Pupils Alexa and Emily give their reports of the exciting trip to Nepal which took place over Easter!
Kathmandu
Busy Kathmandu was our first experience of Nepal when we first landed. Overhead cables and fairy lights bunched above our heads and mopeds rushed around every corner. Just walking out into the middle of the road in order to cross over takes a bit of getting used to! We bartered for clothing and knock-off sunglasses by day, and stretched our budgets at restaurants at night. A particular highlight was the monkey temple. It was a great introduction to the religious culture of Nepal and beautiful to look out over the city at sunset: the monkeys were also really cute!
-Alexa
Trek
Our trip to Nepal was an unforgettable blend of adventure, cultural immersion and personal growth. For 5 days we trekked through the Himalayas - an experience that challenged us both mentally and physically, while offering breathtaking views and meaningful time getting to know our Nepalese guides (often through dance parties!). The highlight of the trek was the pre-dawn hike to the summit of Poon Hill - 3400 meters. Armed with headlamps and wrapped up warm against the chill, we started our ascent in the darkness at 4:30am. As the first light broke over the horizon, we were rewarded with a spectacular sunrise illuminating the snow capped peaks of Annapurna and Dhaulagiri. The sense of accomplishment and awe was palpable - standing together, we felt both humbled and inspired by the grandeur of the Himalayas.
-Emily
Community Project:
We started the ascent up the mountain to the village community of Sima unsure of what we would find and how different it would be to what we were used to. We were greeted with flowers and tikka blessings on arrival and were quickly accepted into the community. Over the 3 days we planted 220 walnut trees which will go onto provide income for the community for many years. Despite the language barrier we helped prepare meals and had a cultural exchange through dance and song on our last night. It was wonderful seeing all the women of the area excited to meet us and dance with us. To share our “British” culture we made friendship bracelets and taught the children rock paper scissors. We then had a traditional send off and exchanged Instagrams in order to monitor the progress of our trees before travelling back to Pokhara.
-Alexa
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