Stupid firewall. i was up until recently happily using Tor to get my internet access. which was slow, but it gave me fuller access than other proxy servers.
But the chinese goverment surely paid some public money to some IT guys to figure out how to stop people from using proxy servers.
So now. No blogger. (except thru flickr, whew). No facebook. No youtube. No twitter, which i never used much anyways, and generally think it's a bit annoying.
Shit, it totally makes me start wanting to use these sites all that much more! Fuckers.
If you know how i can get my web access back (and on ubuntu), that'd be rad. But don't tell me how on this blog or on flickr. They haven't blocked gmail yet, thankfully.
Presumably all the extra security and excessive police and army presence in BJ and China is for China's 60th anniversary party, which is on the 1st. There will be a massive parade which is only viewable by invitation only, or for television viewing. 100's of tanks will be cruising the streets, and 1000's (tens of 1000's?) of soldiers and pilots and students wil be marching in bafflgingly inhuman synchronicity.
See here for examples of anal retentive precision: http://www.chinasmack.com/pictures/training-chinese-army-60th-national-day-parade/
Um.
Ok, more later, friends.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Back to School
it's ok.
work hours are excessive, but stress levels are way way down compared to previous years.
Now teaching all grade 10.
for the moment.
Everything subject to change at minimal notice.
A bunch of kids said they're sad i'm not their teacher anymore, haha.
New teachers in the house, are a pretty cool gang, though they may only hang out for a 1/2 year.
Unsuccessfully trying to plan ahead.
Especially before my bro cruises into town.
Not to mention still unpacking and organizing my apartment.
'Cuz i had to switch pads a day before i was due at school.
You have to roll with it a lot around here.
work hours are excessive, but stress levels are way way down compared to previous years.
Now teaching all grade 10.
for the moment.
Everything subject to change at minimal notice.
A bunch of kids said they're sad i'm not their teacher anymore, haha.
New teachers in the house, are a pretty cool gang, though they may only hang out for a 1/2 year.
Unsuccessfully trying to plan ahead.
Especially before my bro cruises into town.
Not to mention still unpacking and organizing my apartment.
'Cuz i had to switch pads a day before i was due at school.
You have to roll with it a lot around here.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Final Words
Not working is an important detail for vacations. Unless, of course, you choose to work on the canoe you're building, or work on your guitar skills, or even work on your "self".
This summer i didn't do much work, although i did recommence my daily meditations, having almost entirely withdrawn from my meditation practice for the last year or so. i've been struck that my meditations are... good for me! i feel like there's a lot of dirty corners in my brain that have been gathering dust for some time. i still have the usual issues to work on regarding acceptance, forgiveness, craving, desire, anger, yadda yadda. So i'm happy to note that i have rediscovered a few moments of purity, which felt really really nice.
Also over the course of the last couple months, i had a number of tangible lessons about Patience. Relax. Chill out. Don't f'ing HURRY, because even though you want to HURRY, there's no need whatsoever to HURRY. Don't get me wrong. Sometimes you need to HURRY (like when you are overdue to urinate, and there's no back alleys in site). But sometimes you don't. So then you can relax; chill out; and not f'ing HURRY.
Also, from my travels, i would like to share my newly gained wisdom w/ you, fellow readers, whoever you are, and inform you of these things which no trip in China should be complete without.
-38 degree weather
-snowfall and long underwear
-Thanks to the shaggy goatee, being mistaken for Mongolian
-Otherwise, consistently being mistaken for a 25 yr old Japanese dude.
