Live News Update 2006 - Himalaya Venture Team 21

Latest news:

Himalaya 21 complete their first major trek, in Sikkim

The Team:

Extract from our diaries:

From: Bea Rigby
Sent: 25-04-06
To: VentureCo HQ
Subject: Sikkim Trek

Yesterday we returned to Darjeeling after our "warm-up" trekking experience. "warm" wasn't always a part of our experience, but it certainly was a learning opportunity -- it helped each of us to realize what we already knew and what needs to be different for the longer Everest Base Camp trek.

Sikkim is a lovely part of the world -- in the lower elevations, we saw a variety of flowers, wild strawberries, magnolia and rhododendron trees in bloom. As we went higher, there were still smaller alpine flowers and rhododendron bushes that were not yet in bloom [our guide said about a month later]. We traveled to a view point where we were able to see the 3rd highest peak of the world in the distance, Kanchenjunga.

One of the days we were acclimatizing to the altitude, we gathered in the dining tent to be sociable... rather than playing cards, we decided to define our own board game, based on our adventure so far. Several hours of happy reminiscing resulted in a set of experiences that could be followed along a path that game pieces could navigate. Neil drew the graphics and carved a small potato as our die [6 came up more often than one would expect, especially when Rich rolled!]

Some of the squares that we could land on:

• too relaxed from yoga: lose a turn
• toilet/toilet tent: return to Ciprofloxacin square for a course of antibiotics
• food risk: roll again, evens advance those additional squares, odds sends you to the Cipro square
• got a flat tyre: go directly to the school - how to turn a typically unpleasant experience into a bonus
• saw a tiger: advance to the end of the Bandhavgarh section
• did NOT see a tiger: return to beginning of the Bandhavgarh section
• team leader: swap places with the person who is farthest along

What did we learn from this? It is amazing to us that our time in India has been so full and so varied, and we were able to see and learn so much. We realize that we can focus on the positive aspects of the experience that we want to remember, and minimize the rest... PMA -- Positive Mental Attitude. It makes even the difficult things bearable.

Andy prepared us very well for trekking. We've had day treks on weekends and whenever they could be fitted into the schedule. This allowed us to get used to walking over a variety of terrain and also helped us think about what we would need readily accessible in our packs.

We were spoiled by a well-prepared support team, often tea and coffee as our wake-up call, and a variety of hot meals. The heavier gear was carried by horses, and we also shared the trail with yaks and porters who RUN up and down with baskets on their backs, often in flip-flops -- they certainly put us to shame in the fitness department!

I personally have some vivid memories from the trek. I'll try to share some of them here, although words seem a bit inadequate:

• Sunrise over the Himalayas is a singular pleasure - something that made me thrilled each time I was lucky enough to experience it. Sometimes we had a clear morning, then the clouds would roll in and obscure the peaks that made the early-morning wake up even more distinct.
• Returning to camp seeing the tents as tiny little specks in the distance -- the sheer scale of the place and realizing how small and humble we are in comparison.
• How quickly the weather changes - clouds roll in and envelop you with fog, then leave again while you are concentrating on the trail in front of you.
• How poor a camera is at capturing a scene. Our eyes and our noses and our skin all help us to SEE a scene, feel it and smell it -- the photograph often pales in comparison.
• How much simple kindnesses between teams and crews can improve a day and a trip.
• How little is really needed to live, and to live relatively comfortably... our lives get cluttered with so much stuff - when you have to pack it on your back for hours at a time, you definitely prioritize to the bare necessities!

Bea

From: Louise Devaney
Sent: 22-March-06
To: VentureCo HQ
Subject: Mandore Village Project

The Arrival:
Our 3 weeks at Mandore were lots of fun and interesting with plenty of hard work as well. The welcome we received form the village was incredible. We went to the village on the first day to see what work was to be done there for the next 3 weeks. We arrived to see the entire village (hundreds of people) waiting to greet us! There was music playing so loudly we could hear it a long way back from the school. The children were lined up along the road and were all shouting "You are welcome!" After a camel ride to a sheltered area we all sat in front of the village elders for our welcoming ceremony where we were fed honey and given chai (tea) and a garland of flowers. We were almost given opium as a welcoming offer, however we declined this! We then had speeches and visited the school. The school was in a bad state. They had no electricity, desks, or even chairs, so the children had to sit on the floor for their lessons. The kitchen was a very small hut made from branches and had a thatched roof. The school was generally very dark and gloomy. We all knew we had a lot of work ahead of us…

The Work:
The work at the school was very enjoyable but at times quite hard. Our main tasks that we aimed to complete over 3 weeks were:

• To fit electricity so that the classrooms could have fans and lighting
• To build a stone kitchen complete with fuel-efficient stove and chimney
• To build desks and chairs for the classrooms
• To generally make the school brighter by painting the walls outside and the classrooms.

Everyone in the team rotated jobs, so we all got to do a bit of everything. We are now particular experts in sawing up planks of wood, filing, sanding, plastering brick walls, painting (yes, all my clothes are now ruined!), and fixing table tops to their metal frames. The children helped a lot with the work, giving us plenty of opportunities to get to know them. They were all very keen to see their school improved.

A Village Family:
Whilst at Mandore we had the opportunity to spend a morning at the house of a local family, which was really interesting. We were really welcomed, and first of all sat and had chai with the family. The family wanted to know more about us. It was so funny when we said that our extended families live separately, and one man then asked if we leave the babies at the hospital after a woman has as child! We all learnt a lot about our different cultures.

We were shown around the house, and we had a go at making yoghurt and grinding and pounding flour. We were not as good as the women who do these jobs every day. They had a good laugh at us! It's amazing how many jobs a woman has to do a day. The funniest part of the day was the dressing up session. The girls got excited at having the chance to dress western girls in their traditional outfits. I wasn't expecting the bright pink lipstick, but the whole experience was lots of fun.

The Departure:
After finishing the last few jobs the school was complete. In total we had renovated 8 classrooms in just 3 weeks. The opening ceremonies of individual rooms followed, where two team members opened each room with a member of the community. We cut a red ribbon and then turned on the newly-fitted light and fan. Everyone was very happy and impressed with our work. Miraculously we only had one problem with one of the rooms but it was fixed after some fiddling of the wires!

After being presented with shawls and another garland of flowers, speeches were given by Surendra (the Project Co-ordinator), Andy, and myself as team leader. We all really enjoyed our time at Mandore and gained an immense sense of satisfaction from being able to help the village, even for just a short period of time.

We are now looking forward to the rest of our time experiencing India and Nepal!