Welcome to our BLOG! Welcome to our family! We are a family of five living in Lalitpur, Kathmandu – in the foothills of the grand Himalaya Mountains. Blessings were showered upon our family to give us this amazing opportunity… We moved here on April 16th, 2014 and will likely be here for 3-5 years. So, “How did we wind up here?” you ask…
We were living a fulfilling, invigorating, joyful life in Raleigh, North Carolina from 2003-2014. We had great jobs, excellent schools for the children, an amazing group of friends, enriching extra-curricular activities, and lived in a beautiful neighborhood. Then, approximately one year ago, we started a conversation… Can life get any better here? What more could we do in NC? Why not try something completely adventurous? A few conversations later, we decided to go for it. Prakash started applying for jobs all over the world. We sold our 3400 ft2 house and moved into a temporary 1700sf rental. Which ever job came first, we would accept and go explore what this world has to offer! Here were our main motivations:
1. Personal development – break out of our “cocoon” in North Carolina and become more worldly.
2. Growth of our children – give our kids a different perspective of the world that helps them appreciate all we have in the U.S., before they reach an age (e.g., high school) when they’re less amenable to moving.
3. (for Prakash) Provide maximum benefit to the global environment – work on an air pollution problem(s) that’s more severe than we have in the U.S. or work on climate mitigation/adaptation in a developing country that’s already experiencing significant detriments from climate change.
4. Personally reduce our environmental footprint – try to live happily while consuming less.
Let me introduce you to everyone individually… Prakash, Nita (me), Janani, Sajjan and Sumanth
Prakash is an atmospheric scientist and is working at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, ICIMOD. He was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan and was raised in San Jose, California. He studied Environmental Engineering at UC Berkeley and CalTech. He is a true air pollution scientist! His hobbies are numerous and include playing chess, singing eastern and western music, and enjoying the outdoors (swimming, hiking, biking).
My name is Nita and at the moment I am a Stay-At-Home Mom. I was born in Birmingham, Alabama and grew up mostly in San Diego, California. I just left my job in the transportation modeling / planning field before moving to Nepal. Prakash and I met when we were 13 years old(!) and got married in July 2000. My hobbies and interests include cooking, gardening, reading, and also enjoying the outdoors (hiking, biking, running, walking). I feel being a MOM has been and continues to be one of my greatest privileges / roles.
Janani is our oldest and she was born in January 2005 in Cary, North Carolina. She is in the 5th grade at The British School (TBS). She is calm, gentle, caring and thoughtful. Her hobbies include singing, playing chess, reading and also enjoying the outdoors.
Sajjan is our oldest son and he was born in June 2007 in Cary, North Carolina. He is in the 2nd grade at TBS. He is alert, aware, kind and also very thoughtful. His hobbies include sports (soccer / football, basketball), playing chess, playing video games and enjoying the outdoors.
Sumanth is our youngest and he was born in March 2009 in Cary, North Carolina. He is in Kindergarten (called “Foundation”) at TBS. He is dynamic, rambunctious, and has a very colorful personality. He is a typical 3rd child – kind of wild and crazy! His hobbies include doing whatever his brother and sister are doing!
Visit our blog to read about our experiences, observations and thoughts about life in Kathmandu, Nepal! Thanks for virtually stopping by :-). Would love to hear from you too – please leave comments or shoot me an email…
five in the foothills 
Nita,
It is a pleasure to read about your adventures in Nepal. Glad to know that your family is slowly settling in and kids are adjusting to the new surroundings. Your posts reminded me of my childhood in India – walking to school, fresh bread everybody from a vendor who would come to our house to sell them and many more.
You are a very good writer, may be you should pursue writing as a career fater opening your bread and breakfast 🙂
Taruna
Nita,
It is a pleasure to read about your adventures in Nepal. Glad to know that your family is slowly settling in and kids are adjusting to the new surroundings. Your posts reminded me of my childhood in India – walking to school, fresh bread every morning from a vendor who would come to our house to sell them and many more.
You are a very good writer, may be you should pursue writing as a career after opening your bed and breakfast 🙂
Taruna
So glad you have this up and running! The boys are especially fascinated with the dual-function bike your friends invented – so cool!
Hi P&N, great to experience your adventures vicariously through your blog! Yes, we are planning to visit you in October, when the electricity outages should be at their minimum. You have the perfect attitude to new experiences and so am sure you will enjoy everything life throws at you. Wonderful family picture and excellent photos in the blog too. Keep it up!
BTW, both of you write very well, so publishing your experiences is an excellent idea.
Love the Blog, a great way to immortalize all your family’s adventures in detail (with pics) and it will be saved for all of your friends and family to share in your adventures!
Plus this will make great reading many years from now! So the young Bhave trio can reflect on their Adventure together in the foothills of the Himalayas, amazing stories to tell in college….
Keep Safe and keep blogging…. look forward to reading more from the other side of this small world.
your friends in NC…
We’re thinking of you often and are looking forward to reading all about the newest chapters of your life journey. -Shannon, Randall and Abigail
Nita auntie! My mom told me about your blog and I just had to look it up. It looks so great, and you guys have an amazing knack at writing! This is such an insightful account on your journey, and one that is truly awe-inspiring. It caught me by surprise to read that Jenani is already in 5th grade! I can’t believe how fast time has passed, because I feel like it was just yesterday that we saw Jenani just a couple of months old. We all feel so blessed to know you guys, and look forward to hearing about all your experiences in Nepal.
Hi Maanasa! So nice to hear from you! Glad you are enjoying the blog… Janani was in the 3rd grade just before we left the US and should be in the 4th in the British School. Since they didn’t have space in that class, they just put her in the 5th. At the start of the next school year in August, she’ll stay in the 5th grade.
We hope that you’ll come visit Nepal! It is a very special place…
love,
Nita Auntie
Hey Nita,
Enjoyed reading your blog & as well subscribed!! Looking to read along….
Best,
Charu
Great!
Hi Nita, Prakash,
It’s Sunday morning and there couldn’t be better reading than your fascinating blog. Its amazing how you all seem to have made the world’s most majestic mountains your home, only a distant dream for many.
Hello! I am following with much interest as I am a tutor for adult literacy and English as Second Language (ESL) in Michigan, USA. My current students are a married couple from Pokhara, Nepal. They have been here for 2 years, and seem to be adapting well, although we only meet for 2 hours per week, and their English speaking is coming slowly. I have learned a lot about Nepalese culture and use the compare/contrast method to teach about American culture. When I mentioned your blog they were very eager to talk about your experiences and now part of my lesson plan is just conversation about your blog. Thank you for offering this info as it is yet another very useful aid in my teaching!
SO glad to read your message! And sincere apologies for not writing in many many weeks… I will write again soon…