When you embark on the 10 Days Everest Base Camp Trek, something peculiar occurs. Time doesn't seem normal. There are moments when time seems very slow, as if it were extending endlessly. There are also times when it goes extremely fast. At home, time is a regular ticking clock, seconds and minutes appear steady. However, while hiking, time behaves differently. You will be doing your walking, breathing, and looking around, and all of a sudden, you realize that your watch is not the one that commands any longer. Time becomes weird. You experience it differently, and this is one of the mountain's charms.
Level One: The Experience of Slower Time is Due to Walking
The walk is not a race. You will be walking for hours every day. Your legs will be working slowly, one step at a time. The air is less oxygenated, so your breathing is slower. Each step seems to take longer than it actually is. If you are fatigued, each minute will become longer for you. You start observing the smallest things: the way your shoes hit the ground, the sound of the wind, the scent of the pine trees. Your consciousness is fixed on the present. There is no need to rush. Time stretches because you are paying attention to each step, each breath, each heartbeat.
It turns out that when you walk slowly and feel your body, you realize the world around you is still moving at its normal speed, but your mind has slowed down. That is the reason why you feel time is slow on the Everest trail. The mountains impart the virtue of patience. They teach you that life is sometimes not about rushing.
Level Two: Time Feels Slower When You Wait
On the trek, you sometimes wait. You wait for tea. You wait for other hikers. You wait for your guide or for clouds to clear. Waiting feels long because you are awake and noticing everything. You hear distant rivers, birds, and footsteps of others. The sun slowly moves across the sky. Even your own thoughts feel louder.
Waiting on the mountain is different from waiting at home. At home, waiting feels boring. On the trail, waiting feels alive. Time slows because your senses are wide open. You notice small details you would never see in your busy life. The wind touches your face, the clouds move gently, and the mountains stay quiet but huge. These moments make time feel slower, and yet they are peaceful.
Level Three: One Experiences Faster Time Due to Happiness
The fact that some moments are felt to be very slow does not deny the existence of other moments that seem to come and go very fast. When one gets to the point of viewing a beautiful land or a small village, one's heart becomes very happy and full. You laugh with a bunch of trekkers crying out together. You sip a hot cup of tea and chat. You feel proud of climbing a hill. You do not hold your watch in these moments. You do not count minutes. You are full of life.
When your brain is excited and happy, you feel like time has passed very quickly. Suddenly, the long journey does not seem long anymore. Hours seem to fly and that's because your heart is occupied with the enjoyment of life. On the trek, you will be able to tell that time flies when you are busy smiling, talking, or just looking at the mountains. Joy has the ability to make time move rapidly.
Level Four: Time Slows Down at Night
The night on the Everest trail has nothing to do with the night at home. Once you lie down in your bed in a tea house, it is as if the world around you has stopped. The mountains are dark and still. Your body is tired, and your thoughts are soft. You hear the wind outside. You hear the stars shining in the sky above.
Night slows down by time because your senses are very relaxed. You are aware of each breath. You are aware of each heartbeat. You sense your body letting go of all the effort. Even though you are not seeing, you are already noticing the details because your mind is still working. A slow, gentle time that makes your day feel longer, yet peaceful it is.
Level Five: Time Seems to Go Fast When One is in Nature
During the day, the sun moves quickly across the sky. Clouds float fast. The river in the valley rushes past. When you walk under the sun, the scenery changes often. Mountains and trees pass by, and you notice the small flowers along the trail.
Although you are walking slowly, seeing is a rather fast mind thing since there is so much that one can see. It is because your senses are engaged in lots of things that time is experienced as speeding up. You see beauty all over the place. The mountain air, the yak bells, and the laughter of people set the pace of time to be lively and fast.
Level Six: Time Feels Slow Because of Fatigue
By day four or five, your body is tired. Your legs ache. Your back hurts from the bag. Your lungs feel heavy because of the thin air. When your body is tired, each step feels long. Each hour feels longer than it should.
Fatigue stretches time. A climb that usually feels short may now feel like it takes forever. However, such a slow time teaches you quite a few things. It educates you in the virtues of patience. It tells you to rest. It makes you appreciate each step. Your body learns endurance, and your mind learns strength each day.
Level Seven: One Feels Time Speed Up While Being With Other People
When you are on the trail, you get a chance to meet fellow trekkers. You exchange stories. You have a nice laugh together. You support each other as you climb the hill. The time just flies by when you are having a conversation or exchanging smiles with someone. You might not even be aware of it until the end of the day.
It is due to your mind being occupied with the connection rather than the clock that this happens. Times of friendship, laughter, or giving a helping hand to someone make one's day go by in a flash. Human interaction on the Everest trek is the ultimate time accelerator. You think that a day has gone by, but in reality, it is only half over.
Level Eight: Experiencing Time is Slower When One is Alone
It sometimes happens that you decide to take a stroll alone. The trail will be very quiet. You hear your own footsteps and breaths. The silence is all around. Alone, you see different things from birds, rocks to clouds.
Time is extended when you are alone as your mind dwells on details no one else can see. You think more. You feel more. You notice yourself and the trail. Alone, you can understand the slow, deep flow of time. You also realize that silence and solitude make the world feel bigger.
Level Nine: Time Seems to Pass Quickly When You Are Near the Goal
The closer you get to Everest Base Camp, the faster your heart beats. You feel really excited. In front of you, you see the tents and flags. It is as if every step you make becomes lighter, even though your legs may be pretty tired.
The feeling of excitement makes time pass quicker. The final stretch seems to be over very quickly because your whole attention is on the hope and delight of the destination. You do not remember all the walking hours; you only see the joy of being very close to your goal. That is the reason why sometimes time goes really fast on the trail.
Level Ten: Understanding Time on the Trek
Once you complete the 10 Days Everest Base Camp Trek, you have a completely different perspective on time. It no longer only consists of the basic units: seconds, minutes, and hours. Time becomes an emotion. That is how synchronously the heart, body, and mind move. At times, it stretches slowly so the eye can rest on beauty. At times, it flies so one can have fun.
The trek conveys that time is a living phenomenon. It varies with one's ideas, emotions, and steps. Time in the mountains is a mentor. It conveys the core values of patience, happiness, endurance, connection and presence. In the end, you take this new perception back home. Time might still be ticking there, but you experience it differently inside. You know when to slow down and when to let joy make it fly.
Conclusion: Time as a Friend on the Everest Trail
The 10 Days Everest Base Camp Trek is the place where time turns into a friend. It is the one that calmly walks beside you when you are tired. It matches your pace when you are happy. It speaks to you at night and sings at other times. You learn to observe, respect, listen, and have fun with it. Time stops being your dictator. Time becomes a companion on every step of your journey, teaching you lessons that stay in your heart forever.
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