Preliminary report on Nepal
Nepal is a small country located in the Southern Asia landlocked between India and China at 28 00 North Latitude and 84 00 East Longitude. If you compare its area, it is slightly bigger than the Arkansas state of the US. Climate in Nepal varies from cool summer to severe winter in North to subtropical summer.
The first civilization in Nepal started around 6 B.C. And it was only around the Kathmandu valley, the capital city. ( http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107820.html October 20, 2009) Nepal has about 36 main ethnicities ( http://www.nepal.com/culture/ October 20, 2009). Some of the major ones are “Chhetri”, “Brahmin”, “Magar”, “Gurung”, “Newar”, etc. All these people have their own language and culture. The biggest festival of all these people is “Dashain”. During this festival, people return home and celebrate the festival with their families and friends. Another interesting fact about Nepal is that it is the holy land of Lord Pasupatinath ( the Hindu God) and Lord Buddha, founder of Buddhism. Hindus and Buddhists have lived in Nepal with religious tolerance for centuries.( http://www.nepalinformation.com/ october 20, 2009) When it comes to food, Nepal has really good variety of cuisine affected by the Indian sub-continent and the Tibetan border. Mainly rice is used in day to day life accompanied by spicy curry and pulse soup. Eating rice with hand twice a day is a ritual everyday.
“Do not feel offended if any Nepalese hesitates to shake hands with you because it hasn't been very long since the western traditions were introduced to them. Most Nepalese greet one another by a “Namaste”, a common act done by putting the palms together in a prayer like gesture.” ( http://www.nepal.com/culture/ October 20, 2009). Marriage is also an integral part of Nepalese culture.
