China 2007

Our wake-up call was brutal - at 6 in the morning. I neglected breakfast and slept in, throwing much of the junk that should have been in my suticase into my carryon. We had to catch the pandas at the "Chengdu Research Center for Panda Breeding" while the weather was still cool, and they were out and about engorging themselves.

Our first impression was after a long and sweaty walk, first through vender's stalls where nothing but panda things could be seen for miles around, and then through the thick, decorative bamboo forests of the breeding center. The lush forests hardly parted way: large, open-air "enclosures" placed the tourists in a cage and the pandas running happily free.

While we were at the Panda Breeding Center, the first panda in 2007 was born. From the movie we saw, crowded into a hot, muggy room like the rest of the reserve, the baby pandas are little, ruddy runts that can fit in the palm of one's hand and look more like worms than bears. For lunch we had a delicious feast of panda meat. Just kidding! We scurried to the airport and ate in a secluded downstairs restaurant. The food wasn't spectacular, and the airport didn't have much to offer, including an ATM machine, especially after our flight was delayed for nearly an hour.

The plane was luxurious. Mrs. James took my seat until I needed it to videotape the landing. We came in on a wide valley, lush green for miles, then barren, shady mountains in the distance. We were served a decent meal, which fell, on our schedule, somewhere between lunch and dinner as we would feast on Tibetan delicacies many hours later as well. One of these such things was "pig's ear" - let's just say Air China was a bit more reserved. Our A330 was equipped with two outside camera, so we all watched the take-off and had a wonderful vantage point as we approached one of the longest and highest runways in the world. The touchdown was smooth as Chinese silk, and although we bulleted in around 200 knots, it was our best domestic landing so far.

When we stepped on the bus, silk scarves as a Tibetan goodwill gesture were passed out to us. Our guide declared that Lhasa was becoming too modern, so he pointed out many traditional Tibetan dwellings. They were built up on jagged stones and bricks, with small towers a few feet high accentuating the corners of each roof. Many colorful flags stuck out of these structures, as we drove through bumpy countryside for two hours to a village about 40 kilometers out of Lhasa, and 150 from the airport. Our guide, Nutu, explained the preparation and uses of Tibetan food, and taught us a few phrases. From the few airport signs I saw, the Tibetan scripture was very beautiful.

Prayer flags spotted the countryside. At every peak and hill in sign, flags were strung out above the valley. When we arrived the remote town of Tsedang, consisting of one long main avenue and a few residential alleys, we definitely got some strange looks. One old Tibetan lady grabbed the breasts of some of our group who were taking a picture with her. It was an 'interesting' form of greeting.

When I entered a China Mobile store to inquire about international calling, I got nowhere until Mr. Kozden started speaking Mandarin with the man. Tibetan is certainly the first language, and Chinese a close second. The extent of English, however, is "hello", "thank you", and "goodbye." I tried different SIMs, all under fifteen dollars (things are very inexpensive here,despite the remoteness), but none of them worked. By the time I had given up, a crowd had gathered of maybe ten to twenty people. They were a motley assortment, from middle-aged to ancient, all in it for the fun of watching. When I pulled out my camera and started videotaping, they swarmed with excitement. The smiles on their faces as I played back the recording were truly unforgettable.

As we walked past a government compound, the inside nearly reduced to rubble, two statues stood haunch on either side of the gate. Brightly colored, perfectly still - wait! These were real guards. I was across a vastly large street, with six lanes total for cars and rickshaws, under the shade of a tree, amongst a crowd and not standing out particularly. I lifted up my camera to take a picture, but before I had the chance to even turn it on, the guards started waving violent gestures from far across the street. Mr. Kozden immediately pulled me away, and I slunk into the shadows, embarrassed and scared. Mrs. James exclaimed, "You got pwned!"

I tried my best to get money exchanged, but the banks opened late and the exchange counter wouldn't take my "old-looking" hundred dollar bills. I now had fifty cents to my name, and I was in about five dollars debt already. The ATM down the street told me how much money was in my account, but wouldn't let me withdraw any of it. Besides the friendly Tibetan people, the Chinese side of this region seemed out to get me.