so, as you read this picture pigpen from peanuts. that is the only way you will be able to approach my last week.
last week i spend restfully in chengdu, the capital of sichuan province. i ate good food, met some fun people, and stayed in the nicest hostel i've ever seen. imagine a downtown loft refitted to accommodate guest with a lounge/bar with free big screen TV and pool table. it was a refreshing time between stints with the nomads.
on wednesday last i left for a little town called hongyuan. i had no idea what to expect. it was small, but bigger than i expected. i went to meet a friend from xining who grew up in the surrounding grasslands. today marks six days with the nomads. i returned this morning to the relative comfort of hongyuan. and my first shower since chengdu. now you understand why there is a cloud above my head. there may not have been a more refreshing shower in my life.
with the nomads i rode horses, herded yaks, at plenty of tsampa (uncooked barley flour mixed with lots of butter and milk tea) and yak. enough for a life time in my opinion. the life of a nomad is more than austere, it's spartan. it was a shock to my senses. who knew i was mildly addicted to the internet. or perhaps just to connection. i felt very lonely there, even with a friend sticking closer than a childhood puppy. the constant attention, and serving of every (perceived) need, while incredibly kind, grew tiring.
in my time with the nomads i finished a mildly entertaining book, which was given to me in chengdu by a brit., watched 3 1/2 movies, nearly was thrown from a horse running near full speed, and was chased by a wild tibetan mastiff, which are known to be vicious.
but alas, after all the drama, internal and external, i survived. really, it was more difficult than it needed to be. the fact that i have slept in a hotel for three weeks, have eaten out too many times, and am tired of not having a close friend to share things with added to my discomfort. only a few more days of travel and i am 'home.' i await xining like a kid christmas.
8.13.2007
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