So after 2 nights of austerity at home on our own we are inundated with visitors again.

We'd had worries about S&M coming out as they'd both been in the wars before they came out: Marg had bruised her ribs and broken a finger on a hash while Stuart had cracked his shin bone on Nash Hash. I thought the Himalayan hash was dangerous so this was worrying! What else could befall them among all the opportunities in Nepal? So we kept them in KTM for the first 5 nights of their hol on the assumption this would be safer. But of course we hadn't legislated for the old KTM quickstep which felled S at the first hurdle meaning he missed hash on their first Saturday. Though probably just as well as who knows what disaster might have happened there!

But he wasn't to be stopped rafting where he and G vanished on the Sunday morning for 2 days of white water. I'll leave that for G to update but it sounds like it was certainly eventful and a tad mismanaged!

M and I took the luxury option and flew to join the boys in Pokhara on Monday, luxuriating at the pool by the time they dragged their bedraggled selves off the bus. One night there before our epic trek for 5 days around Ghorapani. We met up with our guide, Ram, and one of the porters that night and all seemed to be organized for a civilized start at 9am the next morning. First a 2 hour drive by minibus to Nayapul where we picked up our other porter, Hira. We felt very guilty giving Rabi and Hira our bags to carry but as we found out later they only weighed about 15kg each - a lot for us to humph up hills but as the usual for them is around 60kg the 2 days must have been a breeze!

Anyway, we set off in trepidation as I fully expected the first day to be hell as I'd read in a trusty guide book that there were over 3700 steps up to our first destination, Ulleri. In fact, I was quite glad S&M were not fully fit as it gave me some slack. The first half of the day was lovely terrain but got me and M a bit puffed and dizzy feeling so we were even more worried by lunchtime but recovered over our tomato soup. And there must have been something in that as I managed to fair fly up those steps - I never got past 3000 while counting on my way! - and ended up waiting for the others - something very wrong there!

S&M's first teahouse experience - bland food, paper thin walls, Nepali loos, going to bed at 8pm as nothing to do - is this a holiday? Anyway, up in the morning to our first dramatic mountain view and the realization that why I never got past 3000 steps on day 1 was because they continued all the way through Ulleri and half the way to Gorapani! Still this was a short day and we arrived by 2pm to a slightly better tea house, thicker walls and fantastic views. Bloody cold though and was I glad I'd brought my thermals! But the fire got cranked up and the beer cracked open and we managed a few games of cards while speculating about the potential ex-Mossad agent!

We decided not to "do Poon Hill" - a planned climb of 400m in the dark starting at 4am in order to see mountains at dawn - as we'd heard there could be >300people up there, and it would be bloody freezing. Ram also told us that we'd get just as good views from a hill we had to go up on our route the next day anyway. Missing this out also meant we could go further than planned that day and could then shorten the last day and get back to Pokhara much earlier, so all in all seemed like a good idea! We still had plenty of ups to do and Ram was right, the views from our hill were fantastic and by the end of the day we reached our most basic teahouse yet. But as M had not managed to even have a hot shower yet Ram came up with a new plan - the bucket shower! He provided a large bucket of piping hot water and a small jug which we could each use to pour water over ourselves. It was indeed, as M said, the best shower since leaving KTM! We also got a display of dancing from Hira after dinner which was very entertaining, albeit a bit odd!

So after this it was all downhill - really! - which was the hardest of all! Thank God for walking poles but my knees were still killing me by the end. Wonderful scenery that day though with the fields of golden rice ready for harvest against the bright blue sky, green trees and sparkling river all offset by the fantastic snowy mountains - unforgettable. And our last tea house was the best of the lot with a proper bathroom, hot shower, western loo - its funny what impresses you after days in the wilderness!

So back to Pokhara for some R&R and meeting up with Sean and Rowena for a night. By now M was starting to suffer from what she called the Annapurna Abdabs though we managed some boating and lazing at the pool. But she and S missed out on the walk up to the Peace Pagoda - I guess you can overdo mountain views and climbing up hills!

The next day they disappeared off to Bandipur and Chitwan in the hands of Kessup, their driver with M still periodically dashing to the loo, but hey, its all part of the rich panoply of a holiday in Nepal!

G and I remained for a further three fantastic nights of pampering ourselves at Fishtail Lodge which has to be one of the loveliest places I've ever been - or maybe that's just compared to everything else here but it is certainly lovely! We had been so looking forward to being just the two of us that it was a bit of a shock to meet Doreen coming towards us from the FL where she was apparently staying with her sister. But we managed some cunning avoidance tactics and only had the minimum of being talked at! And fitted in some good pool time - though definitely getting on the fresh side now - a lovely walk around Begnas and Rupa Tal and just gazing at mountain views, interspersed with some nice food and wine (especially the cheese and dips at the Olive café!).

Back to KTM - plane delays and circling for ages due to Sri Lankan president's visit, crap! Can't say we're happy to be back but not too much longer to go before we're off completely so heads down. S&M now staying with Sean and Rowena so seeing the alternative ex pat lifestyle where there is no load-shedding, comfortable furniture and decent showers! Finally got S to a Himalayan hash where he suitably impressed with his no hands down down and narrowly managed to avoid breaking more bones. Also, everyone seemed to have got over their various digestive complaints and they even got to have some good food while in Nepal by way of Chez Caroline for lunch so they managed to leave saying what a great hol they'd had!