A sign of the times: the Internet has reached Namche Bazar, the traditional seat of Sherpa culture, so here I am on day three, an acclimitization day, on my trek to Everest Base Camp, indulgently blogging. From Namche this morning, it was a lung busting climb without packs to just under 4000 meters where it is possible to catch a first glimpse of the highest peak in the world. It’s also near the self-proclaimed highest five-star hotel in the world, the Everest View. It’s a Japanese enterprise, providing upscale accomodation to the mountain fetishist with a bit of disposible income. Rooms start around $135 US, an astronomical sum for Nepal, where my rustic lodge accomodation has been running about $6-10 US. It’s still far below the price of a helicopter ride to ferry you up there if you aren’t into the hike. The front desk can supply oxygen for an extra fee.

My guide, Razu, seemed a bit nervous about going inside the low elegant stone structure with 360 degree windows, but I drummed up a sense of entitlement to luxury spurred by my curiosity and we went tromping in our muddy boots right into the lounge were I ordered two five-star coffees.

Out on the sun deck we joined some Japanese tourists and trekkers who were enjoying tea. While I let the warming effect of the sun through thin air take effect, I mustered up everything I could recall of my college Japanese and started up a conversation. One of the things I appreciate about the Japanese is they generally are delighted by even the most feeble attempt to use their language. My Ohayo gozaimasu and Genki desuka generated a ripple of enjoyment as if I’d just done some neat trick. After getting through introductions and exclaimations about the view, however, I sounded like a parrot saying “wakarimasen, moo ichi do itte kudasai.” (I don’t understand. One more time please.) We switched to English as most of the world does in the presence of Americans, but the rapport was already solidified, and they invited me to their table where they plied me with intricately wrapped Japanese candies.

Chomolangma (Mt Everest) hid her pretty face behind a churning veil of clouds, but we had good views of Thamserku, the sparkling incisor of Ama Dablam and the contrails streaming off the tip of Lhotse, third highest in the world (8511 meters) as she tore a gash in the jetstream three vertical miles above us. We had a round of photographs, then a round of greetings: sayonara, namaste, goodbye, and Razu and I trekked back down to our lodge in Namche to rest up for another five star day tomorrow.