The day started early and we woke up in the tea house with ice on the windows (inside) frozen water bottles, toothpaste, and eyedrops, even the water bottles filled with boiling water and placed at the foot of our sleeping bags were cold! Needless to say we were up and dressed quickly because we were freezing. This was the day for the big climb. Those that wanted to try to climb higher altitudes prepared for a hard adventurous day… Of course the Moulton crew was game! After much conversation Mike and I decided to give permission for Bryce to climb with the most experienced climbers of our team. They had been trekking with him for days now and assured us he was strong and ready… We just weren’t certain we were. This was very scary since we were all reminded of symptoms of altitude sickness which can be lethal and the dangers of climbing at this level. So off we went. My anxiety was high as we started wondering once again what on earth we were thinking when we agreed to this adventure ( there seems to be a theme here for me). We quickly fell out into natural pacing groups as we began to climb. We ascended higher than the highest point, Mt. Whitney, in the continental U. S. and to the elevation of Everest base camp! Bryce ascended the furtherest with the help of the A Team.., thank you Pasang and Sameer! Thank you Angdawa, Dawa, and DZ- for a truly once in a lifetime experience and for keeping us safe. Margaret, Greg, Ro, & Jen you will always hold a special place in our hearts. I could see Bryce climbing above me on the peaks and at one point could only make him out by his dance of celebration as I tried to pick him out of the silhouettes. It is impossible to describe this feeling. It was beyond difficult, very emotional, and a day I will never, ever forget. There were panoramic views of the mountains, prayer flags left by those before us, memorials to Sherpas that died on the mountain, compassion, laughter, camaraderie, tears, and an immense amount of thankfulness and joy! I feel more blessed than I can explain…
We were dragging back to the tea house after our climb completely spent and happy. Marsala tea, Dahl baht and a very supportive ENG team awaited us. The celebration included cards (sometimes mistakes happen) determining who would wear the rag of shame, and chocolate squares with Pringles. Notice I did not say showers… : ) life is so so GOOD!

Very long hike today – we climbed 11,400 feet. The views were absolutely amazing along the way. We saw Everest and the “mother God” mountain all along the route. We stopped along the trail for lunch and a little trail side shopping! The trail after lunch was all uphill, quite dusty , with yak and horses traveling along with porters and others heading for small villages along the way and base camp. We arrived at the tea house around 2:00 p.m. Lots of Masala tea for weary travelers and an adorable 12 year-old boy named Bakti that was the hardest working little man with a smile a mile wide! We went for a while to the buddist monetary and we were given permission to take a photo of Bryce- special moments.The evening was spent in jovial play and conversation in the dining room- around the wood stoves,

Today we walked to Namche…. Hard climb. We are at 3,440 meters altitude now. The air is very thin. We had one home visit along the way with Pemba., the young girl that walked 4 miles to get her scholarship and dance for us. Her mother was so proud! She had safely placed the Polaroid of Pemba in her sachet with love. I am constantly amazed that these homes are often one maybe 2 rooms, dirt floors… Sitting/ sleeping benches, with a small fire for heat and cooking and immaculate! Such pride and care and organization.
The scenery was amazing. We have learned that Sherpas have a vocabulary for trekking that has a totally different meaning than ours… Words like 10 minutes, soon, all downhill, near, easy, slowly slowly, whenever you are ready, not very cold. These translate to freezing, hours, uphill, climbing, and now! 🙂
We actually crossed the highest suspension bridge in the Everest region today with yaks barreling toward us as we neared the end… Yikes! First siting Everest !!!!

This day was spent in Nemche to rest and prepare for our trek. We started with A late wake up call and “bed tea”… A beautiful tradition! Some of us went for a morning hike to the monastery, to the Buddist prayer paintings, and up around the perimeter overlooking Nemche. Dawa, one of our Sherpa,s was wonderful at teaching us about the Buddist beliefs and traditions. Angdawa, as always was at my side during the hike. He has been assigned to see to my safety for the climbing and he has done an excellent job. I feel honored to get to know these Sherpas and share this time together learning from them .
The afternoon was spent going into the Nemche Bazaar and looking at local goods. This is the Sherpa Capitol and the gateway to the “Everest Highway” . It is the last city of commerce to the shopping was fantastic . I picked up a few Sherpa hats, a pair of fleece lined pants for the climb, some yak wool, and chocolate to share on the climb. We spent time today catching up on posting and letting those at home know we are safe . The Moulton crew has been extremely lucky… All but 4 of our group have ranged from fairly ill to bedridden at times with altitude and bacterial issues. Knock on wood… So far we are standing strong! It may be all the masala tea we are drinking! A new love of mine…

This morning was hard because part of our team was headed home. We have gotten very close as we share the experience of supporting our girls. We left Nima’s headed for Monju. The trek was hard but the company amazing! We had lunch and headed to the school above the lodge. This would be our last school visit. This school appeared to be the smallest and the poorest yet… It was also the one with the most excitement and celebration. There was a ceremony with distributing of scholarships, traditional dances… One by a young woman that walked four hours to be present . … Amazing. We all danced with the girls and then the older girls joined us at the lodge to write letters to send back with us. We sat outside in the sunshine as the girls read and wrote letters and shared information about their lives… Priceless.

