The Kathmandu Burger Project

As I mentioned in this post it is tough to make a really good burger in Kathmandu, but this hasn't deterred me from trying. So yesterday I gave it my first real attempt since I've been living here, and despite some of the components being substandard the result wasn't bad at all. 

Real Hamburger- Step One

Getting real, decent hamburger in this country is a little tougher than most due to its Hindu heritage. Why people of various religions think God(s) is(are) interested in micromanaging our diets is beyond me, but I digress. Nina & Hagar's supplies ground beef tenderloin and it can be purchased for a reasonable price, but it does come frozen. Despite this, the quality seemed decent, although defrosted hamburg is harder to shape properly. I made use of wax paper and a rolling pin with a little shoring up of the edges with my hands afterwards to create burgers that would cook evenly.

Condiments, toppings & Bread

What prompted me to finally put this all together is that a shipment of cheese from the US arrived via Harilo a few days ago. While you can get some Australian cheddars that aren't terrible, they aren't really quite right. For this time around I cut up some New York sharp cheddar and grilled up some bacon for New York cheddar & bacon burgers. In addition I grilled up some onions, mushrooms, peppers, chopped some fresh lettuce, tomatoes, and broke out the Heinz ketchup (though I may start making ketchup from scratch) and Grey Poupon. 

One difficulty was still the bread. Kim made some really nice bread the other day, but I have no head for baking. So I went off to European Bakery, which produces some of the better bread products in town, only to find that they were closed. Stuck between a rock and a hard place I lowered myself to buy the rolls at Bhat Betini- and these are rather terrible. It looks like a roll but the texture is just all wrong, it's far too light, and they disintegrate rather easily, not unlike Wonderbread. To combat this I toasted the rolls over  a girdle which firmed them up, and lets face it, toasted rolls are better anyway.

Result- New York Cheddar Bacon Burger

I'm happy to report that the first test run was relatively successful. The weakest link was the bread, but I'm confidant we can overcome that problem. The burger itself was quite tasty, the cheese we shipped worked out well, the bacon was good, and the toppings were all there. Although I'd normally have a burger with fries, recent events have had me cooking more fried food than I like to eat, so instead I took the opportunity to make some other items I had wanted to test out including some walnut & Gorgonzola stuffed mushrooms and a salad with apple, cranberries, walnuts, cucumber, Gorgonzola, tomato and tossed in olive oil. This is just one burger of a list of about a dozen I have to experiment with so I'll be sure to update my pursuit of burger perfection in the hardest place on earth to make a good burger. 

Finding Kathmandu

Just because you land on the ground here doesn't mean that you get here really. Kathmandu has a certain mental component that needs to be overcome before you can really enjoy it here, and on arrival from Thailand that took me a few days to find. While there are certainly some aspects of living here that seem like unnecessary hardships in light of what the vast majority of the planet enjoys as simple staples to modern living, Kathmandu offers its own subtle charm. The people that you meet up with and are friends with here are never dull people, you have to be at least a little adventurous to live here. These facts combined with avoiding the 9-5 grind that makes life unbearable in the west for me makes for a unique place that I am quite happy to have made my home.

For me it was settling back into that slower way of life, coming to terms with the fact that if I wanted to get groceries it does mean stopping by at least four different locations; Bhat Betini, European Bakery, my vegetable stand down the road, a stop at the dairy place around the corner, and the local butcher if I want meat. Although it sounds like a chore, it's nice to see the individual people I buy from and appreciate my business. The people at the vegetable stand were curious where I had been and wanted to hear about my trip,  and were all smiles to see me back in the neighborhood. While super markets back home do offer savings and convenience, I do enjoy interacting with the people that run each of these small stores.

It has also helped tremendously that Kim is back from the US now. After travelling by myself for over three weeks and then coming home and being stuck by myself in Kathmandu I am thrilled to have her company again. A person you love makes even the darker and colder nights in Kathmandu that much brighter and warmer just by their presence. Being able to talk to each other and catch up on our trips has been fun and I enjoy cooking a lot more for multiple people instead of just myself (french toast and fresh strawberry syrup with scrambled eggs this morning). 

