0:00:02 > 0:00:04Hmm.
0:01:04 > 0:01:11From high in the sky on a brilliant morning, Nepal looks idyllic, but on the ground, things are different.
0:01:11 > 0:01:17In these Himalayan foothills, communist insurgents, inspired by the work of Chairman Mao,
0:01:17 > 0:01:24are waging a campaign against the government that has lasted eight years and cost nearly 8,000 lives.
0:01:24 > 0:01:29As I'm to find out, things in Nepal are not always the way they look.
0:01:42 > 0:01:47In the western foothills, far off the tourist track,
0:01:47 > 0:01:53I'm with a party on their way to the village of Lekhani to witness a recruiting ceremony
0:01:53 > 0:01:58for what is perhaps Nepal's best known export, the legendary Gurkha soldiers.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02Oh, right, but you can't get to it by road...
0:02:07 > 0:02:13'With me are senior Gurkha officers, led by Lieutenant-Colonel Adrian Griffith,
0:02:13 > 0:02:19'an Englishman who's lived here for 15 years and speaks the language fluently.'
0:02:21 > 0:02:26His interest in the tough fighting men of these hills goes way back.
0:02:26 > 0:02:31When I was eight, I took the Victor, and it had a story called Johnny Gurkha in it and...
0:02:31 > 0:02:36- The Victor magazine?- I went to the Royal Tournament to see the Gurkhas.
0:02:36 > 0:02:42They fired my imagination, and while at Sandhurst, I was lucky enough to get selected for the brigade.
0:02:42 > 0:02:48I was commissioned into the 6th Gurkhas in 1979, so it's nearly 25 years ago.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52And it's never been a letdown? What you read in the Victor...?
0:02:52 > 0:02:58I say I wanted to be an engine driver, I became an engine driver and I enjoy being an engine driver.
0:02:59 > 0:03:04Do you try and confine your selection to these groups?
0:03:04 > 0:03:08Traditionally, we've recruited from the Gurungs and the Magars.
0:03:08 > 0:03:13The Gurungs are mostly east of the Kali Gandaki, the river we crossed, and the Magars are in this area.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17And this really is the area of the Poon Magars.
0:03:17 > 0:03:23- The Nepalese government allow us to recruit, but they ask that we maintain a lower profile.- Right.
0:03:23 > 0:03:28It's embedded in history. It's nearly 200 years it's been going on,
0:03:28 > 0:03:33- one way or another, but they like it to be kept as low-key as possible. - Yes.
0:03:35 > 0:03:41But it's this lugging of loads up and down hills that really toughens people up,
0:03:41 > 0:03:46and it's one of the reasons why they make such ideal soldiers.
0:03:46 > 0:03:53I'm feeling quite toughened up myself by the time we reach Lekhani, where Adrian addresses the hopefuls.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56HE SPEAKS IN NEPALI
0:04:16 > 0:04:18All the recruits are given numbers.
0:04:18 > 0:04:25Of the 251 applicants here today, only a fraction will go on to the next stage of testing.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30We recruit once a year, and it's broken down into three phases.
0:04:30 > 0:04:37This is the first phase - the opportunity for any man who wants to join the British Army to get in.
0:04:37 > 0:04:42There are a lot more young men who want to join than we have places for.
0:04:42 > 0:04:49Last year, for example, across Nepal, somewhere in the region of 24,000 were chasing 331 places.
0:04:49 > 0:04:56- Yes.- And so it is very important. But, clearly, the numbers that will get through today...
0:04:56 > 0:05:03- I think the galla has an allocation of 100.- Tell me who the galla is. Explain the role of the galla.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07The galla is our recruiter. He is a retired Gurkha soldier,
0:05:07 > 0:05:12in this case, a retired sergeant-major. He is resident in the area that he works in,
0:05:12 > 0:05:17and he brings in the raw material into the recruiting offices.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20- So he's pretty vital. - He's fundamental.
0:05:23 > 0:05:29As members of the British Army, recruits will get paid ten times more than they would in the Nepalese army,
0:05:29 > 0:05:34which makes a Gurkha a very attractive proposition.
0:05:34 > 0:05:35Go!
0:06:29 > 0:06:33As dawn breaks next morning, the village looks the same,
0:06:33 > 0:06:37it seems to be enjoying itself in the same way,
0:06:37 > 0:06:39but feels very different.
0:06:39 > 0:06:43Despite the sunshine, there's a chill in the air.
0:06:45 > 0:06:50Late yesterday afternoon, the galla - who is the recruiting officer -
0:06:50 > 0:06:54told us that he'd been approached by the local Maoists,
0:06:54 > 0:06:59who wanted to talk to him, one of us and the Gurkhas who we were with.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01A meeting was held,
0:07:01 > 0:07:07at the end of which the Maoists decided that they wanted to take the galla, Adrian,
0:07:07 > 0:07:11two other senior Gurkhas off into the forest to meet the hierarchy.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Well, there was nothing we could do.
0:07:13 > 0:07:18We waited here. They were taken off yesterday evening into the forest,
0:07:18 > 0:07:21and this morning, they haven't returned.
0:07:21 > 0:07:27As far as we know, there's no real danger, they just wanted to talk to them, but they're not back yet.
0:07:27 > 0:07:33It looks as though the rest of the recruiting is off, and all the work done yesterday will be a waste.
0:07:33 > 0:07:39And it looks also as though we probably will have to just get out of here as quickly as possible.
0:07:41 > 0:07:47There's no obvious threat, but just knowing we're in Maoist-controlled territory changes the atmosphere.
0:07:47 > 0:07:53From being a charming, rustic backwater, Lekhani now seems more like an out-of-the-way trap,
0:07:53 > 0:07:57and friendly locals potential kidnappers.
0:08:00 > 0:08:05As we head out of town, we pass yesterday's would-be Gurkhas,
0:08:05 > 0:08:07looking as confused as ourselves.
0:08:12 > 0:08:19We're two hours' walk from the nearest road, and only when we're there will we feel safe.
0:08:30 > 0:08:3748 hours later, news that Adrian has been released safe and well reaches us in the lakeside town of Pokhara.
0:08:37 > 0:08:42Adrian tells me what happened when he was abducted.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45I was then introduced to Comrade Mahesh,
0:08:45 > 0:08:50who was obviously a senior member of the Baglung Maoist party,
0:08:50 > 0:08:56and I had a discussion with him for about half an hour, really on the Maoist cause.
