Pokhara (827m)

The bus ride to Pokhara was a step back into reality. I think it was the first time I had to think about and realize just how gross I was! We were sticky and grimy and no doubt stinky. All our clothes were dirty. I couldn’t stop thinking about how clammy and damp my clothes felt against my body. Eric’s clothes were downright wet. The exhaust fumes, dust from the dirt outside, and the steep switchbacks, pins, and turns from the bus made me nauseous. We couldn’t wait to get off the bus.

We arrived at the hotel and we quickly disappeared into our rooms and prayed that there was hot water for a shower. There was. There was also a western toilet and a double bed and a tv. Holy shiza. The hot shower felt like heaven! We were once again rejuvenated and it didn’t even matter that we were back in unclean clothes! We spent the afternoon on an outside patio enjoying good food and cold drinks. It felt good to be clean and to not be walking! We had a nice relaxing afternoon.
Dinner that night was a complimentary Newari buffet hosted by the Himalayan Encounters tour office. It was fantastic! There was curried pumpkin, fried spinach, curried chicken, tomato curry, papadums, egg curry, aloo gobi, and curried vegetables. Some of us were hoping that we would all eat with our hands like the Nepalese normally do, but instead, they used cutlery. Oh well. After dinner, we gave our porters and guides their hard earned and well deserved tips and then had a dance party! There was great Nepali music and highly entertaining dancing. We danced until it was bedtime for the boarding school next door. It was a nice way to end an amazing trek through the mountains with some incredible Nepali folks.

Birethanti (1025m)

Today was our last day of actual trekking. Part of me was happy to stop walking, but mostly, I was already starting to miss the mountains. I missed the simplicity of the villages on the other side of the pass. There was no big road so it was less traveled, and inevitably simpler.

It was a short 3 hour walk to the bus in Birethanti. We bought some oranges (two for 5 NPR) and devoured them. It was so nice to have fresh cold fruit again! The dog from Marpha walked with us to the bus and then disappeared. I hope he found another group of trekkers to keep company!

Tirkedhunga (1577m)

After the walk up to Poon Hill, we headed back down to Ghorepani and had breakfast (half of which I gave to the dog). The walk today was all downhill. Easy peasy, as our guide Indra liked to say. Well, after walking down a section from Ulleri called the infamous 4000 stone steps, our knees were weak, our calves were sore, and our legs were shaking with fatigue. The steps were too short to comfortably step on with my little size 5 feet, so it must have been worse for everyone else. Our heads were always looking down at the next step to make sure we didn’t trip and fall over the rather treacherous stone steps. Some parts were wet and slippery, and I fell on my ass once. But nothing could be worse than having to climb UP those steps! We saw several trekkers climbing up and we did not envy them.
When we reached our teahouse, our muscles were aching in ways we’ve never experienced before. I guess our climbing up muscles were in pretty good shape by this time, but we hadn’t used our climbing down muscles so they were pretty sore. We even bypassed a walk through town when we realized that there were more stairs going down! After sharing my lunch with our fuzzy companion from Marpha, we sat outside and relaxed in the sunshine.

Poon Hill (3195m)

There are two routes from Tatopani. The more popular route is the one that goes downhill to Beni, but we took the one that goes uphill to Ghorepani. The reason is that from Ghorepani, you can climb a few hundred meters up to Poon Hill and see an amazing sunrisse/sunset amongst the tallest mountains in the Annapurnas. Since we were both feeling pretty good in the morning, we woke up at 5 AM and hiked up to Poon Hill for sunrise. The sweet dog from Marpha joined us for the 45 minute climb in the cold and dark. We were following other people in our group who apparently have longer legs and better cardio capacity because we were both huffing and puffing by the time we got to the top!
We reached our destination and climbed up to the top of a viewing platform and waited for the sun to rise. Down below we could see headlamps of trekkers also heading up for the spectacular view. There were probably 50 or so people, but Prem tells me that in high season there is well over 200! We stood there for about an hour or so, and then the sun started coming up – it took all of 30 seconds but it was an amazing scene. It was hard to capture the beauty of it on film. We were surrounded by mountain after mountain, and many rolling hills in between that seemed to cast one foggy shadow over another.
The walk back down was much easier and probably took 15 minutes. Eric and I rejoiced knowing that Poon Hill was truly the last climb uphill that we’d have to do on this trek. It was worth the trip to Acton (or Poon Hill).

Ghorepani (2785m)

Did I say best day yet? Well, for most it was the worst night ever.

In the morning, I woke up with a strange feeling – I wasn’t nauseous but I felt like I just wanted to puke. I puked a little. Eric felt fine. As we got ready for the day, we found out that 4 others in our group spent most of the night in the bathroom with diarrhea or vomiting. Thank goodness for attached bathrooms that day! We suspected food poisoning. The 4 all had chocolate cake and thought that might have been the culprit. But then we find out that other people had chocolate cake and felt fine. I didn’t even have the chocolate cake. By the time I went for breakfast, I puked 2 more times.

The group split in two since half of us were feeling pretty crappy and needed to take it much slower. Eric joined the sickos to keep me company. I puked a couple of little pukes along the way, but a few hours into our hike, I emptied my guts. I saw last night’s dinner with surprising clarity. I felt much better but was pretty weak since I didn’t eat much, and whatever I did eat was now sitting on the trail. Every once in a while I’d get a wave of nausea but for the most part I was feeling okay. The others weren’t doing so well and just felt like shiza for most of the walk.

Perhaps the most horrendous part of the whole ordeal was that today’s hike was the steepest yet – we ascended over 1.6 km! It was uphill the whole way, and although it was tiring and we required a lot of breaks, stopping was almost worse because our stomachs would start to turn. Fortunately, Eric was feeling healthier and stronger than ever and wasn’t even bothered by the never-ending stairs. After lunch, he carried my day pack which really helped since I was running on low and feeling even worse after eating.

