While Donna was travelling through Italy with Brenda, I spent the month trekking with my brother Jack and nieces Krista and Jessica in the Khumbu (Everest) region of Nepal. This was my second visit to the area.

It's easiest for me to share the experience through the images I choose to capture and put up on my Flickr site (here). I truly hope you'll take time to browse through them, to get a glimpse of what we saw and perhaps a sense of our adventure.

Our trip started with a flight from Kathmandu to Lukla, among the highest and most challenging airports in the world at 2,830 metres. With our guide Megh, we followed the trail past farms, traditional Buddhist villages, breathtaking views of the highest snow capped peaks in the world, to the base of Mount Everest. We were on the trail for 20 days, 8 of them spent at or above 5,000 meters.

We were amazed by the beauty everywhere:

• the humbling mountain ranges, peaks above the clouds and the brilliant blue sky
• prayer flags glittering in the wind
• the powerful, meandering, turquoise waters of the Dudh Kosi River
• suspension bridges swaying over deep gorges, supporting hundreds of travelers
• fresh spring vegetation with millions of rhododendron bushes coming into bloom
• carefully crafted stupas and mani walls with with prayers carved into them.

We were humbled by the spirit and capacity of the Nepalese people:

• porters carrying more than their body weight up and down the steepest terrain imaginable - we saw some carrying 80 kgs!
• the beauty and prevalence of the Buddhist faith
• presence of spirituality in the families running small tea houses - up with early risers and working until everyone had gone to bed
• a deeply genuine and endless commitment to be of service - heck, even the yaks are incredibly hard working.

The trip held many surprises:

• how daunting challenges became so doable as we tackled them together
• the unfamiliar sense of exposure - to the freezing winds at high altitude passes and climbing with half the oxygen levels we're used to
• as mundane as traditional Nepalese foods could be, there was such a thing as deep fried Mars bars
• accommodation could be between $1-3/night and we could live comfortably for $20/day
• that the Yeti still has such a strong presence in the culture of the Himalayas
• just how bad Jack's feet smelled by the end.

It was a tremendous privilege to have done this trek with 3 of the most amazing people on the planet. I will treasure it forever.