"We Left a Piece of Us There" — Everest Base Camp Trek, Part 1

Varun and Aneesh flew into one of the world's most dangerous airports, laced up their boots, and started walking. No warm-up day. No easing in. Just a 17-seat plane, a thin cotton curtain between them and the cockpit, and a Sherpa named Prakash setting the pace.

In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, Raj sits down with Varun and Aneesh to relive their March EBC trek — from the frantic weather delays at Kathmandu's domestic terminal to the grueling uphill grind into Namche Bazaar. Along the way they get honest about overpacking, the surprisingly good toilets, dal bhat for every single meal, and why taking a hot shower at altitude nearly sent Varun into hypothermia.

They also get into the story that was circulating online about Sherpa "scams" — and why, as always, the truth on the ground looked very different from the headlines.

In this episode:

• Why the time on your Lukla flight ticket is basically fiction
• What "dal bhat power" actually means — and why carbs rule the mountain
• The Hillary Bridge, 800 steps, and the climb that will humble you
• Oxygen saturation checks, AMS symptoms, and how Prakash kept them honest
• The two-sided story behind the helicopter evacuation "scam"
• What Varun wishes he'd packed differently (and why the hot shower was a trap)

Part 2 drops next week — Tengboche, Labuche, Gorak Shep, and the moment they finally saw Everest Base Camp.

🎥 Watching on YouTube? The full episode is up with photos, maps and visuals from the trek — Everest Base Camp Trek Part 1 | Lukla to Namche Bazaar — What Nobody Tells You