And so the trek begins. We’d spent last night re-arranging our 3 bags, 2 to take with us, + 1, with all the radios, cassette players, books + extra clothes that the 3 of us had – it was, fortunately, the heaviest of the 3 – to leave behind. Then down to the bus stn to get on the bus. There we encountered our first problem – the bus had been delayed for an hour or so, until 9 o’clock. Or possibly more.
As well as the 5 of us, there were 2 other travellers, a couple of Australian girls, so the 7 of us negotiated a taxi to take us to the village from which the trail left. It was a pleasant enough ride with, of course, the usual delay at the police check-post for our names + numbers to entered in their book. When we finally spilled out of the taxi – it had been pretty crowded, 7 of us plus the driver plus packs in a regular Ambassador taxi – we fortified ourselves first with hot tea at a small, neat + clean café, + then we were off, taking the path winding up the hillside above the town. It was steep, but to my surprise I found I was coping very well. Others managed, naturally enough, better + worse. Annabel smokes a good bit, so had trouble with her breath; one of the Aussie girls, Janet, was very slow + plodding, but both Val + Dave strode on ahead. I rather enjoyed my self-appointed posn at the rear, chatting with whoever happened to be there, & it soon showed itself to be a good-sized group (the Magnificent 7, the Secret 7, the 7 dwarves) since it was small enough to be easily manageable, yet big enough to provide variety of companionship + conversation.
We were soon joined by a group of local people hiking, the same as us, to Taubari. Their unofficial leader, Rodrick, befriended me, to some extent, tho’ I did nothing more than be polite. He invited us all to stop at a house (belonging to a relative, perhaps) for tea. By the standard of similar houses we have visited in Nepal, it was clean + spacious, but there were also many similarities – old women nursing a clay oven, the lack of light in such places. We paid the going rate for our tea, + then moved on once again. The weather was not particularly kind, for we were fogged in for much of the time, but at least there was no rain.
Another 2 or 3 hours brought us to the small village of Megma, where we stopped for some lunch. This was a really luxurious house, one in which I could feel perfectly happy about living in myself, with soft + comfortable chairs, music, + things. It is by the things that we possess + display that we westerners demarcate our homes, + it seems to me it is generally poorer societies which do not feel their need. The people there were kind + efficient, speaking excellent English, + soon served up a splendid lunch. The house was, we were told, just inside the Nepali border. We would be advancing even further into the country when we descended from Megma to Jaubari, our final destination, but nobody seemed to mind, notwithstanding our written promise on our trekking permit application that we would not attempt to enter Nepal, Bhutan, or Tibet. When we reached what I can only assume was the official border post, half an hour’s walk down the road, the single wooden bar was lifted to allow us thro’ without a word – hardly Checkpoint Charlie stuff.
We arrived at Jaubari at a little before 3. There was a big festival on in the village, which had rather excited us, until we actually arrived, + saw that it seemed to involve not much more than loud Indian disco music blaring from horn loudspeakers, plus rather too much booze being drunk. Not that I can claim any moral superiority, since the first thing that Dave + I did, once we’d found a suitable guest-house, was to look for some alcohol ourselves. There were 2 locally-made varieties about, one a ready-bottled, milky beer, (we’ve drunk it in Nepal, but I forget the name), the other prepared there + then buy pouring boiling water over a mixture of millet + what looked like barley, allowing it to steep, the4n drinking the liquid thro’ a wooden straw. It tasted none too exciting, but had the advantage of being very cheap, particularly since all one had to do to get more was pour on more boiling water. It lonely weakened by very slow degrees, + we drank a good deal. All of us, by this time, not just Dave + I.
We had become hungry by now, so soon ordered + tucked in to the local food. There was a good selection available, but this may have been because of the special occasion. It may also have been a mistake on our part, for having eaten, we had nothing to do. We started to play cards in the restaurant, but it was not a large establishment, + quite reasonably they decided they needed the space, so we were handed a Tilley lamp, + asked top move over to our guest-house. We did so, but it really wasn’t satisfactory. The move broke the jolly mood, the room was tiny + claustrophobic, + it was right at the front. We had a constant audience of fascinated spectators, mostly with their noses pressed against the window, some bolder souls venturing inside to look thro’ our door. At lone point the military arrived to insist that we close our door (tho’ this would in no way have ended the public nuisance.) We weren’t able to comply with their request, since the bench on which half of us were sitting jutted right across the doorway, + was too long to be shifted. Our defenders had to content themselves with looking fierce. The card game was not a success. Dave in particular was morose, hating the walk, hating the town, + letting us all know. It didn’t help matters when he performed very badly in the card game.
The evening finished unhappily. We had broken up + dispersed to our separate rooms, when I spotted 2 or 3 urchins still staring intently into our room. I beckoned for them to go away, merely receiving a rude gesture as reply. So after waiting a few seconds, I slipped out the door, hoping to nab them, + was partly successful. I was furious, + clipped one round the ear before he knew what was upon him. His companion swung round + jerked back his head as I raised my hand again. There was a crash as his head cracked against one of the window-panes, + it imploded- his second shock in a couple of moments. I wanted to make sure he was alright, but, seeing the result he took off, with his friend, like a scared rabbit. I’m pretty sure he wasn’t hurt, not physically. And that is what happened. I believe so, at any rate – everything happened so fast, + I have deliberately put the incident pout of my mind till now.
There was, of course, an immediate uproar at the noise, but I feigned total ignorance. Cowardice, I suppose, at having to own up to something for which I was at least partly to blame, but there were other motives. A certain weary laziness, wishing to avoid tedious explanation. A definite desire to avoid any question of financial responsibility for the damage on my part (+in this respect I felt + feel no remorse.) Some shame + self-disgust at having lost my temper. Once again. And a definite desire that the incident, now done, should be completely over. In this last, I was successful, for altho’ inevitably there were various theories + pieces of “evidence” offered, in a short time there was no more to say. I maintained almost complete silence on the matter, even (or especially) to Val, a silence I have broken only now.
And once again I am having to apologise for my lack of self-control. It really does seem to be something that was occurring all too regularly, a sign, I suppose, of my fractured mental state. But otherwise, it was good to feel well, to be out in the open, and to be enjoying the varied company.
