Where's Tashi???

We left Namche on the 27th hoping to find Lakpa and Tashi Sherpa's Ama Dablam Lodge on the way to Phortse Tenga. We heard it was right along the main trail and we had a picture of what the lodge looked like. By luck Tashi and I were able to connect on Facebook the night before and she let us know that if we didn't stop to see her that day we would miss her because she was going back to Kathmandu before we would complete our loop. It was amazing to walk into her lodge and give her a hug! I had only met Tashi once before a long time ago and john had never met her. For those of you who do not know Lakpa and Tashi, they come to Winter Park, Colorado every year for three months to sell jewelry. Because they are incredibly special people our Grand County community have adopted them as family. Since I did not know Tashi very well I had a million questions to ask about her life in Nepal and in three hours I got to understand just how special of a woman she is! Unfortunately Lakpa was in Kathmandu so we didn't get to meet him but we are excited to meet him later when we return to Kathmandu. Tashi is an incedibly giving person. She devotes much of her time to raising money to help Nepali families in serious need and children who need financial help to get an education. In the three hours we spent with Tashi she managed to feed us two full meals and three tea times! We almost had to roll out of her village! We left Tashi with huge smiles on our faces knowing that we were lucky to meet such an incedible woman and excited to spend more time with her in Kathmandu. There is so much to learn from her so if you live in Grand County and don't know Tashi and Lakpa please introduce yourself to them. They have a jewelry stand outside of Epic Sports and Mountain Rose in Winter Park. Because Tashi is pretty much a celebrity here in Nepal and  knows everyone, she enlisted two women that were passing through her village on their way to Phortse Tenga to walk with us to make sure we got there ok. So for the next two hours we walked with Yangjee and Pemba to the next main village. Yangjee is a teacher and nurse in the town of Phortse and Pemba was hauling gear from Namche back to her home in Phortse. Yanjee told me that she walks to and from her village of Phortse and Namche three times a month to get supplies and food. Phortse is past Phortse Tenga and is about three hours from namche with a whole bunch of climbing. The trail is narrow with extreme exposure and huge drop offs. Not a trail to be taken lightly. To my liking there are no vehicles or motor bikes in the Khumbu valley therefore making life more challenging but in my opinion a lot more healthy of a lifestyle. We split ways with Yanjee and Pemba at Phortse Tenga and John and I decided to take a risk and push on for the village of Dole at 4040 meters/13,254 feet. 

Tashi and Lakpa's prayer room. 

Pemba and Yangjee

Pemba's bag!

Stupa on the way to Phortse Tenga 

The hike to Dole went faster than we thought it would and thankfully so because John was experiencing some serious "colon blow" as he put it! After we made it to Dole John shared his appreciation for his sphincter because he made it without an "accident."  BTW intestinal issues when traveling in countries like Nepal are common. 

Steep and cloudy walk to Dole. 

We spent a wonderful night with our new friends Ivan (originally from Macedonia) and Nawany (originally from Nepal) who now both live in the United States. We had a blast "chewing the fat" last night. 

Ivan and Nawany

Today we walked to Machermo (4040 m/14,468 ft.). Tomorrow will be a big push to Gokyo where we will climb a peak and spend two days for more aclimatization. 

Our lodge in Machermo. 

Soccer at 14,468 feet????

My new friend Dashi!