Pokhara and the Himalayas

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Before you start reading this I would just like to point out that I am fine, so don't worry about me!

It seems ages since I last wrote in this blog but in reality its only been just over a week. We got back from our trek yesterday afternoon, I enjoyed it but I would have enjoyed it a whole lot more had I have not been so ill for most of it!

We decided to do the Ghorepani-Ghandruk trek which is 6 days long and takes us by the Annapurna region of the Himalayas, with the aim of getting up to Poon Hill which is 3210m high and one of the best view points for the Himalays in the whole of Nepal. We took a guide with us because it saved us the hassle of getting lost and it didn't really cost that much between 5 of us and we carried our own back packs. The first day was hard work but I didn't feel too bad, although I was incredibly cold when we stopped at the guesthouse in the evening, far more than everyone else. The next morning I felt ok (but apparently I didn't look ok I was told later) but the second day was our hardest of the whole trek. It started off with 3000 incredibly steep continuous steps which pretty much did me in. My chest felt really tight and I was having to stop and cough every ten mins or so and I just felt genuinely exhausted, which carried on for pretty much the rest of the day. Having said that, the breaks did mean we got to spend more time looking at the amazing scenary though!

Anyway we walked for 7 hours that day and it was all up hill, I was so exhausted by the end of the day. The guest house we stayed in was lovely and everyone else made the executive decision to take a rest day the next day and stay there, because apparently I looked pretty ill as well as feeling it! I also had no appetite and felt sick every time I tried to eat something, and trust me, not eating and walking for several hours is not a good combination! The irony that I have escaped being ill in Nepal for 5 weeks is not lost on me, why I chose to wait until the second day of my trek to be ill I don't know! Anyway, I can't ever remember feeling so ill. I self presecribed some antibiotics for a chest infection (easily done in Nepal because you don't need a prescription for anything) and spent most of the next day in bed.

I felt better by the fourth day but I had no energy at all, not helped by having not eaten! We got up at 4.30am to go and watch sunrise from Poon Hill, I quite literally dragged myself up there, I still to this day don't know how I managed to get up there but I did somehow and the views were simply amazing. The photos really won't do it justice. You just have to ignore how ill I look in the photos as well! It was actually a blessing in disguise taking the day off, because the day we didn't walk it was incredibly cloudy so we wouldn't have seen anything, wheras the following day it was perfectly clear and were the best views we could have hoped for.

Anyway, I forced breakfast down me and my guide insisted on carrying my bag for me and I made it through the next few days of walking somehow, I never quite got back to 100% but I was nowhere near as bad as I was the first day I was ill.

I'm much much much better now, I still have a bit of a cough but I can live with that because I feel back to my normal self now we've stopped walking and I've had a proper rest, so you don't need to worry honestly. My appetite is back so I can start putting on weight again (I didn't even know it was possible for me to lose weight but apparently it is!) as well

I love it here in Pokhara, it is so peaceful by the lake and even though it is a tourist area there is a lot less hassle compared to Kathmandu. We have a few more outings planned to do some sight seeing around the area but its mainly just going to be taking things easy and relaxing for the next week before flying home.

Hope you're all ok back home!

xx
J

ps I know about the Albion, the English version of the Nepalese national newspaper has taken great delight in reporting on them for some reason!

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Comments

[Kate dunn]

Cool!
Wow! You'Re trip sounds fantastic and I'm glad you've had such a good time overall. See you soon Kate xx