Nepal Tibet - nepaltibet

Are We There Yet?
After a long and uncomfortable 14-hour flight in a middle seat (the woman next to me was so large that she needed a seat-belt extender), four of us who were on the same flight left the airport to enjoy a 12 hour stay in Hong Kong.

John Travis, our spiritual leader, was with us. He had lived in Hong Kong (where hasn't he lived?) many years earlier and accepted the role as tour guide.

Kantipur Temple House Hotel: Last One Out Turn Off the Lights
When we arrived after our exhausting trip, all the power in the hotel was out. I brought my western expectations with me but when I complained the desk manager told me that power often goes out in Kathmandu and, indeed, anywhere in Nepal where they have power. He said, "I'm sorry our hotel has no power; I'm sorry Kathmandu has no power; I'm sorry Nepal has no power." I realized quickly that I was going to have to relax.

The next morning, I awakened to the sight of this beautiful woman enjoying the sunlight shining into the interior courtyard of our hotel.

Intricate Newari Wood Carving
The Newars are a people indigenous to Nepal. I was told that they are discriminated against in modern Kathmandu. The Newars are known for their great artistic ability, especially when working with wood. The Kantipur Temple House featured stunning examples of Newar craftsmanship. such as this balcony that was right outside our window.


Spiritual Blessing... or Not.
We hit the streets of Kathmandu in search of adventure. One of the first things I saw was this man in beautiful marigold-colored robes approaching me. He placed a holy mark upon my forehead and I felt blessed... until I realized he was a beggar and now wanted money.

Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world. This was our first travel to a third-world country and it was a real eye-opener (a third-eye opener... <rimshot>).


The Thamel District of Kathmandu
Although Kathmandu is Nepal's largest city, it is still remarkably small by western standards. The tourist area in Kathmandu is a roughly 15-block by 15-block area known as Thamel. It's filled with guesthouses, restaurants and colorful shops selling scarves, spices, Buddhist items and trekking gear.

That's a Wrap
We spent an afternoon in a place like this learning about the various qualities of wool and scarves. There are many pashmina shops in Kathmandu but it turns out that the top quality scarves come from Kashmir. What a delight it was to walk down such a vibrantly colored street.

Religion: Conveniently Located
Interspersed between shops and restaurants are holy shrines like this one. Kathmandu is an old city that is home to many religions.

Somewhere in Thamel
I think we go right here... no, wait... maybe it was left.

Nepalese Dentistry: Window Shopping Encouraged
During the trip our guide, John, developed an abscessed tooth and ended up at one of these dentists. As it turned out, the dentist broke the drill bit three times trying to drain John's tooth. As horrendous as that sounds, John seems to draw powerful lessons from these things. I am looking forward to hearing a talk on the "Three Drill Bit Dharma" next retreat.

This is a great incentive to brush after every meal and floss every day.

Secret Prayers
Kathmandu is riddled with secret little squares that containing housing units or religious shrines. Usually, you crouch and shuffle through a tiny doorway to reach a beautiful open-air courtyard. In these secretive courtyards, we saw many Hindu and Buddhist shrines. This particular one is Buddhist and I'm spinning the prayer wheels. Each one is engraved with the ubiquitous Tibetan mantra: "Om Mani Padme Hum." Om Mani Padme Hum means "Jewel in the Lotus" a.k.a. the Buddha. By spinning the wheels you are sending prayers spinning out into the universe.

Tibetan Buddhism, unlike the western version with which I'm most familiar, is devotional. Prayers are made to the numerous incarnations of the Buddha spirit.

Evening Prayer
We arrived in Kathmandu at the beginning of a 10-day Hindu festival in honor of Kali that culminates in animal sacrifice. This woman was making an offering and praying in this Hindu shrine.


Courtyard or Barnyard?
Kathmandu is a crowded, mostly modern city. Don't tell these ducks that, though. It's quite a surprise to be walking through a commercial district and see livestock.


Protest in Durbar Square
Durbar Square is the ancient palace district of Kathmandu. There are dozens of stunning buildings. The day we visited, there were crowds of Nepalis engaged in active protest.

There's been a difficult political situation in Nepal for a while. Maoists in rural Nepal engaged in conscription of locals and violence for a decade until finally last year the long-standing king and queen fled the country. The Maoists now are part of the coalition government. They are not as supportive of religion as the monarch was and the people of Nepal are extremely religious. When we arrived, the Maoists had cut funding for the 10-day Kali festival. These people crowded the square in protest of the funding cuts. Three days later, the government relented and agreed to fund the festival.


One of Many Palaces in Durbar Square
Look at the stunning Newari wood carving. Each one of the buildings in Durbar Square was a work of incredible craftsmanship.


Burning Garbage in the Streets
As part of the protests to the governmental failure to fund the Kali festival, people burned garbage in the streets. After the fires went out, children played in the ashes or animals devoured the remaining garbage.

One of the major insights we had on this trip was how much garbage even a small town can produce. Kathmandu is relatively filled with garbage and rural towns, especially in Tibet, often had piles of garbage at their outskirts. It makes you aware of the enormous pile of garbage that a city like San Francisco must produce every day and wonder where the heck it is all going.


A Stupa: The Eyes of Buddha are Watching You
This is a Buddhist shrine called a stupa. You can't tell from this photo but it's huge. Stupas are supposedly designed in the likeness of the Buddha's tomb and often placed at monasteries or other holy sites.


Devotion at the Stupa
A group of brightly robed people spin the prayer wheels at a stupa in Kathmandu.

Flowers Left as an Offering
Both Kathmandu and Tibetan Buddhism are incredibly colorful. Here, someone left flowers as an offering at the stupa.


