The Nepalese are extremely kind and hospitable. We noticed this the minute we drove to into Katmandu. The traffic is absolutely overwhelming. There are hardly any lanes and when they are no one obeys them. Yet, as people speed past each other, abruptly break or don’t break at all with constant honking (often unexplained), the Nepalese maintain their kindness on the road. No one gets angry or frustrated. Whether this is because the traffic is a fact of life, the Nepalese people are one of the kindest people I have ever been around. As our own driver frustrates me, the traffic and pedestrians cease from insulting each other or reacting to reckless driving. Granted if at every turn the Nepalese were getting angry because of traffic then there would be little positivity.

As we pack into the small rooms of dedicated organizations we engage in a lengthy call and returns of “Namaste”—I greet the divine inside you. Insisting that we sit comfortably, our hosts bring chairs, water and tea. And often when someone doesn’t sit I can see our hosts squirming at the sight of someone not sitting until they convince them with a comfy chair or cushion to sit on. Once we sit down we are always offered tea. We have consumed up to three cups of tea each day. Everywhere we visit we are asked whether we would like to have some tea. In Kathmandu we often succumbed to rudeness in the hopes to save our stomachs from turning. But after a day in the rural area of Bara our hosts stopped asking.

Unable to truly express how grateful I am for their kindness and hospitality, I have found the meaning behind Namaste. I sincerely bow to the divine inside you. The kindness and hospitality people I have shown us is inspiring and moving.