Hike out to Phaplu; Medical care; the most amazing jeep ride we'll ever take

We leave Taksindu, hike up to the pass and then it's downhill to Phaplu.  The Himalaya's start to peak out from the clouds, later that afternoon the second half of our group of trekkers make it back to Phaplu (some folks fly out on a helicopter from Chhulemu to do a second trek, before returning to CO; we are headed to SE Asia!).  We stay the night at a trekkers lodge in Phaplu, and are scheduled to fly out the next morning.  A plane lands, other folks get on, and it takes off (it was supposed to be us as I understand it  - it's Nepal, so go with the flow), and then the clouds roll in.  So no more flights that day.  After much discussion, it is decided that we will be taking jeeps back  - a 11-13 hour drive on a rough and often precipitous 4 wheel drive road to Kathmandu.  Meanwhile we are in search of a doctor/X-Ray machine in this remote Nepalese village.  There actually is one and after waiting quite a while Donna gets her finger X-rayed; a brief doctor consult, and some meds (which she does not ending up using; all for 11 US dollars).  We had to wait a long time because there was a young girl who was a burn victim ( a pot of hot water fell on head, burning her face and other parts of her) who had been carried out all the way from near Chhulemu.  One of our fellow trekkers had volunteered to give up their seat on the airplane to Kathmandu, but the flight was canceled.  So she was put in a third  4 wheel drive for the arduous jeep ride to Kathmandu.  Donna and I unfortunately got in a jeep that was on its last legs - bald tires, a crazy driver, and gas fumes leaking into the passenger compartment.  There were numerous times that I was sure we would not make it back, careening around curves almost on two wheels with thousand foot drop offs.  Most of the ride was at night, and after dark we stopped in a village to drop off our cook for the last week.  We switched jeeps at that point - new jeep was sound, but jam packed.  The village was like a scene from the ending of Apocalypse Now.  Open fires burning next to the road, crowds of poor villagers everywhere; Donna and I had to pee, and we were told to just wander off the road a few feet, which we did.  It was a surreal experience.  Obviously we did survive, but the outcome was in doubt on several occasions.  Unfortunatley I had put away my camera so no photos - they would have been epic.

 Burn victims being carried into Phaplu (an 8 hour hike from the village where she was burned)