Kevin Maddrey

painting

2009-01-02T07:28:00.001-08:00

I'm painting.

Bush, Democrats Seek to Finalize Bailout

2008-12-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

"Our industry ... needs a bridge to span the financial chasm that has opened up before us," Lead Artist for Maddrey.Net, Kevin Maddrey told the Senate Banking Committee in prepared testimony. He blamed the industry's predicament not on failures by management but on the deepening global financial crisis.

Kevin Maddrey also added that, "Hundreds of thousands would lose their paintings" if this company were allowed to collapse."

Earlier, Majority Leader Steve Hoyar said Congress might have to return in December -- rather than adjourning for the year this week, as expected -- to push through an art bailout. "Dealing with the artistic crisis is a pressing need. We are talking about a lot of people ... and a great consequence to our economy."

As a sad example just talk to Harriet Hadley. Just last week, the FBI surrounded her home and launched several canisters of tear gas into the home before breaking down the front door and repossesing all of the fine art in her home. A tearful Harriet could be seen crying as the last of her fine art canvases were ripped from the walls. "These paintings were my life. Without them, my life is hollow meaningless and I can't taste my food properly."

The bailout is still up in the air as the current congress views art as something unnecessary. Art can't be rated and graded, so why bother? If a skill can not be tested on a standardized test for third graders, then it's pointless to bother with.

How to Paint

2008-11-21T10:21:00.000-08:00

A little while ago, I finished a commission for someone. It was an abstract piece based off flowers. The process for this piece really got me thinking about how I paint.

There's many ways to paint. Some people are planners. They create multiple sketches and do preliminary drawings. Some people paint thin base layers and build up the canvas slowly and surely. I've tried that a few times. It's fun and all, but it's not the way I work.

For this commission, I just dove right in. Instead of using finesse to pull the painting together, I just used force. I'd slap the paint on thickly and then just move it around. At times, the painting just wasn't working and I'd have to wipe out half the painting. Then I'd repaint, step back and study.

I think I paint the same way I hike up mountains. I don't like preplanned trails. Trails tend to meander and take the slow easy way up a mountain. I prefer to go straight. No turns, no planning, no thinking. I just look for the shortest distance to the top. I don't go around boulders, I go over them. I don't go around bushes I tromp right through them. I don't preplan my panitings, I just start painting.

I realize that my way of hiking and painting are not the easiest way. They require strength and a different sort of patience. If I planned out my paintings, I'd have to be patient in the beginning. Since I don't do that, I have to be patient in the middle. There are times when I've been working on a section for a long time and it ends up being crappy, then I have to scrape it off. That's not an easy thing to do, but it helps me to be unattached to the painting itself. Which is essential for any good artist.

In the end, a viewer might not be able to tell how the artist brought about a particular painting, but it doesn't matter really. The only thing that matters is if the artist was honest with himself while creating it. And that's what seperates good paintings from great paintings.

Cross Country

2008-11-21T10:13:00.000-08:00

I was about to apologize for my lack of consistent updates on this thing, but then I thought why should I apologize for being out doing something more interseting then writing down what I just did or thought. So the fact that this hasn't been updated means that I'm currently doing something much more interesting then 'blogging.'

Although in the future, (ie: this winter) I'll probably be writing more and this forum is as good as any. The idea is to write and write and write this winter, that way I'll get better at writing and if I want to write a book I can do that, or if I want to write for a job I can do that too.

I just finished driving cross country. Not sure how many trips I've done across - maybe ten or eleven. Each time it's just as amazing as before. Although I take that back, the first time was the most amazing. The other times were only almost as good as the first.

This trip included painting in the southwest, old indian ruins, oil rigs, Santa Barbara, Monument of the Gods, Utah, Boulder, Hopi Reservation, Alabama Hills, and a few other places that I can't remember right now. All in all.... good trip. Lots of painting, cold weather, warm weather, snow, camping, driving and lots of thinking.

Yosemite Summer 08

2008-09-19T19:17:00.000-07:00

Another summer has come and gone. It seems like only a few months ago that I was packing up my stuff and driving cross country to head out west. My summer was incredible. Lots of painting and lots of fresh air. Most of time I was painting by the river. Just sitting, looking and thinking. When I wasn't doing that, I'd be off rambling in the back country practicing my watercolors. Trying to get lost, walking up mountains and finding new areas to paint.

