May 22, 2011: Trekking Day One

After a day or two of delay because of the declaration protests, we were finally able to book a bus ticket from Pokhara to Besi Sahar, the starting point of our trek. Our wonderful guest house manager gave Elise and I a ride to the bus station on the other end of Lakeside. Good-bye Pokhara and Fewa Lake... Hello Annapurna Circuit! The bus we boarded was marketed as a tourism only bus.. but it made quite a few.. ok a lot .. of local stops along the way. Originally five blancos (white tourists) boarded the bus. I met a wonderful chap from Norway who was taking a few months off to travel to India, Thailand, China, and Nepal. I will quickly find more trekkers who too took a few months off to travel to these Asian destinations. He was a journalist for Doctors Without Borders, and we quickly found out that we both had visits to Haiti in common so we were easily lost in conversation for the beginning of the five hour bus trip. The bus rides in this country are anything but boring. Between the loud Nepali/Indian music, the young men hanging out the doors, the windy bumpy roads, and the beautiful scenery, its quite the wild experience.

On route we kept making stops to pick up more and more people.. and baby chickens. At one point the bus was so crowded I had baby chickens at my feet, a little girl in my lap, and I was holding an old man's walking stick and umbrella. They pack these buses like sardines, the more the merrier is the mentality. And every bus driver knows the other so we made stops on the road while passing other buses just to shake hands and exchange good tidings. Over and around these windy mountain roads we went, horns blasting, music playing, people screaming over one another to talk, everyone holding on to each other for dear life. On the bus I met another lovely man named Mem. He was the head master of a boarding school in Pokhara and invited me to come teach English there when I was done trekking. It sounds like a good opportunity.. and if its my only ticket back to Nepal I just may take him up on it.

About three hours into our bus ride, we were going along this long bumpy steep dirt road around the mountains. The bus driver quickly put on the breaks, flying everyone forward by surprise. I thought maybe we had another flat tire which had delayed us just an hour before. However, this time two little old people came on board the bus. The young men who were hustling and bustling people started to herd everyone to the back of the bus. A very old and very small woman and man came onto the bus. They were local farmers, about four feet tall, and both weighing no more then 80 lbs a piece. Strapped to their heads and backs were sacks of grain weighing at least double, if not more, their weight. They were walking to the next town, barefoot, in piecemeal clothing in the hot humid weather. It was a great picture of the love Nepali people have for each other. The bus driver kindly invited to take them to their destination, without cost, saving them a day or so of walking and giving their bodies a chance to relax. They were beautiful and I have often thought about that woman and man throughout this journey, especially when there were times I was walking with a pack in the hot sun about to feel miserable. That was their life each and every day. Its hard to believe the strength and resilience we're capable of having. We just have to expect and know we're able to have it.

So we arrived in Besi Sahar around noon. We went into a little Indian restaurant to grab a quick bite to eat and that's when we met Vesa. Vesa was a man from Finland who was starting the Annapurna Circuit as well, but by himself. He came up to Elise and I and ask if he could join us for lunch. We all sat and ate a big plate of rice and vegetable curry together then headed to the police check point to register our permits and begin our first day of trekking. We were headed to Bhulboule, about a two and half to three hour walk from Besi Sahar. Not a bad little walk after a five hour bus ride. The beginning of the trail crossed a bridge over the river, climbed a series of high rocky steps, and entered into the humid and lush jungles. The sun was high and hot, and being in the trees gave us a taste of the conditions we'd be trudging through for the next few days. This day also set the pace of walking with Vesa. Every village we passed he stopped and asked for a Coca-Cola and sat down to enjoy the views. He was one-of-a-kind and I was glad he made Elise and I slow down and soak up the moment. We weren't quite out of civilization just yet; motor bikes and jeeps still had access to the area we were in so the sounds of horns over powered the sounds of birds and rivers.

We didn't take a guide or hire a porter. We were determined to carry our own weight. The Lonely Planet Trekking Book filled in as our guide, and for the most part kept us on trail. We arrived at our destination late afternoon and checked in again with the Annapurna Circuit Conservation Project. We were greeted with a warm welcome and gained our first stamp on our permits. Our last efforts of the day were to hike down and over a wooden bridge, jump a few boulders and make our way up to our tea house. The tea houses are all different. Some are very nice and new while others have a lot of history (meaning they're old) and a lot of character.. mainly big bugs! Our first room came with a view of the white mountain peaks and a beautiful brightly covered spider the size of my hand. It actually photographed really well.

Vesa fell asleep instantly as we arrived to our rooms. Elise and I ordered some soup and bread and enjoyed the peace of the river below us and the fresh cool evening air. As we were eating a goat walked into the dining room and begin to beg for food. And when it didn't get any, the bold goat then tried to get on our table and eat from our plates. I think the goat thought it was a dog to be honest. We chased it out of the room only to have it return minutes later because it didn't want to be out in the rain. Only in Nepal!

Today however we saw our first glimpses of the Annapurnas. They were brilliant and enormous. I couldn't take my eyes off of them and I was in awe that I was only seeing the tippy top of the mountains and they still made the Rockies look small. I couldn't wait to move forward and uncover more of their beauty. Tonight we could finally see stars as well.. so many of them. I didn't know what to anticipate or expect for the trek, I only knew that for the next two weeks or so I just had to climb and enjoy every minute of it. End of day one.