Last Days in China

Taking up where Sally stopped in Zhange: Lonely Planet says Marco Polo stayed for a year in Zhange and I'd bet that it probably was nicer when he was there, after the 160 km on the bus it was another big busy city. After the solitude we experienced for most of China we decided that there really was no reason to stay in more cities than necessary and since it was about noon we decided to catch the next bus to points north. Almost as soon as we got off that bus we were on another bus to Jiayuguan, a 4 hr ride on rough roads. A nice local lady got us a room in a cheap hotel and we were not bothered by the "Hotel Police". During the bus ride we discussed various options: continue on or return to North America were the top vote getters. We still wanted to check out the rest of the Hexi Corridor and we were a good 1700 km from Urumqi which was to be our last major stop in China all along. We really wanted to take the train but the "booking office" was no help as far a bikes and told us we needed to go to the train station. So we rode across town to the station only to find long lines, no English spoken, and the lines moving slow. We knew that there was an18 hr. "sleeper bus" ride available to Urumqi but after our "sleeper bus" in Vietnam we were a bit leary. After a night of limited sleep we hit the bus station @ 6:00 and were on the bus shortly after. 18hr later, and actually a pleasant ride: bus was not full, few smokers who did move to the front to smoke, all friendly folks, we pulled in Urumqi about midnight and got a room in a hotel next to the bus stop. During the ride we confirmed to ourselves that we just didn't have it in us emotionally or mentally to continue with Central Asia. The Hexi Corridor was a dark, barren, gravelly desert. We experienced cold winds and the occasional break from the flat expanse by going thru hilly/mountainous terrain. However it would not be a fun place to ride a bike as it is VERY dry and water scarce and often a long distance between small, poor villages. The deserts of the American Southwest have a much more varied terrain and much more vegetation. Up the next morning to find a nicer hotel, with computer in the room, and make plans to leave. Not knowing where we were made it interesting to figure out how to get to the part of town we wanted to be in but we finally got close and a local man, street cleaner actually, showed us this place. Nice place but the keroke bar really kicks in betwen 11 pm& 3am and rocks the whole 6 story concrete building, we are one floor directly above. After many hours thru the day and night trying to find a reasonably priced plane ticket leaving in as few as days as possible we were getting frustrated by getting kicked out of websites, advertised fares no longer there, credit cards not being accepted. Finally I wrote my cousin and asked for her help. She got hold of her ex and he had many of the same problems but after countless emails between us as we both were searching we finally got our ticket home. So we have had several days in Urumqi which is a large city with many different ethnic groups which results in a wonderful change to our diet. Apparently a few years ago there was some rioting by different ethnic groups so it may not be quite as "calm and peaceful" underneath as it appears to us. We have had, again, a wonderful experience with the local people. We have gone to the nearby park on top of a big hill a couple times, rode across town (Chinese people here really have no idea of how to drive compared to other cities) to check out the Urgur Market. Not quite what we expected as it has been rebuilt into a big mall; not the old time market one expects to find in an old silk road trading area. Just another big Chinese shopping center!! Also a ride out to the airport to confirm our flights and find out what was required to check our bikes. We were repeatedly told just show up and pay money, no box required. In an optimistic mood we returned to the hotel. Thinking it was all to simple and since we change air carriers in Bejing to Delta, and being leary that Delta would decide they would not take a bike not boxed up, we decided to get a box at a local bike shop. So today we rode back to the shop and confirmed they will save us a box and we'll pick it up tomorrow on the way to the airport. So, we leave tomorrow night for Bejing. After an 8 hr layover and 11.5 hr flight from Bejing we arrive in Seattle at 5:30AM. We leave at 8:50am on the 1st and arrive at 5:30am on the first so at least we arrive younger than when we left China!!! We'll spend some days in Seattle / Tacoma with good friends and then hit the road for 6-8wks of riding in the Pacific Northwest or even further east, as well as including Vancouver Island. We have had a great trip, met many many wonderful people everywhere we've been. We have seen some beautiful countries, had wonderful experiences and even now we long to return to Central Asia, possibly in the late summer/fall of 2013. I don't know that I can say the trip has been "life changing" but taking a trip by bike, to us, is the best way to explore a country, to experience the people, the culture, the sights and smells. It is a slow way to travel and although we had some tough sections physically the real challenge is in the way you approach each day. Keep an open mind to what you may encounter, don't plan to far ahead, don't research your route too much (although we probably should have done more in a few instances) and enjoy the people; they are what make the trip so memorable.

