Kathmandu: United States Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Affairs, Donald Lu, arrived in Kathmandu on Thursday.
The visit from Lu comes right after Nepal formally rejected participation in the United States’ State Partnership Program (SPP). But surprisingly, rather than giving any political statement, Lu confessed his love story through a video message.
Lu, in a one-minute 42 seconds long video posted on the Facebook page of the US Embassy in Kathmandu, remembers how he met his wife in Nepal some 29 years ago.
Here is what he said:
Namaste, Nepal! I am Donald Lu. I first visited Nepal in 1993, and I am back today as Assistant Secretary of State for this region.
When I was here almost 30 years ago, I fell in love with a young woman who is now my wife, and we’ve been married for almost 26 years. We have two beautiful kids, both of whom have names inspired by our time in South Asia, Alia and Kipling.
We started our trip in Darjeeling, we took a motor rickshaw across the border into Nepal, and from the border we took public buses through the Terai, through the Chitwan National Park, to Janakpur and on to Kathmandu.
And we have to sheepishly admit to our kids that it was so hot that we often rode on the tops of the buses, and then we tell him never to do that. In Chitwan, we rode in the jeep through the National Park to look for the fierce buffalo. And in Janakpur, we were there during Diwali, and I’ll never forget crossing a river near Janakpur and seeing women floating oil lamps into the water to celebrate the holiday. It was beautiful. And in Kathmandu, we toured the amazing treasures of Patan, and tasted some of the best food in the world. Last night, I had some amazing veg momos, and later today, I’ll be keeping my eye out for some tasty Newari treats. Nepal is a place that will always be close to my heart, because this is where I first fell in love. Namaskar
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