Gandruk, Annapurna, Nepal
Reminiscings from the Roof of the World
100 Gazillion Stairs
Thursday-Friday, March 9-10. What an incredibly unbelievable time we had experienced in Syauli Bazaar! The three of us, Holly, Vivian, and I, worked together in such harmony. It was just as Miss Emma, a friend from home, had prayed and prophesied—that we would be a 3-strand cord. Of course, I knew that God had an awesome plan in all of this. Yet the enemy had been putting doubt in my heart, causing me to worry that nothing special would happen. Even in Kathmandu I had felt an attack of intimidation, shyness, and fear that was making it hard for me to hear God. And Vivian had sensed a spirit of oppression bringing confusion and distraction. Of course the enemy would put up a fight. But God had been preparing me for this trip for years. I knew He had wonderful things planned. Lord, forgive me for listening to fear and doubt!
Thursday began early and it was grueling. As soon as we left Syauli Bazaar the stairs began. The entire day was steeply uphill and there were the stairs, lots of stairs. Now you may be thinking that 100 gazillion is hyperbole. Let me assure you that my legs would have begged to differ. I am thinking it must have taken years for those rock steps to have been laid into the mountain with no equipment except human labor. Since this is one of if not the most hiked trail in Nepal I assume that they were laid to prevent erosion, not for ease of walking. There was no uniformity, each step was a different size and height from the previous one, uneven and not always flat so one has to be looking at the next step always. Three hours on a stair stepper would be a breeze in comparison to our three hours climbing up to Gandruk. But, we took frequent breaks, the company was good, and the scenery was unimaginable, stunning enough to distract one’s mind from the pain.
At one rest stop there was a small trailside store. Bhim started conversation with the shopkeeper while we were downing a CocaCola and snack. She told Bhim that her father had become a follower of Jesus and she found that disgusting. Well Bhim and Daniel L. talked with her for a few minutes and then she prayed to Jesus with them. Just like that. Amazing. If for nothing else that painful day was completely worth while.
As there are no roads in those mountains all goods are delivered to the villages either on the backs of men or mules. In that region mule trains are very common both going up the trail carrying goods and then coming back down. Nepali mules are very small, American donkey size. So we kept calling them donkeys. And our Nepali friends patiently kept explaining to us that, no, they are mules. When we protested they informed us that a donkey has a cross on its back and Nepali mules are small. And so we succumbed to their wisdom. Our hosts quickly explained to us that when you meet a mule train you must always move to the inside (mountain side) because the mules don’t give an inch and will literally push a person off the ledge.
Finally we arrived in Gandruk (Ghandrung) village at 6400 feet (1951 m). Right next to the stair-step trail were chairs and I am pretty sure that I dropped into the very first one! My legs were done. As we sat for a while and drank water we noticed other trekkers that popped up the trail did the same so we didn’t feel quite so wimpy. Conveniently the chairs belonged to Sakura Tea House where we would stay the night. Also very conveniently the tea house kitchen had outside service with the most breathtaking views one could imagine. And, they served pasta. The restaurant owners were a very tall British man and his tiny Nepali wife. They had an actual menu, and the food choices were a welcome variety of cuisines. There was also rudimentary electric service and outside the hotel was quite an unusual sight, a satellite phone booth. On the trail side of the dining patio was a large, black and white goat tied in place with a rope. He was quite friendly and the hotel owners informed me that his name was Michael. Well, my son’s name is Michael and I will chalk it up to the delirium of exhaustion but because of his name I immediately became emotionally attached to Michael the goat and began to greatly miss my son.
Although we were very tired, in the afternoon we prayed through the village but didn’t get a lot of insight at the time. On our walk we met a teacher and chatted with her for a few minutes. Her husband, the school headmaster, was out of town so we hoped that we could talk with him when we came back with the full team. Village teachers carry a lot of influence so we felt this was a key connection.
The Nepalese sing a lot and they sing well. Daniel L sings Jesus songs virtually nonstop. He sings on the trail, in the restaurant, wherever. He also had a great boldness and gifting for sharing Truth with everyone he saw. I greatly admired his boldness and felt a longing to be more like that.
As I fell asleep I was listening to a playlist on my Sony MiniDisc Walkman. The song Shout to the North by Delirious? touched me deeply. (Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble? would also be very relevant to our journey.) As I listened I clearly felt God saying that the team needs to shout over Gandruk. Finally I prayed, “Lord, give me boldness. Please speak to us tomorrow about this area. Lead us and guide us!”
Friday we made a pleasant trek to Chomrong and back. At 7100 feet (2150 m) it was a a six mile climb. On the way we crossed a swinging bridge. There was a large, black, water buffalo bull standing near the end of the bridge behind a very large rock. To me he looked like he was guarding the bridge, staring ahead and upwards without moving. He made Holly think of a troll guarding a bridge. Vivian felt that he was a sentinel. I felt that he represented the spirit of a defiant protector, guarding the Gurung people from receiving Truth. He however didn’t appear to be strong because he was hiding behind the bolder. I believed that the “shout” would break him. From Chomrong we were able to pray over the Gurung villages, including Gandruk, on both sides of the mountain and the Holy Spirit moved me to weep over that region for a few minutes.
By the time I fell asleep that night I had the strategy for the Ghandruk region:
- shout from a high place to break the bondage over the people
- pray over the Gandruk School
- pray for the key people of the village
- pray for time alone with the hotel owner (I felt that his in-laws could be a hindrance.)
- pray against the sentinel (identified by seeing the water buffalo) guarding the Gurung people from the Truth.
Coffee, Tea, and Reverie 
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