Final thoughts about my trip
Despite some initial nervousness, I am really glad that I took the trip to Nepal. The Nepalese people are wonderful, very friendly and eager to please. It's easy to put a smile on their face if you just learn the two basic phrases "Namaste" for hello and "Dhanyabaad" for thank you. You often find yourself wishing that they spoke more English and you more Nepalese so you could hold more conversations. To help with communication try to use tone of voice as well as make gestures or draw pictures to help get your points across.
The scenery is incredible as long as you can get out of the major cities. I highly recommend the Annapurna trek as long as you are smart enough to prepare and train a little bit before hand. I also am in favor of supporting the local economy by hiring a guide and porter. Our guide and porter cost us $16 per day total for the two of them. It's a great way to be able to help the local Nepalese make some extra money.
Money and bartering
When you exchange your money, it's best to do large sums at once as you can negotiate for better rates. However, when you get paid, they will pay you with almost all 1,000 rupee notes. This is so that you spend more later as it can be difficult to break a 1,000 rupee note. Whenever you get a chance, make sure you break the 1,000 rupee notes.
Split your money into two different locations for safekeeping. Bury at least half of it deep in your backpack away from prying eyes and fingers. Always carry around 1,000 rupees in small bills in a pocket for the daily purchases so you don't dig out your big wad of cash in front of strangers. While on the trail, carry an extra amount in another pocket to pay the Maoists in case you get stopped on the trail. You don't want to be pulling out a large wad of money in front of them either.
For bartering, to be successful, make sure you aren't wearing anything that shows that you have a lot of money. Leave your expensive cameras and hiking gear with someone else when you head into a lodge to negotiate. Also, turn your watch so the face is on the bottom of your wrist so it's harder to see what kind of watch you are wearing.
Prices, especially in Katmandu are often first offered at between three and ten times more than what you will actually end up paying for the item. Never take a first offer as you can always barter them down. Always be prepared to walk away. I often found it helpful in negotiations to show them the money as that seemed to be a better response. Showing them the 100 rupees that I was willing to pay for a taxi ride or something else that was small helped make it more tangible to them and even though they would say no, as soon as I turned my back to walk away, they were ready to accept my offer. Out on the trail, you can barter down on snacks if you or your hiking party buy multiple things at once. Always confirm the terms before you hand over any money.
Water
Water is a critical part of success on the trail. I recommend bringing along your own water pump as it helps keep you drinking clean water as you hike. A UV pen is not enough as a man from Liverpool explained to me when he found a small worm still swimming in his water after using a UV pen on it.
A water pump will also help you save a ton of money because you won't have to repeatedly buy bottles of water when out on the trail. Everywhere we went, we were always able to get free buckets of water to filter into our camel pouches and Nalgene bottles. There also is the environmental aspect because Nepal has no trash program so items just end up on the side of the trail.
I recommend no less than three liters of water per person, per day. Buy a two liter camel pouch as it is great to be able to take a sip of water without having to break stride while hiking. Add a one liter Nalgene bottle to the kit to complete the water requirements and have a more portable solution which is also a great backup.
The water in Katmandu and Pokhara is not safe to drink. You will most likely get sick if you try to drink it. Use bottled or filtered water for everything when you are in Katmandu or Pokhara.
Cameras
The amount of incredible scenery on a trip through Nepal definitely warrants the extra expense of a great camera. Make sure that you take out insurance on it for accidents and definitely familiarize yourself with its functions and usage before taking it on your trip.
A small point and shoot camera is an absolute necessity, even if you own a huge SLR camera. The small point and shoots are great for capturing the everyday life on the trail and can easily be slipped in and out of a pocket when you don't want to advertise that you are carrying a camera. They also can more easily be pulled out in bad weather when the big SLRs are all bundled up for safety.
Don't pack your camera away in your bag with the intention that you will grab it out when you want to take a photo. I did this in the early part of the trail and on several other days and I definitely regret missing a lot of photo opportunities. Often the moment passes before you have the camera out and ready, or maybe your pack is fitting perfectly and you don't want to be bothered with taking it off and digging the camera out. If you're bringing a camera along, make sure it's always readily accessible for photo opportunities.
There will be scattered places on the trail to charge camera batteries, but you will have to pay to use the electricity. I recommend at least three full sets of batteries for the camera. The last thing you want to do is run out of juice at a critical moment. Also, make sure you have enough memory cards and storage for a ton of photos. I made sure that I had enough space to take 500 photos a week. That may sound like a lot, but its really only about 70 photos a day, which can get eaten up quick if you're trying to take things like panoramas. Videos with the small point and shoot cameras also eat up storage space in a hurry.
Miscellaneous opinions
#1 - Make sure you make an effort to get along with people out on the trail. Since almost everyone is going in the same direction, there is a good possibility you will see the same people over and over again. We kept meeting up with the same British couple for almost a straight week. I also saw the same groups of Israelis, Australians and Germans multiple times on the trail. Making new friends also makes travelling a lot more fun and interesting and they are also a great source of information about what might be coming up next or what to avoid. Several people we encountered on the trail had met one another while traveling in other countries in Southeast Asia and liked one another so much, that they decided to keep travelling together.
#2 - Take the high road and path when hiking whenever possible. This will help out tremendously with acclimatization. Also be smart about taking extra days of rest to acclimatize. We took the high road to Manang and rested for a day in Bryaga. While there, we did the Ice Lake hike which was a 4,000 feet climb. It was an absolute beast of a climb, but we were so much better prepared for the pass at Thorong La because we did the climb. Also, by the time we got to Thorong Phedi, we were a lot better acclimatized than other hikers due to taking the high roads when possible before returning to sleep at a lower altitude. In Thorong Phedi, we took an extra day and while there hiked over 1,000 feet up to High Camp. It was another part of acclimatization and also was nice to familiarize ourselves with the beginning part of the hike the next morning as we crossed the summit. Pay attention to the signs of altitude sickness and give yourselves plenty of time to do the trek. You can’t rush altitude as it affects everyone differently.
#3 - Don’t skimp on gear. I know the temptation might be there to save a couple of bucks by buying some no-name stuff, but how much is your life worth? Even though the trek is well traveled, I took the view that I planned to bring along gear that I could trust my life to if necessary. Two days after we crossed the pass at Thorong La, they got five feet of snow and had to close the pass. For the people that were close to the top in High Camp or Thorong Phedi, their gear might have meant the difference between life and death, or losing some fingers and toes if they had to leave. Buy as much of your gear before you come to Nepal as possible as almost everything you buy in Nepal will be knockoffs from China. Lord only knows what sort of chemicals are in the stuff they are selling. Don’t be gung-ho and stupid. It’s cold up at the high altitudes and you need proper gear. We met a British couple who had their trip delayed for several days so the husband could recover from snow blindness because he thought he didn’t need to wear sunglasses when going over the pass. Remember how much sunburn hurts? Now imagine it on your corneas. That’s what snow blindness is - you sunburn your eyeballs.