October 11, 2012

Day 1. Kathmandu (4600'/1400m) - Lukla (9350'/2850m).  

I was up at 4:45, breakfast at 6, bags loaded around 6:30, and departure around 7am.  I enjoyed my last morning shower for a while and savoured the luxury of a clean body and clean clothes.  Our bags went in one truck and all the people went in another.  This was my first daylight viewing of Kathmandu away from the tourist area.  Oh my!  It's amazing what gets hauled by bicycle - bamboo poles, water jugs, and various huge loads.  There is lots of rubble laying around buildings.  We drove through a very long stretch of road construction.  There are people everywhere; many not seeming to be doing anything productive.  There was another mass of humanity at the domestic air terminal and it was very noisy.  Magically, our kit bags arrived and were hauled in and through security.  In my carry-on luggage I had 2 litres of water and a pocket knife, but everything passed through security with no problem.  The whole thing looks like mass confusion to me but thank goodness for Sangye.  There were lots of trekkers but also lots of locals.  We were originally supposed to leave at 8:30 but apparently several flights had been delayed before us.  Unknown to me, Lukla airport is generally rated as the most dangerous airport in the world to fly in to.  It often has high winds, cloud cover and/or poor visibility which will delay flights.  At shortly after 10:30 we got the word to go to the gate.  It was interesting to see that they had separate entrances and security for women and men.  Once they make the call for your flight everything happens very quickly!  We all made it on but Sangye did not, perhaps because not all the luggage made it on?  Since this is a camping trip and we (our porters) will carry most of our food throughout, we have to take it with us on the flight.  This included three of us carrying about 90 eggs each on our laps.  The plane held about 20 people.  There were no overhead bins and the flight deck was open to the rest of the cabin.  So - I sat with my backpack and the 90 eggs on my lap for the duration of the flight. 

 

It was a lovely flight, although I must admit that a recent crash at Lukla was on my mind a bit.  There were beautiful views of terraced fields and houses built up many hillsides.  There were very twisty roads built to reach those places.  Eventually the roads disappeared and were replaced with footpaths.  The views of the rivers in the deep valleys were also spectacular.  We had a great view of Lukla and its airstrip as we approached.  It was quite a hard landing (no broken eggs!) and I only later realized that the runway is built on a 12% uphill grade and is only 500m long; no wonder it was hard!  The airport was built in 1964 and not paved until 2001.  There are no roads built to Lukla, so you either walk or fly there.  After a hard right-hand turn we came to the terminal "building".  We unloaded, some people (porters?) took our luggage away and we stood around for a bit before getting the OK to walk to our lodge (Khumbu) which is run by Sangye's sister.  I was amazed at just how quickly the plane loads up again and takes off.  I guess the window for safe landing and takeoff can be so small that they have become very efficient at turning flights around when that window is open.  Ours was the only plane for a while.........

As we made our way to our lodge we passed many lodges/guesthouses and shops.  Everything is built very close together and the some of the lodges are within feet of the runway!  The path was made of large stones so you had to watch your footing and also avoid the yak poop.  The "streets" were very narrow; no vehicles.  The buildings are all built on the hillside.  I was a bit surprised at seeing all the stuff available to buy - gear, food, snacks, toiletries - all like we get at home.  Our lodge has a restaurant upstairs.  It is a beautiful airy room with huge windows on 2 sides and a good view of the airport and down the valley.  We had tea, pumpkin soup, and tibetan bread for lunch - all very yummy.

  

After a while the "window" must have opened again as many planes landed one after another, each with a really quick turnaround.  Sangye finally arrived, on the last one I think.  It rained quite heavily on and off all afternoon; hopefully that's the end of monsoon season.....  We got out for a quick stroll but the rain moved in again and the clouds moved right down.  I saw my first yak train (probably dzopkyos but I didn't know the difference at the time), horse train, and donkey train.  We saw kids riding bikes on a (rare) flat dirt area at the edge of town.  There was a volleyball court in the same field as the donkeys.  In town we saw groups of young men playing board games while talking on their cell phones.  Everything is so new & unusual to me; I'm sure I'll settle in short order.  Such a mix of old & new; unique & commonplace......

Liba and I are sharing a room; our toilet room has the best view!  I think tonight is going to be a cold one.  What a change from the heat of Kathmandu, but then we are over 9000 feet now.  I have a hard time believing I've only been away from home for 4 or 5 days.  I've seen and experienced so much already and we haven't even started our trek yet!

Here's a picture I later came across showing an aerial view of Lukla airport - yikes!