Early up, to visit the Monastery with our local guide JiuJa, he was a cool dude.. he had a swagger and a knock off North Face jacket. His english was excellent and he is a very dedicated buddist.

He gave us a really good explanation of all the protectors and buddhas, it is all so complex. He was also know by the monks, it had a good feeling.

We sat infront of the main Chanting hall, as the monks were being called to prayer, they all meet on the steps and starting chanting different prayers, and when everyone is there they go into the hall... It was great to watch.. all the colours, and they didn't seem to care we were there.

After they were all inside, we walked through a side door and went through the chanting room to get to another section.. it was amazing to see the temple full of monks, it adds context to it all.. It was very much like something out of the Eddie Murphy film Golden Child, without the cheap Americanisms.. but it was quite magical.

Jiuja then took us to a small cafe for lunch, which he helped prepare, it was a very simple local dish like chuncks of noodle with chunks of meat, the best part was really sitting in a local cafe - doing what they locals do.. rather than eating western food... or trying to.

In the afternoon we checked out the nunnery.. and another monastery from a different sect.. Red Hat, Yellow Hat - or something.. basically this other sect don't have to shave their heads - so the monks looked cuter !

Dinner was across the street from the hotel and Yak was the order of the day... The literal translation of the chinese word for Yak, is Hairy Beef - which gave us an idea what to expect! It was actually a little of an anti-climax, it just tasted like good beef... I think this disappointment pushed crazy adrian SIX... to want Dog and Snake... sometime on the trip....
Pudding was a winner - battered banana - just like chinese restaurants at home... very good...

Andy O, set himself up for a catchphrase at this dinner... when we had finished and were full, Mickey politley asked if we were full, Andy O replies "I could just go a couple more plates of Sweet and Sour pork and two more of those Bananas".... was he joking - was he hell.. so out came yet more food!!
Even with all that it was still really cheap as ever!

Mickey, Adrian and Sam got into a Beijiu night - which I avoided, I was feeling a bit down - missing Chrys, so I spent a few hours writing emails home :-) much better than Beijiu... For the uninitiated.. it is Rice Wine.. which you could run cars on.. evil stuff.. after 2 you are spinning, after 3 you don't know your name... etc etc... Adrian must have endured a lot, as he was up every couple of hours in the night... and he wasn't looking too healthy!!

Tommorrow we head more rural to Langmusi, and we have been prepped for 'terrible' roads for 6 hours - very glad I won't have a hangover!