We climbed for about 9 hours and just reached the top of a huge hill when Prem pointed into the distance and said we can see Ghorepani. He was trying to be encouraging, but what we saw was another huge uphill battle, which took us another hour to climb! When we reached the teahouse, the sickos immediately collapsed into their sleeping bags. That’s the thing about our trip – when you’re feeling like absolute sh!t, you just keep on trekking. This is what we fondly refer to as “Nepalese medicine”!

After a short nap, I felt much better and joined the healthy folks in the dining hall. The teahouse had more trekkers than I had ever seen before – there were probably 10 new faces! The dog from Marpha was there too, taking head rubs and food from anybody and everybody. There was a huge oil drum contraption in the middle of the room that was giving off wonderful heat. I wasn’t able to eat my fried rice with egg, but the porters happily helped me finish it.
From the windows we could see that we were surrounded by an amazing view of the mountains. So that’s why it was worth climbing uphill again when we were supposed to be going downhill! It was beautiful outside. The scene inside, however, was surreal. Avril Lavigne and the Red Hot Chili Peppers were blaring from the sound system. It was the first western music I’ve heard in weeks and it just seemed wrong to be surrounded by majestic mountains in the Himalayas and listen to top 40 hits! The porters and guides were enjoying hot roxy (homemade rice wine warmed up) which Eric tried and seemed to like. Soon, Nepali music was blaring and Eric and I were forced to get up and dance. It was a lot of fun watching them going nuts with roxy, music, and dancing. However, there was a blackout and the lights and music shut off – I can’t say I was too upset since I was exhausted and it provided us with a great opportunity to slip out of the dining hall and back into our rooms. About ½ an hour later when we were tucked into our sleeping backs, we could hear an eruption of cheers as the music and lights turned back on.

Tatopani (1160m)

There was a huge descent into Tatopani, and the scenery proved it. There were bamboo forests and a lot more greenery. Tatopani means “hot water” in Nepali, so called because of the hot springs by the river below the village. After a very tasty meal of chicken masala (me) and spice rubbed chicken (Eric) we disobeyed everything our parents told us and immediately headed to the hot springs!

After a short walk donned in our swimming suits and flip flops we reached the hot springs, paid 25 NPR each (less than 50 cents) and was pleasantly surprised to find only a handful of people there. There are two “tubs” but only one of them was filled with water since it is the low season. The tubs are made of stone and piled up rocks and looked pretty nice. But, like the “bakeries” and the “hot showers” we saw advertised along the trail, we were skeptical. We saw some people washing themselves and their laundry in the effluent from the springs so we decided to wash ourselves also before getting into the hot springs. This is the first “shower” I’ve had in over 2 weeks so it was definitely necessary for me! Holy shiza, the warm water felt SOOO GOOD!! It was the first warm water we felt since we started the trek. In fact, it was the first encompassing warmth that we’ve felt in many, many days. We both washed ourselves and our hair with soap and sat in the hot springs. It was actually HOT. Like a hot tub. Man, it was so relaxing and just what our bodies needed! The mood was good and most of the gang enjoyed some beers while we chilled. In the effluent, I washed by body and hair with soap again since I wasn’t sure when I’d see hot water again. Eric washed some of our clothes. Having warm water was such a luxury!

We headed back to the teahouse and got changed before walking around Tatopani. This was probably the first village we saw that had a life of its own. It felt like, even if our group of trekkers left, it would still be happening. It was a nice feeling, and it also meant that we weren’t being harassed as much either. As we were walking around, we passed by a small establishment where most of our porters and guides were chilling. They invited us to join them and we were happy to oblige! It is so nice to be able to hang out with them and talk instead of watching guiltily as they carried our heavy bags. They are such fun people who not only work hard but play hard too. We found out that the youngest porter, Dinesh, was only 19! Shankar was 20 and Ram was 21. Wow. I was concerned that we just bought them a round of beers and they might not have been legal yet… Prem assured me that there is no legal drinking age in Nepal!

We headed back to the teahouse and had a lovely dinner. The teahouse offered some baked goods including brownies and chocolate cake. There was a cute dog that followed some other trekkers from Marpha, and was now keeping us company. The relaxing hot springs, hanging out with our wonderful porters and guides, and finishing off with good good -- all in all, it was the best day yet.

Kalopani (2530m)

We left Marpha and followed the river to a small village called Tukuche where we stopped for tea at a Dutch bakery. As per usual, they did not have any baked goods but they did have espressos and cappuccino! We didn’t have any but some of the peeps in our group did and they were impressed. The Nepalese woman who runs the place has a Dutch husband and they were obviously in tune with what most westerners like. It was one of the nicest establishments I’ve seen on the trail – comfortable, clean, and modern in that Muskoka cottage kind of way. They even had a western toilet that was clean and that flushed properly!

Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the teahouse we stayed in in Kalopani. There was one outdoor squat toilet to share amongst everyone and it was completely clogged when we got there. There was a sink, but it didn’t always supply running water (I suspect frozen pipes). It was still pretty cold in Kalopani so we were pleased to have a bucket of hot coals under our table in the dining room. However, there was no table cloth to contain the heat so it was still chilly. For dessert, most of our group ordered apple pie and I watched as they made it from scratch. It was one huge pie that fed over 10 people very healthy servings! It was pretty good (but not Kagbeni apple crumble good!)

All of the teahouses so far did not supply heat in the mornings, and this one was no different. After a chilly breakfast, we headed to Tatopani, where we were promised warmer weather.

