Stephen rented a large van, and Ralph drove 6 of the 8 trekkers — plus Leeli who did not do the trek because of her Mother’s failing health — to Logan airport. Around Manchester Martha called Stephen to tell him he forgot his camera. He had three others (LX5, iPhone, and one which he brought for his son, Keg), but this D90 with 18-200mm lens was the one he really wanted. Leeli called son Andrew at Cape Air, then Stephen called Martha and asked her to drop the camera with John at the Lebanon Cape Air Terminal. The camera would ride free on the 5PM flight to Boston in time for Stephen to get it. Martha reported the car shook from the high wind when she dropped the camera off. We knew it was a windy day and didn’t realize the impact of her comment. Turns out the 5PM from Lebanon never made it to Lebanon from Boston because of the winds. So Stephen made lemonade out of lemons and really learned to use and appreciate the LX5.

There was a full moon in Boston. We did lots of walking at Heathrow, but even with a “tight” connection and some slow lines, we made it with plenty of time. I did some “Duty Free pans” in Bahrain — panoramic photos of the amazing and very high end duty free shops — managing to dump a large coffee on the pristine floor in the process. Here is a view of Bahrain as our plane approached.

At Hotel Tibet I met Khari Rinpoche and gave him the “BOSS of Khari Gompa” T-shirt I had printed for him. This shirt resulted in a comment he made in NH the summer before when I asked him what he really did in his “position”. He replied, “I am the boss of Khari Gompa”. It is fantastic that a person who has dedicated himself to building a home and refuge for Tibetan girls and women, and more recently young girls from Nepal, can view himself with humor.

That afternoon, while others visited Thamel, I limped the short distance to Folk Nepal for a Pashmina scarf and some small bags for Jann. I was very worried how I would handle the trek since I could not walk without considerable pain. I had pulled a calf muscle in my left leg a few weeks before the trek. Sitting for many hours on the planes did not do it much good.

The next day our guide told us that pashmina is not cashmere, although it is often called that. He stated it comes from the fur from the front of the neck of a mountain goat.