My Family Gap Year: 2012

Saturday, 22 December 2012

Goodbye Nana and Grandad

We were really lucky that Jo's parents came out to join us for 3 weeks in Thailand. It was great to have the chance to make and share so many memories together. While Jo and Pete were diving on the live-aboard, the children were having their own great holiday with Nana and Grandad. They played together in the pool, went beach-combing for beautiful beach souvenirs, and went for adventurous swims and snorkels around the rocks. Great fun was had by all. We all felt sad when they left for England, but are looking forward to seeing them in New Zealand in 2013.

Thanks Mum and Dad for making it a great time together.

Swimming with mantas

We were very lucky to see manta rays on our liveaboard trip off the Thailand Andaman coast.

The photos above and the video linked below were shot by someone who was with us on the dive. They were kindly shared with all of us on the trip (thank you Mathew).

https://www.dropbox.com/s/bh0cjclklixcimx/good%20manta%20video.MOV

A submerged forrest

Kao Sok national park was created in the 60's when a hydroelectric dam was built submerging an area of rain forest. The result is a massive lake surrounded by shear lime stone cliffs, which are covered by rain forest. In the evening and early morning you hear monkeys, birds and the sounds of insects filling the air. It is beautiful, remote and very peaceful.

We stayed in basic bamboo bungalows which float on the lake and again enjoyed tremendous Thai hospitality with delicious food. The only way to get there is by boat. We were awed by the scale of the limestone cliffs on the ride to the bungalows. By now we are getting to know the typical Thai long tail boat very well. All our stays have involved several boat trips on these traditional boats.The children were cooked pancakes cut into fun shapes, and were even, one happy afternoon, brought a plate of specially made chips. The children were a bit of a novelty we think.

We spent the days swimming and kayaking on the lake, hiking in the jungle and exploring a cave. One evening we enjoyed a spectacular tropical storm that went on for hours.

It was wonderful to see the children have so much freedom to play. They each enjoyed paddling a kayak to a submerged tree in the lake. They would then climb the tree and jump from the top of the trunk into the water below. They had a ball. One of the things that we have loved the most about being away is enjoying the outdoors on a daily basis.

Ban Thalae Nok

After the Koh Surin Islands we spent 3 days in the sea side village of Ban Thalae Nok. This is a Muslim village that was severely affected by the 2004 tsunami. In the recovery period following the disaster the community worked very closely with aid agencies. This cooperation lead to the development of a community based tourism programme with a focus on sustainability in which some villagers open their homes to tourists as home stays and other homes offer activities that enable tourists to participate in the lifestyle of the villagers. We were accompanied by a guide for the whole period who acted as our translator and interpretor.

playing on the beach with the local children

We stayed in two houses and enjoyed the most tremendous hospitality, and ate the most plentiful and delicious food of our trip. We learned how to do batik painting, we learned about the many uses the Nepa palm has for the village, as it provides food, sugar and roof coverings - we made a delicious barbequed coconut snack using nepa palm sugar and palm leaves and we had a go at weaving palm roof tiles - a typical roof will require 2000 of these, someone skilled can make about 80 a day. We went fishing on the beach and ate the fish afterwards. We learned about the importance of the mangrove ecosystem and went on a tour and even spotted monitor lizards and monkeys swimming in the canals and among the mangrove trees. We learned how to make soap with 3 ladies from the village; a small coop-cottage industry that mainly supplies local hotels.

making the coconut snack

weaving palm leave roof tiles

roof tiles drying on the not so busy road

dressing up in the traditional clothes of the village - our hosts are also in the photograph

Thailand - mummy mummy there is a crocodile on the beach

We have had a lot of fun in Thailand. Jo's parents joined us for 3 weeks and we did many exciting things.

