In 2019, I set out to become the first American-born porter to aid a Mt. Everest expedition.
For several weeks, I lived and worked as a porter in the Himalayan mountains: carrying tourists’ bags miles across mountains, sometimes sleeping on the floor and eating a hard diet. Every morning, we woke up early to collect bags from our tourists. We then wrapped a strap around our foreheads and carried them using our heads. It can really hurt, so for hours you walk looking at the ground, usually alone, until you finally arrive.
Unfortunately, while tourists sleep in hotels, porters sleep in porter's homes and they are often much, much worse. They’re very cold and don’t have access to refrigeration like we do in America. So, porters usually eat the same thing almost every single night, and sometimes for lunch, too. After dinner, we usually slept together because there aren’t enough beds. But sometimes, you have to sleep on the floor instead.
The closer you get to Everest, the colder things become. Water starts freezing and there’s often no toilet paper for the bathroom! Sometimes, when it’s really cold, homeowners will light a fire in a big metal urn in the middle of the room. But without firewood, how do you make fire? Well, near Everest, someone collects pieces of frozen yak poop outside and then lights them on fire inside the metal urn! This can warm a small room, and usually everyone gathers around. But often, porter homes don’t use this either.
