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Filipina OFW Liza Avelino was in Kathmandu when the earthquake struck on April 25.
For her 44th birthday, she set her eyes on reaching the summit of Island Peak, some 10 kilometers away from Mount Everest. But things didn’t go as planned.
After 12 days of climbing, the below-zero climate proved to be too much for the first-timer. Liza caught a cold. She and her pals knew her body won’t manage the climb to the summit, so she made the hard decision to turn back while the rest continued, Philippine flag in hand for Liza.
She waited a full day at the Chukhung base camp for her teammates to return from the summit, after which they all went down to Kathmandu proper, together.
Two days after their return to Kathmandu, the earthquake struck. It was the first time Avelino had ever experienced an earthquake, she tells South China Morning Post. “I don’t know if I was screaming or not, but I was saying, ’I’m going to die. I’m going to die. I felt like the ground would open up and swallow me.”
Liza and her group slept in tents that their sherpas put out at the lawn of the hotel. “We went in search of for food, and walking the streets of Kathmandu, we saw the extent of devastation. It was shocking and hearbreaking. And the aftershocks was nerve-wracking,” she writes to Coconuts Manila over email. “I couldn’t sleep, thinking about the collapsing building and the human suffering.”
While her first Himalayan experience does not include reaching the summit of Island Peak, it consists of far better stories of surviving the mountain, surviving the the quake, getting out alive, seeing life with a new perspective.
Below, she tells Coconuts Manila the 12 things she learned from her experience:
1. There is nothing to complain about.
“Everything was a first time for me — the snowstorms, the -15 degrees temperatures, the high altitude, freezing high wind, breathing in dry air that irritates the throat and passages. Those are some of the challenges that I needed to overcome. But [while I was trying to overcome these challenges], I also witnessed the basic village life of the sherpas and quickly, realized how lucky I am. I shouldn’t complain about my life in Hong Kong. I learned how to appreciate the little things I have in my life. You know, I came back to Hong Kong and my employers let me rest to recover and settle my feathers. On my birthday, I got a birthday cake and a bottle of champagne from them. My friends surprised me with a home-cooked birthday dinner.”
2. Life can go both ways. Let it surprise you.
She says the weather was so bad at Everest base camp that there really was nothing to see. “There was heavy snowing. There were no mountains in sight because of the white out. It was very disappointing.” So their team decided to do a USD$2000-helicopter ride. She didn’t have enough money so you know what happened next? “They treated me to the helicopter ride! OMG The helicopter ride really came as a surprise. I never expected it. We saw the snowcapped mountains from a bird’s eye view and it was spectacular.”
3. Let yourself feel the disappointment. Allow others to comfort you.
“When I realized I wouldn’t be able to summit Island Peak, I cried. The thought of failing was so hard to digest. I was awashed by my emotions — it felt like someone was squeezing my heart and for a moment, it was so hard to breathe. I cried my frustrations out. For 10 minutes, I cried. And then I listened to my teammates give their words of comfort. It took me awhile to compose myself again.”
The harsh conditions that Liza experienced for the first time
4. Look at the brighter side of life.
That is, you’re still alive! Going up the summit, the group passed by the Everest Memorial. “[When I realized I wouldn’t be able to summit,] the image of the Everest Memorial came back to my mind. I realized I shouldn’t lose hope. I can always come back one day and try again. You shouldn’t let frustrations get the better of you. As long as you’re alive, there is hope,” she says.
5. Life is delicate and fragile.
The Everest Memorial really made her think and reflect on life. “It reminded me how delicate and fragile all of life is,” Liza says, a realization that was only intensified by the earthquake. “The following morning, after the quake, we went out to look for food. We walked the streets of Kathmandu and saw the extent of devastation. It was shocking and heartbreaking. And the anticipation of aftershocks was nerve-wracking, but it also made me appreciate life. It made me want to live life to the fullest.”
“The earthquake caught me by surprise. Minutes after the earthquake, we were huddled together in the open area outside the hotel, recovering from the shock. My teammates rushed toward collapsed buildings to help out but there was a series of aftershocks they had to turn back.”
6. It’s okay to feel scared.
“I was scared when the earthquake hit. It caught me by surprise,” says Liza. She was at her hotel, preparing to go to Narayanhiti Palace, when it struck midday. “There were so many what-ifs going through my mind. The following morning after the quake, we all went out to look for food. I wasn’t really hungry but I didn’t want to be left alone in the tent so I went with them looking for food. Moments like that, I think being afraid of dying is a normal human reaction. I couldn’t sleep just thinking about the collapsing buildings. The thought of what else was coming was unnerving.”
7. You have to be patient because other people are probably going through bigger problems than you are.
Two days after the earthquake, Liza went to the airport to catch her flight. “The airport was so crowded; it took me almost 11 hours of lining-up before I finally reached the check-in counter. I was so stressed, I snapped at the airline staff — it was taking her almost 45 minutes just to check my details. She explained that the computer system was slow. The person behind me reminded me to be patient. She reminded me that the staff, too has suffered like everyone else. I was so embarrassed for behaving that way.”
8. Listen to nature; sometimes it holds the answer.
“The first mountain I climbed was Mt. Pulag in December 2009. Standing at the summit at dawn, waiting for the sunrise and looking at the sea of clouds below was an amazing sight. I knew then that I was a mountain goat at heart. Standing on top of moutains gives me a sense of freedom. It makes me feel closer to heaven.”
Lisa anchor-climbing. This is her first time to try this kind of ascent
9. Don’t be blinded by ambition.
“At the Everest Memorial, I was blown away by the big ambitions and the sheer courage and bravery of the fallen climbers. I share the same ambition, but [I’d like to think that] my ambition is not blind. I want to climb the mountain and come back alive to tell my tales.”
10. Triumph will humble you.
Her Nepal trip allowed Liza to “experience the high of realizing my dream, and the low of the devastating earthquake. That I was able to survive and rise about it all is truly humbling.”
11. Step out of your comfort zone and take calculated risks.
This was the first time for Avelino to try anchor-climbing ascent. It was her first time to experience everything — freezing high winds, snowstorms, below-zero temperatures. “But this, along with hard work and perseverance, stepping out of your comfort zone will make you realize your dream. In the end it wasn’t the mountains that I conquered but myself.”
12. Give back.
Liza is now helping raise funds for Enrich, a local charity in Hong Kong that helps and empowers migrant women to find skills and attitudes to find financial freedom. According to SCMP, her trek has already raised 71% of Enrich’s HKD$15,000 goal. She wants to be able to raise enough money to fund workshops for 15 migrant women.
Photos: Liza Avelino
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