1 hour observation.

                       1 hour observation

On the 19 of September I went to Thamel in front of Mandala Street to do my observation for an hour. The day had started with plenty of sunshine but by the afternoon the endless rain had gotten the day gloomy and dark. I had already seen things I had never noticed just the second I started my observation. The first thing I noticed was how there was a smaller rate of footfall due to the rain. My surrounding was chaotic, the streets were busy even though the evening had a smaller rate of footfall. Things I took notice of in my environment was how Thamel had more foreign flags than of Nepal itself. There was a Mexican Flag and Korean as well, even languages of various nation could be heard being spoken, Russian, Mandarin, Punjabi and French, these were a few languages I heard being spoken.

The street was filled with more foreigners than Nepali, people from different parts of the world could be seen here. Clicking pictures and looking amazed at how tiny a country could be. The tourists had shocked about the traffic and the endless sounds that came from just everywhere. There were sanragi, flute and various other instruments being sold and as well as being played for demonstration. While the traditional music was being played, a huge Hulux passed by, filled with teenage boys that played hip-hop music a bit loud even for Thamel. Another thing I took notice of was how a lot of Ricksha drivers were using whistling as an alternative for horn.

A bunch of  Sikh men passed by and the first thing I noticed was how they were all wearing the same t-shirt in different colours, they were loud and were cursing and laughing about something that they found a bit too hilarious. I also saw a Nepali man wearing a Sherwani with Dhaka Topi and a European man in clothes that were a cross of a sadhu and a monk, all this mixtures of clothing articles amazed me. Another thing I noticed about the clothing of people were how a Nepali woman was feeling really cold, she was wearing a thing fur jacket and the first thing that came to my mind were how the  foreigners were dressed in light clothing while most of the Nepali’s were wearing a light sweater or a jacket. This shows how weather can be a big part of culture and how weather can define lifestyle and behaviour of people. Another point I noticed about clothing was how much skin was being shown by people of different nations, foreigners however did show as much skin as a Nepali girl was. This made me think of how urbanization has taken place by which even the clothing preferences have changed.

This observation made me realize how many teens were smoking, also drinking. Even beggars of young ages were puffing packets with substance. In many countries underage drinking and usage of any illegal substance can lead to prison however the same isn’t followed in Nepal.

While I looked at different people, I noticed how varied even couples were. I wouldn’t say this is how majority is but from my observation, in that evening, I saw about 20-30 couples from which 18 were not Nepali. I also took notice how diverse the couples were, most of them were from different cultures.

While I was observing, a woman came up to me to ask about a location of a hotel, she said she wasn’t a local however, she was Nepali. I also noticed a group of 3 men, walking around the same street again and again. They probably lost their way because they looked confused. This situation made me think how people think they know the place they belong to but at times we aren’t any more different than a tourist. This shows how one adapts to the place and culture they live in, this shows cultural relativism is practiced even when it is unnoticed.

Through this observation I learned how little things matter though they may be unnoticed. The downfall was the curious and judgemental looks I got from people but this experience was very good.