Off to Everest, no big deal...

Heeelllooooooooo friends. As I write the last post for two weeks I can't help but think in a British accent. I am sitting here with my friend Nadine who has the cooooolest accent and can get away with calling food "nice" not tasty, and the monks she teaches "very naughty monks". She's awesome. Last night on our way from the RCDP hostel to our hotel in Thamel, the dodgey van we were taking didn't quite make it up this hill and Nadine, who wassitting backwards, went flying forward and let out the most hilarious scream ever. I swear it sounded like the queen was screaming. very regal.
so that has nothing to do with anything, but for any of you who know my obsession with harryp otter will understand my obsession ofnadines accent.
One moreshout out before i start my story - Parch aka roomie aka Sarah: i had a dream last night you showed up in Kathmandu to travel with me. I was so so so excited when I woke up and then realised you weren't here. I guess i miss you!

Okay, so first off C & I have to give a HUGE thank you to Sue Trembley, Tom & Annette, and The Kerns. Of the many things we've used your donations for, probably the most amazing was the birthday party we planned for Rabin on Saturday. You have to understand that these kids are never given special treatment - they all receive the same food and clothes, and don't have moms or dads who come home some nights with a gift that "they just knew so and so would love". So that fact that we made Saturday Rabins very own birthday party just made him feel soooooo special. We started off by purchasing 200 cookies, 2 bags of skittles, a jar of Peanut Butter and a jar ofChocolate Sauce. We then spent an hourbuilding cookie houses which they kids absolutely loved. I mean, thesearen't the type of kids who get an oreo in their lunch box for dessert. they're lucky if their friends share theirsweets with them at school. Needless tosay they were in heaven. However, it wasnt until after they finished building that charlotte and i reailzed just how much sugar we were feeding these sugar deprived children. Shit. They are going to be OFF THE WALL. So after we got them cleaned up we decided to take them to a local park to run off some of that energy. What happened at this park, you ask? You know...all the normal things one does at a park: run, play in dirty water, harass pigeons and....oh yeah...harrass MONKEYS. And what happens when an 8 year old boy teases a monkey?
HE GETS BITTEN. Charlotte and I did not know what to think. On the one hand, we were peeing our pants laughing. Who gets bitten by a monkey!!?? On this other hand, we were like, CRAP, we need to find this kid a rabies shot. As it turns out, the nurse at the school has a whole supply of these so poor little Achut was able to get his shot the nextmorning at school.
When we got home from the park we played pass the parcel. charlotte and i sang O Canada and rigged it so the best gift stopped on the bday boy, Rabin. His face was priceless. He had won something that he did not have toshare and loved it. Of course, the adults inthe house ate half of his Bubble Tape but we'd anticipated this and brought him into our room and gave him another one andtold him to hide it from Isswari & Mahesh. He beamed.
Our next activity was bobbing for apples and this also was extremely pricess. The kids loved it so much that they kept spitting their applesback into the bin so they could bob again. Sudip, the little 5 year old, was the cutest. He just couldn't get his mouth around the apple if his life depended on it and was getting quite discouraged. Charlotte finally slipped her hand in the spitty water and held up the apple so he could get it and I have never seen anyone so proud. The kids played with those chewed up apples and spitty water until it got dark.
Meanwhile, Charlotte and I decided to give Rabin his big present while the other kids were still playing. Kerns, T&A, and Sue....he has you to thank for this! I don't think I can accurately describe how it felt to watch him openit, and how itfelt to see what he did next. He had the same sort of reaction as hedid when we played pass the parcel. You could see that he didn't really believe this wholepresent was for him (when really it was just puzzle, slinky, stickers from Jenn meeker & candy). You know what he did after he opened it? He meticulously wrapped the present back up, walked into his bedroom, and spent 15 minutes hiding it.
"Rabin, don't you want to try the puzzle??"
"No Miss, I love my present and want to hide it so no one will find it and steal it from me"
This broke our hearts, but we realized that by hiding his present, he had the knowledge that he would always have something the other kids didn't. It was very, very cute.

Due to some unusual circumstances involving a disagreement between Charlotte and I and the owners of the orphanage (revolving around the crooked way theyrun the place), C & I left a day earlier than we expected and didn't get a proper good bye with the kids. so we are looking forward to going back after we get back from everest.

Speaking of everest.....WE'RE GOING TOMORROW!! There are 6 of us in our group and we all know each other from our Chitwan expedition last week. Our guide, Doje (pronouced Dodgey?) is only 22 but he's from the everest region. And get this! He actually SUMMITED Everest for the first time this past MAY! I think thats pretty cool that we get a guide who's made it to the top of the world. He didn't beat around the bush with us and told us it's not an easy trek, and that it gets effing cold at night. Charlotte and I told him we were from Canada and since we live in igloos we'd be fine. Forgetting the language barrier, he totally didn't get my sarcasm and now thinks charlotte and i are strange looking canadian inuits. ooops.
We fly into Lukla tomorrow with is approx 2000m above sea level (kathmandu is 0). Fromthere we spend 11 days hiking up to 5600m and only 2 or3 going down. 4000m is where the effects of altitude start to kick in. I'm not nervous, I'm actuallyquite interested to see how my body will react. For the average active, fit, person, the effects of altitude are not determined by the shape you are in, but rather, the physiologic make up of your body. Just how Lance Armstrong was told he has freakishly long quadricep muscles and therefore should take up cycling, maybe i'll find that i have a crazy high red blood cell count and will stay on the mountain and become a sherpa. Maybe.
I don't think I'll get on the internet there, so I have to say Namaste for the time being. In two weeks time I will have stories of mountain people, yaks, donkeys, and how many times a day altitude meds really make you pee.

Until then, HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Love,
Jenny and Charlotte