Marpha (2710m)

The hike to Marpha was kind of neat since the trail brought us down to the riverbed. At this time of year, the river is pretty small compared to the monsoon season. The distance covered today was quite large but since the terrain was relatively flat and downhill, we breezed through it quickly (led by the i-Pod Himalayan speed walkers). We stopped for lunch in Jomson, the administrative headquarters for the Mustang region with an air strip, bank, and shady looking hospital.

One of the things we noticed on this side of the pass is the prevalence of Dutch and German bakeries. There seemed to be one or two in every village and Jomson was no different. However, most of the bakeries were either closed or offered no baked goods since it is not high season. I guess trekking during high season (October/November or March) does have its benefits – warmer weather and more tasty options. However, the peace of seeing only the odd trekker once in a while and having the tranquility of the mountains (and teahouses) to ourselves definitely overrides the desire to have a slice of apple cake in every village. Much like the signs that boasted “hot showers” which were in reality solar heated water that was considered “not freezing” at best, we came to understand that “bakeries” at this time of year was just a place to have a hot drink.

After being spoiled in Kagbeni, we were disappointed to find that the teahouse in Marpha had one shared toilet per 14 people. It was a western one, but we’ve come to prefer squat toilets if it’s going to be shared. Shoddy plumbing and wonky toilet seats/lids aside, the users of western toilets seem to have trouble aiming. After dropping off our bags, Eric and I went for a walk with Prem and Ram, two of our assistant guides. Marpha is another town which I imagine would be bustling during high season. There were a lot of shops selling various arts, crafts, and jewelry, with the owners all pleading “Just come look! Looking is free!” One of the most popular and nicest teahouses in town burned down just the day before… it was just a pile of smoldering rubble today. I asked Prem if they had something like insurance and he said no – the owners would rely on the donations of the locals and of trekkers to rebuild.

Marpha is known for its apple brandy and apple pie, but the trees were bare and leafless when we were there. We had apple pie for dessert after dinner that night but it was disappointing for a place that is known for it.

Kagbeni (2800m)

Since we had just crossed the pass the day before, we were promised an easy walking day. We "only" walked 3.5 hours today and it was downhill. Unfortunately, there were a couple of people in the group who seemed to enjoy speed walking through the Himilayas while listening to their i-Pod. It was pretty annoying. Most of us were content to walk leisurely and enjoy the sights and sounds around us. There was a deep valley on one side of us that looked like something from Drumheller – there were old stone caves carved into the mountain side that people used to live in. There were goats being herded in the distance and we could hear one bleating in what seemed like fear. As we came closer, we saw that his horns were stuck in a bush and he couldn't wiggle free. The rest of the herd was already walking away in the distance! One of our guides quickly came to the rescue and ran down into the valley and freed the poor goat. We have it all on video :)

The teahouse in Kagbeni was by far the nicest place we stayed in the whole trek. It was an old wood and stone structure and our room had it's bathroom with a western toilet and a shower!! Unfortunately, there was no hot water, but it was such a luxury to go to the bathroom at night without having to put on your shoes and brace the cold to a squatter. I couldn't put my body under the cold water but I managed to wash my hair in the sink. Let me tell you, the soap did not like to lather in my 14 day no-wash hair. It was still dirty.

We walked around Kagbeni and saw what looked like a McDonald's! Upon closer inspection though, we realized that it was a Yak Donald's teahouse. Kagbeni is known for it's apples, and our teahouse boasted the best apple crumble in town. We had the freshly squeezed apple juice and apple crumble and it was seriously delicious. The cook/owner grates the apples and squeezes it through a cheesecloth for the juice. So THAT'S what apple juice is supposed to taste like! It was fresh and delicious and the most refreshing thing we've had all trip. The apple crumble was baked like an apple pie with incredible pastry topped with crumbly deliciousness. Even though we didn't try any others, I believe them when they say it's the best in town!

I think that by the time we were in Kagbeni, most of us had had some serious bout of stomach ailments and were eager to have the least offensive thing the menu that did not previously make us sick. The cook/owner recommended the "homemade tasty mushroom soup with buckwheat bread". We had it for lunch and man was it good! There were vegetables (which we had been lacking and quite skeptical of before the pass) and mushrooms and lots of garlic. The bread was hot and fresh. We did not get sick! Eric and I both weren’t feeling 100% yet so for dinner we wanted something familiar that normally would not make us sick. So for dinner, the cook recommended pasta pomodoro topped with yak cheese since she makes the pasta from scratch. Also delicious! The sauce I suspect had ketchup in it but the freshness of the pasta made it worthwhile. We finished off the meal with more apple juice and apple crumble. For breakfast, we had what was advertised as the “Trekkers Breakfast” – an egg, onion, and potato omelette on top of a chapati with a side of apple juice. It was fantastic! All in all, Kagbeni did not disappoint.

Muktinath (3800m)

Muktinath was strikingly different from any other village we had seen on the other side of the pass. First of all, it was much, much bigger. The main dirt road was wider, there were people selling goods on the side of the road, and there was a Bob Marley Bar (apparently named after him because he visited the place!) The village seemed to be "richer" and more built up, probably because there is an airport in Jomsom a few towns away and there was a road that vehicles could access. It was so strange to hear the sound of motorbikes again! I didn’t miss the fumes from the exhaust.

The teahouse where we stayed had shared squat toilets and running water... kind of. It was frozen most of the time. There was also a gas heated shower that you could partake in for 100 RPS (under $2) but hell, it's already been 2 weeks, what's another couple of days without showering? It didn't look too pleasant anyways. There was also a very cute and very excited kitten that we quickly became friends with. Bonus! The family who ran the teahouse were very friendly and they had two cute kids who really enjoyed playing with us! It was all fun and games until the little one sneezed in the food...

