Among the Giants

Just a quick post. We are at a satellite internet cafe (loosely speaking) in Dingboche. It's very expensive and slow, so not many updates and no pictures until we get back to Namche on the day of marathon.

We've had three good days of trekking since Namche. We are at 14,464 ft., over 5,200 ft of elevation gain since we started at Lukla.

We've had magnificent views of the great peaks -- Ama Dablam, Island Peak, Lhotse, Nuptse, and Everest. So far, Everest has been the elast impressive. We can see only the very top behind the massive Lhotse/Nuptse wall.

The trails are pretty rough in many areas. There are alot of long climbs and descents. Yesterday after lunch, we had a 2,000 ft climb to the Tengboche Monestary, the religious center of this region. It is a magnificent structure. We toured the temple where the monks pray.

Many of the monks are young boys training in the religious like. But you can't take the boy out of the boys. After 3:00 prayers, they all went running to the small flat spot to play some soccer with the local boys. Gerry got in on the game for a bit as well.

This morning (May 22), it was 28 degrees. It was tough to get out of the sleeping bag. But today's hike was wonderful -- great views around every bend inthe trail. I really can't describe the scenery. Photos don't do it justice and I don't have the literary skills to paint the picture.

I'll try to post again when we get a little higher. One week to race day!