Sunrise in the Fog

We woke up at 5:15 this morning so that we could hike to "Poon Hill" for sunrise and what we hear is a spectacular view of all the mountain peaks. It was difficult to get out of our beds and face the freezing morning, but we did eventually get our layers on and head out the door. We hiked by head lamp for the first half hour or so, and the the sky started to brighten. It was a cloudy day though with lots of fresh snow from last night's storm. The path was quite slippery, but we did eventually make it to the top of Poon Hill (elevation ~3,200m). Sadly, there was no view from the top :( We couldn't even see the sunrise through all the heavy clouds. So, we drank some hot chocolate and headed back to our lodge to pack-up and have breakfast before heading out for the day.

Today was a much easier trekking day and it actually included a fair amount of downhill between all the steep catwalks. It was, however, very slippery. With the melting snow and ice, the steep downs became quite entertaining. I was tempted to stop and video one group as the headed up an especially slick pass--but decided that may be considered a bit rude and continued on (it would have been funny though). It's amazing to watch the local porters wiz past everyone with their huge loads (which are usually strapped on like backpacks and then then they have one additional padded strap that goes across their forehead--yet they never use the hip strap on the nicer packs--I can't even comprehend how they do it!). There was one point in the trail today were I was busy focusing on my granny-like side step shuffle (with a cane/walking stick), Heather had her walking stick in one hand and was clingy to Dorgee with the other, and then the porters came, blazing down the mountain in flip flops with their 50-100 lb. loads strap to their heads and back (I should also mention that many of these porters couldn't weigh much more than 100 lb.). Truly astonishing!

We stopped for lunch today and I have to say, the menu's at these restaurant's in these tiny village continue to crack me up. They usually include most of the same things, but it's everything from soups and sandwiches, to curry and dal, to pizza and lasagna, to mo-mo (which is kind of a mix between a pot-sticker and a dumpling). They also serve custard, popcorn, apple-pie, and snickers rolls (basically a candy bar that is breaded and deep fried)...just to name a small sampling!

We arrived at our lodge around 3:30 this afternoon. Lol--just when you think it can't get any sketchier. We share a bathroom with about 20 other rooms. The walls are made of thin wood and there is a small hole which looks directly into our neighbor's room. The blankets are lumpier and even more tattered than last nights. However, it still beats sleeping on the cold muddy ground and having only the woods for your outhouse. Our room is on the corner, and actually has quite a breathtaking view of the mountains--it also feels like we might tip over into them, but hey, what's life without a little risk.