A Mother and Child Show Their Faith
Buddhism plays a part in the everyday life of people in Kathmandu. Here a woman spins the prayer wheels at the first level of the stupa. This particular stupa has three levels. You are supposed to circumambulate each level three times to show your devotion.


Our First Glimpse of the Himalayas
This was the view from the rooftop deck of our hotel. In the distance you can glimpse the peaks of the Himalayas, which divide Nepal from the Tibet region of China.

Lest you think we traveled in style, please continue on.


Nepalgunj, a Nepalese Town on the Border of India
We traveled in a group of 22 pilgrims. The reason our group was so large was because we could not charter a plane directly from Kathmandu to Simikot -- the departure point for our hike to the Chinese border -- with fewer than 20 people. As it turned out, the direct flights to Simikot were canceled anyway. The Chinese border had been closed for a year due to the protests surrounding the Olympics and so tourism dried up. As a result, we flew instead from Kathmandu to the border town of Nepalgunj. It was hot, mosquito-ridden and surprisingly vibrant.

This is a view of the market area in Nepalgunj, which those of us who don't like hot weather and mold referred to lovingly as Nepalgrunge.


The Mayor Helps One of his Constituents
Our group was wonderful: as one would expect and hope for from a group of Buddhists each of our new friends was full of heart, caring and generosity. Here, Daniel, who is not only kind but hilarious as well, helps an old man from a rickshaw while I look on. Daniel was so consistently helpful and jovial that we called him The Mayor.


Downtown Nepalgunj
Yep, those are cows. You don't see them in northwest Nepal so much because of the elevation but here in the lowlands they've got the run of the place.


A Surprising Discovery
We detoured from the market down a blind alley and stumbled upon this collection of half-finished statuary.


The Artist and His Community
As we photographed the half-finished statues, a group of children and parents gathered to inspect us. The one in the middle was quite a little performer. He spoke a bit of English and would alternate between questioning us boldly and hiding behind other children. The artist's studio was just off to the right of this frame.


Inside the Artist's Studio
The artist allowed a few of us into his studio. These statues, it turned out, were for the festival of Kali. The finished statues were amazing.


Three Days and Counting: Still in Nepalgunj
We were supposed to spend one day in Nepalgunj before flying to Simikot in northwestern Nepal. Unfortunately, the monsoons weren't quite over yet and the dirt runway in Simikot was unusuable. We ended up spending three long days in the tropical climate of Nepalgunj. After a while, I retreated to the room to avoid heat and mosquitos.


Nothing But the Best
This was the bathroom of our room in Nepalgunj. Amazingly, our accommodations went downhill from here.


Hindu Baby Style
The custom amongst Hindus is to blacken the eyes of their babies for the first year of life to keep out the evil spirits. This baby is being held by a security guard at the Nepalgunj airport to which we returned day-after-day until we could finally fly to Simikot.


When Does Sienfield Come On?
Well, they made an effort, right?


Arriving in Simikot
At last, the rains stopped and we flew in a 16-seater plane (amusingly, with one stewardess who served us a small packet of snacks midway through the flight) from Nepalgunj to Simikot. Simikot sits at 9000 feet above sea level under the massive shoulder of the Himalayas. That dirt track in the middle of the photo is our landing strip and the house sits at the edge of a sheer cliff. This landing was nerve-wracking, to be sure.


Downtown Simikot
The two-dozen houses that make up Simikot remind one of a small village in the Swiss Alps. The stone work is a local specialty.


Prem, Our Fearless Leader, and his Mother
The fellow on the left is Prem, our head sherpa. He was the man in charge of all the logistics of our trek. He successfully got a bunch of old creaky joints (including mine) over Himalayan passes. Most impressive. Also, he and his entire team have the biggest hearts of anyone I've ever met.

The sherpa culture, which I believe you are born into, lives to provide service on treks and climbs. This was the Buddhist lesson for me on this trip. Seeing the selfless service of these fine people was inspiring. I have never known anyone who approached life with the kindness and compassions that these fellows do.


Every Journey Begins with a Single Step
And off we go. We hiked for approximately 10 days along the main trail from Simikot to the Chinese border. There are no roads in western Nepal. There is no electricity, no plumbing, no garbage disposal, no vehicles and no modern conveniences. For over a week we trekked through a land reminiscent of Europe 1000 years ago.


Business as Usual
The economy of this region of Nepal is simple. They farm and raise livestock, mostly goats and Dzo (half-cow, half-yak). They drive the livestock up this trail to China where they trade some of the animals for salt and other goods. They strap their goods to the remaining livestock and drive them back to Nepal.

Here we see the local agriculture. The crops include amaranth, barley and rice.


Following the Karnali River
The Karnali is one of the four great rivers that flow out of the Tibet region of China. We tracked its course for our entire trip to the Chinese border. The muscular river was fed by countless waterfalls of snow melt from the Himalayan peaks that lined the rims of this valley.


At the End of the Day
Each day we hiked between 6 and 8 hours over passes, through valleys and over rocky trails. The first day we descended 3000 feet and on several other days we climbed more than 1000 feet. At the end of the day's journey, we were always greeted by the sherpas, porters and cooks setting up our tents and cooking our dinner. Lovely.

This bridge, by the way, is one of the few metal structures we saw during our hike.

Notice the Dzo in the distance grazing exactly where my tent will be.


Dinner is Served
We camped every night by a river or stream so that the cooks could use that water for cooking. This is how they made our hot dinners every night, without the aid of ovens or stoves. Amazing.


Our Support
These were just three of the wonderful people who helped us through our journey. They hiked every step that we did often laden down with a stack of kitchen ware or other heavy items. They always had a smile ready.


Breakfast in, or at Least Near, Bed
We had porridge for breakfast most days. Two of the travelers who organized the trip -- Christy Tews and Steve Yochum -- brought almond butter and other western treats to augment our hearty but simple fare. It was still quite temperate at 9000-10,000 feet.

