The Climb

Buddha's eyes stare down,
mountain top stupa,
you down there
climbing east
up, up, up,
down, up, down
Nepali flat

At night
after dal bat and rice
the high ground
seems upside down
candle light flames flicker
from the hills below
mimicking the stars

Holy Hills and Hot Showers

Drops dance off pine,
dew,
damp moss covered cedar,
high peaks whistle up there,
silent solitude
mighty tonga's - grandfather stones
watching patiently,
as us hacks huff up hills,
searching for dharma

Light beams in streaks,
sneak through holes in the clouds,
and I say, "It must be a sign from god."
Om Nama Shiva-
there's gonna be hot showers tonight!

Dirt Dharma - Kathmandu, a love poem

Oh Kathmandu,
how your dirty streets sing to me,
Horns honking like mad from rust box death traps
or ramshackle rickshaws,
QUICK JUMP!
We almost got smashed by a maniac on a motorbike,
three, four, lost count,
wife, brother, child and driver on there

Aimlessly wandering down the broken cobble stone,
weaving through people,
leaping over puddles, burning trash,
dazed by the rainbow haze of signs,
directing you this way and that,
turn the corner,
find something new,
it's all so wild

we press on
through the cloud,
trying not to choke on smoke,
as the sun sets behind the hidden peaks

Oh Kathmandu,
your power cuts inspire
spontaneous romance, candlelit dinners
our mouths water for cheap curry and chipati's,
as we dodge rickshaws and tigerbalm salesmen
hashes? hashes?
trying not to blow our load
on mandalas and turquoise prayer wheels

By Michael Crigler written in Kathmandu at 3am

It's just so Nepal-ing!

Throughout our journey through Nepal we have had the opportunity to experience some amazing things: we witnessed the cremation of the dead on the banks of a river; we flew in a small prop-plane across the Great Himalayas to view the imposing Mt. Everest; we spent 3 days white-water rafting down the Seti River; we trekked Chitwan National Park in search of rhinos, tigers and the ever-illusive yeti; we rode bicycles, weaving our way around cars, motor bikes, cows and buffaloes in the streets of Pokhara; we have danced with school children in a park framed by snow-capped mountains; we have walked, climbed and hiked for days, and we have ridden in local buses winding precariously up mountain roads. It was been a wonderful ride, if not a bit exhausting. But what has really made our time in Nepal so exceptional are the people we have met along the way. That's who this blog entry is about.

Nepal is known for its hospitality and warm nature. The people of this country are known to be some of the friendliest in the world - and we would definitely have to agree with that. We have, of course, had our run-ins with some pretty awful people (i.e. boob-grabber), but overall we've had a great time with the Nepali people.

Nepal is a developing country and most of the people here live hard, basic lives. Like many developing countries, Nepal has had a pretty tumultuous history. Right now it's in the middle of a huge transformation. It was the last Hindu kingdom, but in May they booted out their king and are now in the process of forming a new democracy. The Maoists are in power. When asked about the new government most people react with nonchalance - "We'll see..." tends to be the general response.

Kathamndu, the capital, has been exploding with people moving in from the small villages either fleeing the fighting in the west (there are several militia groups that have been fighting for power) or in search of better jobs. Kathmandu is a huge urban center and the people here seem quite metropolitan. It's not until you start talking to them that you realize that most of them come from remote villages on far off mountains. Most Nepalese tend to be pretty laid back, in general (well, except for the woman we bought some Mandala paintings from - she was freaking us out!). And their humor doesn't really translate. But, boy, they sure are nice!

When walking through the villages, most of the people will smile warmly and greet you respectfully. Sometimes, if they speak a little English, they will ask you where you are going and where you are from. Every child knows how to say "Hello give one pen!" It's kind of like their mantra. Sometimes they will ask you to take their picture, but then they usually want money. We don't like to support that type of "begging", so we've never paid to take some one'sphoto (that's why we have no pictures of holy Hindu Sadhus). All the pictures we have of people were taken with their permission and then thanked graciously. And it's really all in fairness: when we were in the wonderful World Heritage town of Bandipur there was a school class of 16 year old girls there, visiting from Chitwan. There were about 15 girls and their teacher. One of the girls asked to take a picture with me, so of course I posed with her. But then the whole group wanted to be in the picture, too. So I posed with all of them for each of their cameras to snap the picture. Then they all wanted a picture with me individually. So I posed with each of them one at a time.

And then there was the Indian woman in Pokhara who wanted a picture with me. I guess she didn't speak English, because instead of asking me, she just stood in front of me, pulled my arm around her shoulders and smiled for a camera!

And right after that Michael and I were sitting on a bench (watching the sunrise from behind the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas) when we turned around to see a whole group of Japanese tourists taking our picture. So strange.

We did get to know some of the locals pretty well, and they told us their stories - these stories are made of the stuff people base books on!