0:08:56 > 0:09:03He said that his aim in taking me particularly was to get publicity for their cause outside Nepal.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06And they then, at 12 o'clock, walked us down to the road
0:09:06 > 0:09:12which we'd driven up the previous day, and they'd arranged a vehicle for us there.
0:09:12 > 0:09:18They said, "We must have one final cup of tea together." So we had a final cup of tea with our abductors,
0:09:18 > 0:09:24they made a speech to the assembled villagers. At 1.30, we got in the vehicle and drove off down the hill,
0:09:24 > 0:09:29- and that was the end of it. - What sort of people were they?
0:09:29 > 0:09:36- You speak Nepali well. Presumably you could make some judgment? - They were very normal Nepalis.
0:09:36 > 0:09:42They were a mix of different castes, but they were all very well informed in terms of their own cause,
0:09:42 > 0:09:49but they were unremarkable, except in the fact they were very focused on what they were trying to achieve.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52Now it's time to tackle the mountains.
0:09:52 > 0:09:57We'll be trekking up to the 13,500-foot base camp of Annapurna,
0:09:57 > 0:10:00whose summit dominates the horizon,
0:10:00 > 0:10:05along with the classically beautiful peak of Machhapuchhre - "Fishtail".
0:10:05 > 0:10:10The idea is to see a bit of the country and get acclimatised to high altitude
0:10:10 > 0:10:14before we take on Everest and the Tibetan Plateau.
0:10:14 > 0:10:20Followed by our sherpa guides Wongchu and Nawang, I set a less-than-blistering pace.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22- Hi.- Hi. Namaste.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24Namaste. Where have you come from?
0:10:24 > 0:10:29We've come from Bamboo. Yeah, all the way. We were at the ABC and...
0:10:29 > 0:10:34- That's the base camp. That's where we're going.- Yeah, amazing there.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38- How is it up there?- Amazing! 360 degrees of mountains, gorgeous.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42- Weather good?- Um, weather... - Very nice.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45- Where are you all from?- Israel.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47- Israel, oh, wow, right.- And you?
0:10:47 > 0:10:51Where am I from? ..Oh, England, that's right!
0:10:51 > 0:10:57We've just started our climb - we're vague on details, like where we're from!
0:10:57 > 0:11:01- So is this part of a long holiday? - Yeah, it's a vacation from school.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03Yeah. Any problems along the way?
0:11:03 > 0:11:06We had a problem on our second day.
0:11:06 > 0:11:10We actually slept here in Chomrong, and we met some Maoists.
0:11:10 > 0:11:16- What did they say? "We're Maoists. How do you do"?- There were three people and just one of them said...
0:11:16 > 0:11:20- There was one with a gun standing behind him.- Oh, I see.
0:11:20 > 0:11:24And they were just telling us, "Hello. We are Maoists..."
0:11:24 > 0:11:26We are communists.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30Not really, just, "Hello, we are Maoists."
0:11:30 > 0:11:34They started talking. They said each one of us has to pay 1,000 rupees,
0:11:34 > 0:11:38and, um, we pay 1,000, they give us a receipt,
0:11:38 > 0:11:42and there is now not going to be any problem on our way.
0:11:42 > 0:11:46They say that they are the mountain people, and that this their area.
0:11:46 > 0:11:51So you weren't...you weren't alarmed? You weren't frightened?
0:11:51 > 0:11:53Or did they point the gun at you?
0:11:53 > 0:11:58No, no. They didn't point the gun, but we tried to negotiate with them,
0:11:58 > 0:12:04tell them that we are students and this is the beginning of our trip, and it's a lot of money,
0:12:04 > 0:12:10- but we had to pay them eventually. They gave us a receipt. Do you want to see it?- Yes, it might be useful!
0:12:10 > 0:12:14If you're going home, you can give me the receipt!
0:12:14 > 0:12:19- But it's in Nepali, so you won't understand what's written inside it. - OK.
0:12:19 > 0:12:23- But it does say that we paid 1,500...- Three of us.- My name...
0:12:23 > 0:12:25I read Nepali, you see,
0:12:25 > 0:12:32- and that says, "Arrest these three on arrival(!)"- I suggest that you learn Nepali, I think!- Yes, great!
0:12:32 > 0:12:34- And your name...?- Liat.- Liat.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36- And you are?- Michael.
0:12:36 > 0:12:40- OK.- Michael, it was a pleasure meeting you.
0:12:40 > 0:12:46- I hope you enjoy your...- Well, you're going downhill. It's all downhill from here, so good luck!
0:12:46 > 0:12:50- Yeah, thank you.- Thanks for the hints on the way.- No problem. Enjoy.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52- Bye-bye!- Bye.
0:13:05 > 0:13:11'I'm already feeling breathless, but notices warn that things can only get worse.'
0:13:11 > 0:13:13"Mountain sickness."
0:13:13 > 0:13:17'Wongchu's been up Everest twice, so he should know.'
0:13:17 > 0:13:22When do we get the, um, the height where you get mountain sickness?
0:13:22 > 0:13:24Are we there yet or not?
0:13:24 > 0:13:28Yes, you get the mountain sickness, and you must drink a lot of water,
0:13:28 > 0:13:31and then you must use the soup,
0:13:31 > 0:13:33and go slow,
0:13:33 > 0:13:36- walk slow walk.- Well, that's easy.
0:13:36 > 0:13:41Then when you get headache, you must move down in the low place.
0:13:41 > 0:13:47"Early symptoms - headache, loss of appetite, dizziness, fatigue on minimal exertion..."
0:13:47 > 0:13:53I've got a bit of that! "What to do - get in touch with your nearest sherpa! Descend, descend, descend."
0:13:53 > 0:13:56Well, that's pretty clear.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59- Yes.- It's not a cakewalk, is it?
0:14:04 > 0:14:06Namaste!
0:14:08 > 0:14:12We set off next morning with high hopes, encouraged by the locals.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21So far, so good.
0:14:21 > 0:14:25Much of the trek seems either downhill or along the valley floor.
0:14:25 > 0:14:32Wongchu puts up with this but, like a true sherpa, doesn't really start to enjoy himself until it gets steep.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34Lunch here, Wongchu?
0:14:34 > 0:14:36No, up the hill.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Swine!
0:14:39 > 0:14:42Up the hill!
