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I've decided against the whole redirect thingy, so just click the link above for my new page!

Thanks, and thanks for reading!

New Site!

My new website is up and running! Check it out at:

www.boundforotherports.com

Starting tomorrow I'll have this page redirect you automatically to the new one. So when you come to my blog you'll see this page:



Just click "Yes" and it will take you to my new site! Its that easy.

So please change your bookmarks, RSS feeds, or whatever you have to do!

Thanks for reading!

So this is Christmas...

Its Christmas morning here. I just finished talking with my family who was celebrating Christmas Eve. I'll talk to them again tomorrow morning when they celebrate Christmas with my sister's family.
And to be honest, I'm not very excited or happy right now. I read my friend's blog posts of Merry Christmas wishes and pictures under the tree. I read Facebook updates of "Merry Christmas" and "Have yourself a very merry Christmas." All of this does not put me in the Christmas spirit, but instead crushes my spirit. Today is gonna be rough. I want to be curled up on the couch with a cup of hot chocolate, a fire, and most importantly my family. I want to see my niece and nephew open their presents and play with them. I want to open presents. But not today. Next year, I guess.
Right now I would be at the Christmas Eve service sitting next to my family, holding a candle, and singing "O Come, O Come, Immanuel." Its one of my favorites. The lights would be dim as the reflection from the candles gently dance across the people's faces. There is a calm sense of peace, as people realize that Christ has come. When the candles are extinguished, the children will suddenly not be able to wait for tomorrow morning, or to get home to listen for Santa. The adults can't wait to get home to finish their last minute wrapping. But for those few minutes when the candles are lit, all that disappears, and their is peace. But for me, not today. Next year, I guess.
I miss the joy that comes with the Christmas season. Sure, there is the hectic and unfortunately now deadly shopping, but overall there is a joy. Conversations are lighter, people's spirits are higher. Strangers don't seem so strange and friends become family. I miss that. I won't get that this year. Next year, I guess.

So, my friend, please cherish today. Reach out to someone that has no one for Christmas. Its the loneliest day of the year for those without family. I'm certainly not going to go into the "remember the true spirit of Christmas" spiel we hear every year, but please remember that everyone in this world needs someone. Are you willing to be that someone? Are you willing to be the person that brings God's peace, turns a stranger into a friend, and then into family?

There is no snow here, no Christmas trees in stores where Christmas music is being played. There are no greeting of "Merry Christmas" as you walk down the street and greet friends and neighbors. No Christmas parties. In fact, for most people here, life goes on as usual. I can go to any store today because they are all open. Its just any other ordinary day for them.
If only they knew that today is anything but ordinary. Today is the day that Christ came and promises to return again for them. If only they knew. This year the people won't know it Christmas. Not today. Next, most definitely.

I'm not writing this to make you all feel down. On the contrary, I want you all to realize God's blessings. And once you realize them, share them. There is no danger in sharing our blessings. I assure, there is no danger. So do it. Share your blessings. And in return, you will gain more blessings. Its a pretty good deal if you ask me.

And one more thing...

I just found this article I wanted to share with you all. Its about the spread of Christianity in Nepal. Read it, pray about it. And praise God for it.

Christianity in Nepal

Christmas Eve (Or Friends for a Day)

For the past 28 Christmas Eves (this being my 29th) I have gone over to my Grandparents (Mom's side). I'm sure there have been a few years we were not there, but as far as I can remember we've been there. This year, however, I will not be there. My family will still get together, have dinner, and then open presents. My grandma and grandpa give all of us cousins gifts and then we do a White Elephant gift, or something of the sort.
For me, this year was something entirely different. And I can honestly say, it was the most nontraditional Christmas Eve I have ever had and probably will ever have. I spent my Christmas Eve visiting Hindu and Buddhist temples with a brother and sister from Czech Republic (Kristina and Michael) and Subina, a member of the family I am staying with.



