Friday 2:15am
The alarm goes off and with 15 minutes of sleep in me due to a poor decision to try to stay awake all night with Tricia, I reluctantly roll myself out of bed moaning something along the lines of “I don’t want to go to Nepal today.” The seven of us that were still in the nunnery after the first two waves of people left, hoisted our packs in sleepy stupors and headed to the bus, only to be stopped by a very angry, very scary nun demanding a key that we didn’t have. 20 minutes later, we beg and plead and she lets us go.
The alarm goes off and with 15 minutes of sleep in me due to a poor decision to try to stay awake all night with Tricia, I reluctantly roll myself out of bed moaning something along the lines of “I don’t want to go to Nepal today.” The seven of us that were still in the nunnery after the first two waves of people left, hoisted our packs in sleepy stupors and headed to the bus, only to be stopped by a very angry, very scary nun demanding a key that we didn’t have. 20 minutes later, we beg and plead and she lets us go.
Friday 5:00am
At the airport. Our bags were too heavy, but we winked and they didn’t charge us for it. The peanut butter got confiscated, we winked again but they wouldn’t give it back. Just enough time to grab a donut and get on the plane.
At the airport. Our bags were too heavy, but we winked and they didn’t charge us for it. The peanut butter got confiscated, we winked again but they wouldn’t give it back. Just enough time to grab a donut and get on the plane.
Friday 9:00am We land in Delhi. Just enough time to pee before we hop on the bus that is taking us across the border to Nepal.
Friday 9:15am We’re told our bus ride that was supposed to be 16 hours long is now going to take 33 hours (please keep track of the following time stamps).
Friday 3:00pm Pass through Agra. Pull over to look at the Taj Mahal from across the river. Cool.
Friday 8:00pm
Everyone has to pee and there are nothing but houses and walls in sight. Pull over, line up side by side, drop pants, make small talk, watch your step as you walk away. Officially hit a whole new low on the World Race.
Everyone has to pee and there are nothing but houses and walls in sight. Pull over, line up side by side, drop pants, make small talk, watch your step as you walk away. Officially hit a whole new low on the World Race.
Friday 10:00pm Fender bender. Sit and wait in traffic. We’re told we are going to get to the Nepal border by midnight.
Saturday 5:00am Pull over to pee. We’re told we are going to get to the Nepal border by 7am.
Saturday 11:00am We’re told that we are at the Nepal border, get your passports ready.
Saturday 2:00pm Pull over for lunch in defeat at the fact that we are still not at the Nepal border.
Saturday 4:00pm Arrive at the Nepal border.
Saturday 8:00pm Eat dinner at a restaurant perfectly tailored to us, 34 chairs, 34 bottles of soda, and a/c; everyone’s happy. Time to head back to the bus.
Sunday 5:00am Get dropped off at a sketchy bus stop in Kathmandu because our bus drivers refuse to take us to our guest house.
Sunday 7:00am After being picked up by a much smaller bus that barely fits 34 people and 34 packs, and really only does because we’ve gotten really good at packing, we crawl out of our bus, freezing cold, and into the 14 beds (for 34 people) they have for us. (Cumulative bus time: 46 hours)
Sunday 12:00pm
Wake up, take the coldest shower of my life, lounge around, then get whisked away on a hike by a group of kids that live at the guest house. This is my favorite part so I’m going to elaborate: 11 kids from 2 years old to 13 years old took Cassie and I on a hike down through the most beautiful valley I’ve been in yet in the most beautiful cool weather I’ve had on the race. All along the way they are handing us vibrantly colored wild flowers and berries to eat (which at this point we don’t even hesitate to eat, if the World Race hasn’t killed us yet, nothing will) and teaching us Napoli and laughing at us when we butcher it. They teach us to bow and say “Namaste” and then tell us to greet a stranger that we pass; the stranger just gave us a funny look and all the kids laughed at us. At the end of our trek, Cassie and I have made 11 new best friends who are all thoroughly disappointed that we’ll be leaving in the morning.
Wake up, take the coldest shower of my life, lounge around, then get whisked away on a hike by a group of kids that live at the guest house. This is my favorite part so I’m going to elaborate: 11 kids from 2 years old to 13 years old took Cassie and I on a hike down through the most beautiful valley I’ve been in yet in the most beautiful cool weather I’ve had on the race. All along the way they are handing us vibrantly colored wild flowers and berries to eat (which at this point we don’t even hesitate to eat, if the World Race hasn’t killed us yet, nothing will) and teaching us Napoli and laughing at us when we butcher it. They teach us to bow and say “Namaste” and then tell us to greet a stranger that we pass; the stranger just gave us a funny look and all the kids laughed at us. At the end of our trek, Cassie and I have made 11 new best friends who are all thoroughly disappointed that we’ll be leaving in the morning.
Now you may have read that and thought to yourself, “that sounds crazy, myabe even awful,” but sure as you’re reading this, not one of those 34 people complained, if anything every insane element added to the last three days was only looked at as another ridiculous detail to add to the plethora of insane stories this group of beloved strangers now has in common.
No real life lesson in this, just another day in the life of a World Racer.