We started of camping for 5 nights on one of the Surin Islands, in one of the many marine national parks in Thailand. The children all contributed memories of our time at the islands, which Nana drew together into a poem. One of the abiding memories of the first week is Benjamin, Helena and Sophia excitedly telling us that they had seen a crocodile on the beach, and would we want to see it too? (We have noticed that the children now have a surprising attitude to things that we would perceive as dangers. Rather than run in the opposite direction, they invite others to share in their wonder.)We did have a good look and it turned out that the crocodile was a very large monitor lizard, so there was no need to change to a different island!

The view from our tent on the beach that we shared with monitor lizards, monkeys and flying lemurs

Beautiful sunsets over the Andaman Sea

Camping on the Koh Surin Islands

Shades of turquose and beautifully clear
Are the waters of the bay so very near
To our tents, our home for five whole days,
Our base to snorkel or just to gaze

At the rushing long boat, and the lapping waves,
The scuttling hermit crab and how it behaves
In the shell it has chosen for its new home
Before feeling safer and free to roam.

It made us giggle when we put it on our hand
After picking it gently up from the sands
It tickled as it scuttled over its new terrain
In its oversized home where its chose to remain

One day our youngest three snorkelled close to to their tent
And discovered a lion fish, and a sea snake and
knew what that meant.
There were dangerous as was the cushion sea star
So they did not touch them but watched from afar.

We snorkelled four times a day if that were our wish
And saw lots of stunningly colourful fish
Enjoying the coral, in and around it
A magical world we were delighted to visit

One morning we saw four baby black tipped sharks
We recognized them from their distinctive marks
Other favourites of ours, a turtle, Nemo and a giant pufferfish
swam close to us as if granting our best wish!

Another morning we were told that we could
Visit the sea gypsies now living in a house of wood
Whilst there we bought baskets the ladies wove to sell
And cards designed by the children impressively well

A family of monitor lizards we were lucky to see
And Macaques called loudly leaping frrom tree to tree
Some flying lemur joined in on the act
A great time was had by all of us, we know that for a fact!

Friday, 21 December 2012

Delhi - India

Our last few days in India were spent in Delhi.

We went on a street walk with the Salaam Baalak Trust who look after street children and give them shelter, food, education and aim to reintegrate them with their families. Some of the children continue to work with the trust as adults and give guided walks, showing the streets through the eyes of street children. We walked around the railway station and one of the main tourist areas and saw the streets in a whole new light. The stories were touching and poignant and we learned a lot in the few hours we spent with them.

In Delhi we saw the film 'The life of Pi' in 3D a few days after its release in India. We spent quite some time relating the film to our experiences. We all felt the film perfectly validated our questioning we had done in India. We have heard different stories across different faiths all seeking to enlighten us about the divine within and reasons why. The stories may be different, but it seems that the underlying truth of what makes us human may be shared.

We stayed in another homestay in Delhi. It was the home of a retired colonel and his wife. Neither of them seemed to ever go into the kitchen, but would ask "the boys", 2 live-in servants, to look after us for breakfast instead.

Through staying in different homestays, we have seen several different families, Hindu, Muslim, wealthy and poorer, some with servants. All the households would hold extended famillies, causing us to look at our own experience of families scattered over hundreds of miles. We have seen grandparents doing puja for Ganesh whilst the rest of us ate breakfast, mothers and grandmothers fashioning fuel blocks from cow-dung, and watering it down to use as a floor-covering, heard tales of the challenges of trying to find the right wife for a 30 year old son, celebrated the merits of 3D television with a lady who collects her milk every morning direct from the cow, and been firmly schooled on the error of letting children with a virus drink chilled drinks when it is "cold" (28 degrees celsius) outside for fear of causing chest congestion.

Sunday, 9 December 2012

India masala

Our time in India was the most challenging of our time spent as a family travelling. We found India to be full of energy, but not always comprehensible to us. Perhaps the greatest gift were the questions we all found difficult to answer. Here are a few.

