by Michael on March 31, 2005, 03:14 AM (PST)

Today is our last day in Nyalam. Tomorrow we go to Tingri which is around 14,000 feet. We drive over a pass which is around 15,500 feet to get there. The culture here is incredible. I feel like I can’t really do it justice to try and describe it. The Tibetans are very comfortable with sitting next to you (right next to you, shoulder to shoulder) and picking at your clothes and looking at any jewelry by picking it up off of you. They are extremely curious. It was extremely fun helping one of the families carry these cinder blocks up a short hill to there house.

We went for a hike today to help acclimatize. I made it up to 16,000 feet. The views were incredible. Ambrose and Ryan went to a bit over 15,000 feet. Scott wasn’t feeling well and hung around town. I hiked with Chris (don’t know his last name) who is here from Germany trying to climb without Sherpa support and without Oxygen. He was climbing Cho Oyu when Brook was climbing it last year. On the way back down we took a break near a Yak herd and they wondered right up to us looking for food. I hear the locals feed them the same food they eat so they were expecting some handouts. They are quite interesting with their bright tassles in the ears, curved horns, and shaggy fur.

Hope everyone is doing well. We are having the time of our lives so far.

Michael