Day 13 - Emily Bao

Having gone one whole week without neither a proper bed nor a shower,
most of us were disgruntled to be woken up sharply at the usual 7:30
time. Nevertheless, it was our last day and we had hours of sight-seeing
around the city to look forward to, as well as adding to our shopping
load.
After getting some food down our stomachs, we got our baggage packed up
and set out for the first attraction we would visit, Bouddhanath Stupa,
the largest area within Nepal for Buddhists, especially Tibetan ones. Our
tour guide explained various features of the stupa for us as we roamed
the site and did the typical tourist thing.
Next up was Durbar Square, which held 43 Hindu and Buddhist temples and
shrines that were preserved as monuments. Many of these buildings were
built between the 12th and 18th century but up till today were they still
used, one such temple housing a young girl of only 7 chosen to become the
‘Kumari’, a living goddess. Disappointed that we wouldn’t be able to see
her as today was the third day of the Deepawali celebrations (Diwali) and
it wasn’t permitted for her to come out on festival dates, but mesmerized
by the fine details of the buildings, we got going taking photos.
However, after 3 hours of walking around visiting several such temples,
the dry heat and pangs of hunger began hitting us. We finished off the
tour on a mystified note, being told that if we could read all the
inscriptions carved on the outer four walls of a particular temple, milk
would come pouring out from an opening out of them. The catch: the
inscriptions were in 15 different languages.
On our return to the hotel, we had some lunch and then had the majority
of us bus to yesterday’s shopping area, Thamel, to lose our remaining
rupees. Originally planned for us included actually visiting a nearby
city, Palan, for more sight-seeing. But living essentially in the wild
for 7 days had taken its toll on us and we could not suppress our
urbanistic urges to shop.
It was a little less than 1 hour later’s worth of hardcore bargaining and
frantic buying that it was time’s up and we returned for the last time to
the hotel to repack our bags with our goods.
Time seemed to zoom past and shortly after a good last supper peppered
with much gossip, we left for the airport, already beginning our
farewells to the people we met and Nepal itself.
Some time later, with a last-minute crazed stampede of spending, a
suspicious number of body checks and more farewells to Pete and John, Mr.
Ensor’s (and soon, our own fast) friends, the original SB team got on the
aeroplane for our last journey: home.

Singing off for the final time,

Emily Bao

Day 12

Day 12 – Helen and Nichole

It was barely day at 5am and Mr. Boyce's echoing voice and harsh
knocks woke us. We didn't want to face the last day here in Nepal,
but we knew we couldn't miss the much anticipated flight from Lukla
back to Kathmandu, where the idea of a shower after seven days of
deprivation, glowed. After a warm hearty breakfast the Sherpas woke
up even earlier to prepare just for us (how can we ever thank them
enough), we dragged ourselves to the airport, still in a sleepy
trance.

Aboard the planes, we snapped our last few photos of the beautiful
ice-capped Himalayan mountains and suddenly realised that we really
missed the trekking, despite the stress our bodies have endured.

Anyway, unfortunately, our much-needed showers back at the Shangri-La
Hotel in Kathmandu were delayed. After three long hours of loitering
around the grounds feeling dirty and restless, we were finally granted
the keys to our rooms and 2 well-deserved hours to freshen up and
revitalise!

Most of us opted to join in on a shopping expedition around Thamel as
our beloved Mr. Ensor and Mr. Boyce sipped coffee at a nearby café.
Notes and notes of rupees were shelled out quickly in exchange for a
colourful compendium of turquoise encrusted boxes, paisley scarves,
Everest postcards, delicate bangles, wooden flutes, embroidered bags,
and even handsomely carved pipes.

Later on, we were led along a softly candle-lit stone path to the back
of the Shangri-la garden where a magnificent Spring Blossom dinner
buffet feast was prepared. It was a beautiful night, perfect for the
finale; the rich Nepalese sky was shimmering and swirling with colour
from Diwali festivities. Faces aglow, we sat back around the table,
the gentle evening breeze tugging at our worn-out SB sweatshirts. We
were smiling, from a sense of accomplishment, but only slightly… as we
knew what was inevitably coming our way. Was this dream really about
to end?

Some stood up for the thank you's. Some sat back down, eyes
glistening. Pretty musical pieces filled the bittersweet night air as
we expressed, heart-to-heart, how much we really appreciated each
other, how much we've bonded as a team. And of course, the Spring
Blossom song was sung as arms linked together each unique member of
the group who helped make this whole adventure happen. Going around
the table, our half-melted candles flickering, each of us summarized
our experience of the trip, and around again we went, flames gently
blown out. We embraced one another, again and again and again, in
denial. But soon, the stars became the only source of light and we
finally retired to our rooms, knowing that it would be the last night
of this amazing SB'08 trip – ever.