Why do babies die?
Is this food safe for my children to eat?
Can they fall off?
Why does everybody honk their horn all the time?
Why is that moped driving straight at me on the pavement?
Why do we eat meat?
Why do we feel the need for a glass of wine (or 2) at home, but not here?
Why do people bathe in a polluted river?
How can a river be filthy and polluted and yet magnificent and spiritual?
Why do people shit in the street?
What spices are in this?
Why do we all have to die?
What did we take from India when it was a colony?
How difficult must it be to make progress in maths, when lessons are in English, and your first language is Hindi?
What is it like to have to collect your water from a well every morning?
How much does your kitchen roof leak when it rains?
Why is that car driving the wrong way down the motorway towards us?
Is it safe to eat a chapatti cooked in a cow-dung fire?
How can a grown man be happy to have his mother select his wife?
What was it like to be one of 300 concubines?
How will the world political stage look 10 years from now?
Why are we overtaking around a blind corner?
Will we make it?
How can there be such a difference between rich and poor?
How can the gap be narrowed?
Is this fruit juice safe to drink?
Why did people think it was clever to hunt tigers?
How many tigers are left in the world?
Why do people make their kitchen floor from cow dung?
How can you stop country-wide corruption?
How many cow-dung fuel blocks can one cow produce a day?
Do religions all have a common core?
What are we doing here?
How much does a camel cost?
How much does this carpet cost?
Can our children cope with this?
Why is it so noisy?
Why are there beggars?
Why is that mother begging with her child?
How can she be so gracious in her kitchen?
Is this hairdresser qualified?
What is the wifi password?
Does it hurt pulling those paratas out of the oil with bare fingers?
How could that girl's family sell her to be married at age 13, to a man who beats her?
Why are you putting henna on my hand?
Why do so many people chew pan?
Do they go to the dentist?
How many gold coins make a reasonable dowry?
Why isn't there a vaccine for Dengue Fever?
Why is that girl working in a fair and not going to school?
Why do we spend time shopping?
Why do you want me to put petals in the lake?
Is this a scam?
Does that child have a pimp?
Will I help or hinder that beggar by giving them 10 rupees?
Is it a good thing for my children to see death?
How many cups of chai do you need to sell every day to have enough to feed your family?
How is her life different to mine?
What makes her smile?
What makes me happy?
How are her cares similar to mine?

Pushkar

We really enjoyed our stay in Pushkar. The Camel Fair was a riotous celebration of colour and camels. We were all equal participants in the circus, with tourists from abroad, and from all over India adding to the festival in their own ways.

No-one takes themselves too seriously at the fair. One of the more hilarious events was the moustache competition open to entry by all men; the finale saw many moustaches on display, some several metres long, held up by hair nets and fondled, caressed and stroked by all within striking distance.

There were competitions for the most decorated camel; camel dancing and horse dancing; in between it all are variety side shows of acrobatics and tight rope walking, snake charmers and camel rides; all offset by magnificently coloured turbans and sarees. We took camel rides around the fair every day; at sunrise and sunset, on the edge of the desert.

Fairground rides were built up as we were there, not unlike Benjamin's k-nex. We took many rides, with Rajastani turban wearing grown men joining in with as much gusto as us; we gave some rides as a present to some village girls - the joy on their faces was pricelesss. Health and safety concerns had long taken a back seat for us, (particuarly after some of the driving we had seen and experienced), but the lack of any kind of harness to hold people in on these rides was a litttle unnerving.

The lake in Pushkar is holy. The story as explained to us is as follows: Brahma, wanting a place to call his own, dropped a lotus flower to select the spot; this fell to the earth, and as it did, the lake at Pushkar was formed. Initially people were able to gain salvation by bathing in the lake at any time. However, the heavens got too crowded and the gods appealed to Brahma for reason. He eventually agreed that something had to be done, and limited the days one could achieve salvation by bathing to just 5 days a year, the last 5 days of the month of Karnati. As it happens this coincides with the camel fair and as the fair builds in momentum, more and more poeple come to Pushkar to bathe and be sanctified.

One day as we sat in the morning by the lake, drawing the beautiful ghats, an Indian family joined us. One of them was an architect and complimented Benjamin on his drawings. They had travelled to Pushkar to do puja for their departed grandmother; a priest joined the elders of the family for the elaborate and personal rituals. The younger members of the family sometimes watched, other times joined in and recorded the proceedings on their smart phones.

