Travel. Adventure. Trekking. Journey. Nepal.
The Journey to Nepal — Quarantine
Part three of my two and half months on the roof of the world
After almost 40 hours of travel and half a year of planning, I could finally say, “I am in Nepal.” While I may have not gone to the physical stars, as I stepped off the plane I had, however, arrived in a new world.
While I had known Nepal would be foreign in terms of culture and customs, I had not known it would also be foreign from an infrastructure standpoint, as Nepal is a developing country. I believe, having only lived in and traveled through developed countries, my mind hadn’t thought to conceptualize what it would actually be like to travel and live in a developing country.
Where at home we can choose to filter our tap water to eliminate trace carcinogenic elements. In Nepal, if you’re a traveler, you must filter the water to eliminate potentially devastating gastrointestinal illnesses. That’s just one small example of my new normal. The tales I’ll tell as we go will illustrate the many other lifestyle adjustments.
Having arrived in Nepal with an array of emotional baggage that only made itself known while I was flying to Kathmandu from Philadelphia, the first few days were spent unpacking it with a lot of meditation and introspection.
As the roosters were relentless in having the city hear their crows at all times of the day, beginning around four o’clock in the morning, I’d have no choice but to begin my days with them. I’d go atop the roof of our little guesthouse, sit in full lotus posture, do a body scan meditation, catch the sunrise in the smoggy sky, and then go downstairs to recount the previous day’s events in my journal. It would be after this that the others would begin to rise, and we’d all start our day.
One of the first realizations that came to me was that Home was important. In my exile from New York back into my childhood bedroom, I had spent so much energy focusing on the next steps to get me out without realizing that the roots of home were beginning to set back into my heart. My parents and my three siblings, too, live close to the city where my great grandparents immigrated to just shy over a hundred years ago, Philadelphia. Each with families of their own, I am an uncle to six nieces and nephews ranging from ages seven to sixteen, as of the year twenty-twenty one, all of whom I care for deeply. The physical and mental stretch of these new set roots as I went to Nepal was one of the reasons for my heavy emotions, I discovered.
That said, I realized that I liked the roots I was setting down and wanted them to grow deeper.
To that end, I began to question if my decision to be on this full-year Outdoor Instructor Program was the correct thing for me as I wouldn’t be consistently home for perhaps another year or more. But, I had yet to experience my Adventure Guide Program, semester one, in Nepal, which I would then learn how to build and lead in semesters two and three. So, I was not prepared to shift course, at least not yet.
But, as I said, I did discover one of the reasons for all my emotions was that home was important, which was progress.
I mentioned in my previous post that getting to Nepal felt like a staged rocket launch. With each stage completed, I was closer to starting my Adventure Guide Program with Pure Exploration, but just not yet. Once in Nepal, the final stage before starting would be seven days of quarantine with a COVID test at the end. Sixteen of us there were, from all around the globe varying from ages ranging from twenty to thirty-three. In reverse fashion, beginning in quarantine, Nepal would act as a prism allowing our rainbow of personalities and experiences to merge into one single light, forming a team out of strangers.
There was no doubt that over the passage of the next seventy-five days each of us would have our trying moments, the ones that press you so hard that, afterwards, the diamond within begins to reveal. Fortunately, or unfortunately for me, my trying moments were in the first weeks of this journey.
Shortly after arriving at The Pacific Guesthouse, we would enjoy the prime delicacy of Nepali Cuisine, which would become the cornerstone of our diet for the next seventy-five days, dal bhat. Three parts make up dal bhat: Rice, Beans / Lentils, and Vegetables. Over the course of my time in Nepal, I would have an upwards of one-hundred versions of dal bhat with not one being the same as the other. The versatility of the dish spoke to my heart as, surprisingly, I make a similar dish back home most nights for myself. I was more accustomed to Nepali cuisine than I had thought!
The quarantine turned out to be a wonderful way for our team to bond with one another. My roommate Sean and I were the oldest amongst the crew. Only born a year and two days apart, Sean and I would come to find we had a plethora of similarities which gave, at least to myself, the gift of always having a place of security and calm to return to at the end of the day, no matter the stresses. We shared the same sleep schedule as well which was a marvelous bonus. As steady as our daily morning porridge, Sean would become a true friend of mine.
The Pacific Guesthouse was a five to six-story building in the Lainchur area, in the heart of Kathmandu, and right across the street from Thamel, the tourist hub. The public roof with its fantastic views of Kathmandu and the Himalayan foothills would be a common meeting place for our team. We’d share with each other our stories, cultural quirks, passions, interests, and all other sorts that would lay the foundations of trust and support for our trials yet to come.
