Met other cyclists and camped at border, arrived in China today
April 4th
My last day cycling in Laos wasn’t too bad. The roads were paved but bumpy and in several sections the road turned to dirt. I knew I wouldn’t make it to the border by the time it closed and when I got there I saw 3 other cyclists two Belgium woman and a French Canadian guy. The guest house was7 kms back and they usually camp so we went next to the village a couple kms from the Chinese border and pitched out tents. We made a fire and talked about our travels all of them have been going for a while. The woman came from Europe thru the middle east to here and the guy from Montreal has been going for even longer and has done South and central America, North Africa, central Asia and some other areas. It was kind of good to meet other people and camp with a fire which I don’t do very much because I’m by myself.
We biked into China today and had no problems getting in. It is pretty similar to other parts of Asia with a mixture of very poor and very modern areas. I came into a small city called Mengla which is probably bigger than any city in Laos except the capital. I got new brakes here and my wheels straightened out. I just need to get a new fork, which I’ll probably get in Kunming the province capital with about 3 million people and has a good bike shop. The people in China seem OK and don’t seem to be ripping me off. Actually it seems like China could be the cheapest so far for many things. No one knows English of course but I was able to find a place. I went ahead of the people I was cycling with so I lost them in town. I may see them somewhere tonight or on the road tomorrow.
Getting bike fixed, heading towards Dali
April 8th
I met up with my cycling friends in Mengla and we cycled into Jinghong together. That night in Mengla we met another Dutch cyclist as while we were eating diner.
4/5
The next day we didn’t go that far and we ended up staying at a guesthouse in a small town. I met another American cyclist who does smoke jumping back home and was going the other way so the whole group of us went to eat at a restaurant. It’s funny having six cyclists together in this small town. There were many other Chinese people getting really drunk in the restaurant and at the karaoke bar later. I rarely see Asians getting real hammered so I don’t know if it was a coincidence in this town or if Chinese people drink more than other Asians. It’s funny how each country has prostitutes around in a different setting. Like in Vietnam the woman are in the cafes. In China the woman are in a hair saloons with bright pink lights. I guess it could be illegal so they use the hair saloon as a cover. Needless to say the guesthouse was noisy and the karaoke was loud and irritating until about 1:30 when people came up to the rooms in the hotel.
4/6
The next day we pulled another short day and ended up camping after some town before a climb. The climbs have been about the same as Laos except there are trees on both sides of the road. It’s good to have shade but there aren’t really any views. I’ve also continued to have problems getting several flats a day and I have run out of extra tubes. I have realized a few problems by now. For one the patches I was recommended at the bike shop in Asheville are totally useless and last only about a day. They are basically stickers, so I recently bought the ones I used to use which are black and orange and use glue to apply. Another problem is that my tube was not big enough for my back tire which was larger than my old one. The last problem is just the lack of parts for my bicycle in Southeast Asia. They do have bike shops but even the tubes aren’t the right size many times or I can’t use my pump on them. It’s also been very hard to find wheels that are 28 inches, most of the bikes are 26 inches. I don’t need a new wheel but I would like a better one than the one I got in Cambodia. The four of us ended up camping that night behind a restaurant just a few kms after a town. It was funny because here are these four white people with our tent in all these tea trees and then a guy came down to do some clippings and acted like nothing was out of the ordinary. He just trimmed some different things and went on his way like it was normal.
Yesterday I considered hitching since my tube was in really bad condition but I ended up cycling anyway and made it to Jinghong luckily. I left in the early morning and the first part had a pretty huge climb and in many sections the road was washed away and was mud and rocks. There would hardly be any traffic at all if they weren’t building a super highway to Kunming next to the road we were on. So most of the time there are these huge noisy dump trucks passing by. I came into Jinghong and found a woman who had some tubes that were my size and my 2 Belgium and Canadian friends met me at this college guesthouse. Of course the woman there tried to rip me off at first and asked about $6 for a room, but after I was about to leave I got the regular price which was about 2 and a half dollars. We went out to eat at a western guesthouse and I found a decent bike shop with some parts which is the first since Chiang Mai, Thailand. I guess there was a good guesthouse in Vientiane, Laos that the Belgium girls told me about but I didn’t know about it.
We all took the day off today to take care of some things. This city is actually pretty nice and it’s very modern. The streets are lined with different shops like a shopping plaza and it’s also clean. The people in China in this area also seem pretty friendly and I haven’t encountered any problems. I went to the bike shop and I got a couple things and brought my fork to a guy who bent it back in shape. I was going to go towards Kunming for a bike shop but since I have most of what I need I’m going to just go up to Dali and then towards Tibet. I also put up my last photos of Laos and some from China so far.
