at theirs FIRST. As I looked at the drawings, I thought about the rest of the classes. It seems that if one of the students needs a)water b)bathroom c)sharpen pencil, then they all do. Sometimes I get asked "Can I go to the toilet, I mean to drink water?". This question usually occurs right after the classmate has asked if they could do that. Then I considered the way they play games. When playing basketball, they won't pass, all they do is run around with the ball, it isn't about scoring points, it's about having the "ball". And it doesn't even have to be a sport. One of the students in my class 1, 2, 3 was caught cheating. Her paper was torn up by the teacher (don't get me started on that), and she was made to sit in the hall. When I came into the class room EVERYONE want to tell me how this girl was a cheater. I explained to them that they all had cheated while I had been there and to chastice this girl was pointless because they all had done it. I thought the issue was settled. However, when the principle came into the room 5 minutes later, one of the students thought that it would an even better idea to tell the principle. After the priciple had left, I asked this student how she would feel if she was the one who had cheated, and how it would make her feel if someone had told the principle about it. She said that she would feel "very sad.". I asked her how she thought her classmate felt. No response. It seems that from a very young age, these kids are almost trained to point out the faults in all of their classmates, to try to get attention, to not let someone else do something that you can also do. Like go to the toilet.
Other than that things are great. I didn't feel so well earlier this week, but I think that has passed. I had a salad yesterday, it's strange the things that I have craved here. Mostly greens. The western food they make just doesn't turn out the same. But salad, hell ask Gorecki, it's just greens. Carrots, lettuce (when you get it), cucumber, they all taste the same here. BUT you have to make sure they soak it in iodine water. This is key.
School is good. I realized that teaching young children is not for me, at least not here. The language barrier is a bit much to try and over come with a 3y/o. Perhaps this is also hard in the states, but wow, does it wear on the patience.
I rode through another protest (I think?) today. There was a HUGE crowed outside the army base that I ride by everyday. T.V. cameras, etc. I do my best to avoid these, but when I don't know when/where they happen, my ignorance is certainly not Bliss. Thanks Edward. In other isolated news, literally the kind that makes me feel that way, Alex got engaged this past weekend. Again, that strange feeling of missing the goings on in the Bay Area comes back to haunt me. That, however, has not stopped me from prolonging my trip. I have decided to spend 10 days in the following locations, breath ma: Thailand, Pakistan, Turkey and Morocco, the to cross over to Portugal and catch a train to France to see Nico, Germany for Alex, and Denmark for Mikkel. I'll see you all in September!!!
Lost some where in the world.