Home - Orange County, CA

Ever checked out what's actually on TV at 4:48 in the morning? It's pretty disappointing, I can tell you. I almost prefer the inane Chinese game shows and costume soap operas which I didn't understand even a little.

Surprisingly, I managed to sleep that late after the long day of travel. The flight left Seoul at 9:15 and landed in L.A. eleven hours later. Again, thanks to the nice little pill provided by my physician, I slept for about half of the flight. I mention it because I (famously) never manage to sleep on flights and because being out for so long really screwed with my head. Before on long flights, since I was awake the whole time, an overseas flight really felt long. When I would arrive (whatever) the destination, it really felt like I was far away. Upon arrival yesterday, L.A. didn't seem all that distant. It's hard to explain, but it threw me into a melancholic funk. However, that didn't keep me from hitting the In 'n' Out on Sepulveda for my first meal. The Double-Double was memorable as always and probably made an immediate dent in the 10 pounds I lost the past six weeks.

Part of my mindset has to do with going from being surrounded by (seemingly) millions of people all day long to life in So. Cal. and our concept of what crowded is. The 405 at 6:30 on a Monday night? No problem. In fact, I am vowing to never complain again about traffic conditions. Maybe I'll whimper a little, but that'll be it. Part of my mood also has to do with the fact that I may have suffered a serious technical glitch that may have wiped out a few hundred pictures mainly from Vietnam and China. I haven't cried in a long time, but if it turns out that I really did lose a lot of my photos, I may lose it. The flashcards are at Costco as we speak undergoing some kind of analysis. Hopefully by today, I'll have a better sense of things.

No matter where I go, I always consider it a valuable experience. Obviously, some places are better than others for any number of reasons. Would I go back? Yes and no. Here's the wrap:

Cambodia - I would absolutely love to go back to the southern coast and explore that area in much more detail. The people were wonderful there. The countryside was spectacular and with a few exceptions, the area is not very touristy. If I were an ancient temple fanatic, I'd go back to Angkor Wat, but since temples aren't really my thing, don't see any reason to go back there. The only temples that I really cherish are named Fenway and Camden Yards, so you know... And Phnom Penh? I know that if I travelled to the south, I'd pretty much have to go through PP to get there so I won't say anything too negative except that it wasn't my favorite place. Cambodia was a fascinating place all in all. I was pretty prepared for most of what I saw, though I admit that the road conditions caught me off guard. Still, in a developing country, it comes with the territory.

Vietnam - I really wasn't prepared for how crowded just about everywhere seemed to be and the level of poverty I encountered. I think I can best explain myself by saying that the only Vietnamese community I know is the one in Garden Grove. In less than two generations the Vietnamese who came to this country have built a very impressive community. It really goes to show the impact that governments have on people's lives. Culturally the people that live here aren't all that different from the ones that live there, but Vietnam is definitely another world as the result of it's socialist policies. It's really a shame, because it's a place with so much natural beauty that is marred by pollution, corruption and overcrowding. Hoi An/Da Nang was great. I'd go back so that I could visit Sapa and Ha Long Bay and possibly Dalat, but with the exception of Hoi An, I don't think I 'd be going to any of the places I visited again. And I'd prefer to go with someone who speaks the language so as not to be getting ripped off quite so much. The food, however, was something very special. As I moved from south to north, I tried new things and really saw a lot of variety in the cuisine. And of course, the fresh beer for about .25/glass can't be beat.

China - The China I saw last year was very different from the one I saw this year. Maybe my plans were too ambitious which caused me to spend a whole lot of time moving from one place to another on one bus or train too many. Maybe it was the lack of English time and time again. Or maybe I got a more accurate glimpse of the real deal. Without my friend Chao accompanying me, it would've been almost impossible to move the way I did. As with Vietnam, the food was unbelievable. Chinese food is my second favorite (Italian is numero uno) food and this trip really solidified that perspective. If the Chinese had better dessert options and anything approaching Italian wines, it would be number one, but that's a whole 'nother blog. Of all the cities I visited, really only Huangshan and Shanghai are really the only ones I'd want to see again.

