We got to Khumjung about 2:30 but there was no place to stay, so we pushed on another half hour to Khunde and we got a room at the Panorama Lodge. We descended almost 2,000 feet today from Machhermo at 14,468 feet to Khunde at 12,598 feet. We thought we might have to push on to Namche because so many places are closed.
Today is the 50th anniversary of the first successful climb up Mt. Everest, when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached the summit at 11:30 AM on May 29, 1953. Many people have gone to Tengboche for celebrations and we also saw a lot of helicopters bringing people from Tengbroche up to Base Camp, because there are a lot of celebrations planned for up there. How unfortunate the helicopter crashed anytime, but especially the day before the celebration of such an historic event. I read in my trekking book that Hillary and Tenzing used 350 porters for the walk in to base Camp on that climb 50 years ago. There were 13 climbers, plus a reporter and a cameraman. Ther only currency accepted in the hills at that time was silver coins and it took several porters just to carry the wages.
The crowds up at Base Camp were the main reason Becky had suggested we trek to Gokyo Ri rather than Base Camp and I'm glad she did. I'm sure it would have been exciting to see Base Camp, but I don't like crowds and it doesn't look like a very attractive place from any of the piuctures I've seen.
I heard on my radio that the King of Nepal was hosting a dinner for 400 people (mostly climbers) in Kathmandu to celebrate the 50th anniversary. The report also said that 1,200 climbers have successfully summited Everest in the 50 years since Hillary and Tenzing made their climb. 400 of the 1,200 climbers have been Sherpa people and some don't feel that they are given the proper credit for their role in helping people up Everset. Hillary always said he and Tenzing were a team and neither could have done it without the other. Nowadays the Sherpas aren't always mentioned by name on a successful climb. Also, their jobs are much harder on these big expeditions. Wehereas a member (non-Sherpa climber) only has to get to the South Col once on a climb, a Sherpa may have to go up and down 8 times (Base Camp to South Col) to bring up supplies. The radio also broadcast some famous words from Sir Edmund Hillary. He said, "We never walked in anybody's footsteps. There were none there but our own."
5/30: We went up to see the Khumba Hospital which is staffed by volunteer doctors from Canada and New Zealand. There is a husband/wife doctor team currently at the hospital and we met the woman doctor on her way out for a short trek. She spoke to us for a few minutes about the hospital and how they are trying to get it staffed by Sherpas rather than foreign doctors.They do have one Sherpa man who has worked there for about 15 years who is just finishing medical training and is coming back to work there. She said most projects (schools, hospitals, etc.) fail in Nepal because the government is poorly run and does not provide adequate support to help these types of institutions. We didn't get to tour the hospital because the other doctor was busy treating patients.
We left Khunde about 9:30 and on our way down to Namche we stopped to see the Everest View Hotel. It is an upmarket hotel (about US$200 per night) situated on top of a hill with superb views of Taboche, Everest, Lhotse, Ama Dablam and Thamserku. Unfortunately, it was somewhat clouded over, so we saw only Everest for a few minutes, but it was lovely to sit on the terrace in the sun, drinking tea looking over at the mountains.
We got down to Namche about 1 PM and checked in to the Kongde View Lodge (100 Rupees per night versus 1,125 Rupees per night at the Hotel Namche last time we were here). Shari and I went to buy post cards and then had a great pizza at the Everest Bakery. We both decied to take a nap about 3 PM and it was so nice to lay on my bed with a nice breeze coming in through the window, listening to the sounds of the village below the tea house.
We were going to shower, but this place doesn't have very good bathroom or toilet facilities and Nar told us the place we will saty in Lukla (2 nights from now) will have an attached bath. I've already been 8 days without a shower, so what's 2 more days? It will be better to shower in Lukla because I can put on my clean clothes and I won't have to trek in them, just ride in the plane to Kathmandu. Then the first thing I will do is give my dirty clothes to be washed at the hotel. They do a nice job with laundry at the Marchyangili Hotel.
5/31: Today was a lovely day. Shari, Nar and I went to the Everest Bakery for breakfast and I had a cappacino and a sugar donut - delicious! We then attended the very famous Namche market, which is held on Satuday mornings. What a scene! The merchants set out their wares on a hillside at the south end of the village and they sell everything from pots and pans to sacks of sugar, grain and rice, big tubs of yak butter, clothes, batteries, nail polish, bracelets, eggs and meat, and lots more. They have 2 kinds of eggs - brown eggs in cartons that they get in Kathmandu and local eggs of all sizes and colors that they spread out on a sheet for people to select what they want. The meat is gross. Big slabs of buffalo meat with flies all over it. The merchants sit behind the meat with branches or sticks to swat away the flies (way too many flies no matter how fast they swat them). They also sell chickens and chicken parts in bags. Also gross. It makes me realize it is better not to know where the food comes from that I eat here.
In any case I has a very interesting time walking through the market and I got to see a slice of Nepali life that I hadn't seen before. I took quite a few pictures which hopefully will portray market time.
We left to start trekking to Phakding about 8:30 and got here about 12:30.It was a great walk because most of it was downhill (I fogot how much up it was on our way to Namche). We are staying at the same tea house - Shera Village Guest House - we stayed at on our trek up. I had a great lunch when I got here - a half can or sour cream and onion Pringles and a Coke. I had a nice afternoon writing notes, listening to my radio and talking to Nar.
6/01: This is our last day of trekking in Nepal. We started off for Lukla about 7:30 and it took only about 2.5 hours to get there. I felt very strong today and I had no trouble breathing, even on the uphills (which weren't very big), because we were below 10,000 feet. What a difference a good level of oxygen makes.
We are staying at the Sagamatha Resort next to the airport and what luxury for 300 Rupees for the room (about US$2.00 each). The room is very large and it has an attached, large bathroom. They even provided towels and toilet paper. It was so nice to take a shower after not having had one for 10 days. (I beat my Appalachian Trail record of 9 days without a shower).
We said goodbye to Singa and Porter 2 (his real name is Shanta). It was sad to see Singa head off for his village, knowing I wouldn't see him again. Singa and Shanta live in villages not too far apart, so they will walk together most of the way home. It should take them about 1.5 days of walking.
Now it is just Nar, Shari and me, but at least we won't have to say good-bye to Nar for a few more days.
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