Saturday 26 December

We fill up with fried rice and chapatti for breakfast. We are planning to go to the temple and back. It's a good walk and at 2 hours in we reach the road where we head towards the temple. It's been interesting walking the terraced hills and the local homes (if they can be called that!) the next part of the trip is pine forest. We meet some children who want to share their lunch picnic with us. They drag Malcolm into joining them and give us dry noodles to eat. They range about 3-13 years and speak English pretty well. they are cooking rice and potatoes with small fires then man. We get a photo with them and share our mandarins. The walk is lovely through the hills when when we eventually get to the temple the fee puts us off and we turn back. We have a long journey. It must be hair washing day. Lots of children are being washed by their mothers in the sun. We walk back a different way. Up some stairs and then along the road. It's a long day. We take a short cut to our hotel up a hill. 7-8 hours walking is tough! We enjoy a delicious dinner. The gas must be about out in the shower. It's warm for a few seconds. Just enough to get a lightening quick wash and warm up in.