Day Eight (Emails Home)
Submitted: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 | Views: 6 | 0 comments
November 9/2009 Email home
"Alive and kickin' in Nepal"
Hi Kitty
Well, I am finally at an internet spot and it is way up in the Himalayas. We are in Chame under the peaks of Manaslu and Annapurna 2. It is very hard hiking but I am doing great. Brock on the other hand is not..he had to get a porter to carry his gear as he was totally done before the end of the first day. He is still not good and he is not carrying anything. He was so bad that they had to take a rest day yesterday after cutting the day short after only 1 hour. I on the other hand was a bit annoyed so I decide to hike all the way the next proposed stop, eat lunch and then hike all the way back to where they had booked in.
So we have been hiking the mountains and staying in tea houses, the food has been great but both Alan and Brock have been sick....luckily I am still ok. I am sore but rockin'. You would totally not be in for this as it is very very basic..we sleep in small rooms that are open to the elements, squat toilets etc but I am loving it. I love Nepal and its people, very friendly. They work so hard and everything is hand labour. I watched a man making charcoal so he could make tools, women and men working the rice fields, I talked to one of the many men who must carry loads from Besi sahar all the way up the mountains..he is carrying pipes and his load is 80 kg, he does not even weigh that much!!
I eat rice curry, porridge with apples, potato curry, Tibetan bread with cheese or honey, garlic soup etc. I am totally addicted to Nepali tea and we drink pots of it along the way.
The scenery has now changed from rice terraces to pine and fir forests. It is cold now and gets colder at night..the ground freezes and any puddles, yet I am hiking in a t-shirt. Today was the hardest of days yet even though I did the same hike yesterday without my pack. The 1st hour and a half is basically straight up..our fear levels are totally out of whack as I now hike on a cliff edge that is barely two feet wide and 1000 feet up with shear drops below and do not even bat an eye...it is so weird how your perspective changes..you just keep moving up up up. I have crossed so many rivers on swing bridges suspended high above a raging river. Donkey trains rush past you on narrow cliffs, sheep, cattle, supplies all must move up and down the trail...crazy but awesome! We pay about 2 dollars a night for a place to sleep but if you want a beer is about 5 to 6. WE have stopped beer now, not because of the price but the altitude gain..we should start to feel it more and more by tomorrow. There is a hot spring by the river in this village that we may try to hit to sooth our aches and then a bit of dinner and bed..We are in bed well before 8 most nights as we are wiped. Last night we watched a Nepali movie with the family while the mother cooked our dinner on a wood burning stove....I have picks and you would not believe it.
Oh yes..I forgot: Brock lost his visa card, camera and debit card when we got out of the car that took us from Kat to Besi sahar...not a happy camper! The driver took off and everything was gone!
Anyway...I think we should get more internet as we get to Manang in a couple of days and it is supposed to be a fairly big place...so send me an email...I miss you
Love John
November 9/2009 Email home
"Hey Babe"
Hi Kitty
Just a note to say I am missing you. Hope all is well at home and that you had fun with mom and Tig. What's new...Anyway, we spent the afternoon here in Chame after a hard, hard hike up. We all had HOT showers...yes HOT showers and I washed a few things while I showered. We then checked out the springs but it was disappointing as most had washed away...we thought we could sit in them up to our necks but we could only put our feet in..I managed to have my toe nail come off..what a relief!! My toe has been swollen and sore but has not slowed me down hahahaha. I wish you could see the things I am seeing..I miss that part of the trip is being able to share with you this amazing place.....plus a glass of red with cheddar cheese and a fresh loaf!! But I am enjoying the food so far and the stomach is still good. Like I said i"ll email when I got here I think we are about two to three days away from internet if all info is correct so I would sure like to hear how you are.
Love John
