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Nepal: Trekking and Heli Trip Full Itinerary "A person who stays at home learns nothing." With this being our mantra, we have embarked on many wonderful journeys throughout the United States and abroad. We are athletes, so most of these destinations have revolved around marathons, ironman competitions and other events. It was in this vein that we decided to design a trip to an area of the world that we had no concept as to what it would be like—a destination that became one of the most memorable journeys so far in our lifetimes. We contacted our travel agent, Indian River Travel, telling our agent, Barbara, what we were trying to accomplish during this trip. For George, he wanted to complete one more ironman competition. For me, I wanted to embark on a spiritual journey and experience trekking in the Himalayas. Both of us have always had a desire to see and experience Mt. Everest. We have used Cox and Kings for several of our trips in the past and always had a wonderful experience. We decided that we would concentrate solely on Nepal for this particular trip, as we wanted to see Mt. Everest. Also, we wanted to trek as much as possible even though we had a time limit of one week. George and I had never been to Hong Kong before, so we spent two days in Hong Kong sightseeing and adjusting to our new time zone. After a stop and short stay in Hainan Island, China for George's ironman competition, we returned to Hong Kong to commence on the second part of our journey. After another day of flying and an overnight in New Delhi, India, we arrived at our destination—Katmandu, Nepal. Had we not had a Cox & Kings representative meet us at the airport in New Delhi, get us to our hotel and back through the airport in the morning, I don't think we would have ever made it! To say that we did not really know what to expect when we arrived in Katmandu, would be an understatement. To say that we were overwhelmingly surprised would in itself be another understatement. From the time we disembarked the plane and worked our way through customs and baggage claim, we could already sense the uniqueness of Nepal. Each and every person we came across was smiling and seemed genuinely glad that you were there. Upon exiting the baggage claim area we were met by a wonderful guide Jigmie, who immediately took us under his wing and treated us like we were long lost friends. This gentleman, and I use this word because that is truly what he was a gentle man who radiated through every word that he uttered and every movement that he made that he truly loved Nepal, loved what he was about to show us and loved the fact that he had the chance. It was not just Jigmie that had this aura. As we stepped into our hotel in Nepal, we were once again inspired. The Dwarikas Hotel was like an oasis. The hotel itself is a living museum of Nepali architecture and all the staff embodied that wonderful gentle nature. From the "Thoughts of the day" placed on every table to the care taken with each and every area of the hotel, it was truly blissful. Our Cox & King representative Steve, was also unbelievable. He met us at the hotel and took a special interest in making our trip perfect. He really made us feel at home and offered his services from providing names of restaurants, additional sites we might like to see and even, where to find ATM's in the city. After a day tour of Katmandu, which was very thorough and interesting, we settled into our charming room to rest for our upcoming week in the Himalayas. The flight from Katmandu to Lukhla, the starting point of our trekking adventure, was remarkable. If you can close your eyes and picture flying like a bird—soaring through beautiful valleys below—valley after valley after valley. Then, all of a sudden, majestic mountains come into view—all around you. There is not even a hint of a car or a road—just open and majestic beauty. A tiny runway tucked into the side of a mountain opens up and you land. Other than the sounds of the propellers shutting down and the sight of porters eagerly awaiting any work, it is quiet and serene. It is here that we begin our trek toward Mt. Everest Base Camp with our trekking guide Jigmie. He has a wealth of knowledge about this area as he has been trekking these trails for over 15 years. Jigme seemed to know just about everyone in the villages where we stopped along the way. He spoke excellent English and provided us with a wonderful history of the area and its people. Alongside us carrying our clothing bag was our porter. This bag, he puts in a large basket along with other items for our days/nights out on the trek. We start our trek to Monjo where we will stay our first night. The trail to Monjo is a stony and sometimes very steep path through small villages. The weather is cool, around 50 degrees, but we quickly warm up as we start walking. We traverse suspension bridges and encounter porters, trekkers and yaks along the way. Coming from sea level and all of a sudden at an elevation of 9,000 ft., the trek was not an easy one. There are, however, many places along this first part of the trail to rest, get something to eat and drink and talk to the local villagers. As we entered each village, we could always count on the stupa with the prayer wheels and each villager seemed gentle and very willing to help in whatever way they could. There is no way to describe the wonderfully clean, yet thin air and all the sounds that were immersed in it. Every step was