Nepal 2011.

April 6th ~ 17th, 2011 Life on the trail.

After landing in Lukla we made our way over to a tea house to have some tea. What else right? We met the two porters that would be carrying out gear bags as well. And with that, about 10:30a.m. we headed out to our first stop which would be Phakding wich is actually about 1,000' lower than Lukla. This really would be the only time we would lose altitude as opposed to gaining it!
It didn't take long for my admiration of the Nepali people and their work ethic along with the incredible amount of weight they ferry up the trail. Keeping in mind that this trail gets a lot of wear and tear with both human and Yak traffic.

Start of the Trek...
In this picture is our group. Nils from Denmark, Yuta from Japan, yours truly and Bis, our guide.










First of many bridges that we would cross. All had prayer flags attached to them but these were as sturdy as they got. Swiss engineering if I recall reading right.









First stop Phakding...
We arrived here early afternoon and though it was all downhill and easy I took a nap upon arrival. I think altitude and jet lag may have contributed to it. This is pretty much the type of lodging we would be staying at. Simple and cool. As in cold that is as there is no heat other than a wood burning stove in the middle of the dinning area that usually was not lit up till around about 6~7 p.m. They all had bottle water (and beer!) as well for purchase. Of course, this was the cheapest of them all as the higher one went the more expensive it would be as again, it's all hauled up there on somebody's back. Meals were simple and I kept it that way. Eggs and toast first thing followed by fried rice and or potatoes for dinner. One thing we take for "granted" any time any of us usually stay at a hotel or what have you is toilet paper. Well, this was not the case in Nepal. Seems the stuff is more precious than gold! paper that is, as napkins were hard to come by as well. T.p. could be bought at the tea houses though. However, if I knew the quality or lack there of of the stuff I would have brought my own. Never a mention of this in my Lonely Planet book...

View from my room window! every morning would be the same with blue and white backgrounds.

Next up, Namche Bazar. this was a very, very steep trail once we crossed over (how many times would it be?) then it went straight up! This was a very brutal section of the trail...





Trail to Namche. Beat up and straight up!!












Life on the trail for the other half. If you've ever lifted (or attempted) a sheet of plywood you know how heavy they are. Well, take a good look as this porter and the one in front are carrying between 5~7!! logic, if there is one, is that the more one carries the more they make. Ever since I've been home and am out running and start to feel "tired" I think back to these folks I saw along the trail and ask myself what I'm "tired" about which puts my runs into perspective.




Namche Bazar. Located at around 11,200 feet is where we would spend the day and next getting acclimated. Namche is by far the largest of the villages and a major trading and market place as well. And of course the gift shops to boot. We would end up here on the way up and down and would experience an earthquake on our return trip. Thank God nothing major as if you took a good look as how things are built...

The following day we took a hike up to the Everest View hotel. This one obviously caters to those with a few bucks as they are helicoptered in and of course, offers a view of what else...Everest! This was also my first view of what I came to Nepal for. We hung outside and had some coffee while soaking in the view of the tallest mountain on this planet.

There it is, Mt.Everest in all it's splendor. This was taken from the terrace outside the Everest view hotel with coffee in hand. Now, if only we could get some stronger (better tasting) coffee...

On the way down, we headed to the village where Sir Edmond Hillary built the first school here in the Himalayas as well.





First school built by Edmond Hillary. Khumjung Nepal.











The "Man" himself. Well, at least in statue form that is. Since being built the school has received funds from other countries as well for construction of class rooms.

Nepal 2011.

April 6, 2011

Not much sleep last night as I was worried weather or not I'd get the 5:00a.m. wake up call. Thank God I woke up as my suspicions came true...

Today we met the 3rd person in our group. Yuta from Japan. I met Nils from Denmark last night and this would be our group along with two porters and our guide. We arrived at the domestic terminal (right next to the "international" one) to a cluster of expeditions heading up to Everest. Needless to say they had a lot more gear than us. But one could truly feel that this was it. Trekkers and climbers from all over the world and small little 14 passenger planes! Wohoo. For some reason or another we were due at the airport at 9:00 yet ended up hanging out for two hours before flying. Never figured this one out.