For lunch, Eric got Chinese Chopsuey, curiously different from the American Chopsuey on the menu (we never found out what the differrence was). He wasn't disappointed though, it was stir-fried veggies and meat on top of a bed of crispy noodles, all topped with a large egg omelette. I had mutton biryani that unfortunately tasted like rice stir-fried in ketchup with partially rehydrated unnamed meat.

By the time eveing rolled around, it had gotten pretty cold, so we sat around a large table under which a bucket of coals was placed. The tablecloth doubled as a blanket so we covered ourselved and kept the heat in. It worked well, but we were all a bit nervous about the fire on the coals licking the underside of the wood table, especially when there would be billows of smoke every once in a while.

In the morning, we walked to the monastary and nunnery at the top of town. There were 108 fountain heads spewing water that means something special but I don't know what since the guides couldn't seem to explain the meaning behind it all. There was also a Hindu temple which us non-Hindus were not allowed to enter. We also saw a naturally burning gas flame that was discovered back in the day. It is now housed in a little stone structure and curiously smells of gas... I'm pretty sure natural gas has no smell, and that the smell we associate with gas is intentionally added so that we could detect it. Nonetheless, I'm sure there really was a naturally burning gas flame, which must have brought much awe and wonder to people who discovered it, but I suspect that the flame has since been "enhanced" if you know what I'm sayin'...

We headed back to the hotel to collect our things and we headed to Kagbeni.

Thorung La (5416m)

Today was the big day! We climbed to Thorong La Pass, the highest elevation on the trek at 5416 m (17,769 ft). Thorong La is the "world's biggest pass" which I think means it is the highest pass that can be ascended by foot, without mountaineering equipment. Our trip leader, Indra, warned us that the weather at that elevation is often unpredictable -- it could be cold and calm, or so bad that everyone must hold on to each other to brace the fierce winds and blowing snow. So, the plan was to leave very early in the morning so that we could cross the pass well before noon to avoid the notoriously vicious winds. Nobody argued.

The group got up for a 3:30 AM breakfast. Although neither Eric nor I were very hungry, we knew that we would need to eat something that would provide the energy required to get us through the most challenging trekking day (we settled on oatmeal with honey for breakfast). The trek today entailed a steep ascent of over 1000 m and then an even steeper descent of over 1500 m. It was estimated to take 9 hours with no tea or lunch breaks since it is way too cold and remote for teahouses to set up shop, so we stocked our daypacks with granola bars and bite-size peices of chocolate for quick and easy energy boosts.

The temperature at the pass was below –25 deg C. We both wore 7 layers on the top, including several layers of thermals, fleece jackets, and windbreakers. Eric wore 3 layers on the bottom and I wore 4 layers. We both wore extra thick wool socks, balaclavas, and gloves underneath our big windproof mittens. Our camelbaks (water packs that are carried in our backpacks with tubes/straws clipped on the outside) were filled and we put on the tube insulators since it was destined to freeze... all we had to do was activate the "hot shots" to keep it warm. We also had hot shots for our mittens and pockets (courtesy of my sister Stephanie who bought them for me for Fort McMurray which I never used!). Unfortunately, when we tried to activate the hot shots, they didn't warm up since there wasn't enough oxygen in the air! Doh, never thought of that.

Other than the twinkle of the stars and a snake of trekkers with their headlamps turned on, it was pitch black outside when we started climbing. We walked very slowly and steadily with frequent breaks to ensure that we had enough energy to last us through the day. Indra reminded us at every break to wiggle our fingers and toes. By the time the sun came up, we were all freezing. There was ice and snow on the trail and at times the winds were fierce. In the distance, we could see and hear our porters singing Nepali tunes while walking uphill with 30 kgs of our sh!t on their backs. Wow. Despite all the preparation for the day, Thorung La proved to be a challenge for the group. A couple of people were very ill or became very ill so the guides assisted them up the mountain as one might see a coach assisting an injured player off the field. The guides also helped carry their daypacks, in addition to carrying their own. Again, we were humbled by their encouragement, helpfulness and sheer strength.

It was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe – you could definitely feel the lack of oxygen in the air. Eric said it felt claustrophobic since even deep breaths couldn't satiate the lungs. After 4.5 hours of walking with no water (our camelbak tubes froze), we saw prayer flags in the distance – it was Thorong La! The sight of this brought Eric to tears – this was everything we had worked towards for the past few weeks. When we got to the top, it was cold but calm and sunny. It was like some weird pressure was lifted. The guides congratulated us, we took a few pictures and set off again. It was all downhill from here!
The walk down was icy and quite treacherous at times, with very steep drop-offs on the sides. We used our trekking poles and stepped very carefully. The last thing we'd want to do is slip down the sides and spend a few hours trying to climb back up! Fortunately, everyone made it safely and soundly. As we descended, it became warmer and warmer and we saw vegetation again. The views were amazing. In the distance, we could see the Mustang region, where we were going to stay that night (it was still a few hours away). We could also see Inner Mustang, which is accessible to foreigners only if you have expensive permits. We reached Muktinath just before 2 PM and quickly got into comfy clothing to have lunch and relax for the rest of the day.

Thorung Phedi (4450m)

Thorung Phedi would be our last stop before hitting our highest point on the trek, the Thorung La pass. As we ascended to Thorung Phedi, my stomach began to tighten and although there was no nausea, there were certainly other exciting bodily functions on the brew. It was all I could do to last until we arrived, and as soon as we did I frantically found the nearest squatter. Of course, there was no running water. There was a bucket of water, but it was now a bucket with a huge block of ice. It was plugged before I arrived. I shan’t continue. Needless to say, I sheepishly returned to the group, which was just sitting down for lunch.