just breathtaking. Our overnights were spent in small lodges that were very simple and comfortable, yet very unique and beautiful. The meals were prepared by the family running the lodges and they went out of their way to make sure your were warm, comfortable and well-fed. Meals consisted of the local fare which was extremely good. We had taken along our own protein bars, nuts, etc. in anticipation of not having anything to eat. We could not have been more wrong! The food was fresh—usually a Sherpa stew either vegetarian or with chicken, rice, vegetables and a homemade dessert of some kind. Oh, and the potato soup— delicious! At bedtime, we were given hot water bottles to keep our bed warm, and lots of blankets. In the morning, we were awakened by a knock on the door and a smiling Nepalese girl or boy would present us with a tray of hot tea. Breakfast was anything you wanted. We usually had porridge (like oatmeal). They would also cook eggs and sometimes bacon. You could even get cornflakes! It was always complemented by fresh, homemade bread and jams. Just outside of Monjo, we entered Everest National Park. As we began to climb on this part of the trail, the scenery became even more impressive. There were deep gorges, pine forests and beautiful views of the river that flowed down into the valley. We crossed the Sir Edmund Hillary Bridge, named after Sir Edmund Hillary of Everest fame, on our way to Namche Bazaar, a beautiful village perched at 11,300 ft. It is on this part of the trail that we saw our first glimpse of Mt. Everest. Mt. Everest is as beautiful and impressive as every picture you have ever seen of it. We spend the night in Namche Bazaar, awakening to see majestic mountains all around us. There is no noise, only the slight sound of bells as you hear the yaks being herded along the trail to take their loads to market. We have breakfast and some fresh lemon tea with Jigmie and we are on our way again. Today, we are traveling higher up to 14,000 ft. to acclimate and to have lunch on the terrace of a hotel built by a Japanese entrepreneur in the 1970's. Word was, it had the most beautiful views of Mt. Everest. As promised, the views were absolutely spectacular and the closeness of Everest gave us goosebumps! What a sight! We moved on from this spot to Khumjung, a village where Sir Edmund Hillary established a school. From there, we trekked back to Namche Bazaar and spent an hour before dinner walking around the many outdoor shops which provided many Nepalese made items, including necklaces, prayer wheels and other goods. Steve had scheduled a helicopter to pick us up just outside of Namche Bazaar to take us on an aerial tour of Mt. Everest Base Camp and areas around Mt. Everest. Steve himself came along with us on the tour and pointed out many areas that he thought might be of interest to us. He also brought his camera and took many wonderful pictures that he provided us with after our trip. The weather was perfectly clear and the visuals we had from the helicopter were fantastic! We were very lucky that the sun was out and the wind was minimal. The average helicopter here cannot go above 16,000 feet due to the wind factor, however, we were able to climb to 17,400 ft. and get closer looks at everything! On the way back to pick up Jigmie, we made a stop at Tyangboche Monastery, the largest monastery in the Everest Region. This monastery is also where those who are trekking to Everest Base Camp or ascending Mt. Everest are given a silk scarf, which is blessed for a safe journey. Here, a monk asked if he could ride with us to our next stop, Syangboche Airport, where we would be fueling and picking up our trekking guide, Jigmie. This would save the monk a six to eight hour trek to the market and it was only a ten-minute helicopter ride! We were thrilled to have him ride with us and in return, he presented us with beautiful silk scarves blessing our trip back to Katmandu and the United States. I will never forget this monk's eyes. They just danced as he smiled. As we arrived at Lukhla to refuel one more time for the trip back to Katmandu, we looked once again at the beautiful and towering mountains that surrounded us and stepped back into the helicopter to return to Katmandu. The evening was spent in Katmandu at the famous Rum Doodle Restaurant and Bar with our wonderful host, Steve, his wife, our trekking guide Jigme, and his girlfriend. It was a wonderful spot known to those have trekked up to and/or ascended Mt. Everest. Steve and his wife picked us up at our hotel and answered our questions on Katmandu and life it this wonderful city as they drove us to dinner. They were a wealth of information and fun! Our trip ended with Jigmie delivering us to the Katmandu Airport. Jigmie stayed with us until the very last moment that he could, making sure that we had no problems whatsoever. He, too, presented us with beautiful silk scarves and wished us a safe flight home. From there, we flew back to New Delhi. Once again, we were met by a Cox & Kings representative who steered us through this airport. We had a long layover here and the representative did not leave our side until we were checked in for our flight. We hope to make it back to that area again next year. We will, of course, use Cox & Kings! —Lori Nichols. Do you have a C&K travel story you would like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Submit your travel tales and reflections to tours@coxandkingsusa.com. 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