Salsa Party in Ebisu

Last Thursday, I went to a salsa party. My friend organized the party. I used to go salsa dance school, and my friends are still dancing.
I found some of my old friends. I've not danced salsa for years, so I wasn't sure if I could still dance or not but my old friends asked me to dance with them, and I could, because they were nice dancers with nice leading techniques. Salsa is pair-dance, so if the leader is good, the follower can follow them more easily.

When I was a salsa freak, I went to Latin clubs every weekend. There are several Latin dance clubs in Tokyo. You can see Peruvian, Colombian, Cuban and Western people are also there. It is a very culturally-mixed space and very exciting. Latin music makes you happy, as does Corona.

Travel in Nepal 13 : The National Elephant Festival in Chitowan

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday.
When I went to Chitowan National Park, the National Elephant Festival was taking place. I saw a parade in the main street in Sauraha, a village near by the park..

Travel in Nepal 12 : The Mountain View from Pokhara

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday.
In Pokhara, there is a big lake. I enjoyed a boat trip. From the boat, I could see a beautiful mountain range.

Pokhara is a city of tourism, so there are many restaurants for tourists. I went to a Tibetan restaurant because I needed Tomba, Tibetan local beer. ( see this article about Tomba http://hellotokyo1.blogspot.jp/2013/03/travel-in-nepal-5-tibetan-in-nepal.html)
 In that restaurant, I was only one tourist, all other people there were Nepalese. 

Travel in Nepal 11 : Bakutapur

My favorite place is Bakutapur. This historic city has been well-reserved since 18th century. The whole city is a kind of museum. Most buildings have been used since the former century, so residents there still live in them and use them as restaurants, shops and hotels. Nepalese women still wear their traditional clothes, so it makes the view of the city exotic and beautiful.

Travel in Nepal 10 : Shopping in Nepal

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday.
In the Tamel area, you can see many shops for tourists.

Most tourists come to Nepal for trekking, so many shops display North Face clothes and Marmot gear, but most of them are fake. I bought a North Face fleece jacket for 7USD and a pair of pants for 20USD. They looked OK, but they were not good quality. They were not good enough for serious outdoor activities. 
A pashmina, a type of fine cashmere, is also popular as a good souvenir from Nepal. In your country, they are expensive, but in Nepal, you can buy them for a much cheaper price. There are several fair trade shops in Kathmandu. Their prices are a little bit higher than other shops, but you can rely on their quality. In general, western NPOs are supervising them, so their products are oriented for tourists from western countries, meaning, the products there are more sophisticated. I bought a pashmina knit cap for my friend in one of the fair trade shops. It was 10USD.
At sightseeing spots, we can see souvenir sellers on the streets. One of them tried to sell a pendant to me. I said 'No'. I wasn't interested in it. Then he started to beg me to buy it ' Madam, it is just 2USD!', and then 'OK, 1USD!', at last, '50 cents!'. I laughed and bought it. He looked very dirty, so I thought if I didn't buy it, he couldn't have had dinner. Anyway, these kinds of conversations are part of good memories of traveling. 

Travel in Nepal 9 : Tempo

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday.
'Tempo' is one of the public transports in Nepal. It is an auto-rickshaw with three wheels. When I was in Nepal, I loved to use it. Taxis are OK for short trips, but I had to stay 30 days there, so I had to manage my expenses within a limited budget. The fee of the tempo is much cheaper than a taxi. So I used tempos almost everyday. 

