Excuse me. Where is the nearest Waitrose?

Nepalese food is growing on me. Dal bhaat is the national dish - it's a platter of lentil soup, vegetable curry, rice, pickle and poppadam. Its really very tasty, and unlike similar Indian food it's mild enough to keep you regular rather than constant. My only complaint is that when they say national dish they really mean it - pretty much the whole nation eats it twice a day (they don't do breakfast). I'd love to see Brits cope on fish & chips twice a day. We had dal bhaat twice every day of the 10-day Himilayan trek, partly because it's tasty and healthy and it's also easier for the cooks if we eat the same as our porter and guide, but also because the menus (which list far more western than Nepali food) are rarely more than cruel reminders of the delights on offer in peak season. Eg Chocolate cake: advertised everywhere, available nowhere. Much to Sarah's disappointment. The afternoon thunder storms, lasting from 2-12 hours, told us the monsoon (low) season this year arrived earlier than the normal rule of thumb date of 1 June. One night we tried some supposedly western options still on offer, which were pizza and pasta, plus an odd snickers/pastry combo for dessert. They were all mistakes.

In two weeks in Laos, then two in Nepal, we've proudly been avoiding western food as a rule (my BK whopper in between the two in Bangkok airport was a weak moment). It surprised me that western food was more readily available in Laos than Nepal, perhaps because the average tourist is about 10 years older in the latter, or perhaps because the majority of Nepalese are vegetarian Hindus making meat much less available. Still, pringles, coke and mars bars are available high into the Himalayan tourist trails, at 2 x London prices, having probably been carried up in a 20 kg pack by a 40 year old female porter. Nepalese strength and endurance is even more staggering than I am at 4000m.

Our demand for western drinks (mainly coffee) has been more persistent than for food. The best excuse we can come up with here? Because sitting in western-style coffee shops (yet to find one in Nepal, mind) allows access to life-critical wifi. Its still a bit hit or miss, and our best beverage discoveries so far have been a tea latte (apparently a brilliant literal interpretation of 'tea made with milk') which we plan to patent, and Beerlaos (superb beer) which we plan to import.