It's Go Time

The train ride to Kunming wasn't too bad. The worst part was having to endure the loud Chinese top 40 music that is blasted throughout the train "as entertainment" until they turn off the lights at 10:00pm. The music is really loud, and because my bed was right next to the speaker, it was especially loud. The Chinese don't seem to mind listening to music or televisions at very high volumes. The next day though, I met a Chinese girl who was returning home one last time before she heads off to Michigan to do her master's degree. Her English was fantastic and she was just cool.
The weather in Kunming was lousy so I hopped on a bus and headed for Dali. When I arrived in Dali, I had been traveling for almost 30 hours so it was great to be rested. Dali is cool. It's a walled city at the base of a mountain and is next to China's 7th largest lake. I biked around the lake as much as I could before dying of exhaustion. Along the way,. I passed through villages and cornfields. All the kids yelled hello as I peddled along. On Monday, I went to Yunnan Province's largest market, the Shaping market. We didn't buy anything, but we did take many photos of the Bai people (the minority group in this region) and their wheelings and dealings. Need some meat? (picture above) Probably the highlight of the market was watching a little boy molding a building out of mud. When he needed more mud, he dropped his pants, pissed on the dirt, then started playing with the mud!
One night we stopped into a bakery for sweets and I did what I always do-point to what I want, ask how much it costs in Chinese, then pay. This time however, I noticed a sign next to the counter that stated that this bakery was owned and operated by deaf people. I started signing to the cashier and she signed back to me! Her mouth just dropped with surprise and excitement. We talked for about five minutes before saying good bye. I never did learn how she came to know American Sign Language.
Probably the highlight of the Dali though was meeting so many people in the city guesthouses. Sunday night, me, three Dutch people, an Australian, a Northern Irish girl, and the sassiest Scottish lass I've ever met sat in a cafe and chatted about everything. When the topic ventured towards world politics, everyone let me know that think George Bush is just the stupidest person and they cannot understand why he believes what he does. Nevertheless, they like America. I also learned that people in other countries know so much about the United States (our current events, geography, culture, etc.). I think it's pretty safe to say that most Americans have no clue about what's happening in other countries. Two of the Dutch people around the table will be going to North Korea for three days. They described the trip, and it just sounds unlike any trip I've ever heard. I'd want to check out North Korea for a few days, but I'm not allowed. I'm American!
Yesterday, I landed north in Lijiang. Beautiful old town charm, but flooded with Chinese tourists. I'm at a crossroads now because I need to make some decisions. I have less than two weeks here and I need to fit my plans in by then! Either way, Tiger Leaping Gorge is my next stop. I've never heard so many people describe a place as being so incredibly beautiful.