It was one week since we landed in Brunei Darussalam, but the sound, sights, smell of Himalayas and the ringing bells of passing yaks still lingering in my head. After recuperating and following a strict medication to clear off the nasty Khumbu cough, I began to reflect back on the achievement made by the 8 members of Everest Trekking Amal Team.
We were the first Bruneian Team to reach Everest Base Camp and along the way we summited Mount Kalapatthar. We held a chess competition at the highest level ever been played at EBC, which was a world’s first. Lastly, we promoted active aging activity.
Such feat will not be achieved without full dedication and support of each team member. I am really very proud for all of them. The terrains which we passed through were very tough and we could easily turned back if we did not have strong foundations. One of the moment which I want to share with you is the en route to the summit of Mount Kalapatthar…
I remembered vividly the final 50m stretch. I could no longer stand upright. The tuft of cloud looked harmless from a distance till it swooped in at a roaring 80 knots, hitting directly at my face. I pushed myself to climb the final stretch of granite, knowingly that PS and HA had just made it, celebrating behind a big rock. Head down, breathing hard in the rarified air, I finally reached the top of Kalapatthar (5,545m), one of the features en route Everest Base Camp, after a grueling four hour struggle. I was dumbfounded for a few minutes, PS was wondering what had happened to me. There it was, beautiful beyond words, the view of the mighty Everest and its surrounding Himalayas Mountains, Lhotse, Nuptse and Pumori. After 18 months of fantasizing about this trek, undergoing weekly local trekking hills and several KinaBalu high-altitude climbing and 12 days of a back-breaking trek, I was in front of Mount Everest. Together with my mates, we waved the national flag of Negara Brunei Darusallam proudly and proclaimed to be the first 3 Bruneians ever to set foot on the summit of Mount Kalapatthar. Phew, what a moment to remember.
There were more moments such as this, but the fact remains that the success of the team was because of the professionalism shown by each BCF member especially during hard time and a good team work. Here below, I attempt to scribble some of the observation I saw them during our expedition together.
LVC; He is most fittest among all of members. In any local exercise trekking, he would be the one to beat; always ahead of the team and first on the line. However, at Himalayas where breathing was hard and temperature was at the extreme, the body took its own time to get acclimatized. At Dingboche, 4530m which is higher that Mount KK, LVC’s condition took its toll and did not allow him to go further; a wise decision and made great achievement already. The team was happy to see him again at Kathmandu.
PK; We all worried about him because of his health condition that required continuous monitoring. On the contrary, his health was pretty good and well managed throughout the expedition. He trekked up all the way to EBC and even became the first to arrive back at Lukla on the the last 20 km journey back.
Lim; He was our equipment and clothing advisor who will correct any shortcomings which he observed. His pace was no different from at sea level which was slow and steady. However, he had shown few signs of mountain sickness from 3000 m onwards and gotten worse at Dingboche. Together with LVC, they were advised to descend to Tengboche, thereafter airlifted.
PS; He is the strongest trekker among us. His ability to interact easily with other trekkers and made some witty comments had made our trip more fun and memorable. He played a big part in the Radio Television Live Telecast to Bruneian via satellite telephone every other day during the trip. PS was the first Bruneian to reach Mount Kalapatthar.
HA; Being the youngest in the squad, he was always under pressure to perform. He has shown his tenacity and persistence to the challenge offered by the Himalaya during trekking especially in the snow storm while breathing hard for more oxygen. HA’s last famous words ” being a Kalapattharian, I only perform very well above sea level”
PAR; Being the oldest, he had the right to be the last in the pack. He has shown a good example of what active aging means to fellow Bruneians. At the near age of 60, PAR made all the way to EBC with the help of mule technology. On the way back at Gorak Shep, 5164 m, PAR has called it a day because of total exhaustion and mountain sickness and requested for an airlift.
eMon; He was always in good spirit and company irrespective of the situation. When asked to lead a team, he would make sure, all members were in order, waited and looked after for everyone. He would wallop any type of foods offered by the Teahouses; no wonder he made more visits to the loos more than others. He was a fine trekker and one of the 6 that made it to EBC.
HZ; That’s me. I think my role as a team leader has made it easier because each team member was well aligned with the objectives and much integrated and well behaved.
It is not over yet, we are still receiving donations from the public to meet our aspiration target. We have just announced to the public that the deadline for donations to the charity pot will be extended till end July 2010. This is such a worthy call, as such 100% of all donations received from members of the public will be used for the benefit of the poor.
At this juncture, I also would like to take the opportunity to thank JAPEM, BCF members, HSBC, Telbru, DST , Bmobile, Borneo Bulletin, Brunei Times, RTB and members of the public, for their prayers and wonderful support throughout our expedition. And also to those who donated generously for the Everest Trekking Amal.
Till then,
HZ
L-R pk, eMon, PAR, HZ, Lim, LVC, HA, PS
