Nepal – David Griffiths

July 1, 2024July 1, 2024

The Bright Side of the Rhodo(dendrons) – Nepal 2024

And time seems to go by so fast
In the twinkling of an eye
Let’s enjoy it while we can (let’s enjoy it while we can)
To the bright side of the road
(Van Morrison)

I’m a great admirer of professionals who make difficult work look easy – none more so than the guides, cooks and porters who support foreign travellers in the mountains and foothills of Nepal. Mountaineers know this of course: few would reach a Himalayan summit without an extensive local support team behind them. But less recognized – outside Nepal at least – are those who support ordinary trekkers from around the world whose “summit” is not a mountaintop but rather a peak experience; walking spectacular countryside in the company of its tough, resilient, gracious and hospitable people.

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March 13, 2024

On the road again

I’m off to Nepal again soon and may take the opportunity to do some site maintenance after I get back, so it may be a couple of months before the next post. Meanwhile, there are sixty-one stories from around the world already here (or, if you’re really bored and desperate for something to read, links here to published work on professional matters). Otherwise, I’ll be dusting off the keyboard again some time after returning home.

Namaste
p.s. The picture is of spinning a prayer wheel en route to Mount Everest in 2013

March 1, 2023

“Living Goddesses” – Kathmandu, 2019

I would have expected my secular Western sensibilities to be offended at the very idea of secluding a prepubescent girl as an object of worship. Yet reflecting on an experience of darshan – a Sanskrit term for beholding a deity – in Nepal, I’m left with more nuanced thoughts as we approach International Women’s Day later this month.
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June 1, 2022June 1, 2022

Sharing the Wealth – Nepal 2013

My friend Peter and I were about to embark on a 185 kilometre, eight hour bus ride from Kathmandu to Jiri, a village at the end of what’s generously described as a road. From there, we would be trekking with our Nepali crew to Everest Base Camp at the foot of the great mountain; retracing the steps of the legendary 1953 expedition that had been the first to put climbers on the summit of the world’s highest peak, sixty years earlier. Because seats in Nepali mini-buses are not designed for long-legged six-footers, the local agent for the ever-efficient Canadian Himalayan Expeditions had booked two seats each for us so that we could spread out a bit with our packs. “Don’t give up the extra seats” he emphasized. “They’re paid for”. That was easier said than done.

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October 28, 2018February 4, 2024

Trekking to Mount Everest – Goals and Intentions

Our Nepali sirdar (expedition team leader and guide) moved quietly from tent to tent, waking us in turn. In the cold pre-dawn darkness we dressed quickly and followed him up to a small plateau above the town of Namche Bazaar, 3,500 metres (11.500 feet) above sea level in Nepal’s Khumbu Valley. There we stood as the sky lightened slowly until, finally, a golden glow illuminated the summit of Mount Everest (Chomolungma in Nepalese), topped with a halo of cloud, jutting coyly above the massive Lhotse-Nuptse mountain wall, 28 kilometres away. After some time utterly absorbed in the moment I turned to thank our Nepali friend but no words came. Choking back unexpected tears, all I could manage was a soundlessly mouthed “thank you”.

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