Mount Qomolangma - the Tibetan and Chinese name for Mount Everest

The marker in the photo indicates an altitude of 5200 meters, a daunting 17,060 feet above sea level. Even as a seasoned long-distance runner, I could already feel the effects of the extreme (for me) elevation. Just one day prior, I had arrived in Lhasa - the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region nestled in a valley of the Himalayas alongside the frigid waters of the Lhasa River. At 11,995 feet above sea level, this city was already a challenge for me. But only more time acclimating could have prepared me for what awaited me at the base camp on the Tibetan side of Mount Everest - known as the "North Base Camp" or "Tibet Everest Base Camp." Before my arrival by plane to Lhasa, I had spent a week in Xi'an - a bustling metropolis with an elevation of only 1,329 feet, serving as both the capital of Shaanxi Province in China and one of the main starting points for the ancient Silk Road. The rapid change in altitude provided no opportunity for my body to adjust, making it a nervous experience spending the night at 5200 meters. Sleep was an elusive luxury, each time I felt myself drifting off I would jolt awake to my labored breathing and pounding heart (I could hear it in my ears) working to catch up on my oxygen level. It was nothing short of a harrowing adventure that left me questioning my safety. In Lhasa, the three-floor stair-climb to my room left me light-headed and a bit out of breath, but after living at base camp for eighteen hours, and returning to Lhasa, those stairs seemed almost effortless. Talk about altitude training for endurance - I can testify that it does work. For the next three days in Lhasa, I was fully acclimated to this slightly more than 2-mile elevation. A day or so later, I returned to Xi'an via train - the distance between Lhasa and Xi'an is 1,780 miles. Three pairs of normal-speed trains run between the two cities, with a journey time of 30–37 hours. All of these trains originate in Lhasa Railway Station, where I boarded the train. The train ride was scenic Xi-an to Lhasa YouTube video.

For an interesting look at life at the base of Mt. Everest, here's a video.