Nepal Diary

Nepal Pics Page 1 of 2

Nepal Pics Page 2 of 2

It's been a while since we last communicated with the world, mainly because we have been high up in the Himalayas for the last 17 days. Looking back, it seems months ago that we had our last tango with death on Vietnamese roads on our way to the airport, but I remember very clearly the feeling of relief as we boarded our Thai Air plane and the vague feeling that we were being rescued from something sinister. The night spent in Bangkok Airport wasn't nearly as unpleasant or uncomfortable as we expected and before we knew it, we had arrived safely in Kathmandu and had been met by representatives from the ACME guesthouse and warmly welcomed to Nepal.

We had a few days to relax in Thamel and settle in before the guys arrived, and of course the moment of truth when we got to check into the Hotel Tibet (next to the Radisson but not quite as posh) and were officially on holiday. It was fantastic to see Martin, Joe and Chris, though I'm sure all of us were a little apprehensive about what we were about to take on. Our tour leader, Raj, soon made us feel at ease and we have been in his very capable hands for the last three weeks or so.

One of the first things you learn about Nepal on arrival is the issue with electricity. The issue is that there's not much of it. Eight hours a day to be precise, though you'll never be able to work out quite which eight hours you're going to get. Most of the power in Nepal is generated by hydroelectrics, so naturally in the dry season, there's not a lot being generated. You soon get used to the power cuts though, and leaving a head torch somewhere handy becomes second nature.

The trek itself was excellent, if challenging - we all had days where we needed a little encouragement to keep going. We trekked though a huge diversity of landscapes, from barren, windswept mountain tops to lush mossy rainforest. We got up at 5am (on my birthday!) to take on the long slog up to one of the highest passes in the world at 5416m in the moonlight, and back down again. We were very lucky to be doing the trek so early in the season when there is hardly anyone on the paths, and to have the chance to do it before all the paths are transformed into roads (which will be done within the next three years). The reality of the road building exercise hit us hard one day when we were caught among some very loud explosions and thought we were about to be caught under a landslide of large rocks. Not a highlight! We saw yaks, bearded vultures, incredible butterflies and forests of blossoming rhodadendrons, stayed in some pretty basic and remote teahouses and braved some very baltic temperatures. The main challenge of the Annapurna Curcuit is the length - 18 days - and at times it seemed as if it might go on forever. That said, we're feeling much leaner and stronger than we were!

We just about bore each others' company for the 17 days (our Uno deck is now well-used), and just about coped with the very limited menu on offer in most teahouses (lots of lentils and rice). Our guides and porters were excellent and did a great job looking after us, particularly when people were ill or discouraged. Bizarrely, Raj, our tour leader, does a fruit picking season every year in Marden, Kent, and so we're planning to meet up with him and take him out on the town some time in June.

And so now, back in Kathmandu and our friends departed once more for London, it feels like yet another chapter of our trip is over and we're trying to get our brains in gear for India. By strange coincidence, my brother is now in Delhi teaching (something, somwhere, to someone, I need to find out!) and so we'll be meeting him tomorrow and staying in Modiganar (30k north of Delhi) for a few days with him before we embark on our travels proper. We have rationalised our belongings, which now fit into two small daybags - everything else has been sent home with the others.

We'll be in touch from India, but for now enjoy the pics and "Omane Padme Om", or something like that...