On the roof, fluttering above us were strings of Tibetan prayer flags. I still am unaware of what sway they have over me, but they became a lure to my eyes and camera lens whenever they came into view during my time in Nepal. They are individually colored squares representing the five elements in Buddhist mysticism: Yellow (Earth), Red (Fire), Green (Water), White (Air), and Blue (The Ethereal Space). The colors also represent the five directions: North, South, East, West, and Center. They can be hung for numerous reasons and occasions from structure to structure or tree to tree. The mantras written all over them aren’t meant to be prayed or chanted. Rather, when the flags flutter intensely, they chant the mantra in their reverberating sound as they cleanse the air passing through them.
We’d have regular recurring meals during our quarantine with breakfast always being a steady porridge. However, one morning we were surprised with a new delicacy, Tibetan Phale. Ever curious, I asked what it was. My answer came in the form of a large donut / beignet pastry-looking item on a plate accompanied by a cup of lentils and a hard-boiled egg. Unlike a donut, the Phale was sweet and incredibly dense which gave my jaw a nice morning workout. In the future I’d smoother these with a spoonful of peanut butter instead of dipping them in a cup of lentil soup! The simplicity and density of Tibetan Phale make it a great source of calories while up in the high Himalaya with hours of high altitude trekking ahead.
While the longing for adventure kept us anxious to get our COVID tests and begin, we would all look back on this quarantine period warmly. It was a simple time. While we were locked in, there was freedom to be found in the form of time. We were free to do what we wished with no obligations other than to occupy it as best we could. This would all change once we began our Adventure Guide Program as time would hardly be in our control again for another seventy days. However, this was the path we all chose, knowingly and willingly.
Then came the day for us to take our COVID-19 tests, the final crucible before our Adventure Guide Program could start. Our positive attitudes and smiles in taking our tests hid the greatest concern of all, that someone could theoretically test positive. In summoning sixteen people to travel from across the globe to Kathmandu, amid a pandemic, one could imagine the risk of contracting COVID was certainly not low. Should a single positive result return, the entire program would be in jeopardy of a successful start or outright cancelled due to group health concerns. The stakes were incredibly high.
The following afternoon, we were summoned by our head instructor, Amrit, to the roof to receive our results. Based on the fact we were all being pulled together as a group, I assumed we were all negative, but you just never know. The scene reminded me of the TV show Survivor where, at the end, the participants would gather to find out who would have to leave the island for the competition to progress. Luckily, in hearing each of our names called forward to get our results, none of us were leaving Nepal as we were all negative.
We were given a single day to go into the city and make all final provisions before leaving the following morning. We’d then go to atop one of the foothills surrounding Kathmandu for two weeks of camping and begin our courses in Advanced Wilderness First Aid and Rock-Climbing Level 1.
Did I mention I had never once camped before as an adult? Yeah, we’ll get to that later.
On the final morning before our bus came, I went for a run to the Swayambhunath Stupa, one of the most sacred sites in Buddhism. The tourists call it “Monkey Temple” as the monkey population greatly outnumbers that of any other species. When Buddha visited this place, he affirmed that it was a wish-fulfilling stupa, and whoever is touched by the wind that passes over the stupa receives the seed of liberation from the cycle of existence.
After seven days or quarantine and a year of living during a global pandemic, running through Kathmandu to Swayambhunath was complete and utter liberation.
The stairs to the top seemed endless. As I ran up them, without a shirt, all the locals stared with big eyes. Some shouted “Go Rocky!” and others asked, “Where you from, mister?!”. Coincidentally, I’d answer back: “From Philadelphia!”.
Atop the hill was the mighty round stupa with Buddha’s eyes and eyebrows painted on it and meditation wheels lining the base.
Custom dictates one walks in only a clockwise direction around the stupa. As you walk, you can take your hand and spin the meditation wheels to garner a sense of presence in such a holy site. The hundreds of holy monkeys will be watching to ensure you don’t break custom as well and you certainly don’t want to upset them!
Behind the stupa I witnessed the greatest collection of Tibetan Prayer Flags in my entire life. Thousands of flags strung up on hundreds of different trees going in all directions created this majestic site. I was in absolute awe at the magic I was bearing witness to.
Before leaving, I went to the tree which appeared as one of the greatest sources of the flags. I placed my hand on it, closed my eyes, and said a quiet prayer, desperately trying to tap into the ancient wisdom and lore held within its bark and roots.
When I opened my eyes, I knew my time was up, and I ran back to the Pacific Guesthouse.
Our Adventure Guide Program was about to begin…
This is the continuation of my series covering my 75 day Adventure Guide Program with Pure Exploration. To learn more, reach out directly.
Part 1: The Journey to Nepal — Ad Astra
Part 2: The Journey to Nepal — Arrival
You can see more of my journey on Instagram here.
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