Day 11

Day 11 – Jinwoo and Julie

At 7:30 in the morning, we woke up excited to start our last day of trekking from Phakding to Lukla. We began our day with the usual breakfast in the fresh air with eggs, pancakes and lots of honey. After we finished breakfast, others started packing up to get ready for our trek. At around 9:40 we started trekking. Everyone trekked at full speed in the beginning but after a while, some were faster and were able to trek at the speed of the sherpas. Others were a bit slower, some extremely slow who arrived half an hour after the first group. An hour and half later, we finally arrived somewhere between Phakding and Lukla for lunch. After lunch, we continued to trek for another hour until we arrived in Lukla, FINALLY! Most of us were really exhausted, so we quickly sat down in the warm tea house for some recuperation and some card games to relax.

As some of us arrived, we were greeted with a “Oh my god you guys, the tents are so disgusting. There’s yak poo everywhere!” The second group who arrived were shocked and disappointed and quickly made plans such as to just sleep in the teahouse for the night or not sleep at all. As time passed by, all 30 people arrived at Lukla. The first group who arrived clearly knew where we were going to sleep. For a change, we were going to sleep in a ROOM, not a TENT! Most of us got really excited and started running to grab the nicest room possible! We obviously did not want to end up without a room because that would mean we would have to sleep in tents again in the cold night! But as soon as we got everyone together, we had to gather all of our unwanted goods, ranging from clothes to medications, for the sherpas to show our appreciation for what they had done for us. Whilst some people were organising the gifts, some people were able to shop around Lukla. Despite the fact that most of shops were selling trekking gears, there were a lot of merchandises that were very eye catching, such as traditional necklaces, key chains, bracelets. When we got back to our lodges, we had to be at the dining room for dinner. The dinner was touching. The sherpas had prepared chicken meat (in Nepal, Chicken is very expensive) and brought us a humongous yet delicious cake, baked just for us and the occasion. They have spent so much money on us, when we are the more fortunate ones, which shows us the magnitude of their camaraderie. Some of the students were sad that they were leaving another group of people, like the children, that gave such hospitality. As we got near to the end of our meal, we started to give out the presents to the people that had supported and been with us. After doing so, we started dancing on the floor. Everyone was really enthusiastic and the Sherpas wondered what we were doing when we danced along to the Macarena. It was interesting how we were exchanging cultures by learning the way they danced and in return they would copy us as we did the Macarena! The party ended with us dancing and singing along to the song Sha la la…as all of us went back to our rooms and fell asleep straight away due to the exhaustion that the day had brought us.

Day 10

Day 10 – Ryo

After all the ascending and climbing, today we descended back to Phakding. Our day started with usual breakfast and packing. The group was fairly healthy and not many people were sick. But some of the members were a little tired from yesterday’s trek to Khumjung.

Before the trek began, Mr. Ensor gave us some time to shop at Namche Bazzar. We bought accessories, bats, postcards among others. We had some trouble bargaining at the shops but didn’t really mind because we were helping them by paying some more.

After shopping, the trek began. The path was mainly downhill but it wasn’t as easy as expected. We were able to go as fast as we led though. We were surprised at how quickly we reached the bottom of the Everest National Park. We were all very pleased until we reached the final steps leading up to Monjo. We gritted our teeth and pushed ourselves forward. We were all relieved when we reached the site. After we grabbed something to eat and replenished our energy, we resumed the trek down to our destination: Phakding.

Due to the different health levels within the group, we split up into small groups; one of our sherpas and another with Mr. Boyce and Mr. Ensor. Group 1 trekked at local-speed and did not slow down for a second. They easily reached Phakding before sunset. Group2 reached Phakding a bit later and the final group arrived after sunset. We were all exhausted but happy at the same time. We were all proud of ourselves for being able to complete this trek.

We ended the day with hot tea, coffee and dinner. All of us rested and slept early to recharge ourselves for the next day’s trek back to Lukla.

