First Day in Kathmandu

Bruce and I arrived last evening into Kathmandu last evening about 10 pm local time, just as the power went out for the night! The drive through the narrow streets of the darkened city was a quick introduction to a whole new world. Once through the guarded gate to the Hotel Vaishali we were welcomed by the beautiful oasis of the marbled lobby. By Nepalese standards it was the Ritz. Plentiful, courteous and friendly staff made our check in very memorable.

After unpacking and a bit of post flight organization Bruce and I enjoyed a few moments listening to the hustle and bustle of the city streets outside our rooms, just as the hotel’s power generator shut down for the evening.

The picture here was taken on our morning walk. We left our hotel and had a meeting with Saroj Neupane, and Sudarshan of Beyond The Limits Trek & Expedition Ltd, who will be our guides while here in Nepal. We spend about 2 hours in their offices reviewing logistics and getting to know each other. Bruce and I then took an hour walk through the narrow streets of the Thamal District with life like you’ve never seen before. We were constantly assailed by odors, most of them pleasant. The Thamal District is one of 50 districts in Kathmandu. Districts would be the equivalent of the Burroughs in New York City.

Bruce and I had lunch at a Thai place close to the hotel and met Rodger on our walk back to the hotel. We spend an hour or so this afternoon with Saroj checking our gear, making sure we had everything we needed and not too much as well. All of us did a fine job packing and we’re ready to leave on the 6:30 am flight to Lukla on Monday morning.

Tomorrow we have a tour lined up with a driver and a guide to view the must see sights around Kathmandu.

We're all in Asia

Post by Ed

As Bruce and I walked into the arrivals floor in Hong Kong Airport (have to pass through to get to the departures) there was Rodger Roden the third trekking partner walking towards us. We probably looked as tired as he does when we arrived. But he looks good. He was on his way to his hotel for some quick shut eye before he joins us tomorrow in Kathmandu.


Bruce and I will be leaving on the 6:30 flight to Kathmandu. Now just enough time to catch up on some emails, and get our journals in order. As you can see some of us are a bit more serious than the other! So far we've been very lucky to get internet access. In Hong Kong our hotel had fairly quick broadband. Here at Hong Kong Airport the wireless has been ok. When in Nepal we have been told to expect spotty service. So from here forward the posts may be limited strictly due to available service.

Packing Items

Post by Ed


Basic Items
Sleeping Items
Bed Roll
Sleeping Bag
Sleeping bag liner
Small Down Pillow

The main point to consider in packing your sleeping gear, is that the bag be rated to Zero degrees Fahrenheit. The silk liner adds a few degrees, and aids in movement in the bag. The bed roll a closed cell inflatable, adds about 8 degrees of warmth, but more importantly it protects the bag from the earth and it cushions somewhat as well.


Clothing – Lower body
Underwear
Long Underwear
Pants
Full Zip Rain Pants
Full Zip Cold Weather Pants


Footwear
I am taking 2 pair of hiking boots. One a lighter boot by Asolo and one a heavier boot by Vasque. On my Colorado trip this past August 2008, I was wearing my Asolo boots and we ran into snow on August 15th. After that experience I decided that for the higher altitudes we will encounter in Nepal where we may encounter bad weather, the Vasque boots have a better sole and will provide me with more confidence. I also have a pair of Down camp shoes to wear after and before our trekking, as well as a pair of Crocs. I find that the Crocs help my tired feet and I think I’ll be needing them a lot!


Clothing – Upper body
Performance Base layer shirts
Fleece- light and medium weight
Light Zippered Jackets
Rain Jacket
Down Jacket
Hats
Gloves

The main goal on your upper body is to layer your clothing. The trekking will be strenuous and you’ll be expending lots of energy. You want to be able to peel off layers to keep the amount of moisture your body expels to a minimum. You also want to make sure that when you stop and you body temperature comes back down and cools off, you immediately layer up again. Rain gear has to remain with me at all times. Although in Nepal they are coming out of their winter season as well, we could experience rain at the lower elevations as well as snow as we go higher.


Electronics

I will be carrying all camera equipment camera in my day pack. I am taking a small JVC Video Camera. That will have one battery with a rated life of about 2 hours, and one battery with a rated life of about 6.5 hours. Due to the altitude and cold temperatures, we are told to expect about half the normal battery life. I’m also bringing a small Casio Xslim 7.2 megapixel digital camera. I have a total of 3 batteries for this camera. I’ve brought with me 3 4Gig SD cards and 1 1Gig SD card. They each work in either camera.

At the Hotel in Kathmandu I will be leaving behind my computer, phone, iPod, Kindle and all their cords along with any unnecessary or extra items. We will need to keep the weight of our gear down as low as possible as the porters will need to haul our gear, as well as provisions for the group.


Other Items

Food – I have brought some granola and protein bars, some beef jerky, GU Energy Gels and a bit of candy to have when I am trekking. Some days we will be out many hours and I want to make sure I have an available energy.
Water - 2 1 liter bottles for water which I’ll need to have in my pack at all times.
Steripen – This is an ultraviolet light which purifies the water. It is endorsed by the World Health Organization to kill 99% of all water bourne pathogens. It takes 90 seconds to purify 1 Liter of water.
Medications – M Travel / Infectious Disease doctor sent me with Cipro in the event I am unfortunate enough to get any kind of intestinal illness. It kills just about everything. Diamox as I mentioned earlier is for altitude sickness. And Ambien is in case I am having trouble sleeping and/or to assist with the time zone transitions.
First Aid Kit – The items in here are too extensive to list individually, but a sampling of them are: Scissors, tape, Bandaids of all shapes and sizes, and NuSkin.