We visited Durbar Square (Royal Square) in Patan (the actual city where I live). I wasn't able to thoroughly see everything here, and I definitely plan to visit again and get some more pictures. Some of the temples and stupas are centuries old. Before Nepal was unified, Patan was the original city in the Kathmandu valley. The Newari were the original people in the valley, and all of the temples and stupas here were built by them.





After our visit I said goodbye to the siblings and headed to church for the Christmas Eve service. Its amazing I can spend the day with two complete strangers and then most likely will never see again. Sure, we exchanged email addresses, and I hope to keep in touch, but I will probably never actually see them again. Yet I spent my entire day with them, learned about them, who they are, and what they do (and what are they chances that they were landscape architects in Czech Republic???). And tomorrow at 630 am they will be on a bus on their way out of Kathmandu and out of my life. Just something to think about.
So off to church for the service. Up until this point it had not felt like Christmas. Its hard to get in the Holiday spirit when you live in a Hindu country. But as I was walking to the service, the sidewalk leading to the door was lined with candles. Suddenly a little boy with an English accent ran by and excitedly said, "Follow the candles, everyone! Follow the candles!" If that doesn't throw you into a Dickens Christmas, I don't know what will.
After the service, I went back to Stan and Rhonda's (who I spent Thanksgiving with) for some cookies and hot chocolate! I haven't had hot chocolate since I've been here and it has never tasted so good. And to top it off...Stan said, "We should teach Paul how to play Nerts." Teach me? No, no my friends. Let me school you in Nerts.

A Few Things I Want to Share

1. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve! Its only three hours away for me. I hope everyone has a very very enjoyable day with family and friends. Hopefully you won't all freeze on your way to visit them. I hear its COLD over there!

2. I will have lunch tomorrow with some people from the Czech Republic. Its a long story, but the family I am living with met them at the airport and they are coming over for lunch. It should be fun! Hopefully they'll come to the English Christmas Eve service with me.

3. I am in the process of teaching myself HTML code. So far, so good.

4. I am also in the process of setting up www.Boundforotherports.com. My own domain! It will still be awhile before its completely active, but I'll keep you updated. Thanks to Puddleboy for the help!

5. After Christmas I hope to finish telling you all about my trip to India. There is still more!

That's it for now. Time to get some reading done since the power is out again. I've taken a break from War and Peace for a book called Silent Night that my parents sent me for my birthday. Its about an impromptu cease fire during WWI in 1914. If you do not know anything about this story I'd suggest checking it out; its incredibly interesting. On Christmas Day the enemies shook hands in the middle of No Man's Land to celebrate Christmas together, and the next day they were back to shelling and shooting each other. That gives you something to think about.

So...

Merry Christmas, everyone! My God bless you as we celebrate the day He sent our Savior.

Pollution.

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

James 1:27

I saw something today I have never witnessed before. I knew it existed, but never saw it. I was out running an errand when I saw a homeless child. Child. He could not have been more than 7 or 8 years old. He was incredibly dirty, had no shoes. He had no one to take care of him. No one to give him food. No one to tell him they love him. Its getting colder here, dropping down into the lower 40s at night and will continue to get colder and colder. And he has no shoes and no where to go.
In the part of town I live in, you don't see this much. There are a few beggars around, but not in great numbers here, and not children. This came as a shock to my system. In the States there are places where children like this can go. And normally if they are homeless they are at least homeless with their parent(s). Here, this kid was on his own. Alone in an unforgiving, cold world.

I miss the food from home, he has no food.
I complain that they shut off the electricity for 10 hours a day, he doesn't even have a home to have electricity.
I complain that I don't always have hot water for a shower, he hasn't had a shower in who knows how long.
I miss my family, he has no family.

And what is most ironic, is that this sort of thing happens because we have let ourselves become polluted by the world.

