Qatar is hot

I went for a walk in Doha today that almost killed me...please note the heat index.

It's not the heat, it's the humidity that creates the haze:

Qatar Airways charges $5 per pound of excess baggage

In excess of 50 pounds (20 kg), that is...I had 38 kg.

Delhi's smelly

A well-organized municipal power distribution system; Chandni Chowk, Delhi.

I am in Delhi for the day after a short flight from Leh. Delhi is still too hot, too crowded, too frenetic, too smelly, too loud, and otherwise obnoxious. I'll leave the happily-mixing-with-the-unwashed-masses-of-humanity to someone else, thank you very much.

The view from my Delhi hotel room--why do I feel like Rutger Hauer in Blade Runner ("Time to die.")?

This trip to Delhi was made more enjoyable by the fact that I had been here before, meaning that I knew how to say "no" to, wag my finger in the face of, and otherwise ignore the many people trying to sell me something.

I spent the day touring around the city with Sandra and Laura, who were interested in seeing Old Delhi. It was more of the same masses of unwashed humanity, but still very interesting in a "whoever thought Delhi could contain so many beads, or bead shops, for that matter" sort of way.

Tomorrow I'm off to Qatar, where the heat is rivaled only by the humidity: tomorrow's forecast is for a mild 107 degrees Fahrenheit...

Back to Leh

We spent the day driving from the Nubra valley over Khardungla (or Khardung La), the "highest motorable road in the world," also home to the "world's highest souvenir shop."

The evening was spent with a final dinner at Traveller's House, veg momos (Tibetan-style dumplings), which were yummy. It's a bummer to go.

No more yak dung

Great day today. We saw a herd of ibex on the horizon, walked over a sand dune, and cooked over an open wood fire as the full moon rose over our camp. Tomorrow we'll meet the jeep on the road to Hodtong.

Down to Digger

Today we hiked from our high camp down to the community of Digger. We had a nice meal in a house in the town and I visited the school for a few minutes. It's a beautiful farming town nestled in the valley.

Over Digger-la

We crossed Digger-la today, a 5,300-meter pass. It was steep and pretty thin aired.

Hiking to Stok Kangri basecamp

Jon and I went out on a two-day "warm-up" trek to Stok Kangri basecamp. The trail to Stok Kangri is one of the heaviest used in Ladakh since the peak is one of the easiest-accessed 6,000-meter peaks in the area.

We left mid-afternoon from the town of Stok and spent the night in a shepherd's hut. The next day we continued up to the basecamp, hiked a little higher on the climbing route, then headed back to Stok to catch our ride to Leh. Incredible scenery and a really fun outing all the way around.

Finally in Leh

My guts are much better...Norfloxacin is my friend.

Here are a few scenes around Leh:

Say hello to my little friend

Hello everyone,

I have been traveling now for about ten days with a little friend, since Agra, India, to be precise. We circled Connaught Place, Delhi, together in a rickshaw; we were stuck in a bus together behind a mudslide between Shimla and Manali; and we went overland by jeep for two days to Leh, where we are hanging out now.

My friend is either an amoeba, a bacteria, or some other parasite living in my intestines. I am trying to kill it. The chemist (that's British for drugstore guy) gave me a new pill today that is supposed to do a better job than the old-school antibiotic I have been taking.

Otherwise things here are very nice. Leh has an agreeable climate since it is at about 11,500 feet and the weather is beautiful. If I feel well tomorrow, I might go to see the Dalai Lama.

Sorry I can't post any pictures, the Internet places here have a moratorium on clogging their bandwith with photo uploads...perhaps late tonight they will allow me the pleasure.

Best, Tim

A few more from the road to Leh

Nice place to drive (this is a two-way road)


Our tented camp on the two-day journey from Manali to Leh

Into the Himalaya

Manali sucked. We left as soon as possible. It wasn't really that bad, but we wanted to get into the real mountains and had the opportunity to share a jeep:

Monsoon trouble on the road to Manali

We took an overnight bus from Shimla to Manali--it was supposed to be about 9-1/2 hours. Unfortunately it took us closer to 40 hours with hiking across mudflows and hitching rides...


The road into Manali is very improbable. Almost as improbable as the road beyond Manali.


A local rocks to Billy Joel. Thanks, iPod!

Shimla

Happy dogs

Kalka train station

Genya does not feel well.


She is glad to finally be on the train. It was two hours and fifty minutes late.

Around Delhi

In the Qut'b fort/mosque


That'd be the Taj Mahal.

Amsterdam has a lot of bikes.

'nuff said.