Land of the Graves

We left the area of Lanzou and headed northward through the "Hexi" corridor. We had planned to take the so called scenic route from our last destination, but it was pretty evident after the first 10km of trucks, more trucks, broken road surface, traffic etc..that Hell "lets take the other road". We now had the choice of 2 other routes(one surely was more scenic as it was closer to the mountains). The other route would take us through the famed "Hexi corridor" and on. He advised of a swedish guy we had met previously we decided on the route straight north out of Lanzou. Well...........there was one particularly nice area that we camped in and our first snow storm. Awoke in the mornign to spectacular mountain views off in the distance and visitations by many sheepherders. From there we climbed up over a Pass and then...the landof desolation. Initially it wasnt to bad but we left the mountains behind and the area became drier and drier. Particulary what was evident were the numerous Muslin grave sites everywhere. Stark landscape with rock piles and sticks marking graves. We have experienced the horrendous wind and sand storms that whip up. We were riding one day into a dark brown dreary sky. In fact we didnt see any kind of horizon that whole day. We continued on and the "feeling" in the air was not pleasant. After experiencing so much smog in China we are often deluded into thinking it was yet another smog bank from some other city. Our common sense somehow kicked in and we realized that "maybe" this wasnt just smog. So after we had downed a beer at the lcoal mercantil store we decided to pitch the tent behind a thousand year old mud wall(maybe two thousand year old). We were not a moment to soon before the trees were swaying and bending and the wind just howled. It felt like doomsday out there. There was very little visibialty and at one point I went for a stroll looking for a lost windblown item. I was just wandering around the graves looking out into nothingness and wondering "why would anyone live here?" Next morning the sun was shining and we were alive! The question arose about continuing on with the trip or taking a break. We rode out into a horrendous headwind riding a whoping great 30km before we decided to bag it and get a room to recoup and regroup. I had decided that the guy who recommended riding this area must have been on crack(no offense) I was under duress. We decide there was no point in riding this section and was at least going to bus it to Zanghe or points further north. Even though we were on a secondary road and there was a perfectly good freeway nearly next to us the majority of traffic used the secondary roads(toll fees to high?? I dunno) and the buses and trucks and cars all drive peddle to the metal and communicate soley with a blaring horn. I was continually lamenting " the road not taken....the road not taken". Sal

What to do?

Gansu Province has been interesting and challenging. More road construction and as you may know a bad crack in my rear wheel (now Sally's rear wheel since that reduces the weight on the wheel), her broken rear rack and two nights ago my rear rack broke. I think my rack is/was 20 yrs old. Got it splinted up with a tent peg and some hose clamps coupled with a piece of rubber rope and it seems to be holding fine. We are about 200 km east of Zhangye, in the Hexi Corridor, in a hotel complete with all the luxuries of life. We've been battling the wind for several days and yesterday was quite nasty so we bailing in here after about 35 km of strong headwinds. Today seems nice but we're sure the wind will pickup again so have decided to take a bus to Zhangye and ponder our next move. The "Corridor" centuries ago was the main route into/out of the "MIddle Kingdom". Today it is a busy highway thru a very arid landscape dotted with poor villages with people scrapingn out a living farming, somehow, this barren, rocky land. Lots of building construction which in China seems to mean lots of big, new empty buildings. Tower cranes everywhere!!! We are just starting to see some hills to the south but nothing different than we have seen for the past at least 2 weeks. Thus we are ready for some different scenery; where that scenery will be is the question we have been asking ourselves. Physically we are doing OK, a bit worn down from the past few months. Mentally we are a bit worse for the wear but hanging in there. We'll probably spend a day in Zhangye and try to catch a train to Urumqi (per original plan). From there where do we go in Central Asia and how do we get there; or do we go to ..... The answer to that question should be divined over the next week. If we show up someplace unexpected don't be surprised. Stay tuned for a few more frequent updates over the next few days.