0:14:42 > 0:14:45I just don't want to!
0:14:49 > 0:14:53'The porters, carrying our equipment in bamboo baskets,
0:14:53 > 0:14:56'positively scamper up the mountain,
0:14:56 > 0:15:00'and Wongchu follows them like a man who's late for work.'
0:15:05 > 0:15:10Wongchu, it's not the Olympic 100m!
0:15:12 > 0:15:14The view is spectacular.
0:15:14 > 0:15:19From here you can clearly why Machhapuchhre is called "Fish Tail".
0:15:29 > 0:15:35'Mercifully, Wongchu has allowed us a brief stop at one of the guesthouses which dot the route,
0:15:35 > 0:15:38'offering rare Nepalese dishes.'
0:15:47 > 0:15:51Thank you, thank you very much. Boiled potato.
0:15:51 > 0:15:53- Is this from your garden?- Yeah.
0:15:53 > 0:15:57- Is it? Good, that's very nice. - It's very good. Looks...
0:15:57 > 0:16:00OK. And is this your lodge?
0:16:00 > 0:16:03- Do you run it, or do you just work here?- Yeah.
0:16:03 > 0:16:09And you have all nationalities up here, many countries, so, um, you speak English, don't you?
0:16:09 > 0:16:13Do you have to speak other languages?
0:16:14 > 0:16:16What other languages do you speak?
0:16:16 > 0:16:21Well, a little bit English and Gurung and Nepali, that's all.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24- And do you live up here?- Yeah.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26- All year round?- No.
0:16:26 > 0:16:31- What happens in the winter? It's closed?- I go to Chomrong.- Oh, right.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34- You have family in Chomrong?- Yeah. - Oh, right.
0:16:34 > 0:16:36Do you have to carry things up here?
0:16:36 > 0:16:41- Yeah, sometimes. Like five kilo, five to ten kilo.- Five to ten kilos?
0:16:41 > 0:16:44- Wow.- Yeah.- You're strong.
0:16:44 > 0:16:45Yeah.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48I'm very impressed you speak anything!
0:16:48 > 0:16:53After lunch, the path becomes a bit of a roller coaster -
0:16:53 > 0:16:56out of one valley and down into the next.
0:17:18 > 0:17:22Cor blimey! Wongchu sets...a pretty fast pace.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26Mind you, he has been up Everest twice!
0:17:26 > 0:17:30It's the afternoon now. I think walking this morning was easier.
0:17:30 > 0:17:34We stopped for lunch, and it's really hard to get started again.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38Every step suddenly seems like 12, and, you know, the stairs, the steps,
0:17:38 > 0:17:44they're very well maintained, but they're never regular, so you're going at different speeds.
0:17:44 > 0:17:49Anyway, stop moaning, Palin! On you go... You'll enjoy it when you're there.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32MICHAEL GROANS
0:18:33 > 0:18:35Oh, wow.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39We're getting higher up now.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43Wongchu, I'm beginning to feel it. 3,000 metres are we?
0:18:43 > 0:18:47- Are we above 3,000 metres? - Yeah. It's a very nice place.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50It's cool, it's shady. What is it?
0:18:50 > 0:18:52Ah, this is a Hinku cave.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54- A Hindu cave.- Hinku.- Hinku, sorry.
0:18:54 > 0:19:00- What's a Hinku?- Hinku means before this, some Hindu god
0:19:00 > 0:19:04- and some Himalayan god were living here.- Right.
0:19:04 > 0:19:10- That's why they call it, and also the long time people here... Yeti live here.- Yeti lived here?
0:19:10 > 0:19:12Go on! Really?!
0:19:12 > 0:19:15- Yes, really. - You believe in the yeti?
0:19:15 > 0:19:18I saw...Yeti in the mountain.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22- What did it look like?- It looked like a monkey and it looked like people.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25A big monkey. How big? How tall?
0:19:25 > 0:19:27- The same as us.- Really?
0:19:27 > 0:19:32- Are you sure it wasn't one of us? A lost climber?- No, no. This is yeti.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35Does it make a noise?
0:19:35 > 0:19:40Um, sometimes they make noisy... They say, "Yeee!", like this.
0:19:40 > 0:19:44Great. That's when you know there's a yeti coming!
0:19:44 > 0:19:49That is the most wonderful sight, and if there's a yeti there as well...
0:19:49 > 0:19:53- Yes.- Let's go and have tea with the yeti.- Yes.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57- Point it out to me if I don't notice it.- Yeti make tea very nice.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00Oh, dear! If I can get down...
0:20:00 > 0:20:02Be careful, this is the yeti route.
0:20:17 > 0:20:24Our dream home for the night is typical of the lodges that have sprouted up in the last ten years
0:20:24 > 0:20:25to cater for the trekkers.
0:20:30 > 0:20:36The only problem with these wonderful Himalayan viewpoints is that actually, we can't see a thing.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41Deurali looked so wonderful and inviting in the distance with the sun shining on it.
0:20:41 > 0:20:48When you get here...after 15 minutes, the clouds came down and now we can't see a thing. It's also very cold.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51On top of that, I'm not really feeling great.
0:20:51 > 0:20:57I think it might just be a cold, but it might well be to do with the effects of altitude.
0:20:57 > 0:21:02Who knows? I feel weary, and I know along there is the path to Annapurna,
0:21:02 > 0:21:08so we're going to have to take that again fairly soon. But for now, keep taking the trekking honey.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13Rub it on, you'll feel a lot better.
0:21:24 > 0:21:30Halfway through the trek, and for the first time, some doubts are creeping into my mind.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35Oh, dear,
0:21:35 > 0:21:37I don't know how I'll go on today.
0:21:37 > 0:21:39Last night was pretty awful.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42I've got a throat like sandpaper,
0:21:42 > 0:21:48and altitudes are rather unforgiving, from what I hear - things don't get any better as you go up.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51Still, there's nowhere else to go. Nothing for it.
0:21:51 > 0:21:57If I keep on, I hope I prove them wrong - that climbing does make you feel better.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20We're entering the avalanche area.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24When the snow comes down, these sheer rock faces are lethal.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26Wongchu treats it with great respect.
0:22:26 > 0:22:28He's seen people killed here.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38I have my own private avalanches to deal with.
