AFTERWARD
Random Thoughts
Was it worth it?
Definitely.
Do I regret not getting to the summit?
Once in a rare while.
What would I have done differently?
I would have:
--arrived a day or two earlier than I did in order to relax and acclimate more. Moshi is at about 2500 feet elevation. Not very high, but I live essentially at sea level and now know that I acclimate slowly. Hard-earned wisdom.
--climbed Mount Meru first, both for the hell of it and as an acclimatization exercise. Others I met in Africa and elsewhere did this and highly recommended it.
--brought along a hydration pack and drank a lot more water than I did. I averaged around 3-4 liters a day and probably should have drank twice as much. Who knows?
Will I ever return to Kilimanjaro to try again?
I’d very much like to. Possibly via the Western Breach route—it looks incredible.
A Brief Epilogue
While I felt great the day we left Barafu Hut, Nik continued to feel ill effects from his summit bid well beyond Kilimanjaro. 2 weeks after we returned from Africa, he was standing across the street from the World Trade Center’s South Tower when it began to collapse. He immediately sprinted to his apartment, over 90 blocks away, covered in white dust. I saw the Towers burn from a train on my way to work, where I then watched the collapse on TV along with spellbound co-workers. It was a rough month, but Nik's fine now, using his survival stories as pick-up material with professional women.
Our guide Godlisten started e-mailing me in early autumn 2001. Soon afterward came the inevitable request for money--ostensibly to send his daughter to a private school in Moshi where English is taught. I wasn’t that surprised, just disappointed that I got singled out as the cash cow. I went ahead and sent him a package containing money and photos, which apparently never arrived. A few months later I sent him money again, this time using Western Union. He got that and thanked me for it. To date he has never once asked Nik nor the Viennese for money. No one was surprised. Americans are so gullible.
Andrea continues her work as an architect. We’re waiting for her to take on the Himalayas. Believe me, Everest won’t stand a chance.
Nik’s crazy brother Ianko left the office he and Andrea worked at for a job which pays a salary. A tough decision, but I think he can live with it. It is hoped he can get his act sufficiently together in order to participate in future adventures. Should the opportunity arise, Nik and I will be along to pretend we’re there to save his life. Just like the last time.