Within 3 minutes, I was set for round two. This time, I found the “luxury” toilets. Wooden outhouses of sorts poised over a ledge with just a gap between the boards in the floor. At least these couldn’t be plugged. Rounds 3, 4, and 5 continued over the next few hours as I waited impatiently for the Immodium to let me know things would be ok for the big day tomorrow. After lunch, we did a relatively short (but certainly didn’t feel like it given the low oxygen levels) acclimatisation hike up towards the “high camp” (a bit closer to the pass.) We had a simple dinner and went to bed early since we’d need all our energy and monk blessings in order to wake up at 3:30am for the trek up to the pass.

Yak Kharka (4018m)

Our arrival in Yak Kharka had us checking into a minimalist guest house that was even lacking railings on the second story walkway to all the rooms. Fortunately, Yen and I were on the ground floor. I certainly didn’t envy those midnight urinators that had to both freeze and navigate a dangerous stumble to the bathroom. My bottle proved priceless here.
Our acclimatisation walk here consisted of a walk up a hill with nothing at the top. We actually didn’t go up all the way. We probably went up about 150-200 metres, which was apparently enough to have some kind of effect. It was very windy and we were really cold, but we sat there halfway up the hill and chatted for a while before heading back down. We spotted some “blue sheep,” which are more like a kind of mountain goat that are common in the high hills.

Manang (3540m)

Alas we eventually did arrive in Manang – 2 to 3 hours before the high road crowd. Here, it was my turn to help an exhausted and fading Yen get unpacked, undressed and tucked into bed upon arrival. Our guest house had a rooftop deck, which I went up and sat on while taking in the surrounding landscape. The mountains surround the village and it was breathtaking. It was also freezing. I had to interrupt my gazing a few times to head inside by the furnace to warm up.

While Yen didn’t eat anything for dinner she did get up to join us for dinner since the dining room was heated by a big coal furnace (making it the centre of the universe.) It was here that we started to see Yak – both on the trails and even on the menu! Clearly I had no choice but to try a Yak burger for dinner. I didn’t yak. In fact it was quite enjoyable.

We hit the sack early (again) and hoped for wellness in the morning. Yen actually picked a relatively good time (if there is such a thing) to get sick, since Manang is the only place en route that we would be staying in for two nights. This is again for acclimatisation purposes. Although we weren’t travelling any further along the trail in the morning, we were going to climb a 500m hill beside the village as an acclimatisation hike.

Yen woke up with the rest of us in the morning just to get herself moving a bit. As we set out for the hill, she joined us with the intention of turning back somewhere along the way when her body had enough. However, she somehow managed to persevere and get all the way up with us! I believe it was at this point that we started to refer to (and maybe even believe in?) “Nepali Medicine”: the uncanny ability of a 10k steeply uphill climb by foot to cure any illness or malaise (this particular case wasn’t a full 10k, but this was more of a general definition that can be tailored for specific situations.)

At the top of this hill was the cave-like dwelling of a 92 year old monk that has lived there for approximately 60 years. For 100 Nepali rupees, we could enter his chamber and get a personalised blessing. Clearly, Yen and I could use all the blessing we could get, and at 100 rupees it seemed a steal. We weren’t disappointed. About 5 of us went in and each got to kneel before the monk as he poured oil for us, tied a blessing necklace around our neck, touched our heads with prayer bundles, and muttered words of good luck for crossing the pass (Thorung La) in a few days. Then we served us all tea while he tried to sell us some prayer beads. They were nice, but the experience was a bit surreal.

I guess the necklace and its accompanying luck worked, because I’m writing this in hindsight with the necklace still on, a healthy heart still beating in my chest and Thorung La seemingly ages behind me. At the very least, Yen thinks it makes me look sexy. Now that’s a steal for 100 rupees.

After we descended from the monk’s lair, we had some lunch and went to check out the local theatre – yes indeed, Manang has a movie theatre. Yen came prepared with her sleeping bag and although I didn’t go quite that far, I was quite bundled up. We went into the pitch dark room, using the sun shining through the few cracks in the walls to stumble to the hard wooden benches. They did have Yak skins on them, but I’m not sure my ass noticed after 15 minutes. As the movie started, the owner lit a fire in the furnace in the middle of the seating. Although it may have made a difference, I didn’t find the need to peel off any layers for the duration of the film.

The screen was a television, but the sound system was surprisingly robust. There was a bit of distortion at times, but the bass was actually quite fantastic. The move was called “Caravan” or alternatively “Himalaya” and was actually quite good. It takes place in Nepal and is a story about a village’s yearly trek to trade their salt. The terrain in the movie was a good representation of some of what we’d seen and although there was a bit more snow in the move than what we would run into, it kind of hit home for us as we made our way up to the pass.
Our second night was relatively uneventful, though Yen was starting to feel better which was great. We’d be leaving Manang in the morning, so any indication of returning health was good. Another term that was likely coined about this time was “Nepali 100%.” Our guides seemed to like to gauge our health and attitude at any given time in percentages. After I was sick, or at some point in the recovery, I realised that I would not likely regain a level of health that I’d classify as great back home. However, given the “Nepali medicine” we were all taking, it seemed as though a different percentage scale was necessary to describe our current state of well being relative to our surroundings and activities. Hence Nepali 100%: a state of health which may prevent one from attending school or work back home, but is certainly enough to walk 10k up a steep incline (i.e. Nepali medicine.)

Pisang (3300m)

After a tough 5 hour trek up to Lower Pisang we checked into our guest house. As soon as I dropped my bags in the room I got a very strange and sudden pounding headache. A few other members of the group reported headaches as well. I guess we did just trek up to AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) territory. My headache only lasted for about 10 minutes though so it wasn’t so bad. Shortly after arriving our group would be congregating for our first (of many) “acclimatisation hikes”, otherwise known as climbs up horrifically steep hills after we thought we were already done for the day. In all fairness, I’m sure they saved us from AMS; however, at the time they were extraordinarily difficult, tiring, cold, sweaty, and seemed crazy given that we weren’t making any ground – climbing up and back down the same way.

