Shavua tov everyone,
Shabbos turned out to be an interesting experience. The Chabad does't open here until after Purim (a few weeks from now), as that's when the Israeli tourist season starts, so I knew I'd be on my own and had prepared for that. Or so I thought.
I had thought ahead and brought a timer to set the lights with, as I do at home. However, in this hotel, as in the others in Nepal, the room had no lamps, just lights with switches, so they were either on or off. I can't sleep with the light on, so I thought I'd come up with a clever idea. I went to the trekking shops (of which there must be a dozen on the main road here) to look for a lantern. Has they ever heard of, or seen a lantern, that indeed might have been a clever idea. Who doesn't need/use a lantern when camping/hiking? I finally found a store where the guy had a flashlight that also emitted light from the side of the flashlight head, so when you stood the flashlight on its head, light came out from all sides, just below the handle. Better than nothing.
The next problem was the electricity itself. All of Nepal is on what they call "load sharing", so the electricity goes off and on throughout the day and night. The hotels have backup generators, but those only allow for some lights to be on, not necessarily the outlets.
Before shabbos started, as I was getting ready, I had the TV on (they have a channel from India which plays Gray's Anatomy and Homeland, two of my favorite shows!). While I was getting ready, the electricity went off, turning off the tv. OK, no big deal, it was about to be shabbos anyway, and I would have turned it off myself. Oh that I could have! At home, if the power goes out, and the tv goes off, it's off til you turn it back on. Not so here in Nepal. Somehow, when the electricity comes back on, at whatever random time that might be, the tv remembers it was on, and comes back to life! that meant that late in the evening, and all through the night, til 9am the next morning, the tv was on, and because it was shabbos, I couldn't turn it off. My friend, who for a minute thought of coming with me, who could have been my own personal shabbos goy, was no where to be found, and I couldn't imagine trying to explain to a Napli hotel worker why I couldn't turn off the tv, so I spent Fri night falling asleep to, and walking up repeatedly, to the tv.
At least shabbos day was beautiful, and the balcony had a great view of the mountain over lake Phewa, so I enjoyed a relaxing day of reading.
The electricity is off again, so my plan of cooking dinner tonight is literally half-baked (it started to cook before the power went out. Guess it's tuna tonight).
Tomorrow is another sunrise viewing followed by a full day of sightseeing with a guide.
Goodnight!
Robyn
I forgot to add that the grape juice boxes from Trader Joe's that made it all the way through my trip to Africa got smushed and leaked (thankfully they were packed in a ziplock. And the pita that I had so carefully tested by leaving out in a plastic bag at home, where they fared just fine, all turned moldy here (it's more humid so that may be why). Just to round off my shabbos...
Motzie shabbos...
As I was enjoying a hot shower, even the bathroom light went out (it, and one bedroom light are on even with no electricity thanks to the generator). I wondered to myself then, "when had an adventurous, exciting vacation become equivalent to a lack of basic comforts like electricity?' and maybe my next vacation needs to be a "normal" one.
Shabbos turned out to be an interesting experience. The Chabad does't open here until after Purim (a few weeks from now), as that's when the Israeli tourist season starts, so I knew I'd be on my own and had prepared for that. Or so I thought.
I had thought ahead and brought a timer to set the lights with, as I do at home. However, in this hotel, as in the others in Nepal, the room had no lamps, just lights with switches, so they were either on or off. I can't sleep with the light on, so I thought I'd come up with a clever idea. I went to the trekking shops (of which there must be a dozen on the main road here) to look for a lantern. Has they ever heard of, or seen a lantern, that indeed might have been a clever idea. Who doesn't need/use a lantern when camping/hiking? I finally found a store where the guy had a flashlight that also emitted light from the side of the flashlight head, so when you stood the flashlight on its head, light came out from all sides, just below the handle. Better than nothing.
The next problem was the electricity itself. All of Nepal is on what they call "load sharing", so the electricity goes off and on throughout the day and night. The hotels have backup generators, but those only allow for some lights to be on, not necessarily the outlets.
Before shabbos started, as I was getting ready, I had the TV on (they have a channel from India which plays Gray's Anatomy and Homeland, two of my favorite shows!). While I was getting ready, the electricity went off, turning off the tv. OK, no big deal, it was about to be shabbos anyway, and I would have turned it off myself. Oh that I could have! At home, if the power goes out, and the tv goes off, it's off til you turn it back on. Not so here in Nepal. Somehow, when the electricity comes back on, at whatever random time that might be, the tv remembers it was on, and comes back to life! that meant that late in the evening, and all through the night, til 9am the next morning, the tv was on, and because it was shabbos, I couldn't turn it off. My friend, who for a minute thought of coming with me, who could have been my own personal shabbos goy, was no where to be found, and I couldn't imagine trying to explain to a Napli hotel worker why I couldn't turn off the tv, so I spent Fri night falling asleep to, and walking up repeatedly, to the tv.
At least shabbos day was beautiful, and the balcony had a great view of the mountain over lake Phewa, so I enjoyed a relaxing day of reading.
The electricity is off again, so my plan of cooking dinner tonight is literally half-baked (it started to cook before the power went out. Guess it's tuna tonight).
Tomorrow is another sunrise viewing followed by a full day of sightseeing with a guide.
Goodnight!
Robyn
I forgot to add that the grape juice boxes from Trader Joe's that made it all the way through my trip to Africa got smushed and leaked (thankfully they were packed in a ziplock. And the pita that I had so carefully tested by leaving out in a plastic bag at home, where they fared just fine, all turned moldy here (it's more humid so that may be why). Just to round off my shabbos...
Motzie shabbos...
As I was enjoying a hot shower, even the bathroom light went out (it, and one bedroom light are on even with no electricity thanks to the generator). I wondered to myself then, "when had an adventurous, exciting vacation become equivalent to a lack of basic comforts like electricity?' and maybe my next vacation needs to be a "normal" one.
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