Mo vs. Wild

Oh the Himalayas...it was an adventure. They were amazing, I can honestly say that, just not my cup of tea.

Let my preface my adventure by saying that I have the habit of being overly confident about things once I set my mind to them, ie. going to India, etc. haha.

I spoke and thought about going on this little expedition as if it were nothing and let me tell you, I was quickly humbled.

We got a late start last Tuesday and didn't arrive to the base camp to set up until about 5 pm. The drive was beautiful! These mountains are nothing like I have ever seen in my life and the tiny villages along the way were so precious.
The men quickly sat up our camp sight with my tent and the kitchen tent for Nana, my cook and Sadik, my pony guide. Camp was in the this gap/valley/village surrounded by about 10 ginormous mountains with a river running through it. I was absolutely astounded by the beauty around me. Nana made me some tea and I did a little exploring.
It was pretty overcast and during dinner it began to rain. I went to bed early and listened to the rain all night and then all morning. I was thinking I was going to be taking it easy the whole first day, but Sadik came to get me with the pony even though there was a pretty constant cold rain going. He told me we were going on a 'walk'...I quickly learned that walk means climbing a mountain. I put on pretty much everything I brought with me including two rain jackets and a poncho and we sat off.
It was really nice at first, My protective gear was working fine, but there eventually becomes a point where you just say to heck with it and come to terms with being completely soaked.
We hiked up a mountain near a stream with waterfalls. It was absolutely beautiful! I'm glad it was cloudy because it made me focus on one chunk of mountain at a time and it seemed quite infinite. I was definitely struggling...the past month of sitting on my butt didn't exactly help my endurance levels. By the time we reached the top, the rain had turned to snow and I could no longer feel my feet or hands and I was eager to get back to camp.
The hike down was rough and my knees hurt with every step. We eventually made it back to camp and I came to realize that the only dry clothes I had were a pair of running shorts, and a t-shirt. Needless to say, I spent the rest of the day in my sleeping bag. I was absolutely miserable.
That evening, the rain cleared up and Sadik and Nana tried to dry my clothes over the fire. The only thing that accomplished was making my clothes smell like burnt hamburgers. Sadik continued to make me feel extremely uncomfortable with his constant staring and questions. I eventually made up a fake fiance at home so he would stop bugging me.
The next day was pleasant minus the fact that I couldn't move my legs. I went for a trail ride with the pony instead of trekking. My mind was on the pain all day. I was becoming grateful for it though because I was in constant prayer...then I started to really think about other pains in life and started to see them more as a blessing. When we're comfortable it's so easy to take our minds and hearts off the Lord, but when we're desperate, He's all we think about.
The Lord quickly put that to the test.
That night began the worst night of my life.
At dinner, I had a feeling that what I was eating was going to upset my stomach...what an understatement. Also, we were greeted by our new furry friends..a family of mice. I have never liked animals smaller than kittens and puppies and scream when they come close to me. As they darted about the kitchen tent, I did what I have become very good at on this trip and faked bravery and tried to laugh.

Almost as soon as I fell asleep that night, my stomach turned into a war zone. Let me just say that I have a profound appreciation for indoor plumbing with 36 hours of a rock as my toilet. I was up and down all night long. At one point, I was able to fall asleep but awoke to feeling something touch my hair...I immediately thought someone was in my tent and sat up quickly to find that a mouse was playing in my hair....I started fumbling around the tent and in panic found my duct tape (of course i had it!) and sealed up any hole I could find. Also during all of this, for any of you who have seen the Sex and the City movie...let's just say that Charlotte and I had an identical experience..a few times. Icing on the cake.

If I was watching the series of events of that night in a movie, I would have been laughing my head off, and I do everytime I think about it now. It is absolutely hilarious in hindsight.

I was still sick the whole next day, and in my dramatic state, I thought I was going to die on the mountain. There was no way to reach anyone in my hopes to leave early. I found my medicine though, and began to feel better that evening.

I trekked the whole next day in spite of my weak body from being sick. I rode the pony a good ways up the largest mountian I've ever seen. I managed to make it down alone and felt my knees screaming with every step.

When we made it back to the market at the bottom, Sadik went to meet someone and told me I was going back to Srinagar two days early! They came to get me!! When I saw Arif I was filled with joy and he told me that Mama had a dream that I was sick and they were worried so they came to get me. Man, the Lord works in amazing ways! It's not like it's close either...a 2.5 hour drive.
I was thrilled out of my mind to be back at the house and back with the family.

It was an interesting experience for sure...one I will never forget. I will definitley be back, and next time, I will bring a friend! Being alone was not the best time for me even though it was great in a lot of senses.

Since then I've been to 4 Kashmiri weddings and don't care to go to another one. I'm so grateful that I have the freedom of choosing the person I marry because the fright on the faces of these poor brides is enough to make me want to cry.

I'll keep you updated when I can!!

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