.
No higher place to go than Everest



BY DINESH WAGLE


KATHMANDU, May 28 - The three-page "brief curriculum vitae" of Dr Pavel Bem, posted on his personal website, surprisingly misses one of his most important achievements: being atop Mt Everest.
"You don't fill a political CV with too much leisurely activities," said a smiling Bem, who scaled Everest from Nepal on May 18 after being denied permission by Chinese authorities in mid-April to climb the world's tallest peak from the northern route.

With a degree in medicine, Bem is the mayor of Prague, capital of the Czech Republic. One of the most popular politicians in the landlocked central European nation, Bem's prolonged absence from office even drew criticism from the Prague Assembly and President Vaclav Klaus.

What the critics didn't see is that Bem had dreamt of this since he was a kid.

"People should have dreams," he said as dancers in the restaurant in Kathmandu were swinging their hips to the instrumental tune of a Nepali folk song. "And those dreams should come true. That is important in life."

Bem was born 10 years after the historic ascent of Everest by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgey Sherpa. He heard of this feat when he was eight. Two years later, his bedroom displayed a big photo of the two men smiling atop Everest.

"Since then, I had been dreaming of being at the same height," said Bem who started climbing at 18. He has been pursuing this love for the past 25 years.

Nine years ago, he started conquering the Seven Summits, highest peaks of all continents, of which he has managed to climb six so far, except the one in Antarctica. "Everest was logically a piece of the puzzle," said the mayor. "(It is) definitely the most important and beautiful."

When asked why people risk their lives, and in his case even a political career, for this hobby, he said thoughtfully, "I have been searching for an answer for long. Probably I will never find one. Climbing is not only a sport or a means to achieve something. It is the ultimate test of human possibilities, and personal limits.

It is about breaking those limits and making you physiologically, psychologically and spiritually able to reach a step higher."

How did he feel at the summit?

"Astonished," he said. "There is no higher place to go."

Ben is happy that his childhood dream has come true. But the smile on his face faded when he was asked about the Chinese refusal to let him enter the communist state to summit Everest from the northern route.

He was stopped at Tatopani "for no reason."

"You never know what the reason of any refusal is," he said. "We had all the necessary documents and permits. I don't have any reason to make a strong political statement, but I was extremely frustrated."

He returned to Kathmandu and applied for a permit at the Tourism Ministry.

"I am very thankful to the government of Nepal," said Bem who flew back to his country Sunday.

"The Chinese refusal provided me the opportunity to understand more about Nepal and wonderful Nepalis. The next country I will take my kids to is Nepal. I will definitely come back with them."



Posted on: 2007-05-27 20:50:34 (Server Time)