Everest trek - Day 4 - Namche to Tengboche

3500 to 3860 (+410m)
6.75km - 7 hours

Departing a rainy Namche at 6am the route heads east then switches north following the river far below. Occasional breaks in the weather give more glimpses of huge piles of rock; just when you think you'd seen the summit, something else appears higher in your line of sight. I prefer it like this and liken it to a beautiful lady (or man in Helens case) teasing us; If there were no clouds it would be a full frontal - and where's the fun in that?! We stop at the Ama Dablan lodge and Dave, who's had rumblings all morning, has to make a swift visit to the outside long-drop squatter. Maybe those sausages weren't such a good idea. The lodge owners are very friendly, and this would be worth considering as a second acclimatisation day as it's the same altitude as Namche. There's a big outside seating area with views down the valley - we had a quick glimpse of the mighty Ama Dablam before the clouds moved over again.

Feeding the crows 

First view of Ama Dablam

The route then went steep down into the now-thickening clouds. This was where we encountered our first companion dog; they randomly walk about on the trails following tourists and Sherpas and are very friendly and healthy, and greatly appreciate a biscuit or two. I'm ashamed to say I forget the name we issued this particular canine, maybe Hector - I'm sure Helen will correct me in the comments! Eventually you get down to Phunki Tenga and the Evergreen lodge next to the river. There's a sign saying that this is your last chance for refreshment before a two hour climb; this is not the case, there's three or four better cafe's over the river. Also the toilet in Evergreen was bad... very bad! We had a cup of instant noodles each (I had seconds!). Just before the marathon climb is a TIMS army checkpoint but they wouldn't let me take a picture for this diary. Dave was feeling extremely rough and weak, so I carried Helens bag on my front and she carried Dave's, but he still had to stop often for a rest or be at one with nature. We arrived at the top around 1pm and had a welcome cup of sweet black tea - It took well over two hours to get there!

We checked into the Tengboche guest house, a cute little place with good food and friendly staff (one of the girls was particularly cheeky). I had a compact and cheerful single room (blankets provided). There's a bakery next door but it was closed until high-season. At 3pm every day you can go into the monastery and sit with the monks as they chant, occasionally stopping to slurp hot tea. This was the first time I felt the cold, and switched my shorts for trousers. The weather was wet in the afternoon. In the evening the lodge owners lit the stove and we sat in the cosy restaurant for hours talking and discussing statistics! I had a Nepali curry, which was delicious and enormous; the rice and vegetables just kept coming!

Up up up up up up up up...

Bakery - closed :'(

Nyaung Shwe, Myanmar

One hour out of Yangon on the number 43 bus is the Yangon main bus station; It's more like a small town populated by buses. The amount of people that smile and wave is incredible. Everyone offers to help carry my bag and ask to see my ticket, then ushering me deeper into muddy bus town; how anyone knows where anything is here is beyond me! Directed by countless people I arrive at a concrete room housing the bus company I'm travelling with. Once checked on I grab some noodles and watch the world go by for an hour. There's no other tourists to be seen anywhere.

The bus is described as a sleeper but only as in you might be able to sleep, sitting up, while the bus bounces and judders, all night. The tilt on my seat doesn't seem to work too well, but the lady in front tilts hers back fine. I use this setup to my advantage and wedge my head between the back of her headrest and my bag, which is now on my lap. The bus stops so many times, all through the night; after a few times I don't even bother getting off the bus. You can see the rest stops from about 4km away as they have lasers, neon signs, flashing full-size palm trees and loud music from a giant Samsung TV.

I'm woken up abruptly and told this is my stop. I blearily look at my watch (5am) and get off the bus. I now have to go 15km to Nyaung Shwe and the only option (short of waiting hours for a bus in the rain) is to get a taxi. As I'm alone I reluctantly stump up 7,000 Kyat (locals can apparently take this journey for 500) and pay a $5 entrance fee to the lake area, as it's a national park. I feel like I've been fleeced!

I get a room at the Nandawunn for $11 a night (down from $16). Nyaung Shwe is said to be the the most touristic place in Myanmar and the prices reflect this. The focus of the tourism is a beautiful lake surrounded by misty mountains peppered with hundreds of Pagodas. The lake is 22km long but you can't stroll around it as there's no paths. People get about on boats, and the houses and businesses around the lake and rivers are all stilted. I join 3 Chinese people and hire a boat and driver for the day (3,000 Kyat each). The boats are long and fast; we shoot down the river and into the lake past a huge welcome sign. We approach traditional fishermen who row using their right foot in a figure-eight motion, while standing. It looks extremely difficult but leaves their hands free to collect or distribute the nets. We leave the south side of the lake and enter a network of muddy fast flowing rivers. The driver skillfully manouvers the long boat around tight corners and through narrow stilted villages. The trip is well worth the money, here's what we saw;

 - Cigar making
 - Cotton weaving
 - Silk weaving
 - Boat making
 - Lotus weaving
 - Silversmith
 - Food market
 - Paper making
 - Various temples
 - Jumping cat monastery

Yep, Monks, in their spare time, have taught the cats to jump through hoops, for treats. There must be 10 or 11 cats of varying sizes and skills in jumping. One in particular is obviously the king and gracefully flies through hoop after hoop.  When the cats aren't jumping they sleep and wash amongst the many Buddhas. At the end of the day we dart north across the lake smoking some hand-rolled cigars and back up the river into Nyaung Shwe. Me and a Chinese girl on the boat learn we share the same birthday and perform the "birthday twin" hug, then part company.

It rains a lot in the rainy season. I didn't see blue sky once. This does however mean fewer tourists; there's barely anyone here. Umbrella's are essential, as is ducking into a cafe when a particularly heaviy downpour appears. One of these cafe's was Indra; a tiny little Indian with four tables and a warm welcome from Miss Indra, her daughters and brother. The first time here I ate a mutton curry with chapathi and chilli and mango side dishes, the second time I had a tandoori; both delicious. Speaking with Miss Indra's brother he talks about how he had drawn plans for a website, but doesn't know how to put one together. As the food's so good I offer the services of Bishshat to build the site and get some free chai ;)

Waiting for the bus out I managed to catch some of the Olympics in a little cafe. It was women's cycling. Despite the rain I had a deep hankering to be back in London; I've cycled those exact streets many times. The Brazilian leader was causing much merriment among the Burmese men I was sitting with!

Women's cycling - good spectator sport

You can see all of my photos here