A couple of notes....first, I am really enjoying reliving my trip as I post each of these blog entries. It was totally the trip of a lifetime, and I hope people are enjoying reading about the adventure.
Second...we got a kitten the day after we got back...typical...haha. His name is Hubert, he's grey and white with medium length hair. He's adorable, but he's so skinny and tiny, I'm afraid I'm going to break him.
Ok, back to the travel blog.....
So, the congestion is kicking my butt, and I really need it to go away. I woke up at some point last night with a really sore throat and needing to pee. I decided that I should have taken two of my Nepalese Nyquil, since it only put me out for two hours. I decided to get up and brave the cold and the toilet tent, precariously perched on a small cliff. After popping actual Nyquil (thanks Heather!), I began my journey. Almost slid down one flight of stairs, but other than that, made it ok. The whole experience was a little frightening, I was pretty sure I was going to fall the entire time. One thing I wont miss - days when getting up to pee at night involves an outdoor bathroom and a parka. I only had one cup of tea today, so hopefully that will eliminate any midnight adventures tonight.
I woke up at some point later horribly stuffy, to the point that my ear was pounding. Not fun....cue more Nepalese Nyquil and about a million tissues. Hopefully the 'easy' day today will help it go away.
Today's adventure was an acclimatization hike up to the Everest View Hotel. Tough hike up some crazy hills, and some areas that I'm pretty sure weren't part of a trail. Again, I was thankful for the poles, especially on the way down in the rain. The way up was pretty tough, especially with the congestion...it really needs to go.
We passed the Tyngboche airport, pretty much closed now, but there was a chopper loading gear that we guess came down from basecamp when the expeditions got cancelled. On the way back, it was too foggy to see it, but we're guessing the weather was too bad for it to really go anywhere.
The view from the hotel was supposed to be amazing....views of Everest and the rest of the range. We waited about an hour, maybe a little less for the fog to clear, but it didnt happen. At that point, we realized that we could make it through the entire trip and never see Everest. Hopefully bad weather now will mean for good weather later. We enjoyed $12 cokes and candy bars, then headed back down to Namche.
We were welcomed back with lunch and warm tang (I will miss that stuff), then our guide took us to his home. He has two houses, one here in Namche and one in Kathmandu. His house here is steps from the hotel and is a traditional Sherpa home. It has three rooms - a kitchen, a party room, and a prayer room. The party room is used to entertain guests and host Sherpa parties, which involve drinking and dancing. We all left wanting to attend a Sherpa party. The party room is also used for sleeping if guests stay over. They have mats they pull out for people to sleep on.
The prayer room was gorgeous - he hand painted everything in the room, and uses the room for prayer and painting. He told us about the statues in the room, the prayer books, and how they're used. He also showed us the National Geographic medal his father was awarded for his work on Everest. He also showed us his paintings, which were gorgeous, and post cards (we all plan on buying those). Before we left, he answered all of our questions about his religion, Everest, the Dali Lama, and I cant remember what else.
Overall, a great day. Tomorrow, we depart for Phortse (another village), gain some elevation, and hopefully leave the congestion behind.
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