What follow are REMEMBERED extracts of a dinner conversation between a
socially insecure and intellectually naive 18-year-old
first-semester Nepali student and three of his American friends at a
dining-hall at some university somewhere in Massachusetts.)

by oohi ashu

Hi! Where are you from?
Nepal. That's a country between India and China, you know.


But you could pass as an Indian from India.
Well, I'm not as dark as the Indians, you see. I'm a Nepali. And Nepal
is an independent, peace-loving country. We have Mt. Everest there, you
know.


Mt. Everest? That's so cool, man! Are you a Sherpa?
Not really. The Sherpas are a different group altogether. They live up
in the mountains, you see, where it's very cold.


Mountains, wow!? Do you guys, like, go skiing a lot? It must be fun,
right?
Well, not really. You see, the Himalayas are really tall mountains.
They're difficult to ski on. We just kind of worship them from a
distance.


Worship them? Are you religious?
Yeah, I guess. I'm a Hindu.


You're a Hindu? That's so cool, man! So you guys have, like, the
caste-system, right?
Yeah. But I don't really believe in it. Besides, these days, that's only
practiced in rural areas.


So, like, what's your caste?
Um, Brahmins. You know, that's like what you have here in Boston, I
guess. It's kind of, like, being at the top of the caste-system . . .


Does your Brahmin caste, like, dominate over all others?
Well, it's not really that. I mean, it doesn't work out like that. There are good Brahmins and thereare bad Brahmins. Historically, a lot of domination used to happen in
the past. But that's kind of dying out now. These days, we all get along
fine in Nepal. Like I said, mine is a peace-loving country.


But you guys are also famous for wars, right? I mean, for my
social-studies project at Andover, I remember writing a paper on the
Gorkhas.

Oh, the Gorkhas!! Yeah, they are us. They're really brave and bold. You
know, they wield this special knife called khukuri that can hack a
person to pieces. Because of them, my country Nepal is known throughout
the world as the land of brave soldiers.


Are you a Gorkha yourself?
Well, not really. I'm only a Gorkhali, which is just another name for a
Nepali. But I can wield my khukuri knife, like, you know, kick-ass style!


Hey, now I remember. My sister's college-classmate's boyfriend's stepfather was on
the Peace Corps in Nepal. I think he found Nepal an awesome place. He
had, like, some amazing slides of a village where he spent two
years digging a canal . . .
Yeah, my country is really beautiful. It is an awesome place. And the
people there -- though they may be poor -- are always friendly, happy ,
helpful and smiling, you know. You guys should visit it someday. You can
even go trekking from Kathmandu.


Katmandu? That's such a cool name for a place. How much snow do you get
there every year?
Snow in Kathmandu? Never. Much of the snow falls on the high mountains
-- the ones that are much taller than the green ones you have up in New
Hampshire.


The air you breathe in Kathmandu must be very crisp, right? And the
water, very fresh?
Yeah, something like that. It's also very spiritual. Kathmandu's also
known as the City of Temples, you see.


How's the economy in your country?
Well, Nepal's a poor, underdeveloped country. Still, we have our pride
intact. While India next door existed as a colony, Nepal has always held
its head high as a brave, independent nation. But we need development
there. Fast. In fact, there's much we have to learn from the First
World. And, I guess, that's partly why I decided to come here, you know,
to learn from and to share ideas with you guys so that I can go back and
help develop my motherland someday.


Wow! That's so neat. I guess this is what the admissions office means when it keeps on sending out brochures saying thatdiversity is the hallmark of this place. Imagine having dinner withsomebody from Nepal! I'm now going to call my Mom and tell her that I
just met a really nice Brahmin from Kathmandu. I bet she'll get a good
kick out of it.
Yeah, do that. I have to go to the Science Center, and finish that Expos
paper on Orwell that's due tomorrow.

[You were reading remembered extracts of a dining-hall conversation
between a socially insecure and intellectually naive, 18-year-old,
first-semester Nepali student and three of his American friends.]

Originally published in The Kathmandu Post