Langtang Valley, Nepal

[Originally posted Nov 15, 2014]

Due to no WiFi in the Himalayas for the past week, this is a three part post.  First Clayton, then Charlotte, then Elizabeth.

Clayton

Nepal. 

Oh Nepal.  How I have missed thee.  Landing at the airport in Kathmandu, the smiling Nepali faces as you walk towards customs, the bumpy pot-holed filled road from Tribuvan airport towards backpacker central in Thamel, the packs of motorbikes that make their way to the front of each intersection, the customs department and their seemingly endless piles of inefficient paper records of TIMS permits and National Park fees, the free Daal Bhat refills, the cool mountain air, yak dung drying on the rock walls of Tibetan villages, prayer flags and prayer wheels that send their Om Mani Padme Hum off towards the heavens, towering 8,000 meter peaks.  All of these things are a warm welcome back home to Nepal.  In another life I’d be a sherpa, spending day after day walking the trails of the Himalaya.

Katy and I spent the majority of our summer of 2010 here and instantly fell in love.  It was between our two years teaching with Teach For America, and with the summer off and a teacher salary spaced across 12 months we decided to head towards the mountains.  A year in the Mississippi Delta made us yearn for the mountains - and what better mountains are there than the Himalaya.  The daily routine of walking from teahouse to teahouse, interspersed with a cup of tea, a warm bowl of soup and some rice and curry quickly left a lasting impression on our souls and we’ve yearned to return ever since. 

Our trek this week was into the Langtang Valley.  After our 7 hour bus ride over 130 kilometers (about 12mph average - it only really makes sense until you see the road) we were dropped off in Syabrubesi just as it was starting to get dark.  Logic and reason suggested we stay the night in Syabrubesi before startling our 3 day walk towards Kyanjin Gompa but I was a bit restless - the numerous flights, shuttles, metro, taxis and bus rides of the prior week had me itching to get on the trail - and so we head off into the dusk, well aware that we’d reach some teahouse when it was dark.

Fifty minutes later, with headlights on, we stumbled across a lady and her two children sitting on the steps of her teahouse.  She offered rooms for $2 and we were sold.  We settled into our beds just to realize their was no electricity (which can be viewed either way - unfortunate that we can’t charge our failing phone batteries but great because it allowed us to sit on plastic chairs on the outdoor porch and stare up at the stars).

For breakfast we had porridge with muesli and dinner was daal bhat.  One of the great appeals of trekking in Nepal is the simplicity that life offers.  Wake up, walk, sleep, wake up, walk, sleep.  Add to this no internet and limited options for each meal and you have a winning formula.  Having removed all the decisions typically faced by Westerners we are left to walk in the mountains.  Just walk.

Our first day was a long walk - 8 hours.  More than usual.  But we reached our tea house, had a hot shower (which I will allow my mom to commentate on), sat around the wood burning stove, then climbed into our sleeping bags around 8:45pm, long after the sun had set.

Today was another walk, about 4 hours, to Kyanjin Gompa, a beautiful trekking destination/stop at the base of Langtang Lirung, a couple glaciers and a beautiful mountain range.  From this spot we are just over the hill (or massive mountain range) from Tibet.  And so the Tibetan:Chinese dilemma of the past couple decades has pushed Tibetan refugees south into the mountains of northern Nepal.

Tibetan Buddhism covers the mountains and the trails.  Mormons are instructed to “pray always” and so the way we do our best to keep this commandment is to “have a prayer in your heart”.  Tibetans similarly believe to “pray always” but have approached this differently.  They tie prayer flags from the top of mountains and passes, write prayers on stones that cover trails between villages, and put prayer wheels above streams so that water will push water wheels and spin prayer wheels.  The wind blows prayers and the water spins wheels sending prayers towards the sky.  I guess this is simpler than Muslims and their Call to Prayer. 

Charlotte.

Namaste. My claim to fame ever since he wore a red polka dot dress to Kindergaten to show his school spirit.  And the teacher exclaimed to me, “he certainly has the confidence to not care what others think of him.”  Thanks to my generous husband George who gave me his blessing to trek in Nepal for the second time this year, Elizabeth and I jumped at the chance to meet Clayton and Katy in Kathmandu and trek this week with them.  My trekking experience in March with George was wonderful, and whet my appetite for a longer trek some day with my children.  Little did I know my opportunity would come just 9 months later.

After our 7 hour never-to-be-forgotten jeep ride rising out of Kathmandu we reached “the mouth of the canyon” - the trailhead for the Langtang Valley.   Clayton was eager, chomping to get moving fast, and so “the girls” quickly followed behind.  Clayton, Katy, Elizabeth, Elizabeth’s Delta companion Valerie, and I.  Our first night was a glorious evening under spectacular stars.  We fell into beds eager for the next day.  The next day Clayton had more energy than I ever recall him capable of.  His biking for 4 months has given him legs of steel, and Katy is equally yoked.  Clayton managed to keep Elizabeth, Valerie, and I “trekking” fast for a long 8 hour day. It never would have been possible if Clayton hadn’t offered to buckle my pack onto the back of his pack.  Thank you Porter Clayton. 

