Some Days in the Top of the world

Namaste!
It passed quite some time since I wrote on the blog the last time ... so, as you probably can imagine, many things passed but I have to split it up a bit to be able to handle it better. So, first of all I want show you the pictures from my time in Nepal: three weeks in which I've seen its amazing natural beauty



three weeks in which I met all kinds of interesting local people



and three weeks in which I learned a bit more about the subject regulating great part of everyday life: religion.



I spent seven days in the Himalaya on a trek that is called The Annapurna Sanctuary or the Trek to the Annapurna Base Camp which is at 4170m. I started out alone but right the first day I met Jonathan from Australia who was on his way to see and touch snow for the first time in his life.


The nights you stay in Tea houses, like this one in Chomrong.



At the beginning of the trek it was no problem getting a accomodation in a room but as you got closer to the base camp it got quite crowded and so it happend that two times we had to sleep in the dining hall.



The way to the top lead over several stairs and bridges ...



and from subtropical rainforest (up to 2900m)




to snowcovered mountains



besides Jonathan it were mainly Joseph and Takur (Josephs friend and guide) that joined my way up and on the way down (Jonathan wanted to stay a night longer in the basecamp) I met Alfonso, a veterinarian, born in Buenes Aires but right now living in Miami. Based on a joke someone made on the way about his age we went as "Son and Dad".




On the way back we made a little loop to be able to see the Annapurna Mountain Range from a different perspective (Poon Hill) and Daddy became three children more (Richard & Lucy from GB and Eres from Israel)

Since in the mountains there are no roads, everything has to be carried by manpower... the bags for lazy western people (not us ;-) or the basis for the meals. Impressive is the technique they use to do this ... they not carrying the load with their shoulders but with their forehead.



For sure that they got some plant- aid ;-)


From the mountains I got back to civilasation: the Kathmandu Valley where I met Suraj, a nepali student I got to know in a little village on my way to the mountains,


and where I spent most of my time with Thomas, Susanne and Konstantin, three Austrains from Vienna I got to know on the Trek in the Himalaya.



The Kathmandu Valley is the cultural and religious center of Nepal and therefore there have been many pagodes (raised by Nepali kings - mostly in the 17th century)



... many buddhist stupas (Bodhnath and Swayambhunath)



and many religious hindu - places too. The most important one ist the Pashupatinath Temple where you can observe the burning ghats and askets who earn part of their daily income by tourists like me taking pictures (I bought him an orange juice ... I thought it fit pretty well with the color of his clothes)



It's been a colorful time in Nepal and at the end some final impressions:








From Kathmandu I went straight to Kolkata, India, where I met my sister Tanja, who joins the journey the upcoming five weeks.


Hope everybody is doing fine and with greetings from India,
Boris