Living in Nepal

Pocket Money and Expenditure:
During their stay in Nepal, our volunteers will find that their daily expenditure will be relatively low. This will certainly be the case when they are in and around their school. The Nepalese Currency (NC) is the Rupee, with one rupee being equal to 100 paisa. They can easily exchange major currencies for NC, upon arrival at Kathmandu’s international airport. Generally speaking, the cost of living will be much lower than at home. For example, in traditional teahouses and restaurants (frequented predominantly by Nepalese), it is possible to dine for less than 50 NC per head. In the more tourist oriented parts of the city, like Thamel or Durbar Marg, a three-course meal in a good quality restaurant (serving western food) may cost less than 400 NC per head. However, a couple of drinks (alcoholic) could easily double your bill, with a 75-ml bottle of beer costing approximately 120 NC.

Price levels are between those of India and Thailand and with USD/Euro 1,000.- of pocket money you should be able to manage throughout the standard placement period (3 months). Should you want to do further travels or trekkings after finishing the placement you should of course bring more money.

As when travelling anywhere else, we would recommend that you bring travellers cheques (Thomas Cook or American Express), rather than hold a large amount of cash at any one time. Visa and Master cards are also very useful and can be used at branches of the main banks in the tourist areas. Credit cards are now also accepted in major hotels, and in some of the better quality guesthouses and restaurants in Thamel.

In this section you will find detailed information on the living circumstances that you will encounter whilst living in Nepal. Some general advice and guidance is given in terms of local customs and values and the cost of living. Finally, we also indicate what to bring in terms of work, clothing and other necessities in view of your placement.
	Do's & Don'ts In general Nepal is a very laidback country and people are very understandable and friendly. Most Nepalese people that our volunteers will encounter have seen and met foreigners before and are aware of there funny habits and will accept most of them. However, in view of our mission, we demand from our volunteers a certain kind of adaptation to local customs and standards. Be aware that a large part of the country has a vegetarian food base and that it might be inappropriate and confronting to eat (red) meat in front of the locals. Always remember that the holiest of animals in Nepal is the Ox or Cow and that eating it could cause some shock effects. Of course, should you be in need of meat you can always head for the tourist areas where an abundance of western restaurants is available. Quite understandably, we require our volunteers to refrain from smoking and drinking whilst on duty and in and around the school premises. Furthermore visitors should not become involved with drugs. Possession of very small quantities will almost certainly lead to immediate imprisonment. Finally, our volunteers are advised to respect local customs and dress decently and appropriately. Especially women should be aware of wearing (in Nepali eyes) inappropriate clothing such as shorts, sleeveless tops, tight lycra tops or leggings, etc. as this might cause some upset in local communities. This applies for both public places and the school premises. It is advisable for a lady in Nepal to cover the shoulders at all time and not to wear short or revealing dresses or pants.
What to Bring During your placement in Nepal you might be in need of various items that you are accustomed to at home, but which are not easily available in the Himalayan Kingdom. Below you can find a brief summary of the essentials to bring. Clothing & Accessories: Winters (November to February) are generally cool in the day time but can be terribly cold during nights. Bring a polar sleeping bag to get through those frosty nights! Please note in this respect that most schools do not have any form of heating so when temperatures drop to minus 15C it really is – and stays – that cold! As most Nepali people sleep on wooden bunks, mattresses are usually thin and hard. Should you be only comfortable on a soft sleeper, we advise you to bring one. During spring (March to June) summer clothes are usually sufficient. Please note once again that most Nepali customs require long-sleeved pants and decent tops for practically any occasion for both females and males. The Monsoon period (June to October) is characterized by lots of rain. Raincoats, ponchos and an umbrella might come in handy. A final note needs to be stated regarding the above: most winter and mountaineering clothing and equipment can be purchased at reasonable prices in Kathmandu (Thamel District). However, most products are the famed Asian fakes so frost and heat protection, as well as quality, might not be completely up to your standards.
	School Materials & Teaching Equipment: As both the quality and quantity of teaching materials is far from abundant we kindly request you to bring some English teaching materials by yourself. In this respect you can think of English text and grammar books, a small dictionary, English childrens literature (Harry Potter also does wonders in Nepal!), pencils, childrens games, sports equipment (footballs, volleyballs, etc.) and so on. It is furthermore recommended to bring stuff like pens, sweets, stickers (good prizes for children) and if you do play an instrument, bring one. The children love music! Make that whatever you bring is light! Remember the international baggage allowance is 20kg for hold luggage and 5kg for hand luggage.
Pocket Money and Expenditure: During their stay in Nepal, our volunteers will find that their daily expenditure will be relatively low. This will certainly be the case when they are in and around their school. The Nepalese Currency (NC) is the Rupee, with one rupee being equal to 100 paisa. They can easily exchange major currencies for NC, upon arrival at Kathmandu’s international airport. Generally speaking, the cost of living will be much lower than at home. For example, in traditional teahouses and restaurants (frequented predominantly by Nepalese), it is possible to dine for less than 50 NC per head. In the more tourist oriented parts of the city, like Thamel or Durbar Marg, a three-course meal in a good quality restaurant (serving western food) may cost less than 400 NC per head. However, a couple of drinks (alcoholic) could easily double your bill, with a 75-ml bottle of beer costing approximately 120 NC. Price levels are between those of India and Thailand and with USD/Euro 1,000.- of pocket money you should be able to manage throughout the standard placement period (3 months). Should you want to do further travels or trekkings after finishing the placement you should of course bring more money. As when travelling anywhere else, we would recommend that you bring travellers cheques (Thomas Cook or American Express), rather than hold a large amount of cash at any one time. Visa and Master cards are also very useful and can be used at branches of the main banks in the tourist areas. Credit cards are now also accepted in major hotels, and in some of the better quality guesthouses and restaurants in Thamel.

Living in Nepal
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