While the first half of my trek, Jiri to Namche, was all about the Nepali (mostly Sherpa) people that I met along the way, this second part deals mainly with Nepal’s rockier residents. From Namche Bazaar (3450 m / 11320 ft), I initially headed northeast towards Everest. This is when I saw the dramatic thumb-like Ama Dablam and caught my first glimpse of Everest (since its fleeting apparition in Tibet in 2005) peeking out from behind its daughters Nuptse and Lhotse (photos). I branched North after a few hours to ascend the Gokyo Valley towards Nepal's largest glacier, Ngozumpa, then [View Full Entry]

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Montreal and Kathmandu are a world apart. Excluding stop-overs: 6 hours to Los Angeles, 17 hours to Bangkok then 4 hours to Kathmandu adds up to 27 hours worth of leg cramp, and not much sleep. It would actually have been slightly shorter (but more expensive) to fly the other way around the world. But before I can start trekking, there's a 10-hour public bus ride to survive, switch-backing for hours as we climb to a high pass then dig-zagging down to a river crossing, only to repeat the cycle over and over again. Other than a ruptured break line [View Full Entry]

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Let's Call it Shangri-La I was confused. I had bought an airline ticket from Lhasa to a city called Zhongdian but as I stepped off the plane onto the rainy tarmac, the sign over the terminal building clearly read Shangri-La. Well it seems that the Chinese government has decreed that Zhongdian is the real-life paradise that inspired the famous novel. It is no problem at all that there is little convincing evidence for this - if the government says its so, no one here is going to question it. A bigger problem is that Zhongdian looks much more like another dirty [View Full Entry]

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If you were discouraged about the state of Tibetan culture in Lhasa while reading my last Postcard, I am happy to report that rural Tibet remains distinctly Tibetan, for now. To see rural Tibet, in fact to just leave the two largest cities Lhasa or Shigatse, requires an Alien Travel Permit (in addition to the Alien Entry Permit required to come to Lhasa) and a way to get around since public transport is often non-existent. Most people get together into groups of 4 or 5, chose an itinerary and rent a 4x4 with Tibetan driver. Four-wheel drive is an absolute necessity. [View Full Entry]

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The first thing that I notice getting off the plane from Chengdu to Lhasa is that the air is cleaner, cooler and dryer here. The second thing is that, at 3600m above sea level, there is a lot less of it. I had better get used to it because this is the lowest elevation place that I will visit in Tibet. A Bit of Ranting The third thing I noticed, as the airport bus arrived in Lhasa, is how much it resembles just another Chinese city. What happened to the famous Holy City and seat of Tibetan Buddhism, once closed to [View Full Entry]

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Xi'an The term underground warfare takes on a new meaning in Xi'an, China's former and ancient capital. You may remember from my , the story of Emperor Qin Shihuang or First Emperor who lent his name to the Qin Dynasty and to China itself. Qin was incredibly successful as an iron-fisted ruler in the 3rd Century BC but failed miserably in his quest for immortality. Xi'an is the place where farmers drilling a well in 1974 discovered one of the immense underground chambers containing battalions of Terracotta Warriors guarding Qin's tomb. There are thousands of life-size, individually hand-crafted ceramic soldiers, including [View Full Entry]

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I admit feeling somewhat apprehensive in the hours before leaving Montreal, as I have immediately prior to my other backpacking trips. But as soon as I left the arrivals area at Beijing airport and was confronted with a throng of shouting and jostling Chinese, many offering me "deals" in a strange currency on a taxi to a strange city, I felt a smile creep across my face. This is a feeling I know. This is a feeling I love. By the time I reached my hostel, I had completely reverted to backpacking mode. Standing in Tian'anmen Square, barely 18 hours after [View Full Entry]

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One of the things that I've learned in my past travels is the importance of having some basic knowledge of the history and politics of a country before even setting foot there. Without this context, it is too easy to be overwhelmed by cultural differences as they wash over you without at all soaking in. The trick it seems, is to do one's homework. This problogue may serve as a useful primer for readers of my China Postcards. A Short History and some Tall Tales of China Civilisation is nothing new in China. Up to 7000 years ago, when european civilisation [View Full Entry]

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Inspired by Fileas Fogg, I've maintained my hectic pace through Turkey and Greece, changing cities every day or two and often sleeping on trains, busses or boats so that I can see more during my precious days. Other travelers sometimes shake their heads when they hear my itinerary, but their objectives may be different. For me, this is not really a vacation. I am applying as much energy and effort as this rare opportunity deserves. Nor am I trying to see everything as though this were my last trip. I am developing a clear idea of where I would like to [View Full Entry]

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Four countries in 2 weeks make a lot of material for this update. On April 14th, after 51 days of rice, I finally left Asia for Egypt, but not before relaxing for 4 days in the South of Thailand and making my way via Malaysia to Singapore. Watch my Thailand/Malaysia/Singapore VideoBlog ! A FEW DAYS OF ISLAND R&R I chose Koh Lanta, a relatively little known island just across from Kho Phi Phi where "The Beach" was filmed. Its mostly deserted beaches have "Chunks Ahoy" rocks baked into cookie coloured sand. The water temperature was a spa-like 34 degrees C - [View Full Entry]

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