0:22:38 > 0:22:44Waves of fatigue sweep over me, requiring increasingly regular breathers.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Ah, well,
0:22:46 > 0:22:49that's the camp - that's Machhapuchhre,
0:22:49 > 0:22:54named after the glorious mountain, which is up there - Fishtail Mountain -
0:22:54 > 0:23:00Macchapucchare, the sacred mountain, so sacred that I don't think they even kill animals here -
0:23:00 > 0:23:06it's all an entirely vegetarian diet. Anyway, that's a little titbit. It's sublime and wonderful scenery
0:23:06 > 0:23:11to be totally and completely knackered in - the last few...feet, 1,000 feet.
0:23:11 > 0:23:16It's taken it out of me. I don't know if it's just this cold, or it's the altitude,
0:23:16 > 0:23:20but really kind of just partly acclimatising to much higher...
0:23:20 > 0:23:24higher areas we're going to be going into -
0:23:24 > 0:23:27we're going up to Everest and that'll be...that'll be much higher,
0:23:27 > 0:23:33so I just hope it is the cold and not altitude sickness, but I'm knackered to a standstill - it's pathetic!
0:23:33 > 0:23:38I had to give my pack to somebody, I've become like a patient being carried up the hill by...
0:23:38 > 0:23:41HE WHEEZES AND COUGHS
0:23:41 > 0:23:44That's a cough and a half!
0:23:44 > 0:23:46Cut to scenery!
0:23:59 > 0:24:06It takes me another hour to reach Macchapucchare Base Camp, where everyone seems infuriatingly happy.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22Wongchu, you're a great man, thank you.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25- I couldn't have done it without you. - Excuse me, sir,
0:24:25 > 0:24:30- this is your tent...- I just want to collapse somewhere.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34This is your tent...
0:24:34 > 0:24:35Yes, lovely.
0:24:35 > 0:24:42I haven't the energy to get in at the moment. I just want to stand here. I'm so pleased we're here, look!
0:24:42 > 0:24:44Fantastic!
0:24:50 > 0:24:53Mmm, almost worth it.
0:25:02 > 0:25:07- Thank you, Mingmar, very good.- You're welcome. Would you like more?
0:25:07 > 0:25:11'My lungs are already telling me we're pretty high.'
0:25:11 > 0:25:18In fact we're over 12,000ft, and the view of the Annapurna Sanctuary is a revelation.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22Nine of these summits are above 23,000 feet.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26- On the left side, it's...our trekking peak.- Trekking peak?- Yes.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28People carry on walking up to that?
0:25:28 > 0:25:33Er, individual people can climb it. It doesn't take that much...
0:25:33 > 0:25:35- with Sherpas.- It looks terrifying.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39And it takes such, not so long, like a couple of days to climb.
0:25:39 > 0:25:45Huge snowfields up there, on the...on the rim, aren't they...?
0:25:45 > 0:25:51And tomorrow when we get to Annapurna, then we can see all the glacier of the Annapurna.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55It's sensational. I feel we're in the Himalayas now. I haven't felt it quite yet.
0:25:55 > 0:26:01We've been to the Karakorum, we've been to the Hindu Kush, but this is it, you know?
0:26:01 > 0:26:03HE COUGHS AND SPLUTTERS
0:26:03 > 0:26:06..in the Himalaya!
0:26:10 > 0:26:12Can I have a lie down, please?
0:26:28 > 0:26:31Some time in the long night, my cold turns a corner,
0:26:31 > 0:26:35and by the time Mingmar shakes my tent to see if I'm still in it,
0:26:35 > 0:26:40I'm up and about, chewing the fat and meeting with my fellow mountaineers.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45- Is your friend climbing Annapurna? - Yeah, we have a friend,
0:26:45 > 0:26:52who is the leader of the expedition, and another one - it is the last 8,000m mountain, last one.
0:26:52 > 0:26:58- And have they got up?- Annapurna, south face is the last 8,000m.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02Wow. And he's summitted?
0:27:02 > 0:27:03He's got to the top?
0:27:03 > 0:27:07- I hope...- You hope?- Tomorrow.- Wow!
0:27:07 > 0:27:13- So it's quite an exciting day for you, just...- Big party.- Big party.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15Well, I hope he made it...
0:27:15 > 0:27:18OK. See you up.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21Good, good climbing, good climbing...
0:27:21 > 0:27:22Thank you.
0:27:22 > 0:27:25Yeah! Bye-bye.
0:27:27 > 0:27:30These are proper climbers.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34I feel just a terrible fraud, really, but there you go!
0:27:37 > 0:27:41The sun may be bright on Annapurna, but it's bitterly cold.
0:27:41 > 0:27:49Our porters seem still dressed for the plains and they're carrying loads of anything up to 40kg.
0:27:53 > 0:27:54Here we go.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57HE GROANS I can just lift that!
0:27:57 > 0:27:59Thank you.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04Unbelievable, unbelievable.
0:28:04 > 0:28:08Superhuman. I don't see how a body can cope with all that.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12I suppose once it's up there, you're OK. ..A smile!
0:28:12 > 0:28:14A smile, OK.
0:28:14 > 0:28:17Well, good on you.
0:28:17 > 0:28:18Respect.
0:28:18 > 0:28:22And there's me not even carrying my toothbrush.
0:29:13 > 0:29:18I can't quite believe it. The end is in sight. Annapurna, Base Camp, ABC.
0:29:18 > 0:29:22I'm so glad, despite the near collapse of the system yesterday,
0:29:22 > 0:29:26that I made it, because it's just a stunning, stunning place,
0:29:26 > 0:29:31and I would have missed all this, the Annapurnas one, two, three and four.
0:29:31 > 0:29:36Unimaginative, but there are lots of Annapurnas - isn't that stunning?
0:29:36 > 0:29:41I think I'm going to get there - I have a feeling I'm going to make it.
0:29:41 > 0:29:43Argh!
0:30:05 > 0:30:10Well, I suppose this symbolises our achievement of the last five days.
0:30:10 > 0:30:14This is the summit of Annapurna and it's just breathtaking,
0:30:14 > 0:30:19really extraordinary, powerful scenery round here.
0:30:19 > 0:30:24Despite everything, I feel that Annapurna has prepared me well.
0:30:24 > 0:30:30At least I know what to expect as we head for Kathmandu, Everest and beyond.
0:30:34 > 0:30:39After the emptiness of the mountains, Kathmandu comes as quite a shock.
