Monthly Archives: January 2013
If there’s ever a way to get your Christmas off to more of a flying start than a trip to the visa section of the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu, I have yet to find it. My first challenge on Christmas Eve? To change some of my enormous wodge of Nepalese rupees into dollars at a [...]
In Glorious, Technicolor Drunkovision
The ringing of my phone jerks me into wakefulness in a room that is streaming with light. A cursory scan of what passes for my consciousness reveals that I am still EXTREMELY drunk, ergo do not yet have a headache, but have done something absolutely bloody terrible that will emerge from the fog in unsightly [...]
As the title might suggest, this post is really not for readers of a sensitive disposition. Why not try some lovely pictures of beautiful central Laos, the droll tale of how I got my Indonesian driving license, or, of course, the one where I try to navigate Ancient Egypt using only Tripadvisor? Mr Darcy, it [...]
Important Projects in Kathmandu
Among my social circle, I am famous for my financial providence, frugality and forward planning, so it will surprise absolutely no one that, when we arrive in Kathmandu, the $700 worth of unspent helicopter fare so kindly spotted me by the White Knight is almost literally burning a hole in my wallet. Well, it would [...]
Everest Base Camp Trek – FAQ
How Much Does the Everest Base Camp Trek Cost? The Everest Base Camp trek can cost $400-$450 for shoestringers who walk in from Jiri, then straight in and straight out to Everest Base Camp, unguided, over 24 days or so, or as much as 20 times that for people who book luxury treks overseas over [...]
The Everest Base Camp trek can cost $400-$450 for shoestringers who walk in from Jiri, then straight in and straight out to Everest Base Camp, unguided, over 24 days or so. People who book luxury treks overseas over routes such as the Three Passes often pay ten times that, and sometimes twenty times, for a [...]
This list is based on folk doing the Everest Base Camp trek in November-December and March-April, who will be crossing high passes or climbing Kala Patthar. At other times of year, add or reduce layers, and in the monsoon (mid-May to August) put a focus on waterproofs. It is possible to do laundry in Namche, [...]
Escape from Lukla!
The airline “office”, a hole-in-the-wall affair on the cobbled thoroughfare littered with yakalo and mule dung that is Lukla’s answer to Oxford Street, “opens” at 2.30. So many of the rich panoply of nations that adorn Lukla when flights are backed up are loitering outside it. “First time here?” asks a South African chick in [...]
The Morning After
“You realise – or you would do if you hadn’t stayed out till 4am getting sozzed,” says Zac over breakfast. “That if we don’t get out of Lukla today or tomorrow, we’ll be spending the End of the World in Lukla.” Oh Jesus, I think. He’s right. Of all the places to spend the Mayan [...]
Mountain Madness
Readers of a sensitive disposition might want to skip this post. How about reading the first post I ever wrote instead, or this lovely one about a tribal wedding in the jungles of Halmahera, Indonesia? As I wander Lukla’s limited range of shops, purchasing menopausal fantasy items such as the balloons that Tenzing has been [...]
