The past week has been one hell of a ride. For those of my friends and my family who are so concern about me, I am safe and sound. I am really so thankful for the people in my life that are so concern about me and texted/called me to make sure I am still alive.
Day 1 // Sat 25th Apr
Yes, I was in Thamel, Kathmandu, Nepal when the first earthquake striked. I was inside my friend’s Thangka paintings shop when the lights first went out. Initially, I thought it was the usual loadshedding problem in Nepal. However, to my surprise, the whole shop started to shake and some of the paintings began to drop on the floor. The owner of the shop immediately asked me to squat down on the floor, and that was when I realised, it was an earthquake. The tremor lasted for about 20 seconds and I headed out of the shop after that. Vehicles were honking and people were rushing everywhere and the whole street looked extremely chaotic.
Right after the first tremor, I headed from Thamel towards Durburmarg and then to Kathmandu Mall to see the situation of the earthquake. I spent the night at the refugee camp with my friend and her family in an open field where it was much safer. The first night was so uncomfortable. Besides having to stay awake in case of tremors, there was no space inside the tents to sleep anymore. We had to sit on the chairs outside the tent all the way till morning when everyone else got up and we could find a place to sleep.
the damage done to shops on the first day
just one road beside Thamel, an electricity tower fell
situation near Durburmarg on Day 1
Day 2 // Sun 26th Apr
The second day, most of us were woken up by a big tremor. Not me, ‘cos I didn’t sleep. It lasted for around 10 seconds but the whole tent and the trees were shaking. I even witnessed a few people, with their sleeping bags on, jumping up when the earth shook. It was quite a funny sight, I must say. We spent the whole day playing guitar, sitting at the field, eating instant noodles and waiting for time to pass. We also went back to Thamel to grab some blankets and at that time, another big tremor occurred. This time, I guess we all freaked out a little because we were at an area with only shop houses and no open space. Thank god the tremor lasted for a few seconds only. That night, it rained really heavily and we went to a sheltered building for cover because the tents were too crowded and water was dripping from all corners of the tent.
Thamel on the 2nd day
Day 3 // Mon 27th Apr
On the third day, I guess most of us were already used to the small little tremors that keeps occurring. For lunch, we finally had some rice. DHAL BAHT. We were all so thankful for the kind neighbour who cooked a whole batch of dhal, baht and tarkari for my friend’s family and I.
At night I sat in a group with a few Nepalis to play the guitar, sing, and drink some Khukri. Everything felt really cool. Even when the ground was shaking, we were all so chill and continued doing what we were doing.
the tentages were constantly so crowded
Day 4 // Tue 28th Apr
This day, we heard about the swine flu epidemic that killed 3 people at another camp and many from there headed over towards our camp. Not only was there swine flu, there was also Dysentery going on because of the unsanitary toilets and tents. Many families, including us, decided to go back home instead of staying at the field. Either ways, it was unsafe. However, the radio broadcasted that the earthquake had more or less been stabilised already and the tremors would be either small or none at all. That night, I stayed at a hotel and finally, I had some excess to wifi. Over the past few days, there was barely any connection because many of the electricity and telecom towers in Ktm had collapsed. I contacted the Singapore embassy in new Delhi and they told me to head towards the Singapore booth at the airport in the morning.
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Day 5 // Wed 29th Apr
In the morning, I went to the airport and heard news that the military flights which was FOC had already taken off the day before and I had to pay for the next Silkair flight towards Singapore. Naturally, I did not want to because it was USD375 and I felt that Ktm was really safe at that time, despite the lack of food and water. The only reason I decided to head back to Singapore was to keep my friends and family members’ minds at ease and to let them see me alive and safe. Sometimes, I really have to think about the people that care about me. That night, I heard from MFA that there is going to be another military flight scheduled to come in on the next day and I could take it if it manages to land at the airport. We also went around Ktm to look at the severity of the quake.
mess around RNAC, Kathmandu
Day 6 // Thu 30th Apr
On Thursday, I headed to the airport at 0830 and after a long wait for the plane to get clearance and get ready, we took off at 1430.
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Day 7 // Fri 1st May
Today is Friday, Day 07 of the Himalyan Earthquake and I am not in Nepal anymore. The military flight had to land overnight in Phuket for refuel and therefore, we have one extra night in Phuket. The plane ride was quite an experience. We had to use earplugs because the engine was really loud but it was a really cool ride.
Right now, I am lying on the bed in the hotel room in Phuket feeling so thankful for everything that happened the past days. I am just so glad that I survived the earthquake and the epidemic. My prayers go out to all the families who got their homes destroyed or have friends/family that were lost in the disaster. Sometimes, the universe is really unfair. I would never have thought that this trip would end like this but well, everything happens for a reason. Right?
saw this on the first day of the earthquake
gotta sleep, need to wake up at 0915 for the flight in the morning
xx
Solo Expeditions 