I dont look pretty waking up at 0600 and i especially dont look pretty waking up with a red eye. A great start to the day!! "Stop rubbing it!" oresti said to me as i was about to bury my hand in my brain.
We met our guide and some other travellers and began our 15km trek through the mountains. I have had a mountain phobia ever since my very close to death experience while climbing to the top of Kota Kinabalu in Borneo a few years back. I turned blue and although oresti begs to differ, i think i almost died. I attribute that to my 3 leeking heart valves and heart murmur which we found out about after my near death experience. So when oresti told me at the start of the day that he didnt want me complaining that i was tired, i tried to use my 'conditions' as an excuse incase i wasnt fit enough for the 15km we were about to embark on. He quickly told me that i have not had those symptons for a long time and that my cardiac doctor told me that i was now fine. Yes, but ive also now got a red eye and i'm half deaf with tinnitus and surely the altitude would make matters worse. "If your ears get worse then we know that we wont be able to do any trekking in Nepal" was his cold answer.
You'll all be delighted to know that we survived the looooong trek. I did not complain one bit that i was tired, or hot, or hungry. My heart was a trooper, my eye went back to normal and my ears still stayed half deaf with my tinnitus at the same pitch and volume.... Result!! Oresti on the other hand did tell me during the trek that he was tired. Ha!!!! I will not let that one go now!!
The trek was great. As we were walking to the top we were surrounded by tea plantations, long windy rivers and the beautiful sounds of the birds. The view that we had from the top of the mountain (2100meters) was unforgetable and we ate a scrumptious breakfast of toast, boiled eggs, tea and tropical fruits. Our trek also led us through a spice plantation where we saw lots of wonderful spices and fruit. Did you know that pineapples grow just sitting on top of the soil? I always thought that they grew on a tree. Don't lie, you thought that too!! We loved walking past coffee bean plants as they grow flowers that smell just as good as jasmine. I always smelt them before i spotted them, my sense of smell has been hightened since my deafness and red eye!!
We ended the tour with a delicious curry and a ride back in a Mahendra (indian version of a Land Rover - almost an exact replica!), again, the driving was eratic and i almost vomited what i'd just eaten. Oh well I survived!
