After a strenuous drive back from EBC, our driver stopped at a first roadside hotel. For the same price that we used to pay for a nice three-star accommodation, this place was offering bare minimum and questionable cleanliness, too. But we stayed, because making the driver cover more miles on that day would’ve been cruel and unusual punishment.
Today we did a lot of scenic driving - lush green hills, valleys, rivers. Alek & Eric got to drive the LandCruiser between checkpoints, they even wore the driver’s hat, to fully act the part. We stopped at some village festival, Jumbo said it was a racing day, and people were partying, singing and dancing. Everyone was in traditional clothes, which is actually what they wear anyways. The overcoats are commonly worn with one sleeve off, may be this is their version of layering.
When we arrived at the Nam Tso (Lake Nam), the weather has changed dramatically, the sky was covered with clouds and it began to rain. The “made in Canada” Arc’teryx soft shell we bought Alek in Lhasa came in very handy indeed and happy to report – did not leak.
That day we had the coolest lunch of the whole 5-day trek. The driver took us to someone’s house. While we waited for the food we watched hilarious Indian music videos on TV, where every emotion portrayed is taken so over the top that the word “subtlety” looses the need to exist. After a Tibetan while our hosts brought in plates full of steaming dumplings. Each one was a pouch of joy with just the right balance of salt and spice and tasty veggies.
