Neffus in Nepal: Up A Hill

Those of you who have been reading our blog since we arrived in Nepal may remember this post (http://neffusinnepal.blogspot.com/2008/08/monkeys-mountains-and-music-videos.html). It was one of our first hiking outings in the Kathmandu Valley, and this "hill" kicked our butts. We ran into a herd of crazy monkeys, ran out of water and were constantly harassed by mosquitoes. After two hours of uphill climbing, with no end in sight, we gave up and followed our wobbly legs back home. Since that fateful day when we left the hill broken and defeated, Ben and I have talked about going back to conquer that monstrous mount. Okay, maybe "monstrous" isn't the right word. We're not talking about the 30,000 foot peak of Mt. Everest. We're talking about a 7,000 foot high hill, not even the tallest in the Kathmandu Valley. Of course, this is probably an even stronger reason to go back. It was after all, a hill…and even Jack and Jill climbed up a hill.

Ben's time is running out in Nepal. He leaves in two months. With the monsoon season quickly approaching, we decided it was now or never. Heidi opted out. For some reason, she didn't share this drive to take on the hill that had so easily defeated us. On Saturday, Ben and I, with much sweat and many breaks, gracefully ascended to the lookout on the top of Nagarjun Ban. When we arrived at the top, I had one of those "this is why I love Nepal" moments. Next to the lookout tower, there is a small Buddhist stupa. On this particular day, there were probably a hundred Buddhist nuns, seated cross-legged next to the stupa. Holding prayer beads, they chanted their prayers in unison, with a few of them chiming in with traditional instruments. With this as the background, we sat on the tower and looked out over the valley. It was a scene that would be hard to capture anywhere else in the world. Here in Nepal, it is almost commonplace, but not commonplace in a way that causes you to forget how beautiful it is. It's just that you can almost expect that the unexpected will happen here. On Saturday, we expected to reach the top of the hill and enjoy a pleasant view. We did not expect to stumble upon a vibrant and enchanting ceremony. It was certainly worth the climb.