A Glimpse of Hong Kong :Sunday Oct. 17, 2010.

Hollywood Road. Looking down at the very expensive/elite antique shops that reflect the English dominance of Hong Kong and the very evident high money profiles that still exist in Hong Kong.

In honour of those who have passed, these incense coils are lit.

Buddist Temple on the Island.

Chantal and I. She had her shirt stitched in KTM.

Hazy look across to the Island.

In Tsim Sha Tsui in Kowloon. Looking over the harbour to the Central District on Hong Kong Island. We would take the Starr Ferry across. The famous Intercontinental Hotel in the background. Marc was there, I just didn't get a good pic!

Overlooking the harbour.

With an 8 hour lay over in Hong Kong, why not take a look at the city with the 3 Quebec Trekkers who had more heart than all of us combined !! Here with Michelle . It was hazy mainly due to the pollution.... however the city was very clean.

Celebration and Wow, I'm ready to go home!! Some pics from the start and then the end of my journey.

Kathmandu from Linda B. pics

Unbelievable, this man worked a sewing machine with no serger and managed to create miracles on badges/shirts completely freehand!!!

Kathmandu is 80% Hindi and less than 20% Buddhist. Some characters in Durbar Square that will pose for money!!

On the south side of the square is Kumari Ghar, the three story residence of the Kumari Devi ( an actual living godess ) . I thought the sign was priceless!

The rickshaws are abundant in the heart of old Kathmandu.

Durbar Square ( translates as Palace ) . We walked here on the first day in Kathmandu. It's an astounding concentration of more than 50 temples, shrines and old palaces within a square.

Breakfast at Hotel Manaslu when we arrived Sunday Oct. 3, 2010. We lost a day travelling from Canada.

Letting our hair down and celebrating before the planned Victory dinner in Kathmandu on the Friday night after flying from Lukla. The Hotel Manaslu was an average hotel by North American standards but after our trip to the Himalayan Mountains it seemed like a luxury resort!!

Unfortunately Paula was not privy to my research prior to leaving for Kathmandu . The wine was like vinegar. Stick with beer!!!!

So Sad to Say Goodbye: Friday Oct. 15, 2010.

The young boy in the front of the picture is Sherpa Pasan's son. He helped with part of the Trek close to Lukla and was a porter carrying our bags along with the Yaks. When we left we were encouraged to donate any of our clothes/supplies to the Sherpas. I wore a hooded jacket with a Swiss Chalet logo on it. ( they are sponsors for my daughter's ski team ) Well, it drove everyone crazy on the Trek. The food wasn't that great and the Swiss Chalet logo made everyone drool and there was lots of talk about the Swiss Chalet Festive Meal, the gravy, the French Fries etc!! It was so bad that people were talking about getting Swiss Chalet at the Toronto Airport! There was also talk that when we have our reunion it will be at a Swiss Chalet! Well, I donated the sweatshirt to Asan and he was so happy. It just seemed fitting that the sweatshirt stay in the mountains!! I'm sorry it's not a better picture. Maybe someone else has a better one. They were such a nice father and son. I also donated some of my things to Pasan's daughter and my first aid kit to the Sherpas.






Picture of SEH at the Lukla Airport from 1953.

Watching our fellow Trekkers leave Lukla. There were 5 flights to take all of us back to Kathmandu. We were the last flight. It was very touch and go. We waited and waited. It had been 2 hours since the last flight left. It was now past lunch and we were supposed to leave at 10:00 AM. The boy manning the small kiosk of pop and candy bars started closing shop. The tension was mounting but then finally our plane arrived and we were off!! If you thought the landing was scary, it was really scary taking off. First the plane sat with the brakes on and the pilot revved the engine really high. Then you took off the runway and had a huge stomch upheavle as you went down and then really fast back up. I had a few people helping me with my anxiety!! I had clim bed the mountain but this prop plane was still taking the best of me!

Scenes from Lukla taken when we first arrived 11 days ago.

The Buddhist Scarf right of passage ceremony. The endless knot was woven in to the scarves that were placed around our necks to symbolize peace and the eternal blessings from the Sherpas.

Rabin, our tour organizer from Goway and I on our last morning in Lukla. I will stay in touch as he will be coming to Toronto next year on route to visit his daughter studying in Minesota. I didn't realize until I saw this picture that I had such a burn on my face!!There were no mirrors on the Trek!! It really was like survivor.

Thursday Oct. 14, 2010. What's the Rush???

Packing Tip: You have a very strict weight allowance when Trekking. Just remember underwear does not weigh that much. Don't make the same mistake I made. Pack lots of pairs!! Try to pack the quick drying ones. Tilley sells them for $22.00 a pair but I'm sure if you shopped around you could get a better deal !!!!

Celebrating at Lukla and giving the Sherpas their well deserved tips!! The group of 4 plus Sherpa Ten Gruk. He was on his tip toes!!

OK, so I actually bought the cup from Lukla. I thought it would be a great souvenir!!!

Craziness at Starbucks Lukla!

At the Lukla Starbucks!! Basking in our accomplishment!

We're done. We accomplished our goals.Why are people rushing to get to Lukla?? Enjoying our lunch on the descend to Lukla. Hello Thibetan Bread again!!

Oh I have Aching Knees!!! Wednesday Oct. 13, 2010.

It was a lot of downhill today. You really need the poles going down. They help take the pressure off the knees. I kept giving words of encouragement to those Trekking up. I remembered the pain and the exhaustion of climbing. At times you felt you'd never reach the end for the day. Even though the downhill was challenging the altitude was getting better!! I didn't feel clostrophobic anymore. We were so close to the finish that there was an air of giddiness just as you felt when you were going to play a prank on someone as a child.





Downhill past Thyangboche.

We were told not to bring anything for the kids. We were told not to give them anything....they were precious and liked to follow the Trekkers and play games along the trails. They were happy kids.

We Trekked past Namche to Monjo. It was another afternoon that seemed to go on and on and on!! Monjo is the entrance to the National Park that was started by Sir E Hilary himself! Lunch in Namche and then some time to shop! Our Guide felt we should Trek past Namche as it would make the last day a very long trekking day with a big uphill at the end. Our plans changed and this meant an afternoon of a big huge downhill that our knees would not like!!

Authentic handmade Sherpa Hat and Coat.

A glimpse of the mountains as we descended. It seems so long ago now!

Tuesday Oct. 12, 2010. Back to the Thyangboche Monastery

This gives you an idea of the map for the Trek with the exception that we did not have any aclimatization days. Click on the map to expand. At this point I had stopped taking the Diamox for altitude sickness prevention but I still had a bad cough.

Leaving Thyangboche...yes we were happy!!!!! No more mice!!

Loading the fire up with Yak Dung and Kerosene. Geez, and why were we coughing..... It is illegal to burn wood in the Sagarmatha National Park.

Laura said " There's so much Yak dung here why don't they burn it to keep us warm "..be careful what you wish for!!

Drying Yak Dung for burning!!!

Still coughing....

Sue leaving Pheriche.

A great rest for both up and down the mountain. The lady who ran this rest stop had been to Canada many times and spoke excellent English. She did well with her sales!!! It almost felt like we were spring skiing at Whistler here!!!! Actually taken on the way up from Sue's camera.

The wild Yak with long hair and very big antlers. These beasts have adapted to high altitudes and command the mountain.