Merry Goes Round

Merry Goes Round

traveled in 16 countries Read more

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Day 180
Tuesday, January 10, 2017 at 8:35 PM
⛅ 11 °C
Altitude: 2,024 m
Mexico Alameda 21.0159, -101.2512821°0’57” N 101°15’5” W
A city of narrow, colorful alleys :)
January 10, 2017 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C
Ok this is definitely the most enchanting place I've seen in Mexico so far. The city of Guanajuato has a charming historic center, filled with little alleyways, leading through old colonial streets and up the hillsides with steep stairs.

Driving here to find our bed and breakfast was quite the adventure, but a fun first city tour before we started our own walking tour (most places are only accessible by foot here).

Beautiful architecture, great views and yummy food made for a lovely day, and a productive evening, as Mo and I both got a bunch of work done :)Read more
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Day 179
Monday, January 9, 2017 at 9:44 PM
🌙 8 °C
Altitude: 1,915 m
Mexico El Parque 20.90622, -100.7451920°54’22” N 100°44’43” W
Roadtrippin'
January 9, 2017 in Mexico ⋅ 🌙 8 °C
We started our odyssey with a little VW rental car, heading north for 2 short days. Driving in Mexico City was no problem, people ride easygoing and so we made it safely 5 hours north. On the way, we visited one of the world's biggest pyramids and enjoyed the views from the top.

The area around San Miguel de Allende is absolutely beautiful and we enjoyed a great time, eating dinner on a little rooftop watching the sunset and watching a local fiesta with ballet dancers, local foods and lots and lots of families in this charming historic part of town.

Then we used the rest of the evening to catch up on work. Buenos noches! :)Read more
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Day 178
Sunday, January 8, 2017
⛅ 9 °C
Altitude: 2,292 m
Mexico Castillo de Chapultepec - Museo 19.42034, -99.1818619°25’13” N 99°10’55” W
Dia fantastica
January 8, 2017 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C
We had a long and fun day! What felt like a bit of education about Mexican history and art was just as much a lot of beautiful views and impressions. Along our route were: modern art museum, Chapultepe park, street fair, castle & national history museum and a botanical garden. This huge park in the heart of the city really is a unique spot!

Mo also taught me a new game - Roborama, much recommended ; )Read more
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Day 177
Saturday, January 7, 2017
☀️ 18 °C
Altitude: 2,259 m
Mexico Museo Nacional de Antropologia - INAH 19.42614, -99.1863219°25’34” N 99°11’11” W
2
A sinking beauty
January 7, 2017 in Mexico ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C
We spent a beautiful day in Mexico City. Filled with touristy stuff like the hop on-off bus, the anthropological museum, a bunch of city squares and cathedrals, and a less touristy evening, checking out a few bars in the Candesa neighborhood. Oh and we saw a huge protest in the streets of downtown :)

We're definitely enjoying our time here. One of the most obvious facts about mexico city - besides is insane size - is that it is sinking. 10 meters in the past 60 years!!! The reason is that it was been built on a dried lake bed, which cannot hold all the weight of this gigantic city. You see many older buildings leaning one way, streets are quite uneven in places, it's nothing I've ever seen before.

Oh and it's such a valuable time with my brother! Can't wait for more exploring tomorrow :)Read more
Birga Rohweder Why were they protesting?
1/8/17Reply
Traveler The government has reduced subsidies on gas, the protestors thought that was a bad idea...
1/10/17Reply
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Day 176
Friday, January 6, 2017 at 10:23 PM
🌙 15 °C
Altitude: 2,245 m
Mexico Chapultepec 19.40976, -99.1788619°24’35” N 99°10’44” W
New continent :)
January 6, 2017 in Mexico ⋅ 🌙 15 °C
I'm writing from Mexico City, where my brother Mo and I arrived after a long flight marathon, including a 10 hour layover of seeing Miami South Beach.

