To Everest and back...In about an hour!

Well, we are still enjoying ourselves here in Kathmandu. We have been looking at all of our options of things to do in Nepal and trying to come up with set plan, which we have pretty much done now.

One of our more difficult decisions was which multi-day trek (hike) we wanted to do; Everest Base Camp (15 days) or the Annapurna Circuit (21 Days). Part of us feels that because we are in Nepal we should go and see Everest, but we are aware that the Annapurna Circuit is a much more interesting and beautiful hike, which still involves hiking at altitudes upto 5400 Meters (Almost 18000 Feet). So, we are going to do the Annapurna and will be leaving in about 10 days. This left the problem of seeing Everest.

So yesterday, in a Budget-Blowing move, we went on a small propellor plane and flew along some of the really high Himalaya mountains to Everest, where we came within about 5 miles of the Giant. The mountains stuck out well above a thick layer of clouds and yes, Everest looks seriously Massive, even surrounded by the other giants.

Now we have seen everest, without the 15 day walk which doesn't always guarantee a view of Everest anyhow. There was a couple on our rafting trip that went to Base camp, never saw Everest, got very sick with the altitude and The guy Tom has been loosing his skin on his hands and legs which has been coming off since he reached Base Camp, pretty gross really. Apparently it is the dryness of the air that causes problems with the skin.

Also on our flight we got a view of the Annapurna mountains which we will be in on our big trek, they are pretty huge. Annapurna I comes in at just over 8000 Meters (Over 26000 feet) just a few hundred shy of Everest. This is also the mountain range that we have planned another rafting trip for.

On the 7th of April we will be leaving on a 3 day white water rafting trip down the Kali Gondaki river which runs down one of the deepest gorges on earth. The river runs through a remote section of the mountains with no road access, except for at the end of day 3. Anyhow, lots to tell about this river but i think it is best if we leave that for after we return from the trip.

For now we will be doing a bit more exploring around the Kathmandu Valley and relaxing a bit as well. We have also been enjoying a few movies that we have been watching on the laptop. There are no rental places here but DVD's cost 50 Rupees (39 pence, or just less than $1 Canadian), crazy when you consider we used to rent DVD's in the UK for about £3.50 each! It is a nice treat to relax and watch a film.

We hope that you are all doing well. We miss our family and friends and wish you all the best :-)

Love Justin and Steff