5 DAYS TO GO

Well, I am not sure how you are all going to cope with the imminent closure of this travel blog - due to the overwhelming response we have had, we know that for some of you it will be leaving a gaping hole, but as they say, all average things must come to an end.

This has been our third trip of about a year, and its truly worrying how little we've learnt! This one has been different in a number of ways. Firstly, our budget has been a tad more generous, so we have bought ourselves out of the poor quality rooms, overnight buses, and traveller food of the previous two. Secondly and we have really felt it this time, was the age gap between ourselves and most other backpackers....so aptly summed up by one offensive young South African female who over lunch said, 'aaaarrrrm so prrraaaaaaaarrrrd', 'eh?' 'aaaaarrrrrrm so prrrrraaaaaaarrrrrd of you gaaarrrrs' 'eh?'...' 'aaaaarrrrrrm so prrrrraaaaaaarrrrrd of you gaaarrrrs at your age'. Third reason has been the vast improvement in connection qualities of phone and internet back to the UK. When we first travelled in 94-95, we gave friends and family an itinerary so they would write to us - about half a dozen stops during the year which saw us eagerly visit the 'poste restante' section of those chosen post office places to pick up a parcel or letter that would already be a month or two out of date. Regular calls back home on this trip and online sites have meant that we have never felt far away from home most of the time. La Petite Generale would like me to put in a paragrah about decreasing patience and tolerance levels that maybe come with age, but I would counter that by saying 'is it really too much to expect someone in a kitchen to know how to boil or fry an egg'? This had led to the aforementioned Generale's new stock phrase 'put Victor back in the box'.

Before we finish, we shall supply you with a selection of Top 5's, these will not be in order, and before you read them, we need to point out that on this trip and indeed on previous ones, visits from family and friends or visits to friends are at the top of the pile, and will therefore not be included in these lists.

So, big thanks then to Ell's sister Maria for arranging an outstanding fortnight in Langkawi where we brushed shoulders with Russian oligarchs and Gulf state oil tycoons - are you reading this Maria?!). Thanks to Sam & Andy in KL, Floundacious Matt Samuel and Molly for being such wonderful hosts and plying us with quality lamb and red wine in Singapore, Chitchat for everything and more (except the reflexology) also in Singapore, Tessa and Len for being so refreshingly English, Karan Adam and Mia for getting us out of a hole in HK, and Dave and Steve from legendary 80s boy band Mind the Gap whose efforts in getting to see us in Cambodia were really really appreciated. You have all been immense, and we love you for it dearly, you are all going into our travel Hall of Fame.

5 EXTRAORDINARY PLACES

JORKHANG TEMPLE, LHASA
Despite whats going on with the continued subsidized migration plan of Han chinese to Tibet by Beijing, this temple is 100% Tibetan, INTENSE.
TUOL SLENG SCHOOL/PRISON, PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA
School adapted to torture centre, all hideously photographed with pride by the Khmer Rouge, too chilling to describe
VANG VIENG, LAOS
Where the South East Asia on a G-String travellers/Trustafarians descend to get away from the pressures of being a student. Hedonistic capital of otherwise sleepy Laos, Western & La Petite Generale 25 years too old for this place...'if this is what you want, why dont you just go to Tenerife?'
BURIGANGA PIER, DHAKA, BANGLADESH
A city on a jetty, heaving mass of people boarding all types of river craft.
PANMUNJEOM, SOUTH KOREA
Where border guards from North & South, stare at each other with genuine fear. Coming from Chepstow, I could relate closely to this.

5 MAGIC MOMENTS
Unveiling the commissioned painting by Ahmed Hussein in Dhaka
Standing on top of the Thorung La pass in Nepal
Having a hot shower after the trek to dusty/dirty Upper Mustang, Nepal
The elderly women in the Chiefs house in Northern Laos, pinching and squeezing Ell
Just the 2 of us watching the Buddhist drummers of Haeinsa temple, South Korea

5 CITIES THAT DID IT FOR US THIS TRIP
Hanoi , Vietnam - opera, beer at 10p/pint, early morning communal exercises, stunning food...
Dhaka, very few of the above qualites, but an outstanding travel adventure
Lhasa, (Tibetan quarter) just another world, with a completely different set of beliefs
Singapore, often visited before, when you need a place that just WORKS
Kathmandu, is there a city in the world where the everyday and religeon are so connected, dont say Jerusalem?

