Day 12: Even something seemingly endless has an end

11.07.2016

And so we come to an end - but from the beginning, long live chronology. Well-rested, we head to another episode of Banana Porridge with Masala Tea in the breakfast room. I am even in such a good mood and adventurous spirit that I order Ginger Honey Lemon Tea, which turns out to be a beastly and disgusting misstep.

Like the days before, we also set off. The only difference is that we can no longer get wet, as we still are from the previous day - our clothes, at least. After a few meters, Hetti's knee decides to play the spoilsport, so she makes a deal with Parkemed. We also learn that there is a bus that leaves after about an hour and a half, which can take the limping Hetti to the safe shore - the city where we started four days ago.

So we drag ourselves, loaded with wet luggage, to the bus station, where Hetti leaves us for a short time. Desperately, we wave goodbye to Hetti, with our sweaty socks instead of handkerchiefs. As the bus turns the corner, we notice that Hetti still has my knee sock that I lent her and that I could definitely use on the descent. We could have also given her my group backpack, which doesn't exactly make the descent easier for me and my knee.

The hiking has taken its toll on the rest of the group as well, so in the absence of Hetti, I decide to do what is now possible and increase the pace. Honestly, it doesn't make me happy anymore, and my tormented back is simply not in the mood. Apparently, what I lack most is motivation to see mountain peaks again, or rather, it annoys me that we are moving away from them. Nevertheless, the morning drags on incredibly long, and the 4 hours of walking time feel like a minimum of 8 to me. Interestingly, we are so fast that we keep meeting Hetti's bus (which takes the serpentine road while we are going straight down), although never long enough to exchange items.

As we slowly meet again in flat areas, the adventure seems to be over. Somehow, however, there is always another rise or corner, so we need another hour until we finally discover the waiting Hetti and our driver. Gudi, exhausted from the fourth day, is completely exhausted, and I also have to hold myself together to continue playing the strong, tireless man.

The journey back by car is similar to the journey four days ago, a gauntlet run between potholes, overtaking maneuvers, waterfalls, and animals. Today, there seems to be some special Hindu day, as Hindus are getting married everywhere, and devotees with red dots on their foreheads are causing traffic jams on the road. This time it's Hindu people and not cows standing on the road. It sounds funny in hindsight, but it really annoys me and my feet craving for rest.

We also realize that the cozy lakeside town, which we described as idyllic and cozy a few days ago, is compared to the Nepalese mountain world, a honking and stinking beehive. This drives our nerves to the extreme.

In the hotel, we say goodbye to Hari, who, in our opinion, did a mediocre job. Although he always knew the way and was a pretty nice guy, he acted rather passively in actual "emergency situations" (Hetti's knee...).

In the hotel, we enjoy the evening, have dinner, and take care of neglected tasks like checking emails and writing reports. No time for anything else due to the stress of free time - what a life. By the way, I only now discover that the leeches were most attracted to my blood - suddenly I find countless bleeding bite wounds and both of my feet are completely red - so no blue blood after all.