Rongbuk Monastery - Everest Base Camp - Rongbuk Monastery

This is it....what I've been waiting for since Kilimanjaro, Everest Base Camp (EBC)! We got up super early this morning and rode out to EBC, so we can catch Mt. Everest at sunrise. We weren't sure if the Chinese military would allow us to ride up to the Base Camp since no "vehicles" are allowed after the Tent Camp (a row of yak tents situated between Rongbuk Monastery and EBC, with a killer view of the mountain). Well at 6 in the morning, no one was up to stop us, so we took (walked) our bikes up the road to EBC. After walking a kilometer or so, we decided to ride up since no one was around and our guide took a short cut up to the checkpoint. Thank god we rode since I was starting to fade trying to walk up the last 4km with the bike. Too our surprise, Everest was hidden behind a fog when we got to the checkpoint (we were the first ones to EBC and we had to wait for the guards to wake up!). Now it became a waiting game between us and Everest...will Everest appear before we need to head back to Rongbuk Monastery or can we get past the cold and hunger to see Everest in full? After 3 hours of waiting, the fog and clouds cleared up and there it is - the north face of Mt. Everest! The guards allowed Mat and me to walk our bikes up to the Base Camp marker, ironically doesn't even mention the word "Everest" - it reads "Mt Qomolanga Base Camp, 5200m (above sea level)". There's a dispute on the actual elevation of the Base Camp - Chinese has it at 5200m, other measurements have it at 5020m or 5150m, and my watch has it at 5130m - who cares what the correct elevation is, it's still an amazing view! Qomolanga in Tibetan is interpreted as "Goddess Mother of the Universe" (or literal translation is 'Princess Cow'). I like Qomolanga better than Everest...I just wish I can remember it and say it correctly.

Being at the Base Camp and seeing Mt. Everest, it's hard to comprehend that I'm staring at the highest point on Earth. We have reached our destination, that started in Lhasa, and these past 10 days have felt like I've climbed to the roof of the world.