Bike back to normal and things are going well
April 9th
I got my fork bent back in place this morning, got new brakes and I had no flats with my new tubes today. I hit the road before 11 and did about 80 kms to some small city where I got a room in an older guesthouse. Most of today was an incline and the roads weren’t that great except for one part. I ended up getting on a decent highway for a little while and luckily I took a break because a few 8 year old kids smoking cigarettes showed me on the map that I was below where I wanted to be. I was supposed to take a right to Menglan and I went straight on the road that went to Myanmar. A couple guys in the town showed me a different road that took me back to where I wanted to be. It was confusing because the road I needed to be on was 214 and the road to Myanmar was also 214. It wasn’t too far out of the way so it wasn’t a problem. The last part of the road was flat but bumpy with allot of pot holes. It was in a valley so it was flat farming areas on both sides and the mountains were about 10 kms away on both sides so there was more wind. I only have a map of Yunnan province that’s in Chinese so it’s a little difficult to explain where I’m at. I also was going to meet up with my other cycling friends, but I probably missed them when I went the wrong way or they could still be ahead further. They are going the same way as me towards Dali which is where I should be in about a week.
Yunnan province has the most ethnic diversity in China and it’s close to Myanmar as well so the people here look very different from each other. The woman who are working in the fields wear some pretty bright and elaborate dresses which is interesting. China certainly has a different feel from the other places in SE Asia that I have been. In South East Asia there are influences from many different places including China, but since China is so big everything from the television channels, to the architecture to the vehicles are pretty much Chinese. All the writing is in Chinese as well and hardly anyone knows English or what “hello” is. I really like it for these reasons because it really is a totally different world.
Worst road since Cambodia, luckily only 35 kms
April 10th
Last evening I got a beer from a lady and she was nice enough to open it with her teeth. I then went over to a few guys who yelled to me to come over who were eating and drinking. They didn’t know English of course and I knew the conversation would be about sex and I was right. Except this time the two guys were not referring to any ladies and instead themselves so I didn’t spend too much time there. I went back to the hotel and had a beer and the guy there didn’t have a bottle opener so he used his teeth as well. I should start a business selling bottle openers in that town.
I left town in the morning and the first few kms were flat and then uphill. There was a decent downhill and I got some food around noon. I was thinking how things were going well but thought the paved road was too bumpy and had too many potholes. It was so bumpy that my hands and feet were going numb from the vibrations. I guess I shouldn’t have complained because as soon as I hit the road it turned to dirt and was very bumpy, the worst since Cambodia except without the traffic. However, what made it worse was that it went uphill for the most part which was about 20-25 kms. The side of the road was sanding and some sections of the road were a type of cobbled stone but terrible to ride on. Yunnan province can be the hardest part of the trip as far as climbs go. At least there have been some better views than in the first couple days. I ended up catching up with the Belgium woman (Anka and Christine) and the guy from Quebec (Jibi.) Later the Dutch guy also passed us and was going to the next big city. The road went downhill and finally turned back to pavement, thank God. At least I know my bike is in good shape to take that abuse and have no problems again. The Canadian guy’s tire got so badly damaged he needed to use one of his extra tires. I made it to the bigger city just as it was getting dark. After being up in the mountains in some pretty remote area it’s weird to come to a decent modern city. I saw the Dutch guy Marius and I went to where he got a decent room and then we ate together. I think the others didn’t make it to town and probably camped.
More unexpected ups and downs, drank shots of warm beer at disco and Monk came in
April 12th
Yesterday the road was OK for the first 25 kms and then it turned back into a cobblestone nightmare. The next portion was uphill for a while and it seemed that I may have been at the highest point of my trip from the views that I had. I finally made it into this town with the last few kms paved. I got some food and I was really tired but I went to look for an internet place anyway. I didn’t find the internet place so I bought a beer and was going back to my room when I passed a disco/club place. The guy told me that I could take my beer in and there was no one in there so I went in for a drink. Other people came in and they don’t have mixed drinks so everyone was taking warm shots of beer. People would have a whole case of warm beer on the table and take shots and then go to the dance floor. I was offered free drinks all night and some girls dragged me on the dance floor. The western style music, lights and club arrangement was quite a large contrast to earlier in the day when I felt as if I was in the 1500’s riding on a dirt road observing people working in the fields. The highlight of the night for me though was when a monk in his orange rope came walking in smoking a cigarette and was drinking with everyone else. You would think he would at least change.
