Aphrodisiac...

From Pisang we walked to Minang, the largest village in this area & mostly Tibetan. Very primitive housing. Lots of  Terraced fields and the workers out digging & weeding from 5.30 am. Plowing the fields with a cross between a cow and a yak. Growing barley, corn, wheat and potatoes. There is a month long season at this time of year where the Nepalese people can buy a very expensive permit and come up to this area and hunt for pupa caterpillars. There is only a 5mm black breathing tube sticking up out of the ground. Very difficult to find for us but locals seem to know where to go.They r found around 5000m. They r sold mainly to the Chinese and are supposedly an aphrodisiac though one guy told me it was like viagra! They sell for 800 rupees each, about $10. So it was a bit crazy in the evenings when they all returned from their day hunting and partied up large,  pockets full of these things. Slept anywhere then got up again at 5am & scoured the hills all over again.  Lots of people making lots of money. Bizarre & fascinating at the same time. We have had a young Swiss guy, Reno, join us for a few days, he is traveling alone and wants to come with us up to Tilicho lake, not recommended to do on your own, photo of Tilicho peak and other ones taken around Minang. We still have Yadab, our porter, he is great and the four of us have had some good card games in the evenings. We are awake by 5am, its light, the roosters are up and the cow bells are ringing! But ready for bed at 8pm, sleeping well after all the exercise. 

My legs are made for walking...

Tal was at the end of the canyon/gorge and started to open out into a valley. It was nice walking, lots of different kinds of butterflies, a stray monkey, wild flowers, lots of river crossings over swing bridges. It is the end of the trekking season so very quiet. At the police check post only 7 tourists had gone through compared to 150 in the busy time. Not many porters as not so many supplies required but a couple of photos. Lodges don't charge any accommodation fee, as long as you eat there. A couple of long days, Steadily climbing but easier walking than Everest trek. More of a cultural experience, different kinds of people and the villages are interesting, not just about the tourists. Views of Annapurna mountains are fantastic. Prayer wheels everywhere. Monasteries in the most hard to get to places. Even a nunnery way up the mountainside, the nuns retreat there for 3 years, 3 months & 3 days!! Lunch stops take a couple of hours, light the fire, go get the potatoes or vege, make the dough for the spring rolls, amazing what can be cooked without an oven. Most places have electricity now, small hydro power stations along the way, more reliable than Kathmandu. Wheat and corn are ground at a communal place using a water wheel. Some solar & even gas showers which are great. Picture of the lodge we stayed in at Lower Pisang.

Annapurna here we come

We decided to do the around Annapurna trek, it is about 220km and goes over the Thorang la (pass) which is 5416 mts. We ordered a taxi the night before, it was waiting for us up the street at 5.45 am to take us to the bus stop, I think the driver may have slept in his car. It was all go at the bus stop, cup of tea and freshly baked bun, a young boy cycled flat stick behind our taxi carrying a tray of food from the bakery and thrust them at me as soon as I got out of the taxi, they were pretty good too, and then we were off to Besisahar, took about 4 hrs, another crazy driver, impatient, tooting the horn all the time, playing loud Nepali music. Then changed to a jeep. We were picked up first and then asked to wait at another bus depot while the driver went somewhere else. He arrived back and the jeep looked full to me but we squeezed in, 18 people in a 12 seater. We bounced along the 4 wd track for about half an hour, then it started raining. Just bucketing down, the rd was a river, the 2 on the roof got in the jeep, talk about squashed!! And hot and stinky! It was all steamed up, water leaking in and the demister wasn't working. It was total lunacy! But the road was so bad the driver had to go really slow. Another 1.5 hrs before we got to a place and could get out. I was so relieved, I can't believe people do 4 wheel driving for fun... Trevor thought it was a great adventure, I guess it is if u live to tell the tale. Was very stormy and wet for rest of day/night but clear and dry next morning with beautiful views. The jeeps go further but I decided "my legs were made for walking" so off we went to Tal. Photo of Trevor having tea at bus st, then some of the 4wd rd around the top of the cliff!  and one where it is still being built, the rock is being blasted with dynamite, and lots of workers breaking up stones with hammers. Village of Tal.

