i arose yesterday at about 6:45 to catch a bus from jyegu to ganzi. as i walked out the front door of my new friends apartment something on the mountains caught my eye. a white crown atop each of them. it began raining the day before, after a week of dust storms and desert dry winds. so this morning when i woke to see snow i smiled wide and left for the bus with expectations of a beautiful ride.
at 8am the doors to the bus were open and everyone fought to get on, and find their preassigned seats. i dried my seat of the rain and sat down, monks beside and behind me. not until an hour later did we pull out of town. we made a least a dozen stops in a town that maybe measures two miles long. it seems that the tickets sold before had go to the company, but anyone who the driver picks up he can negotiate with and make a profit for himself. so, out of the gate we were an hour behind.
boom! every head in the bus jumps and looked around. we had blown a tire not thirty minutes down the road. everyone piled out to make use of the time for bathroom breaks, including me. if you have never had to do the deuce in a public place, such as thirty people standing around a bus, then consider yourself blessed. i found a bush, about waist high, and did my business.
thirty minuted later we drove off again. for about an hour the roads were good and the speed was acceptable. then, for no apparent reason--the drivers, there are three of them--pulled over and began working. it seems we weer overheating. another thirty minutes and the bus was back on the road. but the roads quickly grew worse. a
s we climbed a pass the snow fell hard, blowing sideways. the temperature in the bus fell and people grew quite. at the very peak of the pass the road went from paved to washboard dirt. it would stay that way for the ensueing 10 hours. at the end of the day i felt like i had been holding a jackhammer for the entire day. my back, head, ears, and legs were aching.
the majority of the drive was uneventful, except for a few moments of chaos and fun. about 3 in the afternoon we finally stopped for lunch. i was absolutely starving. in china we say 'wo e si le.' it means i am dying of hunger. i ate little more than snake foods, as you never know when or how quick the bus will leave. peanuts, crackers and a bottle of red tea. the real fun was being the only white person in town. this was a small village, with no tourism. so i was truly an oddity. children stopped in their tracks with ear to ear smiles. old men stared as if i were an alien, slack jawed and blank faced. motorcycle after motorcycle skidded to a halt to shout 'hellow,' 'okay,' 'goodbye,' 'thankyou.' then, with the sounding of the airhorn, the show was over. i sat down and on we went.
about the 10th hour relief appeared. you see, the bus ride was only supposed to last 11 hours, but it would take 13 1/2. so when we rounded the bend and the first of the majestic mountains appeared it was a relief to my weary soul. it stood out above the rest, unclothed of the green grasses. it was shear rock, elegant and dangerous. but it was only the first, and the least, in the end. around a few more bends the first real range of the montrous himalayas appeared. you see, i have been in the himalayas several times, but always in the foot hills, 13,000-15,000 ft peaks. this was different. it is quite amazing for mountains to rise above other mountains as if they are a plataeu. a wall of rock rose upwards of 18,000 or 19,000 ft, with glacial ice and snow pouring from high valleys. it was breath-taking. i was, for the first time, truly in the himalayan range. it may seem silly, but their appearance lifted my soul. only 3 or 4 hours to go.
finally, at 9:30 we pulled into ganzi, a sleepy mountain town. it seemed very light was turned off, telling us no vacancy. that was nearly true. but first, the story of my luggage. being a westerner i always try to keep an eye on my luggage, where it's stowed and who gets in and out of that area. but last night in ganzi my luggage was not where i put it. the driver waved me to another bin where he said it was. it was not. at this poing i was worried. everything but some money and my passport was in there. what would i do. the driver laughed at my problem and said he would ask another driver. the other driver did indeed know where my bag was, but when he point to it i was furious. it had been put at the feet of some passengers, and was covered with water and mud. while relieved to have my stuff, i was mad enough that i had to restrain myself from hitting the driver who was laughing at me. instead i pulled him close and chewed him out, in chinese. so, in such a state of mind my pursuit of lodging began. i knew of a few places to go. hotel number 1, no longer there. option 2, no room at the inn. number 3, couldn't be found. then a little boy told me where to go. option 4, a way overpriced, piece of crap room. but i finally had a room. i was hungry and still very mad. i simply undressed and lay down, not wanting to deal with china anymore that day.
all day the clouds hung like a veil over the mountains and valleys. it was as if each valley was prevented from seeing to the next. only occasionally did the sun peak through, and when it did it seemed prophetic. i was glad to be out from under the heavy veil and in bed, though i was too tired to think of the beauties i had seem during the day. somedays are just not so much fun. and their happening make it hard to abide them with any sort of grace and peace. today was one. but perhaps the next will be better and perhaps i will peak my head above the veil to see regardless of the circumstances.
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