The blessed trip

This has indeed been the Blessed trip. Every thing has turned out just absolutely perfectly and proof of that comes in daily. Examples:
Today we crossed paths with the Colorado group, and it’s leader is a man who knows Manoj and whose book: Trekking in Tibet, I actually bought before we left home. He mentioned that he couldn’t believe the weather. On his trip last year at this same time of year, he had 9 days of rain out of the 10 trekking days.
We were to carry rain gear for a portion of the climb where it always rained, it didn’t.
The fog wasn’t supposed to lift, it did;
Every time there was an option for it to be cloudy it was sunny.
On the flight from Katmandu to Lhasa Manoj was amazed at how clear the weather was. He said he had made the flight 10-12 times and he had never seen it so clear. We could see an entire line of the great peaks.
Each morning we were greeted by bright sun and clear skies which lifted our spirits to the task ahead.
Minor ailments were common, but Manoj said that we have been a much healthier group than he’s ever had. His job has been a breeze compared to many of his previous trips.
If there were opportunities for vistas, the clouds parted and gave us magnificent views.
There have been no personality or ego clashes, and everybody has blended very well for the sake of the group;
Manoj told us when we left Lhasa that the snow that day was a good omen. He couldn’t have been more right. We got used to his little giggle which proceeded his: “I’ve never seen this so beautiful before.”
We could ask for nothing more than what has been provided.


Trek Day 8
This is definitely the beginning of the end. We retraced our steps today for the first two hours and then climbed towards the big pass which blocks us from our jeeps and the end of walking. It was a tough day where we had to call up some extra mental toughness to make it up the last few climbs. The problem is that we have used up a lot of hidden mental reserve already, and it’s getting harder to find.
Carol and I have been playing a little game of: “Are you getting stronger or are you wearing down.?” It depends upon the person and the day, but right now, we’re both in the “Starting to wear down” mode.
Part of the problem is that we’re just walking back to the jeeps. All the discoveries are behind us and the exhilaration of seeing the big mountains has lessened, although certainly not been taken away. For example, tonight we are camped at a mountain lake at 16,718 feet, and if the weather stays clear for one more morning, we will have one last spectacular 360- degree view that will be just magnificent. It’s a beautiful spot, but one that will take extra effort for sleeping tonight since it’s lumpy ground. Then tomorrow it’s over the highest part of the trek the pass of Langma La at 17,500 feet. After that, it’s literally all downhill back to our original camp and the jeeps.
Dave has quite a little conquest - a young? Tibetan girl who is part of the yak herders. (We call her the: “Yak Ma,”)with the other group of Americans who travel the same basic itinerary each day as we do. He takes her picture then shows her the picture on his digital camera. She giggles and then extends her hand for money. Dave just extends his and then shakes hers. He’s taken to letting her listen to his I-pod, then she want him to give it to her “What,” he says, “would she do with an Ipod?”
I’ve been teasing him that he’d better be careful that he doesn’t violate some Tibetan hill- people wedding vow and wind up staying here herding yaks. She’s somewhere between 14 and 26. Estimates vary. Dave says 26, we tease him and say 14. It’s really impossible to tell ages of the people.
We saw a big avalanche today as we walked the path we had trod a couple of days ago. The roar was definite, we just had to locate the exact spot in the mountains, since it could be almost anywhere. But we found it and watched the wall of snow cascade down the mountain across the gorge. Quite spectacular.
The number of trekking groups is beginning to pick up; There were two new ones just today. It is prime time, but that won’t last long as monsoon season descends upon India and the residual effects here in the high mountains become apparent.
Here in camp and after a couple of hours rest, things started to improve spirit-wise. It really is a beautiful spot to camp. Carol and I walked around the 3-acre lake. She noticed every little detail of rock and color like she always does. She can find more to be excited about and find more satisfaction in her situation than anybody I’ve ever known in my life. She can always improve my mood just by getting excited about a rock, a flower, or whatever else captures her imagination.
The lake looks like it’s on top of the world with two sides being higher than the surrounding ground looking like one of those “Infinity” pools you see at resorts. We watched the clouds rise from behind the lake like some mysterious, phantom-like vision.
A Tibetan family of 5 came by carrying the baskets of juniper branches which they have been gathering. They burn them in the mornings to ward off evil spirits which may have gathered in the dark of night. They headed off and I asked Manoj where they were heading, and he said: “Oh, over the pass.” Well, it’s six p.m. and we could see that it was snowing in the pass and of the 5 people two kids are under 10 years old (I think). They don’t have any protective clothing other than what they have been wearing for their normal day work. He said that they sometimes will walk all night long to get where they are going. Tough people, these Tibetans. I’m continually impressed by their spirit in spite of the difficulty of their lives. Just as with indigenous peoples around the world, they are so in tune with their environment. They have totally adapted to the harsh conditions and have found a way to not only survive, but flourish.
They will often look at you with curiosity, but when you say: “Tasha delay,” the grin and natural friendliness of the people just comes gushing forth. We’ve gotten a little tired of the: “Hallo, money,” bit, but we’re also very aware of the fact that we are really nothing more than fat cat tourists who can afford this very high end trip and they are people just eking out a life, sometimes not much more than just an existence, in very harsh conditions. If we want to take their pictures for our own satisfaction upon returning home, why shouldn’t they receive a little recompense for that? It was particularly hard for Carol to see three year olds who are taught to hold out their hands for money at such a young age. When we visited a home, Carol wanted to make sure that the money we gave went to the mother, not the child. The kids are sooooooo cute, it’s hard not to give it to them, but as in our earlier discussions about sharing our picnic with the locals a couple of weeks ago, it’s very difficult to know what helps, and what hurts.
Colors are really starting to explode here. Flowers abound and we’d see even more if the yaks weren’t eating everything in sight. There’s a real difference in just the week since we first passed this way. Manoj said that in a week it will be a carpet of color. Still with the great weather we’ve had, we wouldn’t change anything. We’ve been so fortunate.
Carol and Jim