A Blog From Nisha!
Thursday, April 03, 2014
We are so happy Nisha is home!
When Maggie told me that I was going to spend 4 months in America, I was both excited and nervous. It was like a dream come true but while saying bye to my brothers and sisters and the life I know here at Kopila Valley, I couldn't help but feel a little scared. I got to the US on November 15thwith Nena who was a fellow at Kopila for 11 months. I had to take 7 flights to get there and it was the longest journey of my life on the plane. I was nervous to start a new school and meet new people. It was very overwhelming... malls, tall buildings, different people, traffic. It was a lot to take in.
When I walked in to Peck school on my first day, Mrs. Sharma was there waiting for me and when I met all the Peck kids, they were very welcoming and nice. It was different being in a new school with new kids in a new country. On my first weekend Maggie and I made a bucket list of things I should do when I was in America. I had ice cream, went and saw Annie on Broadway, and checked out starbucks. It might sound crazy but I really wanted to see a cemetery because in Nepal we burn our dead and I had only read about them in books.
I loved the way teachers taught at The Peck School. They had a class ‘Academic Support’ where kids could ask teachers about something they didn’t understand and do homework. I think American history was the most challenging subject for me but I learned so much. I loved art and music class. I made a bridge out of toothpicks in science and read Romeo and Juliet with the 8th graders in English. Everyone uses a computer and I started to be more comfortable too.
My favorite part about Peck was the people there. They were caring and helpful and kind and loving. They made me feel like I was home and I don't know how the time passed so quickly there. I used to get lost in the buildings a lot and forget where my classes were. Any kids or teachers, whoever found me would help me out. I loved learning to play volleyball and softball and playing on a team with a coach cheering me on. My first goal there was to speak louder and be more confident. It was definitely hard for me at first. Sometimes I would spend my time with the lower kids and they would ask me lots of questions about Nepal. Most of them didn’t know where Nepal was and they had many interesting questions. Most of the kids asked me if I was allergic to something and why I didn’t eat cow meat. I was very surprised with the traffic there and buildings and how people were always on schedule.
I got the best host family in the world!!!! They are the nicest people I know. I had lots of new experiences with them. I got to celebrate Christmas and New Years and Thanksgiving. We did lots of fun stuffs together like horse back riding, bowling, Disney World, dancing, the monuments in D.C. and going to the aquarium. The weather was very new for me. I heard it was an unusually cold winter and living in -25 degree Celsius was crazy!!! I definitely did my fair share of complaining. I tried lots of new food and I like how people sit for meals at restaurant and talk a lot. I learned a lot about the things I saw there. It was so surprising how women were doing the same things as men and girls were treated equally as boys. They were driving, speaking louder, were confident and strong like men. Now in Nepal when I see some girls hesitating to tell what they think or when the girls are not treated equally as boys, I encourage them to speak up. Being in America has changed my view and perspective. One of the most important things I learnt there was to speak up. Just say what you think with confidence. It was a good experience for me to see how people lived in the USA and I got to experience how it was like to live with a little family when I have been living most of my life with a big family and lots of people around. When I left America, it was very sad but I was also excited to see everyone in Nepal and share my experiences in America. Everyone had questions for me and I did my best to answer them. Of course I miss my Peck friends and host family and all the other people I met there. There is so much love no matter where you are. Thank you to Peck and to all of you who made this experience possible for me.