5 GREAT MEALS
Spider crabs in Busan- the worlds largest fish market, South Korea
Roast goose pancakes in HK - move over duck, your days are numbered
'Chicken' fish in KL ( thanks Andy & Sam)
Lunch with the 'Easy Riders' in Vietnam, do they know how to crackle pork
Phu Quoc night market, Vietnam, spring rolls, squid, prawns & tamarind

5 OUTRAGEOUS LANDSCAPES
Upper Mustang/Nepal - wind erosion at its most dynamic, coupled with ancient Bon/Buddhist monasteries.
Gokyo Valley/Nepal - too epic for words
Halong Bay & Ninh Binh/Vietnam - Limestone karst scenery
Dhaka to Kulna, Bangladesh - on the Rocket paddle steamer, this country lives on the river
300m sand dunes of the Gobi desert, Outer Mongolia, how & why here?

5 THINGS WE WONT BE DOING AGAIN

Travel in peak season China

River raft in Nepal, Oct-Nov...chuffing fresh, especially if the whole raft capsizes

Eat dog

Drink fresh yak blood

Believe anything that comes out of the Xinhua Govt News Agency Beijing - (Xinhua is I think Mandarin for horseshit)

5 WORST SLEEPS

Ell being eaten alive by bed bugs in Vientienne, Laos

Being cornered by dogs in a hill tribe village after sneaking out for a midnight pee, Laos

Staying in a room with an attached bathroom that smelt like an Indian bus station toilet - Nepal

Treating ourselves to an a/c room in St Martins, Bangladesh as it was so hot, only to find out that every night, they turn the electric off at 10pm.

Being stuck in a Vietnamese village with French business students who wanted to party - grim.

5 OUTSTANDING TEMPLES

The temple complex of Angkor, Cambodia

Jorkhang temple, Lhasa, Tibet

Tashilhumpo Monastery, Shigatse, Tibet

Haeinsa temple, South Korea

Wat Xieng Thing, Luang Prabang, Laos

5 TRIPS

The Rocket, Dhaka to Khulna, Bangladesh, 24 hours feeling like the Raj on an old paddle steamer

Lhasa to Lanzhou - 30 hours complete with great company courtesy of Jo & Mathilda

Any train in South Korea, more leg room than a stretch limo

Srimangal to Chittagong, Bangladesh, 8-10 hours of train snacking

Train up to the Mongolian capital of Ulan Bataar from Chinese border, filled to the rafters with black market goods.

5 THINGS WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO

safe tap water

'proper' cup of tea
knowing where everything is most of the time

not speaking pigeon english

sleeping in the same bed night after night

5 THINGS WE ARE NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO

Deadlines

Aggression levels

'News'

Expense

Job hunting

The enduring memories of this trip, will be the based around the hospitality and warmth greeted out by the people of all the countries we visited. From the Bangladeshis "what are you doing here?", to the extreme extreme politeness of the South Koreans, its been as ever truly refreshing and we return feeling like the world is once again a much better place than it feels when you're home surrounded by tidal waves of depressing news and negativity.....oh, thats just me feeling like that then is it, ooops!

GET READY FOR THE MOTHER OF ALL SLIDE SHOWS....

THE FINAL LEG

Well, I have to say, this is much needed. Western & the General have chosen very well in finishing their epic adventures in Koh Chang, the humidity so prevelent in Thailand for most of the year, is absent in November, and the sun though warm is not of the 'I'll take yer skin off variety'. 2 weeks of reflection, seafood and marvelling at the size of some of these Russians holidaymakers, will keep us entertained until Dec 1st, when we head home. Apart from the Russians, the Germans are also here in large numbers, and if you close your eyes, its hard not to think you're in the middle of some 70's blue movie.



The flight to Thailand, from Kathmandu was excellent, quality food and newspapers for the 2 hour trip, with the Bangkok Post warming us up for arrival in a very different country to Nepal, by featuring adds on the front page, not for another MFI or Carpetland sale, but for sex change operations, the prices were that competitive, that I might be returning with a bossom, certainly cheaper than a new wardrobe from MFI.



We had a couple of nights in Bangkok where there was the usual sight of handsome middle aged European men hanging out with very unattractive local women, who are overweight and of poor body shape and on the island of Ko Chang, there has been the usual petty bickering between the local massage women over who's going to get their mitts on some prime english tenderloin.



