Continuing the Annapurna circuit trek, I had time to think about supply and demand.
Not being an economist, I saw a few simple conditions for my questions.
Muktinath. Altitude 3800 m. Reachable by helicopter or on foot from base of the mountainous area (4-5 days).
Ghasa. Altitude 2010 m. Reachable on foot from base of the mountainous area (2-3 days).
Why is it that while descending from Muktinath to Ghasa, food does not become cheaper.
Why can't I find apple pie in Marpha, Nepal's "apple capital", while the supply is plenty Ghasa, which is a day's walk.
What reason lies behind a fact that the price for accomodation is highest in Marpha, and around the same in Muktinath and Ghasa.
I had even more questions coming to my troubled mind, but the companions had found a perfect place with a cozy courtyard to stay, so the focus shifted to dinner.
Eating my daal bhaat, I read in a brochure that "prices of food and accomodation on the Annapurna circuit are fixed by local management committees, therefore please do not bargain".
If the problem and its conditions seem absurd and unsolvable, it might very well be that the rules and levers work according a different system than the one I'm trying to apply.
Can't solve it? Sleep overnight, relax, take a break. The solution can come through a very different way than expected.