I will be touring Africa in couple of weeks and for that, some of my supporters from New York are going to organize a fundraiser on coming Saturday 23rd July at Yeti Nepalese and Japanese Cuisine Sunny Side New York. During the event, Mr. Sonam Tenzing Lama, New York Life insurance agent will be handing over a High Tech bicycle valued at US$ 2,500.00 to me.

Travelling through 25 countries and covering a total distance of 36,000KM was definitely not easy but I had a lot of encouragements and supports from people from every nook and corner. Karma G. Sherpa, Lama Chewang Sherpa, Mingmar Sherpa owner of Yeti Restaurant, Kami Sherpa and later Namgel Lama, owner of Lama Accounting joined in the bandwagon of my sponsors for my South America and Central America tour. I would like to thank all the Nepalese and various communities all over USA, Canada, Haiti and the World for their generous donations. Without their help and the money I raised from a fundraiser prior to my tour, I would never have completed this tour or any other tours. I look forward to seeing you this Saturday evening at Yeti Restaurant

.

4316 Queens Boulevard

Sunnyside, NY 11104-4610
Phone: (718) 784-9384

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yeti-of-Heizien/181575321880370

 
Peace and Harmony
Furtemba Sherpa

I have completed my tour of South America and Central America. I will be going in the direction of Africa some time between the 7^th of August and the 10^th of August. My tour of this region went smoothly and successfully.

I started my journey of South America and Central America from New York on the 10^th July 2009. I visited 25 countries in this region. I stayed in New York for about four months applying visas for nine countries and I also stayed in Canada for about two weeks. My tour came in full swing on the 3^rd December as I started my way from Bahamas and ended it in Mexico before I headed back to New York on the 9^th February 2011.

Throughout every of my journey I have been blessed to meet gracious people who welcomed me into their house and offered food even though we have just met. I ran into a family in Suriname whose ancestor bought his family here some 150 to 160 years ago. With Suriname’s history, it is one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse countries in the world. They recognised the Nepali flag though they barely spoke the Nepali language, it was enlightening to see how far and wide we are extended and yet we still know our core roots. I also got the chance to hang around with a group of very nice Columbian students who told me about the lovely place the country Columbia is, and took me to places of interest and history.

Some years ago, I met a Colonel Juan Santiago Gana Araneda in an Army camp in Haiti for less than a fraction of a minute when he gave me his number and asked me to give him a call when and if I go to Chile. I had my trust issues but he turned out to be true man, always ready to lend a helping hand. He went out of his way to assist me around my way to Chile; he gathered media for me and paid for my lodging. He made my stay in Chile very straightforward. On my way through Bolivia, I met Jose Luis Prado Gutierrez a busy lawyer from La Paz. La Paz is located at an elevation of 3,650 m above sea level, making it the world’s highest capital city, or administrative capital. Some how, it reminded me very much of Kathmandu though Nepal’s capital city is on a lower height. Gutierrez helped me garner a lot of media attention from magazines to television shows to newspapers. He also arranged meetings with Mayors of the several places, and gave my message a lot of importance. I have to thank Col. Araneda from Chile and Gutierrez for their self-sacrificing help.

I also camped outside a lot during this part of the tour. I camped eight days with Tribal members from the Amazon Jungle who were protesting about their territory outside the Parliament House. They looked rough and dangerous but they were very simple, pleasant people. We communicated most of the time by hand signs and intuitively but we created a very strong bond between us, they shed tears when I had to leave for my next journey to Brazil where I camped 57 days everywhere, especially outside petrol pump stations. It was convenient as they had shower taps and toiletries in their toilet also because Brazil is a very beautiful place and it was more appealing to spend nights camping outside than getting a hotel room.

But I have also had my share of hardships during the trip, I got in a car accident in Venezuela that did major damage to the front of my bicycle but left me almost unscratched. I also got struck in a snowy area in Argentia for some hours and my foods were all frozen in the cold. I had nothing to eat and I was famished.

I would also like to pay my respects to the families and friends of those we lost when a catastrophic magnitude of 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti on the 12^th January 2010, followed by a series of 52 more aftershocks with the highest magnitude reaching a magnitude of 5.2. I was supposed there during that time but I changed my plans and left for Haiti earlier on the 13^th December instead of the 10^th of January because my initial plan of visiting Cuba changed as it was too expensive.

I would like to thank each and every individual who helped made this tour successful. I am sorry for not being about to mention everyone who helped in any way. I will be writing about the rest of the countries I visited in Caribbean Island in North America, South America and Central America very soon. Some way or other way, I will let everyone know of the things you help me with…in a book or something. Do not worry, I have not forgotten about anything.

Peace and Harmony to you,

Furtemba Sherpa