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05.18.16 Namche Bazaar Day 2 - Changes
Our second day in Namche gave us our first look at Mount Everest and presented us with a few challenges - forcing us to alter our plans. The most critical setback was one of our team members presenting symptoms of altitude sickness that now appears to have been a severe flu. After a day in bed, Sam was feeling much better, but has been weakened and needs to continue to improve before we move on to our next stop. Luckily, we had a few options and decided to make a change to the original plan. First, we decided to alter our route to Everest Base Camp. Originally, we planned to go "clockwise" from Namche to Gokyo Lakes to Everest Base Camp to Tengboche and then back to Namche. Instead, we will now go to "counter(anti)-clockwise" to Tengboche first, then to Base Camp, then Goyko Lakes/Namche. This is an easier direction to travel and will give Sam a slightly easier trek on Thursday since the trail to Tengboche is less strenuous than our original plan. In the event her recovery is slower than expected, the new route gives her a chance to catch up. Luckily, there is another group trekking our modified route, but one day behind us. In two days, we will be in Dingboche, for another rest day, and if all goes well, she could rejoin us there. We are all hoping she can quickly recover because we've all grown quite fond of her and will undoubtedly need the strength and stability she brings to the group.
As I mentioned previously, Namche is a crossroads of sorts, where Trekkers stop, either coming or going to Mount Everest. So we've seen a lot of travelers - but not the kind you typically see at exclusive beach resorts, Disneyland, or five-star hotels. While there are a good many of us "main-steam" travelers on the trail (I count myself as one of those), there are also a significant number of hippy vagabond granola types, who never really seem to make it back to civilization. My best guess is they have an irrational phobia of plumbing and must avoid showers at all costs. You can measure the severity of their psychosis by the distance at which you first smell them in relatively clam air. A "twenty-footer" should probably seek expert help. I am happy to report that we don't have any of those in our group. Instead, we have an eclectic group of individuals from all over the world, who are here for a variety of reasons - most of which I don't claim to be aware of. I did, however mention in my last post that I would do proper introductions today, so after spending a few days with our five new friends here we go:
Dan is a Physician from Australia who has a wealth of high-altitude climbing experience. Without exception, we are all extremely grateful Dan is with us on this trip. Having our own private physician to inform us, instruct us, treat us and comfort us has already paid off in spades. Beyond his practical usefulness, he's also the smartest guy in the group and a pleasure to engage in conversation. In three days, we've chatted extensively about medicine, economics, constitutional law, business ethics, civil liberties, guns, knives, and of course, the best way to kill a hog. And although we don't agree on everything (he thinks you should kill pigs with knives, whereas everyone knows the preferred weapon of choice is the AR-15 .223 round), every conversation is civil and enlightening.
Ariana is a 19 year old dancer from San Francisco. Ariana is the free-spirit we all wish we could have been at her age. Ariana is beautiful and quiet, and is experiencing the world on her own terms. She is kind and gentle and loves animals. One thing I noticed is that the rest of us tend to hike with our heads down - placing each step carefully so as to minimize the risk of a twisted ankle or a disconcerting step in yak shit. Ariana glides along the trail gracefully with her head up, taking in the scenery around her and stopping to pet the passing donkeys and yaks. I need to try to be more like this some day.
Sam is from London and is taking time to travel before starting graduate school. She will be getting her MBA and starting a new business - which will be successful. Sam is married and has two step-daughters. She also has that British dialect that makes us yanks melt - the aristocratic British accent that makes every sentence she speaks sound brilliant and sexy at the same time (those two qualities tend to be diametrically opposed to one another in the states). Sam is smart, beautiful and poised, and I don't think anyone will object when I say that she is, by far, the classiest of the bunch. As Sam was recovering from her bout with the flu, she and I took a short walk to a gear shop to get a few items to keep her warm as she continues to fight off the chills. Despite being under the weather she firmly negotiated a deal with an experienced Nepali salesman and didn't give an inch. She even rattled off a little Nepalese just to throw him off. I just stood there and drooled - then bought a pair of mittens at full price. You can see why the group unanimously decided to alter our plans to increase the odds of keeping her with us. For my sake, I wish her a speedy recovery.
Mark and Dave... Mark and Dave... I tried to write separate introductions for both of these Southern California Guys, but my blog editor keeps merging them back together. Apparently, these guys are inseparable... except when Dave wanders off to make a new friend, which is constant. Dave is less of a social butterfly and more of a social blitzkrieg. If he's coming your direction you will be attacked violently with his friendliness and enthusiasm. You will be hugged. You will be high-fived. You will be cheered loudly. You will be hit on if you are female and between the ages of 25 and 83. And you will love it. Mark is a great guy who doesn't do any of that - but if you look up the term "bromance" in the dictionary, there is a picture of Mark and Dave.
Mark is the guy you want your daughter to marry. Dave is the guy you hide your daughters from. Mark is quiet. Dave is loud. Mark is grounded and rational. Dave is a spiritual guru. Mark's humor is subtle and smart. Dave's humor is Dave's humor. Mark is Yin to Dave's yang - so it works and it's beautiful. They represent the pinnacle of male bonding and we should all be so lucky as to have such a friendship. They're also the first guys that have your back when shit hits the fan - and for that reason I am thankful they are with us. Oh. I almost forgot. Mark is in Real Estate and Dave is a therapist - God help his clients.
NOTE: These introductions represent my subjective observations after knowing people for all of 3 (three) days. I'm sure they are incomplete at best.
ANOHER NOTE: After ten more days of hiking and living with this group in close quarters, I reserve the right to ammend these introductions.