Made it to, well not the top, but Everest basecamp in Tibet. When hiking up there in the ice cold wind, gasping for breath, you can hardly imagine that people actually manage to reach the summit at 8848m - some even without oxygen. Unfortunately, most of the time Mount Everest - or Qomolangma ("Godess Mother of the World") as the Tibetans call it - is hiding itself in a thick coat of clouds. When the top pops out the view is amazing though...every time the summit seems higher than you remembered (could be true btw...Everest appears to have grown about 4 meters over time)
As anywhere in Tibet, basecamp is heavily garded by the Chinese army. Our precious (and expensive) EBC permit is heavenly scrutinized by officials at the three checkpoints on the way. Not so long ago two American students planted the US flag which resulted in a day of prison for them and reeducation sessions for the guide. Basecamp was closed for two weeks. Security has been even stricter since.
Like in Namtso, many people suffer from AMS (acute mountain sickness better known as altitude disease). An older lady collapses and has to be transported to a hospital. Wonder where that is, as we have not seen any during our 8h bumpy ride on our way to this deserted area.
A 4 km walk from basecamp you'll find the "hotel zone"... a camp with around 20 tents made of yakhair. Must admit that the tents are quite cozy, comfy and most importantly warm! After some beers (advantage if you don't have AMS), a home cooked meal and a visit to the most disgusting Tibetan pit toilet ever, went to sleep on top of 2 and under 3 sets of blankets...maybe a summit attempt tomorrow?!
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Location:Everest Base Camp (5200m), Tibet
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