Pisang is actually divided up into two parts: Lower Pisang and Upper Pisang. Our acclimatisation walk here involved us trekking up to Upper Pisang from our Lower Pisang guest house. Upper Pisang has some really cool stone alleyways and culminates in a grand temple at the top. The views were good though it was a tad cloudy. My legs didn’t feel it was worth the trip, but I guess my lack of headache from here on in made it worthwhile.

It was here that the lack of oxygen in the air combined with the cold was having noticeable effects on even the most mundane physical exertions. I began to look forward to the day when urinating in the middle of the night was no longer a cardiovascular activity. As it got colder and we got higher, it also seemed as though it was more difficult to sleep through the night and peeing only twice throughout the night would have been a luxury. It was here in Pisang I determined that leaving the room in the middle of the freezing night to pee was no longer a viable option. Empty water bottle it is from here out.

Yen was starting to feel a little under the weather now and we went to bed early to try to curb the inevitable. When morning came Yen was all out sick. I guess sharing is what marriage is all about.

Our next destination was the village of Manang and fortunately for us, there are two ways to get there from Pisang: the low road and the high road. The plan for the group was to be the high road for acclimatisation purposes, but it was clear that there was no way Yen could make it. Yen and I split from the group and with two of our guides, hit the “low” route while the rest of the group split for the high road. Even though I was technically not sick anymore, my body was secretly thankful.
We walked slowly, pausing frequently for Yen to catch her breath and rest. We stopped a few times at lodges for a hot drink but basically kept our slow and steady pace. When we thought we were getting close, our guides were excited to point out our destination (Manang) on a hill that didn’t seem to far away. And it worked – we were really excited – until time ticked away by the hour and it didn’t really seem to get all that much closer! The mountains play funny games with ones perspective.

Chame (2670m)

So Chame was a slightly larger village than those we’d been used to seeing. After dumping our stuff off at the guest house, we took a stroll up the street and came across a deserted internet café. After peering in the front gate, a woman saw us and went to wake up the guy who runs the computers. He showed us to a computer and quickly ran off. Yen managed to check her email and put up a quick blog post just as the guy was returning with a pot of hot coals to put behind us to keep us warm. He was working hard blowing the coals to get them going for at least 4 or 5 minutes straight, so we felt kind of obligated to do something a bit more than check email on the dreadfully slow connection. He seemed quite intrigued by our activities as well and was watching every page and keystroke carefully. This made for a nice relaxing excursion.

Anyway he was very friendly and quite nice, although we had a tough time understanding his few English words. As we were guiltily leaving the warmth of his effortful pot of coals, he insisted we watch a video he had on the computer. It was of people playing in the snow outside his shop and then turned into a slideshow of pictures of some dude in many different outfits and locales. We somehow concluded he may be the mayor or other figurehead for the Manang district, but we’re really not too sure. In any case, our internet guy was quite proud of the video and in his frantic sliding of the video scroll bar, I think we managed to see the entire thing in various bits and pieces about 5 times. It was awesome. Definite two thumbs up for your next rental.
Although I wasn’t eating like a champ yet, I think I kept something small down. We ‘d be crossing the 3000m mark tomorrow, so we started on the Diamox after dinner as well -- that’s the altitude sickness drug of choice.

Bagarchap (2160m)

Not really much I can say about Bagarchap and the walk from it other than that it was the first place we stayed that was within in the Manang district and I was starting to feel like a normal person again. I think this is where we noticed the temperature dropping a tad below the comfortable threshold at night. I think it may have also been here that we were introduced to the evening furnace in the dining room ritual that was to become a beacon at the end of each day from here on in. Actually, now that I think of it, it may have also been the first day that we could get a reasonable glimpse of the majestic mountain, Annapurna II. Nice.

Chamje (1430m)

After our arrival at the guest house in Chamje, Yen took great care of me, hand-washing my sick clothes in the communal tap while our guides got a bucket of boiled water from the kitchen for me to clean myself up a bit. After my “shower” I was quickly unconscious while the rest of the group socialised and relaxed after a difficult day. I woke up to join the group for dinner and promptly made a dramatic exit to clear out whatever was left in my belly – not much at this point.

I managed to stay awake until most people were done eating and then once again hit the hay. Actually, this wasn’t so unusual since as soon as daylight fades most people tend to retire to their rooms and get right into bed.

When morning came, I thought I was doing a bit better and asked for the most bland item they had – a big plate of boiled potatoes. Our guides also gave me a package of rehydration salts to mix with a litre of water. The package says it’s recommended by the WHO especially for aiding victims of cholera. Awesome. My best description of how it tastes is kind of like salty milk water. In any case, I filled up my Nalgene bottle, purified it and dissolved the salts in it. I took a few swigs to wash down the potatoes and shoved it in my pack before hitting the trail again.

I was feeling good and was carrying my own pack again. Unfortunately, my body didn’t agree with the first big climb. As soon as I reached the top, I ran for the cliff to get rid of my potatoes. I guess I was a bit too eager – my lunge for the edge launched my water bottle, cholera cure and all down into the abyss. On the bright side, I felt much better. On the not so bright side, our lead guide seemed to have an endless supply of these rehydration salt packages so I wasn’t off the hook. Sigh.

