I spoke to Chris a couple of times in the past few weeks, the last being a few days ago via satelite phone, as he was resting in Base Camp after a few long days going up and down from camps I and II and acclimatising...
The first time we spoke, he was in Kashgar, which apparently is very interesting... They spent some time in the Sunday market, which is renowned in the area, where Chris got himself shaved in the same way that locals do! I am told it was quite a spectacle, which earned him a lot of respect from his fellow mountaineers as he could have easily got his throat slit :) His group also took a motorbike tour, ending up in a village where they sampled yak milk and other similar delicacies. There are plenty of photos of the shaving and the motorbike tour, which are going to follow when he writes his trip report...
The next time we heard from him, they were at Base Camp. His expedition is quite small (3 + the guide) but camped with them is a really large group of 40 people in total (including porters), so they have brought with them an electricity generator. Oh the hardship! The food is also excellent, and it seems there is a good chance I am gonna be replaced by a porter :) The main reason he called though was to say he had lost his passport or it was stolen... I started trying to arrange for a replacement /new passport, as he would otherwise miss his flight back (takes up to 8 days to get a new/replacement passport in China). I spoke to the UK Passport Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the UK Embassy in Beijing, the airline, the travel insurance company, looked at booking flights to go over there and spoke to the Chinese Embassy in Athens (we thought we might have a holiday there, while he was waiting for the passport) only for him to call back a few days later to tell me he found it at the bottom of his bag!!!! I think he was only doing it to make the blog more interesting, the cheeky monkey! :)
He is doing generally well and is really enjoying himself. He had a bit of trouble with the altitude at Camp II, but was hoping he was gonna manage OK. Mountain Madness, the expedition organiser firm, are posting updates on their website and Chris has written a small piece of the first one. If you fancy reading it, it is at http://www.mountainmadness.com/newsroom/newsroom.cfm
As for me, I am in Athens at the moment, where contrary to the UK, it has not been THAT hot. For the past few weeks, it has been quite windy with the temperature at late 20s. That sounds good by UK standards, but believe me, for Greece, for this time of year, it is more like spring, rather than summer. I mean, you need a jacket in the evenings...! It has also been raining quite a bit, and me and mum where stuck for a whole w/e in the caravan due to the heavy rain and had to tackle a mudslide to get out. Not what one expects of Greece in the height of summer... But I guess generally, our trip has been plagued by unusual weather all over Europe. Thankfully I got a tan before we arrived in Athens, in Croatia, but the way it is going I am losing it fast...
Hope you are all having a nice summer! If anyone needs to contact me for the wedding or otherwise, I am ktsagkaraki@yahoo.com Cheerio!