Ell enjoyed a fine birthday, featuring seafood and a few games of pool. She is sporting an uber trendy haircut and is delighted to have swapped her hiking boots for flip flops.

URUMQI RIOTING UPDATES

So, hundreds, ne thousands involved in racial rioting in Western China, not one han chinese arrested, and 9 Uighur executed...how strange is that? NZ gives the leader of the World Uighur Congress a platform, and China is appalled, doing its damnedest to stifle debate abroad now as efficiently as it does at home.

INTO THIN HAIR

Porters still paid by the kilo.......

ditto

Mission accomplished, arriving in Gokyo

La Petite Generale at Dole

A prayer flag for Elsa, with Thamserku behind, above Namche Bazaar

A stone blessing for Ells mum at Machermo

1am, not kidding, full moon light on Kangtega and Thamserku

Everest across the 20km long Nguzumpa glacial moraine

Described as a fat man in a room full of beautiful ladies, Everest looks bloody great to us

Sunrise on Cho Oyu, the worlds 6th highest peak

Maybe the most beautiful lady, Ama Dablam

Inquisitive yak

The Sherpa capital of Namche Bazaar

Lukla airport, heading home ie downhill

2 weeks up into the spectacular Gokyo valley, with views of the world's 1st, 4th, 5th & 6th highest mountains - generally stayed healthy, though Western picked up a 24 hr stomach bug in the Sherpa capital of Namche Bazaar that saw him sprinting between bedroom and the scheissenhausen on no less than 15 occassions with a turn of pace that would have worried Usain Bolt. At one point he was considering moving the bed into the cubicle to save time...this truly was the Death Zone, at least for those unfortunates responsible for cleaning on the next day.

Considering this has to be one of the most beautiful areas in the world, the place is often filled with people whom appear unhappy to be here. We often wonder if they are travelling with 'Grim Tours....wiping the smile off your face, wherever you go'. To be fair, though we had fantastic weather with each of the 14 mornings displaying uninterrupted blue sky - the environment is still demanding - the height of 5345m - complete with its oxygen levels of 2/3rds sea level, is dangerous enough to cause severe problems and the afternoon winds are certainly on a par with Ebbw vale. We did meet a number of trekkers who had to turn back due to blinding headaches and volatile stomachs, but the low point of the trek was waking one morning to find that the 28 year old local porter/guide of a German couple, had died in the night. There were doctors present who'd run tests the previous afternoon but could find no evidence of altitude symptoms. Seeing the couple sat shell shocked the following morning over breakfast was too sad, they had almost certainly shared 2-3 weeks of exhilarating walking together, and bonds are made quickly in this part of the world.

One plus point of the bracing wind and generally cooler conditions over last years Annapurna region was that it derived the European alpinists of wearing their ghastly lycra leggings...this year, steamed momos were only found on the menu, much to the relief of Western but a major disappointment for La Petite Generale.

A word for 'Sir Edmund'. We all know of his exploits, but it is only on visiting the area that you can really appreciate what he and the Hilary Foundation have achieved here. He asked the sherpa people what they needed after his ascent with Tenzing Norgay, their response was they didn't feel we could offer them anything in terms of strength, and they did not envy our restless spirit, but they did need schools and hospitals. Pictures of him adorn many homes and lodges, he would appear to be held in god-like status.........a true great.

Namche Bazaar - the Sherpa capital - is a fantastic place, set on a sheltered horseshoe ridge, backed by glorious 6-7000m peaks, it offers treats and comfort just when you need it. We were lucky enough to be there when the Tibetan traders were there, they'd loaded up their yak trains and crossed the Nangpa La, a border crossing open for a month or 2 in the year, when they wont be shot at. They holed up in town, intensely camera shy and physically imposing, Western kept his camera well and truly in his bag. With them they brought a selection of low quality tat from the motherland, as well as some better quality rugs and carpets.