While I was feeling a bit better, we were about to tackle a part of the trail labelled “Long Hot Climb” on the map. So what we’d done to this point was just a stroll in the park? Tough day ahead. In all honesty, perhaps it was because my fever was coming down, I actually felt that the climb the day before was a bit more gruelling than the “Long Hot Climb.” Anyway, I remember very little of this climb, other than the fact that at the start we passed another landmark labelled on the map – “Fields of Marijuana.” For real. One of the guys in our group ran down and filled his pack. He later, however, informed us that it wasn’t worth the hassle.
Today may have been the day where we stopped briefly outside a few shacks so we could catch our breath and drink a bit. Being the sicko I was at the time, it was also good timing for me and my loose intestines to make a pit stop. I asked where the toilet was and was directed into the stables. Sure enough, walking past the goats and cows there was a small door. On the other side, was a tiny room that my width barely enabled me to breathe in and a hole in the dirt floor. With me pressed up against the walls on all four sides I’m going to have to say this was my worst bathroom experience ever. Besides the claustrophobia of the room itself, upon exit I had to nudge a cow out of the way with the door in order to get it open. Fun stuff.

Bahun Danda (1310m)

After arriving at the Superb View guest house in Bahun Danda, we ate lunch and had the beautiful sunny afternoon to relax and take in the (you guessed it...) superb view. Once our legs had recovered, Yen and I and a few others in the group decided to descend the stairs to the village and have a wander through.

As we were walking, we met a man who spoke English quite well. He was a local school teacher and offered us a tour of their school. Unfortunately, it was exam time and the students were gone for the afternoon, but we still got to see the classrooms and school yard. He took us into the head master's office, where he was marking the morning's exams and explained how the school system worked. We read through some of the English exams and I have to say that it brought back some horrific memories... "Read the following passage and explain your thoughts on..." Nightmarish flashbacks ensued. We donated a bit of money to the school and signed their guest book. They're hoping to acquire some computers soon and asked for our email addresses for the students to be able to contact us and practice their English.

Back to the guest house we went and after dinner we were out like a light.

Upon awaking the next morning, I wasn't feeling so hot. I'd ordered fried eggs and a Tibetan bread for breakfast. Tibetan bread is a plainish and fluffy deep fried pancake shaped bread that's pretty much a staple everywhere we've been. I didn't think I could stomach the eggs so I gave them to our porters. I took a few bites of the bread and Yen ate the rest. Although today's trek was only supposed to be 10k and only up 120 metres, it was expected to take 6-8 hours due to the difficult terrain and big winding ups and downs. Today was certainly going to suck.

And suck it did.

I managed to last a good few hours just feeling a bit uncomfortable. Then the fever set in and combined with the lack of eating and exertion I was feeling a bit dizzy. It was at this point that we came upon a section of the trail along the side of rocky cliffs that had been blown out while attempting to widen the path. There were workers prying rocks out of the cliff walls along the path with steel rods, I guess in an attempt to restore the route. In any case, what was left of the path was a very thin ledge along the rocky wall with nothing down below. Our leader conversed with the workers for some time, and in the end they all worked together to start herding us across the ledge one at a time. I was at the back of the pack due to my current physical state and watched in awe as everyone seemed to make it across quite easily.

I'm dead scared of heights, which I'm sure didn't help, but at the time I was feeling too dizzy to really think about the height. It was more just thinking about staying upright and hanging onto something that was consuming me. I believe the workers had hands all over me at the time but I don't really recall much of that event. Yen caught it on video though, and although I've not seen it yet, hopefully I'll post it here once this gets up. If it does appear next to this paragraph in the future, please feel free to point and laugh at the panic in my eyes and movements.

I hadn't had much to eat so our group leader gave me an orange at our mid-morning break, which I did manage to squeeze down before heading back out on the trail. Then the stairs started and didn't stop. It was all I could take and left my orange beside the trail along with those few bites of Tibetan bread. Every step became a bigger effort than my body had ever expended. We hadn't even hit mid day yet. Thankfully our guide and assistant guides were really supportive and offered to carry my day pack for me. Despite it not being very heavy, it really really helped. While it did make it easier, I was still struggling. Every few steps I had to stop to catch my breath and sometimes empty anything else left in my stomach. At one point I was even ready to give up. You know those movie moments where some poor soul tells realizes his fate and tells the rest of his crew to go on without him... It was one of those moments. The cheese music had begun playing in my head and I'm pretty sure I saw a few tears in the audience. Somehow though, I got up and kept going. I remember trying to hypnotise myself into thinking I was floating so I didn't consciously have to work my legs. Sometimes I pictured the ground moving under me as though I was being carried by our porters. I guess it helped in at least a small way as somehow I made it through the day. The only other part of the day I remember is arriving at the guest house and immediately sitting down on a step with my head in my hands having feverishly sweated through every layer of clothing I had on. When I dragged myself up there was a large gross puddle of sickly sweat on the rock. Eeeewwww.

Bulbule (1000m)

The guest house at Bulbule had nice gardens and was quite comfortable. The family that runs it was very warm and there was a developmentally delayed man that was part of the team as well. He helped with the cleaning and seemed happy to interact with us as well. It was refreshing to see as we'd often wondered how well disadvantaged individuals would fare in seemingly harsh environments.

Yen befriended the family and helped out in the kitchen with the sweeping and putting away dishes that the young daughter was washing. It seemed as though this kind of interaction with the hosts is entirely unusual, but it was really nice to make some kind of connection with them and feel their genuine warmth.

Yen and I took a short walk through the main drag of the village, having a quick game of kick ball with some children as we strolled through their game.
Being quite exhausted from our first real day and with darkness enveloping us as dinner was over, we headed off to bed quite early. We'd soon learn that 7:30pm was a very reasonable, even desirable, hour to go to bed. Mom, dad: who knew you were right all those years?

