Kathmandu: A 49-year old Japanese woman
trekker who was lost in Nepal`s mountains for nearly two
weeks, survived by eating grass, drinking river water, taking
shelter in small caves and praying.
Makiko Iwafuchi, was found near a cave by the local
village woman, where she was taking shelter 13 days after she
had gone missing.
Iwafuchi said she left her hotel on May 25 for a short
stroll near the Goshainkunda lake, some 200 km north of
Kathmandu. She left the main trail and could not find it
again.
She said she walked for days but was unable to find
the trail or come in contact with any villagers until Tuesday,
when she heard voices.
A team of trekkers were dispatched to locate her
shortly after she got missing, but with no result.
However, local villagers found her 13 days later in a
small cave.
She has described the story to journalists in
Kathmandu yesterday.
"When I heard the sound of the people, it felt like a
miracle, I praised God and I praised all the people," she
said.
"For two days, I didn`t move.I stayed in a small
cave."
She ate bamboo shoots and leaves and drank lots of
water. She lived in small caves and under rocks, covering
herself with leaves.
"I knew there were not dangerous animals in the area,
so I was safe," Oafish said.
"I prayed if I survive I will change. I will be kind
to people and more generous. There was a couple of times that
I feared I will not survive, but I still believed that God
will give me a second chance," she added.
"From now on, I won`t trek alone. I`ve learned a
lesson from this experience. I know that I got lost due to my
stupidity," she said.
This year a number of Japanese adventurers have met
with bad fortune in the Nepalese mountains.
Mountaineer Takashi Ozaki while attempting to scale
Mt. Everest lost his life. Another Japanese woman Sutuko Masue
Yoshida and her mountaineering guide were swept away by
avalanche as they were trying to scale smaller peak Mt. Naya
Kanga in northern Nepal.
PTI