0:30:39 > 0:30:45Almost a million are squeezed into Nepal's capital, built on the widest valley in the Himalaya.
0:30:46 > 0:30:49CAR HORNS HONK
0:30:54 > 0:30:58Kathmandu must be used to crowds.
0:30:58 > 0:31:03It's long been the meeting place for traders between India and Tibet.
0:31:03 > 0:31:06When Nepal opened up to the rest of the world in the 1960s,
0:31:06 > 0:31:11the spirit of easygoing tolerance that drew the hippies sparked a tourist invasion.
0:31:11 > 0:31:16For me, the dazzling surprise is the beauty of the old buildings.
0:31:16 > 0:31:21These are the work of the Newar people.
0:31:21 > 0:31:25They invented the pagoda here and took it to China.
0:31:34 > 0:31:39In Durbar Square, in the old city of Patan, local newspaper editor,
0:31:39 > 0:31:42Kundar Dixit explains this rich heritage.
0:31:42 > 0:31:46And it's a kind of living place, still - people do come here.
0:31:46 > 0:31:51- I can see people sort of come to offer prayers and all that... - It's not a museum. It's, you know...
0:31:51 > 0:31:57They said there are more temples in Kathmandu than houses, and more gods than people. That has changed now,
0:31:57 > 0:32:04but it's still a living place - you see people going off to pray in the temples, from their houses.
0:32:04 > 0:32:07BELL CLANGS
0:32:09 > 0:32:12So commerce goes on, as well as the sort of...
0:32:12 > 0:32:18'Nepal's love affair with tourism is pretty obvious, but there are clouds on the horizon.'
0:32:18 > 0:32:22- As you can see, business is down... - Is it? I mean, I can't tell,
0:32:22 > 0:32:27but I've heard that it has suffered because...is this because of the Maoist problems?
0:32:27 > 0:32:34Well, that too, but also internationally, I mean since 9/11, our tourism's down in every respect.
0:32:34 > 0:32:41'The security nightmare is that the Maoists will bring their fight from the country to the city.'
0:32:41 > 0:32:46- So there's going to have to be accommodation and compromise?- Yes. There is no military solution.
0:32:46 > 0:32:50Both sides have even said that there is no military solution.
0:32:50 > 0:32:57This is a messy war in the world's hardest terrain. No-one will win - it'll just take the country down.
0:33:01 > 0:33:08It must be quite exciting for you as a newspaper man to deal with this. Do you feel that you can take part
0:33:08 > 0:33:14- in the debate? - Well, you know, we started our paper about four years ago,
0:33:14 > 0:33:20just when the country started going to the dogs, so maybe we're partly responsible for this!
0:33:20 > 0:33:28I mean, but no, I think it's an exciting time to be here, and Nepal's press has never been freer,
0:33:28 > 0:33:33- in a sense...- That's good.- ..because there used to be curbs on reporting,
0:33:33 > 0:33:36for example on the monarchy, on the military and so forth.
0:33:36 > 0:33:40There's none of that any more. So there's a real paradox here.
0:33:40 > 0:33:45Here's a country, there's an insurgency going on, but the press is totally free.
0:33:45 > 0:33:51The Prime Minister has been sacked, parliament is in limbo, but the press is free.
0:33:51 > 0:33:56So I think, um...that's why I think the challenge is to use that freedom, to bring about change,
0:33:56 > 0:34:01and then spread the consciousness about people's rights.
0:34:01 > 0:34:08We've been tipped off that the king is attending a ceremony in the heart of Kathmandu tonight.
0:34:08 > 0:34:10Security is tight.
0:34:10 > 0:34:14King Gyanendra came to the throne less than three years ago,
0:34:14 > 0:34:19after nine members of the royal family were murdered by the crown prince.
0:34:19 > 0:34:24The threat of assassination is on everyone's mind.
0:34:24 > 0:34:29This rare ceremony, in which the king accepts the blessings of the goddess Bhadrakali,
0:34:29 > 0:34:32is seen as a vital endorsement for the beleaguered monarchy.
0:34:36 > 0:34:44Judging by the queues outside the royal palace next morning, the monarchy still has its supporters.
0:34:44 > 0:34:50Along with Pratima Pande, a cousin of the king, I join those standing in line to receive his blessing
0:34:50 > 0:34:54at the important Hindu festival of Dashain.
0:35:03 > 0:35:07Looking a bit like a hotel receptionist on a very busy day,
0:35:07 > 0:35:13the king plants one "tika" after another on the foreheads of his people.
0:35:22 > 0:35:28The tika - a mix of curd, rice and vermilion powder - is applied in strictly hierarchical order.
0:35:28 > 0:35:34Ministers, politicians, politicians' wives, army generals,
0:35:34 > 0:35:38and, to the king's evident surprise, English television presenters.
0:35:38 > 0:35:42- SHE SPEAKS IN DIALECT - Michael Palin, BBC.
0:35:45 > 0:35:48'And I get a handshake as well.'
0:35:48 > 0:35:52- I hope you are enjoying our festival.- Absolutely!
0:35:52 > 0:35:57It's a wonderful start to our time here, to enjoy the rest of Nepal. Thank you.
0:36:03 > 0:36:061, 2, 3!
0:36:09 > 0:36:14Apart from the bestowing of blessings, the festival of Dashain
0:36:14 > 0:36:21- is the only time when the Nepalis are allowed to gamble. - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8!
0:36:21 > 0:36:23It's by four, so eight!
0:36:23 > 0:36:28- Oh, right!- He wins everybody's money. - He wins everybody's money?
0:36:28 > 0:36:33Cowrie shells are shaken like dice and bets taken on how they fall.
0:36:38 > 0:36:41'The trouble is, only one man ever seems to win.'
0:36:41 > 0:36:44He wins again!
0:36:49 > 0:36:53Pratima, Pratima, I think I've been set up!
0:36:53 > 0:36:57You've invited me here and set me up! Your husband's a banker,
0:36:57 > 0:37:03you're trying to get British investment into the country and...I don't know!
0:37:06 > 0:37:13Next morning, Pratima takes me to the more sober surroundings of the temple at Pashupatinath.
0:37:13 > 0:37:1990% of Nepalese are Hindu, and this is considered the holiest Hindu site outside India.
0:37:19 > 0:37:25Across the river are the ghats where cremations take place in public.
