4. KATHMANDU + TREKKING
PREPARATIONS
Okt 17 - '94
Wim is on his way to the airport to check for his luggage... you never know...
Together with our guide I walk to a renting-shop to look for some extra equipment. I am
dumbfounded when I find out how much extra stuff we still have to drag along :
-crampons
-special snow-boots
-pickaxes
-ice-screws
It seems that my expensive sympatex boots are insufficient for the difficult trekking.
Again I'm being told that 'Trashi Labsta' is terribly unpredictable and that the structure
of the surroundings changes every year. The danger of landslides, falling rocks and ice
makes the journey look like a game of Russian
roulette. It's reality that several people
lost their lives on the top.
I can only hope that those stories are slightly exaggerated but nevertheless the
expedition strongly attracts me.
Later on... in the hotel, Wim has some bad news... his
backpack is still missing. What a disappointment ! It surely puts his motivation to the
test.
Thank goodness there's still the lady of the Gauri Shankar hotel who borrows him some of
her family's clothes and medicine for free.
Wim will go to the Air India head office to demand some indemnity while I go hunting for
souvenirs. I would like to buy some lecture for the cold and lonely nights in my tent. The
amount of second-hand books that are sold here beats every record. It's even possible to
bring the books back... in this case they pay back 50% of the purchase money.
 Especially in thamel you can really buy and sell
everything... old and worn out shoes, T-shirts, socks, all kinds of equipment... they'll
still give you money for it... after some tough negotiations.
For myself I buy a beautiful Thanka (a very precise painting), some Nepalese wool-caps for
my friends and new books.
For an overwhelming choice in new books, 'Pilgrims for Books' is the place
to be. There are two floors full with books on every possible subject, especially
travel-books. On the other hand 'Pilgrims for Books' is more expensive than the other
bookstores, so it's a good idea to walk about first and compare prices before making a
choice.
I don't completely realize that tomorrow morning our long
expected journey will start. We didn't have enough time to explore Kathmandu and its
mysterious valley. Nepal is a friendly, cheap and easy country and I'm sure that a part of
our heart will stay here forever.
We go to sleep early to restart in a fresh and healthy
condition tomorrow. |
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