After arriving in the city of 20 mio people, we spent most day exploring, eating Mexican food and catching up with some sleep and really like the city so far. More pictures will follow :)Read more
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Day 171
Sunday, January 1, 2017
☀️ 22 °C
Altitude: Sea level
Sri Lanka Narigama 6.12351, 80.109726°7’25” N 80°6’35” E
Into the new year
January 1, 2017 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
What a time I've had in this most beautiful country! I wasn't quite ready to leave, to be honest. I'll have to come back and explore more

I ended my stay here by celebrating into the new year with a group of friends from Colombo. Nigel was DJ at a new year's party in the south, so we all joined and had fun celebrations at this new beach club :)

Shortly after, I was on my plane to Germany, where I spent just under 3 days with my family, having belated Christmas dinners and getting ready for Mexico (pic 4 & 5. pic 6 is from my actual Christmas day in Sri Lanka)Read more
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Day 167
Wednesday, December 28, 2016
☀️ 13 °C
Altitude: 1 m
Sri Lanka Kalpitiya 8.2381, 79.746028°14’17” N 79°44’46” E
The magic of the ocean
December 28, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C
What a gift to be able to spend this time in, on and around the water.

Christmas was a tough time for me this year, but besides talking to my family on Skype, experiencing all the ocean's beauties and meeting great people to kite surf with made it such a valuable time nonetheless.

Oceanic highlights of the week: seeing hundreds of dolphins like these ones https://goo.gl/photos/UVbHi3kCXZggsnxN9 , kite surfing, night swimming in florescent plankton (by far the best I've experienced yet), swimming across the lagoon (800m each way) a few times.Read more
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Day 162
Friday, December 23, 2016
⛅ 27 °C
Altitude: 1 m
Sri Lanka Kirimundal 8.28629, 79.749438°17’11” N 79°44’58” E
Exploring Dutch Bay
December 23, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
The northwestern part of the country around dutch bay is a kite surfer's dream, but I exiled the area on sperrt and by foot. On the peninsula at dutch bay lagoon, there are several small fishing villages I passed walking on the beach. The houses are open straw huts made from coconut leaves and the gales live off fishing. And the only way to get to these villages is by boat, tractor or by foot :)

After a good hour and a half of walking on the beach, I finally got to a resort for lunch, which served the best did I've had my entire trip to Sri Lanka.

Chill day of exploring and hiking on the beach :)Read more
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Day 161
Thursday, December 22, 2016 at 9:26 PM
🌙 0 °C
Altitude: Sea level
Sri Lanka Kalladi 8.22303, 79.722078°13’23” N 79°43’19” E
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Ocean calling
December 22, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ 🌙 0 °C
After relaxing and a stroll through Kandy, I headed north west, back to the beach to have some down time over the holidays and do some snorkeling and kitesurfing.

The drive was long and I'm happy to not be stuck in a bus, train or car for the next few days.

I made a new friend, too, her name is Emma ;)Read more
Traveler Oh, you can see the kites in the distance :) Cool
12/22/16Reply
Traveler Perfect Skype location!!
12/22/16Reply
Traveler Wow, you spotted them right away, Johanne! Hopefully, I'll get to kite through the sunset one of these days ;)
12/22/16Reply
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Day 160
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
🌧 26 °C
Altitude: 2,159 m
Sri Lanka Samanalagala 6.8097, 80.499396°48’35” N 80°29’58” E
10.000 stairs and an elephant ride :)
December 21, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ 🌧 26 °C
The day started at 11pm with a 3 hour drive to Sri Pada, the most visited mountain, also called Adams Peak. Many pilgrims come here to visit the temple at the peak and many tourists join to watch sunrise over the Sri Lankan highlands. The "hike" is basically a 3-4 hour staircase with 5000 steps each way. I got to the top at 5 am and enjoyed the sunrise and all the beautiful plays of light from the top.

Afterwards, they're was more driving and then I got to ride on and bath with Pooja, a 30 year old elephant lady :)Read more
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Day 159
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
⛅ 24 °C
Altitude: 510 m
Sri Lanka Kosgaspitiya 7.28853, 80.644527°17’19” N 80°38’40” E
A day on the train
December 20, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
Today, I made my way to Kandy, Sri Lanka's second biggest city. The ride is famous for the scenic views and took about 7 hours. Other than that, I got to rest a little and sleep early - as I have to get up at 11pm the same day to drive to Sri Pada, another hike that I want to start at 2am to be on top of the mountain in time for sunrise at 6am :)Read more
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Day 158
Monday, December 19, 2016
⛅ 24 °C
Altitude: 1,292 m
Sri Lanka Rawanaella 6.85528, 81.050576°51’19” N 81°3’2” E
Mountain in the clouds
December 19, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
Ella Rock is another great hiking trail in Ella. It stays by following the train treks and then goes up into the mountains up to one of the peaks. The weather was being moody and so I hiked into the clouds. But the view was still beautiful from up there.

