27 Feb 2015
18. China - Pt.2
(Note, I originally planned for this blog-post to make it to the Chinese / Laos border, but, after trawling through my many photo’s soon realised there was so much to show and would turn into a novel, so now this post only gets as far as Chengdu and will be a third Chinese blog-post from Chengdu to the border)
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Lanzhou is the capital of the Gansu province and with 3.6 million people it seemed like we’d entered a sprawling metropolis, but were soon informed that by Chinese standards it’s a small city!
As we headed toward the planned hostel we briefly stop for some fast-food and upon seeing our bikes a man approaches and starts talking to us. Charlie was a keen cyclist and intrigued by our obvious travels. After asking directions to the hostel he recommended we use the nearby university hotel and would gladly escort us there. The university campus was more like a small town - café’s, hair dressers, laundrettes, bars, shops galore serving the needs of the 20,000 students. Gansu Agricultural University taught everything involved within the agriculture chain from combine harvester and machinery design, fertilizer chemistry, through to the crop growth and food production - the entire process and every side-related subject that agriculture entails. Charlie attended the university several years earlier but now worked in the petroleum industry in the Philippines working a 6 week on / 6 week off rota - presently in an off period he had time on his hands.
Charlie, his wife Liu Qin and daughter Meixi.
The following six days proved to be the busiest of the tour so far, an almost A-list celebrity-like schedule, my Excel journal had never looked so packed, here’ it is with just some simple editing to suit;
Wed. 5th Nov.
Met Charlie, led us to the Gansu Agricultural University hotel, had dinner in cafe' opposite then walked around the university’s ‘village’ street sellers.
Thur. 6th Nov.
Charlie came to pick us up, dropped washing off at the launderette, drove to nearby café for a traditional beef noodle breakfast. Drove to the city centre to commence the visa extension application, then food in city’s oldest café, then looked around a market with stones, beads, and trinkets (bought one for my bike) and fake goods galore!, then walked over the Yellow River’s Zhongshan Bridge. Walked up to the White Pagoda Temple – gave an excellent view of the city! Back to Charlie’s apartment to cook them an English dinner (Chicken casserole, mashed potato and peas) with beers!, then to a small cafe to meet his friends (had many meet skewers there and a beer), then joined his friend in a taxi back to the campus.
Fri. 7th Nov.
Cycled the 8km to Charlie's apartment, went out for beef noodle breakfast then to his daughter’s kindergarten to meet the children and teach some English. Then to a Hot-Pot restaurant for so much food (it wasn't even mid-day!), cycled back to the campus to meet the Cycling Club but was postponed until 5:45 so done a few chores. Met the club later and talked to them then went to the [HUGE!] canteen with them for even more food!...I only ate a small amount!! Later we went to a bar with the Cycle club manager Sir Lee to see him play guitar...after waiting around in a coffee bar for an hour we were led up stairs to a plush room with a huge wine rack and some well-to-do people who turned out to be the University President and the Foreign-Affairs minister - he informed me they need English teachers..”nudge nudge wink wink” he said. We listened to a female Cello player student who was being graded along with Sir Lee playing his guitar, then later wine & Champagne tasting sitting around a posh table - Charlie said he was at the university for several years and never even met the president, we’d been in town for 5 minutes and was drinking Champagne with him!!
Sat. 8th Nov.
Had breakfast with student / cyclist Zhang Xing Ming, then to the cycle club for a chat (that never happened), had a go on the university army-cadet's harness tower and also rode around the bike park with Ouyang Guo Xing's mountain bike then to the golf course driving range - later having lunch there cooked by Sir Lee's wife. Then we were taken to our new hotel and had an 1 ½ hour break / nap before playing basketball for a while. Met at 6pm for dinner with Sir Lee, Mr Su and the three young students, far too much Chinese 'respect' wine shots along with a few games with looser taking shots. After restaurant the three of us went looking for night-life...found a reasonable bar, soon sitting with a load of students doing small beer drinks and eating sunflower seeds, on leaving Russ & Jake went to look for a student party, I retired for the night.
Sun 9th Nov.
