We got up early Saturday morning to start our trek up one of the nearby mountains. We picked up Jaya's father and he dropped us off in the town at the base of the mountain. It's a twelve kilometer trek going up from about 4000 to 7000 ft. elevation. It was a pretty strenuous hike, but nothing too serious.
The landscapes are just amazing as you walk along the path. We passed through several small villages where we could buy some bottled water, sit down and relax for a few minutes.
There came a point where we passed through the clouds and were then above them. The fog-like clouds gave the surroundings a somewhat mystical feeling.
When we made it to the top (sooner than expected) and stumbled upon this great hotel. The whole place was built into the mountainside with a spectacular view of the Himalayas. It felt so good to relax there after our trek. We had some good meals, played cards and badminton together and just soaked up the amazing scenery. All of this was at a fraction of what it would cost in the US.
We scheduled a sunrise wake-up call. I had the bed next to the window. We just left the curtains open all night, so I was able to roll over in bed and see the sun rising and illuminating the Himalayas. It was one of those moments that you wish you could bottle up so that you could show it to others and re-experience it again and again.
I found myself wishing that the rest of my family (especially my wife!) was there with me. But I was extremely grateful to be there with my two sons and my friend.
We took a two-hour, bumpy taxi ride back home and just got back...back down to earth so to speak.
No comments:
Post a Comment