2007 November 6, 2007
First part of the trekking
Hello,
I am back in France towards the Alps to continue the cleanup of these beautiful mountains ... But first, here's a story of cleaning the base camp of Kanchenjunga now MILLET.
September 28: Departure from Paris via DAKA (Bangladesh), 7H transfer and arrival in Kathmandu on 29 in the rain, towards the hotel and meeting with the Korean team, none of whose members do not speak English really, but they are very nice.
In the evening, the first Korean meal very very spicy, with lots of garlic! Several different dishes and everyone picks what he wants ... with chopsticks of course!
September 30: Kathmandu Day, very dirty, garbage everywhere in heaps, dogs sleeping on the sidewalk, people all over the place and that horn!! the delight of Nepal, no rules of conduct, just the horn!
October 1: Fly to Biratnagar with 3 hours late, I see the Himalayas for the first time, it's beautiful, I can not believe it. In the distance, above the clouds, Makalu and Everest, I am bewitched! My childhood dream come true, I am in the Himalayas, this mythical place, so magical and untouchable ... I am! Thank you for this opportunity to the company Millet.
Then 3 hours of bus, we stop in a hotel well "kitsch" with pink silk sheets! The heat of tropical FOUUUUU, I have lost 2 liters of water during the night!
October 2: This morning, waking 3 hours to leave, Sylvie is standing on the bed because cockroaches that are in his bag! Alexia and I rigolons!
4am departure, arrival 21h: a full day on the bus on a road impassable, we waltzed in all directions, long live the blues! the seats were made of wood covered with a tiny cousin absolute comfort to the buttocks! ha ha ha ha and when crossing a large pothole, I hit the glass and live the good bump on the forehead! But the scenery of rice fields, and these were beautiful green mountains and a green ... WAOUUUUUUUU!! At the end of the day, it was all right .... buttocks and back! and yes, you could feel the aches! hi hi hi!
October 3: small hike of 3 hours, always warm tropical luxury of hiking without a backpack because the Sherpas are all ... it's pretty strange sensation as the morning to give your bag to someone, and you do not wear anything ... I really deserves to go to the Himalayas??
At 15h, the Korean enchainent glasses of whiskey and beer, two bottles of whiskey are emptied in 3 hours! Mr Han, the leader of the expedition, and was very funny ... joyeu as it does not speak English, everything is done by gesture and sound effects!
Dip in the river, a pleasure, but requires slippery stone fall, so here I am with another blue on the right buttock and an egg on the tibia, but a super fun with the girls!
The night I fought with all hairy spider and small on the abdomen for 10 minutes before putting it out ... It was hot hot hot, I felt so out of the shower sweat beaded on my forehead! Thank you little beast! In addition, she jumped around, hard to catch! The girls were laughing next to me on hearing the cries that I was pushing! ha ha ha
October 4: hike from 5 am in the middle of beautiful countryside, still very hot and very humid, so I'm completely soaked! The Sherpas are smiling, they need structure and order to ease trail with us! we laugh with the girls as always, especially on cultural differences with Koreans who eat the slingshot, without any specific schedule, the same thing in the morning, noon and night, without any finesse in terms of noise! ha ha ha
KBS, a nickname given to the cameraman for the expedition, a man of 50 years, small and fat, walking like a Playmobil, is used by a sherpa for all, putting on shoes, remove, set up his sleeping bag, and even wash his clothes and hear! it's a shock!
Even a small rincade in the river with the girls, the little pleasures of the evening!
The Koreans have made a portable printer to print the photos for the children of villages grand idea!
October 5: 5h hiking, toujorus very humid along the river with very frequent crossings of bridges, and beautiful mountain villages!
October 6: 4 hours of hiking with 1000m vertical drop. great place in the very steep slopes and always supplied in tropical vegetation. Arrive at noon for the girls and I, KBS will arrive 2 hours later cooked!
In the afternoon took place slowly, with the Korean playing cards and drinking beer. In the evening at dinner, Koreans become super demanding food, everything must be done in their way, in abundance, super spicy and hot!
Leeches have left us alone now ... Koreans are funny with the leeches, they were terribly afraid! hi hi hi
October 7: girls and I go up in 4 hours up to 2730m Gyabla, a nice dog greets us. Koreans arrive an hour later, and change the orientation of the tents (already mounted a long time) so that the pictures are more beautiful .... ahhhhh the Korean! No but oohh! The Sherpas were not kidding really, but changed the tents! Koreans do not really do as they please.
The sherpas spend the evening playing cards ... with money!
Today, I learn new phrases with Sylvie: have your head in the blue meter and it is no laughing potatoes in the cellar.
Koreans spit the bones between their legs and do the sound effects m ^ me by eating the pigs that are 15 meters high ... a cultural difference with France. This evening the storm is frightening, the thunder is crazy long and the roar of a Himalayan power ... I say!
October 8: mounted Guns, 3400m. the caravan of Korean spreads more and more, we go up in altitude, the scenery changes, the air is cool, no sweat more, it's nice!
Today I saw my first yak, they are very shy, but very impressive: what a paradox! In this region, there are many Tibetan refugees who pass through the passes at 6000m. Sylvie was not "attack" today, hope it gets better tomorrow.
October 9: Rest day and acclimatization Gunsa it rained all the time, luckily we did not walk! cloudy and hazy atmosphere of the surrounding peaks was magical, mythical and mysterious. The day passed quietly, with a goat for dinner, great food! We laugh again and again with the girls, alexia even invent words. We all hate to go up in altitude ... I tell myself that I will come good in the region to explore for and find the legendary snow leopard ... can be a next project! The girls and I had a great time with the Dalai Lama who raved in front of my camera!
October 10: it rains, we go up to Gambatchen, 4000 in 4 hours in the fog and rain. It is autumn, the leaves are colorful, the vegetation changes more and more. However, it is still not cold, it's midnight, it's 6 degrees! the porters took to the base camp, and said it was raining up there and not snow ... it's strange to 5000m?
Koreans arrive 2 hours later, and KBS ask us to stay with them the next day in order to make images ... we look at the girls, saying: thin!! ha ha ha ha turtle speed is not our thing too!
Tonight we played with the carriers, very friendly. By cons, tonight Koreans are whimsical and hard to understand at times! Anyway ...
you following the story very quickly.
