It had rained all night and it didn’t stop until about 6 am when we were supposed to have left. Instead we waited until 7 and the second jeep to take us the final 6 hours to Baglung. I was happy we’d be leaving (the jeeps don’t run if it’s rained too much) but I must say that relief was soon replaced with fear. When our driver started the engine, I looked over and saw him praying. This would not be the last time he called for a divine intervention.

As we waited for our jeep to leave in the morning, this little monkey (bandar in Nepali) kept us company.

At a particularly dangerous spot where another 4X4 had tumbled off the road along a steep curve in the mountain, he got out of the jeep to see if it was passable. When he was convinced (or hopeful) we’d make it, he got back in and again started praying. Let’s just say we had a few gods covered that day. But it wasn’t the most dangerous leg of the journey. Luckily that part was yesterday. One thing I noticed though was how incredibly young our driver looked. So I asked last night one of his buddies, who was along for the ride, how old his friend was.

Omkar, who translated the question to the kid, just started laughing and didn’t translate his reply right away. After some time he said, while still laughing, “He’s 17 and it was his first time taking passengers.”

What could I do but shake my head and smile.

I think that is why Nepal becomes such a spiritual place for people. Beyond the incredible Himalayas and mix of religions and ethnicities, you are always close to death (and the gods). It could be a tire exploding on a mountain road, a slip off a ledge on a trek, a mudslide, or one of the crazy bus rides between cities, but you realize that so much is determined by fate, coincidence or luck, which is usually translated for people as God.

This was the second time our 4X4 broke down and for good. Luckily it wasn’t on a steep or dangerous part of the trip. After a couple hours of sitting around, another jeep came to bring us home.

But I’m writing this and that means I’m safe – for now. I think I’ve come to understand Nepal better in the last few days. Rather than look at my sickness as something that hindered my trip, I think it has actually opened my eyes to a few things that I perhaps would not have fully grasped (like how great mules are that carry mineral water).

Baglung now seems like the developed world, with its electricity, cars, computers and internet. I guess this feeling will last until I go to Kathmandu, when Baglung will become like Nishi. Until then I’ll enjoy the luxuries of Baglung and contemplate further how best to make the Constituent Assembly a relevant and important part of people’s lives in the remote areas of the western hills region.