One another occassion, a group of trans gender men dressed in female sarees, danced on the street around Sophia Benjamin and Helena.

The mix of the fun and frolics, trading and religious devotion was strange and delightful. We saw many surprising, entertaining, and thought-provoking scenes.

Agra

We managed various trips to the Taj Mahal and a trip to Fatehpur Sikri,

Fatehpur Sikri was a city built out of rock and stone and abandoned soon after it was finished in the 16th century because of an uncertain water supply. The mosque and complex is beautiful. An extreme example of man's folly from centuries ago. The children scaled the massive bed of the maharaja which was situated overlooking the site where 300 concubines would recline by the poolside. Jo says; 'Perhaps it is a little bit like going to an exclusive restaurant and choosing your fish from the fishtank and having it served up nicely on a plate.'

The children all enjoyed the story of the Taj Mahal, a testamant to "love" and adoration. Or perhaps a demonstration to the excesses of a tyrant. Whatever was the motive for the building itself, the result is stunning.

The children all found wonderful details in the marble carvings and we all had a go at drawing the taj mahal from a restaurant roof top.

Our stay in Agra was longer than planned because Peter caught Dengue Fever and had to be admitted to hospital for a few days for rehydration. The first 24 hours were quite worrying as we watched to see how the disease would develop; luckily there were no complications. Jo's sister was ready to fly out at a moment's notice with the backing of the Foreign Office in case any of the rest of the family had been infected as well. We were lucky to be staying in a homestay whose owners would not hear of us moving out, but allowed us to extend our stay until Peter was discharged. Shiron and his mother had taken quite a shine to the children, and they were offered extended periods in front of their new 3D TV. One of us becoming ill had been our worst fear before leaving the UK, but having a family who knew the ropes looking out for us, gave us the extra stability we needed to feel safe in a strange country. Our homestay was a stones' throw away from the hospital, pizza hut, costa coffee and a swimming pool, so we got through it all remarkably easily!

Orcha

"An example of harmonious imagination and organised execution."
This is how one of the magnificent monuments in Orcha was described.
Not a bad philosophy for life; and especially 'harmonious imagination' is a theme we will continue to meditate on.

We stayed with a family in a homestay, organised by the Friends of Orcha, providing income generation opportunities for families in a village called Ganj nearby . The families in the project were lent money to build a guest room attached to their own home, the money they get from visitors like us enables them to pay back the loan, and earn a fair income for their family. Anu and Mukesh and their 3 children, aged 11, 7 and 4 made us very welcome. We ate breakfast and dinner with them in their kitchen every day. We would sit next to Anu on the floor made with cow-dung, and see her cook chapattis and delicious curries in the cow-dung fuelled clay fire.

Because of Diwali, their children had school holiday, so Sophia Benjamin and Helena were able to play with them every day. We celebrated Diwali with the family which involved fire works and sweets, singing and dancing. The air was filled with the noises of home-made explosives.

In the day time we would wander around abandoned monuments, imagine the lives of princes and princesses from centuries ago. In the evenings we saw beautiful sunsets with vultures and green parakeets circling the ruins.

It was a wonderful experience to stay with such a gracious family, and to be invited to observe and share in their day to day experience.