There are no tempo stops on the street. When you find a tempo on the street, just raise your hand and make eye-contact with a driver, then they stop for you. You should say where you want to go to the driver, and if they say OK, you can get into it. There are several tempo routes, but it is difficult to understand for tourists so you should ask people that every time. Nepalese are kind, so they'll tell you if the tempo is the right one or not. Tempos are small, only 10 people can get into one tempo. Once, I found that the tempo was full, but I didn't want to wait for the next tempo. So I stood on the steps of the tempo and held the handrail. It was dangerous, and I was so thrilled but when the driver saw a police car ahead, he told me to enter inside. It is banned apparently. Most tempos are very old. They look about to break down but they work. After you get into a tempo, you might say your destination again to the driver and other passengers, and ask them to tell you when you arrive at that place. You should pay 15 rupees when you get off the tempo to the driver. ( 1USD = 80 rupees) My tempo experience made me feel as if I was also a local resident. I enjoyed it.

Travel in Nepal 8 : People in Nepal

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday. Nepal is a multi-cultural country. We can see many different races and tribes there. Some groups are like Chinese and Japanese, with yellow skin and black straight hair. 

Some groups look like Indians. Their faces are craggy, and they have black eyes and black wavy hair. Some groups have also black hair, but their eyes are light gray or sometimes green. Nepal is situated in the middle of Asia, so people there might have features of East Asian, South Asian or Central Asian. Japan is a homogeneous country, so I enjoyed seeing this variety of people in Nepal.

People in Nepal live according to their tradition. Some people told me that the culture in Nepal is changing towards a modern society, but basically they still get married within their tribe. In my view, that's why their features remain in their appearance. 
In Sauraha, I saw a parade at the local festival. I saw each ethnic group dressed in their own way and they danced their traditional dance.

 It was very exotic and interesting. Seeing different cultures abroad is one of the attractions for tourists.　I prefer public transport to taxis abroad, since I can experience the real local life there. I can also have the chance to chat with local people in public buses and local markets. It's also a good opportunity to know their life and culture.

Travel in Nepal 7: Pony Ride Trekking in Pokhara

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday. 
Pokhara is a city known as a starting point for the Annapurna Circuit Trekking and in Pokhara we can enjoy many outdoor activities. I tried some pony ride trekking meaning I climbed a mountain on a pony. I wasn't so interested in outdoor activities, but it was just a one-day activity, so I decided to try it. It was my first time riding a horse, so I was scared. There was one Nepalese guy as a guide, but I couldn't trust him. He showed up late, and he just told me 'Hold the saddle tight!' and 'No problem!' in strange Japanese. The road we went on was the same road for cars, so every time cars passed through a narrow section of road, we had to stop or hold the pony in check. It took almost 6 hours. My hips were in pain because the saddle was so hard. 

From the top of the mountain, I saw many tourists enjoying paragliding. I recommend that rather than pony ride trekking. Anyway, the view was awesome.

Pokhara is a city of tourism, so there are many restaurants for tourists. After the pony trekking, I went to one of those fine restaurants. In Nepal, basically I used just budget restaurants, but at that time, I really needed some delicious food for me. I was exhausted!

Travel in Nepal 6 : Women in Red in Nepal

I traveled to Nepal during the last Christmas holiday. 
Nepalese women like the color red.

You can see many women in red dresses, red scarves and red stoles. They have a 'bindhi', a painted mark, on their forehead, which is also red. 

In Japanese culture, red is for young women. As we get older, we don't wear red. So, elder Nepalese women wearing red are interesting for me. In Nepal, apparently wearing red is traditional for women. 

They also have their own way of doing their makeup. They put black eyeliner around their eyes, and put red lipstick on their lips. Some women put jewellery on their noses. It seems to depend on the different tribes. Their hair is long. We rarely see women with short hair. 

In Nepal, we had to suffer from an electricity shortage meaning that we couldn't use electricity for 8-12 hours per day. So, I couldn't use hot water in the bathroom even though it was the cold season. Kathmandu is a very dusty city, so I wanted to take a bath every day, but I gave up. Once when I'd just arrived in Kathmandu, I took a shower and got a cold. The weather was cold, the shower was not hot enough, and I couldn't use a hair dryer. But, I saw many Nepalese women with wet hair in the morning. They wash their hair before they go to the office, with cold water, without a hair dryer. I admire their efforts to be clean.