Update: Happy Birthday

Here in Nepal my birthday is coming to a close. However, I was born at 11 pm on December 21st, 1980 in Cincinnati. So really, I will not be 28 until 945 am December 22 here in Nepal. I figured I get two days to celebrate my birthday this way. Not a bad deal.
I wanted to update you all on how my birthday went. So here goes...
I woke up at 7 am after going to bed at 2am to talk with my family. They all wished me a happy birthday and sang Happy Birthday to me. Then the three young girls of the family I am living with all gave me birthday cards they had made me. It definitely made me feel special. Then I was off to church and a potluck lunch afterward. The Shepherd's Pie was amazing, especially since it was made by somebody probably from England or Scotland. I came back and played with the girls as they taught me to count to ten in Nepali (although one would think I would already know this having been here for a month and a half).



Then we had pizza and cake for dinner and they sang to me.



They bought me some socks (a universal truth I've realized), some really nice Adidas socks.


(please note the sexy legs)

It was an incredible gesture on there part to give me such a birthday. They know how much I miss home and wanted me to have a good birthday regardless. And they succeeded. And for that I thank God, and I am grateful.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday, dear Paul,
Happy Birthday to me.

Ah, the 21st of December. Next to the 25th of December, its my favorite. Not only is it my birthday, but it also has a few other distinctions:

1. Its the first day of winter.
2. Its the shortest day of the year.
3. Its a palindrome, such as racecar, mom, malayalam, and saippuakivikauppias (Finnish for soap-stone vendor, no lie).
4. Its also the birthday of Thomas Becket (1118), Stalin (1879), and Ray Romano (1957).
5. William Bradford aboard the Mayflower first landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620.
6. The first cross-word was published on this date in 1913 in the New York World.
7. The crew of Apollo 8 become the first humans to leave the Earth's gravity in 1968.

What's your favorite day of the year?

War and Peace

I consider myself a reader. I love to read. But I have a problem finishing books; sometimes I think I enjoy reading just for reading's sake. I usually have a large stack(s) of books next to my bed. I read a quarter to a half of a book and then get a craving for a new book and forget the old one. I have finished many books, but I've started and never completed many many more. Some think this is crazy, but my mood constantly changes with respect to books. Some books are better read in the summer, some in the winter, some when its raining, and some when its sunny.
But not so in Kathmandu! There are a few books that I have always wanted to read, but in the back of my mind I knew I never would because they are loooong (at least I think so). Two of those books I brought with me. East of Eden by John Steinbeck and War and Peace by Count Leo Tolstoy. I've always had a "thing" for Russian literature. Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekov, and Gogol to name a few. I highly recommend "Dead Souls" by Gogol because its my kind of book. Nobody has ever finished it because Gogol never finished it!
Steinbeck has also always been one of my favorites. For those that have never read anything by him, read something! Anything! You won't regret it.
I finished East of Eden not long after arriving in KTM. It was excellent. It was a retelling of the story and Adam and Even and Cain and Abel. Good stuff.
War and Peace, however, will take me considerably longer to finish. Nearly 1200 pages and its not exactly a "fast read." On the contrary. With over 500 characters, half the time is spent looking back to remember who is who. Most people would find this annoying, but somehow I enjoy it. The character development is amazing, you can truly identify with the character, feel for them, and hope for them. I think that is rare in modern literature. I'm going to begin my War and Peace watch...currently I'm on page 233/1136. And I figured if I can finish War and Peace I never have an excuse not to finish a book again. So enough rambling...

What are you reading right now?

Questions no one asked

In response to This is Reverb I am posting my answers to questions that no one has asked. So here goes nothing...

Q: When is your birthday?
A: Sunday, actually, the 21st.

Q: What do you want for Christmas?
A: I know this seems weird that no one has asked me what I want for Christmas. But please remember I am on the other side of the world from the people who would ask me this question. So I won't be getting anything for Christmas. At least not on Christmas. But to answer the question...a new camera.