By the way, the table, chairs, kitchen ware and everything else were carried from camp to camp by our staff and their animals.


Good Morning!
Every morning we were greeted by herders and their animals returning from China. We eventually learned that if you stop to let the goats go by then they stop and stare at you warily. If you keep walking, so do they. Keep walking, nothing to see here.


Meet You on the Terrace
Over the millennia, the Karnali River carved an enormous valley through the Himalayas. The valley walls stretch from the river itself through verdant hillsides past the snowline up to the majestic peaks. The mountains are dotted with small settlements that have spent centuries terracing the land for farming. Stunning.


Too Cool for School
Prem. Indefatiguable. He ran between the front and the rear of the group to make sure we were all moving along okay. He arranged for horses to carry those who needed help. He coordinated our meals and kept us all happy. An amazing person.


The Luggage Car
This is how our gear got from one camp to the next. By the end, our bags smelled like donkey, yak or some donkey-yak mixture. Not exactly pleasant but nothing got lost, which makes these animals somewhat more reliable than Cathay Pacific.


Hot, Hot, Hot
It got quite hot during our first days. Thankfully, our kitchen staff boiled water for drinking at each of our three daily meals. One of my major concerns prior to departure had been dysentery. I read in one travel book that the rate of dysentery amongst travelers in Nepal is 100%. I don't like those odds. Apparently, though, the real rate is closer to 99.8% as neither Lucero nor I were visited by the dysentery fairy during our journey. Others were not as lucky.


Two Old Guys
Yes, aside from Tai Travis, John's son, Lucero and I were the youngest people on our trek. What a delight to be the babies in the family. Here two of our good friends -- Manny and Steve -- are making their way toward China. Getting to know our wonderful fellow travelers was definitely a high point of our journey.


The Road Goes On and On...
A view of the trail ahead. A single house stands along the trail itself and you can see the peaks in the distance. Hiking through the Nepalese mountains was magical. Can you believe how green the land is?
The plants to the sides of the path are pot plants and nettles.


Another Day, Another Tent
This is the end of our second day's journey. Our gear has arrived, the animals have been fed and our tents are going up.


Warning: This Photo Contains Explicit Material
After a hard day of hiking some of the group decided to trek another 40 minutes to a hot spring. It turned out that this little pool was the entire spring and the 40 minutes was straight uphill. This was one of three times during the trip when I over-extended myself.

Oh, and there are a bunch of almost naked guys in the pool.


Zen Garden
Not so much. This family is drying their grain on the roof of their house.


Don't Forget to Put The Seat Down
These were our bathrooms. I was skittish about the idea of going into a hole in the ground before I actually tried it but it was fine... until people started getting dysentery. Then, not so nice.

It's funny how your perspective changes. On this trip, a roll of toilet paper was like gold. I would gladly have sold my computer and blackberry for a 1000-sheet roll of double ply.


Coffee, Tea or...
Every morning the staff brought us a cup of tea and some warm water to wash our faces. If you're wondering where we bathed after these 8 hour walking days, you're right to do so. We didn't.


All My Children
We crossed a pass at about 12,000 feet and entered this beautiful pine valley named Pine Valley (in Nepalese, of course). It was the most beautiful part of the trek, I thought.


Lunch Among the Pines
We ate lunch, we swam in the freezing river nearby and we lazed underneath the branches of the spiny trees. Delightful.


Tough Work If You Can Get It
We were proud of ourselves for hiking so many miles over rough, undulating terrain each day. These fellows did the same hike with a huge load strapped to their foreheads.


Doobie Doobie Do
For those of you so inclined, the trails were lined with marijuana. The smell of the fields was intense sometimes. Those in the know reported that there weren't many smoke-able plants amongst them, though. Apparently, the locals make a lot of clothing from the hemp and roll it between their fingers to make hash.


Mani, as in Om Mani Padme Hum, Stones
Locals carve these intricate stones and pile them up at holy spots. They are a stark testament to what you can get done when you don't have cable TV.


Please Don't Touch
A close-up view of a mani stone. Lucero and several of our fellow travelers wanted very badly to take one. Happily, common sense prevailed and they are all still adorning their respective holy sites.


And Dzo It Goes
These Dzo are half cow and half yak. It turns out that this is a good thing as yaks are totally unruly. They aren't herd animals, they are easily upset and they are huge. These three factors led one yak to destroy some luggage one day in China. They are, however, incredibly durable and resitant to terrain and altitude.  Cows, by comparison, are docile. The resulting dzo is easily managed and quite hardy. Go dzo!


Room with a View
Every morning we unzipped our tent and were greeted with an eye-popping view of the tallest mountains in the world. Wow!

High Tea
Very high. By this time, we were at about 12,000 feet. The porters and animals moved this entire tent every day. And yes, the cooks served cookies for us every afternoon. Under the circumstances, it seemed like a miracle. I was usually napping at this time but Lucero was a regular participant.


Dear Old Golden Rule Days
You can see our camp there at a local school. Humla, the region of Nepal that we hiked through, is very rural and very large. This school teaches children from all over. Since there are no roads or vehicles, the kids can't commute. A man set up a hostel for the children that you can see on the left of this photo. The school is in the middle of the shot and you can see our group hiking up to a local monastery at the bottom right.


Is It Soup Yet?
This entire region of Nepal used to be a part of Tibet until the mid-1700s when the Gurkha army unified Nepal and pushed into Tibet using their wickedly curved knives (thereinafter called Gurkha knives). Interestingly, China pushed the Ghurkas back because, even in 1750, China viewed Tibet as a Chinese province. As a result of this history, the villages in this area of Nepal are all Buddhist.

