01/11
Today was much better than yesterday,
But as I walked, my ankle began to give way,
The evening coffee and rum made me forget all that,
And we were taught the proper way to eat ‘dal bhat’!
02/11
To make up for yesterday, we had an early start,
But it was tough- we ended with a quick-beating heart!
Whiskey and beer was how we ended the day,
And Pat learnt ‘poker’ the Nepalese way!
03/11
The mountain climb to Upper Pisang was scary,
But close to great views and the monastery,
Yak curry for dinner, from freshly killed yak,
But we were tired, so quickly hit the sack!
04/11
Today our walking was much more energetic,
Must be alcohol that makes us feel pathetic!
We enjoyed rum and coffee- our last dose,
But the vegetable thurkpa tasted gross!
05/11
We walked to 4000m to acclimatize,
Then blessed by a 94-year-old monk who was wise,
With free popcorn, we watched ‘Touching the Void’,
Low quality dinner, but we’re not annoyed!
06/11
An easy walk to Yak Kharka, single file
Four popcorn bowls, and a movie Bollywood style!
I felt refreshed after our short afternoon stroll,
With my dal bhat, Suyra brought bowl after bowl!
07/11
Reaching High Camp was our main aim
Thorong-Phedi, we tested if we were game.
But the climb up there was very steep,
Our headaches meant an early sleep!
08/11
The star-filled morning was tough- after a tea stop
We were able to power on to the top!
We killed our calves on the long way down,
Then beers and sucrati with Sylvan in town.
09/11
At Muktinath temple, Suyra gave a blessing
And a bracelet that means I’m always confessing!
The laddo on Kagbeni’s statue was long
And the wind in the Jomsom valley was strong!
10/11
Suyra’a birthday- to Pokhara we flew,
Trying ‘gyoza’ was something new,
With two friends we boated on the lake
Before stuffing Suyra’s face with cake!
Whilst drinking beer and apple brandy,
We discussed the meaning of ‘ragging’ and ‘randy’!
11/11
We travelled to Chitwon Park by bus
And Suyra and Sau came along with us,
For sunset, beer and a riverside flow,
Then onto a ‘Tharu’ dancing show!
12/11
The day started with a peaceful canoe ride,
If rhinos charged, we had to zig-zag and hide,
In the river, our first rhino in the wild,
From an elephant’s back, we saw a mama rhino and child!
13/11
We went to a museum of all things Tharu
Then headed on the bus back to Kathmandu,
We tried the city’s ‘momos’ and ‘aloo’
Then to ‘Tom and Jerry’s’ for a beer or two!
14/11
Around Thamel, we had a shop and roam
Before we were taken to Sau’s family home.
The warmest family, and the best dal baht yet
Then we left for Hong Kong on a jumbo jet!
15/11
To our Hong Kong hotel, we caught the metro,
Pat found a tick between two toes!
Deep fried squid and crispy pork- good grub
Then we shared a Magners in an Irish pub!
16/11
Medium spicy noodles were hot as hell,
In the train-gap, one of my flip-flops fell!
At Peak Tower, lit-up Hong Kong was a sight
Then a bucket of Carlsberg to end the night.
17/11
Our pork rice noodles had no flavor,
A Chinese lady granted a McFlurry favour!
We tried a brand new beer, ‘Blue Ice’,
In Wan Chai, the ‘2 for 1’ bar was nice!
18/11
Bye bye, Hong Kong- off to mainland China,
Then red bean soy milkshakes in a Chinese diner,
The server tried-but didn’t block Facebook from us,
To Xiamen in a people carrier, then bus!
19/11
Into Xiamen early, but there were no rooms free,
We people- watched with some Tsing Tao’s by the sea,
A hotel was suggested, but it was hard to find,
The owner spoke no English, but was very kind!
20/11
I tried my first ‘Oreo’ blizzard- it was sweet!
We saw old Chinese groups playing cards on the street.
A Chinese kid liked play-shooting,
And we boarded the 34 hour train to Beijing!
21/11
In the morning, mist cloaked the countryside,
As I contemplated the hours left to ride!
We chilled on our bunks, instant noodles for tea-
Shame they switched the lights off so early!
22/11
Arriving into Beijing, we could feel the frost,
The subway was PACKED, and we got a bit lost!
I bought a jacket for 100 Yuan, hard to beat,
Harry Potter was great, but we didn’t eat!
23/11
Though a cold, cloudy day, we didn’t care,
We still headed towards Tian’namen Square,
Delicious dumplings of roast duck and lamb,
Then we fell for an 80 pound tea-shop SCAM!
24/11
We retrieved some of our tea-house money,
Forbidden City was grand- nice that it was sunny!
The roasted duck pancakes tasted fantastic,
Then we saw live scorpions on a kebab stick!
25/11
We weren’t sure what to do or where to go,
So we decided on an acrobatics show!
Then into a bar, where a cockatoo went ‘peep peep’,
Then to another where ‘Jaeger-bulls’ were cheap!
26/11
To the Great Wall, a bus then random car,
But the views from the Wall were spectacular,
Very cold, but it was just us and the wall-
Shame I didn’t like the evening dumplings at all!
27/11
Worm-like noodles for lunch that had some spice,
The paintings were bought were very nice!
Our train to Xian so far isn’t that boring,
I just wish the man below would stop snoring!
28/11
Arrived in Xian at 5, headed to the Bell Tower,
Eventually found somewhere, slept for a few hours,
We finally satisfied our pizza craving,
Early night for us- too tired for raving!
29/11
We visited the Terracotta Warriors of ancient China,
For pure numbers and detail, there’s nothing finer,
We even got to see archeologists excavate,
Mashed strawberry yam, I did not rate!
30/11
In Xian’s oldest restaurant, we had two bread rolls
That we broke into small pieces in a bowl,
Then they added a tasty mutton-beef stew,
Now we’re on the night train to Chengdu.
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