Ignorance ain't bliss

I'm one of those people that likes to do lots of preparation before I go trekking. I scour the internet for websites by other people that have done the same trek, I read the trekking guide books and any other books about the region that I can find. I even prepare my journals - gluing in pictures of the places I'm going to, copying out little quotes, writing in useful words in Nepali - one year I even pasted in the day-to-day trip notes provided by Peregrine just so I could compare them to the reality (not even close!). I like to learn a little about the villages I'm going to be trekking through, just so I don't miss out on special experiences - yeti skulls at Khumjung, hot springs at Chame, 900 year old monasteries at Braga. I like the feeling of being immersed in the landscape around me - knowing the names of the mountains, rivers, birds and plants - rather than it being reduced to just 'scenery' that I'm passing through on my way to my next destination.

To most people, I'm probably a little over-prepared. They're happy just knowing the name of the village they're staying in that night and how long they still have to go before reaching the 'final' destination and I guess that's OK. But there was one woman I encountered on my last trek who just astounded me. We were making our way up the Namche hill on the trail to Everest. I passed her as she paused for a rest. She was looking worn out and not as if she was enjoying herself at all. I stopped for a few friendly words of encouragement and asked her where her group was headed and she didn't know! She did not know what trek she had signed up for! That just does my head in, that does. What, did someone say to her, "Hey come and do this trip in Nepal" and she went "What the heck, sure", handed over her money, packed her bags and flew halfway around the world and never even found out exactly where she was going? She certainly had no idea getting to wherever she was going was as tough as it was and was not at all impressed with the Namche hill. I didn't have the heart to tell her she was only half way up it!