#8 Towards the roof of the world (Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Nepal)
We won’t lie: we did not work a lot in farms between our departure from Philippines and our arrival in Nepal. It had been six months since we last saw our friends. We decided to join in Bangkok. Here is the tale of our trip from Thailand paradise islands to the majestic Himalayan peaks of Nepal. Few rural works but a healthy portion of love and adventure.
We would be 11 people: Nicolas, Cédric, Alexandre, Dimitri, Thibault, Corentin, Marion, Eva, Élise and the two farmers. For two days, we got ourselves caught up in Khao San Road’s night fever. The typical Pad Thaï – local specialty – and the many Buddhist temples of Bangkok gave a few moments of relief to our exhausted bodies. We then took the bus and boat to Koh Phangan. The full moon is coming fast, and with her the famous Full Moon Party whom tourists love so much. Yes we dared. We painted ourselves with the Full Moon Party colors and partied crazy all night on the Haad Rin beach until the magnificent sun rose. We then went to Koh Tao Island. We did motor biking, snorkeling and chilled during a few days. It was time to say goodbye: Nicolas, Cédric and Alexandre went back to France and Thibault to Taipei (Taiwan). Only seven remained.
The complete squad (Thibault taking the photo)
Going to war
The Angels in Koh Tao
Us survivors went to the north. Chang Mai would be our headquarters for two days. We prepared the Mae Hong Song loop. The motor biking road trip will last six days, and will get us to three stopover towns and along 800 kilometers of road. As we drove fast, we arrived at the Tham Lot Cave, a magnificent Lord Of The Ring looking-like cave. As we took the boat over the Nam Lang River – in the cave – bats flied around us, fish cats swam with excitation under the bark and huge stalactites appeared in the dark. We never saw such a grandiose cave. Each town we went to had its own unique spirit. We will remember forever the festive atmosphere and the night market of Pai, and the mystical vibes of the great temple and the sunset of Mae Hong Song. We broke a motorbike’s band, punctured a tire, and one of us even fell, but it did not tarnished this road trip which we will be remember as THE outstanding moment of our two months in Southeast Asia.
Tham Lot Cave
Bamboo bridge in Mae Hong Song
Sunset at Pai
Our monkey Coco on his promontory
Laos was waiting for us. We decided to take the slow boat on the Mekong River to get to Luang Prabang. The current pushed us slowly as we looked at the green banks watered by heavy rains. We stopped at Pakbeng and tasted the best curry ever. We then got to Luang Prabang to rest and explore the region during a few days. The city is stuck between two arms of the Mekong River. The biggest temple is built upon the highest hill in the town and offered us an astonishing sunset over the surrounding hills. We then used to wander in the local night market – the biggest we saw until then. The next day, we went swimming in the Kuang Si waterfalls and spend the night in the local bowling club. Yvan even set a new record! We had not done any sports for three weeks. We thus decided to get things right and go to Luang Namtha. The first day – mountain biking all daylong – put us on the right tracks. But we then spent the night in a local village, tasting the homemade alcohol. We swear that they forced our hands!
Slow boat departure to Laos
Resting in Luang Prabang
Tony Estanguet beter be ready
Kuang Si Waterfalls
Marion, Eva and Élise booked a flight in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. After 24 hours of bus and boat, we finally arrived in Cat Ba, in the Ha Long Bay. We dedicated our first day to motor biking and walking in the national park. The walk led us to the highest point on the island, where we got a 360° view on the surrounding hills. We then explored the Ha Long and Lan Ha Bays by junks. We kept collecting wounds: Yvan got 9 stitches under his feet in Koh Phangan and then Corentin also visited the local hospital. Results: 8 stitches and two unusable fingers. Our trip with the girls came to an end: we left the Bay and went back to Hanoi to spend a last unforgettable night. Eva and Marion were going to Latin America for 5 months and Élise got back to Ho-Chi-Minh-City. We would join her a few days later to take our flight to our next destination: Nepal!
Cat Ba Island
Huge dab at the top
The challenge ahead of us is huge: we planned to do the Everest Base Camp trekking via Gokyo valley with 15 days of hike, more than 5000 meters of ascending elevation and a fantastic view over the Everest at 5650 meters. Five would go and only four would come back… Our trip began with a plane landing on the world most dangerous airstrip in Lukla airport. With only 500 meters of airstrip at 3000 meters we were a little bit scared – euphemism. From Lukla (2834m), we walked up to Namche Bazaar (3440m) and stayed there a few days to get acclimatized to the altitude. As we arrived to our first view point on the top of the world, we met many sherpas, yaks and stupas – be careful to pass to the left!
Lukla, the world most dangerous airstrip
Go left and get good karma
First wak to 4300m
First view on our final goal : the Everest!
And we finally initiated the hostilities: we went to Gokyo and its beautiful lake (4780m) and passed by Dole (4110m) and Machermo (4410m). We spend our first night above the altitude of Mont Blanc! And it was not really easy. At this altitude, oxygen is rare and the symptoms of Altitude Mountain Sickness appear: headaches, vertigos, lack of air during the night, troubled appetite, etc. Cold does not help: the temperature goes under 15 degrees under zero. Symptoms were really concerning for Dimitri. He finally had to get back to Katmandu by helicopter to see a doctor. Results: he lost 7 kilos and began to get a cerebral edema. The four survivors cured tehmselves with Dal Bhat – rice and lens, the traditional dish – and yak cheese to be able to endure the brutality of Himalayan climate.
Dal Bhat power, 24 hours !
We are finally among the ice-capped peaks of Himalaya. We first faced the Renjo La Pass (5360m) and the Gokyo Ri (5357m) to contemplate the surrounding mountains. The Cho Oyu (8188m), the Makalu (8481m) and the Everest (8848m) overlooked the white deserted landscape. To join the Everest Base Camp, we needed to change valley. We thus crossed the glacier and the Cho La Pass (5330m). Dreamlike landscapes were everywhere. As we got used to altitude we went faster and faster. As conditions were getting harder, we finally reached the Base Camp (5364m). An endless mass of tents lied at the foot of the Ice Fall, the first obstacle towards the peak of the mountain. Mountaineers were getting ready to climb the Everest as the climate was favorable in those times – between winter and monsoon. We then climbed the Kala Patthar (5643m), a belvedere with a stunning view on the Everest Peak, looking like a majestic natural black pyramid. The last days of the hike are easy with 3 days going down to Lukla airport. The weather conditions were began to hit our bodies hard and we were more than happy to get back to Katmandu.
Renjo La Pass (5360m)
Gokyo Ri (5357m)
Kala Patthar (5643m)
Everest Base Camp (5364m)
No time to rest: the farmers are back! Yvan and Corentin met Thomas, a friend they had seen three years before when they first came to Nepal for a humanitarian mission. Since then, Thomas developed an eco-responsible project. He set a farm in Chaughada which purpose is to run an eco-tourism center providing free organic training and seed production by October 2018. We are taking Elise, Corentin and Dimitri with us to help in improving and renewing the field and the house. We just started our stay at Thomas’s farm - named Eureka Organic Land and will tell you more about our daily tasks and what we learn in our next blog post.
Job done ;)