Monday, 12 November 2012

Varanasi haircut

Benjamin and I decided to have a haircut in Varanassi. Our wonderful home stay host had identified a suitable barber at the 'Cut and Curl saloon'. The barber's lack of English was no problem as we could identify our cut of choice by pointing at a photo card. We started by watching a few cuts and shaves before we had the courage to join the queue. My turn was first. All went well and my cut resembled the picture on the card so we were all feeling confident. The TV was switched on now and one of the Matrix films was providing a backdrop to the events. Things developed quickly, no doubt inspired by the action in the film and fueled by the effects of paan which was consumed by both our barbers. Benjamin's haircut did not go as planned as more hair was cut off than intended. Events in the barber shop were now resembling more and more the scenes from the Matrix film. My chair was suddenly flung back and without warning I had an orange face pack applied. Apparently I had opted for the full treatment which includes a full facial neck shoulder arm and back massage, not just a cut and shave. My face and shoulders were massaged with the help of some electric tool, a mixture between a stick blender and black and decker power drill. Jo was now actively trying to stop Benjamin's barber from removing any more hair. My barber was called over who did balance things out a bit for Benjamin whilst continuing my massage at the same time. Benjamin got treated to a mini massage before Jo finally managed to get him out of the chair and quickly left the shop. My 'treatment' continued for another hour. A cup of chai tea for me and some hair gel for Benjamin had us both restored to normality in no time.

Varanassi

Our first full day in Varanassi was a Monday, which is traditionally Shiva's day. Varanassi is Shiva's city and Monday is very busy. We were dropped off by tuc tuc on the outside of the old city. We had to cross two round-abouts. The noise of the trafic and the horns was overwhelming. The smell of the roads, the cows, the poo, the rubbish - it was a complete assault. We did not recognize many things; was this the Varanassi that we had visited before? We felt lost and overwhelmed, wondering why on earth we had brought our family here. We found a roof top terrace and got our bearings. We headed for the ghats. The nearest ghat happened to be the main burning ghat. There was no hiding from what was going on. Bodies are wrapped in cloth, and taken by boat to be washed in the Ganges after which they are burned in public. There are about 300 cremations a day that happen at the Ghats in Varanassi. It is quite an industry. About 200 kg of wood is needed to burn one body. This is stored by the river side and constantly shipped in. The family attending the cremation look happy; this is so that the soul of the departed is not disturbed. After the cremation the ashes are spread in the river. We headed upstream. We had decided to go for pizza on the other side of town. We took a boat ride to get there. After about 10 minutes, the body of a baby floated past our boat. Babies, pregnant women, Saddhus (holy men), people who suffer with leprosy or small pox are all not cremated, instead they are burried in the Ganges river. Again, there was no hiding from what we saw. If there was any doubt, the boat man made sure that we knew what we were looking at. We arrived at Assi Ghat. Surprisingly we made the transition from wood burning bodies to wood burning pizzas remarkably easily. Varanassi itself somehow helps visitors to cope and come to terms with what is on display.

The evening was magical on the river as we hired a boat to watch the evening puja, or worship ceremony, to the Ganges river. Candles are lit and placed on the river as loved ones, alive and departed are remembered. We joined in, remembering family and friends from home, as one at a time, we let the candles and marigolds float downstream.

During our stay in Varanassi, we kept going back to the old city, drawn by its rich tapestry and caleidoscope of life; at once often utterly incomprehensible yet complete; intense and overwhelming but leaving you wanting more; with everything on display but with many layers of hidden meanings.

The children drew quite a crowd and we met many kind and interesting people. In Sarnath, the place of Buddha's first sermon, an Indian elderly gentleman, a Buddhist teacher, sat down with us and explained the essence of Buddhism to us 5. We met many children from all walks of life, often bumping into them several times. Rickshaw drivers would recognize us from the previous day and say hello. We had all come to love the city by the time we left and I think we will return again one day.

101 things to do with an elephant

We washed them and swam with them.

We made them candies and fed them .

We climbed them and decorated them with colourful chalks, trunk included.

We rode them and went on safari.

We felt rather fond and familiar of the elephants by the time that we left Chitwan.

The Ugly Duckling - Nepali style

We were entertained during our last day at Sapana lodge in Chitwan to see a peacock chasing a chicken around the grounds. The peacock was quite beautiful, but we were perplexed as to it's preoccupation with the chicken. Durgar, the manager of the lodge explained the story: it is a more exotic version of the tale of the ugly duckling. A large abandoned peacock egg was found on a jungle walk one day, and brought back to the lodge by the guide. This egg was added to a batch of chicken's eggs in a nest. In time the egg hatched, along with all the chicks. The peacock hasn't yet had the epiphany that the swan had in Hans Christian Anderson's tale, but surely it must only be a matter of time....

