by Ian | Sep 20, 2013 | Nepal 2013
On Sunday and Monday we continued painting and varnishing various rooms.
On Tuesday we had a day off so after breakfast we headed for the local monastery. The only Yeti skull in the world was held at this monastery and we paid a small donation to see it. It just looked like the top of a goats head. After visiting the monastery we walked up a hill behind the lodge to a chorta which had some information on Sir Edmund Hillary. If it was clear we would have been able to see Everest from here. Unfortunately, there was a cloud right where Everest would have been. We saw a bunch of other mountains, including Lhotse, and Lakpar took a group picture of all of us in front of the view. Once we got back our patrol repacked the barrels with all the stuff we would need for Island peak. In the afternoon a bunch of us played football. It was all against all and then we played in pairs and Chris and Joe won. After that lots of people did some washing outside using the eco wash we’d bought and hung it out to dry in the Sun. This evening we had some bonding time where we all sat around the table discussing our favourite things. It was nice to get to know people more.
On Wednesday morning some of us varnished the rest of the dining hall as well as the tops of some tables. A couple of people finished painting the roof green whilst others painted the school office. In the time before dinner and after tea about half of the team played football. We played England vs Nepal which was a very even game. In the beginning we outnumbered them but they had the advantage of being used to the altitude. Our side were tired easily after running the length of the pitch. When we had to go in for dinner the score stood at England 12 Nepal 11, a narrow win.
On Thursday our patrol worked for the whole day, painting several classrooms. The top half of the room we painted custard yellow with the bottom half being light blue. In the afternoon we had quite a large audience of children watching us. As we painted their classroom the children had to learn outside.
Friday morning between breakfast and starting work all of us walked back up to the chorta with the hope of seeing Everest given that it was clear. However when we got there a cloud was blocking the mountain yet again. Our patrol went for a walk around the mountain whilst everyone else went back to the school to do the mornings work. We walked up to the top of the hill where there was a really nice lodge. Continuing on we saw some spectacular views and saw our patrol’s first glimpse of the summit of Everest. Then we went around the hill spotting the airport we passed on our way to Khumjung and walked back into the village. In the morning the team had finished all of the work that we needed to do. So in the afternoon we went back to the school to say goodbye to everyone up there. They wanted to thank us for all the work we had done so gave us Carter scarfs after some tea and biscuits.
by Ian | Sep 16, 2013 | Nepal 2013
On Tuesday all three of our patrols headed down to the Khumjung School for the first time.
After all the leaders had been briefed on the work needing to be done at the school, they then briefed us. Some if not all of us started on painting, some on the outside of one classroom, others on the theatre hall and a few started varnishing tables and chairs. This then carried on for the next couple of days with one patrol having the morning or afternoon off to help with the acclimatisation, meaning that two patrols would be working at a time. On the Thursday we finished the the theatre hall, in a dashing custard yellow and dark blue, with many of the painting of walls being done from ladders precariously placed, others of us started on rooms for the children boarding at the school from areas around the valley.
Friday was National Children’s day in Nepal and so the Khumjung School held a sports day with other schools, Namche and Pangboche, coming to join in in the schools activities. During the day there were many events such as the triple jump and hurdles. After the children had a go we all started to join in and give it a try, the children found it rather amusing when we dove into the mud pit used for the triple jump. The leaders, Josh and Andy tried the 100m hurdles, of which most definitely exhausted them, it was funny seeing them jump over the hurdles in such strange ways. They were then shown up by the local school children who ran it much faster and for longer. In the afternoon we continued painting the rooms for the boarding children.
On Saturday we headed back to the school to find it empty as we’d become accustomed to the noise of the children there. Later we finished off painting the rooms and started on the theatre roof, where it was rather hot and a little daunting to start off with as the roof would bend and creek as we moved across the roof, but once over the initial fear we were managed to get most of it done before lunch.
Written by Lhotse Patrol.
by Ian | Sep 11, 2013 | Nepal 2013
Saturday 7th September 2013
The group woke up in Phakding after a good night’s sleep, which made a difference from being hot all night! We had a nice breakfast in a conservatory before leaving for Namche Bazar. We saw the yaks for the first time, the yaks and sherpas head off before us in the morning with our duffel bags. We hiked up the Khumbu valley, crossing the Dudh koshi river, by way of high bouncy bridges, now metal, but were once made of wood… Scary!
The paths were rocky but as a group we managed to keep a good pace. We ascended 400m up Namche hill (across a new bridge opened last month which takes some considerable time of the journey!) which seemed to take forever however once we got to the top we saw great view of Namche Bazar; the Sherpa capital. The houses here reminded us of dolls houses and this place was much colder than before; there had been a lot of cloud in the valley recently. For dinner we had a very nice curry which had to be eaten by torch light as there is no electricity here… Bliss.
