I'm now halfway around the world from my last blog post, all the way in the Himalayas. The Himalayas were the result of a collision boundary. A collision boundary is the result of two continental plates colliding. Because none of the plates are dense enough to go under the other one, they push each other up into a mountain range, like the Himalayas.

A collision boundary

The Himalayas are the result of the Indian Plate and Eurasian Plate colliding with each other. They first collided 50 million years ago and they are still moving towards each other, making the Himalayas grow a tiny bit taller every year. There are earthquakes in the Himalayas because the plates are moving together, but there are no volcanos.

Some tents at Base Camp with a beautiful
mountainous backdrop.

The Himalayas themselves are beautiful and amazing. I'm at the base camp of Mt. Everest right now, looking up at the monster. I don't plan to climb it, but it's very cool here nonetheless. I can see much of the Himalayas from here, and I can explore the wonderful geography created by plate tectonics. The weather here is surprisingly nice - it can get to 80 degrees! I have always loved the mountains, and this is too cool to believe.

I'm sad too leave the mountains, but I'm excited to get to go to Africa. My first two stops on my trip have been perfect - I hope it stays that way!

Photos: http://www.divediscover.whoi.edu/tectonics/tectonics-collide.html
             http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7371975.stm