Today we talked about Nepal! We learned a lot of vocabulary today! Nepal is landlocked, which means that land from other countries completely surrounds it, so it does not touch any oceans. Nepal also shares the Himalayan Mountains with Bhutan, India, China, and Pakistan. Mount Everest’s point is along Nepal’s northern border. Due to the steep slopes of Everest, Nepal suffers from deadly avalanches. We watched a video on how avalanches come about and then another of an actual avalanche (no one was hurt by the avalanche). An avalanche is when a large mass of snow and ice or of earth and rock suddenly slide down a mountain side. We also learned that the people who live around Everest are called Sherpa, and they believe that the yeti, or abominable snowman, wanders the mountain’s slopes.
Can you guess what people in Nepal speak? Nepali! If you didn’t know, “namaste” means hello and goodbye in Nepali. Many people in Nepal cannot find jobs in Nepal and have to cross the border to India to find work. A number of Tibetans living in Nepal craft and sell beautiful carpets, which is an important source of income for Nepal. The picture below is a prayer rug used for the Islamic practice of praying 5 times a day toward the city of Mecca (Saudi Arabia).
Lastly, we talked about a special, colorful holiday that is celebrated in Nepal and a few other places – HOLI! We will learn more about Holi and even have a color celebration ourselves on 3/16 (Bangladesh)!!!
Miss Sherry read Exploring Countries Nepal and Country Profiles: Nepal