The amazing thing is that for all of the travel-related issues that I came across, all three countries make it work somehow. My complaints are based on what I have come to expect from my travels both here at home and abroad. For all my discomfort, I got to where I needed to be, as did the hundreds of my fellow passengers on every bus, train, plane and boat. The two things that this trip really confirmed in my eyes is that a country's transportation infrastructure clearly relates to how far along it is. As I moved from Cambodia to China, I saw better conditions of roads, vehicles and facilities which translate directly into traveler comfort. I've seen the same things in Latin America and Western and Eastern Europe. The other revelation is the trash situation. It's simply a tragedy that I saw so many beautiful places stained by people whose cultures don't value cleanliness a whole lot. I know that the reasons behind this are complex and that my own country craps all over the environment like few others, but I'm not talking about dumping chemicals in streams which most people never see, I'm talking about putting lunch leftovers in a receptacle. Shame.

All in all, no serious regrets. And if the economy doesn't improve, then Asia will remain a great place to spend my meager dollars and get a lot of bang for the buck. I'll be back. Thanks for reading for the past six weeks. If you're in need of any travel ideas, tips and the like, get in touch. Hopefully, all of the pictures of the trip will be at www.fotoz.smugmug.com in the next week or so.

You can't expect to understand the world unless you get out and see it.

Z

"I can't believe this is China." - Seoul, Korea

Just landed here in Seoul after a 90-minute flight from Shanghai on a eerily empty plane. Even when I flew to Mexico when the swine flu thing was hopping, the plane was more full. This was a huge 777 about 1/3 full, I'm guessing. I had all three seats to myself and there were no passengers in the four seats next to mine, nor the three on the other side of the plane. Not sure how Korean Air made any money on that one... The ride to the airport was first on the subway and then on the Maglev train. This is a magnetic-elevated bullet thing that goes 300 km/hour- that's just under 200 m.p.h. and unlike the Shinkansen of Japan which rides on elevated lines above everything, this train rides just a little higher than the traffic below it. So you really get sense of how fast you're hauling. That was good fun! It covered 30km in seven minutes. Gulp...

I had planned to blog from Shanghai, but in the tourist areas (unlike in seemingly everywhere else in China) there aren't any internet cafes. Actually, this works out better because I am actually doing this myself on the Blogger website, rather than having to use my sister as a mule for my scary words and thoughts. Plus, the good folks that run this airport are letting me do this for free.

The advertised 6-hour bus ride to Shanghai turned out to be around 8 hours. This was standard practice as I found out due to the 23 stops that apparently must be made before entering the highway. Despite the length, the ride was very good on roads that rival the best highways of North America and Europe. We stopped for lunch at one of those places that exist (in the middle of nowhere) just for passing buses to stop for lunch. I swear, it was the cleanest one of those places I've ever seen in any country! Other than the driver's co-pilot guy screaming at some guy for not sitting in his assigned seat, it was a pleasant ride. We found the hostel and didn't do a whole lot that first night after the long day of travel.

The next day we ventured out and started to get a sense of this city. It didn't take long before my buddy Chao muttered the "I can't believe this is China." line. I couldn't believe it either, but I don't know it as well as he does obviously. So why the amazement? Well, as we walked down a street with a shopping center on every corner and all of South Coast Plaza's best tennants at every turn, it was easy to see why we were struck with bewilderment. I knew that the city was a shopper's paradise, but I wasn't expecting this kind of shopping. So even though it was all nice, it was also way beyond my means. We arrived at the Bund area and again were floored by the stores and the Times Square feeling. At night the place came alive and took on a Vegas look. Yesterday we considered going to the top of the tallest building in China for a look at Shanghai at dusk but decided that the $20 to ride an elevator was obscene.

Unfortunately, next year Shanghai is hosting the World Expo which means that this year there is construction all over the place, taking some of the luster off the sights. That, of course, didn't keep huge crowds from the city. It wasn't too hot, but the humidity was pretty brutal. Which reminds me of a not-so-thrilling adventure: My search for deodorant. I ran out yesterday. Of course, I knew I would soon be out so I went looking the day before. I think I would've had better luck finding a snowball in Beirut. When I asked Chao why this was the case, he explained that the overwhelming number of Chinese don't use it because they don't need it. I asked him how this was possible, and he rambled on about being a more evolved superior race. I know he was half-kidding about the superiority thing, but since he mentioned it, I admit that walking the streets one doesn't pick up the scents that one might on the streets of most European cities in the summer. Or maybe the odors are overwhelmed by all the cigarette smoke. I finally did find a can of that Axe crap but the store wanted $10 for it. I decided it was better to smell like an earthy man than a 7th-grade boy. As soon as I am done, I will look for some here at this airport, but it is an airport so I'm not expecting any bargains.

