Nepal Post #4: Descent Into The Last Days

 

We had seen, we had conquered--or so we thought. However, the descent is just as challenging as the ascent. For different reasons. The descent requires precision of step and steadiness. If you slip you slip OFF the mountain...again, "If we go down, we go down together.." We did make it down far faster than we made it up. But it was still ups and downs and careful footing. The rains made it more difficult too. Then you add on all of the mud and manure now caked to our waterlogged shoes. And the leeches! Koala Bear and two on her, Lady Hiva had two we found on her, and I had one biting me! This was the point that Koala Bear decided she "never wanted to go hiking again!" and she "just wanted to go home to Mumbai!" 

But she kept going. This tough little soul. And her brother was still leading the pack I had to keep reminding him to walk slowly and to stay close to the wall. We went all the way down from Namche to a village just outside of Lukla. The plan was to wait there over night and then fly out in the morning. But plans change...A LOT!

The two Muggles and their collection of dogs!

We had to stand aside for the parade of oxen and then the many processionals of donkeys that were slowly making their way up the mountain as we descended. 

If you look closely at the joints there is moss growing. Lucky Dragon said, "The engineers are so cool! They are holding the bridge together with moss!" I had to explain to him that when the oxen cross the poop and the manure stays in the joints and grows moss. So the moss is not holding the bridge together, it is just finding  safe place to grow! 

By the time we were down to the village, we were tired and sweaty and ready to head back to Kathmandu. Little did we know, it was not going to be that simple. 

I loved sitting in the kitchens of the homes we stopped to eat in along the way. Watching the family who lived there working together to make food. It was always fresh and always delicious too! 

This was the only 15 minutes in our 5 days of trekking that Koala Bear did not walk. She was so tired, she had been up since 0400h in the morning and had been walking for 4 days. I was so proud of her. 

We made it down the mountain as far as we could go. Our guide (on the right) is the village Chairman...kind of like a mayor. That is his wife with him. We were going to stay in their home for one night to see what life is like for their family. They are humble and kind. Their home is being rebuilt after it was completely lost during the earthquake several years ago. It is stone and tin roofed and  surrounded their potato farms where the two of them employee several villagers to work. We loved their potatoes! (We even brought a whole bag home with us in our suitcase so we could have more). 

Sherpa 

This is our trekking group. These young men were such great guys! Little did we know that shortly after arriving, there was a 5.0 earthquake with the epicenter nearby. That meant the Lukla airport was shutdown. The roads were unstable below us due to landslides. Lady Hiva and I tried to keep positive as the earthquake was happening so the Muggles would not stress out. Just tried to stick to facts--this is an earthquake. Let's be safe. 

Then the rains started. So planes and helicopters could not come meet us. We were stuck. Stuck imposing on this potato farmer and his wife. She kept feeding us. She was so creative with the potatoes. We had fried potato, potato pancakes, potato soup...you name it, she could make it. We stayed there with them for 3 and a half days just waiting. We played a LOT of cards. The two Muggles learned 6 new card games. We kind of just staked out a portion of the main room and stayed there all day listening to the rain. 

We would watch the villagers and Sherpa go by on their way up the mountain. I offered to just walk out so we could get home, but due to the rains and the mudslides, there were parts of the road that were unsafe. So we waited and ate some more. 

We smelled so bad. We had not showered in 5 days and we were running out of clothes to change into...so we just slept in what we had on and kept wearing it the next day. 

Thankfully there were dogs to keep these two entertained and happy. They truly are remarkable people. They just roll with all the changes and craziness that we were experiencing. The only true worry that Koala Bear had was why there were so many leeches. 

We got out to explore the tiny village a bit. That was fun. We were even there long enough to start recognizing villagers and the families that belonged to them. 

There was an annual festival at the ancient Buddhist monastery in the village. We went up and prayed with them. We joined right into their chanting. They prayed all of the same prayers that are written on the bells we have been turning and rocks we have been passing all week. 

Of course the dogs came into the temple with Koala Bear. (see doesn't she need a dog? Help me convince Lady Hiva)

Yak yogurt. Part of the celebration is they feed the village lunch one day. I went back up and ate with them. It was, again, food that was grown locally. I even had a mushroom salad that was pretty good! 

All the women that were preparing to feed the masses. 

Above are potatoes to give to families. And below they were making doughnuts to give to children the next day. 

We took a tour of the village school. It was the nicest buildings in the village. It was amazing to see their library of books that were old and worn, and their computers that they learn to type on. There are so many things we take or granted sometimes. 

Fried chees and potato hashbrowns! DELICIOUS!

More cards to play as we continue to wait for Mother Nature to relent. 

I am starting to get really antsy...I do not do well with just sitting! 

This is our corner. We lived there for days on end. As you can see the dogs do not go far from the two Muggles. We passed time watching Yo Samo videos. We loved seeing people we know and love from Utah. Made us feel connected when we were stranded 9,000ft in elevation with no possible way to get home. 

I had to cancel our flights and pay to move them to another day in hopes we would be able to make it out by then. We chose to pay for a chartered helicopter to come and get us, but due to the airport closures since the earthquake and subsequent rains, it was unable to leave Kathmandu. Twice it came up to get us but had to turn around because the storms were so bad. 

We were invited to join in on another day of celebration for the village and the monastery. This night they gathered and ate. Then they gave gift bags of food to all the people in the village. It was so touching to see people what they have. It was a lesson to us that we are so spoiled and have so much that we do not need. Here are these humble farmers that are willing to sacrifice to help each other feel love and peace. 

We kept praying that the clouds would relent and we could leave. I caught this moment one morning. These two humans are such an example to me. 

We decided to walk lower to see if a helicopter could come get us. We went down and if the clouds were still bad, we kept moving. We made it to a helicopter pad at Surkey. When we arrived there was a mass of people waiting. Some had been waiting as long as us since the earthquake. There were Spanish, Danish, German, Italians...and us--all waiting to go down. 

As you can see, they grew to love the potatoes in our time there. They like to just eat them as is. 

We then received word that four helicopters were left Kathmandu to come get us. But only 2 made it up. Luckily, one of the two was ours! I guess that little prayer that the Muggles said, worked. 

Watching the clouds and hoping that they stay away long enough to get down. 

Saying one last goodbye to one of the dogs in her collection. 

And we were off! It was a crazy flight. We were dodging storms and mountains the whole way. We had to back track three times to avoid danger zones. The pilot reported where we were every 5 minutes so people would know where to look if we did not make it out. 

It was unnerving to know that they only thing keeping mother nature and mother earth from taking us over, was four thin blades and a bubble of glass and sheet metal! Again, I start to doubt my parenting choices! HAHA Every lurch sends a jolt of adrenaline through me. 

But we made it! We are wet stinky and worn out, but we made it. 

WE changed into some clean clothes, the last we had. And we slathered some strong smelling Bath and Body Works hand sanitizer all over our bodies to mask the scent. I felt sorry for all of the people that had to sit around us on the plane ride back to Mumbai. 

This little guy came running back to take a photo with us! 

It was an amazing experience. We conquered. We spent time as a family. We relied on each other and the strengths we all bring. We did something hard. We did not give up. Our faith was tested. We had manure in our crevices and leeches on our skins. We smelled. We experience heavy rains. We survived an earthquake. But we say Mount Everest. We hiked over 50 miles up and down. We met some loving and giving people. We saw parts of the world some people will never see in person. We had delicious food. We reflected on life and how we can be thankful for what we have. We loved it. It is not a trip for the faint of heart. But those who do have the courage to do it will be all the stronger for it! 

But we are glad we are home. It was touch and go there for a few days!