I got up late and reluctantly hit the road and it turned straight into dirt as soon as I left town. The first 25 kms or so were slightly downhill along a river and the last 55 kms were slightly uphill going against a current. After a while there wasn’t anything around to eat so when I saw a bunch of people I asked them about food. It didn’t turn out to be a restaurant but they gave me rice soup and some mixed liquor drink and wouldn’t take money. The road wasn’t quite as bad as yesterday but my tire finally busted, the sidewall tore open. I had a patch to help me get further and the tire went flat as I came to a police/military checkpoint. They checked my passport and then as I went to fix my tube and tire some guys came over and were so eager to fix the flat that I went next door to eat dinner and when I was done they were finished. It’s amazing how the people who could give you the hardest time end up helping you or being interested the most. They guys even took several photos of me and seemed impressed to meet an American. The last 20 kms were on a great paved road so I guess the worst is over but I won’t get my hopes up. I got a room at a guesthouse and one of the younger guys there was nice enough to bring me to the internet place, which are difficult to find in China.
Good road got tire fixed, internet places are hidden in China
April 13th
The one guy who brought me to the internet place last night came to my room to bring me to a place to get a new tire. The lady didn’t have a tire that fit quite right but a guy that was there ended up fixing the tire I had. I hit the road going up current again and most of the day was uphill but at least it was the best paved road I’ve had in China. The last 30 kms were downhill at least and I arrived in a good sized city called Lincang after about 105 kms. I looked around for the internet place which took about a half hour. They don’t really have that many places it seems and they are always seem hidden on the second floor of some random area. I’m not sure if there is a reason for this but it makes things much more difficult for me. I don’t know the word for internet so I’ve been using gestures which people don’t always understand and of course no one knows English in China. It’s also harder to use the computers here than in other parts of Asia. I haven’t been able to easily download pictures, the language is mainly in Chinese and even though the program is Microsoft it still doesn’t seem to work the same. In the other parts I’ve been the computers work the same as home and there is more English as well.
Mellow day, got naked behind restaurant to bath and seen by locals
April 14th
I had a pretty good day today considering most of the 130 kms were downhill except 20. This is actually the biggest day I’ve pulled since Laos. It rained for about an hour by the last part of the day riding downstream in a canyon was pretty nice and reminded me of when I biked thru hells canyon in Idaho. I found a place to stay near the river in an old brick building for $1.25. Let’s just say it wasn’t the Hilton but it wasn’t too bad if you don’t mind the medieval dungeon setting. They didn’t have a shower so I was going to go down to the water when the woman at the restaurant next door showed me a nozzle behind her place. It was not totally dark and no one was around so I got naked to bath and 15 seconds later a guy in a cart pulled up and then a girl and an old woman walked by a little later. I put on my towel when they came by, I just laughed because it must have been pretty funny for them to be on their way home and there is not only someone naked behind a restaurant but the person is some goofy looking white dude.
Mostly uphill, many big dogs in China and fly’s in restaurants
April 15th
Most of today was uphill which I wasn’t surprised considering most of the day before was downhill. Actually I think I had the largest uphill which was around 30 kms straight. Usually it’s about 20 to 25 kms and then some down. There are certainly allot of dogs in China and there is also a large variety in the types of dogs like in the US. The other parts of South East Asia don’t have that much variety and most are smaller. There are also much fewer dogs in general (I think most of them got ate during the famines in the 1970’s and 1980’s.) Almost any place I pass seems to have a dog or two and luckily the most vicious ones are tied up but some have chased me. Most won’t bite you but they can still be annoying. Many of the dogs are huge as well like German Shepard’s which isn’t that nice. The food has been good in China but the restaurants seem to be filled with so many house flies at times that it’s actually uncomfortable at times to eat in them. I didn’t notice this in other parts of South East Asia. I found a place to stay in this town for a couple bucks and tomorrow should have a good amount of downhill. I saw the lady next door had a computer so I went to ask her where I could use one. She didn’t understand and she happened to have the internet so I went ahead and used it assuming it would just be easier than trying to find an internet place.
Got package in Dali, had a drink at Franks, taking a couple days off in the old historical city
April 17th
I biked to the new city of Dali yesterday which was mainly uphill. I came into town and a guy who knew some English helped me find a cheap place. It was another place that resembled a dungeon and there was no bathroom except a sink next to the stairs which was also used for the mops and as a food disposal. I walked around the city a little which is probably the biggest city I have been in. There were some really nice restaurants and bars, I stopped in a couple for some drinks and some food. I went into one place called “Franks” and thought maybe I’d run into some old western guy or something, but instead I ran into a bunch of gay guys eager to get me into the Jacuzzi. I kindly declined.