In India it probably seemed like I was miles away, but in reality I was probably more in touch with everyone when I was over there then I am in Yosemite. My phone doesn't really work up there, I don't have consistent access to the internet, well I don't even have consistent access to electricity so who am I kidding?

So four months in India gets upwards of 40 or 50 posts and updates, while four months in Tuolumne gets one measley little post. But it probably works out for the better that way since most of the things I experience while living in the mountains I can't put into works anyhow.

Nice Shirt

2008-06-30T19:32:00.001-07:00

How come when someone says 'nice shirt' the other person says thanks. The person didn't make the shirt. They just picked it off of some rack with thousands of other shirts. There wasn't any real effort put into it.

The thanks is always followed up by a run down on the pricing structure of the shirt. Well, it was originally $100, but it was marked down 10% and today there was a sale of 40% off everything.

I always get annoyed during these little shopping summaries. If I cared about the price of the shirt, wouldn't I of asked?

What's funny about this little annoying quirk of American society is that it's universal. You can be loaded or poor, everyone is interested in saving a buck. And everyone likes to brag about thier savings too. The trouble is that no one else really cares about what you spent or how much you saved.

Jet Planes

2008-06-30T18:32:00.001-07:00

While I was down at this place called Mexico Beach in Florida I was relaxing and painting on the beach. It was peaceful apart from the continuous screaching sound of jet fighters soaring right above the beach all day long. It was unbelievable how many times planes flew over. I thought gas was supposed to be expensive. Why are we doing fly overs in Florida. Mexico Beach is a vacation spot. A place where people go to get away from things. It's not a place to sit around and think about war. Unfortunately for those vacationers, it's also a place that the US army calls home.

Now that I'm in California I can relax and be far away from all that nonesense. I can hike through the woods and everything is quiet until I hear the screach of three fighter jets in tight formation buzz the mountain peaks. Luck would have it, there's a military base right outside of Yosemite park. It seems you can't get away from that nonsense. It's annoying now because we live in a time where you can't really get away from things anymore.

Everything that is, affects everything else. And alot of the things that are, aren't that great. Too many dumb people making bad decisions. I guess it's not thier fault entirely - thier parents probably sucked, but it just sucks that we have to pay the price because someone else was a bad parent.

Insights after India

2008-06-30T17:54:00.000-07:00

Since when did every single person seem to have one of those flat television sets. Even people who you'd think didn't care about TV have one. Or even two. I was in a big store place the other day and all they were selling were those flat TVs.

Then I saw commercials that said your old TV's were crappy and unless you gave some people money for this box thing, you couldn't even watch free shows anymore. I realized right then that I was behind the times and probably would never catch back up.

Cross Country Drive Number Ten.

2008-06-30T17:25:00.000-07:00

This was one of the shorter runs, but still long enough to sit, stare and think enough to catch up on all the times I'm not sitting, staring, and thinking during the rest of the year.

Since there was a week spent in the pan handle of Florida hanging near the coast, Route 10 was the chosen path. It was a fine drive. Miles and miles of road, nothing special. Unless, of course you consider the fact that there are miles and miles of road special.

The National Highway System is pretty amazing if you use it often enough. If you're into serenity and peace and wide tracts of unspoiled land then the highway system isn't for you. Highways kinda put a damper on those sorts of things. But I still use a highway every year to go out and stay in those wide tracts of unspoiled land that highways seem to ruin.

Now if you're interested in getting goods moved quickly or getting yourself somewhere quickly, then the highway system is surely your friend. It's well maintained. It's straight and predictable. There's not going to be some ninety degree turn up ahead. It's only going to be more of the same straight boringness. Colorado adds some flavor, but overall the roads are all the same.

That is until you get off the big roads and venture onto the small roads. The small roads contain the little hidden treasures. The big roads get you there faster. Both are fine. It all depends on what you're looking for I suppose.

This trip was all about getting somewhere quick. I was interested in adding up the hours as fast as possible. I was on the same schedule as the cranked up trucker whose now on his fifth day of driving and so tweaked out that he's sweating and shaking to the beat of ....