-disturbingly intimate encounters with strangers' feces and phlegm
-baijiu rice wine
-rocking out in a guitar bar, and being asked by staff play again the next night
-jumping off a bridge
-being refused service in a restaurant
-in the washroom outside of the buddhist temple, walking in on a dude wanking it
-trying to slurp down noodles while the restaurant owner stomps on the mouse who was strolling through
-recognizing that too many prayer flags looks exactly like a used car lot sale
-cleverly peeing in a bottle during a fully peopled long distance bus ride. And being rather stressed out beforehand
And then this morning my mom asked me if i'm looking forward to work. Huh? What the hell kind of question is that? Work? Or holiday? Work? Um, i don't think so. But. That said, i feel like my holiday was as epic as it needed to be, and certainly not lacking in any area. Unless you count trying to find coffee in Xinjiang.
Soon i'll put up some pix on Flickr and FB. Peace.
This summer i didn't do much work, although i did recommence my daily meditations, having almost entirely withdrawn from my meditation practice for the last year or so. i've been struck that my meditations are... good for me! i feel like there's a lot of dirty corners in my brain that have been gathering dust for some time. i still have the usual issues to work on regarding acceptance, forgiveness, craving, desire, anger, yadda yadda. So i'm happy to note that i have rediscovered a few moments of purity, which felt really really nice.
Also over the course of the last couple months, i had a number of tangible lessons about Patience. Relax. Chill out. Don't f'ing HURRY, because even though you want to HURRY, there's no need whatsoever to HURRY. Don't get me wrong. Sometimes you need to HURRY (like when you are overdue to urinate, and there's no back alleys in site). But sometimes you don't. So then you can relax; chill out; and not f'ing HURRY.
Also, from my travels, i would like to share my newly gained wisdom w/ you, fellow readers, whoever you are, and inform you of these things which no trip in China should be complete without.
-38 degree weather
-snowfall and long underwear
-Thanks to the shaggy goatee, being mistaken for Mongolian
-Otherwise, consistently being mistaken for a 25 yr old Japanese dude.
-disturbingly intimate encounters with strangers' feces and phlegm
-baijiu rice wine
-rocking out in a guitar bar, and being asked by staff play again the next night
-jumping off a bridge
-being refused service in a restaurant
-in the washroom outside of the buddhist temple, walking in on a dude wanking it
-trying to slurp down noodles while the restaurant owner stomps on the mouse who was strolling through
-recognizing that too many prayer flags looks exactly like a used car lot sale
-cleverly peeing in a bottle during a fully peopled long distance bus ride. And being rather stressed out beforehand
And then this morning my mom asked me if i'm looking forward to work. Huh? What the hell kind of question is that? Work? Or holiday? Work? Um, i don't think so. But. That said, i feel like my holiday was as epic as it needed to be, and certainly not lacking in any area. Unless you count trying to find coffee in Xinjiang.
Soon i'll put up some pix on Flickr and FB. Peace.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Xinjiang
Hm, hardly a riot in sight. Quiet. A little too quiet...
In fact, i was rather surprised that people in Urumqi seemed to be pretty mellowed out, 1 month after people were madly knocking on doors trying to identify the ethnicity of whoever answered in order to decide whether to bloodily bash their skulls apart or not.
The fact that i was able to visit the province at all felt like a slip up on the part of the authorities, and as such i felt like a privileged guest of honor. Not surprisingly, most travelers had thought or decided that the place was off limits, and thus i really was an exceptional visitor.
Xinjiang is pretty rad. You can go places where it really feels like China has disapeared, and that you've landed somewhere in the middle east. Not a "chinese" face to be seen. Lots of skewered lamb, mosques, scarf-veiled women, and fez-topped men.
i felt quite elated just to wander around, largely resisting the urge to snap photos. People getting on with their lives post-violence struck me as both necessary and courageous. Apparently the gov't released numbers were unsurprisingly lowballed. i hear roughly 250 Uighur and Han people were murdered in last months unfortunate riots, as caused by years of stewing resentment from gov't promoted Han immigration, and city infrastructure improvements which didn't affect the original minority group residents. Anyhow, for the 250 recently deceased, there's pbly 2500 very disturbed and angry and depressed city folk out there. No way of knowing if i saw any of them, but i was hanging out in the very limited areas where the riots took place.