Speaking of smells...I also sought baking soda to clean my sandals and backpack, but was shut out time and time again. After six weeks of sun and sweat, my sandals and especially my backpack couldn't smell worse. The backpack smells like it's been wedged between the saddle and a camel trekking through the desert. I don't actually know what this smells like, but I imagine it is something along the lines of an exhumed corpse. Too much? Well, finally found it at the place with the Axe, but with only two days left at that point, decided to let it add to my aura.

OK, enough with the less-than-glamorous aspects of travel. A note about the food: Wow. Again and again, I ate amazing things all over China. The past week has been especially memorable around the mountain where everything is locally grown and very fresh and then in Shanghai. We ate so well that I'll repeat what I said last year: It's worth all the hassles just to come here and eat. We seemed to find lots of varieties of mushrooms prepared in all kinds of ways including some wild ones that I had never seen. And yet again, I ate lamb and loved it. I got to thinking that I hadn't eaten it in a year since I was in China. I can't eat lamb anywhere that does not require me to use my passport. It's complicated...

Happy to report that today my knees are finally resembling my knees. The brutal descent the other day at the mountain damned near killed my legs the following two days. I guess the 43 years (as of yesterday) are starting to show up in ways beyond the receding hairline. Reality is not a pleasant thing sometimes. And here is another one: This trip is over. In some ways the six weeks flew and in others, it definitely seemed like six weeks. I always do a post-trip entry after I arrive. And in case you aren't aware, I always observe the traditional first meal back. The rule is that if I travel for at least three weeks overseas, then the first meal back must take place at In 'n' Out, provided that I have not had any hamburgers on the trip. I never eat hamburgers anwyhere but America, so that condition is safe. My flight gets in at jsut before 5:00 pm in L.A., so the timing couldn't be much better. The first time I awaken at 3:00 am in a jet-lagged stupor I'll do one last entry to wrap it up.

Thanks for reading.

The Hike - Huangshan, China

Woke up early and started out on the the big hike. The first two hours was a sadistic uphill climb. Fortunately, it was pretty early and actually kind of cool. There were plenty of folks already on the trail when we arrived at 8:08. Upon completing that two hour stretch, we arrived at a scene that reminded me of a train station here. There were thousands of people everywhere at a kind of crossroads of different trails. The omnipresent tourgroups were extremely well-represented. And since there is no smoking on the trail, this was the chance that seemingly all the Chinese men had been waiting for. I'm not kidding. There is a redline painted on the ground where the trail ends and this part begins to indicate where you can puff away and where you can't. It was quite the scene but absolutely nothing compared to what we'd stumble across soon enough.

The next hour or so was pretty much a level hike, but the number of hikers on the trail seemed to be getting bigger. It was. After that, the next couple of hours were spent in what could be best characterized as L.A.-style freeway gridlock. There were times where we did not (could not) budge for a minute or two at a time due to the insane numbers of folks on the trail. Part of the problem was the width of the trail itself. Also, there were folks who sat in throne like carriers being carried up and down the darned trail by some pretty stout dudes with calves like cannons. But seriously, the big culprit was the quantity of hikers. In my naivete, I thought that I'd be enjoying a nature-bonding experience more or less on an intimate level. I simply didn't fathom that there would be (easily) over 10,000 people out and about doing the same thing. As we apporached points of interest, the bottlenecking began and it was surreal, at least for this American. There came a moment at THE most popular site, that I decided that I was over it. I couldn't deal with the numbers. Imagine Disneyland on a typical summer day, but out amongst the mountains, I guess.

It has to be noted that the scenery was spectacular, which explains the bedlam on the trails. The cloud cover, rain and fog kept me from getting the pictures I would've preferred, but also kept us reasonably cool. The last 3 hours-plus was spent going down and down and down. This was a knee-popping experience, but mercifully more peaceful as the majority of the hordes had opted for taking the cable car back to the base. I would love to come back here in the slow season or even in winter with snow all around. The place merits all the hype it gets!

