A quiet bus full of hikers about to start their journey I went to the Torres del Paine park. The entrance to the park made me instantly realise this hike was going to be different. Almost a hundred people waiting for the next bus to go the hike starting point. A welcome center filled with souvenirs of the hike from keychains to t-shirts. This was not what I am used to.

I wanted to be social and do a hike where I end up with people for New Years so I knew what I was getting myself into but this seemed too much. Thankfully I am doing the O hike (125 KMs over 7 nights) which has a lot fewer people than the W hike which is much more accessible.

Few hours into the hike I walk past a couple and found out they were Dutch. A successful businessman in solar energy and the other a doctor + head of medical informatics in a hospital in the Netherlands. The world is indeed small. We talked about my company NiceDay, healthcare in general and how to scale businesses. In a few hours we were at our first refugio of the day. The hut had hot water, cold beers and even fast WiFi you could buy powered by Star-link.

The best thing of this hike was that you mostly had the same group of people doing the same hike for the next 7 nights and you really bond with the whole group through the experience of a nice hike in nature and living together. A relationship of 7 days on a hike can be as strong as knowing someone for months.

I met a family of three (father + 2 children) where the hike was a gift from the children for the father’s 50th birthday.

People on sabbatical, people on long holidays and people being back home in Chile to hike in nature.

The hike itself was moderate but not extremely challenging for me and my back being in good shape to carry atleast my backpack without tent + sleeping bag, the trip just became an experience of making new friends.

As I danced on the table on New Years celebrating with porters who were carrying bags for people, hikers we met on the trail and friends who I became close with on the trail, yes you assholes if you are reading this, I realised the ridiculousness of the situation.

I am but a boy from Tando Qaiser. My parents made the big move from the village to the city for my education. They moved just 25 km away from the village but it was a huge step to take that very few people in the village had dared to take at that time. Here I was now a Dutch/Pakistani, learning Chilean phrases in the mountains all of us having a completely different life but were the same nonetheless.

The mountain really makes you think.

As I end my hike, I don’t come down alone but with new friends. All of us changing our plans to make sure we can spend the next couple of days together before we head out to different directions but sure to meet again.

Se me calentó el hocico.