Also, i should note that there is a LOT of army and police presence. Riot cops, riot gear, riot-proof vehicles abound. Soldiers stand on circus platforms under circus umbrellas to keep a serious eye over the people buying their groceries and buying lamb skewers. They get all annoyed when you point a camera at them, so you have to be sneaky about it. At any rate, no one grabbed or smashed my camera which was a relief.
Xinjiang is really cool. The city does look like it had a boom 15 years ago, 'cuase all there's lots of big not-so new buildings, mostly in the chinese majority parts of town. Pretty cosmo, but not a McDonalds or Starbucks to be seen, which was very refreshing. Nice markets, happening night market.
The city felt ... open. Xinjiang, i thank you for welcoming me.
In fact, i was rather surprised that people in Urumqi seemed to be pretty mellowed out, 1 month after people were madly knocking on doors trying to identify the ethnicity of whoever answered in order to decide whether to bloodily bash their skulls apart or not.
The fact that i was able to visit the province at all felt like a slip up on the part of the authorities, and as such i felt like a privileged guest of honor. Not surprisingly, most travelers had thought or decided that the place was off limits, and thus i really was an exceptional visitor.
Xinjiang is pretty rad. You can go places where it really feels like China has disapeared, and that you've landed somewhere in the middle east. Not a "chinese" face to be seen. Lots of skewered lamb, mosques, scarf-veiled women, and fez-topped men.
i felt quite elated just to wander around, largely resisting the urge to snap photos. People getting on with their lives post-violence struck me as both necessary and courageous. Apparently the gov't released numbers were unsurprisingly lowballed. i hear roughly 250 Uighur and Han people were murdered in last months unfortunate riots, as caused by years of stewing resentment from gov't promoted Han immigration, and city infrastructure improvements which didn't affect the original minority group residents. Anyhow, for the 250 recently deceased, there's pbly 2500 very disturbed and angry and depressed city folk out there. No way of knowing if i saw any of them, but i was hanging out in the very limited areas where the riots took place.
Also, i should note that there is a LOT of army and police presence. Riot cops, riot gear, riot-proof vehicles abound. Soldiers stand on circus platforms under circus umbrellas to keep a serious eye over the people buying their groceries and buying lamb skewers. They get all annoyed when you point a camera at them, so you have to be sneaky about it. At any rate, no one grabbed or smashed my camera which was a relief.
Xinjiang is really cool. The city does look like it had a boom 15 years ago, 'cuase all there's lots of big not-so new buildings, mostly in the chinese majority parts of town. Pretty cosmo, but not a McDonalds or Starbucks to be seen, which was very refreshing. Nice markets, happening night market.
The city felt ... open. Xinjiang, i thank you for welcoming me.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Blockt
after waiting for THREE hours in line yesterday, i was told they had no tickets to Urumqi.
Today after waiting for 10 minutes in a line in a diff train station, i was given tickets to Urumqi for this afternoon. Score. That's how it goes in this country.
Anyhow.
Apparently there's no long distance phone calls or internet access from Xinjiang province since the riots in Urumqi.
So, i may be out of touch until i get bk to bj.
And i'm trying to get bk to bj a day earlier than originally planned.
'cause i miss my gf.
But i also wonder how much of the missing is just wanting to have sex.
Hard to say.
But i guess that's human nature.
Today after waiting for 10 minutes in a line in a diff train station, i was given tickets to Urumqi for this afternoon. Score. That's how it goes in this country.
Anyhow.
Apparently there's no long distance phone calls or internet access from Xinjiang province since the riots in Urumqi.
So, i may be out of touch until i get bk to bj.
And i'm trying to get bk to bj a day earlier than originally planned.
'cause i miss my gf.
But i also wonder how much of the missing is just wanting to have sex.
Hard to say.
But i guess that's human nature.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Them Monks
You know, of course, that almost all have cell phones now.
