Editorial . January . 2018

Here’s to 2018!

 

Happy new year world! It’s 2018! Can you believe it? I can’t, honestly. So much has happened and changed, in the world and in our lives, in 2017 and now we’re standing on the cusp of a bright new year. 

To kick off the new year, the issue you are holding in your hands is a mash-up of fascinating, diverse topics that I hope you will enjoy learning about just as much as I did.

Our cover story invokes the images, sights and sounds of one of the most interesting parts of town, Boudha. There’s so much to do, see, and eat there – so if you haven’t been in a while, it might be time to pay a visit. The roads out there are also getting better, making the trip there a bit easier and less bone-rattling, though even with the bumpy roads, it’s still worth every minute.

The article on Minpachas is a quiet, engrossing read about a part of the year I was unfamiliar with. I love learning about parts of the country’s culture that are new to me, and these recollections from older city inhabitants will take you back into the Kathmandu of the past. Oral history is a key part of any society’s living heritage and it is put to great use here; this is the kind of thing we need more of so that memories can be recorded for future generations and not lost to time. I have always felt that preserving history in this way is one of ECS Nepal’s strengths, and we will continue to do so throughout the year to come.

In an interesting coincidence, there’s an article in our travel section detailing the author’s wonderful trip to his in-laws’ home village in Jumla, and I had already previously planned to review Jumla: A Nurse’s Story for our Bookworm section. The juxtaposition of these two pieces is both enlightening and encouraging; it’s great to see how a part of the country that was known for what it lacked is now attracting tourists and visitors from all over the country.

As you read on—craft makers, markets, interviews, holidays, history, and more—we want to thank you for spending 2017 with us and look forward to filling the year ahead with many more stories worth telling and reading about.

 

Evangeline Neve

Associate Editor

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