Humor: Thanksgiving

As you probably know, Thanksgiving in Nepal falls on the same day as Thanksgiving in Texas, give or take a few time zones. Nepali Thanksgiving goes back to the time the Bahuns, members of the Brahman caste, crossed  the border into Nepal as they escaped the Muslim invasion of India around the 12th century AD. 

Once in Nepal, the Indian pilgrims, who were Hindus, met with the Newars, native Buddhists living in what is now the Kathmandu valley, and they gathered in peace and participated in a thanksgiving feast of rice, dahl, momos, and cranberries. So, unlike the first Thanksgiving in the U.S., in Nepal the visitors were Indians, but like the first Thanksgiving, we ate our fill and went to bed.

Like the day after Thanksgiving in the U.S., the day after Thanksgiving in Nepal is devoted to Christmas shopping, and the main intersection in Pharping, a village a kilometer up the mountainside, was reportedly clogged with bargain seekers on motorcycles, bicycles, rickshaws, and foot all day. In Pharping the shopkeepers wrap up all their goods in gaudy paper during the holidays, so every purchase is a present!  As for Christine and I, we decided to wait a few days for our weekly trip to Kathmandu, where we'll snag our brightly packaged Christmas gifts at Bluebird Market or in Thamel. 

Ooops, I seem to be out of scotch. Guess I'll have to take a quick trip to Pharping Fresh House after all. --Jerry in Nepal