Pandey has arrived! He stumbled off the bus from Washington D.C. with the heaviest backpack I've ever tried to lift, and then he went back for two more bags. He proudly confided to me that he's been carting these bags around the U.S. all by himself with no assistance...so it was nothing (he said) that we had to walk 1.5 miles to the train station. I was a little concerned, however, when I couldn't get him to remove his down jacket.
Don't worry. We made it. Mind you, this is a man who leads 15 Himalayan expeditions a year. He's one tough cookie.
Although Durf and I find Pandey to be seriously urbane and complex in the extreme, he invariably describes himself to others as a simple man of the Himalayas. During this, his first trip to the U.S., he has visited Newark NJ, Washington D.C., Portland OR, and now NYC. Sheesh, what a combo. He thinks Newark might be "hell on earth," mostly because he had difficulty finding a friendly person to give him directions. He loved Portland as a place of physical beauty and humble friendly people. As for NYC, it terrifies him. In fact, I'm not sure he wants to go near it. Having heard of NYC pickpockets and "trout" (?) and other unsavories, he seems most interested in finding a local Indian restaurant that will serve him pukka vegetarian food.
Stay tuned!
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