0:37:25 > 0:37:30The complex also includes a large enclosure where holy men,
0:37:30 > 0:37:35dedicated to the god Shiva, live in well-publicised seclusion.
0:37:35 > 0:37:40- This looks like an ashram, this place for the holy men.- Yes.
0:37:40 > 0:37:46- Sadhus. - These are men who have renounced all their worldly possessions
0:37:46 > 0:37:52and belongings, and given up their lives to this temple and to Lord Shiva
0:37:52 > 0:37:58and you can see that they're dressed like Lord Shiva, or their appearances are like that.
0:37:58 > 0:38:02Lord Shiva smears himself with ash...
0:38:05 > 0:38:11- How old are you, sir?- I have 56 years.- 56 years, and you've been 20 years here, in...- Yes, yes.
0:38:11 > 0:38:15And before that, were you also...? Were you a Sadhu before that?
0:38:15 > 0:38:18Er, Sadhu, 35 years.
0:38:18 > 0:38:24- 35 years.- Yes, yes... and that...86 years...
0:38:24 > 0:38:29- 86! Great respect.- 86 years... - HE SPEAKS IN DIALECT
0:38:33 > 0:38:3786 years without a razor or a scissor.
0:38:37 > 0:38:40Because he's very, very thin.
0:38:40 > 0:38:44Very thin. Is he... Are you strong?
0:38:44 > 0:38:51- HE SPEAKS IN DIALECT - He does yoga.
0:38:51 > 0:38:54I don't want him to, if he doesn't want to...
0:39:13 > 0:39:17'I only hope I can get a leg over at 86!'
0:39:25 > 0:39:28Down at the Ghats, business is brisk,
0:39:28 > 0:39:32as funeral pyres and attendants are worked flat out to cope with demand.
0:39:35 > 0:39:37I think every Hindu,
0:39:37 > 0:39:39or every religious person...
0:39:39 > 0:39:43comes to Pashupatinath. It is THE place to be cremated.
0:39:43 > 0:39:46Sons carry the body and walk barefoot,
0:39:46 > 0:39:49and they bring the body to Pashupatinath and leave them.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53They walk through the town barefoot and bring the body here?
0:39:53 > 0:39:56- Yes.- And there's no burial in the Hindu religion?
0:39:56 > 0:39:57- No.- It's always cremation.
0:40:02 > 0:40:06They shave their heads also, after the cremation.
0:40:06 > 0:40:09A sign of mourning is that you shave your heads, for men.
0:40:10 > 0:40:14When the royal family all died and they had...
0:40:14 > 0:40:18- Were they all, sort of, cremated about the same time?- Yes.
0:40:18 > 0:40:20Five of them were cremated on the same day,
0:40:20 > 0:40:22along the banks of the river.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25It was very sad and unbelievable and...
0:40:25 > 0:40:29everyone was...traumatised, put it that way.
0:40:29 > 0:40:33- The whole of the valley, nation, was traumatised.- Yeah.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37BELLS CHIME
0:41:00 > 0:41:03Well, this morning, there can be no more delaying
0:41:03 > 0:41:05or beating about the bush.
0:41:05 > 0:41:08We can no longer put off the toughest part of a tough journey.
0:41:08 > 0:41:13The time has come to cross the Himalaya.
0:41:14 > 0:41:18Leaving Kathmandu, we shall drive north across the border,
0:41:18 > 0:41:21from the land of Maoists to the land of Mao,
0:41:21 > 0:41:23turning off the main road to Lhasa
0:41:23 > 0:41:27and making for Base Camp at the North Face of Everest.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33The mountains begin to close in
0:41:33 > 0:41:36and, as we round one of the last corners in Nepal,
0:41:36 > 0:41:40there at the end of the valley is my first glimpse of Tibet.
0:41:44 > 0:41:48But now it's the red flag of China that flies over its frontier.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52Well, this is a very special place.
0:41:52 > 0:41:55This is Friendship Bridge behind me,
0:41:55 > 0:41:58which connects Nepal and China.
0:41:58 > 0:42:03And it's one of two international crossing points in the whole region.
0:42:03 > 0:42:06The other one being the Khunjerav Pass and the Karakorum Highway -
0:42:06 > 0:42:08blocked when we went there.
0:42:08 > 0:42:13So this currently seems to be the only way of getting through the Himalayas on a major route.
0:42:13 > 0:42:17Quite why we attempt a rear entry into China, I'll never know.
0:42:17 > 0:42:20It's all part of the usual border confusion.
0:42:20 > 0:42:25But though I may not know where I'm going, I know what I leave behind.
0:42:25 > 0:42:28Goodbye. Yes, thank you. Thank you so much. Yes.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31I don't quite know what happens now.
0:42:31 > 0:42:34Wongchu, it's time to say goodbye.
0:42:34 > 0:42:39Don't leave me here! Don't leave me here! How'll I survive without you?
0:42:39 > 0:42:42What's your last message to me? Eat food. Always eat.
0:42:42 > 0:42:44- Yes.- Keep eating. Keep eating.
0:42:44 > 0:42:47- Eat and drink. OK, but no alcohol? - No alcohol...
0:42:47 > 0:42:49- in the mountains!- In the mountains.
0:42:54 > 0:42:59Once across the border, we climb astonishingly quickly, out of the verdant valleys
0:42:59 > 0:43:03and on to the treeless lunar landscape of the Tibetan plateau.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10They call this the roof of the world
0:43:10 > 0:43:14and for the next few weeks, I won't drop below 13,000 feet.
0:43:31 > 0:43:34The prayer flags that mark the high passes
0:43:34 > 0:43:39show that despite efforts by the Chinese in the 1960s and '70s,
0:43:39 > 0:43:41religion still exists here.
0:43:41 > 0:43:45What no longer exists is a country called Tibet.
0:43:45 > 0:43:50We are now in what is officially the Tibet Autonomous Region -
0:43:50 > 0:43:53a part of the People's Republic of China.
0:43:53 > 0:43:57Whatever you call it, it's a land of superlatives.
0:44:00 > 0:44:02Look at that!
0:44:02 > 0:44:06MICHAEL CHUCKLES Wow!
0:44:06 > 0:44:10Well, great moment. My first...first view of Everest.
0:44:10 > 0:44:13I mean, apart from photos in restaurants and things like that.
0:44:13 > 0:44:17And...just the most glorious, mighty view.
