Movin' on...

Its been a while since i put an update out, but tonight seems fitting-

overnighting in bangkok, my first stay in an airconditioned room in almost 6 mons! (the plane ride today, i realized was the first climate controlled space i'd been in since landing in Kathmandu... bizarre! strangest thing is, after a while, it just seems normal to always be a lil bit too hot or cold.

a quick run down of the last 4 weeks, after coming down from the mtns-
-bus trip from hell! tumlingtar to pokhara, 2 days, 20ish hrs of travel on dirt, rock, and super scary exposure rds, riding up on top for much of it, because the seats inside just ain't made for long legged westerners- realizing a few hrs into the bus trip that the reason we were flying maoist flags off the bus corners wasn't to ease our passage thru potential road blocks, but that all my fellow passengers (i.e. comrades) were maoist supporters heading to kathmandu for the big transportation strike planned for the following day (which ironically enough, is why i was on the bus in the first place- tourists usually aren't harmed by the conflicting political factions, but being alone in a maoist hotbed during times of conflict still ain't all that smart).....gettin' puked on by the cutest little nepali baby that just couldn' t handle the jostling and heat... actually, i wasn't alone- she also managed to cover her father, and three or four other folks sitting in the back row... this was about the same time i decided to ride up top again... i'll take my chances with low hangin wires and possible ejection any day over heat, dust, and sharing a seat with 5 other folks that outta seat three. ;-)
- riding out the 6 day maoist strike in pokhara- no motorized transport, big, sometimes intimidating protest marches down the empty streets- all businesses officially closed, so we'd sneak around to the back door, give a lil knock and the restaurant owners would let us in fosome "speak-easy" dining... must be sorta what prohibition was like, eh? best part of the strike though, was the biking on completely car/bus/lorrie free roads! kids and their parents playing soccer in the rds, adults learning to ride bikes on all that open asphalt, and amazingly clean air! it did have its finer points...
-kayaking clinic w. my buddy jason on the seti river, meeting up w. some super cool folks from round the world, and trying our hand at running some small rapids and learning the eskimo roll...
- bat cave explorin- nepali style... better bring your own headlamp, because there ain't no guided tours here- you pay your fee- they turn ya loose to go exploring!
....thats the short and sweet on the last few weeks in country, folks... its all somewhat of a blur, in need of some time to digest....

a glimpse into today:

last morning
a day of celebration
and sadness
lil morning chi-gung
rooftop
prince hotel

breakfast burrito in
sagarmatha bazaar
feeling the buzz-
not quite anxiety-
more excitement,
with a time-frame...

some last minute purchases
oil paintings
of the mountain gods
bit of
internet-skypin
n' smoothin' out
travel plans

feelin' such longin
and disbelief that
re-union
could be so near-

and then
frantic airport rush
check-in
the hustle and bustle
clock tickin away
hour n' a half- 30 mins
extra baggage me-lee

finally-
clamoring aboard
brightly coloured
Thai-Sky
train
stepping into
a different world
clean and glossy
nothings tha same...

lookin' out
my
portal window
kath-valley surrounds
feel wizened eyes
moisten
nostalgia?
for this dirty town??
for the rawness
of life here
and the beauty
it unveils

feel my soul
cracking-open
with the richness
it has known
when i came
it was as foreigner
now theres a sense
of leavin home

touch folded hands
to third eye center
n bid farewell
to those i've known
and to all
who rise each morning
ek cup chia'
their fates unknown

tho i guess
this could be said
of us all
to speak the truth
in this land
of snows n majik
every day
one's shown tha proof-

as i journey
cross the skies
smooth as glass
o'er ridge n ravine
mind thinks back
on hard fought
travels
sweat and blood,
so much i've
seen

known the
bitter and the sweet
n' paid my share
of dues
but i wouldn't
trade one moment
'cause tha path
its been true-

look forward to seeing you all sometime soon. i'll put up some last pics of the adventures when things settle.
thanks for all the encouragin' comments, emails, thoughts and prayers you've all sent out these last months- it meant so much to recieve some warmth and well wishes from back home.
peace, y'all-

Mera summit day

sooo, after the chilly, early am wake up, Lakpa and i started up the climb... this shot is probably 430 am or so, the light just beginning to filter in from the eastern skies. you can see one group ahead of us on the mtn- a french canadian team from montreal?? the summit is over the ridge visible behind the group-

looking east from the upper expanses of mera. the sun had just risen...

a lil while later- the views west... that peak in the far distance w/ tha snow plume coming off her is none other than Sagarmatha- aka Mt Everest- ... the highest point on earth. twas damn windy on mera at this point- gusts maybe 30-40mph, but it looks a lot more breezy on the upper slopes of Everest, no??

on tha top! wow...

wind stopped for a few mins for us, allowin some high fives and a few pics a'fore heading back down... what a morning-

lakpa leading the way back down... one heckuva lot easier in this direction, just gotta watch where you're goin, and not these breathtaking views... this is lookin east again, probably Makalu- 5th highest mtn in the world, in the far background...

back down at mera la- the pass over from hinku valley to the country northward... if you trace the ridge in the background, on the left side, up to the summit, that is basically the route we walked.... had broke camp and were descending back to Khare at this point... n all this before 12 noon... what a day- thank you lakpa-

goin up mera...

from the upper hinku valley, mera dominates the skyline to the northeast... a really daunting mountain, from the perspective of size-

Mera peak is 6476m, compared w. the highest mtn in N. america- Denali, in AK, at 6194m, but is really easy from a technical perspective. Lhakpa and I took 2 days and 1 night on the mtn, choosing to limit the time camping above 5000m (and consequently staying a whole lot warmer!).

we stayed in the lil village visible at the bottom of this pic for 2 nights, khare, where these amazing eagles were soaring, just overhead...

us on the way up to the glacier, from khare...

this is the route up to high camp, basically a long walk on glacier, tough from an altitude perspective, otherworldly from a sensory one...

we walked along this saddle,

then spent one night at high camp, ~5700m, (i can't recommend the three season tent, actually) my guide was smart enough to sleep w/ his buddy down the hill in a proper expedition model...;-)

what it feels like to "wake up" (ya never really went to sleep)- at 200am, 5700m, really friggin cold, and jazzed on life!!

n' what the voices in my head sound like at this point....