Q: What do you want for dinner?
A: Anything but rice and cauliflower. Please, for the love of God, no cauliflower.

Q: How much do you miss your family?
A: I can't even begin to answer this question. It goes beyond words.

Q: Are you happy?
A: Yes.

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (This one's for you, Dad)

'Tis the season for trains! Many people back home have been visiting the trains in downtown Cincinnati (a tradition for my family, I even called in sick to work last year to go with my family!). Still others (also my family) have been setting up their trains around the Christmas tree. Anyone know where this tradition comes from? Let me know if you do.
So being the season, I did my part to carry on the tradition by actually riding a train. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (click it to learn more). I rode the train from Kurseong to Sonada. It wasn't a long trip length wise, but it is a slow train so it took a couple hours. Its not easy for a train to climb those mountains.



Its is referred to as the "Toy Train" because of its small size. As you can see below, its not much taller than I am. It is a class "B" engine (for those in the know). It is a two-foot gauge, meaning that the tracks are only two feet apart (compared to the standard gauge of 4' 8.5").



(Here's me in my fat pants again. Ha! And in case you're wondering why I'm wearing the same clothes in all the pictures I've posted thus far...its not because all the pictures were taken the same day. Its because in the two weeks I was in India I only wore three different pairs of pants and four different shirts. Don't judge me, you would have done the same.)



The railway was completed in 1881 and designed by the British (no surprise there). It has been running ever since and its one of the last regularly scheduled steam engines in the world. Its been declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site which is the reason for its continued existence. It costs more to run than it makes, but for now its still around. Who knows in a few years. So it was a privilege (it took me forever to figure out how to spell that dang word) to be apart of a piece of history like this.



As I mentioned, the train is slow. People are constantly running and jumping on and then jumping off again when they reach their destination. I was half tempted to jump off and jump back on just to say I did it. But I didn't. Oh well.



Here we are at our last stop in Sonada. It was a fun trip, something I'll remember for a long long while.



And I even took a video for you. Make sure you watch it. Its not very long, but with the internet here (not sure exactly how long cause I went to bed) it took around 3 hours to upload!

Oh Joyous...

Here's a quick little news flash...

The Nepal Electricity Authority has decided on a heavier load-shedding schedule. Load-shedding is a foreign idea to the States. We have enough electricity (amazingly enough). Here, however, the electricity is hydro. No rain in winter = less electricity production = shutting down the power for hours a day (called load-shedding). It was only 6 hours a day, three hours in the morning and three hours in the evening. Now they have raised it to 10 hours a day. What's on my Christmas list? A battery back-up.

You can read the article for yourself HERE.

Kurseong (pronounced 'cushion' with an 'r')

Visit Kurseong. That's all I have to say. Well, I have a lot more to say, but you know what I mean. Its a town worth visiting. Nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, its a quiet town filled with friendly people, history, and of course tea (like all the towns of Darjeeling), but especially friendly people. I began my trip to India in Kurseong and ended it in Kurseong. It was a lovely set of bookends.










December is a very cloudy time of year in Darjeeling. (Just in case your confused, there is the Darjeeling District in which Kurseong is a town. And there is also a Darjeeling Town in the Darjeeling District. Most of the pics in my last entry were of Darjeeling Town.) Its a jungle on the side of the mountain, and the clouds roll in and you can't see anything at times. Its a white out. It makes for some beautiful scenes, but it also makes for a depressed feeling after awhile.



On a clear day you could see miles and miles down the mountain and out to the plains from where I'm standing. On this day though, you could see nothing. Literally nothing.



The British also settled Kurseong and built schools like the ones below. Some of the buildings are just beautiful, but in desperate need of repair. (I couldn't help thinking of Harry Potter when I saw these schools. I think there was even a Quidditch pitch somewhere around...)





The British children would go to the schools above, but the native children would go to the school below. Sound familiar? 1950s?



