Chapter 12: Trekking in the Himalayas! GMT+5:45

Nepal Postcard
Nepal Postcard

We have just returned from our 5 day trek into the Himalayas. This is a land so rich in natural beauty and human spirit. The juxtaposition of "civilization" and nature is intense ... We watched EVERYTHING that is not grown on-site (different use of the term, eh?!) being carried in over the mountains .. either on donkey or more often on the backs and foreheads of the amazingly spirited local community. We hope we will be able to post enough photos to give you perspective.

The views were amazing, the people we met - fantastic. There is so much to tell that we think we will create a separate blog page just for this trek - so click here in the future. (still in development and more photos due each week)

It was a feat that we are all proud we did, but some of us would not repeat! Sarah & Andrew had porters to carry them when they got too tired to walk, or when the path was too rocky, steep or dangerous (which was about 3/4 of the time!)

Ian was incredible! Stellar! Brave! Amazing! I use all these words to describe my oldest son because he kept up with young porters who make this trek all the time - and to give you perspective, was often an hour ahead of me! He was also always checking to see if we were safe & doing well.

I took it slow - and careful. I am back with very sore leg muscles, but no further injury to my knee. (alleluia!)

This is a frustratingly slow internet access line, so we will develop this chapter later - we are just glad to be back to warm rooms, proper beds, warm water. And we are very thankful for all the amenities that God has given us.

We will talk in the other blog about how we watched the village kids trek 1hr up and down a VERY steep mountain to get to school everyday etc etc. We took 3 hrs to make it down the same mountain -longer to get up! We watched a 55yr old man (our estimation) carrying a Sony Trinitron & Panasonic VCR boxed on his head up the mountain ... wearing rubber flipflops. Everywhere people carried 'things' up the hills : firewood, fodder for the cows, chickens, sliced bread, clothes. You begin to understand why nothing is wasted up here. I saw a man carrying 4 cases (yes, CASES) of beer on his back .. we are hoping they are empty bottles that had made their way up the mountain on donkey, but empty bottles are still VERY heavy. That coming from someone who gave away toileteries, sunscreen, clothes and more to lighten our load as the days wore on in the trek.

What is valuable? Water and warmth. We were here in the first week of December, and the mornings had a beautiful clean crispness to them .. one that caused the ground to frost over. The water flowing from the various mountain springs is fairly clean and very cold. "Hot" showers are wood heated water that you then bathe in an outside 'room' whose windows open to the cold outside air as there is no glass. It looked like the kids had steaming water running off their bodies until you realize that is really their body heat evaporating rapidly from them!

My mind is overflowing with memories of that trek - and I hope I will be able to preserve them before the next ones come!

We are all glad to be back healthy - Ian fell off a pony and his wrist hurt for a day, but he is fine now ... and dancing the local dances with lots of wrist action! Our kids now sing Nepali folk songs. So much more later!
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Ian, Sarah, Andrew
Bernard & Karena
"Life is the adventure - travel it well!"
http://www.desouzatravels.blogspot.com