Kathmandu City

 Kathmandu rivals for the filthiest city Ive ever been in, though the dominican republic comes in as a close tie. Trash everywhere, burn piles in the streets, dusty haze to breathe, beggars that make your heart twist with contracture, ragged stray dogs balding and weak... the list doesn’t end. The traffic is horrendous, like mexico city but 10 times scarier (or maybe i’m just getting older). Some sort of organized chaos, it takes your breath away for more ways than one. Somehow it just works. I had a few moments of gut dropping sorrow for being here, and how nice home is. Its notably loud here and so so cold. 

....And yet, there is so much priceless beauty in the peoples eyes and in these sacred temples that it just stops you in your tracks. The constant tourist battle presents of either quickly grabbing your camera or just capturing the snapshot in your mind. The pictures wont ever give it justice... But its the only way to show something. 

We leave Kathmandu tomorrow morning to head to the clinic and it all starts up on friday. I cant even try and sum up everything we have done in the past few days, so the pictures below are an attempt. Now, the only thing i can do is try and mentally prepare for what the clinic will bring. It will have nothing to do with my needle technique, nor how well i know TCM diagnosis. We talk about the concept of treatment vs care. What we are here to refine is our method of care. The wisdom to know when to treat and when to send someone for the appropriate care that they need. While doing it all in a timely fashion seeing 12 people between 9:30-12, and 8 more from 1-4. That is a BIG difference from what ive been doing at my school, where we see 1 person every 1.5 hours. I feel like im in the eye of the storm at the moment, gearing up like Andrew Luck before a playoff game. (that one's for you mama). :)

There is compassion and there is wisdom. Without wisdom, what good is our compassion here. Thats the question that is brought up to us. The question that makes my stomach turn over on itself with the amount of responsibility I feel for being a ‘doctor’ here. Though when friday comes, i will be putting all of my insecurities to the side and showing up fully present, with clear eyes to give treatment and care. 

Here are a few pictures to share...

Tibetan buddhist woman in ritualistic prayer to the largest stupa in Nepal, Boudhanath

 Prayer wheel for old and young (a grandfather with his grand-daughter-very sweet)

The Stupa, Boudhanath

 Hindu women walking down the street alongside the old royal palace before it was overthrown.

Prayer flags!

 Taxi... no thanks

 A women resting at the entrance of a hindu temple

People soaking in the sun on the steps of hindu temple

People coming to feed the birds and the cows. Cows are auspicious here, you cannot kill them nor eat them. Anything that says ‘beef’ at a local restaurant in nepal comes from water buffalo, or ‘buff’. 

 Prayer wheel for both the old and the young (a grandfather with his grand-daughter-very sweet)