0:44:17 > 0:44:21And it's the very, very heart of the Himalayas out there -
0:44:21 > 0:44:26giant mountains and four or five of them all over 8,000 metres.
0:44:26 > 0:44:31And Everest there, just slightly, um...touched by the cloud.
0:44:31 > 0:44:33Absolutely epic.
0:44:33 > 0:44:37It really does... does, um...make it all worthwhile.
0:44:37 > 0:44:40It's also the highest I've ever been in my life.
0:44:40 > 0:44:42I'm at about, um...
0:44:42 > 0:44:455,300 metres now, which is about 17...
0:44:45 > 0:44:49over 17,000 feet, so a big first.
0:44:49 > 0:44:52And the sun's shining! Unbelievable! Unbelievable!
0:44:52 > 0:44:55Now all we've got to do is get there!
0:45:00 > 0:45:04Everything is abruptly and dramatically different up here.
0:45:04 > 0:45:08From the look of the buildings, whitewashed in Buddhist style,
0:45:08 > 0:45:13to the look of the people - Mongolian rather than Indian.
0:45:13 > 0:45:15PEOPLE SING A FOLK TUNE
0:45:29 > 0:45:33In one village a festival has just begun. My Tibetan guide, Migmar,
0:45:33 > 0:45:37tells me these sort of things go on for days.
0:45:48 > 0:45:52So we have to hire some yaks from local people.
0:45:52 > 0:45:54- Some yaks?- Yes.
0:45:54 > 0:45:58It's difficult to get permission to film in the Tibet Autonomous Region
0:45:58 > 0:46:03and I know everything we do will be closely monitored, but as Migmar explains our plans for Everest,
0:46:03 > 0:46:07this only adds to the sense of adventure.
0:46:07 > 0:46:11The monastery, between the Everest Base Camp and the monastery,
0:46:11 > 0:46:13they are 8km.
0:46:13 > 0:46:16So we need to hire some yak from that monastery
0:46:16 > 0:46:20- to carry our equipments to Everest Base Camp.- Yes.
0:46:20 > 0:46:25- So the yak don't mind the height? I mean, they can survive in very cold, high altitude?- Yes.
0:46:25 > 0:46:30- But yak usually like, normally like, high altitude.- Yeah, they do.
0:46:30 > 0:46:34Yeah, if they go down... feeling not so good.
0:46:36 > 0:46:39A road takes us close to Everest Base Camp.
0:46:39 > 0:46:44It was built by the Chinese to support their successful ascent of the North Face in 1960.
0:46:46 > 0:46:48Rongbuk consists of a monastery,
0:46:48 > 0:46:52half a street, a guest house and an almost unbelievable view
0:46:52 > 0:46:55of the highest point on the planet.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00This is the highest monastery in the world.
0:47:00 > 0:47:03It's just been rebuilt by the local monks
0:47:03 > 0:47:05to replace an older one destroyed,
0:47:05 > 0:47:08along with thousands of others in Tibet,
0:47:08 > 0:47:10during the Cultural Revolution.
0:47:10 > 0:47:14The monastery is home to 30 monks and 30 nuns.
0:47:14 > 0:47:17MONKS AND NUNS CHANT
0:47:38 > 0:47:42'It's hard to imagine what degree of devotion
0:47:42 > 0:47:47'enables them to survive the bitter cold and isolation up in Rongbuk.'
0:47:47 > 0:47:51It's a cold, cold place. I've brought you this...
0:47:51 > 0:47:55'The gift I present to the abbot seems to offer a clue.
0:47:59 > 0:48:02'It's a thangka, a painted scroll, from Kathmandu,
0:48:02 > 0:48:04'of the Buddha, the Enlightened One.'
0:48:04 > 0:48:07MONKS CHATTER
0:48:13 > 0:48:16'They look at it with real affection.
0:48:16 > 0:48:21'The harder their life is, the closer it will bring them to an understanding of him.'
0:48:23 > 0:48:27'What Buddha would have made of the Rongbuk Guest House, I don't know.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31'Run by the monks, it's Spartan, to say the least.
0:48:31 > 0:48:34'The consolation is having Everest as my neighbour
0:48:34 > 0:48:37'and the weather out there looks good enough to raise hopes
0:48:37 > 0:48:41'for a climb up to Base Camp tomorrow, Sunday.'
0:48:42 > 0:48:45The good news is our transport's arrived.
0:49:02 > 0:49:06The only problem with being so close to Everest...
0:49:06 > 0:49:08it's, um...you're very high up,
0:49:08 > 0:49:12there's very little oxygen and you have to keep breathing...
0:49:12 > 0:49:17very hard! When you're just slightly dozing off, suddenly, oh! Wake up,
0:49:17 > 0:49:20gasping for breath, trying to just get that oxygen in.
0:49:20 > 0:49:23So it's actually bloody uncomfortable at night.
0:49:23 > 0:49:25I know Everest is out of the window,
0:49:25 > 0:49:28I know it looks lovely, but I'd exchange it
0:49:28 > 0:49:32for being two foot off the ground, with showers and a flushing toilet.
0:49:56 > 0:49:59Conditions next morning are perfect.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07Prayers for our safety are written and hung with all the others,
0:50:07 > 0:50:10to be carried with the wind, up to the gods.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16I find walking still quite an effort at this height,
0:50:16 > 0:50:19but as we head towards Everest,
0:50:19 > 0:50:22I've a feeling that adrenaline will overcome altitude.
0:51:02 > 0:51:06Well, I don't know if it's the yaks, or the Everest effect,
0:51:06 > 0:51:09or the fact that I don't have the stinking cold I had on Annapurna,
0:51:09 > 0:51:11but I'm actually enjoying this!
0:51:11 > 0:51:15We're higher than on Annapurna and I'm feeling pretty good so far,
0:51:15 > 0:51:18I'll go a little further up Everest, as they say. See you!
0:51:19 > 0:51:21Hang on!
0:51:25 > 0:51:28YAKS' BELLS RING
0:51:46 > 0:51:50Sunday lunch is taken at a little over 17,000 feet.
0:52:00 > 0:52:03This is what we call black tea and...
0:52:03 > 0:52:07and butter...simple life...
0:52:07 > 0:52:10- in the countryside...- Yes.
0:52:10 > 0:52:11The same like this.
0:52:11 > 0:52:17- We have first the lunch, dinner... we have...and supper.- Oh, supper.
