MICHELE'S MUSINGS

Dec 2nd

Hello everyone, I'm writing this letter as I sit on the roof top of the Surana family house in Kathmandu. As I look at the sprawling city I see white peaks of the Himalayas (youngest mtns. In the world) through the polluted haze. Kathmandu reminds me a little of Rome- a dying city. A city with amazing potential for the historical stuctures…but not cared for. The tourist enclave is Thamel and is loaded with merchants and touts trying to sell tiger balm, knives, hashish…and really everything under the sun…as you walk through the narrow winding streets, dodging cars , tuk tuks, hand pushed carts, and bicycle powered rick-shaws you are often surprised by a lovely temple or shrine tucked away in some unlikely spot. The river that runs through town is filthy, streets full of garbage, busses and tuk tuks spewing black smoke (even many locals wear face masks around town)….it's a shame this is westerners first impression of Nepal, because beyond the city is a very beautiful and culturally rich land. We have been incredibly lucky to stay with the Surana family while in Kath. "Uncle" says Nepal is the 2nd poorest country next to Etheopia. The government changes every 2 years…nobody can get anything done (nor seems to really care), and corruption is a way of life. Rajesh the son, who is now studying in Seattle. Says that things have really gone downhill in the last 2.5 years since he has been home…more dirty and crowded. We stayed with the Suranas 3 times while in Kath. Between treks. We felt we were treated like royalty …fed delicious veg. Meals, waited on hand and foot, with all possible needs anticipated (our idea of hospitality is" there is the refridgerator , help yourself"). I couldn't even begin to know how to return this type of hospitality. Our first trek started fom Jiri in the Solo area, in the terrace- farmed mountains about 200km east of Kathmandu (we heard this is one if the hearts of the Maoinst movement here…people are actually being killed…thecommunist ideas of equal wealth distribution appeal to the poor and uneducated people of this area). We hiked through many villages and farms climbing 3000ft for about 5 hours, then dropping 3000 feet for about 3 hours for almost a week. It was hot, tiring, beautiful and culturally interesting. I got used to carrying my pack and might have felt sorry for myself if we hadn't been amongst porters carrying massive loads ave 120# in baskets supported by tump lines across their foreheads. Food and lodging was easily found along the trail. We spent 500 Rupee (7.50) per day for 2 people below Lukla, and double that above. We laughed at the organized treks paying 100 bucks per day, and camping in tents alongside the lodges…supported by a barrage of porters and guides (unnecessary in this region really). Most of the villages were Sherpa in the Solo-Khumbu region where we travelled. The Sherpas are famous for being porters and mountain guides. They came from the Tibet area, now China about 400 years ago. They are easily identified by their dress. Women wear long dresses with a striped apron, coral and turquois jewelry, and hair in a bun at the nape of their neck. They are Buddists…the trail is dotted by innumerable buddist structures including prayer wheels, stupas, carved stone tablet walls (mani walls) etc… The food was simple and good. Usually consisting of dal bhat-rice lentils, veg, or fried noodles or potatoes with veg. We used a water filter, which was just great. We sometimes stayed an extra day in an interesting village, especially if there was a festival happening. We were in Bhandar for a temple opening ceremony, and were the only tourists….we did as the locals, were served yak butter tea, chang and rakshi (home made brews). We were seated near the lama, invited to take photos, and did a lap around the new temple throwing piles of marigold petals with the parade of locals. We enjoyed the song and dance late into the night. We hit another festival in Junbesi and were treated to an evening of song and dance by mostly the young people in town…and even a famous Nepali folk singer whom we'd been trekking with for the 2 previous days gave a performance. Most of the tourists (200 per day in oct) fly into Lukla, which we reached in 8 days, though athletes can do it in 4. Lukla is at about 10,000 ft. Above this you must ascend slowly to avoid HAS (high altitude sickness) which can result in swelling of the brain, and pulmonary edema-both possibly fatal. We were amazed and shocked by how commonly people died. Usually those who are on organized treks where they try to keep up with a group, and ignore their symptoms till they are too sick to descend . Above 10,000ft. you start to see trains of yaks- we quite enjoyed watching and listening to the melodious chimes of the bells around their necks…and were careful to stay out of the way as they passed (2 Nepalis were killed while we were trekking in freak yak accidents-one gored, and the other thrown off a suspension bridge.) The uppermost part of the trail was not as difficult in terms of steepness, like the early days of the trek…but because the air was thinner even the gradual uphills made me huff and puff above 13.000 ft. The landscape transformed from lush jungle and rhododendron forest, to pine forest, then to scrub and grass… the massive white peaks of the himalaya suddenly appearered…glaciers were visible…it was beautiful in a stark way. Drew seemed more in his element up high. At 15,700 feet in Gokyo I got HAS and ended up doing a rather "exciting "moonlight descent. Even as sick as I felt, I couldn't help but marvel at the moon lit peaks and lakes surrounding us. The 5 hour descent was tough and scary, but alas after dropping a few thousand feet I started to feel human again. I was happy that I was later able to go above Chukung 16,500 feet and enjoy the views of the amphitheater of glaciers while perched on the peak of a glacial morraine. We went back to Kath. Where we arranged another week trip to Pokhara, a touristy but relatively relaxing place where we satisfied our craving for western foods (and paid the price as this was our only "gastrointestinal misadventure" of our whole trip). This kept us from trekking a day, and prevented us from doing a loop…so we did a nice excursion to Ghandruck….and did a packless day trip beyond. This area was populated by Gurung people…totally different than the Sherpas, though they are also buddists.. The women often have as many earrings dangling from their ears as humanly possible , and a nose ring. The homes are spottless, and the women oten smoke. The people are known as goat herders, and they make carpets and blankets from the wool. I spent an interesting afternoon with a women watching her spin the wool, and later visited 5 of her friends and family members housed in the village….did pretty well with the nepali phrasebook and mime. Both the ups and downs were fun and easy for me (not that I didn't work up a good sweat.) It felt good not to be the slowest person on the trail for once. Back in Kathmandu with the Surana family we experienced the build up in the wedding preparations as the day of Anu's (eldest 27yo daughter) approached. The 500 invitations are hand delivered-700guests are expected. Auntie gave Anu 21 saris, and had the new furniture built for her, all built with hand tools in front of their house. She will be expected now to live with her husbands family. All the elaborate and costly gold jewelry was purchased…she must have everything new for her new life. Surprisingly, the wedding costs are similar here compared to the US (15-20,000) ,despite the fact that the cost of living is 5-10 times cheaper here. (wow mom and dad, you really got off easy with me!) Now we are in Bangkok…the city is transformed since we were here 2 months ago, It is clean and beautiful…in preparation for the Asian games, to start in 4 days…there are potted plants and flowers along the sidewalks…its amazing. We meet Dana, Drew's sister in Bali Indonesia tomorrow if all goes well, then on to Sulawesi for diving, and hopefully some interesting cultural experiences in Toraja land and beyond.

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