
Medical students from UBC visit medical students at the Patan Academy of Health Sciences (PAHS) in Kathmandu as part of a cultural exchange.
A personal blog by Anita Rashidi (2nd year medical student)
This past summer, I visited Kathmandu, Nepal, for several weeks with a team of medical students through Health Trek Nepal. The program was a cultural exchange with medical students at the Patan Academy of Health Sciences (PAHS) in Kathmandu.
This trip was an especially memorable experience because it allowed me to be in one place long enough to experience day-to-day life. We became familiar with our surroundings, got to know our community, and were able to enjoy the little moments. I contrasted this with the back-packing trip to Europe I also did this summer, where we were on-the-go every few days.
Nepal was much more slow-paced. We had the time to share games, opinions, and experiences from our lives inside and outside of medical school with our friends at PAHS. We also got to know others in the community. For example, there was a pharmacist nearby who we visited frequently to explore his vast array of medications. We also visited the same family for local fruits and vegetables. If I close my eyes and imagine, I can still taste the delicious and succulent mangoes we would buy from them. Our team actually kept a tally of the number of mangoes we ate during our time in Nepal, and, in the three weeks we were there, I managed to eat between 90 and 100 – they were just that good!
Overall, the opportunity to experience day-to-day life in Kathmandu and the interactions with our community made the trip memorable for me. I don’t think I will forget those mangoes any time soon either!
~ Anita Rashidi