Day 9

Day 9 – Wendy Tse & Krystal Wong

For those who headed to Khumjung, the adventure began with a steep incline of 300m. We had about 3 breaks in just 1 hour due to the intensive trek we had the previous day. When we finally indulged ourselves with the first sight of Everest, all the previous hard-work was worth it. We then walked along a narrow path to the Everest View Hotel. It was then where we truly saw the enormity and magnificence of the world’s tallest peak. Everyone’s breath was taken away by the vastness of the view. Not only did we see Everest, but we also saw other snowy peaks neighbouring it. The weather was kind to us that day as the sky was clear of any clouds which meant the clarity of our vision was immaculate. We enjoyed a small snack at the restaurant whilst soaking up the splendour of the landscape and continued our journey to Khumjung Hillary School. As it was a Saturday, the students were absent from the school. We had lunch in the principal’s office and sang the school and SB song in front of the statue of Edmund Hillary, the first person to conquer Everest. The principal and teachers looked genuinely pleased with our performance.

Afterwards, we visited the only clinic of Khumjung to deliver medication, we, the SB group raised money to purchase. Again, we sang the SB song for the staff on duty and they then showed us around the clinic. We saw that the facilities were of a normal clinic. The doctor explained to us that common sicknesses include gastric disorders (from local people and tourists) and altitude sicknesses (from low land porters). We also learnt that most of the medication supplies came from donations from the city and abroad. At that moment, we invited the doctor to receive our gifts. He was very thankful for them.

Due to the quickly sinking sun and clouds, we hastened our steps back to the village of Namche Bazaar. Slowly, our visibility declined as we were immersed in clouds. The atmosphere was as creepy as horror movies with clothes flapping desolately in the wind. An hour later, we were back at the campsite in the warm teahouse.

Our day ended with the good news that Prateek, Kristen and Mrs. Man were evacuated to Kathmandu in a helicopter. Overall, it was another challenging but rewarding day.

Day 8

Day 8 – Steffi and Ingrid

Today we were woken up at 7am by the sherpas; who offered us hot tea and washing water.
We did last minute packing and then went for breakfast out in the open, as the dining tent had already been packed.
It was really cold; we could see our breath and the tables were covered in frost. We finished breakfast and started on one of our most difficult treks during the trip at 9am.

The beginning of the trek was relatively flat. We had our first stop at the bottom of the valley at 10:30am for an early lunch. We spend some time in this valley, taking photos, eating and relaxing before ascending on our very tough trek. We enjoyed the beautiful scenery while eating lunch that the sherpas provided for us.

Afterwards, we continued the trek which took about 3 hours, from the valley to Namche. The entire trek was uphill and did not have many flat areas, we took fewer breaks in between in hopes of reaching Namche faster.
Even though the trek did hold some spectacular views, we focused mainly on the paths that we took as we were very tired but eager to reach Namche. We were finally able to see the top of Mt. Everest clearly. From our location, it didn’t look that big.

We finally reached our campsite at 3pm, all very exhausted but proud we made it from the long day. We were welcomed with a great view of Namche and our favourite ‘shaka laka boom’ instant noodles as a late snack. We then remained warm indoors with a cup of hot chocolate and tea.

After relaxing for some time, we were then given an unexpected surprise. We were accompanied by Sohee, Krystal, Carlo and Judy who had trekked all the way from Phakding and were able to reach Namche within one day. The fascinating aspect was that it took us 2 days to get here, whereas it took them only a day. That was true determination.

The group was updated of Kristen and Prateek’s situation. After this, we had dinner. Some of us were full from the breakfast noodles and were not as hungry as when we first reached the campsite.

Several of the group members went to bed as early as 7pm, and some of the others went down to the warm lodge to relax for a few hours as it was extremely cold in Namche.

Day 7

Day 7 – Vincent and Carlo

With several SBer’s feeling unwell, today’s plans were slightly modified. For medical reasons a few of us remained at Phakding for another day whilst the majority proceeded to Monjo, 4 hours away, from Namche Bazaar, our originally planned destination for today.

Setting out at around 10 am, the group walked over hills and ridges, along rivers and crossed Indiana-Jones-esque bridges. On our way we were overwhelmed by breath-taking snow covered peaks and the stunning beauty of it all. After 4 hours of trekking we finally arrived at our campsite in Monjo, and immediately we had lunch with the idyllic Nepali landscape as background. Lunch was tomato, onions and cheese sandwich served with curry potatoes and French beans.

Following lunch was free time. Whilst all the staff lay on the lawn enjoying the sun, we students engaged in a massive card game together. The remainder of the day ensued with tea and biscuits and then dinner, consisting of spaghetti and excellent dumplings.

For those who stayed behind in Phakding, the day began with a tough walk to the breakfast table. Afterwards the ground headed to the lodge to rest. Unfortunately this small group enlarged as another SB member had to turn back in the middle of the trek to Monjo. There was only one aim for them: to rest, heal, and be able to move on to Namche Bazaar the day after.