We set out in the morning and this is where we began to understand what we were in for. Today we'd be climbing up nearly 500m. The ascents were steep and the downhills were frustrating, knowing that every step down was another two we'd have to recover going back up! However, today was also the day that we began to see the beauty of the trails. The trails narrowed and we began to walk through tiny villages, some made up of only a few small shacks. We passed packs of goats being herded along the same narrow and difficult paths that we were using and were amazed by the beautifully landscaped rice terraces, rolling hills and waterfalls en route.

The final "staircase" (staircase from here on refers to rocks and stones that have been purposefully arranged in a most certainly uneven but somewhat step-like fashion as opposed to just a natural arrangement of rocks and boulders that make up much of the path) was seemingly never ending and when we finally reached the village at the top that was to be our resting place for the day, there was a sign that said "only 60 more steps you won't regret." Sigh. Alas, in 60 more steps up and quads that were ready burst, we arrived at the Superb View guest house, it's big claim to fame is that it is *not* recommended by the lonely planet. I'm guessing that in high season perhaps it'd be nice to get away from other trekkers. We're certainly not having this problem in the dead of winter.

Besisahar (820m)

Upon waking up the next morning in Bandipur, we had a quick breakfast and hopped back on the bus only to weave our way back down the crazy roadway to the main drag. It was only a few hours before we reached Besisahar, the real start of the trek. We had a quick lunch there and then started walking.

At this point we felt a bit ridiculous with all the warm layers of clothing we'd brought since the sun was shining and I'd stripped down to a t-shirt and shorts not even an hour into the walk. Although from the low altitude we were venturing through there were no mountains to be seen, the scenery was quite beautiful.

We crossed a number of streams by hopping rocks and traversed a few valleys and other waterways by suspension bridge. The trails were relatively wide and our destination for the day was only 20m higher than where we started, so it was a nice intro to the whole trekking experience. However, the trail would be considered "Nepalese flat." This means that although we were only climbing a total of 20 metres, there were big ups and downs along the way.

Nearing the end of the afternoon, we arrived at our first guest house on the trail in Bulbule.

Bandipur (1030m)

Our first official day of "the trek" was actually not a trek at all. It involved our group hopping on a bus at our hotel and heading out of Kathmandu into the hills. After an obscenely bumpy 3+ hour ride, we turned onto a very small road that basically went straight up. It zig-zagged up about 1000 meters until we finally stopped in the quaint and so called "ancient" village of Bandipur. Apparently Bandipur has recently become more of a tourist destination for its realistic representation of traditional Nepali lifestyle and culture. While the people were very friendly and we enjoyed the views from its precarious perch on the hill, it seemed a bit contrived.

Still, it was perhaps a nice happy medium in its amenity offerings, as it weened us from attached bathrooms and sinks in a somewhat sanitary way, including western toilets. The guest house we stayed in was run by Himalayan Encounters, which is the tour company, so they put on quite a spread for dinner including chickens roasted on a spit. Very tasty, but we were still craving something a bit more local. This yearning would soon fade...

Before sunset our tour leader took us on a short excursion up a "small" hill to watch the sunset. It was going up this hill on the trail and stone steps that we realised we weren't in Kansas anymore; the steep (but minor compared to what was to come) drop-offs beside the trail were a bit stomach churning at times. With legs shaking, we all safely reached the top and enjoyed the views, as well as the cute dogs that escorted, or perhaps herded us up to the top.

A little bit more about Kathmandu...

With a day to spare in the big city before setting off for the trek, we decided to venture out of the touristy areas a bit and also walk out the the "monkey temple", which is apparently something to see here. So off we went and once out of Thamel (the horrendously expensive and hecklesome tourist area), things were much less crazy, but quite the dose of reality. The people are terribly poor and living conditions are difficult. Families packed into small rooms with communal water taps every few blocks, where people bathed and collected water for drinking and cooking.

As we made our way through the city toward the temple on the hill, I'm sure we were quite the spectacle as we gawked at the people, the chickens, goats, dogs, cows, random fresh piles of animal skins (really!) and everything else new to our senses.

When we made it to the temple, what looked from a distance like a normal hill, was actually a terribly daunting staircase up to the temple that seemed to go on forever. As we ascended, we certainly got our promised dose of monkeys -- they were playful and very cute. Worth the drive to Acton.

About halfway up the stairs there was a Bollywood style music video being recorded. If you've ever caught a bit of what's playing in your average shady Indian restaurant in Toronto, you'll know what I'm talking about, except this one was way ghetto! There was a cheesy guy badly dancing and grinning with a piece of orange in his back pocket, which was there to try to entice a monkey to interrupt the video. I'm guessing an intricate plot twist was intended. Brilliance.

Nearing the top with every muscle in our legs burning, we paid our entrance fee and struggled the last few steps up to an amazing view of Kathmandu from above. Well, as much of Kathmandu as can be seen from above with all the smog. We walked around atop the hill, in and around the temple area and shops and made our way back down once our legs had a chance to regain some stability. Little did we know this would be just a mini version of the climbing that was to come...

We returned to our hotel to regain our bearings and decided to head out for dinner. We wanted to find a good authentic Nepalese meal and ended up at a place called "Thamel House." It didn't disappoint. The basic Nepalese food which we were to become all too familiar with is called "daal baht," which translates to "lentil rice." It's basically a pile of rice with a bowl of stewed soupy lentils to mix with it. It generally comes with a bit of vegetable curry and spicy pickle on the side. In any case, at this dinner we got a set menu, which ended up being an incredibly gourmet extension to this. It came with the rice and lentils, but also with a host of different curries and sauces and deliciously spiced soybean salad and even a shot of roxy (local rice alcohol -- horrendous.) The ambience was great as we sat on the floor at low tables, and despite my discomfort we all really enjoyed it.