Deep in the mountains, at the foot of Cho Oyo, along the Ngozumpa glacier, is a series of lakes lik

2010 (1) April (1) 2009 (1) November (1) 2008 (1) August (1) 2007 (4) October (3) Malawi Africa time in action - September 1998 Draw in the Himalayas - a break at altitude - O. .. Nepal, the land of the giants September (1)
Deep in the mountains, at the foot of Cho Oyo, along the Ngozumpa glacier, is a series of lakes like a string of pearls strung. The valley is bordered by snow-capped peaks that pierce the sky and their faces mirrored in the clear water. Here you feel small, so insignificant, in the shadow of giants.
It's Wednesday, October 17, 2000. About an hour strike us down at Tribhuvan Airport, Kathmandu. A range of snow-capped round table pizza mountains on the horizon in sight; Makalu, Cho Oyo, Lhotse and yes, the giant of giants, Everest, a omiskenbare pyramid in an endless sea of mountains and glaciers. When he is known as Sagarmatha Nepal, a place of heaven, and Tibetans know him as Chomolungma, Goddess Mother Earth. At 8848m it is the highest point on earth, almost two kilometers higher than the highest mountain outside Asia. A few minutes later threw our anchors in Kathmandu. Thirty round table pizza dollars poorer and a whole hour later we stumbled spongy flew out of the airport building. Hundreds of taxi owners pocket like a bunch of flies on us. "Where do you want to go", "I got a good hotel for you," "Taxi, special price for you!". After much screaming and speak English, and without us really knew the negotiations, we are in a derdewêrelse goggamobiel bundled backpacks and all. The roads are chaos. Utilize every square inch of the streets. Anything with some wheels and a horn is allowed on the street. Taxi's, chuck tjoeks, or rather three-wheel scooters, and rikshas move in every conceivable direction. No one knows on which side of the road you are supposed to manage. What a sigh of relief when we arrived unscathed in Tibet Peace Guest House and our host with a 'namaste' and a welcome cup of peppermint tea. The next day we walked the streets of Kathmandu flat. For the last time a search for that last few pieces of warm clothes from South Africa came together. After another visit to the immigration office for permits and when we are ready for the big adventure. The engines of the Twin Otter pounding with steady rhythm, while the mountains unfold before us. Before us the mighty Himalayas, the highest mountain range on Earth. Five the highest lies directly in front of our eyes, all of them more than 8000m above sea level. The wing will want to get so on the mountain, while our plane his last turn to iron down to Lukla. Through the cockpit window, we see for the first time the runway on a steep uphill and not much longer than a football field. Pilot and passengers equally brakes, we only just, and before round table pizza long we are safely on the ground. From here it's on foot. With backpacks round table pizza that groans under the weight, let the dusty streets of Lukla behind us. This is an isolated world. No cars and no roads - just bearing enormous loads with straps over their heads to carry the villages further up the mountains. The loads are light, round table pizza most wearing the equivalent of three backpacks in this way. The mountains are also home to yak farmers. Yakke, a type of cattle with long hair as protection against the cold, are used as pack animals. If you hear the tinkling of bells you have to quickly find a place where you can stand wide so they can come over. From Lukla the path winds down the steep slopes round table pizza along. On some places the last monsoen the road with trees, plants and rocks against abyss wiped. In such places the rebuilt road along an unstable round table pizza slope of loose soil and stones that still clings convulsively to the mountain. Settlements, only a house or two, come on every available flat piece of land. Here vegetables such as cabbage grown on small plots of land while yakke and goats meet the demand for meat, milk, cheese, wool and manure dried to administer fire. Our first stop was Phakding, on a height of 2600m and then the next day tackled round table pizza the steep uphill to Namche Bazaar. Namche Bazaar is a busy little town in the heart of the Kumbu and located at an altitude of 3440m. A break of two days we have an opportunity to acclimatise and explore round table pizza the town and its surroundings. A variety of shops lined the busy main road and a furnished hydroelectric scheme is electricity in the village and its surroundings. A big surprise round table pizza was the Internet Kafe