The Scottish came in and built churches. This church was on the grounds of one of the schools and has now been transitioned into the gym. Its a shame. The stained-glass was imported from Italy. I couldn't get in the church, but I could see enough. It was beautiful.





This is the church I attended on the Sunday I was there. It was built around 150 years ago and is still obviously in use. It was a neat thing to be a part of.





The town even had a movie theater. One would think it closed down years and years ago, but no, only around 5 years ago. It had a post-apocalyptic feeling to it.



And of course, the people. When I first raised my camera to capture these kids they all three turned away simultaneously! But a smile says a lot, and they let me snap the picture.



These men are carrying milk on their backs. Their life (by our standards) is rough. They rise early in the morning to collect vegetation and then bring it back to feed their cows. Then they milk the cows and deliver the milk. They go to bed, get up and do the same thing the next day. And the roads aren't easy here. The only thing flat are the house floors.



There is a small Christian presence in Kurseong, but only around 2% are Christian. We went to a small village that was completely Catholic. They had built a grotto in 1958 replicated from one in Italy.



These trees were everywhere there wasn't tea. They are Cryptomeria japonica. You can find them in the States (click here), but they only grow around 15 feet. These were at least 60 feet. They were sweet!



I love pigs. Every time I see a pig I take a picture. I have pictures of pigs from Honduras, Guatemala, India, Nepal, and Thailand. No joke. These were the Christmas pigs. Poor guys. But I'm sure they will be tasty!



And here I am among the tea shrubs. Do the shrubs make me look fat? I really think they do!

2,000,000 Words

My family from my mother's side has been cursed. We have a curse that is in some respects good, and in others very bad. My mother is a picture-taking-aholic. Sometimes I think she needs a 12-step program to relieve her dependence from the shutter button. Now I'm pretty sure I'll appreciate all those pictures when I'm older (ok, I appreciate them now), but its a lot of pictures; sometimes dead batteries are my family's saving grace. (You know I love you, Mom) And now this curse has been passed down to me. From my grandfather (don't bring up the topic of their world trip slides unless you want a long family discussion in which a lot is said but nothing is ever done) through my mom, and now to me.
I took nearly 2,000 photos on my 12 day journey to India. That's around 170 photos a day. I've gone through them all and deleted around 800 of the little suckers. The camera will never capture what the human eye can, hence a full Recycle Bin.
Here are a few photos of Darjeeling. It's a pretty incredible place. It was started, more or less, by the British as a sanatorium for British soldiers, and a summer vacation spot for the British living in India. The plains can be unbearably hot, so they would come to the cool mountain sides for respite. They brought the Nepali people in to do the construction, so to this day they speak Neapli and English and not Hindi. It is an area very different from the rest of India, although India is massive and everywhere is something new. This time of year is very cloudy, as in clouds roll in through the windows of the houses, literally. It's quite a sight to see. Click Here for more information on Darjeeling.

And of course tea. The hillside below is full of tea shrubs that have been cut back for winter.

This area is heavy in Buddhism. Below is a monastery and there are Buddhist prayer flags everywhere you look.



I would hate to have the corner room at this hotel.



The Scottish came in and built churches and schools. Darjeeling was once known as a center for education, and Christianity is still big in this are, although Buddhism still has the stronghold. Some of the buildings are quite the imposing edifices.






Currently, Darjeeling is part of the West Bengal state of India. They are fighting for their own state however, Gorkhaland. They are a Nepali people who are Indian citizens, but are not given the credit due to them as Indian citizens. They simply want their recognition.
This is there flag below. The knives on the bottom are called kukuris. They are used for everything from fighting to eating and are a trademark for the Gorkhas.



Paths through the tea estates.



On the clear days (rare this time of year) you can see the Himals. This peak is Kanchenjunga and is the third highest peak in the world.






This is the ropeway. It was used to bring the tea leaves up to the factory. It was still in use through the 1980s but is now just something to look at.



And of course, more tea.