At 3000 meters, about the elevation of Devils Castle, we settled on Hotel Potala for our evenings stay.  But before I could even think of sitting down and taking in my bedroom’s view, I jumped at the invitation to have a solar powered hot shower.  The promise that it would be hot was what really caught my attention and caused me to rally my last final bit of energy for the day.  Standing inside a corrugated metal square box with a rock floor, I turned only the hot faucet on, not yet having full faith in a truly hot shower.  THE BEST HOT SCENIC SHOWER OF MY ENTIRE LIFE!  Sizzling hot water, fabulous spray, scenic view out a 3 x 3 square window.  I could have stayed for hours. My gratitude for a hot shower took on a whole new meaning!  “WOW, now that was a great shower.”  I was rejuvenated beyond belief.  Nothing like it.  Warm, clean, cozy ski underwear to climb into, a warm wood choked stove to spend an evening sitting around, and three of my beautiful children to spend the evening with.  Clayton, Katy, Elizabeth.  Thank you for allowing me to trek along with you in these beautiful Himalayans!  A priceless week never to be forgotten, and a shower to be forever remembered!

Elizabeth

Namaste. I’ve been familiar with the word namaste for years now because of yoga, but I didn’t realize that everyone greets each other here by saying it. But they really emphasize on the the last vowel so it sounds more like “namasteeeeeeee.”

The day after we arrived at Kyanjin Gompa, Clayton, Katy, Valerie and I set off to conquer Tsergo Ri. Tsergo Ri is a day hike up to a peak that stands high above the LangTang Valley. But don’t get me wrong, just because it was a day hike doesn’t mean it was easy. That mountain was one steep ass bitch! Excuse the language. The first challenge was crossing the river that was covered in ice. Once that was accomplished it was up, up, up, and up. Straight up. I consider myself to be in decent shape, but this hike was a real challenge. At times I felt like all I had the energy for was to barely put one foot in front of the other. Apparently high altitude and the lack of air is a real thing. But what kept me going was the views - my goodness they were so stunning! And the higher we got the more spectacular they were. Once we passed the rock fields, all the Koreans in their fancy pansy gear, and up the icy snow ridge, we made it to the top! 16,450 ft. Any higher and I think we would have needed oxygen with us. The mountain top was laced with beautiful prayer flags, exactly how I had pictured it. We were surrounded by snowy peaks in every directions. It was stunning. Katy and I did some dancing, while Clayton circled us with the camera to get a panorama view. Afterwards we had to lie down we were so exhausted. I’m sure Clayton will post some pictures so you can see how stunningly beautiful it was. On the way down Katy got a little wild and convinced me that we should take some topless photos (only showing our backs of course). I am easily convinced to partake in these sort of shenanigans, so there we were, jumping for joy exposing ourselves to Tibet in the distance. What a day to remember!

This trip has been fantastic. One of the most unique I’ve ever been on. Since this may be the only time I write on this blog I just want to share a few of my thoughts on why I love to travel so much, and why I invest so much of my time and energy into it.

For obvious reasons, seeing new places is fascinating and there is so much beauty in the world. I was completely awed by Macchu Picchu. I fell in love with the savannah in Africa. The mountains in Switzerland took my breath away. I could go on and on.

But the real reason I love to travel is the people. This world is filled with so many loving, wonderful people. And the more I travel the more I realize how similar we all are, and how much kindness there is in the world. I want to share a few experiences I’ve had that have taught me this.

Three years ago Clayton, our brother Eli, and cousin Sarah Diamond were wandering through the amazon jungle in Peru. Despite what Clayton says, we were lost.  Totally lost and it was getting dark. I wanted to turn back, Clayton and Eli wanted to go forward. We decided to say a prayer and ask for help from above. Minutes later a couple stumbled upon us (we hadn’t seen anyone for hours). Pablo and Maria told Eli in broken Spanish that we couldn’t stay out there because the snakes would get us, and we needed to follow them back to their home. We followed them to a banana field where they cooked us dinner and we slept under their lean-two. I will always remember the kindness of those two, and the fact that Pablo walked around all evening in his whitey-tighty underwear.

That same summer Clayton and I were doing a bike tour in British Columbia. We had been staying with people from warmshowers.org.  One host that I specifically remember was a young man we stayed with on Vancouver Island. When Clayton and I arrived he told us he was headed to work and would be gone most the night. But he handed us his house key, showed us all the food he bought for us, and told us we could have his master bedroom and he would sleep on the couch that night. So Clayton and I cooked a gourmet dinner, made fruit smoothies, popcorn, and watched a movie. Again I was overwhelmed with the kindness from a complete stranger.

My last story was this September. I was on a layover in Rome by myself coming home from Croatia with Clayton, Katy, Jessica and Charlie. Since I fly standby I was by myself. I hadn’t made the flight the day before so I wasn’t in the best mood, and I was really anxious to get home so I could be to work Tuesday morning. I slept at a hotel near the train station, and the next morning checked out as usual and proceeded to walk two blocks to the train station. I bought my ticket and was waiting to board the train when I heard someone yelling “Ms Pratt, Ms Pratt.” I turned around and saw the hotel clerk running towards me with my passport in his hand. I had totally forgotten to get my passport when I checked out. He had ran two blocks to find me. When he handed it to me the reality set in of what just happened and I started to cry and gave him a big hug. I felt so grateful. If I had showed up to the airport without my passport, not only would I have been an emotional wreck, but I would have missed my flight home. That morning I had prayed and asked God to get me home that day. I felt like He answered my prayer by the kindness of a stranger.

There is so much good, kindness, and love in the world. Although other countries and cultures may seem so different, and sometimes scary, I have learned we are all more alike than different. So I will keep on traveling!! Thanks Clayton and Katy for getting me to Nepal, and particularly to Clayton for being my porter for the week. #backproblems

Namaste.