Flights in and out of Lukla - the trailhead for these treks - are both exhilirating and exasperating. The domestic terminal at Kathmandu has monitors that display incorrect flight info, and the Tannoy system is inaudible - think Charlie Brown's schoolteacher - consequently, the ground staff run around shouting out departure information - of course if you are sat on the other side of the hall, you'll miss out, so people move around in a large huddle following the staff. Unbelievably it works, and people end up on the right planes, and often, their luggage accompanies them as well. The planes are 16 seater Twin Otters or Dorniers, and being narrow, they wobble around in the turbulence both up and down and left to right. The runway at Lukla is uphill, and you spend most of the 45 minutes below the mountains. Navigation is I think by sight, and flights are postponed if there is cloud, as the clouds here have rocks in.

We had great views of Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Pumori, Ama Dablam, Thamserku and Kangtega, as well as the turquise lakes of Gokyo. We saw Tibetan snow cock, musk deer and porters carrying ludicrous loads off their foreheads. Ell placed a stone on top of the cairn above Machermo for her mums birthday, and we tied a prayer flag to the stupa above Namche for Elsa - our masala dosai mate, who enthused of her times in the Sherpa capital - who is much missed.

On returning to Kathmandu on tuesday, we treated ourselves to good coffee, hearty breakfasts, and comfortable non sleeping bag sleeps. had a minor run in with a complete nut bar in the bookshop (a Western woman) who was looking at all the men in the shop whilst muttering 'leach', she seemed to have saved the best for me though by saying 'you're every womans nightmare'!

On saturday, we return to Thailand for a bit of beach time before our final flight to Heathrow on Dec 1st. Last time we were in Bangkok airport, a message came over the tannoy, 'would a Miss Golden Showers make her way to arrival gate 3'....no kidding.

JACK & VERA RETURN TO EVEREST

Ram at the Mustang Holiday Inn Kathmandu, during Tihar

Westerns preferred early morning location, Indra Chowk in Kathmandu, always something going on

Sisters applying tikka's at for Bai Tihar festival

Ell hanging out with the young offenders of Bhaktapur

La Petite Generale has purchased a new pair of questionable quality walking boots, and has reinforced the adhesive around the sunglasses because...yes, the temptation of the world's most glorious mountains have once again proved too much, and tomorrow we take a 45 minute flight to Lukla, where we start a 2 week trek to set our sights on Everest, this time from Gokyo, the next valley over from base camp and reputedly offerinng much better views. We had made plans to spend 2 weeks in the kathmandu valley, enjoying warmer climes and village life, which at the moment is particularly interesting as its harvesting time. But once we questioned ourselves about what we REALLY wanted to do, and confirmed that we could get a last minute flight...well we dont know when we will be back here and to be honest there was only one decision - s0 we will be off limits until Nov 10th, when hopefully we return with more high altitude tales of miserable trekkers, one dimensional food, stupendous views and fingers crossed walking boots still intact.

The last 2 weeks has seen us enjoying Kathmandu, its been new year here...Tihar is a great festival. On the first day, the crow is worshipped, on the 2nd its the dog, on the 3rd, its the cow and the biggest day is sister brother worship. If you dont have one, you can go to various public places, and the women administer the tikka (red dot on forehead!) to men without sisters, great stuff. Western picked up a big foreheadful of red paste with rice stuck on it.

Kathmandu has served up great food, authentic wood fired pizza and pasta, quality curries - both local style, Indian and Thai, superb cakes and coffee, all gratefully consumed after the demands of the Langtang trek. After 14 days of indulgence, tomorrow we return to a diet of potatoes/noodle soups and hot lemon drinks....bring it on.

We have hired quality cold weather gear...4 seasons sleeping bags, and down jackets. Weather should be hot high altitude sun in the day, though very very cold as soon as you put one foot in the shade, and -10 nights - the fact that none of the lodges have heating, will mean us going to bed wearing all our clothes. The beaches of Thailand back half of November will be truly appreciated! Namaste.

JACK & VERA DUCKWORTH RETURN TO NEPAL

Heading back towards Kathmandu from the Langtang valley

A pretty rough section of road from Dunche - at least we were in a jeep this time

The view from Kyanjin Ri

The other way

Ell playing 'Peter & Paul'

Fried egg & chips at 4400m

Gosainkund lakes

Ell really tired

On the top of Kyanjin Ri

108 beads

Greetings once again from Nepal. The journey from the airport to the tourist hub of Thamel in Kathmandu has convinced Western that apart from India, there is not a country in the world that can touch it as a visual feast. Yes, its chaotic and dirty, but its also vibrant, energetic and steeped in such bewilderingly different customs that I find it hard not to fall in love with it. Traffic held up by elephants, holy days for dogs sporting tikka on their foreheads (as you often see on people here), and elderly women up early in the morning, to rub butter or ghee onto statues of hindu gods and godesses....there is always something going on. The downsides include an increasing number of young streetkids dependent on sniffing glue, and a seemingly endless amount of people who need sponsorship from Westerners for their children. The politicians are once again at loggerheads, as the country shuffles sideways...the people here also deserve better.