In 1959, the Chinese invaded Tibet and have since systematically removed Tibetan Buddhism from the area. Many of the significant Buddhist rinpoches, or priests, moved to this region of Nepal. One in particular, Pema Ricksall, took over an old monastery in 1985 and has been refurbishing it. We were fortunate enough to visit his monastery and spend and afternoon with him.

Here, the monks prepare their soup for dinner. Most of monks are admitted at ages 10-12. The oldest ones we met were around 30 years old and had been at the monastery for 18 years.


All in All We're Just Another Brick in the Wall
The children line up for school in the morning. They were so well-behaved an respectful and it was a pleasure to hear them singing or learning English in the afternoon.


Feliz Cumpleanos
My birthday occurred while we were staying at the school. Believe it or not, the cooks baked me a cake without the use of an over. Even more amazing, it tasted like a delicious cake. They sang me a Nepalese drinking song and everyone clapped. It was my best birthday ever!


Wayne is a Serial-Killer Name
Well, isn't it? Unfortunately, it's also my middle name.


My Birthday
The only rest day we took during the trip was my birthday. Here I am, newly 45 years old, with our spiritual teacher John Travis in the background.


Looking Back
We're heading up into the mountains that separate Nepal from Tibet. The river will continue to fall further away and the vegetation will thin. Man, is that beautiful.


Why Don't We Do It in the Road
This day the only stream we could find was a small trickle next to the path. The staff set up a tarp in the middle of the road and we had lunch. Luckily, no herds of goats came along to tread upon our cucumber sandwiches.


Cold as Ice
Not quite yet, but it is getting colder as we climb. We're at about 13,000 feet here and we're heading toward Nara La, the 15,500 pass that leads into Tibet. Behind me is Enrico, one of only six trekkers to make the hike around Mount Kailash with me, but that's a story for another photo. He's living my dream in beautiful apartment on the left bank of the Seine right by the Isle de la Cite. Hopefully, we'll do an apartment swap someday.


Higher and Higher, Baby
The terrain is becoming more rugged as we climb. It's still beautiful and peaceful, though. These days spent walking were great.


Can I Call You Sometime?
We didn't hike as a group on this trip but rather just went at our pace. As you can imagine, some people tended to walk at the same pace and we found ourselves walking with a couple of guys every day who shall remain nameless at this time because they had a crush on this Nepali woman we came across on the trail. Check out the magenta hair. Whereas most children we met wanted pens or chocolate or money, this woman wanted hair oil. Sadly, we couldn't accommodate her.

Threshing the Grain
The locals still thresh grain using teams of oxen walking in a circle. Walking through these villages was like walking backward in time.


The Golden Years
This village sits right below the snowline in northern Nepal. It's difficult to imagine what life must be like there.


Desperate Housewives
This is the entire village.


Putting It Into Perspective
You can see the village in the lower right of the photo framed against the snow-capped peaks. We are up at the snowline now and getting ready for our final trek over Nara La and into Tibet.


A Chhiree Disposition
Chhiree was one the sherpas that Lucero and I got to know the best. He always lived up to his name.

Our Entire Team in Nepal
We had more than 20 sherpas, porters and cooks in Nepal but the staff was reduced to 6 in China. It's difficult to cross the border and only the primary team hired by our trekking company was allowed across.


Rugged Good Looks
Here we are after climbing 2500 feet up to the 15,500 pass at Nara La. The mountain behind us is in the Tibet region of China.


Let It Snow
Looking back the way we came, it's a winter wonderland. This dzo is headed back from China. You can see that we are well above the snowline in the the pristine beauty of the mountains.


Prem and Chhiree and Neema Make Three
Chhiree, Prem and Neema (a cook) were three of our beloved team who accompanied us into Tibet.

Danger Ahead
This was our most difficult day of walking. We crested Nara La and then descended through very treacherous terrain. You can see the trail is nothing but a slushy footpath and beyond the horizon the path ran along the side of the mountain so that six inches to the right of the trail was a 1000 foot drop off. Lucero slipped at one point but didn't slide off, thank goodness. It was a nerve-wracking walk along this slippery section of the trail.


Beware of Falling Rocks
Last year, someone was hit by a rock and thrown off this path. This is the next section of the trail. You can see the marks left by falling rocks. Two of our group were struck by small rocks and one large rock missed a trekker by a few feet. We had to scoot through the channels as quickly as possible to minimize the chance of being struck. Here you see a caravan making the same journey.


Change the Channel
A good view of the rockfall channels. It was definitely an interesting afternoon dodging the debris.


A Holy Man
This fellow may well have hiked the 130 kilometers from Mount Kailash, which was our destination, and the Chinese border. Notice that the terrain is entirely barren on this side of the Himalayas. No rain gets past those formidable peaks. Although we are technically still in Nepal, we are right at the Chinese border. Just a short 2000 foot scramble down and up again over a rocky, ankle-twisting valley and we are there.


Welcome to China
We were not allowed to take photos at the border crossing into China so this is the first shot we got. Barren, dry landscape as far as the eye can see. Only the snow-capped peaks break the monotony.


Y'all Come Back Now, Y'Here
Perhaps that's what this sign is telling us as we leave our first settlement in the Tibet region of China. We didn't hike in China because the distances were too great and the Chinese government would not allow us to camp. Instead, we drove in 4x4 vehicles driven by crazy Tibetan drivers.


Road to Nowhere
We were expecting to drive of rough terrain but it turns out that the Chinese are building modern roads and infrastructure all throughout Tibet in an attempt to encourage people to move to the region. It's striking to witness the contrast between the paved road and the desolation all around it.


Bridge to Nowhere
More of those improvements. I was certainly grateful for the smooth ride but take a look at the empty land. As far as the eye can see there's nothing.


