So, coming back to Begnas Tal for the 3rd time (the end point of "What the Trek" and home to "Bumble in the Jungle," the Acclimates returned with renewed determination to discover the fabled WWOOFing farm somewhere in the hills. After a short Nepali canoe ride we set off up the road, relying entirely on locals to direct us to the farm; thank goodness for Nepalis, they just continue to be awesome and always directed us true.
Turning the final corner we found a large field for buffalo grazing, and just above that was Surya Adikhari's organic coffee farm, filled with Westerners washing compost and worm gunk off their hands, Surya (who we called "Bua" or father) overlooking the proceedings and the boddhisattva of loving kindness: Ama ("mother") preparing a special midday meal. Shortly thereafter we were named the “American Babus” (sons) until later we received personalized names due to our awesomeness (Max = Ram, Eli = Laxama). Surya’s farm is the centerpiece of the Royal Everest Organic Coffee Cooperative in Begnas; over a 170 farms bring their beans to our farm which are weighed, sorted, washed, peeled, washed again, dried, and then brought to Kathmandu to be packaged and sold around the world (although largely in Japan and Taiwan). Surya’s efforts have vitalized the community, bringing in much needed income and making him the “most popular” man in the area, most people referring to him simply as “big daddy.”
Besides helping with all the coffee, there were many daily chores to maintain the farming lifestyle. We awoke before 5 without the company of the sun to sweep the red clay floors, gather buffalo dung for the bio-gas tank (incredible what is re-used here: all the gas is derived from feces, rotting plants, biotically-charged liquids, pretty much anything you can throw in the tank…) and churn buffalo milk into ghee (a precise science that the Acclimates eventually came to own). After that there was morning yoga with Surya, culminating in the beloved Yoga Dance so that we might spread our love to all the world with Nepali spins and hand twirling. Then it was time for rest, complete with milk tea, card games, journaling and reading. Life was very easy on the farm; the sun shone constantly, the work was infrequent and enjoyable, the company fantastic, and Ama’s love copious. We got everything we were looking for: dirt under our nails, sweat beading on our brows, a new plethora of friends both domestic and international, and the pure sense of well-being that can only come from working the land and days spent lounging outside.
There were difficulties at times: the rat fight club/debate team grew incredibly fierce in our room when the lights went out (especially difficult the first night when we slept on the floor), the frequent tea times often disrupted our napping, a hole for a bathroom/shower, and the groups of gawking Nepalis that made Tai Chi practice quite a challenge. But of course these were merely insignificant obstacles in our Coffee Eden. By the end of our visit, we were distressed to leave our new family, but paradise isn’t forever, and so we packed up, received our goodluck-tikas from Ama, and hiked back down to the town.
On our way home we stopped by the house of our old friend Rosnae who saved us from the jungle a month ago. She was ecstatic to see us, bringing us into her room, handing out tea and bananas, inviting her family to come meet us, and demanding that we dance for her as is the custom during festival time. [A quick side-note: there is over a hundred days of the Nepali calendar that are “festival days;” these people spend most of their time celebrating one or another of their 330 million gods. It’s really becoming tiresome and inconvenient for us.] They were sad to see us leave but it was time to return to beautiful Pokhara where we remain to this day, awaiting Eli’s friend Chris before we head out on the Annapurna Circuit. We’ll let you all know when we leave; Namaste!
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