Today a few of us woke up early to hike to the peak before the girls arrived at the lodge from Ghat and also from the hilltop School. It was such a beautiful hike… The air is very, very thin and the hike quite strenuous but so worth it! When we returned the girls were arriving . The afternoon was spent mentoring, sharing, painting fingernails, taking Polaroids, singing and … A scholarship ceremony for the hilltop girls, best moment of the day was when I found Mingma! She has grown and is thriving ! Amazing! The Sherpas worked all day to prepare a New Years feast nepali style… Momos bread, pumpkin soup, and curried vegetables and Dahl baht with rice. The Sherpas were so warm and generous. They shared traditional Sherpa songs and chants and dance… Even taught Bryce! Then the party continued until midnight! Happy new year everyone!

When the sun goes down over the mountains it is bitterly cold… No hot water, and no heat… In the tea houses and lodges, there is usually a wood stove or heater in the common room, where everyone huddles around to keep warm. Everyone gathers together for warmth, conversation, music, cards, and did I say warmth? In the morning we all walked about 2 hours to Ghat. The school was nestled at the top of the village, with a breathtaking view of the valley. Even though the winter holidays had started, all the ENG girls were lined up outside for our arrival. The rooms in this school were expertly setup, rivaling some of the best classrooms I’ve seen in the US (a French teacher has spent some time in this school a few years ago). Since multiple grades shared the room, the materials were color coded for the children. Dangling from the roof, attached by string, English vocabulary words and phrases added a festive and playful tone to the atmosphere. Pictures with English subtitles, songs and sentences adorned the walls, and Sangita and her classmate Sundya gleefully belted out “if your happy and you know it clap your hands” to our delight and we sang along! The school ceremony was short and sweet, a welcome by the principal and some teachers, a few dances by the girls and the presentation of backpacks filled with school supplies, down jacket, and uniforms. Sangita gave a short but moving speech about the impact education has for her and her gratitude for having this opportunity. A testament to the power of this program… We were all in tears as she discussed not wanting to disappoint us… Can you imagine? Bryce was asked to speak at the ceremony and Mike consulted with teachers… I held children and we all gave scholarships!group of Korean tourists spotted the ceremony and ascended to the school to watch; by the end of the program, with no solicitation, they had emptied their pockets of all the money they were carrying as a donation, apologizing they didn’t have more and pledging to donate more once they were home! As a side note… There were 2 twin baby girls nestled into a basket together that I just fell in love with ! The ceremony was followed by some home visits, where again I was humbled by the families who have so little but offer so much to their guests. In this case, our group of 4 was offered natural popcorn, and a local traditional meal of small boiled potatoes which you peel by hand and dip in onion chill sauce. The little girl from this home walks from her house, along the animal trail, across the suspension bridge , and up the mountain every morning early. Following the ceremony, we went finally made our way to our lodging, which was a house/lodge by Carol and Nema, cousin of Passang.

We made it to Lukla… The gateway to the Everest region. The airport was a trip in and of itself! We were on 2 separate planes and the weather cleared for us to see the beautiful mountain passages we were flying through to theVERY short landing strip at 9,200 feet. What a rush!
We went directly to the school to give out scholarships and then made home visits.. We are in a lodge with No heat and it is to be -5 tonight! Begin trekking tomorrow… The Himalayas are so so beautiful!

We started the day with an elephant ride through the jungle! Oh my gosh…. We actually chased a rhino into the water. The jungle was beautiful.
The rest of the day was spent at the school in Chitwan at our second conference giving out scholarships and making home visits to families in the village. I have never spent a more rewarding day. The village is very rural, almost never has visitors. Everyone came out to see us… Children waited in line with fresh picked flowers , the mustard girls were brilliant yellow, the parents pride was obvious , and the welcome was extremely warm. There were very emotional moments with the children that I am certain we will be trying to process for years to come. We had Polaroids and many had never seen a photo of themselves…. Precious moments and priceless memories..,

This 5 hour bus trip to Chitwan is not for the faint of heart. The roads are full of potholes and very narrow… Often narrowing to one way, sharp curves, fast buses packed with people and areas where bridge sides are torn out—
There are small villages spread along the route with people waving and going about daily living. Most of our day was traveling time so we went late afternoon to the elephant races.! Dinner at the lodge and then a group of young men came and shared traditional dance.