First days of 2009

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Sorry for the absence from blogging, but I've been walking through fields, digging holes, sorting out pottery, and covering myself with mud for the past five days. Anyway, New Year's Day in Chengdu was fantastic. We got up late, hit the hotel breakfast right before they closed it, then popped over to the Starbucks. Tasted just the same, and the prices are just the same as they are in America. My grande mocha cost 29 quai, which adds up to around $4.50, but for most Chinese people this is extremely expensive. After Starbucks we wandered around streets of western-style shops, all the big designers, then went to a two-floor restaurant that specializes in little plates of various and sundry Sichuan foods. It was fantastic and cheap, as well as overwhelming.

After that we headed off to a Buddhist temple and monastery. It was absolutely gorgeous, but we weren't allowed to take photos inside. I did manage to do a few snapshots of sculptures outside. They had a fantastic pond with a primordial-looking island in the middle, a small white egret patrolling around for bugs, and turtle after turtle after turtle swimming around.

The temple was sublime, but so was what we did afterward. We went to a HUGE massage/spa place. I've never seen anything like this in my life. After slogging through mud every day for a week and a half, it was a welcome treat. For about $20 I got a 90-minute full-body massage (best one of my life), then was welcome to hang out in the "rec-room" that had recliners with TVs, computers with internet, pool tables, quiet rooms, and we were constantly served fresh fruit, soda, tea, or coffee. The place is open 24 hours, and you can stay as long as you like, so many people sleep there instead of a hotel. It's definitely cheaper, plus you get a massage!

Post-massage bliss was complimented by a lovely Sichuan dinner, then a long cab ride back to the hotel at Pi Xian. It was hard to go back to the hard beds, the freezing cold hallways, and the spotty electricity, but it really befits our mud-slogging project. I don't feel nearly as bad walking in there with my muddy boots and pants.

It's back to Chengdu tomorrow to check out some archaeological museums, then more quality time digging holes in farmers' fields while attracting an audience of locals, usually between 6 and 15 people. We're quite a hit!

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Photos

Chengdu Starbucks
To prove I got this in China, I used the travel guide from the hotel.

Hotness
Boy, it IS hot.

Icon
The temple icon is located at the base of this tower. Much more breathtaking in person...

Turtle
The turtle and I are very close. Language was no barrier.

Morals Village
I wasn't sure if I was moral enough, so I stayed outside.

Comments

[Morals Village]

Happened to see your blog. The name of Morals Village is just a literal translation. From the bottom words, I know it is a hot-pot restaurant. The Sichuan hot-spot is very famous across the country. In winter, it's more popular because it's Hot. People eat while chatting.