First bridge

First a four-hour bus ride to Besi Sahar, then we hit the trail. Well, so far it's been a rocky dirt road. We should get to the trail tomorrow. We only walked for three hours, but it was a lot of up and down, and surprisingly difficult. Due to the low elevation, it was also unpleasantly hot. Not swelteringly so, but enough to be uncomfortable, probably 85F or so. I got to cross my first dodgy wooden suspension bridge.

A unique feature of trekking in the Himalayas is that, unlike most mountains, they are inhabited, and we passed through several villages. We also shared the trail with children and old ladies carrying huge loads of wood on their backs. This also means you can stay in guesthouses the whole way, and eat in their restaurants. They always have ambitious menus, but you can only order a few of the listed items. It's best to all order the same thing, to cut down on cooking time, and thus conserve firewood.