All aboard! Needless to say, I would rather be the last one in. Patience has it's privileges. The flight would take us 30 minutes to Lukla which as the distinction of "Worlds most dangerous airports" but to the best of my research only one major (is there such a thing as minor?) crash back in 2008.

And as long as the weather is good shouldn't be an issue...time to fly!




Thank God it's only a 30 minute flight. Needless to say there was no "in flight" movie!











In flight service consisted of candy? and cotton for the ears as this is one loud, loud flight!!











As I mentioned earlier, being last on board has it's privileges!












Lukla!

The airport is built into the mountain at a 10~30 degree angle as to help slow down, stop the planes upon landing and helping with the take off...

Nepal 2011.

April 5, 2011.

I woke up early this morning and took a stroll down the street(s) that were so alive last night. What a contrast a few hours make as I did not recognize anything as there were no people, traffic and all the shops were closed. Just a few stray dogs trying to find something to eat as well as a few homeless sleeping on the sidewalks.

Today will consist of a tour of Kathmandu and some of the better known landmarks, temples and historical areas.
We started at the Monkey Temple - above which is a few km's West of the city and overlooks it as well. Needless to say it got it's name for obvious reasons however, there is a reason that monkeys are protected in Nepal (as in other parts of the world. Ahh, religion) . Along with the Bodnath Stupa were the main things I wanted to see...

Monks at the Monkey Temple...












Afterwards, we drove over to the Pashupatinath Temple. This is where (for Hindus) the bodies get cremated and ashes get returned as in the cycle of life back to earth. It's very much a 24/7 operation where the bodies are brought in, unloaded, prepared then lit up. This is open for everyone to see though only family members were allowed on the side where it all took place where non-family members could see the whole procession from the other side of the river.

Now, when I say river as you can see in the picture, there is none. The only source of water seems to be when the ashes are hosed off the cement platforms to where there used to be one. And not 100 yards or so downstream are people bathing and cleaning clothes.














Bodhath Stupa.

Located within sight of the airport is one of the holiest Buddhist sites in Kathmandu and is one of the largest in the world and is an influx of Tibetan refugees from China. As of 1979 the Stupa was listed as a UNESCO world heritage site. Along with the monkey temple one of the more popular tourist sites and by far my favorite!

I'm truly humbled by what I've seen today. On tap for tonight...Rum Doddle.

Nepal 2011.

April 4, 2011

While my calendar might say it's Monday April 4th, truth be told God only knows what day it is after 22 plus hours of flying and time zones. None the less, if indeed it is the 4th then I've arrived here in Kathmandu Nepal on time! Woohoo. After dropping $40.00 for a visa I cleared customs and headed over to hopefully find my bag that I checked in way back when at DIA. It made it!

After picking it up, or shall I say someone "helping" me I headed out the door to a sea of card holding companies looking for my name and lo and behold there it was. Once across the street however you are fair game for the zillion or so folks looking to keep helping you with your luggage. Long story short, one of 'em wanted to charge me $20.00 bucks to put my one bag from the cart to the trunk!! needless to say he was somewhat pissed when he got nothing. Cart to the trunk was a whooping two feet. Greed get's ya nowhere. The distance from KTM- airport to town is 5k (three miles) give or take. However, this is Kathmandu and with a million or so cars and no traffic lights...this was the true adventure of the trip!

Here, like in most, if not all 3rd world countries that I have been too it seems that honking the horn is the national anthem. And, unlike here in the States it's not done in a way to express that one is pissed off but one of just letting the car next to you know you are coming through. I arrived at my hotel, and after checking in and dropping off my bag I decided to take a stroll around Tamel. Tamel is the tourist section and anything and everything trekking wise and then some can be found here. Ahh, the book stores! could have spent a fortune in them but would have cost just as much to ship home. Next time.

First impression and it didn't take very long is that pedestrians do NOT have the right away! no surprise here. I couldn't help but smile and shake my head on what I saw. It truly was one of the most amazing and craziest places I've been. And it's only day one. I met my, our guide a while later and we went out to have coffee and a small bite to eat. We talked about his efforts to bring awareness to the porters, Sherpas that do all the ferrying of goods up the trail to Base Camp. I would see what he meant in a few day's first hand. Well, here it is 12:15a.m. and the lights just went out. Must be a sign that it's time to go to sleep...