I haven’t written anything for the past few weeks because I’ve been really lazy, but honestly, I was just procrastinating on writing in my diary. Despite that, I’ve gained a lot of new experiences—met a lot of new people, visited new places, and even bought a new MacBook Pro M3 with 18GB RAM and a 512GB SSD in space black. Of course, I've had some regrets along the way. I’ll explain everything in the following paragraphs.
Months ago, Swodesh and I planned a trip to Bhaktapur. We were excited about exploring the city, capturing photos and videos of its monuments, and meeting new people. We even invested in a new camera that cost me 3600 NPR. We bought new clothes and shoes specifically for the trip, and everything seemed to be going smoothly. We initially planned to go with Rashmi and Himani, but at the last minute, Himani decided not to join us. This led to Rashmi also backing out.
Our plan was to visit Bhaktapur on Magh 1 to witness the cultural activities and rituals. Since Rashmi wasn't coming, we came up with a new idea: hire a model and create a short documentary. So, we started searching for a model. We reached out to Vishan, who contacted a girl, but after seeing her Instagram story where she was drinking beer, we decided she wasn’t the right fit for the project. We kept looking and, with Vishan's help, reached out to girls from our high school. One girl responded but said she was away visiting her hometown. The search was getting tough, but Vishan eventually found a girl who was a native of Bhaktapur. After some chatting and a voice call, she seemed excited and agreed to work with us.
Even after this, Swodesh and I kept looking for a better option and asked Narendra for help. He found another girl, and I spoke to her over the phone. She said she would let us know her decision the next day, and I was confident she wouldn’t reject us. So, I told Vishan to inform the girl, Aayusha, that we were no longer interested. But, the girl arranged by Narendra also turned us down. Swodesh and I were disappointed and started doubting whether we’d ever find a model. We contacted everyone we knew, but no one seemed interested. In the end, I messaged Aarati, hoping she’d agree to help, but she didn’t even see my message. Honestly, I had high hopes for her, even though we hadn’t spoken since the incident. That was my fault for messaging her after everything.
By the next day, we were feeling pretty hopeless. Swodesh and I were the only ones left with no backup plan.
On Magh 1, we woke up around 5:00 AM, and I was super excited. I rushed to the bathroom to wash my hair and face with cold water. We wore our new clothes, which looked great on us, and packed our backpacks. By around 7:00 AM, we were on our way. We had a light breakfast near Ratnapark, then found a bus heading to Bhaktapur. The bus wasn’t crowded, and we enjoyed the peaceful ride. After about 45 minutes, we arrived and went straight to a cafe. We ordered Americano and relaxed, taking in the morning view from the rooftop.
Next, we headed to a pond—though I don’t remember its name. It was a beautiful spot, and we had visited it before, so it wasn’t new to us. We started filming and taking photos, asking people for permission to capture their images. Everyone was really polite, and since we were dressed differently, people thought we were tourists. We met a little girl and her brother, and when I asked if we could take some photos and videos of her, she happily agreed. She was kind, beautiful, and a great help during our shoot. We got some amazing shots with her.
After that, we visited another pond called Siddhu Pokhari. There, we met some elderly people who were there to exercise. We struck up a great conversation with them and took several photos and videos. They even shared the history of the pond with us, which we captured on camera. We later sent them all the photos, and they were very appreciative.
For lunch, we went back to a cafe and had Chicken Chowmein. We also charged our camera there. After resting for a bit, we walked to Bhaktapur Durbar Square and continued taking photos and videos. But, soon after, Swodesh’s camera ran out of storage. We needed to find a place to upload our media to our phones, so we found a cafe. We ordered iced Americano and Oreo shakes, while Swodesh cleared some space on his camera. Once we were ready, we went back to taking photos.
We came across two older people who were initially kind but then unexpectedly asked for money. I politely declined, and we moved on. We then returned to Siddhu Pokhari to go boating, but the area was too crowded. Instead, we walked around the pond, continuing to take photos and videos. Afterward, we went to a shop for Juju Dhau, which we enjoyed. We then wandered the streets in search of snacks and ended up in a restaurant where we had momo and yomari.
By the time we reached the bus stop to head back, it was getting dark. Time had passed so quickly. We decided to book a bike ride home via Pathao, and soon enough, we were back at the hostel. It had been a great day filled with new experiences and meeting a lot of interesting people.
The next day, I was browsing the internet when I stumbled upon the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I was really impressed by its stats and decided that I wanted to apply. On Magh 2, I visited The Next and had a detailed conversation with Counselor Roshan Poudel. He hadn’t heard of the university, but he was impressed by my research. Later that evening, Swodesh told me the tuition fees for international students at Wisconsin-Madison were incredibly high. I was shocked, and I started wondering what Roshan might think of me.
The following day, I went back to The Next to discuss my options. Roshan asked me to pay for the SIUE application, so I did. Afterward, we had another conversation, and I returned to the hostel.
Yesterday, my father called and asked which model of MacBook I wanted to buy. After talking with my brother, he helped me make a deal with a shopkeeper. It was for the MacBook Pro M3, and I was really excited. Swodesh and I went to the shop, where the shopkeeper installed all the accessories and handed us the MacBook. After receiving the payment, the shopkeeper shook our hands and said goodbye.
We then went to another shop to get Swodesh’s smartwatch strap changed. While we were there, I saw a wrap for my phone, which I decided to apply. Later, we went to a hotel for a nice dinner—momo and sausage, which were more than enough.
When we returned to the hostel, I tested my new MacBook, and it was fantastic! I told Vishan and Khemraj about it. That evening, Vishan released his new song Yestai Xa Para, which was really good.
Today, I’ve done nothing so far except write this entry. Swodesh went out on a date with his girlfriend. My MacBook is amazing, and I'm really happy with it.
