on to part 2

The major roads of Nepal, Tibet and Northern India have the distinction of historic and evocative names, even if in reality they are relatively new in conception and at times are in a constant state of disrepair / repair making them anything but a pleasure to travel along.  The Grand Trunk Road, Tribhuvan Highway and Raj Path are to name but a few.  The actual name for the lifeline that links China through Tibet and Nepal to the Indian sub-continent is the amicably enough named 'Friendship Highway' or Route #318 as the pragmatic Chinese have entitled it.  In my experience and variable wisdom, I have chosen to rename it the Hardship Highway and although we were shown friendship and great kindness along the length of our journey I feel the new title is a slightly more accurate reflection of the conditions, challenges and emotions we experienced on this quite unique and amazing road. 

From Nepal's capital Kathmandu, you are turned from the last bastion of uncivilised civilisation where you can obtain almost anything (even draught Guinness!) that a westerner could wish for.  At first glance everything appears to be relatively neat and tidy and with a degree of order - even if it may be upside down!, but having scratched the surface warranting a closer inspection, it proves to be the hub of chaos theory.  The evenly tarmacced road abounds with traffic of all shapes and sizes, jostling for position.  As it cuts through the fields and villages that are mans made intrusions it contrasts sharply with the surrounding countryside, hugging its contours and snaking across the imposing hills and deep river valleys that are forever in a state of change.

Our journey begins along these well worn routes before turning to the north and directly confronting the Himalayan Massif that appears to reject all possibilities of being breached with an advance up and over its spine to the plateau beyond.  The climb to the Nepalese border at Kodari from Barabise gives a first taste of what is to come in the ensuing weeks as the heat haze obscures the distant enormity of the task ahead and the now dirt road ascends, climbing blindly from valley to foothill - over, round and upwards, ever upwards.  On only our second day of what is expected to be a 7 - 8 week trip through the Himalayas the 'Hardships' have begun in earnest already.

My experience of border towns is that they are generally unattractive and scruffy places where the hotels are rundown, the food is uninspiring combining the least appetising elements of two countries cuisine and you are constantly under the impression that everyone is onto some sort of scam.  Compounded by the border informalities, the confusion associated with a change of currency - "So just how much is that in pounds then?!!" and possible change of time zone, most people you are forced to deal with have at least the potential if not the inclination to rip you off!  From Kodari, eight kilometres up the valley, the sprawling mass of tiled white buildings represents Zhangmu, the Chinese equivalent border post to Nepal glaring back from above.  Although both towns bare similarities, this ugly mini-metropolis is the opposite of the low level Nepalese town using natural resources in its construction, as Zhangmu blends in about as unobtrusively as I could best hope to remain inconspicuous in a Chinese Police line up - "Can you identify the clumsy idiot who tripped up, fell over and knocked you flying madam?!"

Separating these two oases of unpleasantness is a short stretch of no-mans land, which I always find mentally a little disconcerting.  My unease at an area of no fixed abode was compounded by the intermittent booms and plumes of dust that signified the liberal use of dynamite in attempting to clear the short stretch of road that lay ahead.  With the inordinate amount of group and support vehicle equipment that had been amassed and gallantly brought from Kathmandu on our collective behalf by Nadine that arrived at this latest blockage of trucks, we were forced to deal with an unruly mob of Tibetan sherpas who were looking to profit by our predicament.  Waving a large stick about our bags ensured that they remained to hand as opposed to being whisked away up the mountainside as they haggled even more vigorously amongst themselves than with us as to who would carry what, where and for how much.  Amidst the commotion we took it in turns to shoulder the burden of bikes, stove, gas cylinders, pannier bags, food bags and boxes as they were hauled up a near vertical sherpa trail beyond the blockage with only a couple of select additional load bearers assisting us in this task.  Having transported everything a vertical 100m further along the road we discovered that vehicles were not traveling down in the opposite direction, forcing us to re-hire our porters for a now increased sum to carry everything the rest of the way to Zhangmu.