I don’t think too many people will put up a fight if I say Nepal is known for its slightly more conservative culture. This way of viewing my country has led me to dress with more caution, speak with more thinking, and act in a fashion that I believe to be more appropriate. That being said, there are aspects of daily happenings here that make me want to yell, “WHAT’S UP WITH THAT?”

1) Men making the city their open urinal

For a society that is rather private about bodily functions, I cannot for the life of me understand why most of us don’t bat an eyelid when a man pulls out his you-know-what and lets loose a jet stream of urine he didn’t bother to hold in until he got to a bathroom (…you know… where you’re supposed to pee).

For all the difficulties women have, I’ve only seen us drop down and squat when traveling long distances via road and even then, the driver rarely ever halt where there are crumbling walls or large bushes to maintain our dignity. However,  our daju-bhais are happy to stand over the cliff and enjoy the view while relieving himself.

2) A strange thing for women not to be modest about

So, my first point makes it seem like women are always proper, and for the most part we are – except when it comes to breast-feeding.  I am a well endowed woman who is very aware of leery eyes and for this reason (among a few others) I cannot fathom going anywhere without my ladies being well supported and decently covered.

So, keeping this is mind, a part of me is always mildly surprised when a woman on a bus sticks her hand down her kurtha, scoops up a handful of heavy lactating bosom and plugs it into the mouth of a crying child.

Wait… what?

Someone please explain to me why I’m extra cautious about how much I bounce on a bus when women are clearly going through their days without a bra and are happy to whip out a breast to suckle a child.

Again, this is something that I have witnessed in the West – but always under a feeding cover, or in a private area. Here, I’ve seen many young mothers not even bothering to drape their shawl over the child and the item the child is latched onto.

3) Not as taboo

There’s no doubt that Nepal is growing accustomed to more exposed skin and I’ve even seen Nepali posters marketing movies with lips frozen into a kiss, however, sex is still something that is still spoken about in whispers to a select few. Since this is the case, and since we are so guarded about the more intimate details of our relationships, why is a man having extra marital affairs no big deal?

If sex and the union of two people is so sacred, why is infidelity almost expected, and consequently accepted, for men? For all the shame that comes with being unfaithful, we all know someone who has a mistress, we probably know the mistress and the mistress also knows we know.

Honestly, what’s up with that?

Saani has no real goals and aspirations but she sees opportunity in everything and goes with the flow. This is probably because she loves exploring and discovering. She writes for fun but for the same reason she also cooks, reads, and spends a lot of time on random websites that offer a chance to learn all sorts of tid-bits on life!