One Kind of Trekking
The first few days in Ladakh have been absolutely stunning and full of intrigue, adventure, and a whole lot of work. I get most of my exercise braving the rugged, tortuous trail between clothing garments or shoes strewn across the floor of my cavernlike room. My destination: the bathroom. As I stagger my way through the dimly lit, cramped cave, my olfactory senses are assailed by the aromatic stench of day old vomit mingled with the overwhelming product of our dashes to the bathroom. It is breathtaking indeed. I do my best to remain upright as I stumble back to my bed, wearily signaling Jordan that the bathroom is now vacant for a few minutes. I reach my bed and collapse on it after the long trek only to have it hit back. I didn't know my body could ache so much from sleeping. The covers seem totally insufficient as my body is overtaken in a fit of shivering.
From that point on, there is so much to do. Sleep is not kind enough to offer any sort of refuge. So the battle against fever induced hallucinations rages on amidst incoherent thoughts. The constant shifting of sleeping positions is what I occupy myself with mostly, that and convincing my body it has enough strength to hoist the nalgene tantalizing my parched mouth half a foot away. As soon as my arm crashes back down, I realize it's about that time to make the trek to the bathroom again. And repeat, with less light and sleep, stronger smells, and a whole lot of frustration.
Other than that, Ladakh has just been great. We're all pretty much recovered, so we can joke about it now. Hope everyone at home is having a good time; we sure are.
Andrew