THE WEATHER SURPRISES ME
It was another usual morning in the Himalayas, just like all the other ones during my journey here. Until I looked out the window. What I saw surprised me so much that I burst into loud laughter. There was at least 20 cm of snow outside! I don’t know about you but I still feel that childish joy when I see snow, and honestly doubt that I’d ever lose it. I got so excited that I was facing another even more extreme adventure ahead, that in the rush to leave and dive into it, I forgot my hat. Three times I took the wrong route and had to go back till I finally saw a man and I went to ask for directions to Namche.
He didn’t speak English but was able to understand where I was trying to reach and signed at me to follow him. It was absolutely breathtaking out there! It was still snowing and the silence surrounding me was extremely comforting. We had walked for about half an hour when he turned around and I understood that this is where our paths parted. There I was going “this way” and he was going “that way”. It was becoming even more extreme so I felt even more excited.
All the paths were covered in snow, I was completely unfamiliar with the area and had no idea where I was or how I was going to reach my destination. Besides the shoes I was wearing were still those running shoes I had told you about earlier in my story. It was so easy to slip and take a fall to who-knows-where. They were also starting to get really wet.
It doesn’t get better than this!
I am not joking, situations like this make my brain go silent and the control is taken over by that thing that was jumping joyously in my stomach when I got on the plane to Venezuela and Nepal with a one-way ticket. That same thing that gave me chills at the view of Everest. I’m sure you know it well because it lives in all of us.
I headed alone in one direction without direction; there were no paths nor steps from previous passers. I slipped and fell a few times and I rolled in the snow but aside from pain in my stomach from laughter, nothing bad occurred. Namche Bazar is at a lot lower elevation compared to Kumdjung, so as I was getting closer the snow stopped and was replaced by the same amount of mud. I passed the “megapolis” with the same speed as on my way up and around noon I arrived at Benkar.
I walked by the house where I had slept a few days ago and on the balcony I saw the same woman, who OKed everything in this life. I asked how she was doing and said that I was happy to see her again, to which she responded, “OK”. I decided to have lunch at her place. She made me amazing spaghetti with vegetables and eggs, and she said “OK” at least ten times, I paid and with a bigger smile, I continued on my way. Two hours later I arrived in Pakding. Shortly after it started to rain so the remainder of the day I spent in my room and the dining room of the house.
The next day was the last one of my mountainous hike. The only one happy about this was my injured ankle. I had to make my way to Lukla, from where in the morning I had to catch the flight to Kathmandu. It was an easy and short hike so by noon I had already arrived. The town was overcrowded with tourists, restaurants, and cafes. I was so eager to see the famous airport that I went straight there.
The runway is about 700-800 meters long, with a steep slope up, ending with a rock wall. Quite extreme for every plane daring to land there. The take-off is not any less exciting – starting at the rock wall the plane has only a few seconds to accelerate, otherwise, a deep abyss is awaiting ahead. I had to scold myself aloud in order to leave my observation spot from where I could see several planes take off and land. I couldn’t wait for tomorrow to come so I could experience the take-off myself.
As I was walking on the main street to look for a room for the night, a local girl approached me. She had a guesthouse so she invited me to check out her rooms. The price was good so I decided to stay. In the evening as she was preparing amazing potato pancakes for me we started talking and she shared that she was the daughter of the first Nepalese who dared to conquer Mount Everest in the winter. I expressed my desire to meet him personally but unfortunately, it was not possible as she explained that he was a climbing instructor in Kathmandu.
The flight was early on the next morning and honestly, words aren’t enough to describe it. What was even more impressive was that I had a front view – there was no door between the cockpit and the passengers. It was truly amazing to see how the pilots control the plane. As the saying goes – an experience to tell your kids and grandkids,… in case you survive. An hour later we landed in Kathmandu. I took a taxi and went straight to Thamel, which I was already familiar with. I checked into a cozy hostel on the main street. As I stood under the hot shower for about an hour, I deeply thanked Life for this unique adventure, that he had taken me on, and that I managed to go through it with nothing but a scratch. The experiences I had in the Himalayas will forever remain in my heart.