Survival - 7. Surv Chapter 7

Once again, a few weeks before the next school holidays, Uncle Nat announced our next destination, this time a trip to Nepal, and we would be spending the whole time climbing up to the EBC - Everest Base Camp, at a height of 5,600 metres and distance of 62 kilometres, return. We would be spending four days, doing day trips into the Himalayan mountains, based in Kathmandu, to acclimatise to the heights, before we begin the climb to EBC. This time I would be climbing to almost 2,00 metres above Mt Cook, so I was a little nervous about doing this climb, but Uncle Nat ensured me that I can achieve anything.

When the Spring holidays finally arrived, we set off to Kathmandu, Nepal, stopping in Singapore for a day, and once we had spent half a day settling in the Nepalese capital, we started our trips into the Himalayan mountains, to start our acclimatising. When the day arrived for the start of the main climb, some of the other climbers were surprised that a young person like me was doing the climb to Everest Base Camp.

It took us 11 days to complete the return trek to the EBC, and we spentover a day, admiring the views of the highest mountain on Earth, and acclimatising to the heights, before we began the climb back down again. With one more overnight stay in Kathmandu, we flew back to Australia, via Singapore, arriving with just half a day to spare, to get organised for a new school term, this time, on the first day, I went straight to the Administration building, and spent ten minutes with Miss Hampton, telling her of the trek and climb up to the Everest Base Camp.

“I think you are the luckiest young man in Australia, to be able to do all of these amazing adventures, and you look very fit as a result of all the activity as well” Miss Hampton said to me, before sending me off to get ready for assembly. When I arrived home after the first day back at school, Uncle Nat was already home, and he was relaxing and reading a book.

“My CO is getting very jealous of adventure trips that we have been taking over the past few years, and he suggests that we take him on ournext trip” Uncle Nat said to me, after I had dumped my school backpack into my room and sat in a chair. “What did you say to that, uncle?” I replied, and Uncle Nat chuckled, “I said if he loses about 10 to 15 kilos’ and gets physically fit, he is most welcome to join us” he answered.

“What is our next destination Uncle?” I asked, “Well if you thought the EBC was pretty extreme, you better hand onto your britches, as I have a great one this time, I’m thinking of us trying out Mt Vinson” Uncle Nat replied, “Where is… wait a minute, I remember reading about that place once… Antarctica, if I remember correctly” I replied a little surprised at the location.

“Very good Nephew, you know your world geography very well, it is 4,892 metres high, we will have to fly to Chile first, then catch a supply ship, and sail for 4 days to get to Antarctica, and a helicopter will fly us to the base of the mountain. We will have to carry everything that we need for the 6-day climb, and the chopper will collect us when we return to the base of the mountain” uncle Nat informed me.

“I presume you chose this location to scare the Brigadier away from the trip” I asked, which made Uncle Nat laugh, “No it’s not that, it is only because the southern summer, is the only time you can do the summit climb, the rest of the time, it is too cold and too windy” Uncle Nat responded. “Well for the first time, I am going to ask that you rethink the trip location, as I am not too keen on freezing my nuts off” I said.

“Oh ok, well I guess I better start planning again, I guess Mawson Peak is out of the plan also?” Uncle Nat said sounding a little disappointed that I didn’t want to go to Antarctica, “No Uncle that is an active Volcano, I am not going anywhere near Heard Island” I replied. “Oh well, we will just have to go to Mt Kilimanjaro then, won’t we” Uncle Nat said with a big smile.

“Tanzania sounds perfect, now that you have finished my geography lesson, is that where we are going during the next holidays?” I replied, and this is when Uncle Nat produced the plane tickets for Nairobi, Kenya, via Perth.

I have already organised my work holidays to fit in, as usual, so it is all settled, we leave on the Saturday before Christmas” Uncle Nat announced, as he handed me a 3-week long holiday itinerary. As usual, we spent the weekends planning and preparing for the up-coming trip, making sure that we have everything for the holiday.

With this climb going about 250 metres higher than Everest Base camp, it was going to be just as difficult as that trip in Nepal, especially when we are travelling during Summer. For the first time ever, I was going to be spending Christmas without my parents, and in another country, andI was feeling very sad about that, but I was pleased that I had Uncle Nat with me.