0:52:17 > 0:52:20- That's barley? Yes?- Yes, barley. - And is...that's to make a drink?
0:52:20 > 0:52:23- Or...or to eat?- For to eat.
0:52:23 > 0:52:25- Yes.- So it's black tea.- Oh.
0:52:25 > 0:52:28- That's for you.- Thank you.
0:52:28 > 0:52:30Thank you.
0:52:30 > 0:52:35Yak butter in it? An experiment. Well, I suppose, yes.
0:52:36 > 0:52:39A bit of yak butter, I suppose.
0:52:39 > 0:52:41That really makes it taste better, probably,
0:52:41 > 0:52:44does it, or taste worse?
0:52:44 > 0:52:46OK. Whoops!
0:52:48 > 0:52:51Cheers to you all.
0:52:51 > 0:52:54Thanks, guys, very much,
0:52:54 > 0:52:57for getting us up this far...
0:52:57 > 0:53:00Not too much further for me, no doubt.
0:53:00 > 0:53:03- Ah, mmm!- Good?- Yes. Mmm.
0:53:03 > 0:53:06- Nice?- Yes, good, actually. Salty.
0:53:06 > 0:53:08Salty tea, very good.
0:53:13 > 0:53:15Do these guys have any, sort of, um...
0:53:15 > 0:53:19- anything other than tea that warms them up on the way?- Yes.
0:53:19 > 0:53:23- They have some alcohol, chung here.- Chung?- Barley beer.
0:53:23 > 0:53:26- Barley beer. Ah.- Chung. - Is it good?
0:53:27 > 0:53:31- The tea was good, so... - Would you like to try?
0:53:31 > 0:53:33- Yeah, I'll try a bit.- OK.
0:53:33 > 0:53:35That's rather an attractive bottle.
0:53:35 > 0:53:40So this is made of...? This is barley, really...?
0:53:40 > 0:53:43- Barley. Yes.- Lovely.
0:53:43 > 0:53:46Ah, right, lovely.
0:53:46 > 0:53:49- A bit of chung, OK, cheers! Down the hatch!- Cheers!
0:53:49 > 0:53:53Bottoms up, as they say in the Sahara!
0:53:53 > 0:53:55- Bottoms up?- Oh! Wow! Agh!
0:53:56 > 0:53:58Oh! Mmm!
0:53:58 > 0:54:00It's very cold.
0:54:01 > 0:54:04Cold and strong and quite appley.
0:54:04 > 0:54:08What do you think I am? An alcoholic?
0:54:08 > 0:54:10Yes. Yes. Is it strong?
0:54:10 > 0:54:15- Usually, custom, we do this... - What do you do?
0:54:15 > 0:54:21- First, this is for Buddha.- Right. - Second for God. Third one for heaven.- Oh, right.
0:54:21 > 0:54:23- Then we can...three times.- OK.
0:54:23 > 0:54:25- OK.- Yes.
0:54:25 > 0:54:27Usually for Chomolunga.
0:54:27 > 0:54:31- First one for Chomolunga. - First one for...- Little finger.
0:54:31 > 0:54:35..Chomolungma, which, of course, is what...for Everest? OK.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38Chomolunga! OK!
0:54:38 > 0:54:40- Next one for Buddha.- Buddha. Yes.
0:54:40 > 0:54:43For Buddha! The great Buddha.
0:54:43 > 0:54:47- Third one for human. Third one for human?- For human beings.
0:54:47 > 0:54:49Third one for human beings. Whee!
0:54:49 > 0:54:53- Right. And then...? Drink.- Yes.
0:54:56 > 0:55:01Ah! That's great. It's like a, sort of, appley ginger beer.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05- It doesn't feel strong. Is it strong?- Yes, it's very strong.
0:55:05 > 0:55:08GUIDE SPEAKS IN TIBETAN
0:55:21 > 0:55:27I suppose one of the great events of my childhood was the conquest of Everest in 1953,
0:55:27 > 0:55:31but as a boy I can remember being even more fascinated
0:55:31 > 0:55:35by the idea that Everest might have been climbed 30 years before.
0:55:35 > 0:55:39In 1924, a guy called George Mallory
0:55:39 > 0:55:43made Base Camp here for an attempt on the North Face of Everest.
0:55:43 > 0:55:46A few weeks later, he and his climbing partner,
0:55:46 > 0:55:48Andrew Irvine, were observed
0:55:48 > 0:55:51disappearing into a cloud only a few hundred yards
0:55:51 > 0:55:55from the summit of Everest. Neither were ever seen again.
0:55:56 > 0:55:58It's one of the great mysteries.
0:55:58 > 0:56:01Did they, or did they not, climb Everest in 1924?
0:56:01 > 0:56:04Well, I'm not going to attempt that!
0:56:04 > 0:56:07We've still got a lot of the Himalayas to see,
0:56:07 > 0:56:10so I think I'll call it quits here at Everest Base Camp.
0:56:10 > 0:56:13The trouble is that the yak herders are such lovely people
0:56:13 > 0:56:17that we might just tag along for a bit, get a little closer.
0:56:45 > 0:56:47Much has been written of the lure of Everest,
0:56:47 > 0:56:50and though I don't have the energy to dance up and down,
0:56:50 > 0:56:54I do feel a quickening of the heart the closer we come to the mountain.
0:56:54 > 0:56:57Maybe it's easier to understand this
0:56:57 > 0:57:01if we forget that Everest was named after a Victorian map maker
0:57:01 > 0:57:03and call this mighty mountain
0:57:03 > 0:57:05by her Tibetan name -
0:57:05 > 0:57:08Chomolungma, Goddess Mother of the Earth.
0:57:26 > 0:57:31Next time on Himalaya, I cross the Tibetan Plateau,
0:57:31 > 0:57:35see inside great monasteries,
0:57:35 > 0:57:37land up in Lhasa - the Forbidden City -
0:57:37 > 0:57:40watch kung-fu debating
0:57:40 > 0:57:43and spinning prayer wheels,
0:57:43 > 0:57:45attempt a builder's line dance.
0:57:45 > 0:57:48I see pilgrims,
0:57:48 > 0:57:51holy lakes on the roof of the world,
0:57:51 > 0:57:54Tibet's equivalent of the Eurovision Song Contest
0:57:54 > 0:57:57and all the fun of the horse fair.
0:57:57 > 0:58:00Himalaya, entertainment at the highest level.