Asar 15

For the few weeks that I spent in the terai, I visited many villages where I was fed different kinds of foods and sweets! One day as my friends and I strolled through the villages, a woman eagerly came up to us, speaking a language that wasn’t Nepali. Once she realized we couldn’t understand her, she motioned to her mouth and said “khana” (Nepali word for food), we looked around at one another, realizing she was inviting us into her home to cook for us. Nepali hospitality never fails to blow me away.

We took off our shoes, and entered the woman’s home. She had a tarp for us to sit on in the entrance of her home.

Geographically, we were very close to the India border. I was interested to see if the food would be typical Nepali food that I have experienced, or something I wasn’t used to. We sat around in anticipation, wondering what mystery food we would be eating for lunch. She came out of the kitchen area with paper plates of beaten rice, which I had never seen before! I didn’t know if I should start eating it or not because the amount on our plate seemed small compared to normal daal bhat that I had been used to. Only a few seconds later she returned with sugar and curd, which she poured on top of the flattened rice. I had never seen anything like this! It tasted like sweet yogurt with granola. She served it with spicy veggies.

We learned that they had fed us a dish that Nepalis consume during the festival Asar 15, a celebration of the beginning of the rice season. The season for rice is thriving during monsoon season (June-August). Asar or Aashadh is the third month of the Nepali calendar and it coincides with June 15-July 16 of the Western calendar. The festival is celebrated 15 days into the month (June 30) and we visited this woman’s home on June 25. We felt so honored to

Asar 15 is a happy celebration filled with a day of fun. People celebrate the day by going to the paddy field, playing in the mud and water, planting mass amounts of rice together, and eating the very dish that we were fed, dahi chiura.

It turns out that my friends and I got the opportunity to plant rice with locals the day before Asar 15! I have thoroughly enjoyed learning from the Nepalese. Immersing yourself in the culture is the best way to learn.

Sources used:

http://www.experience-nepal.com/event/asar-15

english.onlinekhabar.com/asar-15-this-festival-connects-everyday-life-of-nepali-farmers-with-fun-and-fanfare.html

http://www.nepaltrekkingpass.com/rice-plantation-nepal.php