Other than that, Ella is a small town with a few cafes, restaurants and guest houses. I had dinner at a tiny Thai restaurant with only 3 tables and you had to preorder the food a day in advance. Yummy food and interesting stories from the two owners.Read more
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Day 156
Saturday, December 17, 2016
☀️ 26 °C
Altitude: 1,074 m
Sri Lanka Rawana Ella Natural Reserve 6.86452, 81.063876°51’52” N 81°3’50” E
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Gaining elevation
December 17, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
After a beautiful second safari in the morning, I headed north to Ella, a small and kind of touristy town in the mountains. Surrounded by tea plantations and great hiking spots, it's a popular place to visit, but not overrun.

The absolute highlight of the day was a short hike through plantations for sunset on top of "Little Adams Peak", with stunning views. Sri Lanka is such a diverse place, and each place has a lot of beauty to offer. For the most part, locals are helpful, funny and don't try to rip you off. I'm having a fantastic time :)Read more
Traveler What a view. Looks amazing :) Hope you're enjoying every moment :)
12/20/16Reply
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Day 155
Friday, December 16, 2016
☀️ 29 °C
Altitude: 18 m
Sri Lanka Dalukkema 6.37631, 81.39686°22’35” N 81°23’48” E
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Chasing leopards :)
December 16, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
Today, I made my way east to Yala National Park, the second largest in Sri Lanka. The park is only accessible by jeep safari and filled with water buffaloes, peacocks, crocodiles and wild boars. Our safari was lucky enough to see a leopard (pic 5), too!!

After a short rain shower in the afternoon, there was a gorgeous double rainbow and an elephant showed up just in time for me to just sit there and watched it for quite a while.Read more
Jessica Younghans So cool!
12/19/16Reply
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Day 154
Thursday, December 15, 2016
⛅ 31 °C
Altitude: Sea level
Sri Lanka Kapuhena 6.041513, 80.8210066°2’29” N 80°49’16” E
1
Where the sea turtles reign
December 15, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
In the early morning, I headed out on a scooter to snorkel and see the giant sea turtles in the shallow waters at Polhena. There were also plenty of colorful fish, but the best part was when a local diver showed me 2 giant sea turtles, one about 1.30 meters long. I followed it and basically swam right above it for almost 20 minutes, I was so flashed afterwards. Such a cool experience.

I then headed east to see the fishing town of Tangalle. On the way, I took a detour to see a blowhole and instead ended up at the local harbor, where I spoke to the fishermen and got a tour of the fishing boats, on which they go out for 4 weeks at a time to go fishing.

Two German travelers had recommended a beach which I decided to check out and it turned out to be the most beautiful place right by a large lagoon. I spent the rest of my day here and played some frisbee with a group of locals.

I ended the day with practicing some guitar at beach back the guest house.Read more
Birga Rohweder Hi, captain :)
12/16/16Reply
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Day 153
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
☀️ 28 °C
Altitude: 2 m
Sri Lanka Gandura Bay 5.945191, 80.6226755°56’43” N 80°37’22” E
In love with Sri Lanka
December 14, 2016 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C
After a few days in Sri Lanka, I'm finally posting my first update from this beautiful island.

I've had a great few days! The first 3 days, I spent in Colombo, partially catching up with work, emails and calling friends and family, and partially with exploring the city with a few locals and travelers alike. Highlights in the capital: a "post-colonial trans-punk" concert and a private house music party at a little house in the jungle. I had a fantastic, relaxing time!

After a day of surfing in the south, I'm now in Talalla, enjoying a beautiful quiet beach with a great Yoga facility and yummy fresh seafood. In the early mornings, the fishermen bring in the nets by hand, about 10 of them pulling from the beach. In the evenings, you can watch bats and fireflies from the little guest house right by the beach. I'm definitely gathering up a ton of energy for more exploring in the coming days :)Read more
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Day 150
Sunday, December 11, 2016
☀️ 18 °C
Altitude: 1,334 m
Nepal Bungmati 27.62879, 85.30471827°37’44” N 85°18’17” E
Best trekking guide in Nepal :)
December 11, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C
Nepal has been one of the best experiences of my life. And lots of it thanks to an awesome guide! Ganesh has been a rockstar all my trip from planning the trek according to what I wanted, organizing my stay and sightseeing in Kathmandu and of course, the trek itself! Always thinking in his feet, positive as one can be and after 9 years experience, he knows all the best trails and places to stay.

