Day 7: Phillim and Jose

No rest for the weary, as after a bad night's sleep on day 6, we venture on. Jose continues to talk like a 3rd grader, but it doesn't matter. Since he is the oldest in the group, he has license to do whatever he wants. To understand Jose is similar to understanding Algebra or Greek Mythology - it may seem so apparently easy, but there is much more to explore underneath the surface. On most days thus far, he wears the topi, the Nepali hat given to us during the Tika ceremony on Day 3. On top of that, he wears multi-colored swim trunks and a jacket purchased at the dollar store. To look at him is a conflict of concepts: old yet hip, poorly dressed but in the best of shape, silly humor but a phd. in physics - Jose is yin and yang mixed together. You just never know which side you get.

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"Pig Herding and Prayer Wheels"

Phillim is another Maoist town, but much more mellow than Machakola. As you walk in through the Gates, you see half-clothed children and women carrying bundles of rice downhill. The soil is said to be fertile once every two years. In fact, you can see bunches of fires burning at the same time This allows the nutrients of the soil are supposed to be replenished.

Gopal reccomends we stroll for 15 minutes to the nearby Buddhist monastary. He forgets to tell us about the 500 steps we had to take in the process to get there. Once reaching the top, we are immediately rewarded. As we enter the monastary, we are surrounded by Buddahs of all different shapes, sizes and poses. Off to the left, there is a prayer wheel. At the prayer wheel, the following is written in Nepali and translated for me in English:

Om Mane Pedme Om

Praise Buddah, it means. The Nepalis chant this repeatedly when entering the monastary. The prayer wheel personifies the chant. Jose tells me that you turn the prayer wheel clockwise for respecting Buddah. I also learn that anytime you are in a Buddhist monastary, you always move around any objects or fixtures from left to right. I am not sure why this is, but if anyone knows, do please let me know. I think of it as a Buddah Wheel of Fortune where you always hit jackpot.


As we walk back down to the village, I turn back and notice Gopal with a stick chasing a pig. It turns out that there was a big 'cow vs. pig' heavyweight contest transpiring in the middle of the rice fields along our path. Lisa and Bobby almost get caught in the middle. I can't help but laugh. I'm in the middle of a field, watching farm animals attack each other, miles from any computer, electrical outlet or machinery whatsoever. I can honestly say that I will miss farm animals in general when I return to the Bay Area.