We have just returned from 2 weeks in the mountains, this time the Langtang valley and the holy lakes at Gosainkund, and we are completely wiped out. One of the effects of altitude gain (and subsequent lack of oxygen) is fitful sleep, and we are wondering if in reverse we suffer with too much oxygen and too much sleep? We decended from 4400m to 2030 in one day before taking a jeep back to the capital at 900m. We are sleeping all the time. The Langtang is apparently one of the easier treks in the country, but I think that this is a bit like saying its easier to swim the channel than the atlantic. We caught the tail end of the monsoon, which meant rains in the afternoon, and one huge dump of snow at the lakes - we were robbed of views on several of the days, but the silver lining was that the 2 days where we had 1000m climbs, we were kept cool by light drizzle. As per usual on these treks, we met a fine selection of individuals, in particular, Philippe the maths teacher from Switzerland, Alan from Wimbledon - soon to appear in the Guinness Book of Records for playing cricket at Everest - Ian from Cardiff - disappointed with the weather for robbing him of his chance to cross the tricky 'Ganja La', Ziv & Sharon from Israel and their 2 young boys (9&6!) coping excellently with the conditions, and 2 English families with their superb guide Thanka, someone I am sure we will keep in touch with.

The trek didnt go as smoothly as we would have liked. I lost my sunglasses on the bus on the way up - we sat on top of this old vehicle for 9 boneshaking hours, as we covered 110kms, with the road crossing several hairy exposed landslide sections, which demanded great care and attention from the driver and conductor, who hung from the side of the bus tapping on the side panel to indicate to the driver how much space he had to play with. My money belt broke after 12 months, and most importantly, Ells boots which had been fine on leaving Kathmandu, had by the time of reaching the trailhead, started to decompose quite badly. By the 3rd day, both soles had fallen off, and by the final day all of the support padding had been left in various parts of the Langtang valley, they resembled Charlie Caroli's clown shoes - at 110 quid, I had told her not to buy cheap German tat! Ells sunglasses also broke, and emergency plasters were used to secure the lens to the frame, she bore an uncanny resemblance to Jack Duckworth, and I to Vera. Westerns arse and thighs provided a help yourself buffet to the bedbugs of the lodge in Thulo Syaphru, and writing this a week after, he carries around 70 4mm red dots in the region....not pretty.

Those of you who have done their fare share of travel will know of the poor reputation of the post army conscript Israeli and its fair to say, thay have cemented in their position as least favourite visitor to the country. In fact, most of the countries we have visited would seem to share this view. There is something pretty nauseating about the ball-breaking negotating tactics, where they demand a set price for room and all food from lodge owners who have 5 months in the year to make money and where supplies to the lodges are carried up the valley by porter or horse. To give you some idea, a room at the top of the valley costs (for 2 people) just under 3 quid, with a main meal costing 2-4 pound. Refusing to pay for a bucket of hot water (1 pound) because you were only given half or cyphoning out petrol from the fuel tank of the hired motorbike so that you return the bike with the same amount of fuel in it are also vote losers....oh dear. Bargain and negotiate by all means, its the name of the game here, but how about keeping a little bit of perspective at the same time.

Finally, there must be a special mention here for 'La Petite Generale', who on the last day of the trek, decended 2300m, with virtually no boots, whilst enduring cramps and an upset stomach - it was a pretty phenomenal effort and one that 72 hours later is still taking its toll....what a woman, what a woman.

SOUTH KOREA FAREWELL

Stumbling across Buddhist rock carvings in Namsan

Busan fish market

The Genral with fish stew, rice wine and a selection of Kimchi (the ubiquitous pickled veg)

The 'Taekwondo' stance of the South Korean guards in Hut 2

Hut 2 is the blue hut on the right, building behind is North Korea

Haeinsa world heritage site

Evening drum ceremony

Evening prayer

Now then, that's a huge contrast, Outer Mongolia to South Korea. This has to be the most polite and courteous country we have ever visited, and I am including the principality in that. The people are so so so so universally helpful, that I can't really explain how much so. If you ask someone for help, and they can't give it, chances are they will phone a friend, or go completely out of their way to ensure you get to where you want to be. And of course, its impossible not to enjoy a country where you are bowed and occassionally saluted to. It's a feature we have become quite accustomed to, and look forward to our friends continuing on our return in December.