In case you're interested to do trekking here, I highly recommend Ganesh. Here's his contact info :) ganesha_simkhada@hotmail.comRead more
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Day 146
Wednesday, December 7, 2016
☀️ 19 °C
Altitude: 1,296 m
Nepal Asan 27.711358, 85.31578927°42’41” N 85°18’57” E
3
Back to city life
December 7, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
We took an early flight out of Lukla, an airport with one of the shortest runways in the world. The plane was tiny, with about 15 seats. The flight was short and had gorgeous views of the Himalayans. And 30 minutes later, I was back in the big city. Kathmandu has a lot of worth seeing areas and I spent a day and a half exploring more of the city.

Unfortunately, my phone stopped working in the mountains and so I tried to get it fixed. Meaning: a guy in Kathmandu took my cell phone apart and cleaned it up with a sewing needle, razor blade, old tooth brush and rubbing alcohol. :) It worked for a few hours, enough to get my pictures off it, just to disappear into a black screen again indefinitely.

Some of my highlights in Kathmandu were a live rock concert, shopping at a local market and a restaurant with authentic Nepalese dances, two of which I was taught how to dance by the dancers from picture 6 :)

After a great time and so many beautiful new memories in Nepal, I'm off to Sri Lanka. Definitely looking forward to be in warm weather again and will be doing some trekking there as well!Read more
Traveler Great picture of you too :)
12/23/16Reply
Traveler You were definitely missing in the group!
12/23/16Reply
Traveler I would have loved to be with you :)
12/23/16Reply
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Day 145
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
☁️ 5 °C
Altitude: 2,872 m
Nepal Tenzing-Hillary Airport 27.688402, 86.7316527°41’18” N 86°43’54” E
The game goes on
December 6, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ☁️ 5 °C
Last day of hiking! Oh man, this is making me sad. I had such a good time and I wish I could just keep going. I will definitely be back to do more trekking in Nepal.

The day was fun, as we both finished our lists. The hardest one: find someone who reminds you of a childhood friend. I finally found a girl who reminded me of my friend Hanna :) Ganesh (my guide) struggled to find a Canadian, so when he did we got so excited we gave this guy from New Brunswick a hug and he had no idea what was happening :) (picture 3)Read more
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Day 144
Monday, December 5, 2016
🌫 21 °C
Altitude: 3,441 m
Nepal Syangboche Airport 27.803274, 86.71037327°48’12” N 86°42’37” E
Rest day = game day
December 5, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ 🌫 21 °C
We're getting close to Lukla, from where we will fly out in 2 days. We had only 1.5 hours today and hiking in lower altitudes is getting easier and easier. Namche has great cafes, bakeries and tons and tons of shopping for trekking and ice climbing.

So since we had a rest day in Namche, we introduced the "rest day game". It went as follows: whoever can fill the list of tasks first, wins. The 15 tasks included things like these:
- give out 5 handshakes
- take 5 pictures with strangers
- eat something you've never eaten before
- ask for the next bus stop (which is 5 days walking away :) )
- tell someone they have a beautiful nose
- learn "I have to pee really badly" in a foreign language
- and the joker: find a Canadian

Needless to say, we had an entertaining day! The list isn't all filled, but I'm sure we can finish it tomorrow!Read more
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Day 143
Sunday, December 4, 2016
⛅ 26 °C
Altitude: 3,765 m
Nepal Syangboche Airport 27.821447, 86.71677327°49’17” N 86°43’0” E
About estimating time
December 4, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
Our first 2 hours were the steepest hiking I've probably ever done. But being back down at 3800m and below, I was full of energy and really enjoyed the workout. My guide has started another measurement of hiking times. Normal time and Mareike time :) So again, we got to our destination in the early afternoon, which was awesome because we got to explore Khumjung and Khunde, two authentic mountain villages further away from the highly frequented tourist towns east of here. We even went through the local high school, 2 monasteries and saw some repair construction from the large earthquake 2 years ago.Read more
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Day 142
Saturday, December 3, 2016
⛅ 34 °C
Altitude: 3,839 m
Nepal Phorche 27.84759, 86.7509627°50’51” N 86°45’3” E
2
Tailwind trails
December 3, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 34 °C
The morning was crazy windy, but as it was a tailwind, we did not complain and made our way south https://goo.gl/photos/LL2ierEhGg1Qinwu9