Actually, that brings up a good point. What exactly do crank head truckers listen to. Back in the day, I would have surely said something along the lines of Hank Williams Sr. Just some good ole, down home country music. But these days, country music isn't the same was it was in the past. It's surely not trucker music anymore. I think if I were blasted out of my mind, driving a big rig down the highway at three in the morning I'd be listening to spanish tapes.

Bombs in India

2008-05-14T03:53:00.001-07:00

By now, most people have heard of the terrible bomb explosions in India. Incidents like these are always a bit unnerving. After that news report, people have recommended that I not return to India. I hear comments like, "The world is a scary place." and "Things aren't what they used to be like." "Those people are scary over there."

Sure right now, India seems like a hotbed of terrorist activity. The news on TV is probably talking it up and trying to scare you right now. What they dont' tell you is how messed up America is, but thank's to this radical new device designed to scare the crap out of everyone we can all rest assured that the India is probably a lot safer then America.

http://www.globalincidentmap.com/home.php

Above is the link to the Global Incident Map. It's a web page that shows you all the horrible stuff that's going on in the world in real time. This morning I decided to dampen my mood and check it out. The map mentions the bomb blast in India and it mentions an arrest of some suspects relating to the crime. That's it. In a country of over a billion people, that's what it says. Now if we go over to America (a country 1/3 the size), we see quite a different story:

"Texas Bomb Squad blows up suspcious objects near school"
"Diesel Tanker Hijacked"
"Louisana Airport Reopened after Bomb Scare"
"Shootout in Lobby of St. Petersburg Courthouse"
"Bomb Threat Phoned into Fort Lauderdale Immigration Office"
"Meat Processing Plant Worker Admits Tampering with Food"
"Kids Vitamins Tampered With"
"Detroit - Grenade found at Intersection"
"Bomb Threat Closes Ferry"
"Women Arrested for accessing Website with Terrorist Information"
"Bomb Squad Called to Staten Island Shopping Center"
"Local Couple Buys Suspicious Colgate Toothpaste"

Now which country sounds safer? The world is only as scary as the news you watch. To live in fear of the outside world is only going to add to our problems.

Cultural Arts Day

2008-05-09T12:51:00.001-07:00

In case you didn't hear, today was Cultural Arts Day at Ben Hill County Public Elementary School. After one artist bailed, I was asked to give a talk about being an artist to the school kids.

The students spent the day visiting different classrooms and hearing presentations from artists in the various mediums. There was a lady who played the harp, a man who sang and played the guitar. There was another painter, a photoshop lady, and a poetry lady. There were a few oddball categories like a Civil Ware Reanactor and a Baker. But after talking to those two presenters I got some great ideas for my next presentation to children. First I'm going to bring chocolate chip cookies, then I'm going to have them line up in battle formation just like the confederates did in the Civil War. After that I'll show some paintings.

The day went by pretty fast. I had to give twelve twenty minute speeches to different classes of students from 3rd to 5th grade. It ended up being a good time, just showing my paintings and talking about art, asking questions, answering questions. Twenty minutes wasn't really long enough to get into anything but a cursory discussion on art in general. I was forced to focus my points to be brief, to the point and relative to a third grader. The only group that was semi tedious was the class that just came in just after lunch. They were all 'lunched out' I guess. The rest of the kids were inquisitive, enjoyable and interested.

Speaking of lunch, I got to stand in line at the school cafeteria again. When was the last time any of you did that? The food was fine, but I swear that one of the ladies who cooked in my cafeteria when I was growing up, was there working today. If it wasn't her directly, it must have been her identical twin daughter.

Universal Mysteries Revealed!

2008-05-09T04:50:00.001-07:00

This week I've learned one of the mysteries of the university. There are times I'd be somewhere and I'd see a bench in a park that says, 'Gift of the Kiwanis Club of Townsville.' Or when you're driving into some small town there, you can see under the church listing buildboard a list of local clubs, Kiwanis, Rotary, Lions, etc.

