“The Nepalese are famous for hiking, climbing, rafting and trekking, you see.”, said Saru Rai, a sherpa who trekked alongside me. “You are very active people!”, I said between heavy breaths and she smiled at me before continuing.

When the sound of donkey bells rang in your ears you knew a whole herd of them was approaching. “You must watch out you know. If the donkeys come, and you in the middle, they push you out of the way.”, Nuri our guide dutifully informed us in all seriousness.

The herd of donkeys explained the distinct smell of donkey manure, and the reoccurring sight of it on the path. You had to be careful because it was incredibly easy to accidentally sink your whole foot into it.

“How tall is this mountain?”, I asked Saru. She exchanged glances with another sherpa and they giggled before saying, “ It’s not a mountain! It’s just a small foot hill!”. My legs thought differently.

The natural waterfalls, often small, that you see on the way are beautiful. You can’t help but gasp when you lay eyes on them. Picture opportunities at every second.

Walking through the villages, whether going right through them or maybe taking a bathroom break, is an experience in itself. All over children are yelling“ Namaste! Namaste!” They fold their hands in greeting and then put their hands out to us. “Chocolate?” they ask hopefully. Even if we’re unable to supply them with their sweets, they’re just as happy with having a picture taken of them. “ Can we see? Can we see?”, they repeatedly ask right after they hear the click.

Nayapul to Ghorepani is about a 56 km trek, when you go through Poon Hill on the way and it would probably take the average person around twenty-two hours. You start an hour away from Pokhara which is a city in the heart of Nepal.

Trekking in Nepal, although never shown under that light, is quite a social gathering. From villagers and street vendors to porters and fellow trekkers, you meet many people on the way. Your interactions with these people is minimal yet still friendly to some extent.

To your fellow trekkers you smile and nod, or if you’re going down and they are going up, you give them a look of pity knowing they’re about to have to climb the steepest stairs around the corner. As for the local Nepalese people, they pass you with a friendly genuine smile that makes you want to automatically smile back.

When porters come along, Nuri yells out a warning , “ Porters! Porters! Everybody make way for the porters!”.

The porters don’t talk or smile, they just move very fast carrying your luggage past you. With quick small steps they pass us swiftly, carrying our baggage as if it doesn’t weigh anything while us trekkers struggle with a sixth of the weight on our backs.
Don’t expect like many do, that after a long day of trekking you’ll get a comfy bed and room to sleep in. A hot shower or a clean bathroom. Because you’ll be disappointed.

Although each night you stay at a different place, all lodges from Nayapul to Ghorepani are pretty much the same. The rooms are two meters by two meters and the beds are dusty. The ceilings are cracked and tiny black spiders are everywhere so look carefully before putting your shoes on.

The showers and bathrooms are shared by everyone in the lodge which can be a problem. You have to pay for showers and extra for hot ones. The bathrooms are squat toilets and stink. In addition, the  wooden doors to them don’t shut unless you put all your energy into pushing really hard. As a result, going to  the bathroom in the middle of the night is nothing   less than an adventure.

The meals while trekking are delicious though, and the trekking team is very helpful. Going around and offering you food, serving it right to your plate. Every day you’ll have something Nepalese and something western to keep up a good balance. For example, your dinner may consist of cheese pizza, fried potatoes, and momos which are traditional Nepalese dumplings.

If you’re a fan of Indian food, you’ll probably like Nepalese food too. They both have similar flavors and use similar spices. It is amazing the quality of food the chef is able to provide even though they are cooking at a new place every day and sometimes incredibly early in the morning. Meals are very important while trekking, as they are your main source of energy for the climb ahead.

The trek up Poon Hill takes about an hour, and at 4:30 in the morning, it feels like even longer. You start to notice that every five steps you have to stop to cough, blow your nose, or take deep breaths and that’s how you know the altitude is getting to you. High altitude causes altitude sickness which consists of all those symptoms. Be prepared with a medicine kit.

Foreigners are all around you and you’re hearing many different languages but you can bet that they’re all repeating what you’ve been yelling in your head. “ I’m so tired. No more. No more.”

Oh but the view when you reach the top of the hill! At 3000m of height,  it’s breath taking. It’s as if you get your energy back when your reach the top, because when you see those mountains, especially Mt.Fishtail with the sun peaking out in between, you know it’s a sight you’ll remember for a long time.

All around you, pictures are being flashed, people are smiling, enjoying themselves. There are hot chocolate vendors waiting to greet you at the top so people are sipping their hot chocolate while they are engulfed by the cold fresh air. Clouds move to uncover the majestic mountain range of the Himalayas. The snow on top of the glaciers seems to glisten, and that’s when you realize you have yet to climb a mountain. Your own camera is now clicking pictures that you’ve only see on postcards before. It’s surreal. And suddenly, you realize, all that climbing, all the water breaks, creepy bathrooms, and dirty beds, it’s all worth it to see that one view. Completely worth it.