I got up today and went over to the post office to see if my package was there. I wasn’t sure if the package would be here or in old Dali which is 18 kms north just to make things more confusing. I found the post office and the girl told me to go to another place around the corner where people pick up things and luckily my package was there. I could have used this package sooner since it has two tires and extra tubes but at least I have a charger for my I pod now and some winter gear. I then biked to the old capital of region Dali which is really nice and historical. The majority of the town looks as it did hundreds of years ago and there are many sites around. I’m gonna take a couple days off and make sure I have everything I need before I head to Tibet, which is about 500 kms away. I also put up a bunch of photos that I was unable to do in the last week.
Bought extra gear for Tibet and feeling a little sick in Dali
April 20th
I took my third day off in Dali because yesterday I went to the bathroom about 25 times. I figured it wouldn’t be good to hit the road and have to stop every 20 minutes to go to the bathroom, which could literally mean shitting in someone’s front yard. Dali is actually one of the nicest cities I’ve been in, but of course it’s real touristy and some people will rip you off. A guy came up to show me that my sandal was a little torn so he went to fix it and put on some more tread on the bottom. I asked him the price first and he was mumbling and I knew he was going to rip me off, so first he asked about $20 so I laughed and gave him less than $3 and walked away. Locals would probably pay less than a dollar. There is a large mountain range west of town and to the east is a large lake and the town looks as if it’s a thousand years old so it draws allot of Chinese and western tourists. I moved from the hostel I was at to this cafe/bookstore down the road where this really nice laid back woman has only 2 rooms above the cafe, so it’s a good place to relax that’s not crowded with people. She also has a great movie selection so I’ve watched a couple movies as I recover. I may take off tomorrow or stay another day if I’m feeling sick. I’m only about 400 kms from where Tibet begins. I also bought a good cortex jacket that would be about $150 in the US for only about $40 here and I bought a sleeping bag worth at least $100 US here for around $18 that’s for zero degrees. If it gets colder than that I also have my other sleeping bag to use inside it which should be enough.
Saw first snowcapped peak on way to Lijiang
April 22nd
I left Dali yesterday morning since I was feeling OK. I would have stayed longer since I had a great place to stay but it gets harder to move the longer you stay in one place. I pulled about 100 kms yesterday to a small city. I had one climb that was about 15 kms but the day wasn’t too bad. However, I’m definitely feeling the new weight that’s on my bike and it’s a good time because it’s definitely getting colder. I used my biking sneakers for the first time today. I’ve used sandals just about the whole time up to now. Last evening I went into a restaurant and a few guys invited me over and I ordered food. It’s amazing how far you can get with gestures to get information. The ended up paying for my food and beers that night which made it worth it. Its funny how there’s always is a guy whose drank too much and repeats himself. The same happened with one of the guys except it was gestures so it was even more annoying.
I took off today with about 70 kms to get to another historical city like Dali called Lijiang. As I was biking today I was wondering where all of these hundreds of buses were headed that were passing me on a Saturday afternoon. I knew exactly where they went as I pulled into the old city thru narrow streets packed with thousands of tourists. It’s almost nicer than Dali in some ways but it’s certainly more crowded. It’s funny because many of the groups of tourists have the same color hats and the tour guide has a flag for them so they don’t get lost like little puppy dogs. That evening I walked around and the city and the Chinese tourists were having a ball. People were singing across the restaurants to each other in large groups and tons of people were dancing in the square. It was kind of reminded me of a Chinese spring break or something. I should take off tomorrow for Tiger Leaping Gorge.
Went thru one of the largest gorges in the world called Tiger Leaping Gorge
April 24th
I left Lijiang yesterday morning heading north towards Tiger Leaping Gorge. I wanted to go to the west side of the gorge but I ended up taking the road that went to the east side by accident. My map didn’t have detailed info but it didn’t really matter anyway. However the last 15 kms or so into Deju where I stayed were cobbled stoned nightmare so which made a slow decent. I found a place as it got dark and the woman knew English which was nice. I had considered sending my bike somehow to the west end and spend a couple days hiking the gorge but I didn’t think it was possible so I decided to bike it today.
I got up and headed over to the ferry that took me across the Yangzi river to the other side which was interesting. It was real steep getting down as well as coming up on the other side so I paid a guy to help me up the one side or I would have to take two long trips up. Just about at the top I heard my tire burst. I wasn’t surprised the tire was getting real bad especially after the long decent on the bad road the evening before so I put on one of my new tires and hit the road around noon. The ride thru the Tiger Leaping Gorge was only about 30 kms but it was one of the best views of the trip. The gorge itself is one of the largest in the world and is 3900 meters from the water to the top. I’m sure I’ll see some more of this in Tibet. I pulled a short day today to the other side of the gorge where the woman who runs the guesthouse is from England I think.
April 25th
I took and headed towards Zhongdian (Shangralila) to end this part of the trip. The next part I will bike from here into Tibet and then to Kathmandu, Nepal.