And some wear headphones. Pbly listening to dharma talks.
Many are over due for a hair cut.
Some panhandle, or busk, approaching restaurant patrons.
Some hang out in overpriced tea houses.
I know they shave their heads, but what's the rule for facial hair?
i saw a couple stylish goatees, for sure.
They often hang out with non-monks who look a bit like thugs.
Beats me. i hung out w/ this one monk for a while, after we sat on the bus together. He can't work, but he has a bank account filled with money given to him. From family members, i gather. He says no monks should drink beer, though i hear some do. he never has time to talk to the nuns.
He took me to his family's modest place, and later we had a genuine fight about the bill for dinner. Shit, i shouldn't let a monk pay for my food! Isn't he supposed to graciously accept what's given to him? But at the same time, we were making the server quite nervous with all our grabbing and pulling and shoving over the bill. i did't think it was very fair to her.
And some wear headphones. Pbly listening to dharma talks.
Many are over due for a hair cut.
Some panhandle, or busk, approaching restaurant patrons.
Some hang out in overpriced tea houses.
I know they shave their heads, but what's the rule for facial hair?
i saw a couple stylish goatees, for sure.
They often hang out with non-monks who look a bit like thugs.
Beats me. i hung out w/ this one monk for a while, after we sat on the bus together. He can't work, but he has a bank account filled with money given to him. From family members, i gather. He says no monks should drink beer, though i hear some do. he never has time to talk to the nuns.
He took me to his family's modest place, and later we had a genuine fight about the bill for dinner. Shit, i shouldn't let a monk pay for my food! Isn't he supposed to graciously accept what's given to him? But at the same time, we were making the server quite nervous with all our grabbing and pulling and shoving over the bill. i did't think it was very fair to her.
Friday, August 14, 2009
China's just like Canada
Really, it is.
Because Canada's really big.
And China's really big.
And in Canada, 90% of the pop lives along the southern margin.
And in China 90% of the pop lives along the southern and earstern margins.
So.
When you get away from those margins, you get space.
Lots of space.
Lots and lots.
I've never seen so many rolling green hills in my life.
But the hills are mountain-sized.
But not rocky.
Just grassy.
Like that MS desktop picture.
But better.
It's great.
Except that after 2 full days of bumpy bus-rides, that's all i see still.
And the winding roads (sometimes paved, sometimes not) take their time getting from A to B.
The Tibetan music (with techno upgrades, and "check it out" samples) is ok, but is played WAY too loud.
Occasionally an english song sqeezes onto the playlist.
i never realized how shitty Lionel Richie's Say You Say Me is.
But now i have.
And there's no trains in these here parts.
So we'll just have to make do.
Because Canada's really big.
And China's really big.
And in Canada, 90% of the pop lives along the southern margin.
And in China 90% of the pop lives along the southern and earstern margins.
So.
When you get away from those margins, you get space.
Lots of space.
Lots and lots.
I've never seen so many rolling green hills in my life.
But the hills are mountain-sized.
But not rocky.
Just grassy.
Like that MS desktop picture.
But better.
It's great.
Except that after 2 full days of bumpy bus-rides, that's all i see still.
And the winding roads (sometimes paved, sometimes not) take their time getting from A to B.
The Tibetan music (with techno upgrades, and "check it out" samples) is ok, but is played WAY too loud.
Occasionally an english song sqeezes onto the playlist.
i never realized how shitty Lionel Richie's Say You Say Me is.
But now i have.
And there's no trains in these here parts.
So we'll just have to make do.
I Wanna Get High, So High
Hurrah, i'm very happy to be out of that crazy Yunnan tourist circuit.
Again, there's no shortage of Tibetan monks, monasteries, or temples just outside of Tibet's official border. And all travelers given access as of late.
In the town of Litang, I spent a few days. It's cool to see so many weathered faces, and dudes with long windblown mops of hair, and others sporting worn-in cowboy hats.
