It has been a few days of work and nights of sleep adjustment for us, so we’re finally getting back into our routine. I can’t quite say that we’re back to normal because we’re still feeling some of the effects of our out-of-paradigm experiences from trekking in Nepal. But now we’re able to look back and see how we’ve changed and what we learned. Richard had some specific objectives for himself as far as leading his family through the adventure, overcoming his physical challenges, and making some personal decisions. He really wanted to give his teenage boys some memorable experiences to help shape their character and give them some footing in life. He also wanted to get past the setback he had a few years previous from injuring his leg, which took him completely out of action for many months. Another personal motivation for him was the guidance he had gleaned from books he had read on leadership that all told of the great effect of taking personal time for such a grueling challenge (and they directly mentioned high elevation) to come upon personal revelations. Through the fog of his return to the United States he already sees that he reached his goals solidly and he’s making the adjustment to deal with what’s really important in his life.

We noticed a great improvement in place at the point of entry at the Kathmandu airport. As you first climb down from the plane and line up in the immigration queue you are required to pay a fee of US $30 (yes, they take dollars there) for a tourist visa of 60 days. However, you need to provide a few of your own passport-sized photos, and in the past there was no way to get new photos if you forgot to bring them with you on the plane. The immigration checkpoint had no photo booth and you were not allowed to move on. You couldn’t have anyone pack up your face to go into the city for a new photo. I was relieved to find that there is an automated photo booth available there now. I’m glad that the Nepalese government have embraced the philosophy in this case that tourists are not perfect. Interestingly, the immigration point at the Bangkok airport has a webcam at each desk and they just snap a picture of you on the spot and they don’t charge a fee for their visa.