Hidden deep in a remote corner of eastern Nepal, Kanchenjunga rises to 8, 586m and encompasses a conservation area and ecological hotspot the size of Mauritius.
The road rises, dips, twists, and turns along the eastern shore as it passes the occasional house, amid small herds of dairy and beef cattle behind barbed wire fences.
If the U.S. economy continues to slow into the first quarter of 2013, and if Europe remains a basket case next year, then oil demand will be stable and price rises will largely depend on Asian demand and the usual Middle Eastern drama pitting Tel Aviv against Tehran.