Holy crap, I'm in Nepal

and it's taken 4 days to get our shit together.  It is kinda amazing how thinking if we were to be coming here from the US, we probably would have known exactly what hike's we'd be doing, what permits are needed and all of our flights and stuff booked.  Maybe we'd even know a little bit about the language and the country.  But after all this travelling it is hard enough to plan the next week let alone all the details for a whole new region of the world. We at least had a guesthouse booked that had free airport pickup.  After getting through immigration at the airport, we walked outside to see tons of people and madness everywhere, and had no idea what was going on. Luckily there was a guy just as we walked out with a big NICOLE sign.  Hey, that's us.

Those are some huge mountains in the back there.  Even higher than the clouds.

We are leaving to trek to Everest base camp tomorrow morning!  Holy crap I am so excited about seeing some huge mountains and also hiking for 26 days!  We take a bus to Jiri and start walking from there.  Trekking here in Nepal is pretty simple actually, cause you walk from village to village.  There are no roads, but there are people who live their whole lives up there.  So no need for a tent or even to bring any food!  This is a really popular trek too, but most people fly into Lukla, which is about a weeks walk from Jiri.  In the beginning it should be a bit quieter, and also lower in elevation so we'll get used to the hiking.

Apparently there are tons of logistics to actually finally setting out on the trek.  This is what has been taking 4 days...  First off, I needed to get some more warm clothing.  Got a hat and mittens and also a fake Northface down jacket.  Every 30 seconds you walk by another shop selling some really good looking fakes of the popular outdoor gear.  It may be almost as good,. but at 1/5 the price.  Also cash.  We hear that food and accomidation can get quite expensive as you get higher up, and there are no ATM's in the mountains.  26 days worth of cash is no small number.... about 45000 rupees.  This means multiple trips to the ATM each day.  Then there is the flight back to Kathmandu.  There are just as many travel agencies here as there are knock off clothing shops.  This is kinda how everything goes here:  you agree on a price in USD, then after that they add on a 4% credit card charge, and then you get charged in rupees and they greatly devalue the ruppee so that you pay more.  Then there are all the permits and entry passes for another over $30 just for the privelage to enter the park.  To get it as an independent trekker, you need to walk across town and not use all the shops in town that will only sell it to organized tour groups.

The craziness that is Kathmandu.  We also arrived the day of a big 'ol fesitval.

Anyway, we have finally made it through all the logistics, flights and busses are booked, permits are in hand, and gear is ready to go.  For those who worry about our safety, hiking up to Everest base camp at about 17000 feet, theres no need.  The hiking here is from village to village, so no need to bring food or cooking gear or even a tent.  We'll be doing a bunch of hiking at lower elevations and not gaining too much elevation each day to prevent getting too sick from the altitude.  And really, there are tons of westerners doing this very same trek.  The locals are used to it, there are even a couple western medical clinics along the way.  One thing that there is basically none of though is internet.  So dont expect to hear from me for oh... about a month!

Then after that, you can expect to see some pretty crazy pictures of mountains.  Woot!