The hospitality of the Nepalis

The trip showed me the true nature of the Nepali spirit, true hospitality. What i encountered in the mountains was so much different from Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal where everybody was trying to undercut one another or scam you.

The first encounter was when our Sherpa guide activated the entire village to come find us and bring us down. They did not have to do that. They could have left us to arrive hours later under the snow storm conditions. Throughout our decent, our Sherpa also made sure that we got down safely and efficiently, sometimes even holding you to provide that extra push and so you won't fall backwards. At some parts he and raj, one of the porters attached to us went ahead to make a  safe path for us to follow so we won't waste strength climbing out of a crevasse we fell waist deep into.  Most of all, he ensured that we got down safely.

Our guide holding TS steady while our sherpa and porters help set the route infront

made it back to Khare alive! (except with the severe sunburn)

Team Khare Guest House! (feat. our sherpa and his brother, another sherpa who ran me down)

The hospital acts were that old couple of khote, the humble owners of the nice quaint tea house down the hill of the national park will also be remembered. It was also the place where we left Keng yang for his namaste experience for close to a week while we made our way to the summit. Arriving back in that tea house after our expedition, monsoons finally caught up with us, raining the entire day while we took a break. Taking refuge in the main dining house, the kind old lady lid up whatever firewood they had remaining to keep her guest warm while she hid in the cold kitchen preparing our food. Hour by hour, the old couple threw all their firewood into the furnace till they had to borrow fire wood from other houses. What a cute couple they were haha! They told ky to call them saudaro and saudara which he later found out to be father and mother in law in nepali haha! I think they really enjoyed his company during his 6 day namaste experience with them where they took care of him while he nursed himself back to health. I think they were in their mid 60s but the guy was still walking up and down the mountains and chopping firewood like it was nothing! The lady said that we were the last trekkers of the season and after we leave they would pack up and head towards another town before going to Lukla to hide out from the incoming monsoon. Imagine how we were struggling to go from town to town while they did it like it was a walk in the park! They have 3 kids studying in the UK, with one of them studying medicine and i think were well enough to do to retire but didnt. It reflected how they wanted to live their lives plainly in the mountains where everything is much simpler.

It was the best and most comfortable tea house we had! The hosts were so hospitable that they constantly topped up our plates with the leftovers even though we couldn’t finish, saying bistari bistari khana sakyo which meant slowly slowly eat until finish. We never experienced this in any other tea house! The next day, as we started our journey towards the shit hole, the old owner ran after us, giving us a beige scarf bidding us good luck on our journey back to Lukla.

Us and the cute Tea house owners of Khote

KY and his good luck scarf on his shoulder