Paradise Lodge !!

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We awoke to another cold yet beautifully sunny day and set off for Deboche, our next resting place. Most of the mornings walking was downhill, but the afternoon involved a punishing steep climb to Tengboche. Today we saw a frozen waterfall and had to cross a frightening rope and wooden bridge, I am not sure if I should take comfort from or feel wary of all the prayer flags which hang from every bridge en route. By this time on the trek I have become known as the ‘loo’ expert and I am expected to test them all first and give them a mark from 1 to 10, I am not sure how my ‘loo’ expertise has become known to my trek companions, but I know there will be many reading this who will know of this infamy. The loos of course are just little huts with holes in the floor, and in some cases with leaves and a broom for ‘covering’ up, dotted about the mountainside. Shortly before we reached Tengboche it began to snow and for the first and last time on the trek I don all of my wet weather gear, at last I realise the worth of having carried it everywhere since we left Lukla !! By the time we reached Tengboche it was snowing heavily and we wearily made our way to get a cup of tea while a few scouts went on ahead to check out Deboche and decide whether or not we would be able to camp that night. As Tengboche houses the largest teaching monastery in the world the intention had been to visit the monastery but the weather put paid to that, the best I could manage was several photographs of the outside. When we finally moved on to Deboche it was downhill all the way and falling over in the snow was de rigeur, I managed two falls but luckily escaped any damage. Incredulously most of the group camped that night, I say incredulously because it was very cold and the snow continued to fall for most of the night, covering the tents with several inches. I chose to stay in the tea house, very inaptly named Paradise Lodge, it was probably the worse I experienced throughout the trip. The indoor hole in the ground was frozen, so if you needed to get up in the night it was necessary to take a trip outside, this was extremely hazardous as used washing water was thrown just outside the front door where it froze, thank God for my head torch is all I can say !! We are now at 3710 metres.