Nepal : Part 5 - EBC Trek (Day 1) - From Lukla (2886m) to Phakding (2640m)

... continuation post after watching a flight taking off in Lukla airport ...

I share with you, dear readers, on the expenses incurred on a daily basis during my EBC trek. The food is part of the package price I paid for. Once I added up all the food price I had during the trek, it is way lesser than the amount I paid for the package. I know the package is more expensive because initially, I requested for a non-meal package, and I got convinced to buy a meal package subsequently, and ta-da, you have the differential amount. For the drinks, we have to pay ourselves. 

Summary of Meal Expenses

	Breakfast		Lunch		Dinner
	Lukla		Phakding		Phakding
	Meal	Price	Meal	Price	Meal	Price
Mine	Porridge	250	Dhal Bhat	400	Mixed Fried Noodle	400
	Hot Lemon	60	Masala Tea	80	Hot Lemon	60
Sister	Veg Omelette	200	Sherpa Stew	250	Buffalo Fried Rice	380
	Shared with me		Ginger Tea	70	Hot Water	50

Prices of items that matters:

	Lukla	Phakding
Battery Charge	Did not notice	250 (Full Charge)
WiFi	500 Unlimited	Did not notice
Mineral Water (do not remember size of bottle)	100	120

WiFi did not matter to me, but I saw a few trekkers who requested to use the WiFi, so I figured it may matter for some readers.

The Story

We walked the streets in Lukla. It is similar to Thamel Street, but at a slightly higher price. The place we went to have breakfast is at Khumbu Resort. It was just a 10 minute walk from the airport. The place provides wifi connection, but the minute we stepped out from our hotel in Kathmandu, that was the end of the Internet connection for us. We were not going to pay to use the wifi. Must spend wisely. Actually, every resort we went to has wifi connection but the charges get more expensive as the altitude increases. So, we were disconnected from the outside world for the 12 days we were at the mountains.

For breakfast, I ordered porridge which tasted weird. It was porridge made from wheat. Apparently, the Westerners eat porridge from wheat. Hence, the need to cater to their taste buds. My sister had vegetable omelette. 

At 9.15am, we started our trek. The destination for today is Phakding. It was going to be a 3-hour trek. As we have so much time to spare, my sister and I stopped a lot to snap photos. It was the first time for us in Everest region, and I couldn't get enough of the mountainous view around us. Wherever position I stood, I could not resist the temptation to snap a picture. 

And in Lukla, I see Starbucks Coffee. This trek has been commercialised to cater to the needs of the foreigners. It reminded me of my trip to Shangri-la, China where the Ancient Village had shops like New Zealand Ice Cream Shop, Central Perk Cafe and various cafes that serve Western meals.

We met our first checkpoint to register our names. At the checkpoint, there was a notice on a missing person. We encountered many of such notices in the lodges. In my heart, I was thankful I did not proceed with my plans to go without an agent. I never realised the danger until I read the news. I thought guys are lucky to be able to trek alone because they do not have to worry about being robbed, raped, kidnapped and they are stronger too, but looking at the notice, guys are humans too. How ignorant I was to not research on these risks. I was so confident that I will be able to go to Everest Base Camp without an agent.

Out we go from the village, and onto the stony steps, and rocky paths of our trek. There is only one route to Everest Base Camp. So the way we walked there is the same way we returned. Good thing our trek was not during the start of the season. It was going to be the start. Hence, less trekkers, and more space for us. The season starts in October. There were lots of recycled bins along the route. So, there is no excuse for anyone to litter. 

I saw a clinic sponsored by the Koreans which only treats the locals and Koreans. I wondered if the trekker is neither nationality. Will they get treated?

There were many prayer flags along the way, as Everest Region is mostly occupied by the Tibetans. Prayer flag is a culture among the Tibetans. Along the trek, there were many stones carved with the words 'Om Mani Padme Hum' which means 'Hail the Jewel of the Lotus'. The Jewel of the Lotus means miracle. I used to utter these phrase when I was younger. I used to have lots of nightmares as a kid, and my dad said that if I said these words, the Goddess of Mercy will protect me. Also, suspension bridges are a common sight in the trek. I am not a fan of suspension bridges. 

At 1pm, we reached Phakding. It was a 4-hour trek, mostly because we stopped a lot to snap photos. We stayed at Hotel Rock Garden in Phakding. The first thing we did was to have lunch. My sister had Sherpa Stew, a combination of noodles, and vegetables. I had Dhal Bhat. I ordered ginger tea because I read that it helps with the acclimatisation. Unfortunately, there was very little ginger inside the tea. I did think of bringing my own supply of ginger but I totally forgot. Next time, bring your own ginger.

After lunch, we went to our rooms. The toilets were just outside the rooms. After settling in, we walked around Phakding. We had 2 hours to spare till dinner time. I saw a church but the local told me it was not open. Bar is available. It was closed because it was not the trekking season yet. It was opened when we were on the return trail.

 

Look, a guesthouse offers the services of ultraviolet water purifier. The same thing we used but maybe a different model. See, it's a reliable thing!

Dinner was at 7pm. My sister had buffalo fried rice and I had mixed fried noodle. It was the start of the day where there is no such thing as shower but we were still comfortable. It was cold at night and hence, we do not feel any itch at all. The only thing we washed was our faces and teeth. Other than that, we cleaned ourselves with wet wipes and hand sanitiser (obviously this is for the hands only).

At night, we sterilise our pipe water. Stir it for 60 seconds until a smiley face appears. And if a sad face appears, press the button again and restir. That happens as we went to higher altitude.

We called it a night by 8pm. And that is the routine of every night on this trek.

And here is a Youtube video (Day 1 : Kathmandu to Phakding) that my sister did. You can click on the link to go to the YouTube video just in case the video loads too slow in this post.