bed after gazing at the stars that are everywhere, for in a small town
in the middle of the grasslands, at 3,400m hight, the stars shine
bright. The dogs, kept by the Tibetans bark in the night, whilst
preparations are all set for the eclipse in the morning.
On saturday, my dad and I spent 8 hours climbing up (with some descent
unfortunately in the middle which required more ascent!) Mt Emei, a
holy, famous and very tall mountain in south-west China. We spent the
night in a Monastery/guesthouse and the next morning, after another 3
hours reached the top... more than 40km walked and 75,000 steps.. to
3,065m. It was the highest mountain I'd climbed, and the toughest. It
was also the first time I was jumped by wild monkeys who live in the
area and lay-in-wait, literally, for tourists on the paths, to grab
their food. The first time the monkey grabbed a bottle of juice from
my backpack pocket with me barely noticing. The second time 3 monkeys
jumped on me from the fence as i quickly threw them the other bottle,
which they quickly pierced and drank from. I realised the monkeys like
drink as well as food!
On Monday we arrived in Kangding, after an 8 hr bus journey, which
passed many hydropowered electricity generating stations along the
main river. The city is growing rapidly, seems under construction, and
presentes an interesting mix of Tibetan and Han Chinese populations
(and a decent museum, surprisingly). A heavy police presence was
visible after last year's ethnic tensions that spilled into this area
from Tibet. We also met up with a number of other tourists planning
their eclipse viewing experience and befriended them.
Kangding is the gateway to Western Sichuan, an incredible province
with immense natural beauty. On Tuesday we witnessed this in going up
to a beautiful (mu ge cuo) lake 3,700m up and then walking down
alongside the gushing river amongst the trees. Raw nature: water,
trees, animals and their sounds can be incredible. A newly, and still
being, developed tourist site, so far it is well done, all things
considered and a great morning. In the afternoon we took a car over
4,300m through the mountains and grasslands to Tagong. The 4 hour ride
went so fast amongst the beatiful greens and yellows, the yaks and
herders, the small villages and tents... and the blue sky.
Tomorrow, the eclipse, a local festival and more nature. I have
already had to recharge my camera battery twice!
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