When we arrived in the capital of Kenya, we settled into our overnight accommodation, and after an early dinner, we retired to our room, to get a good night’s sleep. The following morning, which was Christmas eve, we were collected from our hotel, and taken back to the airport, for the one-hour flight to Kilimanjaro Airport, followed by a 2-hour bus ride, to the small town of Marangu, in Tanzania, on the south east side of Mt Kilimanjaro, just 300 metres up the road from where the rest of the trekkers will be staying.

Once we had arrived at our destination, Uncle Nat and I walked through the front gate, and into a large and spacious garden. “Wow, this is incredible, looks fairly flash for a hotel” I commented. “Well it isn’t really a hotel, it is the home of a very good and old family friend, who is kind enough to put us up for a while” Uncle Nat replied, as we walked through the large green lawns and gardens, and we approached a huge two-level house, with the ground level only having half walls, from the floor to my chest high.

Inside the lower level, there was a huge lounge and recreation area, with a huge spiral staircase in the centre, this is when I dropped my luggage and stared at the polished wooden stairs, that were at least 3 metres wide. As I began to look around the large room carefully, “What’s wrong nephew?” Uncle Nat asked me, “I have this very weird feeling that I have been here before, for some reason, this place looks familiar to me” I replied.

Uncle Nat chuckled as he sat down in a lounge chair, “That is probably because you have” Uncle Nat replied, “What, When, How?” I replied feeling a bit stunned, as I sat down, as I began to get a little dizzy at the news. “Well you were conceived here, and your parents returned to Australia, when your mum was three months pregnant, just as she we beginning to show signs, and when you were five months old, your family came back home to here in Marangu” Uncle Nat replied.

“Sawa, mtoto mdogo wa cub” I voice from the stairs said, as she came down the stairs, “I’m not a lion cub no more, I am all grown up” I replied automatically, and when I realised what I said, I slapped my hand over my mouth, which made Uncle Nat and the lady laugh. “Nanny Afya, ni kwamba wewe?” (Nanny Afya, is that really you?) I said as I stood up and faced the approaching lady, and she nodded her head yes, and I rushed into her arms.

“Now, now Simba, it is a time of joy, not for crying” the lady – my former nanny said to me. “These are happy tears Nanny Afya, it is so good to see you again” I replied, as I continued to hug her. “Hello Nathan, it’s good to see you again, you are looking well, are you still in the Army?” Nanny Afya said to my uncle, “Hello Afya, yes, I am a Major now, thanks for getting this already for us, I hope it wasn’t too much trouble” Uncle Nat said.

“Nonsense, it is good to be working for the family once again, my boys are all grown up and left home, so I just been keeping myself busy in the community, and since the last tenants moved out last year, I have been keeping busy with the house and gardens here as well” Nanny Afya replied.

“From what I have seen of the garden so far, you have done a wonderful job” Uncle Nat said, “You sister, arranged for some money in the housekeeping account like before, so I have been looking after the place for eight months now” Nanny Afya replied, “Well it is wonderful, what you have done” Uncle Nat added.

“Lazima nirudi kuandaa chakula cha mchana kwa wasafiri wawili wenye njaa” Nanny Afya said as she headed towards the stairs, “Nanny, I understood all of that, but I do not remember any of the Swahili words in reply” I said to Nanny, and she just chuckled as she walked up the stairs. “Is Nanny’s quarters still along the back wall on this level” I asked Uncle Nat, “Yes mate they are, do you remember anything else?” my uncle asked me.

“I think, the kitchen, laundry and extra bathroom are directly above her quarters, and there is a big dining room, a small lounge and library on one side, and a study and four bedrooms with a shared bathroom, on the other side, plus a wide veranda all around the house in the upper level” I replied.

“All correct, so let’s get settled in, then we will have some lunch, and have a look around the area, it has been about two years since I was last here” Uncle Nat said, as we grabbed our luggage and headed upstairs.The house was just how I remembered it, but I wasn’t sure how old I was when we left.

“Ulikuwa karibu na miaka mitano wakati uliondoka kurudi Australia, ni vyema kukupa nyuma baada ya muda mrefu” Nanny Afya said as we sat down for lunch. “You are going to have to translate for me Jacob, my Swahili is very rusty, I only got little bits of that” Uncle Nat said to me.