Feet off the ground

During the last couple of weeks that we were in Nepal, we saw many huge bamboo swings erected, and being enjoyed by children everywhere. Our garden rope swing was puny compared with the swing that could be achieved on these impressive structures.

The swings are put up for a month every year to celebrate the Darshan festival, where gifts are exchanged, families get together, and goats are sacrificed. We had wondered why the swings were erected as part of the festival, and were told by someone more familiar with the customs that there was a belief that everybody should get their feet off the ground at least once a year; children and adults included.

Well, amen to that. (Jo, hurtling free fall down a natural waterslide whilst canyoning).

Tuesday, 23 October 2012

Flying

Mark Twain said:
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

And we are.

Today we all flew together in the skies over Pokhara.

Helena

Sophia

Benjamin

Dizzying spiral

Saturday, 20 October 2012

Breakfast

Our favourite spot in Pokhara - the pumpernickel bakery by the lakeside.

Annapurna Base Camp

We have just finished an glorious 18 day trek in the Annapurna region - our aim was to get to Annapurna Base Camp (4130 m) and with the help of our guide Nama and porters, Nima, Ganes, Pasang, we manged to get there.
(Nama explaining the route)

We started in Nayapul (1070m), in a subtropical forest, with rice paddies and beautiful butterflies. It was hot and humid and the first few days we had some last monsoon rain in the late afternoons which cleared the sky for beautiful vistas in the mornings. We saw the clouds forming throughout the afternoon and when the air was heavy and saturated we saw the clouds turn to rain.

We stayed in basic lodges which are all along the trail. Flights to the Everest region were cancelled due to bad weather, so many people choose to trek in the Annapurna region instead, which meant that we had to ring up in advance to book - all porters and guides have mobiles and all lodges have a telephone so this was not a problem.

Prices in the lodges are determined by local committees together with the Annapurna Delvelopment Committee; this means prices are fair and reflect the time and effort it takes to carry supplies to the lodges; the higher you are, the more things cost. The menus are relatively similar from lodge to lodge but interpretation of the dishes is very individual to each lodge, determined by the style of the chef and the availability of certain ingredients and the chemistry of the altitude - a safe and delicious bet is Dal Bhat - the traditional Nepali dish of rice and lentil soup and vegetable curry - and as Nama said - "24 hour power".

The first night we stayed in Hile (1430m). Corn was hung out to dry and we had our first of many plates of popcorn.

The second day of walking was a tough one with 3280 steps taking us to Ulleri (2210m) after lunch in Nangtanti. We passed many beautiful waterfalls and crossed beautiful rivers. This is where we had our first encounter with leeches - Helena had a bite on her leg, but thankfully a kind Russian trekker passing by quickly applied first aid with military precicion. This was again a hot day but getting cooler when the sun went down. That night we had the first glimpses of the snow capped mountains when the rain cleared. After dark a group of Chinese trekkers came in, soaked by the monsoon downpoor. The heater was quickly lit and our guide Nama helped out cooking curry for the group.

The third day we climbed further to Ghorepani (2860m). Above 2000 metres the trees change to rhododentrons which bloom a beautiful red in spring time. The rhododendron trees are massive with gnarled trunks and many plants and ferns growing on them. The crops grown changed from primarily rice to primarily millet. We were all delighted by many cascading waterfalls and various weird and wonderful moths and other insects.

The fourth day we planned to climb Poon Hill, 3210 m, which is next to Ghorepani. The sunrise is beautiful from there (if there are no clouds). The climb is about one and a half hours and so we got up at 4.30am - it rained however. Sophia Benjamin and Helena insisted we'd go up anyway and luckily for us, the rain cleared and eventually the clouds cleared too giving us beautiful views. The rest of the day we stayed in Ghorepani to acclimatise to the altitude. Benjamin and Helena learned the Nepali game goats and tigers; they scratched a board on the slate patio and played for hours, watched and encouraged by an amused group of porters who offered advice to both players in Nepali which was nevertheless fully understood.