The Magic Mountain
The purpose of our journey was to circumambulate Mount Kailash. This was our first view of the holy mountain, which was framed so beautifully behind Lake Manasarovar. Hindus, Buddhists and Jainists all believe that this mountain is the center of the world and the home of the gods. The lake is also a holy site and the myth is that if you bathe in the lake your sins will be erased.


We Made It
The mountain stands majestically behind us and a chorten is to our left.


Four Special Men
From left to right, Kami, Chhiree, Dawa and Wang Chu. These four fellows along with two of their colleagues and some cooks did the same work that twenty sherpas had done in Nepal. Several of them were ardent Buddhists and it was wonderful to see the powerful emotions that they held for Mount Kailash.

Pilgrim's Progress
We camped at a monastery on the shore of Lake Manasarovar. This pilgrim was visiting the monastery at the same time we were and Lucero was captured by her colorful dress.

A Shadow of Their Former Selves
On the Tibetan plain, Buddhism is no more. We visited several monasteries and at each one only a few monks remained. This monastery had one monk, as far as we could see, and he spent more time selling us trinkets than anything else. The empty robes in this photo are standing in for actual monks who, if they existed, would sit here to sing their prayers (called puja). We heard the puja in Nepal and it is haunting. Here, one might imagine they could hear the voices of actual Tibetan monks singing from the past but the present holds only silence.


We're Not In Kansas
We've come a long way to get to this mountain. It is one of the most remote holy sites in the world. Only a handful of westerners visit it each year and we all felt fortunate to have the opportunity to do so.


Saddle Up
The Tibetans have a remarkable style all their own. This style often involves cowboy hats and their trademark jacket slung over only one shoulder. Given the dry and dusty landscape, one might imagine they are in a spaghetti western as easily as in China.


Waterfront Restaurant
Our group logistics organizer, Christy Tews, took this photo of us enjoying our lakeside breakfast. We are at 16,000 feet here and many people had trouble sleeping. True to form, I slept well. I awakened only occasionally when the pack of wild dogs barking outside our camp got particularly close. There used to be many dogs in Tibet but since the Chinese have arrived there's more stir-fry than dogs.


My Wife is Crazy
Lucero bought a stuffed rabbit along with us. Cathy, one of our lovely fellow travelers, brought a stuffed cat. Here are the two friends contemplating a swim.

Christy Tews took this photo for Lucero.


Breathing Easy
The air was so dry at this altitude that you would wake up feeling as though you were breathing daggers. Sleeping with a face mask like this allowed you to recycle the moisture in your exhale and made for a delicious night's sleep. Plus, it's so fashionable and not at all frightening to behold.


Cheakpoint Ahead
The Chinese are well-known for their mastery of the English sign and this is no exception. Here we are entering the town of Darchen, which was surely the low point of the trip for me. This is a tourist town at the base of the route around Mount Kailash.


You Are Forgiven
We did it: we disrobed and got into the freezing water of Lake Manasarovar. This meant that for a brief time before we committed more sins we were completely sin free. It was a heady few seconds, I'll tell you that.


Where is the Jacuzzi?
No photograph can do justice to the "guesthouse" that we enjoyed in Darchen. The real mystery here is why the walls have water stains when the bathrooms were all taped shut. When someone asks me how my trip was, I respond, "When was the last time you checked into a hotel only to have your sherpas dig a latrine in the parking lot?" Ah, Darchen, I think of you still.


Wall-To-Wall Grafitti
Our hotel in Darchen was so depressing that our friend Steve Yochum felt the need to cheer us up by writing on our wall in marker. Of course, I have no idea what he wrote. Still, it did cheer me up somewhat.


It Could Always Be Worse
Here is another guesthouse in Darchen. Notice the outdoor pool table and the pile of garbage by the door. You pay extra for that type of amenity.


Playground or Garbage Dump? You Choose.
Several children enjoy the stony, garbage-laden dust-bowl known as Darchen.


Welcome to Tibet
My sense after visiting Tibet is that many westerners romanticize the country. It is unprecedented and astounding for a government to choose as it's guiding principles peace and enlightenment and Tibet should be revered for that reason. At the same time, the land itself is vast and hard and makes up almost half of modern China. Now that I have a sense for the size of the country and have seen the efforts that China is making to integrate Tibet into the eastern portion of China, I can't imagine that Tibet will ever be an independent state again. Of course, ever is a long time...


I'm a Terrible Actor
In this photo, I am trying hard not to convey my intense disappointment at the conditions in which Tibetans find themselves. I am failing.


The Lost Sock
This river was filthy. We saw a dog eating a mattress next to it. Equally disturbing, we saw women washing their clothes in it.


Your Tea Will Be Ready When It Stops Raining
Luckily, it never seems to rain. This solar teapot was surprisingly effective at boiling a cuppa. Believe it or not, a group of us had lunch in this tea house after we completed our cimcumambulation around Mount Kailash. Most of us lived to tell the tale.


Beginning the Kora
The circumambulation around the mountain is known as the "kora." This is the gateway to the kora. Every year, there is a ceremony on the Buddha's birthday/death day during which a new pole is raised and draped with new prayer flags. This pole is enormous and Prem told us that they haul it up with a truck.


At the Gate
Lucero is framed by the mountain and the prayer flags. Yes, we really were there. It was so different than our usual lives that it seems almost like a dream now.


Oh Mommy Take Me Home
I mean, Om Mani Padme Hum. More mani stones but this time they're painted. Tibetan Buddhism is so colorful and vivid; it's easy to imagine the appeal of such a religion to people who live in such a dry, monochromatic land.


A View from Above
Looking back at the gate from the sky burial ground. Yes, sky burial ground. Wait for it...