I smiled, “Nanny said that I was almost 5 years old when we left to return to Australia, and that it is good to have us back again” I replied, and Nanny smiled and nodded her head, as she served us our meals, and sat down to eat as well, which I was pleased to see. “Yes, it is definitely good to be back here again” Uncle Nat said.

“So, am I correct in assuming that our family still owns this house?” I asked Uncle Nat, “Yes, that is right, the whole 15 acres of land, house and gardens and the three guest bungalows out the back, if they are still there” Uncle Nat replied. “Ndiyo, bado wanapo, lakini hawajawahi kutumika kwa muda mrefu sana, nawaweka vumbi bure, lakini hiyo ndiyo yote” Nanny said, “Don’t bother Jacob, I got enough of that to understand” Uncle Nat said before I could translate.

“So, you are not so rusty after all” I said with a big grin, and Uncle Nat just chuckled, “Afya, do you have a vehicle, so we can go and get some supplies, to start work on cleaning up the bungalows?” Uncle Nat asked Nanny, “Yes sir, the family car is still in the garage, I use it from time to time to keep it going” Afya replied, and Uncle Nat looked shocked, “You mean we still have the old diesel forest green, ‘97 Jeep Cherokee?” Uncle Nat asked.

“Wow cool, can I get to drive it?” I asked enthusiastically, “Yes, maybe, but only on the off roads, well away from normal traffic” Uncle Nat replied, as he was handed the keys to the jeep. We went for a drive around the district, going down the hill, as it is 1500 metres above sea level, where the house is located. The next town of Himo, at the junction of the A23 highway is only 840 metres above sea level, and turning right at the junction, we headed west towards Moshi, where they have all the painting supplies, needed to get the outside of the bungalows looking good again.

Uncle Nat allowed me to drive the jeep from Himo, back to the house on the gravel road, and I made sure that I drove very carefully, especially when Nanny wasn’t looking too pleased about me driving. Inside the three bungalows, the furniture was old, and some of it needed some minor repairs, mostly it was just a coat of fresh paint, and maybe some new paintings, curtains, and a few other little items to freshen the places up a little.

Apart from the paint, brushes and scrappers, Nanny bought some material to make new curtains, a few prints, and several rugs and cushions, to brighten them all up a lot, and we got to work to clean up the first bungalow, ready for painting. When we relaxed and enjoyed a cool drink on the veranda, I asked, “Uncle, do my parents know about this” I asked.

“Yes nephew, when I suggested to them that I take you for an African Safari over the Christmas holidays, my sister – your mum, reminded me that the family still owns the bungalow in Marangu, so I organised for us to spend Christmas here, and a few days later we will do the hike up to the peak” my uncle replied.

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing, since we would be starting our trek early in a few days, and Uncle Nat made a call to the trekking company, to let them know that we had private accommodation just 300 metres up the road from the hotel, and he gave them the address. “Yes, he is with me, we have been doing a lot of hiking over the past 5 years, since he was 12, including Mt Cook in New Zealand, and more recently the Kokoda Track…. Yes, see you in a few days, goodbye” I heard Uncle Nat say before ending the call.

“Do you remember Keto… he used to do gardening for us here, well he is one of the trek porters for our trip” Uncle Nat said to me, “Yes, I think so, I will know when I see him, I guess” I replied. After a small Christmas celebration, on our first day of the trek, we were up early, and Nanny had a big breakfast prepared for us, and we had our backpacks with everything we needed for the trek ready, for the start of our next big adventure, my 11th mountain, and at 5985 metres above sea level, it is to be the highest that I have climbed so far.

“Isn’t he a bit too young to be doing anything like this climb?” one of the Dutch climbers said referring to me, “May I ask you sir, how many mountains have you climbed in your lifetime?” Uncle Nat responded, “Probably five more than the lad has.

I have climbed The Eiger in Switzerland, at 3970 metres, Mt Triglav in Slovenia, at 2,864m, Mt Etna, Sicily in Italy at 3350 metres, Mt Ararat in Turkey, at 5137 metres and Mount Olympus, Litochoro in Greece, at 2919 metres” the man responded with a big grin.