The rain, beating at the window in the middle of the night, does not really fit my ideas, regarding the Langtang Trek. Do I have to expect bad weather or even snow high up in the mountains?
Kali Gandaki
My memories of the trekking across the Kali Gandaki valley are somewhat blurred, but one image has burned into my long-term memory. The morning view out of the window into a white splendor that has fallen from the sky during the night, and in the middle of it - a horse! Peacefully chewing its cud, completely relaxed, as if it knew that the snow will be gone again in a few hours.
There are some pictures bearing witness to bad weather, wind and storm. The thick jackets and the hoods pulled up, the woolen cap in the sleeping bag - these memories are just right to know what to expect.
Someone told me that this is no problem, there are a thousand providers, you can choose.
Talking to the hotel manager lets my optimism fade away pretty fast and makes way for a more realistic assessment. After a few phone calls with business partners or friends or whatever, it becomes clear that there are probably not a thousand providers after all.
Two hours later and after further visits in more or less gloomy backyard offices, I am a bit frustrated. Nobody seems to organize a tour to my liking in the next few weeks. Either there is no tour at all or the one offered is too short or too long.
Very cheap, mister
While striding along the polluted Thamel alleys, the constant call of "Very cheap, Mister" in my ear, I am hungry as well as frustrated. Well then, it is better to think with a full stomach, so I order a portion of Chicken Momos from an extremely friendly gentleman and for dessert a Pineapple Plunder to follow.
Then I end up doing what I should have done from the beginning, I forget about the 0815 Tour Operators, offering their services on every street corner, and have a look in the travel guide. So I write down the names and addresses of the apparently best and most reliable providers and check them out one after the other.
My guide and me
The young gentleman at High Spirit Treks & Expedition Nepal Ltd. wears a fashionable little beard and speaks an English gibberish, which I can only just follow with difficulty.
Be it the frustration of the past hours or the tiredness slowly setting in, in any case he convinces me using numerous incomprehensible words and gestures about a tour starting next Monday.
Participants: me and a guide.
Not quite what I was looking for. Neither in terms of participants nor costs. But at least we start at April 8th as planned. A small consolation.
And so I leave the little beard, a receipt of 750 Swiss Franks in the bag and the prospect of a wonderful trek into the Langtang Valley, where I will hopefully meet all the many other trekkers that I have been promised ...
Thamel in peace
For a change, the streets in Thamel are a bit quieter. This will give me the opportunity to inspect millions of souvenirs and trekking utensils ...
Matching Song: Portishead - Silence
And here the journey continues ...