Litang is surrounded by tree-less, grass-covered hills. I should also say, the altitude of this place is 4014m, and there's a short supply of oxygen. It's also cold. i had to buy some long undies, and added them to virtually every other piece of clothing i had with me.
Everytime i looked at the surrounding hills i wanted to scale them. So i rented a bike from a restaurant that doesn't really rent bikes, and rode out to the hills. The uphill grade which didn't seem so steep, sucked all of my energy. eventually i hopped off my steed, since riding was too slow and too hard (i thought it was a bike prob), to clamber up the hill. But the hill was a bit steep. I honestly had to stop and rest after every 3 steps. It almost killed me. i almost gave up.
But eventually it levelled off, and i plopped to the ground, spread eagle style, where i lay a considerable while, listening to my racing heart, and having near-altered state visions.
Then i climbed up a bit more and hung out with the cattle a while, and stole as much oxygen as i could from the misty wind.
Also Litang has a monastery with 2 new temples added on to it, still under construction. After sidestepping the blowtorches, overstepping the sandbags, and squeaking past the saws, i took in the new temples.
now there's no history yet in the place, but it still was pretty wild. How often do you get to see 3 story high buddhas surrounded by scaffolding and labourers? People hammering gods to the walls? Scrubby non-buddhist painters, detailing amazingly beautiful massive murals? Obviously i wanted to take pictures SOOOOOO badly, but refrained myself. Stupid respect, getting in the way yet again.
Also, do note, the picture above is NOT from this holiday. All of my pix are from my old flickr page, which is the only way i know of to blog right now, since blogger is blocked. Sorry if the pix are misleading.
Again, there's no shortage of Tibetan monks, monasteries, or temples just outside of Tibet's official border. And all travelers given access as of late.
In the town of Litang, I spent a few days. It's cool to see so many weathered faces, and dudes with long windblown mops of hair, and others sporting worn-in cowboy hats.
Litang is surrounded by tree-less, grass-covered hills. I should also say, the altitude of this place is 4014m, and there's a short supply of oxygen. It's also cold. i had to buy some long undies, and added them to virtually every other piece of clothing i had with me.
Everytime i looked at the surrounding hills i wanted to scale them. So i rented a bike from a restaurant that doesn't really rent bikes, and rode out to the hills. The uphill grade which didn't seem so steep, sucked all of my energy. eventually i hopped off my steed, since riding was too slow and too hard (i thought it was a bike prob), to clamber up the hill. But the hill was a bit steep. I honestly had to stop and rest after every 3 steps. It almost killed me. i almost gave up.
But eventually it levelled off, and i plopped to the ground, spread eagle style, where i lay a considerable while, listening to my racing heart, and having near-altered state visions.
Then i climbed up a bit more and hung out with the cattle a while, and stole as much oxygen as i could from the misty wind.
Also Litang has a monastery with 2 new temples added on to it, still under construction. After sidestepping the blowtorches, overstepping the sandbags, and squeaking past the saws, i took in the new temples.
now there's no history yet in the place, but it still was pretty wild. How often do you get to see 3 story high buddhas surrounded by scaffolding and labourers? People hammering gods to the walls? Scrubby non-buddhist painters, detailing amazingly beautiful massive murals? Obviously i wanted to take pictures SOOOOOO badly, but refrained myself. Stupid respect, getting in the way yet again.
Also, do note, the picture above is NOT from this holiday. All of my pix are from my old flickr page, which is the only way i know of to blog right now, since blogger is blocked. Sorry if the pix are misleading.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
It ain't Tibet. But...
Sichuan province is right next to Tibet, and it has a bunch of Tibetan towns and temples.
Near Shangrila, yet another "old town" converted into touristy town, i went to a massive monastery, which is under massive renovation to make way for massive tourist profits.