What are these clubs anyway? What do they do? Are they like the ones in the Flintstones? Well I had the opportunity to find out. I made this video about my trip to India and Nepal, which can be seen from my website, and it turned out well. I ended up getting a projector and a screen from the library and I started showing the video around. Someone who saw it wanted me to show it at the local Kiwanis Club. I figured it'd be a great opporutnity to see the insides of one of America's most secretive organizations.

The clandestine meeting was to be held in the backroom of Tom's Super Country Buffet. It was an interesting mixed crowd. After the collection of happy dollars I gave my presentation and showed the movie. A short question and answer period followed and I went home.

So in actuality, I really didn't learn what this club does. I know every week they have some sort of a presentation and that this club just learned about India, but other then that I think it's just a way to get a nice meal at Tom's Super Country Buffet.

Thoughts on home

2008-05-06T09:44:00.001-07:00

It's nice to be back in the US again, although it's more depressing then being overseas. In India I wasn't trying to keep abreast of the current news. Now that I'm in America I'm still not trying to stay updated, but it's shoved down my throat wherever I look. Newspapers, TV, the internet. Even if you dont' go to a news site, every other site has links back to the news site, so despite all my efforts I still know what's going on in the world.

And of all that information I get, it seems like none of it is real news. All this talk about the election is ridiculous. I have no clear idea what each candidate stands for. All the news organizations talk about is how well each campaign is running. Or the news people talk about what the other news people said. That's not 'news' that's just gossip.

The news used to be about the issues each person stood for. They used to talk about plans for the future. Now they just talk about, the plans for the campaign. It's like our school systems. Schools don't worry about long term goals and building quality students, they just worry about the end of the year test. So if you can pass that test that is all that matters.

Some people asked if there were more fat people here in America, but there's big people the world over. Although apparently now there's not enough food, so that might change. There's not enough oil either, so even if someone wanted food, the companies can't deliver it. I guess there's just too many people and not enough stuff.

It's been nice to see friends and family again. I guess in any situation, it's the people that make a place what it is. I used shaving cream for the first time in months. It was nice. Very smooth. Although it wasn't smooth enough for me to go out and buy my own bottle. I've noticed people sure like thier products here in the states. People's bathrooms look like the aisle of a CVS or something. Bottle after bottle. It's crazy. When did body wash replace soap? What is body wash anyway? Just soap in a bottle? If so, why? And what's the purpose of aftershave? When I was in school we never learned about bathroom products so I never used it. No one tells me these things on how to be a man. And why do razors vibrate nowadays?

Same to Same

2008-04-21T14:03:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry to say that television hasn't made any progress in the past three months. It's a shame. What TV I did watch in India was some program about the biggest construction project or some other lame show that makes drama out of people's every day jobs. It seems the Discovery Channel has worldwide appeal.

I'm also disappointed to be hearing other peoples' conversations and understanding them. Listening to joggers talk about cool websites. Or hearing a girl talk about the latest gossip between some other girl and a this boy while talking on her cellphone was annoying as well.

It's very enjoyable to come back home to hear about the husbands with forty brides down in Texas. Texas gets another checkmark under the list of 'one more reason not to move to Texas.' I was fortunate enough to witness a live interview of some of these FLSDSLS people. The expert interviewing lady ended this historic interview by asking the Mormon's why they wore thier hair like that and what's up with the dresses?

Home sweet home.

A long ride back

2008-04-16T07:13:00.000-07:00

So I'm back in the states now. I'll probably keep up this writing thing though. It's good for me. The trip home was slightly annoying. It's not like it used to be with the whole nine month boat ride, but it still felt like it took forever.

It started off with a nine hour bus ride from Pokahra to Kathmandu. We had the pleasure of running into some major traffic issues that delayed all the process. A few days in Kathmandu fixing tickets and such, then it was a early two hour flight to Delhi. Our ticket said the plane was leaving at 7:00. Although the airport didn't open till 6:00. And the flight eventually left around 8:00.

We landed in Delhi and spent the day there. Our next flight was to Bangalore and it left around eight in the evening. The stupid morons at British Airways wouldn't let us switch our flight to Delhi, so we had to fly all the way down to Bangalore. I know I'll never fly on British Airways again. Of course the flight was delayed, so we didn't arrive into Bangalore until midnight. Our next flight left around 6:30am, so we just hung out at the airport. No sleep that night.