Cutting Wit
Tibetan Buddhists don't bury their dead. Instead, they chop them into pieces and leave the body parts in this particular area for vultures and animals to devour. After all, if you believe in reincarnation, then you realize that this body is nothing more than an empty husk very shortly after death. This particular burial ground, given it's proximity to Mount Kailash, is especially holy. The myth is that if you are "buried" here that you will ascend immediately to nirvana. Thankfully, none of us had the opportunity to test this theory.

These tools were used to dissect a body. The tools are left behind after the work is done.


Axe Me No Questions, I'll Tell You No Lies
We did not see any bodies while we were there.


You Can't Take It With You
The burial grounds was littered with memorabilia and personal items. Here are some clothing and hair.


Honestly
Did that T-Shirt ever look good on anyone?


Now There's Something You Don't See Every Day
A t-shirt and some hair on a yak skull. Well, we might not understand their rituals but they probably would not understand our obsession with Sex and the City. So we're even.


Ghosts of the Past
There are five monasteries around Mount Kailash. This one now houses four monks. We didn't visit it.


Ground Control to Major Tom
This is the landscape around Mount Kailash. Our kora was scheduled to take four days and this was the first. We walked across this hard-scrabble dust for about 8 hours, stopping only for lunch. We are still at about 16,000 feet though it looked and felt like being on the moon.


A Coffee-Drinker's Nightmare
Here we are a few hours into our kora about to turn east around the mountain. Not a single Starbucks in sight.

Reservation for Twenty-Two
This is the tea-house where we enjoyed our lunch. Lucero had trained hard for this trip and was in amazing shape but she started to feel a bit of altitude sickness here, unfortunately. Headache, exhaustion... and still four hours of walking to go.


We're Never Eating Here Again
Unfortunately, all the best tables were taken so we had to sit by the door. At the right, a smiling Dawa continues to raise all of our spirits.


Yakity Yak
Our first day around the mountain ended at this monastery. Many stupas marked this holy spot. Unfortunately, the animals we had used in Nepal were not capable of living at this altitude so we had replaced them with yaks. The yaks, however, were late. We arrived cold and exhausted only to find no shelter or food. It was a dark night of the soul until that first blessed flea-bag of a pack-animal arrived.


North Face of the Holy Mountain
The peak reaches about 22,000 feet and is the highest mountain in this region. Tibetan Buddhists believe that if you could truly you would behold a crystal palace, home to the god of compassion. At the time -- beset with exhaustion, hunger and various illnesses -- I was rather uninspired by the mountain. Looking at these photos, though, it is quite beautiful.

Obligatory Product Placement
It's everywhere. This trek brought to you by Kiehl's fine face and body products. Kiehl's: don't leave home and travel 30,000 miles and walk two weeks to get to the remote western plain of Tibet without it.


Harbinger of Doom
A bit dramatic, perhaps, but this is a view of our second day's journey around the mountain. That day, we were scheduled to ascend the pass at Drolma La (18,600 feet) and descend to our second camp site. There had been snow all week and the pass was covered by 2.5 feet of snow, rendering it unsuitable for the yaks. If we couldn't bring the yaks, we couldn't bring our camp. That meant we had to do two days of walking in one day, including climbing over Drolma La, down the steep descent on the other side through slush and snow and then turn south to trudge through a windy, hail-plagued valley for 6 hours.

Only six members of our twenty-two person group chose to undertake this fool's errand. I was one of them. Lucero, who was in excellent shape, was still suffering with altitude sickness and wisely chose not to make the journey.


Chaz and Ann: Steady On
Our climb up to the pass was approximately 2000 feet. Here are two members of our group, Chaz and Ann, both of whom had scaled most of Mount Everest in their youth, making their way steadily upward. Both of them were an inspiration to me and kept me going when I thought I couldn't continue.


Up Close and Personal
This is one of my favorite views of Mount Kailash. We only saw the mountain one time during that second day. Here I imagine the mountain winking knowingly at me before it disappears entirely.


The Upper Crust
We started up the mountain early so that the snow wouldn't melt on us and make our journey that much more difficult. We were able to walk on the crust of the snow throughout much of the morning. Whenever we fell through, though, we found ourselves up to our waist. It took so much energy to get out that several times I thought about just giving up. I do not recommend learning how to walk on snow and ice while actually doing it. Read a book; it's much more comfortable.


Home of the Gods
This particular peak is supposedly the home of Manjushri, the bodhisattva of wisdom and, in some traditions, a disciple of the Buddha himself.


Vacation Home of the Gods
Another mountain home, this time supposedly of Avalokiteshvara (say that three times fast), the thousand-armed incarnation of compassion. Isn't the light lovely? The sun kept popping it's head out and we would shed our heavy clothing only to have it hide behind a cloud and return the world to it's freezing state again. This game went on until we wised up and stopped disrobing, whereupon it began to hail.


A Small Shrine
Chaz and Ann are closing in on this small shrine. The entire region is a holy spot and there are many stories associated with it. This is the entrance to an small area known as Shiva Sheds His Clothes. One is supposed to leave clothing of a relative or loved one here to speed their progress along the path to enlightenment. This is at about 17000 feet.


Shedding Our Clothes
This is another view of the area where one leaves the clothes of loved ones. We're already tired and we're only a few hours into what would turn out to be an 11-hour, 15-mile hike.


Remembrance
One of my best friends from home lost her father several years ago and she gave me one of his socks to leave on the mountain. You can see it on the rock in the lower portion of the picture.


Up, Up and Away
If you look carefully, you can see the trail heading up to the pass at Drolma La in the crease between these two mountains.


Test Failed
This is the sin-testing stone. If you can crawl underneath all three stones you are without sin. It is a telling sign that none of the westerners even attempted this test. The three sherpas, of course, slipped under it with ease.


