Let’s pick up where we left off…
Once we got to the airport, our first stop was to the outdoor check-in area. We piled our bags onto a scale and then carried them into the airport (one large room) to have them “checked” by security and prepared for loading. The security check involved us opening up our bags and the airport people glancing at the contents. They were pretty distracted and excited by one of our group members, a Sikh, who was carrying a sword and shield. Of course they all had a chance to hold the sword before we went through the passenger security check. The passenger security check was no different than the bags. No metal detectors, no wands to sense objects. Women in one line, men in the other. A quick pat-down and through the doors to the waiting area (an open air area with chairs).
By this point most of us were awake, the coffee and freshly-milked cow’s milk helped, and excitement filled the air. We watched some produce get unloaded from the plane and our bags get loaded and then it was time for us to board. Good thing we were a small group, the plane wouldn’t have been able to handle any more people! Doors closed and the flight attendant walked to the front of the plane for the standard emergency procedures. Except, it was all in Nepali. So, we sat through that before she went through the procedures a second time, this time in English.
The plane took off and laughter and cheers filled the cabin. This was really happening! During my preparations for the trip, I read an article that mentioned sitting on the left side of the plane to get a view of the Himalayan mountains. When we boarded the plane, my conscious self forgot about this pro-tip but I subconsciously chose the left side. We were in the air, in this tiny plane, and heading for Mama Everest and her mountain friends. We broke through the clouds and were flying just above them and, after about 15 minutes (it was only a 25 minute flight), there were mountains in the distance. And not just any mountains…
The Himalayan mountain range.
I haven’t had many jaw-dropping experiences but I kid you not, my jaw dropped and I turned around to ask Honza and Claudine if that was, in fact, the Himalayan mountains. (Cue the tears again…) With loving smiles, they confirmed that I was looking at the Himalayan mountains.
They are so unbelievably majestic – strong, vulnerable, and beautiful. I’ll come back to this in a little while.
We landed at Lukla Airport (look it up, if you’re not familiar with it), stopped at the teahouse for breakfast #2 and to meet the three other guides who would be traveling with us, and then we were off.
A brief rewind: in my earlier post, I missed a part of the story. During that 1:45 wakeup call, I wasn’t in any rush to get to the vans (life pro tip: let everyone else go, you’ll probably get a better seat towards the front or the door since they’ll fill in the back…). By the time I got there, there was one seat in the front of the big van and remaining seats in the second van. I got into the last seat of the big van which happened to be in the very front, next to our lead guide. While we were all in and out of sleep for the next 5 hours, we became buffers for each other as the bumpy roads jostled us around. Although the conversation was minimal, somehow this built trust and a connection which turned out to be quite helpful later on – and helped us form our own friendship.
Okay, back to the teahouse. Breakfast done, introductions completed, duffle bags loaded on the jobkyos (part mule, part yak) and backpacks loaded on our backs. We were off. Literally. We left the teahouse and began walking, which we would be doing for the next 9ish days.
Day 1 and half of day 2 were relatively mellow. The sun was shining, there were people on our path, spirits were high. Friendships started to form (or strengthen, in some cases). A little bit of rain called for warmer layers and rain-repellent layers. When nature called, we went…in nature. We were all having fun. The second half of day two was a steep switchback climb to Namche Bazaar. That kicked my butt and gave me the first taste of altitude changes. During the second half of the day, I was feeling a bit nauseous and felt my lungs trying to adjust to the air (hah, if only they knew what was coming…)
But, the initial view of Namche was so worth the climb. This amazing, thriving, breathtaking village would be home for the next 2 nights. We made it past the prayer wheels and climbed through the village to our teahouse. Day 3 was a rest day – we’d have a small hike in the morning followed by some downtime.
Heh, like heather. 