Tomorrow I have one more bus ride of the six-hour variety into Shanghai as I round third and head for home. I can't believe it took me so long to throw in a baseball metaphor. I'll be back once for sure and then again when I get back to the OC.

Cheers.

10:08 - Huangshan, China

Early on yesterday I knew that whatever happened, it would be a nightmarish sort of day. You know, the kind that would help explain why it is that something like 85% of Americans don't even have a passport. So in a moment of morbid curiosity, I decided to time the amount of time spent actually travelling, hence the title. However, truth be told, the actual amount between walking out of one hotel and into another was in the neighborhood of 14 hours and change.

The day started out on a crappy note when we missed the first bus. It was a nine-hour trip, but that was scratched almost immediately. Oh yeahh, time to 'fess up. As I started to blog about the China leg of this trip, I wrote everything in the first person as if I was doing this solo. Actually, my pal Chao from last year's China trip joined me from the get-go and we've been going through all the China-stuff as a team. I guess I had hoped to make it appear as if I could handle China on my own. The fact is, for the overwhelming most part, I can't see how a non-Chinese speaking person (even one with my considerable experience) could possibly get around this country and in particular on a day like yesterday when things didn't exactly go as planned. Without Chao in tow, I'd be in the middle of a rice paddy right now trying to figure out how to contact my embassy. So, yeahh, he's been around. He gets to practice his English and I get a little peace of mind and after four weeks of going solo, it's nice to have a friend around.

So, yes, we missed the bus and ended up having to take another bus to a different city (Jiujiang) where we would then (in theory) catch another bus to here. First off, the 'bus' was a basically a 15-passenger van, but I admit that we were pretty comfortable in there. Of course upon arriving, we were told that there was no bus that day. So we hopped in a taxi and went to the train station to see what our options were there. They basically were non-existent, but we were told that there was a bus that went to (yet) another city (Jing Dezheng) that would allow us to take the train that we wanted. So, back into another taxi to the bus station. This time the bus was an actual bus that happened to be driven by my dad! Well, not really, but he might as well have been. I mean that in the nicest way possible. Honestly, for as slowly as he drove and on a road that was undergoing construction, I could've built a house of cards on my lap and not had it collapse. I guess all my venom about the drivers here must have been read by the censors and forwarded to someone in high places here.

Well, the best part was coming up...I typically prefer trains to bus travel for any number of reasons, but I have to say that after the four hours-plus yesterday on the last big leg of the trip, I can think of a dozen very unpleasant things I'd rather do before I get back on a Chinese train. I'd rather be dodging mopeds in Saigon or sitting in a sadistic dentist's chair, for example. How to describe it? In a word, a circus. I think we were in the car from hell, though Chao swears that the others were worse. The people in there reminded me of what you might see on a typical visit to the DMV. Too harsh? Perhaps. After all, at the DMV, people don't spit on the floor and throw their uneaten food there either. Not even at the one in Santa Ana! Sorry. The sad irony was that the car we were in was maintained by a saint of a woman in a way I have NEVER seen on any train anywhere. Of course, if the passengers in it didn't treat it the way a baby treats a diaper, she wouldn't have had so much to do. Anyway, she more than earned her yuan. Oh and the noise. I cannot begin to describe what that was like. Between all the yelling, screaming into cell phones and the loud radio program piped in to the whole car, my iPod finally met it's match. When I went to turn it on, a message appeared on the screen saying "Yeahh, right!" Actually, despite my killer headphones and the poor thing at full blast, I was only able to escape as far as purgatory. And just to put the cherry on the sundae, the last scene was the best. Some loud, shirtless pile of #!*%# tried to forcibly open the bathroom with a knife which the woman had locked as the train was arriving to the station. He yelled at her to open it, kicked it very hard twice and finally, she relented. I felt so bad for her. To think that she has to deal with this kind of crap day in and day out, depressed the heck out me.