Aside from yesterday when it rained for what I think is only the second time since October the sky has been so clear in the afternoon that from almost any decent rooftop in the city you can see the mountains of Langtang in the north and out toward the Everest range in the east. While I love being in the mountains, just seeing the massive snow covered peaks out on the horizon brings a smile to my face, just knowing that they are out there and waiting to be trekked around come the warmer months. Speaking of which, it looks like I may be doing the Everest Base Camp route all the way from Jiri come the end of February (god it's going to be cold) with my friend Donnie who I trekked through Langtang and Gosainkund last year and also accompanied Kim and I to Tibet. That is likely the best trek in all of Nepal and I'm looking forward to the pizza at Khumbu Lodge in Lukla!

So while arriving in Kathmandu can be a bit of a shock to the system, it just takes a moment to settle back into the flow of life and remember those things that do bring a smile to your face. It's not every day that people get to live in such a different place filled with so many opportunities for great experiences, and I count myself as a very lucky person. Having, after a few days, found that mental niche that is required to enjoy Kathmandu, I can finally say it's good to be home. 

Enlightened: Selling Salsa in Kathmandu

I had been trying to get in the habit of posting on this blog just about every day, and every other at a bare minimum. As you can see though this is day three since the last post. My excuse is that I had to get the packaging and product ready for my latest venture, which is selling salsa at the farmers markets in Kathmandu. Getting salsa made right here isn't as easy as you would think, as many of the spices are just a bit different and finding some ingredients can be a chore. That said, the base ingredients are very abundant, and Nepal offers some great additional fruits that are cheap and fresh. Just the other day I saw avocados being sold too, which means even more options very soon!

Vegetables Dry from an Iodine Bath

On Thursday I bought what I thought was enough ingredients and had it all soaked in an iodine solution for an hour. Now normally I don't bother doing this when cooking for myself, but many people (especially expats) consider this essential. Now since I'm selling it to other people and not just making it for myself, it's also important that I do everything I can to make sure that the food is hygienic. Once everything dried I divided up all the different ingredients and went out to pick up my labels.

Abhishek Shrestha did an excellent job printing up labels for me, I unfortunately didn't measure the jars correctly as I didn't realize they had such a curve to them on the top and bottom, this caused the labels to crease a bit at those ends, but it still looked good. By Thursday night I had all my labels I would use for my first test run attached to the jars.

Now chopping that huge pile of vegetables and fruit pictured above into five different one gallon batches is no simple feat. Friday morning I started at about 8:30AM. I took a quick break to run to Bhat Betini to get a larger bowl to put the batches in once I realized the existing one wouldn't work. I also stopped briefly to check my e-mail around 4PM. Other than that I was chopping, slicing, dicing and mixing. Some time after 6PM Kim and I stepped out to eat some dinner, as I had essentially skipped lunch. We also had to stop to get some more tomatoes, onions and garlic on the way home. After getting back I went back to chopping and finally got to bed some time just before midnight.

Selling Enlightened Salsa at the Farmer's Market

So I arrived just before 9AM and spoke with Francois, who is one of the two people in charge of the market.  He sets me up with a table and I put the samples out and the jars. Almost immediately people started showing up and I sold some of the Original Mexican style, which seemed the most popular with Nepali's who tried the different flavors. Some time after ten thirty I sold out of the Pomegranate, then the Original, and then the Greek by 11AM. By the time I was done all I had left was a couple bottles of hot pepper and one Thai.

Salsa Ready for Sampling

What I learned in my first attempt is that there is definitely a market for salsa in Kathmandu. Having the Greek stuff was a great way to have something to sell to people (especially Europeans) who don't like spicy foods. I could have easily sold half again the number of Greek and maybe Pomegranate and Original as well. I'll also have to look into selling at the Summit Hotel in Patan on Sundays. 

In order to make enough to sell at both locations and also in order to save my hand from future blisters and my body from 15 hour days of salsa making I'll have to take my earnings from today and invest in a food processor. I'll also have to start looking into making tortillas and tortilla chips to sell alongside, because the chips in this city are very expensive, mostly because I think only expats eat them. So thanks to Shobha at 1905 for not only putting together the market, but also for letting me sell there. Had a great first run and look forward to continuing to provide salsa to Kathmandu.

