We are up at 5.45am to pack up, check out and get trekking. It’s another bright, sunny day and the transport is ready, as always, promptly at 0700. Jeevan tests our backpacks for weight and declares them “A bit heavy.” We have weighed ourselves with and without our backpacks in the bathroom. Debbie’s pack is […]
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Kathmandu
We have arrived in Kathmandu, capital of Nepal, to begin our trekking adventure. It’s a fairly typical Asian city that has been catapulted into modernity and is not coping particularly well. Town planning, such as it is, is entirely reactive to problems and town planning, as we know and love it, is an art that […]
Environmental villain
Political ineptitude. Nepal is the second richest country in the world for water resources but there are no plans to harness the potential hydro-electric power. According to local businessmen, the reason is that the politicians won’t trust one another to be responsible for tenders to build new capacity. Instead the rivers are used for waste […]
Leaving the children
The children descended like a wolf on the fold. The last Sunday before Debbie and I left and all the children, my Mum and Debbie’s brother’s family have come round for a late afternoon lunch. I love this time. The family congregates in a happy and relaxed atmosphere and genuinely enjoys each other’s company. It’s […]
Preparation, preparation, preparation…
I love the mountains. It’s that sense of space, that sense of freedom. Even in the summertime, the air at altitude is cool and crisp, not just free of pollutants but crystal clear, enhancing Nature’s colours and defining proud peaks against the azure blue sky. It makes me feel good to be alive. It heightens […]
February in Iceland
Once disembowelled from the Air Iceland plane at Reykjavik Airport we had the pleasant surprise of being greeted by airport signs in English complete with Icelandic subtitles. How good is that? It was just like being in Wales but with a warmer welcome. I had always wanted to see the Northern Lights (or the Aurora […]