Well today is my last day in Nepal. A total of three weeks filled with many learnings and memories. Nepal is one of my favorite countries I have ever visited and I recommend it to everyone. The people are friendly, the nature is beautiful and the culture is unique. Here are some key takeaways from my three weeks in the Himalayan gem. 1. Urban planning must be resilient for future urbanization. The narrow streets here are slammed with motorcycles and cars. The city is unable to handle the boom in urbanization. People around the globe will continue to move to city centers for opportunities so it's essential our city infrastructure can handle the expected growth. 2. Variety of food options is healthy. There is not much variety here and it made me grateful for the plethora of cuisine in the US. 3. Don't take a warm shower and toilet paper for granted 4. Warm weather makes me feel more alive/energized. It is harder to workout in the cold. 5. Need to do our part in minimizing pollution/littering/global warming, it is a big and growing issue. 6. Paved roads are an amazing invention. Also today I was able to get an hour massage at seeing hands. Seeing hands is a massage studio which employs blind people. In Asia, the tradition of blind masseur is centuries old. It is well known that their increased sense of perception and touch makes them ideally suited for massage therapists. On my travels I have ran across this place and a coffee shop in Africa which employs deaf people. I think this type of business is great for awareness and giving people with disabilities opportunities to be social and work. In the US I have never heard of such a concept and it seems that we just try to hide our disabled citizens and are ashamed. Many of these people are amazing individuals with great talents to lend a hand to. Also today I tried a tablespoon of mad honey in my tea while reading. Mad honey is a rare and potent honey derived from the nectar of Rhododendron flowers, which contain natural neurotoxins. It is praised for its medicinal properties and psychoactive effects. I felt alert and a little etheric. It was cool trying a local product straight from the Himalayas. Tomorrow I fly to Bangkok Thailand for the next leg of the journey. I have been wanting to go to Thailand for a while so I am excited to relax on the beach, train Muay Thai, and explore.
