Annapurna Circuit Photo Essay

Thus shall you think of all this fleeting world,
A star at dawn, a bubble in a stream,
A flash of lightening in a summer cloud,
A flickering lamp, a phantom, and a dream.

The Diamond Sutra

To experience the grand beauty of the Himalayas was a treat. To walk its paths alongside my family, not having a deadline as to how long our walk was supposed to take was amazing. We did savor every day slowly, as if it was a candy in a box of selected chocolates: slow yummy breakfast, slow packing of our backpacks, slow splattering of sunscreen, endless tying of shoelaces…you get the picture. Amazingly each day felt totally different than the previous even though they were all packaged in the same simple routine. How is it possible, we marveled, to never see the same view again? How come each village looks different than the one we just passed? How come the garlic soup we got addicted to (helps with altitude sickness) looks and tastes so different every time? The dishes on THE menu (all menus in all the tea houses are the same) tasted nothing like the exact same others we had tried. One thing was common though – it took an eternity to get the food we ordered. Slow food for reals! 2 hrs to get the order of potato momos? No problem. We would settle in with the books we were reading and prepare for the long wait of our slow but always delicious meal.

We were elated to be walking. After months of short walks, tuk-tuks, buses and crazy taxis we were 100% sufficient! It felt amazing to be away from the business of Kathmandu and the responsibility of having to plan every day. On the trails all we needed to know was which village we were to spend the night and the rest was easy – follow the path.The hike started at Boubule at around 840 m above sea level. We gained height every day and before we knew it we were at the 2800 m. With elevation gain my breaths became more labored, the backpack heavier and the path uphill difficult to scale. I started realizing that I had no idea what it is to trek in high altitude. We had to pay very close attention to our breathing and to how our bodies felt. Blabbering stole our breath and we would be left gasping for air. Not all of us though:) The kids were like little mountain goats, fast and obviously not having many issues with the thin air. They did succumb though to the brutal sun and the merciless wind which dried our lips and whatever skin was left exposed. Soon we started looking pretty rough. Chapped lips, sunburn faces, dusty clothes…By the time we were above 5000 m I had burnt though whatever fat reserves I had even though I was eating for two. I woke up one morning to discover that the leftover pregnancy belly that I was trying to eliminate for 8 years was gone, just like that…

About what we saw on the trail: I cannot even begin to describe the natural beauty and the cultural richness of the communities we hiked though. To be clear – the Annapurna Circuit does not go through wilderness with the exception of Tilicho lake trail – the side trip we took to the highest lake on Earth. The 250 km walk snakes though villages, small settlements, roads. Even though May is the slow season, we were not alone on the trails. Besides the company of the lovely locals who fed and sheltered us we were hiking alongside a group of other trekkers who started at the same time as we did. They formed a larger family around us, making us feel very safe in case we needed help. Most of the hikers had guides and porters who were very friendly and kept checking on us. Our pace was slow but steady, so we kept loosing our bigger family only to catch up with them and spent the night at the same spot to leave at different time in the morning…

I feel strangely at home in Nepal as if I have lived here in a previous life. The people are very kind, almost shy. Besides Japan, this is the first country we are not being touted at all. The only perplexing thing is that Kuba and I are being offered herb all the time in Kathmandu on our walks and our new Swiss friend claims that she was never approached with that offer!?! Oh, well…

Thanks for reading. Namaste!

~M.