I wish I could title this Summiting Thorung La, but we technically aren't summiting anything. Thorung La is 17,670 feet high, and is a saddle between mountains that are 21,000 feet tall. That is much too high for me. Day 9: Yak Kharka to Thorung Phedi Today was brutal. The air is so thin and …
Continue reading Crossing Thorung La, Days 9-10 of the Annapurna circuit
The high route from Upper Pisang to Manang may well be the prettiest section of the Annapurna circuit. The climb is steep, but in this case, every step was worth it. We spent two nights in Manang in order to acclimate, and we needed it as Aaron fell sick for a day with AMS. I …
Brrrr it is getting cold already! The teahouses don't have much insulation so we sit in our rooms bundled up just as much as we would be if we were sitting outside. Right now I am in the dining room sitting as close to the wood stove as possible without melting. It feels amazing to …
We are finally trekking in the Himalayas! Today is day 2 of hiking and we arrived at our tea house twenty minutes before the rain. It started sprinkling on us when we were 1.5 km away, so we picked up the pace in fear of a downpour. It has been an adventure just getting to …
Dubai was on my list and our layover provided an inexpensive way to experience the city. Although we were exhausted from the two flights that got us here at 6am, we had 9 hours to explore and we couldn't waste it. Things got off to a rough start. Our arrival terminal was completely disconnected from …
"Look, kids, hoodoos!"My dad must have said this fifty times on our family camping trip to Bryce when I was seven. Now I am on the other side of the world chasing hoodoos, or "fairy chimneys" as they call them here.Hittites showed up in Cappadocia in 1800 BC and carved shelters into the soft volcanic …
Usually when we travel we avoid taxis because it feels like cheating and they can break a budget. I try to rely on public transportation and lots of walking. However, arriving at night in a land with no English cognates seemed like a good time to break the rule. I booked a bus from the …
The bicycles are everywhere! The central train station had an enclosed parking area with bikes stacked two levels high to park 10,000 bikes. My favorite day was our bicycle day to Haarlem and Amstelveen. The city felt crowded and it was refreshing to pedal through the countryside and explore a bit more of the Netherlands …
I love it here. The Belgians are so friendly, they all ride bicycles, and they specialize in beer and chocolate. What's not to love? We toured Brussels and Bruges. Brussels seems like a very liveable city. They have a palace, a royal library, Delirium brewery, lots of street lights and roads that wouldn't be confused …
Trier is the oldest city in Germany and briefly served as the seat of Roman government (383-388 AD). It has the most Roman ruins outside of Rome itself as the Romans showed up and started building in 50 BC. We gave two day to this city with the goal of enjoying a quiet town and …
We Won't Melt 