Casting the First Stone
We knew all along that Prem would make it.


Again?
If you can wrap your hands around this stone it means that you will know your parents again in your next lifetime. Chaz is doomed to such a fate and seems quite pleased about it.


Left, Right, Left, Right
We're getting very near the high pass now. Notice the weather ahead. Yeah.


View from the Top
We were all elated to finally reach the pass at Drolma La (18,600 feet). We'd been thinking about it for weeks. I was so happy that I apparently lost control of my limbs. Little did we realize that while it took us about 4-5 hours to reach the pass we still had 6-7 hours of trekking to go.


Snowing at the Top of the World
This was the beginning of the inclement weather. Nothing was going to dampen my spirits, though. One of my companions was a serious mountain climber. He told me that he had never been this high in his life: "If you don't go to the Himalayas or the Andes, you don't find many mountains this high." What a great feeling! Shortly thereafter, I expended all my energy trying to walk 30 feet away from the group to pee. All things pass.


I'll Take A Position as Secretary of State, Please
You are supposed to leave hopes, prayers and wishes at the top of Drolma La. A number of our friends sent wishes with us and we attached them to these prayer flags that I hung amongst the rest. Our wishes included the election of Barack Obama, as you can see. Shortly thereafter, he was elected. Coincidence? I think not.


Best Wishes
Another view of our prayer flag. One person sent along a picture of her ailing dog. I hope he's better now.


Peace on Earth
Our group signed two flags wishing for peace on earth and blessings to all beings. Our lovely sherpas Dawa and Prem hung these large flags at the high point of the pass. May all beings be happy.


Get an Eye-Full
One last look at Drolma La because I'll not be back this way again.


Down, Down, Down
We hiked down about 2000 feet through slush, slippery snow and rocks. The lake at the right was frozen solid. This was by far the most difficult part of the hike for me because I was constantly slipping or falling down. It took so much energy to get up again.

A Life Lesson
As we head further down the mountain the snow changes to hail. Prem and Chaz and Ann kept trying to explain to me how I could navigate the snow more easily. I still kept slipping and sliding all over the place. Each time I was worried about twisting an ankle or just expending too much energy. Tai, another fellow traveler, was enjoying the trip down. He shared his secret with me: he slips and stumbles but he just doesn't mind it. There's a life lesson for you.


The Next Step
As we descended the hill I looked to my right and saw the valley that we would be traversing next. It is famous for it's freezing wind and inclement weather. It lived up to its reputation admirably.


Where You Least Expect It
At the bottom of the hill we came upon this little tea house. Apparently, during the high season of the summer when Indians and others make the trek to Kailash in greater numbers, this tea house can serve hundreds of customers each day. It's hard to imagine how they would get the supplies for that many customers.


The Road Less Traveled
Looking back up the hill I was glad to have that portion of the journey behind me. Though the valley was snow-covered and our feet would stay soaked for the entire day, at least I wouldn't be slipping and sliding every step.


Any Port in a Storm
Here we are inside the tea house. They appear to be in the middle of a remodel. While we ate, it began to hail.


All Things Pass
Through the hail, you can see the remains of a prior tea house. When they left, the owners left the plastic tea bowls, turning them upside down at the site like little orange grave stones.


Chilled to the Bone
The path stretches out before us here. It was actually more of a marsh. The ground alternated between mud, snow and shifting rock. We walked through this valley for six hours. Our feet were soaking wet the entire time.


Handsome Devil
The tip of my nose was always my best feature. Lucky thing, too, because that is the only portion of me you can see here. I reached the limit of my endurance at about this point. Sadly, we still had two hours to walk. We took a right at that hill ahead and exited the Valley of the Evil Winds. It was around this time that one of our group termed this trek a "death march." I didn't have the energy to agree.


Free At Last
We turned the corner to exit the valley and were greeted by the sun. It was the first time we had seen it in half a day. Even the stark landscape of the Tibetan plain appeared rosy and cheerful next to the valley we had just traversed.


A Moment of Enlightenment
We had been walking for about 10.5 hours at this point. I personally was beyond my limit of endurance. It was just at this moment that Prem told us we were within a 20 minute walk of our guesthouse for the night. I immediately whipped out my camera to preserve forever the look of genuine joy on the faces of these tired souls.


Where There is Smoke...
When you see a monastery, can a guesthouse be far away? Indeed, it's right down the hill from the monastery. We made it!


Another Room with a View
This is the view from our room at the guesthouse. Luckily, we didn't need the extra mattress that has been so graciously provided.

The Ritz Carlton
... has not yet been built so we stayed in this guesthouse instead. The sight of six saggy beds in this dirty cement shed filled my heart with joy. It took about 30 minutes for my body to stop shaking. Four of us agreed that this was the hardest physical challenge we had ever undertaken; the other two had climbed Everest.

One unexpected benefit of the closure of the Chinese border for the prior year was that the bedbugs had moved out of these beds. We lifted the mattress and saw the bloodstains from where they had been crushed but the bugs themselves were long gone. We enjoyed a delicious night's sleep interrupted only by the incessant howling of dogs. I was so tired, I barely noticed.


Julia Child
This lovely woman and her daughter cooked dinner for us. I think Prem had cautioned her to make it simple and digestible for westerners so she served us a delicious mix of rice, potatoes and greens. I remember thinking at the time that I had rarely eaten such a hearty and delicious meal.


Guilty
The next morning I awakened to see where the dogs were that had been barking all night long. This is what I found. I wanted to walk over and bark at them for a while but thought better of it. Discretion really is the better part of valor.


The Big Cheese
This one looked more guilty than the rest, I thought. He also claimed the mattress. He must be the ring leader of this Gang of Four.


