Flying to Lukla for the start of an 18 day trek into the Everest Region

Hi,

It will be nice to get away from all the car exhaust in Kathmandu, and up into the clear air of the high Himalayas again. I'm flying to Lukla tomorrow for the start of an 18 day trek into the Everest region.  This will be my 2nd trek in Nepal.  Can't wait.   Weather forecast is cold and clear.

Kathmandu has some interesting sites, including old temples, the crowded Thamel backpacker zone, some really insane taxi drivers, and some good restaurants.  Never boring, but really chaotic.  For a change I ordered a hot Tibet Beer called Tongba last night.  It's a fermented millet drink, and actually pretty good.  Elsie and Ramesh, my trekking agents, have arranged all my permits, flight to Lukla, bus to Pokhara, and Porter/Guides, so logistics has been pretty easy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tongba

Talk again in 18 days, after the trek.

Cheers, Dave

Dashain Festival and a Close Shave

Nepal is in the middle of the 15 day Dashain Festival.  Over the past few days I've seen thousands of goats being rounded up.  The live goats are carried in trucks, in cars, on Motorbikes, and I even saw one carried on a bicycle.  Each Hindu household sacrifices one goat to the goddess Durga.  Ritual bathing, and drenching of the goddess for days in blood symbolizes the victory of good over evil. Actually the goats did not look very happy about it.  Today is very peaceful with ritual singing and family gatherings. The goats have all gone to heaven.

The festival is also known for its emphasis on the family gatherings, as well as on a renewal of community ties. People return from all parts of the world, as well as different parts of the country, to celebrate together.

Today is "Tika day" of the festival, when a mixture of rice, yogurt and vermilion(red) is prepared by the women. This preparation is known as "tika". Elders put this tika mixture on the forehead of younger relatives to bless them with abundance in the upcoming years. The red also symbolizes the blood that ties the family together. This morning I took a small local boat to a Hindu Temple in the middle of a Lake.  The temple was the center of a pilgrimage for family members to apply Tika to each other.

Yesterday when I was Mountain Biking, I saw lots of these huge Bamboo Swings called Pings. These swings are constructed with the help of community members using traditional methods which make the use of ropes made from tough grass, bamboo sticks and wood. Heights of some swings exceed twenty feet and one can swing really high.  The kids all wanted me to stop and try their swings and get their picture taken (I'll post some in my Nepal Album).  Actually, it was kind of fun.  I even saw an elderly Hindu lady in elegant silk dress swinging like crazy on one of these bamboo contraptions. She was having a blast.

After returning from 13 days of trekking, I resembled a Yeti, with a thick beard growth.  I saw a sign saying "Handsome Parlour" so I thought I'd try this local Barber for a shave.   I was glad to see my Barber put a new blade in his straight razor, but was still pretty nervous. For just over $1, I really got pampered. He spent a good 10 minutes lathering up my face and softening the stubble.  He expertly shaved  my face, and then lathered me up again for a second pass in the other direction.  After this he used a cooling alum balm, before finishing up by cracking his knuckles over my head and performing a vigorous head and face massage - eyeballs included.  Wow, this was the closest shave I've ever had, and quite the experience.

-Dave

Stunning Trekking to the Annapurna Sanctuary

I arrived back in Pokhara, Nepal after 13 days of trekking in the Annapurna Sanctuary region.  Physically it was not as hard as I thought it might be, but we had lots of time and took it slow.  The altitude only bothered my a couple days, and I then seemed to acclimatize well.  The scenery was stunning, and the local people very friendly.  There were lots of trekkers, as this is peak season, but I was always able to get a bed in a Guesthouse.  The food was pretty good too (pictures of the menu are in my Nepal Album.
I've posted a bunch more photos in my Nepal Album at:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/7M66UdjtRd2i9WwL7

After relaxing for a few days in the lakeside area of Pokhara, I'll endure the 7 hour bus back to Kathmandu, and then fly to Lukla for the start of an 18 day trek to Everest Basecamp and over a high pass to Gokyo Lakes.

Cheers,

Dave

Dave is starting the 14 day Annapurna Trek

Hi,

After a couple days in Kathmandu, I'm heading into the big mountains tomorrow.  I met up with my Porter at 6:15am today, and we traveled together on the 7 hour bus trip to Pokara.  It really a spectacular ride as we climbed out of the bowl that Kathmandu sits in, and headed out along a huge mountain river and canyon.  I've got a sore butt from sitting all day, but it was never a boring ride.  Right now I'm watching the sunset over the Lakeside area, from the rooftop of my Guesthouse.  Tomorrow the "big" adventure begins, as we start trekking into the Annapurana region.  The plan is to trek for 14 days into Annapurana Basecamp at 4100 meter, via a number of mountain villages.  Right now we're at 700 meters, so we have some elevation to gain.  It's nice to get out of Kathmandu and breath some clean air.  Although Kathmandu is incredibly interesting with non-stop "action", it has some of the worst air pollution in Asia.  

I'm posting some photos to my Nepal Album, but the internet is pretty slow so not sure how many I'll get uploaded.  Talk to you again in 2 weeks.

Arrived in Kathmandu after 36 hours flying, airport transfers, and an overnight in a hotel in Bangkok

Well, I made it.  I'm in Kathmandu, almost exactly the other side of this round ball we call Earth.  Calgary > Tokyo > Bangkok > Kathmandu.  A bit grueling at times, but not really that bad.  Broke the trip up with a nice little hotel near the Bangkok airport for 5 hours sleep.  Kathmandu is an eye opener for sure.  I just arrived, and haven't got my head around it yet.  It's pretty chaotic to say the least.  Getting thru Nepal customs-immigration took almost an hour when two jumbo jets landed, and they only had 3 officials working the desk.  Chatted with a nice lady from New Zealand while we waited in line, which helped pass the time.  The taxi from the Airport to my hotel took almost an hour.  It was only 5 km, but the traffic is something out of this world.  I think the traffic here is more frightening than anything I've seen yet in Asia.  Even walking is pretty frightening.  The motorcycles are all maniacs.

     I met with Elsie and Ramesh, my Trekking agents and finalized the final details for the first trek to the Annapurna Sanctuary.  Elsie is an interesting lady.  She is a retired Bank Manager in her 70's, and runs a Charity here in Nepal.  She also co-owns a trekking agency.  She lives half the time in High River, and half the time in Nepal.  I got a kick out of her email address......  "stilltrekkin@gmail.com".  I will meet my Guide on Sunday, and head up into the mountains on Monday.  Can't wait.

-Cheers, Dave