That next flight took us to London where we had a nice 24 hour layover. We were going to head out and meet a friend, but we ended up being so tired we just crashe at the airport. Our next flight left the next day and ten hours later we arrived in Atlanta. Then it was a three hour drive to Fitzgerald and that's where I am now.

Pokhara to Kathmandu

2008-04-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

The trip back to Pokhara was a little tedious. A couple hour jeep ride, followed by a couple hour hike. Then a nights rest, followed by a couple hour bus ride on this sketchy thin mountain rode. Then switch buses to a bigger one. A few more hours on this bumpy road and we finally get to Pokhara. We figure out the travel plans, and then walk around town for the last night.

The next day we take a bus ride to Kathmandu and run into some traffic. The bus ride takes forever. We get passed by a western couple on mountain bikes, but we eventually arrive in the loud, westernized, dirty, town of Kathmandu.

Kathmandu is filled with CD stores, email cafes, outdoor clothing stores, Thangka shops, restaurants, hotels, taxis, touts, and drug dealers. Everyone is trying to sell you something. It's as if white skin means deep wallet.

Overall Kathmandu leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Actually, it gives me a sore throat. I prefer Bangkok or Delhi to this place. Those towns have a little more character then here.

I walked to Durbar Square one day and some guard stopped me and told me I had to pay 200 rupees to get in. I didn't feel like doing that so I left. The next day I'm wandering around and I end up finding myself in Durbar Square but I entered from a side street. Apparently it's free from over this way. I did some sketching and painting watched the people. Again there was more communist mumbo jumbo. These elections are annoying.

Everywhere I go I hear about elections. I even hear about the American elections. US politics is news in every country. It's a little sad when you think about it. There's nothing more petty and annoying then US politics and our silly elections. So to have that be worldwide news means that everyone else is interested in petty squabling and mud slinging just as much as we are.

Jomsom

2008-03-30T09:58:00.000-07:00

Today we arrived in Jomsom. This town is pretty big compared to the rest. The streets are wide. There are jeeps that go down to Ghasa or continue on up to Muktinath. We're going to take one down to Ghasa in the morning. Our hike time is up. We still have two more months before California starts, and we're going to continue our travels in the United States.

It's cold up here, but the views are nice. There's an airport in town too. Some people take planes back to Kathmandu from here, but we have to return some of the gear we rented back in Pokhara.

Truckhe

2008-03-29T09:52:00.000-07:00

This place is great. The guest house we are staying at is very welcoming. The people are great and every question you have is answered with 'No problem, no problem' I ask where the bathroom is and they say the inside one is broken, so we have to use the one in the courtyard, 'no problem no problem' Yeah, no problem for you, but what about me if I have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Although that never seems to be an issue since I haven't been drinking very much water. A quarter to a half litre a day seems to be the most I'm taking in. I doubt that that is very heathty.

Finally the trail is flat. None of this up and down nonsense for the past few days. It's nice that way. It's more like strolling then trekking. But strolling doesn't sound very intense or extreme so no one will tell you that they went to Nepal to do some strolling.

Even way up here you can get all the stuff you need. All the products are the same as in America. Colage, Snickers, Duracel. It's the same every where in the world now. It's slightly annoying. Diversity leads to evolution and change. If everything is the same, then it leads to stagnation.

Kalopani

2008-03-29T09:41:00.000-07:00

Today we hiked up to the town called Kalopani. If you don't know where that is, it's right past Lete. In Lete we had to check in with the ACAP office. These are the people who keep track of all the hikers who pass through the area. It seems so pointless, but I suppose if someone falls off a cliff, the people can figure out what town the person was last seen in. That way they can dig through the ravines in certain areas as compared to the entire circuit.

It's getting cold up here, and the peaks are covered in snow. It seems it's been rainting in the late afternoons where we are and snowing up in the mountains. The air is fresh and clean so it's been nice. Fortunately the rains always seem to come after we're done hiking for the day.