Charlie came to pick us up at 8:30 but we all declined as too rough from the night before! Got up at 9:00 and done some overdue jobs - cleaned the bike, drafted a few emails on my pc. Charlie returned at mid-day and we went to cafe' near the first hotel, then drove to a city-centre bar and met members + wife’s from his football team came and soon we were playing card games... beer 'shots' for the looser. Later we went to a posh restaurant, 2 large round tables with food and soon more card games - Russ threw-up at the table!..and later in the taxi..too many penalty beers I guess.
Finished drafting my emails, sent from hotel PC. Finished cleaning the bike and washed a few clothes.
Mon. 10th Nov.
Departure day, Mr. Osh (a cyclist in his 70’s) said he lead us to the edge of the city so we met at the University bike shop. Finally managed to get the help I needed to post my parcel then a beef-noodle breakfast. We rode 20km with Mr Osh and one of the students to just where the climbs would commence.
Without meeting Charlie and his family the stay in Lanzhou would have been so different. We were lucky to have met him and thankful for the week’s events and not so much as letting us pay for anything from food through to accommodation, he was a real ambassador to his country! Thanks again Charlie! Here is a picture slideshow of the week’s events;
Departing Mr. Osh and Ouyang Guo Xing 20km out from Lanzhou where the start of the [unbeknown] six day climb would commence.
Back on the road we were now heading south, fortunate enough to have missed the forthcoming Chinese winter but with it still being rather cold we were looking forward to the warmer climate that southern China offered. My next country was to be Laos, and for the boys Vietnam, so at some point an inevitable split would occur, although this happened somewhat prematurely. The next big city was Chengdu ~1000km and on the second day of riding we paralleled a relatively new motorway and both the boys were keen to get on it, whilst I was quite the opposite. Having previously chewed out 3000km of motorway it was the last sort of road I wanted – preferring to pass through the small towns and villages offered by the road we were on (the G213). A while later I notice in my mirror the gap between myself and the boys increasing, soon it was so big I couldn’t see them, pulling into a petrol station for water I wait ten minutes for them but to no avail. Naturally assuming they’d found a way onto said motorway I continue - having rode together for the past six weeks or so I partly felt it was about time to go solo and this provided the opportunity, a while later I stopped at a road-side temple for a few photos, for some lunch and also to give them another chance just in case they were not on the [assumed] motorway, but after my thirty minute break there was still no sign, so I continued.
After passing through a 1.8 km tunnel we then cross over this huge bridge - highlighting the mountain n’ rivers area we were entering.
The first night solo I camped in one of-an-array of porta-cabins. Upon approaching the inhabitants appeared to be on mass evacuation with several cars and trucks loaded with peoples possessions. Indicating my intentions I’m free to choose a cabin and find one with an old unwanted thin mattress on the floor.
South of Gansu province is the Sichuan province, the name being an abbreviation of Sì Chuānlù or "Four circuits of rivers", which is itself abbreviated from Chuānxiá Sìlù or "Four circuits of rivers and gorges", so obviously a mountainous area. From departing Mr. Osh at the Lanzhou boundary the route had started to climb and with it now being winter the early morning starts were rather cold - typically 0’c so I was eager to head south pronto! Charlie said the city of Kunming would be warm but it would be a few weeks before I got there so for now it was hat and gloves!
Traveling solo can make camping easier. To stay shielded from the nighttime bitterly cold wind I started asking if I could camp on some people’s property to use their house as a shelter up against my tent but to my great surprise I was always offered a place to lay within their house, and normally food, another great show of Chinese hospitality to a total stranger.
The scenery was great and the higher I climbed the ever persistent the mountains became, each day I’d think it can’t keep climbing, but it did. One morning I woke and felt my chest not so much hurting but aching slightly, the altitude was almost at 3500 metres (11,550 feet) so obviously the air was becoming thinner - with the ascent taking so long on such a gradual gradient it was over-looked at what height I’d actually climbed up to. Occasionally I’d go over a small pass, and back down 20 metres or so before climbing up another pass slightly higher than before, so with each pass I’d think is this it? Will it be all down hill from here? All the passes’ in this province have a line of flags above the road, these are monk’s prayer flags and are used to bless the surrounding countryside, typically placed at any good location where the wind will catch them;
One of the many ornate buildings in the Gannan monastery complex.