It's really a shame to see so much history demolished to clear the space for new-but-old-looking architecture. Nonetheless, there's still lots to see, and 800 monks living on the premises.
Upon entering the place, a friend had the brilliant idea to buy some instant noodles. So i helped him do that. Then we asked for some hot water, and the monk pointed to the left. So we wandered around leftways looking for hot water, not finding any. Another monk directed us into this dark little shack, where a couple monks were tending a wood stove whereupon the kettle sat.
They invited us to sit down, and we hung out for 15 minutes shooting the breeze. With a bit of work, i managed to decifer that...
-the one monk was 26 and he\d been there 14 years.
-they meditate 7 hrs/day.
-his parents are not buddhist, they are farmers, and they are happy for him to live at the monastery.
-the ridiculous $12 fee (applicable only to those who are suspected to be tourists) to enter does not go the monks or monastery, but the govt.
-the relationship between the monastery and the govt is okaaay, but certainly not great.
Anyhow, that was quitte fun. i just wish i'd asked their opinions about the development.
The next day i finally broke out of the Tourist circuit, and got out to a little town in the middle of nowhere (nowhere being beautifully sparse green hills and rolling mountains).
On the bus i met a couple american girls, students of mandarin and religion. In our limited time in this small town, we wanted to check out the monastery even though it was already closed.
Light was long gone by the time we got to the monastery, and we browsed around its unlit outskirts. Finding an open door, the girls poked their heads into the courtyard where a security guard approached them.
But instead of sending us packing, he found a monk, and they agreed to give us a tour of the temple. (after we paid the $2 fee). Still, it felt totally wild as guided by flashlight, we walked up to the temple, and to see them unlock and pry open the massive gates for us.
Inside they turned on lights, lit candles, and tried explaining various images and objects for us.
Did you know that in these monasteries and temples, there's a lot of buddhist imagery of a disturbingly violent nature? Arrows in the eye, torture devices, being cut in half, rape by cow, etc etc. i had no idea.
Also there's a fair bit of sexual imagery, but the paintings are done in such scope and detail that it's easy to miss the detail of testicles and penetration. Pay attention, kids!
We also got taken upstairs to wear some monks were hanging out, one embarassedly quickly throwing a robe on over his wife beater. We suspect this is area isn't normally open for observation.
It all felt pretty special to get this unexpected private tour: "i can't believe this is happening" was often murmurred by us. It was pretty cool.
After that, of course we had some noodle soup and barbecue, and downed a couple bottles of cheap wine.
Near Shangrila, yet another "old town" converted into touristy town, i went to a massive monastery, which is under massive renovation to make way for massive tourist profits.
It's really a shame to see so much history demolished to clear the space for new-but-old-looking architecture. Nonetheless, there's still lots to see, and 800 monks living on the premises.
Upon entering the place, a friend had the brilliant idea to buy some instant noodles. So i helped him do that. Then we asked for some hot water, and the monk pointed to the left. So we wandered around leftways looking for hot water, not finding any. Another monk directed us into this dark little shack, where a couple monks were tending a wood stove whereupon the kettle sat.
They invited us to sit down, and we hung out for 15 minutes shooting the breeze. With a bit of work, i managed to decifer that...
-the one monk was 26 and he\d been there 14 years.
-they meditate 7 hrs/day.
-his parents are not buddhist, they are farmers, and they are happy for him to live at the monastery.
-the ridiculous $12 fee (applicable only to those who are suspected to be tourists) to enter does not go the monks or monastery, but the govt.
-the relationship between the monastery and the govt is okaaay, but certainly not great.
Anyhow, that was quitte fun. i just wish i'd asked their opinions about the development.
The next day i finally broke out of the Tourist circuit, and got out to a little town in the middle of nowhere (nowhere being beautifully sparse green hills and rolling mountains).
On the bus i met a couple american girls, students of mandarin and religion. In our limited time in this small town, we wanted to check out the monastery even though it was already closed.
