Thinking outside the Box'tel.
Name: Lydia Van Bortel
Age: 19
Hometown: I split my time between Wisconsin and Hawaii
Area of study: Health & Exercise Science
Year in school: Entering Sophomore year
I joined the Everest Base Camp Expedition because... I am a health and exercise science student and when I heard about this trip, the class, and the research aspect of it I instantly wanted to be involved. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity to be able to experience the culture here, hike to base camp, and take a class learning about the effects of altitude.
I'm involved with the SU collaborative research studies by... being a research participant in the majority of the research studies (spleen exercise study, cardiovascular study, and balance study). The cardiovascular study was my favorite because I got to see an ultrasound image of my heart. I also got to do my first VO2max (when you exercise as hard as you can on a bike while breathing into a bunch of tubes). Everyone has been fantastic at explaining all the detailed techniques so that I can learn what they are doing and also understand what is happening in the study procedures.
I'm most looking forward to... the trek we have ahead of us and the experience overall. I’m most looking forward to the 5 days we spend in Pheriche and explore the area and also our NEW addition to the trek, staying at the famous Pyramid Lab just above Lobuche!
My favorite part of the trip so far has been... when we visited the monastery in Kathmandu. While at the monastery, we got invited into a ceremony which was super cool to experience and see as they all chanted and hummed in unison. They were extremely welcoming which was awesome to experience. Afterwards, it was pouring rain so the roads were washed out and muddy. The taxi’s had waited for us but a car was stuck in the mud so we couldn’t drive. We all got out and helped push the stuck car out before we were able to hop back in the taxi and get back to the guesthouse.
The worst part of the trip so far... was waiting in the airport for a very long time today (7AM-11:30AM and the uncertainty of whether or not we would actually get to Lukla and the Himalayas today.
One thing most people don't know about me... I went to a boarding school for ballet for junior and senior year of high school. I practiced classical (Vaganova) ballet for 11 years until I got injured, which got me interested in physical therapy and the Health and Exercise Science major.
Daily Recap
Today started at an early 4:30am in Kathmandu in order to make it to the airport early enough for our flights. Arriving at the airport involved plenty of anticipation, excitement, and waiting. The weather in Lukla was not good enough to fly (too cloudy means poor visibility) so we were unsure of how we were going to get up to Lukla.
We waited several hours in the airport playing card games and trying to pass the time while waiting for a solution to how we were going to end up in Lukla. There was a happy turn when the first group got to go in a helicopter and arrived in Lukla. Then I was picked from my group and joined the Canadians to go up in the helicopter with them. I have never been in a helicopter, so this was very exciting for me. We all had the best time and the views were unlike anything I have ever seen in my life. Winding through the mountains and seeing the valleys and rivers below and around us is something I will never forget. After about an hour helicopter ride we thankfully landed in Lukla (the time was now around 12:40pm).
We met with two other groups of ours at a lodge in Lukla and we got lunch, played card games such as sevens, and did some last-minute shopping for things we needed while we did our trek. Unfortunately, because of the delay in getting up to Lukla our final destination for today would be Phakdang (about two hours from Lukla) rather than the originally planned Monju (about 4 hours from Lukla).
So, from the lodge in Lukla we began the first day of our trek. I was very grateful that the weather today was so wonderful for hiking. There was a nice breeze which kept us from getting too hot. Today the path was very rocky and either flat or up and down. There was also one suspension bridge which was so incredible to walk over with the amazing view. As tired as we all were from being up since 4:30 I would say the views made up for it all. While we were walking we all were able to talk with each other, play some more games, and just take in the beautiful scenery all around us. Everyone keeps saying that the views only get better as we go up and I honestly can not wait. After about 2 and a half hours of trekking we arrived at the lodge in Phakdang. At this point we were all tired, hot, and sweaty. However, we were also excited to have reached our destination just in time for dinner.
In Phakdang we gathered in the dining area all together and played cards (again) while we waited for our final group of 5 to make it up here because they flew up later then us. The games got quite intense especially when we played werewolf and everyone was voting off the wrong people. Eventually the final group arrived and we were all so happy to be in our big group again. We ate dinner all together and now I am writing this surrounded by our group while we await the last of our bags.
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