05/14--Day 3-- Acclimatization at Namche Bazar--23/9/2022

 Today was the Acclimatization day at Namche Bazar. This is a day reserved to acclimatize yourself to the height and the relatively low oxygen levels, before you proceed to even higher altitudes. Typically, a short acclimatization hike of say half a day is scheduled, after which one comes back to the Tea House and has the afternoon free to oneself. Also, the hike allows for the "Climb High Sleep Low" principle to be followed on acclimatization days as well, as it is on days of the trek.

We woke up (relatively) late and set out at 8 am for a hike to the Everest View Point at 3775 m and then a bit further upwards to 3840 m.

Its time now to elaborate on the "We". The reason for waiting till the write up of this day to introduce the dramatis personae of this trek is that before the hike to Namche Bazar the previous day, we really did not know each other all that well, even those who were Bessie Flyers. The trek to Namche from Phakding brought us all together, each helping the other through the tough patches. From today therefore, we were welded together as one cohesive unit. Now, the details of these navaratnas who Rathika and I were blessed to team up with:-

1.Capt. (Dr) Narasimha--  Ex army medic,  saw action in Sri Lanka, exceptional runner and avid trekker. Calm and composed at all times, firm when required, methodical and organized, dry sense of humour. Would have been the natural leader of any group he was in, as he was in this one.

2. Malthy Simha-- Bubbly, ever game for adventure, Captain's partner in crime, besides in sickness and health, symbolizes joie de vivre, avid runner and trekker herself. Very artistic.

3. J Raj:- Infrastructure projects specialist, who flew in from Kuwait for this trek, none of us knew him before he joined us, and now we feel we have known him all our lives. Calm, quiet and composed, generous to a fault, constantly puts the comfort of the other person before his own. Extremely fit, was unique in that he shaved every single day during the trek!

4. Lalitha Ciryam-- A relative of Malthy, flew in from the US for this trek. Quiet but friendly, a picture of composure even when things weren't going the way she wanted them to. A person who epitomizes the "Take it as it comes" philosophy

5. Jeevagiridharan:- A person who evolved in a very short span of time from a running newbie to an accomplished full marathoner, with podium finishes in reputed half-marathons! A great coach for all new runners in the group, Jeeva's gregariousness and sense of humour kept us going on those particularly difficult days. A lawyer by profession and social- and public- service minded by passion.

6. Vidya Dhruva-- A cheerful person identifiable throughout the trek by her grey hoodie, Vidya had some experience of the hills-- having trekked to Kedarnath earlier. Hands down winner of the Anthakshari  session that we had one evening. Highlight was the mixed pickle she got past airport security, much to our merriment, which we all finished it in 3 days flat once we started the trek. 

7. Jayashree Anand-- A serial businesswoman, she is a multi-tasker extraordinaire, who doesn't believe in wasting a single minute of life. She kept herself updated all the time about business back home and her children's studies, having activated international roaming on her phone. Extremely cheerful and pleasant and determined to accomplish what she sets out to do.

8. Shalini Krishnaraj-- the surprise package-- the one whose fitness to do the trek we were all worried about. We did not take into account the sheer determination and willpower that was part of her make up. Quiet, absentminded at times, known for her stock of balms and oils to combat aches and pains, which helped the other group members from time to time. Her determination earned her the title of "Pisaasu" (devil) from Jeeva.

9. Babu Krishnamurthy-- Chartered accountant, wealth manager, corporate trainer in Finance, his company is aptly named FinSherpa. Regular runner, great conversationalist who drew lessons from the trek and transposed them into the world of life and investments, in daily video capsules. His expertise with money came in handy when working out the expenses of the group members. 

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Our first destination was to the Everest View Point and we made it soon without much bother. The weather was nice, the sun shone bright, and as we approached the location, we were advised by a returning trekker to go and see the mountain before the clouds covered it. At the viewpoint is a small park dedicated to Tenzing Norgay, who along with Sir Edmund Hillary, first summitted Mt Everest in 1953. A statue of the great man, his raised arm holding an ice pick, graces the location. Directly behind the statue, we got our first glimpse of Lhotse and Everest, side by side. Initially, only Lhotse was visible and Everest was covered by clouds. We were advised to proceed further and go to a second, higher view point where we could see the mountain, but we decided to stay back in the hope of the clouds clearing a bit. Luckily for us, they did, and we got our first, reasonably good, glimpse of the world's tallest mountain. A moment to savour, over and over. 

Photographs of the memorial done, a few of us climbed further, while the others decided to go back to the hotel. From our vantage point atop the hill, the town of Namche on the neighbouring hill was spread out like a texbook map. We marvelled at the sight of people playing football at heights exceeding 12000 feet, while we found it an exertion even to breathe! We came across lots of trekkers that day and eventually, climbed to the second Everest view point. And realised that we were wise to have stayed back a bit longer at the viewpoint below, because clouds had competely covered all views at this point, and we could see nothing 20 feet ahead of us, let alone the distant mountains. The wind had become a bit nippy now, and a light drizzle added to the cold, so at 3840m, our gloves and mufflers came out for the first time. We went into a small restaurant attached to a Yogic Retreat, parked ourselves around the plastic outdoor tables and ordered bowls of hot yak cheese soup. The warmth of the hot soup as it wended its way inside you, the warmth of the conversation of good friends enveloping you all around, together beat by a fair margin the atmospheric chill. Soup over, we carefully wended our way downhill and reached Kamal Guest House in Namche Bazar in time for lunch. 

After a good lunch of nourishing but the same type of food-- (dal bhaat, thukpa, omlettes, potato wedges etc.), we took a mid-afternoon rest for the first time since the beginning of this adventure. In the evening, we ventured out into Namche Bazar. Our first stop was at the Hermann Helmers' bakery where we had a round of delicious pastries followed by a steaming cup of coffee. Then we came down to the bazar and shopped for artifacts and souvenirs to our heart's content. Having become lighter both in heart and wallet, we hauled our stash of yak-wool shawls, incense stick containers, miniature prayer wheels and a beautiful Tara mask back to the hotel. Dinner was in a convival atmosphere and friendly banter, and we retired for the day.