So finally got to Tunxi and hopped in a taxi for a 45 minute ride to Huangshan. The road we took to get here was honestly, the nicest road in all China. The tunnels we went through looked brand new. There were hardly any cars on the road (it was approaching 11:00) which allowed our driver a chance to really let it all out! It was actually pleasurable getting to the hotel. The hotel is the nicest one I've been in on the whole trip and after yesterday, a welcomed relief!

Here, by the way, is one of the more picturesque spots in the country. Tomorrow we will spend around 10 hours hiking and taking it all in. Today we got our feet wet (literally) at a series of waterfalls that required some trekking. It was beautiful and got us kind of fired up for tomorrow. The food here in Anhui province is very nice but I stayed away from the rat and dog entrees. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I might not have believed it.

Hope to blog after the hike or at the latest, upon arriving in Shanghai for the last three nights of this adventure. Stay tuned...

(Mostly) Cruising the Yangtze - Wuhan, China

I got a hold of the contract that bus drivers in this country sign upon being handed the keys. I looked and looked, but nowhere did I see any kind of stipulation requiring the driver to push the physical limits of the vehicle at every possible moment. Nor could I find any language pertaining to the number of times that passengers' butt cheeks should leave their rightful place on the seat. This, of course, ought to give you an idea of what the three-hour drive was like the other night in lieu of cruising time. This was due to high levels of river water which for some reason, makes it dangerous for cruise ships. Ironically, all of us brave souls were put on a bus driven by someone who had to have been exposed to pesticides as an infant. I know I'm prone to exaggerate, but the audible gasps of others on the bus would seem to confirm my take on the situation.

The bus finally (literally) came to a screeching halt at 10:30 whereupon we all descended a couple of hundred steps down to the river and then (with suitcase in hand) walked about 300 yards on a series of catwalks suspended precariously over the water out to the ship. Oh and it was basically pitch black out there. Nice beginning! The room was nothing luxurious by any stretch, but it was plenty adequate. That first night, the ship didn't budge. The following morning, did a tour of the ghost city of Fengdu. To get there, we had to retrace our steps from the night before. It was only then that I fully appreciated what we all had to endure the night before. We were all herded around by a woman with a portable microphone and one of those flags that tour guides wave. I simply can't think of too many things that I hate more than precisely this kind of tourist experience. But, I sucked it up and dealt with it for the moment. It didn't help that it was very, very hot and there were dozens and dozens of other tour groups doing exactly the same thing. Almost all were Chinese groups, of course.

As a Cuban, I am well within my rights to say that Cubans are some of the loudest people in the history of the world. But I have to say, that even some of the most raucous Cubanazos I know simply wouldn't be able to keep up with some of the folks I spent the past few days with. And to make matters even more festive, is the peculiar habit of firing up a cigarette for just about any reason. Let's see...we all took turns posing in front of this pagoda, we must smoke. We just climbed this intimidating staircase...we're all sweating and out of breath so...let's all have a ciggy! In all my China euphoria from last year, I simply had forgotten about the love affair this country has with the cancer sticks. I'm considering taking up the habit when I return, since in the week I've been here, I've second-handed a repugnant quantity of smoke...I might as well get the less-offensive stuff straight from the source.

But back to my cruise...This was my first cruise experience. Did I mention I was the only American? And no, for once I am not exaggerating. I know this because, the tour organizer had the peculiar practice of identifying the foreigners by their nationalities. So I also know that there were 2 Brits, 8 French and 2 Dutch. This out of 150 passengers. Kind of par for the course on this trip for me, so no worries. Oh, the food...well done there! There was plenty of it and it was very good. I was so pleased that after the first day, the fork and knife that had been there the first meal were gone. At one point I did drop some cabbage in my beer, but everyone was very kind to overlook that.

The river itself was something of a disappointment. It's called The Mighty Yangtze and this is fine if by 'mighty', they mean 'mighty polluted'. What a shame. There is a lot of natural material that stays on the surface and that's fine, but the floating slippers, bottles and other crap are not so nice. The water is very brown and murky as well. However, the actual gorges are well, gorgeous. Fantastic scenery without a doubt!

