Namaste! We've only just returned to Kathmandu and in checking my email, I found this from a loyal TUP reader:

"Jake,
You have until tomorrow before its 2 months between postings on your travel blog. I never would have thought you would have gone more than 60 minutes without a CHECK OUT MY BLOG email, let alone 60 days..."

Ahhhh blog fans. You have to love them. Yes, it's been a long time. My apologies. Thanks for helping me beat the two-month deadline. I'm also pleased to see that there are so many out there just dying for a update on the progress of our amazing around-the-world adventures. Unfortunately, my best-laid plans of a constantly-updating travel blog have been laid to ruin by unanticipated circumstances on our travels. Specifically, ever since we left Eastern Europe, the dearth of decent Internet connections have severely hampered my ability to get anything done on the computer in any reasonable time. Now I suppose a more dedicated man would have painstakingly sat through hours of tedious computer time to write exciting posts home to you all. However, I am not that man. Sorry.

So I am happy to share my experiences (in fact, I can't WAIT to) but I'm afraid not going to be real time. Instead, I am focusing my energy on exploring and experiencing the incredible trip I am on. Then once major sections of the trip are concluded (and I can dedicate some serious time to it), I will be able in an excellent position to post our progress on the web.

Still I appreciate all your concern about the future of this blog so I say now "DO NOT FEAR, TUP WILL GO ON!" Keep this page bookmarked, please! Much like novocaine for pain at the dentist, I'm not really STOPPING the postings, I'm simply POSTPONING them. In short, we are simply running behind. So you WILL eventually get the entire story of the incredible round-the-world adventure that we are on. However you might have to wait a little longer than many of you might like. Stay tuned.

For a brief update, Dana and I have just returned from a month-long trek through the Himalayas. We trekked up around Manaslu, the 8th highest mountain in the world, for 15 days topping out at Manaslu Base Camp. Then we crossed the Larkya La, a pass of over 17,000 feet, to join up with the Annapurna Circuit trek in Dharapani. From there, we trekked the entire Annapurna Circuit, crossing another even-higher mountain pass, while trekking between mountains such as Dhaulugiri and (of course) Annapurna, the 7th and 10th highest mountains in the world. The photo at the top of the post is me at the top of the Larkya La, sick, winded and tired, but still smiling (Dana came be seen in the background with our guide, dead tired and suffering terribly from altitude sickness. I do not believe she is smiling). Much like the Larkya La, the whole trek was an incredibly exhausting but also incredibly rewarding experience. We hiked about 300 miles in 30 days and reached altitudes of almost 18,000 feet. The scenery was spectacular. It was, in a word, awesome.

So now we're back in Kathmandu, where we can sip Everest beer and eat yak steak in K-Too Steakhouse and try to forget the non-stop numbness and aching in our poor feet. There's not much time for resting though, because on Sunday we're off to Bangkok Thailand for a few days then Hong Kong and China. The trip rolls on! Thank you again for all your concerned emails and I'll post more when I can...