R & R in Pokhara with no porridge in sight!

Took a tourist bus from Kathmandu to Pokhara, comfortable and air con with nice lunch stop, Dahl Bhat of course!! But still long and scary, narrow, badly made roads packed with crazy overloaded trucks & buses, took 7 hrs for 200 km, lots of touts at bus stop all wanting us to come 2 their place to stay, all yelling at the same time but we successfully managed to get a free taxi (free if you decide 2 stay) to a pretty good place, only nz$10 and clean with own bathroom, a bonus.  free WiFi & electricity half the day!  We were here 26 years ago, apart from the lake we cannot recognize anything! Quite upmarket for Nepal, touristy but quiet at mo. Food good. Have had water melon, lychees, mango and cucumber.  Leave at 6am on another bus to start of the Annapurna circuit trek. Hopefully back b4 monsoon arrives. Just had to take this pic of my dinner, best in 6 weeks and only $2.50. In case your wondering I don't like the porridge...

Found photos

Photos of Shivalaya, one of larger villages just a day from jiri. Road just been made to there. Yadab in kitchen cooking spuds and black ceiling from smoke. Trevor got a good lesson in hand washng his clothes, gosh they do a great job!

City sights but not as we know it

A few photos of Kathmandu and the river that everything gets dumped into. As I was taking the photo trying not 2 gag a guy came along and dumped a bucket of offal over the side of the bridge. Just no infrastructure here like sewerage systems, plumbing, electricity, rubbish dumps, I think it is worse than 25 years ago. People r nice, very accepting of their lot and I guess just don't know any different.

Wilderness week

We set off walking from Llukla to Jiri with our porter, Yadab, good thing Ham & Dave flew out that day as there were no more flights out 4 the next 5 days due 2 low cloud. Amazing going from freezing cold 2 tropical weather in a few days. Came across bananas and small nectarines and wild strawberries, bonus after 3 weeks without fruit. Not many other foreigners about, had the tea houses to ourselves. We walked up and down about 1000 metres everyday!! It was pretty relaxing, we r fit and took our time. Our porter was fantastic, a young 21 year old who has been with us for the whole time. Speaks English pretty well. When he asked us questions about nz or anything at all that  he was surprised about he would say " Ooh la la" we got that lots everyday. He liked 2 cook and often took over in the teahouse and made us the food how we liked it. One night a chook was being killed and he sooo wanted us to eat it but we went 2 bed b4 it was ready... Next day at lunchtime he tells us not to worry that we missed out, he had brought the fresh chicken leg with him 2 cook for us!! And he did. On our last day we walked with a couple of locals as well, they were off taking 30 kg of spuds 2 their sister. Along the way they all decided we should have some of the spuds 4 lunch so they stopped at this "bhatti" someone's basic abode. Yadab stoked up the fire cooked up a pot of spuds and some boiled eggs and made a salsa of mint, garlic, onion and of course chilli, to go with it. It was great, new potatoes! Quite an eye opener at this place. The roof, totally black from the fire, no chimneys in these places. Really dark inside, no windows. One place we stayed, (which was actually ok)  first we  spent half an hour getting rid of all the bugs cause the light had been left on and the window open, then got into bed and an enormous leech dropped down from the ceiling and landed on Trevor. Consequently I slept with a sheet over my head all night!! Monsoon type rain arrives every evening, pretty hot and humid. We got a minivan to Kathmandu yesterday, took 8 hrs 2 go 180 km, up and down and around mountain roads all day on narrow roads. But driver was pretty good. Relaxed today, off 2 Pokhara tomorrow. Seem 2 have lost my last few days photos which is annoying. probably to do with the unreliable power supply when charging ph. Trevor has heaps on his camera but need computer 2 download, will do sometime. Photo of porters carrying 14 plus bits of timber! they turn and walk sideways when track narrow. Some load them straight on their back and walk 4 days bent over.