Saturday, July 30, 2005

Had a leisurely morning sipping coffee at Starbucks by Houhai Lake, then caught the afternoon flight back to Hong Kong. Always very nice to have the use of an airport lounge.

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Friday, July 29, 2005

Flew back to Beijing and met up for dinner with my friend Peifeng, who was in town on business from HK.

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Thursday, July 28, 2005

Set off early for Tian Chi Lake with a Chinese tour group. No leg room on the bus, jammed in like sardines! We got to the cable car and I had to pay again for a ticket that I'd already paid for the night before (got it refunded later when I got back). Visibility was not that great, which sort of neutralized the whole point in making the trip. People everywhere milling around, taking pictures. On the way back, our bus stopped twice at places to get us to buy stuff. Overall, a complete waste of time and money.

When I got back to the hotel and was waiting for the elevator, my Brazilian friend Renata, who had visited me in HK just prior to my trip, came bouncing up and gave me a big hug. Last I'd heard, she was in Xian, headed for Beijing, and she thought I was already back in HK. Needless to say, we were both stunned at bumping into each other!

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Wednesday, July 27, 2005

Left pretty early for the airport, had my bottle of wine confiscated at security, otherwise an uneventful hour and 15 minute flight to Urumqi. Went straight to the Brazilian restaurant for the lunch buffet. Hung out in the afternoon. Then went for another buffet at a cafe around the corner, featuring Curacao cuisine, of all things. The owner, Annette, is from there.

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Tuesday, July 26, 2005

Left in good time, some spectacular scenery along the Karakoram Highway. The lake itself was a bit of a disappointment, which started with being accosted by some thugs demanding RMB50 for an admission ticket. Put up a bit of a protest but smelled a potential for violence, so coughed it up, though not without staging a derisive protest. On the way back, came across a bunch of people standing on the road. Then saw that their bus had plunged over the side into a ravine and was lying upside down. Couldn't believe I didn't see any injured. A soldier commandeered my taxi and rode with us down the road a ways, till we got to a checkpoint, where he got off.

Further down, we were again flagged down by someone whose jeep had broken down, so we again had company till the next town about half an hour down the road.

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Monday, July 25, 2005

Finally gave up waiting around for companions to go to Karakul Lake with, just went out on the street, grabbed a taxi driver and negotiated a solo day trip, agreed on RMB400 for one person, 500 for two if I could get someone to join me. Most people want to stay overnight rather than drive all that way and back in one day.

Spent the day relaxing.

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Sunday, July 24, 2005

Went to the famous Sunday Market. Again, disappointing, didn't stay long. Came back and took it easy, reading and drinking beer.

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