Light was long gone by the time we got to the monastery, and we browsed around its unlit outskirts. Finding an open door, the girls poked their heads into the courtyard where a security guard approached them.
But instead of sending us packing, he found a monk, and they agreed to give us a tour of the temple. (after we paid the $2 fee). Still, it felt totally wild as guided by flashlight, we walked up to the temple, and to see them unlock and pry open the massive gates for us.
Inside they turned on lights, lit candles, and tried explaining various images and objects for us.
Did you know that in these monasteries and temples, there's a lot of buddhist imagery of a disturbingly violent nature? Arrows in the eye, torture devices, being cut in half, rape by cow, etc etc. i had no idea.
Also there's a fair bit of sexual imagery, but the paintings are done in such scope and detail that it's easy to miss the detail of testicles and penetration. Pay attention, kids!
We also got taken upstairs to wear some monks were hanging out, one embarassedly quickly throwing a robe on over his wife beater. We suspect this is area isn't normally open for observation.
It all felt pretty special to get this unexpected private tour: "i can't believe this is happening" was often murmurred by us. It was pretty cool.
After that, of course we had some noodle soup and barbecue, and downed a couple bottles of cheap wine.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Trekking Leaping Tiger Gorge
i have done a 2 day trek through Leaping Tiger Gorge.
Wow. This has been the best thing i've done this holiday. Very powerful.
Hey, i've lived next to the Rocky Mountains most of my life, but on this trip i've seen the most majestic masses of rock i've ever seen in my life. 4.5 km of steep granite face, stretching from the violently turbulent river below, vertically stretching up toward the sky, where the clouds gently caress the peaks who occasionally reveal their shy faces.
On day 1, i hiked with some chinese guy, who i rarely understood, and who rarely understood me. After so much steep vertical ascent, and dangerous descents, when it got to be 7pm, i decided to stay at a guest house. He crazily continued to hike another 2 hours to the next one.
Day 2, i hiked w/ some Denmark guys (who are studying Chinese in BJ), and a couple Canadian girls. Fun gang.
Not surprisingly, the chinese govt is eyeing this gorge for a future dam project. Which is tragic in numerous ways. But hell, if i was gonna make a dam, this is where i'd make it. With that massive amount of surging water, screaming between two tight mountain faces, it's impossible not to be awed by the power (electricity?) it contains.
And rumour is, that China needs more power. And China does as China wants.
So.
I (and many others) feel very blessed to have been able to experience Leaping Tiger Gorge.
ps. I think my pix may give some clue as to the magnitude of this place, which i will of course post later. Somewhere.
Wow. This has been the best thing i've done this holiday. Very powerful.
Hey, i've lived next to the Rocky Mountains most of my life, but on this trip i've seen the most majestic masses of rock i've ever seen in my life. 4.5 km of steep granite face, stretching from the violently turbulent river below, vertically stretching up toward the sky, where the clouds gently caress the peaks who occasionally reveal their shy faces.
On day 1, i hiked with some chinese guy, who i rarely understood, and who rarely understood me. After so much steep vertical ascent, and dangerous descents, when it got to be 7pm, i decided to stay at a guest house. He crazily continued to hike another 2 hours to the next one.
Day 2, i hiked w/ some Denmark guys (who are studying Chinese in BJ), and a couple Canadian girls. Fun gang.
Not surprisingly, the chinese govt is eyeing this gorge for a future dam project. Which is tragic in numerous ways. But hell, if i was gonna make a dam, this is where i'd make it. With that massive amount of surging water, screaming between two tight mountain faces, it's impossible not to be awed by the power (electricity?) it contains.
And rumour is, that China needs more power. And China does as China wants.
So.
I (and many others) feel very blessed to have been able to experience Leaping Tiger Gorge.
ps. I think my pix may give some clue as to the magnitude of this place, which i will of course post later. Somewhere.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)