I think this hike has been the most expensive part of my whole trip. The lodging is cheap, but the food is expensive up here. I guess if someone carries your food miles and miles from the closest real town, the price is going to be jacked up a bit. If you are a Nepalese and have a guest house up this way, I imagine you're rich as hell compared to your poor ass farmer neighbors. At least that's the way it appears. There's a big seperation of wealth up here. The western dollar doesn't veer off the trail very much, so a couple hundred yards can be the difference between wealth and poverty.

Crazy dream last night. I dreamt I had a hole in my stomach and these ants were crawling in and out of it. Ewwww. That's one reality that I don't care to be reminded of.

On to Ghasa

2008-03-28T09:35:00.000-07:00

Today was another uphill walk. I'm curious where all the level hiking trails in Nepal are. I seem to be missing them. The trail today was along a road where a land slide happened awhile ago. There was a big road crew trying to fix the problem. It makes me wonder how long these roads and trails will be around. These mountains are young and moving quite a lot, so change is a constant factor. I was suprised to see a big bulldozer way out here.

Half way up the trail we stopped at some waterfall and asked some lady about the next place to sleep. She said there was a town right up the road. I was feeling sick and exhausted so I wasn't sure if I wanted to hike that much further, but she made it sound like it was only a 20 minute walk.

A couple hours later we finally arrive in the town of Ghasa. The stupid lady was the target of my annoyance and angst the entire walk. Ghasa is a nice little town. Again, we stay at the first guest house we reach. The people are very cool. The food was good and I slept for hours.

The next morning we were debating on whether we should continue to hike or take a rest day. Eventually we decided that a rest day is what is needed. Fortunately for us, we made that call. It started raining hard around noon. So we passed the day away being dry and hanging out.

It was my birthday today and it's a good place to spend it. I received an excellent Thai massage. Nothing is better then hiking and then getting a massage. I felt like a king and slept like champ.

Ghorepani to Tatopani

2008-03-26T09:23:00.000-07:00

This hike was annoying. It was probably one of the most beautiful parts of the trail, but it was all down hill. It started out through this beautiful forest with flowering trees, then went down past villages and terraced fields. The trail passed through a little knotch in the hill side then dropped quickly all the way down to a suspension bridge across the river.

We left early in the morning after a couple paintings and started on our way. The mornings up here are cold. I suppose this is the mountains and all so it's to be expected. I'm looking through my journal right now and trying to write about this hike from the notes I took, but most of my journal is filled with my crazy dreams.

My sleeps have been filled with the most vivid dreams. I'm dreaming more here, then I have in years. It's nice having two lives. My daily life and then an entirely different existence at night. A week later, everything that happened in your sleep or in reality is just a memory anyway so they both just as real. I've been dreaming about old friends. These random people I knew in high school and middle school keep popping up in my dreams to chat it up.

Once we finally reached Tatopani we found a place to stay and went to the roof to paint. I started talking to this sadu guy dressed in the typical guru attire. He seemed cool enough at first. We were talking about the Bhagavada-Gita. That's this really old Indian book. It's a good one that'd I'd recommend to anyone.

He was a yoga teacher and I told him Ashlee was one too, so when she came up they started chatting it up. Eventually I got the impression that he was only trying to find someone who would help him get to America. Ash said she would try and he said, 'good, you won't be happy until you do.'

I thought that was a rude statement to make. Especially after we just got finished talking about how powerful words are and how what you say is just as important as what you do. Then he's gotta go and basically try to put a curse of total unhappiness on Ashlee. What a fraud and a clown. I'm glad I didn't do a portrait of him when he asked me to.

Apparently there are some hot springs in this town, but I was too exhausted to even go sit in a hot tub.

Ghorepani

2008-03-25T09:11:00.000-07:00

Up and up and up and up and then some more ups. Today was a pain in the calf. The views are nice, but I'm starting to get a little sick, so my throat is annoying. The town of Ghorepani is located at the top of this hill. It's the junction between a couple of trails so as far as villages in the middle of nowhere goes, this one is pretty big. We ended up staying at the Hungry Eye Guest House. It was recommended by the kids at Laxmi's because their father is the cook here. He did a good job. The Daal Bhat was excellent.

We pretty much eat that everywhere we go. It consists of rice, daal and some mixed veggies. It's good food and it's the only plate where they bring out seconds. When you're hiking all day that's a big plus. The room we stayed in was great. Windows on three sides and great views of the town and of the surrounding mountains.