Sunday 8th September 2013
Today was a rest day to acclimatise. After breakfast, Lakpa (our head Sherpa who HSX members may remember from 2007) took us up to the Everest view point, in the hope of seeing the highest mountain in the world. Even this short walk was harder than it should be due to the altitude. At the top it was really cloudy so we couldn’t see Everest however we saw a few snowy peaks through the gaps in the clouds which was enough to whet our appetites. We then looked around the National Park HQ Museum about the natural history of Khumbu and the people who live there. Ellis also broke a bench outside…
The rest of the day was spent resting, chilling out and exploring Namche. In the evening everyone got hyper and ran around in the dark. Sam put his stobe head light on and people were pretending to be the weeping angels from Doctor Who! … A symptom of the altitude?
Monday 9th September 2013
We set off for Khumjung and our community project. We were taken via a hill which had a monument dedicated to Sir Edmund Hillary, his wife and daughter at 3900m… The highest place that many of us have ever been. The monument was placed here because it is another view point for Mount Everest and is an apt reminder of Hillary and his contributions to the Sherpa people. The going was hard but we decended for lunch in Khunde before the short walk to Khumjung (our base for the next two weeks). Members of the group have been up early enough to see Ama Dablam when the cloud clears, an awesome way to start the day…
Thankyou for all your comments during our radio silence… Keep them coming, the group love to read them and we hope to give an update on our community project work very soon… Now off to enjoy the sun that has shone all day for the first time since being in the Khumbu
by Ian | Sep 11, 2013 | Nepal 2013
Friday 6th September 2013
A 0930 revised flight was booked for today, and for once we even made it to the airport!
After finally checking in and eventually getting through the security, an area not before reached by us, and a hour wait before our flight in the departures lounge, our flight eventually was announced and we all moved over to the correct gate where a bus awaited us to take us to our plane.
Out the windows we passed planes slowly getting smaller and smaller until we reached ours. It really didn’t look like it would fit us all on, but somehow it did. Up the smallest set of stairs and many of us bumping our head getting through the smallest door, where the smallest air hostess showed us our seats, not like we had many to choose from, but we all fought for the left hand side as you get a spectacular view of the Himalayas.
After the not so bumpy flight, we unloaded in Lukla, the smallest airport many of us had seen or been to, in one piece. After lunch in our first tea house, used by the explorer Team in 2007 on their final night in the Khumbu, we began our trek.
The trail, led by our lovely guide Kasang, followed the river through many ups and down, over many pretty sketchy bridges. We arrived in Phakding and moved our kit into our rooms then retired for some tea in the lodge.
We had some free time before dinner, of which started off with soup and popcorn, followed by curry with dhal – a spicy soup – followed by fruit salad. Before dinner some of the group played catch and ball games with a local girl, of which was fun.
That evening we all went to bed with the sound of the river flowing close to us, we are all thankful to have left Kathmandu and could breath fresh air from the pine trees all around us…
by Ian | Sep 11, 2013 | Nepal 2013
Now that we have a bit of solar power and are able to access the internet occasionally, we can now share our adventures.. From spending 2 extra days in Kathmandu and the start of our trek in the Khumbu.
Wednesday 4th September 2013
Another morning waiting for the plane so far our flight had been delayed until 9:30. We got out the cards and chessboards to kill time. Just before 9:00 we got a phone call explaining the weather was still unsuitable to fly in. the next update was at 11:00 so some of us bought chocolates while others caught up on their diaries.
Just before 11:00 we were informed that all flights to Lukla had been cancelled. We then went for an early lunch and then to our first cultural tour. The guides name was Kedar Temang but we called him Mr Kedar. Our first stop was the Swyambunath Stupa also known as the monkey temple. It was on top of a hill and there were so many prayer flags it was awesome. We saw a monkey drinking out the wishing fountain which was amusing. We walked up many steps taking pictures of monkeys as we went. We were lead through a shop to the roof to take in the spectacular views of the city.
He explained the history of Kathmandu from the rice fields to the Queens Forest, how the valley was once drained from being a vast lake. After taking some photos we returned to the shop where we were taught about the type of art called Thanka. These paintings were used to spread the teachings of Buddha and certain rules must be followed whilst painting. Some of them take up to 24 months for a grand master to paint and use 24 carat gold. Up to 70% of the paintings were done by 1 to 5 hair brushes taken from the neck of a cat. The whole process sounds so complicated.
After the monkey temple we went to Durbar square. Mr Kedar told us about all the different temples most of us got confused about the hundreds of Gods they have. We also got to see the Kumari who is a living Goddess and is currently only 9 years old. Some of us were not happy about this as she was trapped in a building away from her family but this highlighted the differences between our cultures. Once we had been toured out it was time for dinner. It was probably one of the weirdest places we had ever eaten. We ate at funky Buddha and it was techno night!!!
by Ian | Sep 9, 2013 | Nepal 2013
Quick update
The team are all safely in Khumjung their home during the community project which they start tommorow. There is currently no power in any of the local villages due to upgrade works. I had a call from Chris the leader today to say the flight out to Lukla finally came on Saturday morning and the team have all done well during the trekking so far.
If I hear more i will keep you updated..
Dave
In England 🙁