The fifth day we walked to Tadapani (2600m), a saddlepoint village. This was a tough day with several steep ups and downs. Helena only had half an hour in her basket and walked the rest of the day.

The sixth day we walked to Chomrong (2170m), again a tough day starting with a steep descent all the way down to the river in the next valley with after that a slow ascent to Chomrong. We passed a recent landslide which shows how the mountains here are constantly moving and changing.

After Chomrong we took our time and did relatively short days in order to acclimatise to the altitude. The seventh day we stayed in Bamboo (2300m), the eighth day we stayed in Himalaya (2920m) and the ninth day we stayed in Deorali (3130m). The valley was very steep here with shade for most of the day. People dont really live in this valley other than to look after the lodges which specifically cater for the trekkers, so you feel further from civilisation. We were getting higher and higher but not really feeling the effects of altitude other than when we exerted ourselves. With the spare time that we had after a relatively short 2 hour walk, we did another walk to a waterfall. We felt dwarfed by the scale of the mountains and waterfalls. The children ran around looking for beautiful stones and played in the water.

The tenth day we walked to Machapuchare Base Camp (3700m), the first base camp in the sanctuary. The walk was short and we crossed the tree line and meadows of himalayan poppies, some still flowering! We passed the remains of an avalance-a snow cave- a starc reminder of the power of nature, and arrived in the sunshine at MBC at midday. We had a few hours of glorious views and then the clouds came in.

The eleventh day we walked to our target destination - Annapurna Base Camp - 4130m. We again got there before midday after a lovely walk in the sunshine through the autumn meadows. We saw a flock of wild mountain goats high up on the south side of the sanctuary. This is home to the rare snow leopard which our guide has seen when the snow forces the animal to look for food much lower on the mountain. We walked around the base camp which is a collection of a few huts. In the sun the temperature is OK but out of the sun and especially at night it gets very cold. The lodges have basic stone walls with drafty doors and windows and basic zinc or slate roofs so are very cold. We wore all the clothes we had inside our down sleeping bags which we had bought in Kathmandu and we were cosy. That night 25 people shared the dining room (guides and porters and late arriving trekkers who had nowhere to stay - our porters choose to sleep on top of the ceiling just under the roof instead).

The twelfth day we walked all the way down to Himalaya. Walking down is very much easier than walking up - that day we covered the same distance as we did in three days coming up. Near to Himalaya we saw a family group of monkeys playing in the trees!

The thirteenth day we stayed in Sinuwa (2300m), with beautiful views of the Chomrong valley and thunderstorms in the distance.

The fourteenth day we walked to Jhinu Danda (1340m). We had to go all the way down to the bottom of Chomrong and go all the way up to the top of the village to go half way down the other side. Jhinu Danda is a small and growing place with a riviera feel (Nepali style). 200 meters down from it, by the side of the raging Modi Khola river are natural hot springs. Hot water comes out of the rock and soil here and is collected in stone pools, which are destroyed each year by the monsoon and faithfully rebuilt. We had a rest day in Jhinu and went down several times. On our rest day we saw langur monkeys come down to the river and cross the river jumping from boulder to boulder.

The sixteenth day of the trek we crossed the river Modi Khola on a very long metal rope bridge - during the monsoon this crossing must be truely dizzying. This was the day that Sophia Benjamin and Helena each adopted a pet moth. Moths that survive the night tend to need some TLC and rehabilitation to get back to a flying state. Each left Jhinu with a moth on their shoulder. We gradually climbed up to the village of Landruk passing crossing several waterfalls and streams by more metal rope bridges. Landruk is a typical Gurung village with many traditionally built stone white washed houses. We spent the night in Tolka (1700m). Here we played for hours in the dried rice straw which had been harvested. The lodge owner, local children and our group all joined in a tug of war from twisted together rice straw, tunnelled through the straw, did summer saults and generally mucked about until it was time for supper.