There is a place called Poon Hill that everyone goes to see when the sunrises. Ash and I passed on this. I was painting in my room before the sun was up and I didn't feel like hiking up a big hill anyway. An hour or so after sunrise, we saw this massive migration of people hiking down there. It was amazing how many people actually went up to see the view. There had to be a couple hundred up there at least. I'm not too pressed about not going up there. I was able to do three paintings sitting on my warm bed and looking out the windows.

Ulleri and Beyond

2008-03-24T09:03:00.000-07:00

Ulleri is a little village clinging to the side of this steep hill. It's pretty beautiful. There are nice stone walkways through the town, little shanty guest houses and good views of the surrounding countryside.

We ended up staying at the first guest house we came to. I think all the guest places are the same for the most part. The rooms are the same in every place, the only difference is the management. The prices were fixed in this town so all the places had the same prices. Although, all you have to do is offer less and the owner says, 'well ok, but just don't tell anyone else.'

The same situation happened in the town of Pokhara. If you want to rent any gear for your trip, tent, coats, sleeping bag, etc, you can go to any shop and they say the prices are fixed, but everyone gives deals and then tells you to keep it on the downlow.

Hiking in the Himalays

2008-03-23T22:00:00.000-07:00

So today we started our hike. (I'm actually done the hike, but I'll just continue to write in this tense since that's what I'm used to) As you can imagine it's really beautiful. The big hills, the terraced fields, all the trees and rocks and whatnot. The trail I'm hiking on seems old. It's all laid out with these slate stones and wide and well used. It's not some dinky little dirt path. On one hand it's nice like that, but on the other it's less wilderness like. I'm certainly not heading 'Into the Wild' and death by berries is the least likely end to this trek.

What is a trek anyway? Why is it called 'trekking' when you're in Nepal, but only 'hiking' when you're in the states? I think people like to feel cool and 'trekking' sounds so much more hardcore then just hiking. Hiking is what you do with your family on vacation, trekking is what manly men do in the wilderness.

I'm finding less and less wilderness out here. Everything is pretty civilized out this way. Hot showers can be had at most of the guest houses. They sell beer, chocolate and toilet paper at even the most remote villages. There is currently a road all the way up to the town of Jomsom and once you get there, you could catch a plane to Kathmandu. Helicopters fly people in who don't feel like walking. As my pack gets heavier with each step, I'm thinking that a helicopter might not be that bad of an option.

More Hiking

2008-03-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was zero elevation gain. Today we dropped down from Chandrakot to river about a thousand feet and then we started our long hike upwards. After some breakfast and checking in at the police post, we start walking up along a trail that runs beside a river. We end up chatting with this nice guy who was once in the Nepalese Army. We're walking together for quite some time and he's sharing some good knowledge. He seems to know every single person on the trail. He's always stopping and chatting. He keeps telling us not to push it too hard on the first day. He's saying we should only go to the town just past Hille. Later on we find out that his brother owns a guest house there, so his motivation wasn't really out of concern for us. His interest lay in his brothers wallet.

We stopped at the town of Hille at the Laxmi Guest House. It started to sprinkle so we took shelter on this porch and just decided to stay there. The place was run by three kids - a girl 14, a girl 11, and a boy around 9. They were super cool and very responsible. They cooked up some good food and just talked and painted.

There's no one else but us at the guest house so it's nice and peaceful. The guest houses out here remind me of a cross between a grandmothers house and a dorm room. They are very quaint and relaxing. There's even electricity, so the hot shower felt great.

On the way up we were passed by a big group of people with flags all promoting some political group. They were for the communist party. I wonder if the war on terrorism is going to end like the cold war. The Cold War just faded away. It never ended in some supreme battle between the Democracies and the Communists. It just got surpassed by more interesting wars. Communism is as strong as ever. I suppose that's the influence of China though. A billion people is quite the majority when they are your next door neighbors. Either way, trying to enjoy the peaceful woods when hiking behind people shouting political propaganda is a little annoying.

The next morning we had some good food for breakfast and then hung out with the kids before we started our up hill walk to the next town called Ulleri.