Let's take our rafting guide Dil. He speaks great English, dresses really cool and owns a successful rafting company. All amazing feats when we learn that he grew up in a small village on a river in the lowlands of Chitwan. His father died when he was a child, so he lived with his mother and 4 sisters. When Dil was 11 he left home for Kathmandu (without telling his mother!). He arrived there with no money and no contacts. He spent 4 cold nights sleeping on the streets before finding work hauling bricks in a basket strapped to his head for a construction company that paid him with food and a place to sleep. It just so happened that the building that was being constructed was an office for a rafting company. The owner of the company - a single man with no children - took a liking to Dil and made a deal with him. The man paid for him to go to school and gave him a weekly allowance. In return Dil would stay off the streets and go work for him when school was not in session. Dil started rafting when he was 13 years old. He apprenticed for 4 years and became a guide by the time he was 17 (he's now 32).

And the guy we bought some antique Bhutanese tapestries from. Just 5 years ago they built a road to the village where he's from 80km east of Kathmandu. Now it's just an 8 hour bus ride and a 3 hour walk to his home. Before the road, his family had to walk 15 hours to get to Kathmandu (they would leave around 6 in the mourning and arrive around 8 pm - walking the entire day!)

The guy who fixed my dread locks, Suneen is 19 years old. He's studying business at the local university. He comes from a pretty "well-to-do" family. His brother moved to Colorado 4 years ago to go to university - and has not seen any of his family in all that time. Suneen will probably never get to travel abroad and even though he would love to live in America, he most likely will not. Only one child per family gets to study abroad (fair enough). It's now Suneen's responsibility to take care of his parents as they grow older. (He showed me photos of his family - his 88 year old grandfather has beautiful blue eyes!)

I wish I could transport you all here so you could experience Nepal for yourselves. My words and even our pictures (when I get them uploaded) don't do this country and its people justice. I think this has been our favorite country, so far. It hasn't been a perfect visit - there have actually been a few instances that were pretty awful that I haven't written about yet - but the diversity and beauty of the landscapes and the amiability of the people have made our time here really unforgettable!

Never Take for Granted the Top of a Mountain...

Nepal is like the trekking capital of the world. People flock here from all over the world to hike the numerous and varied mountain ranges. There are treks that can take up to 3 weeks - The Annapurna Circuit and the Everest Base Camp. We chose something a little shorter - the Helambu Trek - which took us 1 week. It was a pretty intense hike with steep inclines; some days spending 3 or 4 hours of straight uphill. On day 1 my my right ankle was sore and by the end of the day it was purple and swollen. I spent the rest of the week limping up the mountains with my ankle wrapped in a bandage and a bamboo pole as a walking stick. I felt really old.

The trek took us through a diverse landscape of rice terraces and deep green valleys, moss-covered trees and flowing waterfalls, past picturesque monasteries and gompas. We stayed in remote village teahouses where the accommodation was as simple and basic as you could get. The nights were cold and there was never any insulation in the buildings. Fresh running water could only be found in outside wells and could never be drank. Showers didn't exist; to bathe we had to pay usually about 50 Rupees (a little less than $1) for a bucket of hot water. Electricity was rare and when it did run it was used for a single light bulb in the common room where we ate our meals. All the toilets were squat toilets. And at least one teahouse was literally infested with cockroaches! The people lived simply in these villages - and I use the word "village" loosely. It was usually just a single family living on a secluded mountainside with no roads in or out - the only way to get from point to point was by the narrow, rocky foot trails. Chickens, goats, cattle and buffalo (I'm really bummed I never saw a yak) roamed freely around the teahouses.

The days we spent on the trek were long and exhausting. Most days we spent between 6 and 8 hours hiking. Day 2 was our longest day. We started in a village called Chisipani (meaning Cold Water) early in the morning and walked for about 10 hours, mostly uphill. As the sun started to set that evening, a cloud moved in around the mountain and we found ourselves walking in a fog so thick we couldn't see 10 feet ahead of us. Then we felt a drop of water. And then another and another and then the sky just opened up and poured freezing cold mountain rain down on us! The guide told us we were only 10 minutes from our teahouse. Michael made a run for it - as best he could. By now the sun had disappeared behind the mountain and the trail had turned into a muddy river torrent. I didn't have my headlamp and waded slowly through the trail. One of our porters, Gokol a Brahmin, caught up to me and grabbed my arm to help guide me through the river-trail. He was carrying 20+ kilos on his head and he was holding me up and helping me not to slip - and he was at least 4 inches shorter than me - and he was just wearing flip-flops! These porters are just incredible! We arrived at the teahouse about a half an hour later, soaked to the bone. But there was a warm fire waiting for us and there was peanut butter on Tibetan bread for dinner!

Nothing else too exciting happened during our trek. Gokol the porter idolized Michael and followed him everywhere, picked him flowers and gave him an Avril Levine pin. The guide kept our minds occupied while we climbed by teaching us Nepali. I now know how to say "What's your name?" (Toepai Ko Nam Kiho?) "Are you OK?" (Toepai lai tchick-sa) and "Don't be lazy!" (Timi alchi nagara)

I discovered a couple things about myself on this trek: first, people who grew up in a state with barely one mountain have no business spending a week hiking in the Himalayas, and if I was to ever attempt to climb Mt. Everest I would definitely be the one to not make it back. I did have a wonderful time, but I will never consider things like hot showers, insulated homes, electricity, and western toilets anything less than luxuries ever again!