Lucky made it to 16,000 feet. I decided we also can take credit for 16,000 ft., since we’re on the same team. We’ve been in high meadows of the Tibetan Plateau, most days over 15,000 feet. We’ve found the back garden gate of Shangri-la.
At the breakfast table, in the roadhouse where we spent the night, I left my packet of maps, phrases and our chopsticks. It was an envelope I clutched tightly anytime we were off the bike. Now, it was 30 kilometers back and 1000 feet down.
We weren’t going back for it. So we’re without a good map until at least Shangri-la. The phrases? I’ve mostly got down the basics enough to get us a room or a meal without my cheat sheets. And the chopsticks? Well, this is China.
Claire Rogers writes on cross-cultural adventure drawn from her travels across the Silk Road from Beijing to Istanbul, around Australia and of course, through Iceland–all by bike.
She’s currently traveling by tandem with her husband Bob, through southwest China, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. Check out NewBohemians.net for more information on their travels.
