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ZOIGE/RUOERGAI

I didn’t like Zoige/Ruoergai very much because quite frankly, the rough-looking Tibetan nomads looked pretty scary to me.  Most wear traditional ‘chorpas’ (long-sleeved Tibetan coats) and many cover their faces as if they’re afraid of being recognized.  The official reason for this, I was told, is that face covers are to shield them from heavy winds and cold (yeah, right, in July?!).

In Zoige, we stayed in the smallest hotel room ever, with no windows or air ventilation.  No showers onsite, but at least there’s a common toilet down the hall, filthy, but usable.  No worries for us, as we planned to leave the next morning for Langmusi.  I know it was only one night, but I just couldn’t sleep in that room; I felt claustrophobic there.  Eventually, I did find a way to relax and get some sleep, by keeping the door open to the hallway to get some fresh air – I took a chance on our safety for sure, but it was the only way I could get some much needed sleep!

LANGMUSI

Kathy and I are in full agreement that LANGMUSI was our favourite destination in Western Sichuan, by far! First of all, it is situated on the border of Gansu and Sichuan Provinces, and is home to two monasteries: Sezhi Monastery in Sichuan Province, and Geerdeng Monastery in Gansu Province. Langmusi is really special in that to the west you have alpine scenery, and to the east: grasslands as far as the eye can see. Its surrounding countryside is dotted with temples, caves and hills, some of which are used for sky burials (you don’t want to know!). The scenery is really outstanding and excellent for long walks and hikes.

Sana Hotel was our home in Langmusi, boasting the cleanest public bathrooms and showers I have ever seen!  There is a young 14-year-old boy there who magically appears after you leave the bathroom and, voila, it’s clean again – amazing!  Showers are restricted to evenings when hot water is available, as it is dependant on solar heating to generate enough heat from the day.  We found this method of power is common in many villages throughout Western Sichuan.  Solar energy is used for electricity, hot water.  Most restaurants have a huge solar panel out front to heat everyone’s tea.

Speaking of restaurants, there’s a bit of everything on offer here: Sichuan cuisine, Lanzhou noodles, western food, and of course Tibetan food.  At Ali’s Restaurant we enjoyed a wonderful yak and potato dish – I have to admit that yak tastes pretty damn good!  We found Talo Restaurant to be the best choice for breakfast: fresh yogurt and fresh bread!  It was so good in fact, that after a few disappointments elsewhere, we ate breakfast at Talo every day after that.  Nomad’s Hostel has great potential.  Right now it has a great bar and atmosphere.  If they had kitchen facilities and could offer a food menu, I would probably head there on a daily basis.  Let’s hope that happens real soon!

Langmusi is a one main street town, packed with restaurants.  Delicious fresh bread is available everywhere from stands and street carts.  But our favourite spot is on one of the few side streets.  Amdo Crafts is a coffee shop featuring homemade desserts such as banana cake, carrot cake, cookies and muffins.  The owner created a warm and welcoming environment by playing background music, providing books/magazines to read and she also markets handicrafts made by Qinghai’s local people.  It’s such a wonderful place to escape to that we did, each and every day we were in Langmusi!

One of the highlights of Langmusi is that monks are part of daily life here.  You see monks everywhere: on the monastery grounds, around town, in the mountains, you name it.  One evening, we even got to observe monk debates – check out my photos!  Earlier, while the monks were in the prayer hall chanting, two other monks waved my friend and I over, asking us to help them carry something heavy over to the prayer hall.  I couldn’t figure out why they asked us instead of two strong guys, but hey, we’re always open to new opportunities, right?  And it paid off well for us too!  The monks took us into the building through a side door and we found ourselves in an immense prayer hall.  They said that if we agreed not to take any pictures, we could take our time and look around – it was a really amazing place.  One of the monks then guided us around the complex, explaining many of the Tibetan images and statues, as well as outlining some of the Tibetan monks’ daily routines and obligations.  Understanding little, we both realized we have a lot of research to do when we return home.  Later, while watching the monk debates, we talked about our earlier experience.  Once again, we fully appreciated the fact we were travelling independently, rather than with a tour group.  We were the only ones to get a personal tour of the prayer hall! 

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