Trekking!

I'm back from the mountains, and only have three days left in Nepal! It's such a weird feeling - it both felt so long and so short. The next few days should go by fast, with all the souvenir-buying (if anyone has any requests, let me know!) and last sight-seeing and general saying goodbye. But first: writing this entry about my trek!
After my last entry, I decided to go the safe route and book a trek with a company instead of winging-it with Shiva and his girlfriend. I thought it was just going to be me and a German couple, but when I got on the bus Monday morning the guy from the trekking company was there with another girl, who'd signed up right after me. Turns out the German couple got stuck in Bhutan and it was just going to be the two of us (plus guide and porter). It ended up to be pretty much the perfect situation. Katie's 27 and British, and was a great trekking companion - we shared rooms the whole way, laughed about the awful food, groaned when our thighs were burning and exclaimed when the mountains suddenly appeared after a bend in the trail. Our guide Bharat was 24 and our porter Subas was 21, so it was a fun group. Anyway there is so much to say but I have already spent like 200 rupees on the internet today (oops), so here's a quick rundown:
Day 1: Took the tourist (super comfortable) bus to Pokhara, which is about 6 hours from Kathmandu and the launching town for treks in the Annapurna Himalaya range. Katie and I checked into an overpriced guesthouse the company had reserved for us and I read Catch 22 (which I still haven't finished...I'm really getting into it but jeez it takes some work) in a hammok for about three hours. Then we had some last non-trekking food (pizza) and went to sleep early for the next day.
Day 2: Woke up at 7am and drove to Nyapul, where the treks actually start. We couldn't see the mountains at all and walked through more of a jungle-y type landscape, which was not at all what I had been expected but would be pretty common throughout the rest of the trek. Anyway, we got to the little village of Tikhedunga around 2:30pm and I took the best lukewarm shower of my life. I sat outsde on the sunny deck and read Catch-22, ate Toblerone, and had the best time just being there clean and rested. That night we played cards with the boys - some version of Rummy that a Swedish group had taught Bharat and some British game called "Shithead" - which we would do every night for the rest of the trek. And then I snuggled down in my borrowed sleeping bag and went to sleep.
Day 3: Trekked to Ghorepani, the biggest town and highest town in the circuit. This was the longest and hardest walk - we gained 1200 meters of elevation in 6 hours. The uphills of the trek are all stone slab stairs, which sounds like it would be easier but I swear was more painful than just incline. Anyway, when we got the Ghorepani the clouds finally broke a little and we could see the mountains! Plus the lodge had a HOT hot shower, a western toilet (although i have gotton to be a pro at the squat ones), and a fire in the dining room. One of the most fun parts of the whole trek was seeing the same people from place to place - lunch spots, in the lodge, on the trail. There was a pair of German women who were at literally every lodge but one that we stayed at, and we always laughed when we say each other again. But this was the night I finally felt like we were "doing it," especially when I had to pile a blanket on top of my sleeping bag and wear a hat to sleep just to keep warm.
Day 4: Woke up at 4:30am and walked in the dark with throngs of other trekkers up to Poon Hill, where the sun rises on the entire Annapurna range. I freaked out for about 10 minutes when I realized that my camara had run out of batteries, but some genius Australian girl told me to take them out of my flashlight and all was well. Anyway all I can say is that it was just an incredible scene: hundreds of bundled people on the top of the 3200 meter hill all smiling and laughing and taking pictures of the most beautiful panaroma I could have imagined (don't worry, I've got about 50 shots). Then we walked back down and I ate a delicious banana pancake and started off again to Tadapani. Tadapani should have been beautiful, but was entirely buried in fog by the time we got there. So everyone in the lodge sat in the dining room, where there were fires under the tables, for about seven hours to avoid freezing to death. Also there was no light in our room so we had to use a candle! So that was kind of cool...really felt like we were "roughing it." I think this was the day I also ate two Toblerones and a Mars bar, which is a record amount of chocolate I've ever eaten in 12 hours.
Day 5: Trekked to Ghinu Dara, about 5 hours and hot again. Ghinu Dara is right above these natural hot springs that everyone was very excited about, but I didn't have a swimsuit or anything and so just went in my clothes. Really stupid because I didn't bring any extra dry ones and had to trek back up to the lodge all soaking and cold. Plus Bharat said that we could wash our clothes in the springs, so I lugged everything down, and I think they all came out dirtier than before. Plus nothing was dry by the next day and I had to wear my fleece vest with nothing under it and ankle socks. Lesson learned: always keep one of everything dry, just in case.
Day 6: Last full day of trekking. We walked to Pothana, mostly downhill, and I felt like my thighs were about to explode. Stopped twice for tea - Nepali Mesala tea might be the most delicious liquid ever - since we were so worn out. That night we had massive card game tournement (I lost every one) and bought the boys beer as a celebration of the end.
Day 7: Woke up at 5:30am because the German women were clomping around to go see the sunrise, lay in my sleeping bag thinking about how soon I was coming home, and then packed up. My socks were almost dry, which got me in a great mood for the day. And then we all set off and in only 2 1/2 hours were in Phedi, our end point. As we were walking down Katie was saying that she didn't really want to stay in Pokhara another night and wait for the tourist bus the next day, and by the end we'd all agreed we wanted to get back to Kathmandu that night. So we managed to catch the local minibus at about 12:30 and, after 6 hours of jostling and bumping and wanting to throw up a little, we were home. It was the best feeling to be back. The little lodges with their bare, cupboard-like rooms and squat toilets and paper thin walls were definitely an experience I wouldn't give up. But my own room with my own bathroom and Deepak's french fries for dinner was like heaven.
So that's it! I am going to try to upload pictures very soon, hopefully later today. I miss you all so much, and I can't wait to be home. LOVE!