To complete our itinerary for the Annapurna Circuit in 2 weeks, we had to cut off the first few days of the trek by taking a Jeep.⁣⁣
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We spent one night in Besisahar (the traditional starting point) before squeezing into the back of a Jeep the next morning for the 5 hour ride to Chame.⁣⁣
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The mountain roads in Nepal are extremely dangerous - narrow, rocky, winding, steep and landslide-prone. There are often “stand offs” with approaching vehicles which seem ordinary for the locals but will surely fill any tourists body with adrenaline as you watch one, or both, vehicles drive within inches of several thousand foot drop-offs.⁣⁣
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We passed by beautiful villages that were nestled amongst the jungle, roaring rivers with glacier-blue water and countless roadside waterfalls. I couldn’t believe that in days we would be trekking through temperatures dipping well into the negatives.⁣⁣
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We stopped in the tiny village of Chyamche for lunch and were awe-struck when we walked into the restaurant and saw the view - one of the most beautiful waterfalls I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen a lot!)⁣⁣
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We both ordered lo-mein, and as we were the only ones in the restaurant - service was quick! I was still too wrapped up in taking photos out of the huge windows and wasn’t eating quickly enough because the woman who owned the restaurant walked by and said “is it okay?”⁣⁣
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“It’s great!” I responded. “Actually it’s DELICIOUS!”⁣⁣
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She covered her mouth and started giggling, then whispered something in Nepali to our guide, Nara. Suddenly they were both laughing and she kept saying “DAHHHH-licious” over and over again.⁣⁣
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I had no idea what was so funny and just assumed that she hadn’t heard the word before - but their laughter was contagious and before I knew it, we were all laughing.⁣⁣
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Nara later explained to me that the first part of the word “delicious” sounds like the Nepali word for small. She thought it was funny because SHE was a small woman.⁣⁣
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It was one of my favorite memories of the trek because I love the people of Nepal. They are kind, caring and whether or not you understand each other - they will almost always find a way to have a good laugh with you.