Ka Pai Kiwis

Well it seems I was a little premature in announcing my recovery from the sting. Overnight my eye swelled to the point if being closed and the swelling was spreading to the other eye. So off to hospital for me. One injection in the bum for me then intravenous steroid, Dexamethosone, all I know about dex is it is given to climbers with early onset oedema then its down you go. Anyway I am now discharged and the swelling seems to be subsiding. The care was excellent but the facilities basic. I was in a very small room with 2 other people, there is no privacy and little dignity, I felt very sorry for the woman next to me when she had to bare all for probe attachment. I just turned the other way. How things change.......yesterday we were cursing because our China entry was delayed and now we are grateful. It will take me 2-3 days to get over this. Sorry to the regular readers but the next few posts may be a little mundane, at least I hope so. Pic of the day picks itself I thi...

We woke up this morning to an email from our China agent informing us the Torugart Pass border will be be closed in the 12th and 13th for Eid festival, open again on the 14th. Agghhhh. We have been booked in for the 12th for months!  So emails back and forth from here to NZ to China to try to get some clarification about where to go from here. Our visa expires on the 16th so we’re cutting it fine......  Damn we have to kill more time until the 14th. In the meantime Pakistan and India are hotting up over Kashmir so keep watching folks all our plans might change in a heartbeat.  Today we set off for Karakol with a planned excursion into a valley we have heard about. A few kms before the turnoff I had a wee visitor inside my helmet and he (or she) gave me a good old sting.  Nothing too dramatic but a few minutes later my whole upper body began to itch I got a rash and welts and I got symptoms of indigestion. An antihistamine and a rest seemed to calm t...