What a bouncy day.

We are now in Syaphrubesi after eight and a half hours. The distance travelled was 148 kms. I know, hard to believe but it’s true. We had a traffic jam to contend with on the way down from Kathmandu on the main (only) westward road. Then we turned north onto a new road – the main link with China. So in Canada when we think of a new road, most of us think of a newly paved, wide, smooth, well engineered road. In Nepal, a new road also means a road under construction while traffic meanders between workers with shovels and machinery. It’s all random, chaotic, bouncy, jerky, dusty…. Our driver leapt the 4×4 from sand pile, to pot hole to rocky outcrop…

Exhausting.

When we entered the Langtang park boundary we went through three check points. One was the park, one was the army the other was the police. At one we had to unload the vehicle and bring our packs in for inspection. They were opened and searched for illegal drones. Yup drones. Not allowed.

The huge rodeo trees are blooming, sprinkling the hillsides with red. Cherry tress are all in blossom. Banana trees are laden with fruit. Goats frolicking all over the road add to the driving challenges.

Michel likens the driving habits here to a well choreographed ballet. I agree. The drivers are extremely skilled and there appear to be no normal rules.

Our Sunrise Guesthouse is new and very nice. Our room has an ensuite with flushing toilet and water coming from the taps, there are electrical outlets, overheard lights. It’s clean and quite spacious. There is Wifi…. so here comes the blog.

Cheers, Michel and I are enjoying a beer while we await dinner.