Namche Bazaar
9pm
We determined that John's illness was nothing less than exhaustion. After about 2 liters of water, 2 liters of tea, some juice and a very short rest, he began feeling much better.
We left Gorak Shep on May 18th and literally walked for two days straight. We walked and walked! We walked through extreme wind, rain and cold to Pangbuche. After a night in Pangbuche the next day we walked all of the way back down to 10,000 feet and are now here in Namche. Two days down.. it took us over a week to walk up. Do I even need to say that we are so tired! My poor muscles are extremely stretched and worn out! I can barely walk. My knees are so stiff that I can hardly get up and down the stairs. Just thinking about walking up the steep streets of Namche makes my whole body ache! I also picked up a small cold somewhere in the wind tunnel valley that we walked through for four hours on our way to Pangbuche from Gorak Shep. A sore throat, cough and congestion have plagued me since. With the two days of solid walking I have had to just suck it up and keep on going!
In Pangbuche, we woke up to a room full of feathers! I looked over at John and he looked like he had been tar and feathered! He had feathers in his hair, beard, mustache, eyebrows, up his nose, in his ears and stuck all over his body! "John, what did you do kill a chicken?" Aparently poor John got a hole in his down sleeping bag! Oh my God! Talk about a feather man! Feather mania all over! It was hilarious! I wish I took a picture, but I must admit, the picture in my head is so good!
Today John and I rested here in Namche. We bought some gifts, ate and slept. I decided to be very brave and have my ears threaded with traditional Tibetan beaded earrings! A needle, thread, matches and beads were the man's tools who sat me down in the middle of a small alleyway and proceeded to run the needle through my ear and weave a bead and thread in and out to secure it. I absolutely love love love them and I absolutely hope that they don't get infected. John and I also stumbled upon a small store full of regional antiques! John purchased an old wooden ice axe that is so amazing! Unfortunately I fell head over heels in love with a antique tea set that I could not live without! Now I have to find a way to lug it down the mountain somehow keeping it in one piece to Lukla! It is so beautiful!
We got to call home today and took body showers! Our spirits our good and I think both of us are excited for the journey down to Lukla out of the mountains and to Kathmandu! We are living quite well here in Namche. For the first time we have a fairly big room (not just big enough to hold two small beds) with our own toilet!! Not only is it our own toilet in our own room, but it is also a flush toilet! Yes People - we are back to sit down toilets! No more holes! YES! YES! YES! I never thought I would be so happy to see a toilet in my whole life! I even got a little teared up! If that wasn't enough, we also have a shower head with hot hot hot water in our toilet / wet room! What a treat! Power, lights, running water, toilet and shower heads! We are living in style in what John and I have named the "Presidential Suite!"
In 14 days I have not washed my hair (only three more days to go!) or shaved my legs ( the water up here is solar and is so hot that I can not let it directly touch my body or literally I will be scalded! So I have to wet a wash cloth, and then wash the bod!). I have only taken two "body" showers with a wet wash cloth and soap. I have worn the same pair of pants for five days before I changed in to a new pair. I have only changed my underwear a few times and washed clothes out of doors out of a large bowl! I have gotten used to squatting when I pee and had my lips bleed from being sun burned. I have been at the foot of one of the worlds greatest mountains, summited my own goals, been very close to the top of the world and smiled down at the clouds from 18,500 feet. I also drank over 200 cups of tea! What an amazing experience! I will never forget this! All in all it has been an incredible, hardly words to describe trip so far! I can not wait for our next great adventure! Who knew how much fun adventure travel could be! From the "presidential suite" in Namche - good night!
Images from our hike out of the mountains:
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