Nathaniel Merriam Monday, May 24 Namche Bazaar, Nepal

On the road again. We spent the last two days trekking from the Italian pyramid down to here, losing about 4000 feet in the process. The air feels good here, except for the pouring rain. Luckily we were all snug in our tents last night before it began -- and we were eating breakfast when it began again this morning.

In medical news, I can't feel my toes. Or more precisely, my toes have pressure sensation, meaning they feel like they want to pop every second. You don't have to be an MD to know that this is not a good thing, especially considering that they've been this way since a day or two before we left base camp. It hurt so badly that I slept on top of my sleeping bag because the weight of the bag on my feet hurt so much that I couldn't fall asleep. I finally talked to Ken about it yesterday at lunch because I was in absolute agony with every step. He explained that it was probably my toes rubbing against the boot for too long, and that the solution was to tighten my boots.

Now, I'm no podiatrist, but if my feet feel like they want to explode, the last thing I want to do is tighten my boots. And I was right, at least for a while. Tightening the boots brought me to a new level of self-torture. I didn't have to step to feel pain -- I felt it every single moment I had the boots on. So the eleven-mile hike up and down over rocks was not my best day. But the docs and climbers were right -- after a full day of cursing their advice, my feet were better. They're not perfect but I don't wince with every step, so that's a big improvement in my book. It will sure make tomorrow's hike down from Namche to Phakding a lot more pleasant.

I'm wearing shorts! It's a lot more convenient to live life when you don't have seven layers of long underwear and jumpsuits and pants and such to dig through. It is no longer a major logistical undertaking to change underwear or go to the restroom. Our coughs are getting a little better -- the thicker air down here is balanced out by the greater amount of dust, but with the rain we've been having it should only improve as we go back towards sea level.

Dr. Ken has allowed us to drink alcohol again -- we couldn't on the trip so far because it's impossible to tell the difference between high altitude cerebral edema and a simple hangover. Needless to say, we've been having some Tuborg and San Miguel to celebrate, as well as plenty of Coca-Cola, but I have to admit that the carbonation up here is explosive and I seem to have a little trouble dealing with it, so I haven't been enjoying too much of the carbonated goods, alcoholic or not. I suspect the real celebrations will be in Katmandu, when we visit the Rum Doodle or some other traditional post-expedition spot.

Want to know how many PowerBars we've given to Canadians? Who snores and shakes the tents at night? Write me at NMerriam@ArtBoy.org.

From Namche with love, Nathaniel