Today was not supposed to be a long day, but it was exhausting. We faced a lot of steep uphills with a heavy bag in tow. Some faraway snow-capped mountains were visible, and today's views were more imposing and spectacular than yesterday. A lot of farmland was next to the winding trail, and many schoolchildren traversed the path that formed a confluence with a rapidly flowing river down the canyon along the trail. Hikers would need to cross back and forth the river three times by narrow suspension bridges strung across the canyon, which seemed bottomless; the scary scene was made worse by the loud sound of gusting mountain winds blowing down from the high mountains, making the bridges sway widely from side to side. Crossing the bridge was daunting, and I would fix my eyes on a spot on the backpack of the person in front to counter acrophobia. Thus, I did not take even one photo while crossing. We saw a person trying but failing to get up enough nerves to step on the scariest bridge. We did not know how her trip ended up.

Over half of the trail, or about 4km/2.5ml, was a non-stopping upward climb. Many porters and herds of transportation animals passed us. My partner was a tough hiker who started hiking when he was little. We had partnered to do long hikes once a year for over a decade. This hike was his third, but my first to EBC. Today, for some reason, he had been struggling at every step, and I started to worry about what to do if he could not make it. I walked ahead of him, stopped when I was about to lose sight of him, and started walking again when he just caught up. By the time we reached Namche, it was getting late. Fortunately, he had been here before, and we quickly found a teahouse he was familiar with.

Namche Bazaar (3,440m/11,283ft) is situated in a valley on the steep sides of a high mountain, facing several even higher mountains. The view is unique and stunning. It is the trading center of the Khumbu district where Mount Everest National Park is. Trekking is the only means, other than helicopters, to access the mountains. Several routes into the mountain areas meet here. Every Saturday is Market Day for locals all over the region to buy and sell crops and produce. There are at least 60 teahouses here where one can take a decent hot shower, charge a phone for free, and enjoy net surfing. These would all become an extravagant treat in the deep mountains.

Denver in the U.S. is known to be the Mile-High City, and many visitors may face minor altitude sickness, such as headache and dizziness. Namche Bazaar is two miles high. All hikers will take one extra day here to acclimate. Thus, we stayed for two nights.