In 1994-95, when we first visited Singapore, we noticed how every schoolkid had a mobile phone (and not one of those Dom Jolly numbers), we just thought 'regional fad'. It never dawned on us that they would be light years ahead. And so it is with South Korea, supremely fast internet connections, taxis with TVs, free internet use as you wait for trains or buses, public transport that ALWAYS leaves and arrives when it says it will, ticketing machines that change all your notes in to smaller denominations, someone always at hand at these stations to help you, I could go on...

Travel here, has been very comfortable - the distances are short - 5 hours will get you anywhere in the country, and you will do it in style. We have used 3 different classes of train, and the cheapest and slowest is still way better than anything we get in the UK. One of the curiosities is that despite its people tending on average to be on the shorter side, the leg room on both train and bus is extravagant....Bobski & Mystic, you would love it here. I am writing this on the bus from Jeonju to Incheon, I have at least 1ft between my knees, and the back of the seat in front, the General is lying down...ouch!

As a young US teacher we met noted, the Koreans love to wear uniform, and nowhere is this more evident than when they go hiking - which seems to be most weekends. The country is full of beautiful trails through alpine forests. Even if they are only out for the day, they will be kitted out as if they were off on an Himalayan extravaganza. And they always build in picnic time on their walks, it's quite common to stumble across a large group just off the trail chowing down on pickled veg and fermented rice wine. Thank goodness for the very drinkeable rice wine, the beer is lousy. You can get imported bottles of Japanese Asahi or Heineken, which can save the day, but often you will be at the mercy of highly gassy and uber weak lager, you know you are in trouble when you have to chose Budweiser for its stronger taste. One of the downsides of the US influence here, if the Brits had had more influence, we could have had a well rounded tasty ale to wash down those pickled vegetables and pork ribs, as well as looking forward to a fight at the end of the evening.

Our accommodation in South Korea was varied. In Seoul, we stayed on campus at the National University and walked around with our hands behind our backs pretending to be post grads, of course as soon as we opened our mouths, they knew we were blaggers. Outside the capital, we tended to stay in Love Motels - frequented by young couples looking for a bit of 'space', businessmen with their mistresses, and working girls. This meant round beds, extensive mirror work and neon lighting - they are far less sleazy than they could be, and the rooms come stocked with toothpaste, body lotions and shampoos, and huge TVs, which show at least one channel of 'pure filth', I couldn't get Ell out of the room.

Perhaps the most interesting accommodation was an overnighter at the Haeinsa Unesco World Heritage Buddhist temple, where we thought we had enrolled in a programme which would include meditation and 3 prayer ceremonies. Unfortunately, this got lost in translation, so none of this happened, but we did get to stay there for the night which in itself was quite magical. The evening drum ceremony and prayer was magnificent, there were half a dozen Korean pilgrims, plus the general & I. We sat in complete silence as we ate our meals of rice/veg and 'soup', contemplating whether our actions during the day had merited this meal. I could see no reason why not, so went back for seconds. I had to convince Ell that it was not a good idea to ask for the wine list.

We visited possibly the worlds most tense land border at Panmunjeom. In '53, the armisitice was signed here, and we got to visit THE hut, yes the hut! We stood and looked at the North Korean guards, 30 metres away, who were also looking back at us through their binoculars, we had military escorts who instructed us to walk in lines of 2, not point at anything and to avoid any contact with North Korean military - thanks for that advice, we were going to offer them some dorritos. It was undoubtedly tense. There have been various incidents here in the Joint Security Area over the years, so we did exactly as we were told, and left unscathed.

So its farewell to an impressive country, and to the most generous of hosts. We fly to Singapore to visit some dear friends, before picking up our cold weather gear and heading back to the Himalaya on thursday.....needless to say this is beyond exciting for us. The posts may become a little sporadic from here. Our return flight is booked to the UK, Dec 2nd and there are hills to be walked.....