By Arushi Mishra, Grade 9
This spring break, my family and I had an ambitious plan to trek to Everest Base Camp. While I saw the most stunning views I’ve seen in my life, it was also a whirlwind of endless trudging, complaining, and (sometimes) altitude sickness. But, with frequent minor alterations to our original plan, we slowly but surely walked the entire route to Everest Base Camp, taking a total of 8 days, walking around 6-8 hours every day.
Trekking in the mountains itself was beautiful — strenuous at times, but scenic, nonetheless. We would wake up, eat a rushed breakfast, and get started. With frequent photo stops for my mother, and a lunch break halfway through, we stayed energized — for the most part at least — and excited throughout the day. While trekking, we saw breathtaking views of forests, waterfalls, and the snow-capped mountains of the Himalayan Mountain range. As we gradually climbed up the mountain, we saw several mountains — such as Ama Dablam, Lhotse, and Lobuche — from many different angles. We were surrounded by huge peaks on all sides, no matter where we walked.
After each exhausting day of trekking, we would stay in small teahouses scattered at each destination for every day. Every evening, a warm cozy fire was lit and everyone in the common room would gather around it to avoid the bitter cold outside. This allowed us to meet many new people and make new friends in the most unexpected situations.
The day we reached Everest Base Camp was exciting but bittersweet. We were glad we had been able to climb to such a high altitude. But, we were sad that our journey was coming to an end. Everest Base Camp is situated on a glacier itself. It was a massive expanse of white that never seemed to end, speckled with yellow tents.
While I was apprehensive about this journey at first, it turned out to be my favourite ‘vacation’ of all! While it wasn’t your typical lounging-at-the-beach relaxing vacation, my family saw endless beautiful sights that no camera could ever capture the extent of, and we made some memories none of us can ever forget!
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