Onward to Infinity and Beyond

Well we are ready to roll and hopefully not wobble, with one cracked rear rim, one welded rear rack and no police chasing us! Outside the landscape is pretty stark. Something like the area of Big Bend near Hell Paso(El Paso, TX) but redder and bigger. We have no idea what the road will be like but im sure if there is a construction site out there we will find it.

Pleasant memories of the folks we hae met along the way. Always curious and forever helpful. Sometimes to helpful as we have found here in Ganzu province. We make a sincere effort to camp away from towns and villages because we will be overwhelmed with visitors and thermos's!! One place we camped up above the village thought we would have a peacful evening. Well once we were spotted they came to visit bringing us gifts, kinda like the 3 wise men. A thermos of lukewarm water which we gratefully drank then some "greens" then more greens and onions for our meal, and even after we had eaten another lady brought us a bag of cooked greens, some weird looking noodle(looked like an unravelled onion ring) . We would thank them profusedly and hope they would go away, which eventually they did(when it was getting dark). One older lady I took her dry worn hands and massaged them with hand lotion, which she loved. So of course a few more ladies showed up wanted their hands massaged!. I actually enjoyed that part. Just as we were about to turn in Stan (my wise husband) decides to set off his firecrackers that he forgot to light on his birthday. Guess what? More visitors...

Next am we were awoken by the shaking of the tent fly. I peeked out, it was 6:30am an one of evening visitors had brought us 2 thermo's of hot water and her grandson motioned for us to wash! Wash! heck that's not on our agenda at 6:30am. I had them take one thermos back and shooed them away. As we were paking up yet another lady showed up with a thermos. Even though the water in our bottles would be cold once out of the thermos she insisted we used thermos water. Wow what can you say about the hospitality. I doubt if Marco Polo had it this good..dont think they had thermos's then!

Dont talk to me about construction. Somehow I end up having a potty-mouth on a continual basis with every bump we hit. The annoying factor here in China is when doing road construction they don't leave any real rideable or even driveable terrain, also they appear to do the whole 150km or so at one time rather in increments..highly annoying and once again part of asian mentality I don't understand. They continue to be building massive freeways everywhere (or eveywhere we have been) and meanwhile their secondary roads which the majority of the population use are falling apart. Most people here don't own a car so I'm not sure why they eed so many more freways. I guess it looks good?

Unfortunately, we have missed the Tibetan/Buddhist areas of China mostly due to our prior diversion. We would have liked to have seen more and perhaps up ahead we still may. This area has been predominatly Muslim and their mosques we have seen have been quite impressive. The people have been so warm and kind which makes up for some of their shortcomings, ie: garbage is not garbage in their eyes I guess. The garbage factor had increased and it is sad to see the river banks streaming in plastic and trash.

So take the good with the bad. The worst experience so far has been the special task force showing up on your doorstep escorting you away. As in the police just following their rules from their government or whoever decides the rules. The reason it is so upsetting, despite the obvious, is that I wonder if that is how it is here for some unfortunate souls. "They" show up at your doorstep and "You" dissapear!. I have a feeling that is how it is.

Keep us in your happy thoughts and we will stay postive, it is time to depart here and to eventually depart China while the memories are good.

Friday the 13th

Apparently, according to Sally, bad luck hits in combo's of three and today was no exception. After several days of challenging riding thru some beautiful but very arid country, and about 3 weeks ahead of spring arriving, some very cool riding weather, cold mornings, lots of highway construction (what little constructing that was actually going on) which results in very rough rocky roads and constant braking on the long downhills our luck ran out.

First: Sally's rear pannier rack broke. Fortunately we were able to get it fixed by a really nice man in a small welding shop.