Today was definitely one of the most scenic days! We took a less-travelled route going west, leading along a cliff with spectacular views and with a few mountain goats, joining us on the trail :) We got to Phortse in the early afternoon and since it was a beautiful sunny day, I finally got to do all my laundry. And had great chats with the teahouse owners who became so wealthy since the tourists started coming to their region, they sent all their 4 kids to college in the US. Interesting stories: these people live 2-3 days walking from the next airport and 5-6 days from the next bus stop. What a life!Read more
Traveler Wow, looks amazing :)
12/14/16Reply
Traveler Miss this lady! Mwah
12/15/16Reply
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Day 141
Friday, December 2, 2016
⛅ 18 °C
Altitude: 4,245 m
Nepal Pheriche 27.892003, 86.82077427°53’31” N 86°49’15” E
1 1
Fleeing elevation :)
December 2, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C
Starting today, we're going downhill and my headache is thanking me! The fast and steep incline above 5000m yesterday was a bit too much... ;)

We got to our guest house in the early afternoon and took a half rest day. Most of the afternoon, I played Nepali, Swiss and German card games with fellow hikers and guides. Feeling great and energized again!Read more
Birga Rohweder very smart
12/11/16Reply
Traveler Amazing pictures :)
12/11/16Reply
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Day 140
Thursday, December 1, 2016
⛅ 27 °C
Altitude: 5,275 m
Nepal Kalapattar 27.988698, 86.83316927°59’19” N 86°49’59” E
1
At the bottom of the top
December 1, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
I'm too tired to write a long post. Most challenging day. We got close to the bottom of Mount Everest. Here, the altitude was getting to me. 5300m today. Sleeping at 4900m. Hiking was strenuous, every step takes all of your concentration. Now I'm ready for a long long sleep.Read more
Traveler Wuhuuu 😀 What a hike.
12/1/16Reply
Birga RohwederTwo beauties!!
12/1/16Reply
Moritz MüllerWhaaaaaaaaaaat?!
12/2/16Reply
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Day 139
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
🌙 12 °C
Altitude: 4,874 m
Nepal Lobujya 27.9482, 86.8104927°56’54” N 86°48’38” E
1
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A day in slow motion
November 30, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ 🌙 12 °C
I've been between 4000 and 5100 meters today and up here, you do things slowly: eating, hiking, laundry, reading, thinking, .....

We started early and caught a beautiful sunrise. From here, the landscape changed drastically - no more trees and eventually barely any bushes, but glaciers and 8000m peaks wherever you look. And it's cold in the morning, my drinking bottle valve froze every 15-20 minutes :)

It was a steep incline and we did another 200m incline (to 5100m) after getting to our tea house to acclimatize. The trick is to sleep lower than your highest elevation of the day. I'm feeling completely exhausted and am looking forward to some slow motion sleep soon.Read more
Moritz MüllerWow 5000+ thats not even possible in the alps.... the untersberg would feel like a tiny little hill if I tell him about your adventures next time... Happy first Advent on your adventure and thx 4 the advend (tures) calender 😘 cant wait until tommorow to open the first.
11/30/16Reply
Birga Rohwedersame here :) I'm glad the earthquake wasn't too bad. Have you started your calender yet?
11/30/16Reply
Traveler I wish I was with you. It's such a beautiful country. I know I'll return someday :)
11/30/16Reply
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Day 138
Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 4:57 PM
🌙 14 °C
Altitude: 4,050 m
Nepal Syomare 27.86815, 86.8057327°52’5” N 86°48’21” E
1
Crossing the 4000m mark
November 29, 2016 in Nepal ⋅ 🌙 14 °C
Of course there's not an actual mark, but I knew we'd get to 4000 just before our tea house, which is at 4070 ;-) I can tell the altitude a bit as I'm going slower than usual, especially steep inclines take more time than they would otherwise. But we're in no rush and got to our destination around 3pm.

We had a fantastic day! So many beautiful views, some even of Mount Everest (picture 4). Picture 5 shows you the last 40 minutes of our hike to our little tea house, which is the last building on the hilltop, where I'm chilling and writing this as you can see in picture 6 :-)Read more
Moritz Müller (E)pic 😉
12/2/16Reply
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