The Best of MDRT Exemplified by Patric Leung

Post by Bruce

The weather man was more or less correct in his forecast for the day. There were occasional thunder storms during the afternoon. It’s just that they were interspersed with light rain, and periods of torrential downpours. Fortunately we had accomplished the major event for the day before the rains started. This was to follow the walking paths to the summit of Victoria Peak – 1,800 ft. Because of the low lying clouds, we were in thick fog for the last third of the trek, and saw little but the slick path ahead of us. We’ll have to depend on the guide books and postcards to let us see what we missed. With heavy rain forecast for tomorrow, we’ll have to leave a repeat trip (on the cable car) till we stop off on our way home at the end of our Asian adventure.

As I write this, Rodger should be boarding his fight over to join us. He lands in Hong Kong just as Ed and I leave for Kathmandu. He’ll join us the next day.

Ed and I were squired around the city by Patric Leung, a ten year MDRT member, and a long-time resident of Hong Kong. He took the entire day way from his work to show us his city, one that he is obviously very proud.

Following lunch at the peak, we went to the Stanley Market to see crafts and tourist stuff. We didn’t buy anything now, as we’ll be back later, and why drag the items around Nepal? Patric introduced us to a very unique kind of French Toast. This took a while to digest this unique fried food delicacy. We wandered through an electronics marketplace back in Kowloon to build an appetite for the treat Patric had been saving for us.

For dinner Patrick took us to a local fresh fish market. Here we picked out the sea food we wanted to eat. This was weighed, and accompanied us to a restaurant on a point of land overlooking the entire Hong Kong harbor. As each of the seven courses were presented, served, and consumed, darkness slowly fell and the lights of the tall buildings that surround the harbour twinkled like live postcard.

What a start to our Amazing Asian Adventure, and such selfless generosity shown to us by complete stranger, who is simply proud to share his city with his fellow MDRT members, and very proud of what his city can offer. Thank you Patric.

Made it to Hong Kong

Post by Ed

It's 10:55 pm Wednesday evening here in Hong Kong.  Made it through customs, boarded the train from the airport to Kowloon, on the mainland across from Hong Kong Island.   Been up since I left, for about a total of 27 hours (only 2 hours of sleep on the flight)

Had an interesting ride from the Kowloon train station to my hotel....had to give my driver directions!!!  How funny is that!  Luckily that is where all the planning comes in.  I was able to look at his map in Chinese (Manadarin) and show him exactly where the hotel was.   

The hotel is contemporary with small rooms and the service is incredible.  I had some, I know....Wonton Soup for dinner.  Excellent.

Bruce arrives tomorrow about 5 am, I plan on seeing him here at the hotel about 8.  He has to wait until the trains start running to come into town.  Then we meet up with Patric for our guided tour of Hong Kong.

On my Way

Post by Ed

Today is the day......the one Bruce and I have been waiting for for two years. All the preparation Planning and purchases, and yes there have been many, as you can see by the duffel bag I load into the car. Today will be a very long day. I board a flight from Dulles International Airport in Virginia to Newark, NJ. Then on from Newark to Hong Kong. My Hong Kong leg is 16 hours. Plenty on time to sleep, read and rest again. Once I arrive in Hong Kong, I will meet up with Patric Leung, the MDRT (Million Dollar Round Table) Zone Chair for Southeast Asia. Bruce and I both are members of MDRT and have served on the Technology Committee for several years. Patric is being gracious to us by showing us the city on March 5th and 6th. He has two full days planned for us to see some sites, and the part I am looking forward to.....the cuisine.




This trip would not have been possible without the support and assistance of my wife of 21 years, Amy. She'll be home with our children Ryan 16, Lauren 14 and Courtney 12 while I'm away. You have to be a special person to let your partner free for 30 days for them to realize their dreams, and she is that person. She's been with me on the REI gear purchasing trips, to gather last minute items, and to listen to my incessant preparation talks for the last 6 months. Thanks again honey!

Hints for Walking

Post by Bruce

We have talked to a number of people, including Ray (featured in a posting below). We have also scoured the trekking books for any information that will make our hike a little easier on the body, and tricks that might improve the probability of a successful outcome. Following is the outcome of the research.

· Learn the “rest step” for ascents – as you advance your uphill foot, plant it and then, before transferring your weight to it, consciously rest briefly with your weight on the downhill foot (knee straight). [for more information, see the following link Rest Step ]

· Learn how to “pressure breathe” to handle the thin air at altitude. This is accomplished by taking a big breath, and then blowing it out as if exhaling through a cocktail straw. The backpressure causes the lungs to absorb the oxygen a bit better.

· Use hiking poles. They make walking uphill easier, and they help spread the weight when walking downhill.

Combining these three techniques makes one about 30% more efficient.

· Coordinate breathing with your steps – breathe in on raising the left foot, breathe out on raising the right foot; or breathe in on raising either foot on steeper slopes or at higher elevations.

· Take several short steps than one long one

· Pay attention to reducing the impact on descent. Absorb the shock by bending the knee (and at the hips) when the lower foot contacts the ground. Take short, choppy strides, and don’t keep the knees straight. Turn the foot sideways on steep descents.

· Watch how the Nepali porters descend.

· Be sure to keep the shoes laced tightly over the ankle during descents to avoid toe blisters.

· Arrange clothing in easy to doff and don layers to as to adjust internal thermostat. Remember also, you’ll cool down quickly during rest stops, so be prepared to put layers back on.

· When passing animals, always pass on the uphill side, where the fall is much shorter if nudged by a yak or buffalo.

· At rest stops, drink fluids, elevate the feet. Take off shoes, remove the insoles, and let the sweat dry off the feet, socks, insoles, and shoes. But remember, don’t point the soles of your feet at any Nepali, it is a real insult.