Secondly: Shortly thereafter I discovered my rear wheel is cracked about 2" long near the rim. Thus we are stuck here in whatever this town is called. Located about half way between Xining and Lanzhou on highway 109 (with the junction of 309). We're working a a fix/new wheel and hope to continue riding tomorrow. We hope and pray, and ask you to as well, that the wheel lasts for another 300km and then we hope to catch a bus/train to Urumqi.

Thirdly: Needing to find internet to fix item 2 above we finally found a cheap hotel w/ internet. After sending out a few emails regarding the above items, doing a small bit of laundry, a HOT shower we were visited by the police advising that we had a problem. Actually they had a problem with us not staying at an "approved foreigners hotel". We have no way of knowing what is approved and what isn't but were more than happy where we were. Long and short of it is that after an hour of talk we moved to an approved hotel for no more money and includes internet. Actually it's a much nicer place and even has good TV reception with news in English: CCTV (China news agency).

Anyway we've had a great ride thru China enjoying the people most of all, the food second. The environment has been trashed by plastic, trash, garbage, feces, coal, no regulations on road/dam construction pollution, exhaust from all types of vehicles, etc. The agricultural sector has to be the worlds largest user of visqueen (sheets of plastic) that is used to trap moisture in the soil in this arid country. It works but eventually is shredded by either the wind or they rip it up after the crops have a foothold; then the wind blows it all over. Large sheets/strips of plastic line the edges of the fields, the roads and the trees. This ride would really be nice in 2-3 weeks once they have had a bit of rain and the fields start to turn green.

We will continue northwards on backroads from here towards Zhangye on highway 227 or towards Wuwe on a small road just east of 227. Hope to reach Urumqi in two weeks to claim a new wheel and rack, hopefully. We are both feeling a bit the effects of this extended trip but overall doing well physically. The trip has been more emotionally challenging than physical although there has been plenty of that as well. We are looking forward to returning home to Alaska and some unspoiled wilderness.

Dangchang

Taking a rest day here south of Lanzhou byabout 300 km. We'll head out to the NW tomorrow to bypass Lanzhou and try to get thru some Tibetian areas before entering the Naxi Corridor which is much more Muslim. The Muslim influence is quite predominate in this town despite all the liquor stores, pork for sale and no call to worship.

The country here is very arid but also very mountainous with great relief. We actually saw some snow capped peaks in the distance yesterday as the smog finally lifted. The country is something between Afganistan, Pakistan and Rock Springs, WY in term of physical appearance. Lots of compacted mud houses with walls about 16“ thick.

We hope to be in Urumqi by the end of the month to get our kazakhstan visa and then we'll bus to close to the border and ride from there. Should be home by July or early August at the latest. All well and this hotel has the best hot shower we've had on the trip!!!

Wednesday, April 4, 2012, 1:13 AM

Continuing on ...the area here is dry and stark and culturally another world. The amazing thing is there is no smog in this city!!!! We were dreading gettign through it due to smog issues that hang out especially in the valleys. They are using 3 wheeled electric cars here!! wow.. The river is still a dumping ground but for once the air is relatiely clear. We are resting up before we do the last push of our journey here in china. The last leg we rode, once again ended up being yet another new freeway under construction...I now know the inside and outside of one of those monsters. Fortuantley we have left the construction zone behind but im sure we will see it again.

Stan and I both agree that Ganzu wins on the hospitality and friendly department. People have been lovely towards us and we feel blessed. One lady gave us vegetables from her garden/farm antohger family gave us some apples, people want us to stay with them. Their curiosity is overwhelming at times. We stayed across the river from a small town as it was to windy to continue and we recieved visitors continually until everyone finally went to bed. They are all so nice but it is exhausting at times as we are usually tired and just want to "chill" but it comes with the package of travelling.

Tomorrow we continue on to an area called the Hexi corridor it will take us at least 10days to get there ..probably in 3weeks or less we will be in Urumchi and then apply for visas to kazakstan. All is well sunny and cool in the evenings...updates to come