A line of cylindrical Buddhist prayer wheels that circumnavigate small temples, rotated by passing each one as he / she walks around the temple saying their prayer.
A friendly farmer asks what I was looking for and soon gladly provides a warm place to stay.
In this area cattle is in abundance as is the cow-dung which provides a great source of fuel for the fires to supply the never ending cups of tea.
The local kids as curios as myself.
This area was featureless, almost characterless, dry and barren, a mountain desert with a certain appeal, few people and little traffic - a place where a city dweller would soon get bored and to survive a certain hardiness is required, thankfully I was in transit.
It just kept climbing….
and climbing..
At last, a good descent (notice the brake-failed truck on the truck run-off ramp on the R.H. side?)
A frozen snow melt river reiterates the temperature of the huge plateau I’d been crossing.
For six days the route continued like this, each night befriending a village local who would always gladly help out, each day climbing, climbing and then some more, so you can imagine how relieved I was to see this!
Passing this made me realize just how high I’d climbed, surpassing my previous record from the mountain pass in Kyrgyzstan, yet this - being so flat - never felt like a mountain. As the descent started greenery in the way of fir trees appeared, it was almost like Austria, the difference was surreal. Again a friendly local at what appeared to be a tourism village let me stay within one of their family-business chalets, the following morning I awoke to a thin covering of snow, cycling away with extreme caution and slowly descending through the narrow gorge the snow soon disappeared after a few kilometers.
“Yes I know I look like a big cuddly toy, but I am quite real!”
“Same with me, but although my teeth are showing I’m actually as soft as a cuddly toy”
As every good ascent finishes with a hairpin section, the same applies on a descent.
Descending the gorge was visually refreshing, at this time of year riverside greenery was the last thing I expected to see but now almost past the mountains, and on the southern side this proved to be the start of another climatic zone, such a big difference to the scenery from around the Taklamakan desert en-route to Lanzhou.
This particular area of the gorge is a well established tourist area due to the ancient philosopher Confucious, his principles had a basis in common Chinese tradition and belief. He championed strong family loyalty, ancestor worship, respect of elders by their children and of husbands by their wives. He also recommended family as a basis for ideal government and espoused the well-known principle "Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself", an early version of the Golden Rule.
The Chinese certainly don’t let any mountain stand in their way, although this isn’t really a tunnel...
this is a tunnel…although not the longest I went through!
Nop, still longer than this one…
Getting’ there, but still longer!! (wait for the next blog post!)
With China busy expanding at an alarming rate major changes to some of the roads meant changes to my plans. On the final day of this section the old road had merged with the new motorway, and the last tunnel of the gorge had a toll booth, expecting to be turned back I tried to sneak past by using the side of an articulated truck as cover but was caught red-handed and promptly told to turn back - to where I didn’t know! Fortunately there was a police officer parked up at the merged road-section so I asked what route I had to take to get to Chengdu, he pointed to the tunnel I was turned back from! Using my finest sign language he soon understood my problem and implied I’d need to catch a bus….Uh!, catch a bus?, on the side of a motorway? Albeit little traffic, what there was had formed an orderly queue tailing back from he toll booth. Soon a small coach comes by, flagging it down he tells the driver the story and he’s soon out the bus trying to get my bike into the empty luggage hold...but even with the panniers removed it wasn’t going in, not a chance…excellent I think, “they’ll have to let me ride through that tunnel!, 1-0 to me!” Wrong! The police officer suggests the bike goes in the coach with me, 1-0 to them! So with bike loaded off we go.
Soon the coach pulls into a depot at one of Chengdu’s satellite town’s. A friendly lad said he’d help me arrange the next coach to Chengdu itself, thankful for his help I explain that it’s only 30km away - in fact irrelevant of the distance the last thing I needed was to continue by a coach any further, 30km later I arrive at Chengdu. With a population of 14 million it’s the fourth most populous city in China and said to have been established around 1200 B.C.
Here I was lucky enough to see a couple of cheeky littl’ Pandas.
Next I head toward the city of Kunming where once again, China shows another side to its wonderful varied scenery.
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How lovely to see it all Mark you are a wonder mate
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