A New Day
The weather was beautiful the next day. We had only two or three hours of hiking to do so we decided to walk up to the monastery before we set out.


How Much for Those Robes?
This was a disheartening experience for me. There was one monk at this monastery. He charged a certain fee to light a candle, another fee to take a photo of a portion of one of the many caves in which the patron saint of the area, Milarepa, is supposed to have meditated. It had the feel of a museum, not a monastery.


Saturday Night Fever
Or Thursday morning, rather. We were all happy to be on our way to meet the trucks having completed the kora. I personally was yearning to see my lovely wife again. I wasn't too worried about her but I missed her. I wished she had shared the journey around with me. I hoped that her altitude sickness had subsided.


Mani Is The Root of All Evil
When I saw this mani stone, I thought how much Lucero would have loved to steal it. She wasn't there, so it remained.


Things are Looking Up
The weather for our short hike out was lovely and the scenery was beautiful. The land that I once thought was dead showed relative signs of life. Nothing like a twelve hour walk through the snow to make you appreciate scrub brush.


Surely Almost There
Here's Ann with two particularly large and bright mani stones.


Looking More Closely
I got a closer look at these colorful mani stones. I hadn't seen any like these before and thought they were lovely.


Pride Goeth Before a Fall
We were feeling good about having completed the kora when we saw these two women who had prostrated their way around the mountain. They take one step, then kneel and fall flat upon their faces on the ground. The then rise again, take one step and repeat the process. This takes the locals the same amount of time it took us to walk around the mountain.


And So It Goes
As I was finishing the kora and enjoying the fine repast at that restaurant with the solar tea kettle in Darchen, the rest of our group was hiking back out to Darchen the way that they had arrived. As they were exiting the kora, local pilgrims were just beginning their journey. The next three photos were taken by our fine Mayor, Daniel.


Where's The Gortex?
These women don't look dressed for the kora to me. From what I can see, there will be no wicking at all. Still, if they walk around the mountain they will do in one day what took us three.


Farewell to Kailash
Our kora was ended but others took up the journey on all of our behalf.


Weapons of Mass Destruction
While I was on my journey, one of these huge yaks went wild and destroyed a piece of luggage. These obstreperous beasts are difficult to control at the best of times. The yak herders were a different breed of man than the dzo herders, as well. Wilder, less refined and a bit smellier. Just like the yaks. What does that say about me and my cat?


In the Salle de Bains
I hadn't showered in about two weeks. Further, one of the two pairs of pants that I had brought with me were lost or stolen at about the same time I last showered. I had worn the same pants for many exhausting miles. This shampoo restored my spirits and my appearance greatly. See the home page for a photo of me prior to the shampoo. Warning: young children are not advised to view the photo as it may cause trauma or lasting emotional scarring.


Big Sky Country
It's hard to convey the scale of the Tibetan plain. We camped one night by a river that feeds Lake Manasarovar and I tried my best to do so.


The Town Dump
Is it Darchen? No, it's Paryang. Just like Darchen but dustier.


Everyone Needs a Hobby
You can see the dust whipping through this photograph. Life in this town in nigh inconceivable for those of us spoiled by our western upbringing.


Meet the Neighbors
That men and women can exist in this climate and under these conditions is a testament to our durability as a race. By the way, the women's long skirts allow them their modesty as they squat in the middle of the road to defecate.


Sign of Things to Come
We see the Himalayas again, which means that we must be near the border of Nepal. We're heading back to Kathmandu to conclude our journey where we began it.


Just What Makes That Little Old Ant...
With the economy crashing and me in a commission-based job, I'm glad Lucero can support me.


The Lap of Luxury
Back in Kathmandu after a truly frightening bus ride over narrow roads flanked by sheer drops, I was struck again by verdant Nepal. It seems ironic that a country that is so fertile is so poor while China, which appeared desolate beyond reason is one of the richest in the world.


The Vault of Heaven
From Nepal, the Himalayan range appears to float well above the horizon, in the middle of the sky. It's easy to see why the locals consider these majestic peaks to be the home of the gods.


Our Nepalese Friends
Prem (left) and Dawa (right) stuck with us to the end. My words here can never repay the thousand kindnesses that they showed to me and our entire group throughout our arduous journey. I send my love to them both. They are a constant source of inspiration for me and remain fixed in my mind the way a meditational insight does. Maybe not all things pass. At least, I hope not.


High Fashion?
Itaka, our fashionable friend from gay Paris, showed Lucero the haute couture method for wrapping a scarf. Unfortunately, Lucero decided to practice on me.


Clean Sheets, Hot Showers and an Open Heart
We finished our journey at the only western-style hotel in Kathmandu called the Yak and Yeti. Its eccentric proprietor carried Nepal's first flush toilet on his back to Kathmandu, or so the legend goes. When I got out of the shower I couldn't believe how easy it was to just step into a room and get completely clean. I swore that I would not take showers or toilet paper or soft clean beds for granted ever again but I have already broken that oath. Still, once you have been to Nepal or Tibet you don't forget the experience. I have heard people say the same thing about India. I'm glad that Lucero and I experienced together life in its less varnished state. It is an experience that we will carry with us for a long time.

4/3/2010 11:34:04 AM - kikireis@...
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12/9/2008 1:13:30 AM - 001054327125
"Dzo It Goes"?  "Mani Is the Root of All Evil"?  Great titles and even better pictures.  One of the most amazing trip reports ever!!!  Thank you so much for making it clear what your trip was like, warts and all.

11/21/2008 5:32:45 AM - 002035398617
Great pictures Steve and Lucero except that the one of the Darchen guest house doesn't capture its true beauty...

10/24/2008 11:19:12 PM - 001080711893
I love Mani stones.  May need to learn how to make one for me and Steve Yochum.