Woke at 6:30am to a spectacular view of a towering snow-capped mountain. We had to wipe the frost off the windows in our room to see it! Paul and I, still wearing the same clothes (gross but less washing), ran down to the bakery for some fresh cinnamon rolls to accompany our porridge. Unfortunately it was just the same breads as yesterday but we didnt complain! Just got a bit puffed coming back up.
Everyone was stoked by the quality of the food, particularly Dorothy and her apple pancakes, and Paul as he had literally stocked kilos of his own food in fear of what we would serve! He had based all his equipment and food rations on whathis friends had said about their camping trip. I said they should have gone with AmaDablam Adventures!
Everyone was seated on the cushioned seats against the windows but again Paul and I opted to admire the view behind their backs by sitting on plastic chairs.
As today was for acclimatization we did a short but steep walk to Everest View Lodge - 3,880m up! Had brillian views and for once the name was correct; we could see the tip of everest above a beautiful ridge. The weather was still perfect with clouds only beginning to obscure the view at about 11am. Morning tea at the lodge was expensive and optional but Paul and I had the forsight to bring a couple of chocolate danishes and cookies from Namche to savour over a pot of hot chocolate. Rodgers bill went up to 1200 rupees, two days living for me in Thamel! Makes me wish I had a full-time salary (just not the job).
The way back down was freezing as the wind whipped at our heels. Rodger was still scooting ahead but stopped when he realized he was on the wrong trail!
Went to the Shagamartha National Park Museum (say it) which was ok but understandibly pov considering its location. The porridge id had for breakfast was brewing in my stomach and i was forced to squat in the rather dingy army base toilet! Luckily i hadn't tried the homemade chilli!
I caved in and paid for a hot shower - 150rs! Thats more than my room in Thamel. Also did some laundry by hand outside in a little basin. Freezing cold but again inspector gadget paul came to the rescue with 20m of rope as a line! He even had safety pins to save them from the wind.
Dorothy, Paul, Marjorie and I did a bit of exploring before bumping into each other at the Everest Bakery for some cake and hot chocolate. Paul was smart and went for the new-looking chocolate cake but I just had to go for the Vanilla cake that I later realised had just been sitting openly on the table for at least 3 days! I saw a German lady that had been trekking the same route as us so I gave her my best "Guten Arven" when she went past. She joined us for a while as Dorothy and Marjorie had just left.
A few games of gin-rummy preceded dinner and Paul had a bit more luck than he did with scrabble. I feel slightly feverish because of the cold but thankfully there is a fireplace in the centre of the dining room - fueled by yak poo!