Yesterday, we were taken on a smaller boat for an hour to a completely almost pristine part of the river and then transferred into canoes that were rowed by local men. This was great. The water was so inviting and the mini-gorges were almost better than the bigger, more famous ones. Upon returning, we were informed that the ship would not be going through the locks and passing by the third of the three big gorges. Again, something having to do with the water levels and a back up of other ships with higher priority. Hmmm. So today, we toured the impressive dam facility by bus and foot. Then we got on a bus (thankfully piloted by someone who hadn't been sniffing glue) and drove the final leg of the cruise.

Hopped on a train and five hours later, here I am. Only here, it should be noted, as a bit of a break in the miles. Tomorrow, I am prepared to endure what will probably be the worst travel day on the whole trip. For one, it's going to be nine hours (at least). Second, it's on a bus...don't get me started again. And third, a decent chunk of the time will be spent driving all kinds of curves at all kinds of elevations. Fun, fun, fun. The payoff will be in the scenery when the sun rises on Wednesday. More to come...

The Sizzle - Chongqing, China

If you know me then you know of my heritage and can assume some things about what my diet must have included ever since I was a little 'mocoso'. Point is, I've been an eater and lover of spicy foods forever. I'm not fanatical like the old man, but I love a good curry, hot sauce or whatever dish has a little kick to it. Despite all manner of hot and spicy foods that I have consumed all over the world, what happened yesterday was a first.

The 'hotpot' experience involves cooking any number of things using chopsticks in a huge kettle-like thing of a chili-saturated sauce right at your table. Imagine a sadistic version of fondue and you got the idea. You order all the stuff raw and it appears moments later on a huge tray. You wait for the chili to start to boil and then drop your food into the murky, chili-infested waters. Mercifully, you are also given a bowl of toasted sesame oil and raw garlic which you add to the sesame oil as much as you'd like. Prior to eating your food, you dip it in the oil to take some of the edge off. So, after all this build up, you know that it was painfully hot. However, it was also very tasty. It wasn't just hot for hot's sake; there was a lot of great flavor there. There are two main chilis at work here and one of them is not much bigger than a peppercorn. Small though it might be, the punch in that little peppper caused my lips to tingle in a freakish way. That's never happened. It was as if someone had attached electrodes to my lips and thrown a switch. I was later informed that dentists here use that particular chili as a novacaine substitute! And of course, the more I ate, the more it went on. And it goes without saying, that the sweating that went on was legendary. In my haste to mop my brow, I (more than once) wiped off my forehead and cheeks with napkins that had been used to wipe off the chili sauce, so within minutes, pretty much my whole face was a tingly mess. I was encouraged not to drink the beer for relief because that would only cause the next bite to appear to be hotter than it actually was. It was quite the experience. I am so relieved that I was able to eat quite a bit and with the exception of some heartburn, I didn't suffer the kind of intestinal distress that I thought would surely be my destiny.

The over 6 1/2 hour ride here from Chengdu was nowhere near the pleasant experience that my first bus ride in this country was. The driver...where to begin?!? Nice enough of a guy, but not what I would think of as being a pro. Were it only for smoking half a pack of cigarettes or talking with his buddy in the first row for half the ride, then he might've been OK. But he also seemed to pay too much attention to the TV monitor just above his head and spend too much time on his cell phone. And the dozen or so times he hocked up a nice phlegm biscuit didn't do a whole lot to endear me to him either. Oh and he drove the bus through a curvy, hilly region with a little too much gusto for my taste. It was a memorable ride on a trip where there have already been a few too many. Crap, I have three more to go I think.

This city is staggeringly huge and not all that picturesque in a nice way, to be honest. My hostel is sandwiched and dwarfed by huge tenement apartment buildings which are covered in city-filth and look like they were all the rage right about the time Nixon was getting his walking papers. It's really something to see yet another huge city in this country. And huge in China is not like huge in USA. This city would probably only be topped by NY, as far as people go. And I just left Chengdu which could claim the same thing. On it goes...I heard the other day that the population is now 1.3 billion here. Just imagine what it would be if the government here was a little more relaxed when it comes to such things.

Tomorrow I head off on a three-night, four day cruise of the Yangste River. I know, I know, I claim to not do cruises. Well, this is on a river, so that's the first thing to understand. Also, to come to this part of the country and not do this cruise is not really an option. It's supposed to be staggeringly beautiful. However, I was informed tonight that due to the rising levels of the river, I will not be able to board here in Chongqing. I will have to (oh, the agony!) hop on a bus for three hours to board down river somewhere else. Lovely.