Nepal- Where Unpopular U.S. Shirts Come for a New Life

About a month ago I started to notice a new fashion trend among Nepali men, Britney Spears T-shirts. Lots of em. There are I think three different shirts, one with Brit sporting a hat, one letting her hair out and another with her showing off a little cleavage. Strangely the one with the hat seems to be the most popular. I never followed Britney close enough to be able to date the shirts (to be honest I wouldn't have recognized her if her name wasn't also on the shirt) but my guess is that the original run of these shirts went in the early part of this decade, maybe 2004 or so tops. Her sudden mass appearance is somewhat of a mystery, it certainly isn't due to popular music, as most Nepali people seem to listen mostly to Nepali Music or Indian Music. My guess is that when a product has no hope of any sales in the U.S. they make their way to Nepal. It's kind of like the island of misfit toys, only for clothes.

My Crown for a Blender

You don't miss things until they are gone. It's just a fact of human nature that we tend to take things that have always been there for granted. So moving to a place like Nepal you become aware of many of the things that you have taken for granted back home (though it works both ways as I am more aware of things I always went without back home). Here we appreciate having electricity a little more, as we go without up to twelve hours a day. You conserve water a little more, as the dry season nears its end the Kathmandu water table gets quite low and there are shortages in some parts of the city. Sometimes I'd like to go running, but Kathmandu's streets and smog just aren't conducive to that type of activity. Sometimes things are just different, and it makes you appreciate some things a little more.

Apartment, Trekking and Holidays

Well the first big news is that we decided on an apartment! After discussing what we really needed a bit we did decide on taking the cheaper apartment in eastern Lazimpat. The home owners seem very nice, the apartment is very sunny and it really is a good location. We signed the lease today and put the deposit in for three months yesterday. Now we just need to get a gas cylinder for the stove, internet hooked up and buy bedding and kitchen stuff. We owe a big thanks to Pradip for all his help in finding the place and helping us with the stuff we need to to get settled (not to mention putting us up in his home for the last three weeks!). I'm excited to get moved in and will post some pictures as soon as we get them. The location is just about a quarter mile east of where we had been, and though it's a bit further from Lazimpat proper, it's closer to Bhat Batani (a good sized shopping complex).

Next up is trekking. Looks like our first trek is going to be in the Langtang region, Kim and I are going to do the Tamang Herritage trail combined with a trek up the Langtang valley to Kyanjin Gompa. For those not familiar with their Nepali geography, Langtang is a region just north of Kathmandu and on the border with Tibet. When I was here last time in 04' I hiked the Helumbu region which is directly north of Kathmandu, and I made it just to the southern edge of what is considered Langtang. The Tamang people are directly descended from Tibettans who moved into this region over time. This area was the major trade route between Kathmandu and Tibet and was famous for its salt trade. The Tamang Herritage trail supposedly lacks a little in views, but is said to be much like what Langtang was like twenty years ago, and not too many tourists. That part takes us within a days walk of the Tibetan border before we head south into Langtang proper. The langtang valley should be a good first hike, ascending only to about 12,000 feet (although there is a day trip I might do that gets you up to 15K) and is a gradual ascent up the valley. At the turn around there is spectacular views of mountains and Glaciers. When we know when we are going I'll post a map and itinerary. I've read the bus ride, only 120+/- kilometers is a brutal ride that takes upwards of ten hours to get to the trail head.

Nepal has more holidays it seems than any country on earth. This Friday is Maha Shivarati, which I don't know much about but when we were here in 2002 we attended part of the event. It has something to do with Shiva, and lots of Sadhus (Hindu holly men, ascetics) travel to Pashupatinath, Kathmandu's most sacred Hindu temple. Kim and I could get close, but as non-believers we are not allowed inside. Something like a quarter million people descend on this place on Friday. Last time I saw this it was kind of interesting to see all the Sadhus in their body defying yoga poses, with their ash and paint covered bodies. I'm not sure if we will go this time though. The other upcoming holiday is Tibetan New Year (Losar) which kicks off on Sunday and goes for two weeks, We will most likely stop by Boudhanath again to see any thing going on up that way. Supposedly at night they blow horns and light thousands of butter lamps. If we go trekking soon enough up around Langtang, we may even catch something up that way as I've read the Tamang people celebrate Losar as well.