Derek forwarded me an email this morning from Anglian Water warning local residents NOT to drink tap water untill further notice....but it dosen't say why? It realy bugs me when this kind of thing happens and there is no explanation from the water companies as to why this has happened. But needless to say I am worried now because I just cleaned out my goldfish last night and replaced about 2 thirds of the tank with tap water! Also I realy dont fancy the prospect of having to boil 15 gallons of water for said fish tank!!! Ahh its just been on the local news that they have found some kind of bug in samples of water that causes upset tummy's...emmm...they could have put this in the email...
Water is something we take soooooooooo for granted!!
Memories came flooding back this morning of having to clean my teeth with bottled water throughout all my travels! But mostly my thoughts returned to trekking in the Everest region and drinking water...There is a local rule that goes "the higher up you are, the safer the water is!" and I cannot tell you just how gorgeous it is to drink fresh iced glacsia water at 15,000 feet!! Well in retrospect it was probabally a silly thing to do, but as I remember it dident make me ill and I drank glacia water quite regular. Having a wash in the rivers though is a different matter! I washed my hair at the edge of the Dudh Kosi river and the water was so cold my head ached for ages after (or was it the altitude that gave me headach) so genrally for most of my trek I was absolutly stinking, and after 3 weeks of it I arrived back into Kathamndu by Helicopter with a back pack full of stinking washing!!! I had no chance to wash it either as we were flying out to Hong Kong the following day.
Me in tears, with said Helicopter, terrified about the prospect of the 45 min flight back to Kathmandu!!!
The day before we flew back I was sat at a cafe in Lukla watching the Helicopter coming and going with extra trekkers and I was burning with nerves at the prospect of our flight on this old, clunky Russian made Helicopter. Nepalese pilots have a saying..."we don't fly in cloud!! Because in Nepal the clouds have rocks in them!!" that alone terrified me as Lukla is nestled between some massive Himalayian mountains, so the skills of the pilots have to be exacting and prescise! On boarding the 'copter we were required to go through "customs" (a scruffy old red curtain) where we had our pockets checked and I was horrified when the man checking me suddenly pulled out my matches (for ciggies) and through them away!!! Thank goodness I dident have an expensive Gucci lighter with me at the time....when I got on the Helicopter, with my heart pounding, I realised just why matches and lighters were not allowed in the cabin...the cabin stank to high Heaven of PETROL!!! it was so bad I thought we were going to explode before we got off the ground!!. But I have to say the ride was uneventful (Thank God!) apart from Derek who was really excited and kept saying "Look out of the window Vicky! you can see the trails we trekked on!!"..."No thank you!" I replied "I only want to look out of the window when we are back in Kathmandu and back on the ground!"....On getting back I was so relived not just because we were in one piece, but because a wonderfully yummy cooked breakfast awaited us at "Meggies" cafe on Freak Street where we were staying in Kathmandu! Two fried eggs on a potato Rosti, and tomatoes, and I must say after 3 weeks living on nothing but Dhal Bhat Takatri (rice lentil stew) and Omletts, I thought I realy had died and gone to Heaven!
My backpack and indeed its contence absolutly STANK!!! Anyway no time for washing as our Royal Nepal 737 was waiting to take us on to Hong Kong! That was an adventure in itself as we were landing at the *Old* Hong Kong airport which had a runway out in the sea!!! I remember flying past blocks of flats so close I could see what folks were having for lunch!!! Now landing at Hong Kong was like coming into another world, and it felt like I was back home again oddly...At customs though a lady was waiting, and she had her beady eye on me and I could tell she was thinking "UK national coming from Kathmadu, I just HAVE to find some drugs here!!!" she was practically rubbing her hands with glee as she grabbed my back pack and began to unload my stinking heap of 3 weeks worth of unwashed trekking gear, including my underwear!!!...it was my turn to grin as I saw her nose wrinkling at the smell!! After just a few moments of rummaging she just pushed everything to one side and she herself vanished hastily through a door behind the table! "So you dont want to put all that back then?" I yelled after her but she was gone...Needless to say the first thing I did in Hong Kong was do all my washing, throughly...and suddenly I felt human again...
Sorry for the travel waffle, but isent it amazing that just going without water at home can trigger such memories!
Ok....I have to post a piccy of the (human not doggie) love of my life now....Gorgeous Gary on the set of Dark Knight!
Ahhh I feel better now!! *faints*
and this is my latest magazine cover! LOL!!!! The tital suits me I think!