I doubt seriously I'll be able to write anything until after the trip, so until then, eat something spicy and think of me. Especially if you have to get up in the middle of the night to deal with some of the consequences!

Bon Appetit!

Pandas, Buddhas and Confessions - Leshan, China

Sitting in a obscenely crowded internet place in a town where yet again, I stand out like a sore thumb. I know I've mentioned this before and I hate to be repetitive, but when you get into your forties and I encounter something for the first time despite my worldliness, it just doesn't fade away all that easily. And again, I'm not complaining at all...but I can't help but say something. At least at this place (unlike the one in Chengdu) the air is breathable. The other one could not have had a bigger show of no-smoking signage at the entrance despite boasting a collection of overflowing ashtrays that would rival a typical casino in Vegas.

Pandas: Gotta say that the panda thing was actually pretty cool. They are hilarious animals. Got there early enough to see them quite active and putting on quite the show. I could've actually held one and been photographed, but the 'donation' they were requesting was over $100 for less than a minute. And that's dollars, not RMB. I like them and all, but that would buy a lot of a lot of things here. The night before, was convinced at the hostel to attend a performance of the Sichuan Opera. When I made a face, I was assured that by 'opera' they meant something that had nothing to do with my idea of what an opera is. Fair enough. It turned out to be more like a variety show of all kinds of talented folks doing everything from hand shadow puppetry to mask-switching to a nimble young lady who juggled a table (!) with her feet. That was incredible. By the way, the mask-switching is awesome. Hard to explain it, but it's kind of like a magic act in that the performers literally change the elaborate mask they are wearing into a completely different one in the blink of an eye. Google it. It was that cool.

Buddha: The reason this town is on the map, is because of the world's largest Buddha carved into the side of a hill. Kind of like Mt. Rushmore, I suppose. The thing is 71 meters high. First you get to climb a bunch of steps to get to the top of it, then descend an insanely steep and vertigo-inducing set of steps to get to the bottom of it. Then walk up again. It sounds kind of goofy, but it was pretty cool, I have to admit. The place was crawling with tourists. At one point, a Chinese woman motioned for me to pose with her so her friend could take our picture. When I tried to indicate to her that I was a sweaty, repugnant mess, she made it clear that it was OK. Maybe she was participating in an elaborate scavenger hunt and I satisfied the get a picture with a foreigner requirement. The hotel I'm 'enjoying' is the second worst one on the trip. It goes to show that blindly following the old Lonely Planet travel guide can sometimes be a lousy strategy.

Confessions: I have two. First, for the most part, I really enjoyed the hostel environment in Chengdu. I hadn't stayed in a proper hostel in ages, but found the whole dynamic there very, very invigorating. You meet people of all ages from all over the world, share stories, maybe play some pool and just hang out. The place had a bar, restaurant and the staff made it very livable. I may be staying in a few more before this trip is over. The price is very right, which doesn't hurt. My other confession involves what I are for dinner tonight. I usually make fun of the tourists who eat in Western places whilst in eastern locales, but I caved. Mostly, it was cause honestly, the majority of places I've seen here look a lot like the place in Hanoi where I had that gnarly bowl of noodles that made my insides an ugly place. The other thing is that I go to KFC about once every three years anyway, so while it did have some of the comfort of a meal from home, it was still kind of exotic for me. But wait, it gets better. I ate a chicken sandwich with what can best be described as a hazelnut curry spread. This was served with fries (that was nice) and little fish sticks and a coffee-flavored drink. This value meal was about $4. The chicken patty was not the all-white meat you get back home, but the ketchup was Heinz, so they got that right. I only feel a little guilty because after four weeks of different versions of a lot of the same things, I needed to change it up a bit.

Tomorrow, it's off to Chongqing to kill a couple of days in preparation for a Yangtse river cruise. By the way, the 2-hour bus ride here was by FAR the best bus I've been on in four weeks. It helps that the road was paved correctly and free of animals, tuk-tuks, bicyclicsts and mopeds. The only thing that made it any different from being home is the unique driving style of the Chinese. I think that's about as far out on that particular limb as I'm willing to go.