The next day we had one more steep climb over the mountain ridge to the next valley. We spent the night in the large village of Dhampus (1650m). The view of the Annapurna range in the morning was quite different to the views we had had so far and again stunning.

The eightteenth day we had a few hours steep descent to Phedi (1050m) where we took a taxi back to Pokhara, land of cappucino and chicken sizzler.

All along the way Sophia Benjamin and Helena were greeted with admiration from both fellow trekkers and local Nepali villagers. This took the form of receiving many hand shakes, at times applause, the taking of many pictures and even videos; all this in many languages. Sophia Benjamin and Helena are all proud of achieving something that many grown ups did not think possible for them to achieve. They now have T shirts that proudly say ' Annapurna Base Camp - I DID IT!'

All three were very interested in the life of the Gurung villages displayed around us on the trek - we saw chickens being killed, donkeys transporting everything from local wine to chickens, porters carrying incredibly heavy loads ranging from stones food to furniture, we saw food in all its stages of preparation especially rice being harvested, dried, beaten, and sorted wheat from chaff. All along life happens against a stunning back drop of Himalayan peaks. We were very fortunate to have such a friendly guide and porters and to be made to feel so welcome by all the people we met.

Saturday, 29 September 2012

Namaste from Nepal

We have had an amazing 6 days in Kathmandu. We have seen amazing places and amazing faces. One highlight was a visit to the monkey temple where for a while we became the monkeys; a group of tourists from China were very interested in Sophia Benjamin and Helena and took lots of photos of us ignoring the rest of the scenery going on around. We are now in Pokhara off on a trek in the Himalayas - we are aiming for Anapurna base camp.
(Somehow this post disappeared back into drafts, so republished now )

Tuesday, 11 September 2012

Visa

got the new zealand work visa whilst waiting in London today - thank you NZ Immigration - we are all set to go, just some packing to do next ..

Tuesday, 24 July 2012

To good friends and new adventures - Chocolate torte with raspberries

Flourless Chocolate Torte with Raspberries
By Ross Burden, in 'This is my favourite' The BBC Children in Need Appeal recipe book 2006

Serves 8; Preparation time: 25minutes; Cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients: 300g chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa solids), 200g butter, 4 eggs, 200g caster sugar.

To garnish: creme fraiche, 300g raspberries, fresh or frozen, 50g caster sugar

Method:
1. Melt 100g of the chocolate over water and pour over a robust tray (e.g. the back of a clean roasting tray and allow to cool.
2. Add the rest of the chocolate and the butter into the same bowl and allow to melt and mix. Stir well.
3. Separate the eggs and beat 100g of sugar into each bowl, making the whites into soft peaks. Beat the yolk mixture into the chocolate and butter mixture, beat in half of the whites and then fold the rest of the whites into the mixture.
4. Grease and dust with cocoa, a 20cm cake tin. A greased paper disk underneath is a great idea. Bake at 160degrees C for about 25minutes; the centre should just wobble. Allow it to cool and turn out upside down. If it has soufleed, press gently.
5. Serve warm with raspberries warmed with the sugar until it's dissolved; and the creme fraiche. Use the 100g of cooled chocolate broken into chards for decoration or to crumble over the top.

Notes from Jo: skip step one, just grate 100g of chocolate over the baked cake when the cake has cooled; sprinkle the raspberries with the caster sugar and keep at room temperature - a very short time in the microwave warms them well and dissolves the sugar very well. The cake always souflees and then collapses and you always think it is a gooey mess, don't panic.

Enjoy the cake and your new adventures.

(The recipe is all over the internet, for instance http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/marketing_material/chocolate_torte_recipe.pdf)

Friday, 20 July 2012

Nerves

We are all feeling a little unsettled, last day of school yesterday - lots of good byes and cards. We're not feeling quite ready yet. I think the summer sun which has finally arrived will put us in the right frame of mind.