The Greatest Airplane Ride Of My Life
The pilot’s voice suddenly breaks through the soft hum of the engines, “Ladies and gentlemen… If you look out of your windows, you will see Mount Everest on your left-hand side.”
MOUNT. FREAKING. EVEREST.
My mouth drops, my eyes widen, my heart rockets straight through my chest, and there it is, in all of its splendid glory, not a cloud blocking its regal presence. I’ve never witnessed anything more humbling before in my life. We live here on this raging planet with mountain peaks reaching the elevation that a commercial jet soars at, and I’m trying to breathe this in. It’s impossible. We pass by Mount Everest, and I turn to Jeremy and say, “I don’t think I soaked that in. It’s too surreal.”
I awoke this morning at 5:30 in the morning, tasting coffee half-asleep, and then onto the bustling rush hour streets of Kathmandu. We arrive at the airport, bodies scuttling outside to board Bhutan Airlines. The air is cool and soft, and there’s a delicate haze that hangs in the city sky. The plane darts down the runway, then suddenly lifts, with the far-reaching, overflowing landscape of Kathmandu below us. The Himalayas are hushed in the distance, but then the range gradually begins to show more and more of its complexion and personality and wisdom. The King of all Kings, Mount Everest, shows its face about 25 minutes into the flight, and then onto the landing…
I heard it’s one of the most dangerous airports, with only a few, well-trained pilots certified to handle this kind of arduous approach. The plane makes several steep banks, left then right and then left again, swerving and maneuvering past mountain peaks on both sides reaching 18,000 feet. The wing tips are barely clearing the dips and dives of the deep valley that we are flying straight through. It’s jarring, and I could hear short inhalation of breaths behind me, every passenger experiencing a ride they’ve never been on before. The plane finally touches ground and ecstatic applause erupts. We made it to Bhutan. And that was the greatest airplane ride of my life.
Cheers,
Tera
