Sultans of Sweat

Perched at 4014 meters(13,246 feet-- 314m higher than Lhasa!), Litang is an absolute gem in so many different ways. The town is surrounded by livestock-dotted rolling green hills, and there is a range of large mountains towering over the town from the south. The town has a wild west feel and reputation, long known as a rebellious enclave of Tibetan nationalism. While home to a significant number of Han Chinese, the town is still predominantly Tibetan, and possesses a distinctly Tibetan "feel". Yaks and pigs wander through the dusty streets as farmers cruise by on deafening tractors and monks and long haired Tibetan men speed past on loud Chinese motorcycles. Traditionally dressed Tibetan women wash clothes on the curb or stroll the sidewalks with their plum cheeked little kids in tow, looking at drying mushrooms and ... read more

Tiger Leaping Gorge is one of the deepest gorges in the world, and the trek through it is spectacular and relatively grueling. There were nice little guesthouses along the way where Brett and I could talk with other travellers while looking out at the 5000+ meter mountains that tower over the gorge. We lucked out in that we got two beautiful sunny days of weather for our trek, and that the previous heavy rains caused huge landslides that closed most of the gorge's lower road off to marauding Chinese tour-bus travellers. The only bad luck was that we were hiking just before the gorge's massive number of wild growing marijuana plants come into bloom. Literally, there were wild pot plants twice my height all over the place, which I had never seen before anywhere. Brett and ... read more

BAgan, July 20th southeasterly wind. locusts call from the sprigs of trees patched between the barren fields, the flat plain erupts in odd little mountains, as if the fields had mustered all of their collective strength and popped up these random peaks of the same color. when the swallows retire the bats come alight though the sprinting wind has already displaced any airborn insect. the portals of each little mountain yawn with the stretching of the days light. these black pores dot the horizon below their respective earthen spires of which time will wash away to the soil from which they came- to have another go at the nurturing of corn, beans, and sprouts of all types. Temple Philosophy Leaning against a 9,000 yr old structure is humbling. they made pretty darn good bricks back then. ... read more

Helloooooo? a raspy voice called from a window sill- i turned from what i thought was a private late night alley pee to just make out the glowing tip of a cheroot and a pair of spectacles. maybe the friendliest fella in kalaw had just made my acquaintence, leading to one of the more bizzare weeks of my life. aung 'lilly' is an energetic old man who loves company- he thus has a knack for drawing in curious travellers. on this particular evening we spoke briefly, but i promised we'd stop by after a 4 day trek we had scheduled with a local guide. okay! he says with excitement, you come stay with me and we'll make a big feast! the trek i believed at the time was both hum drum and informative, our guide was ... read more

Back in the land of internet freedom and well displaced from Bangkok for good, I write from a chinese internet connection- Dali, Yunnan province to be sure. I had a bit of a scare the last few days, a friend that accompanied my Burmese travels wrote to say she's tested positive for malaria and sweating away psychedelic dreams, though well taken care of, in a northern Thailand guesthouse... this news arrived w/ particular urgency as I myself had seen her every day for the last month and had been miserably ill for a few days when her news arrived- able to track down a hospital in Dali, but not able to find any english speaking staff, I sat discouraged and ill UNTIL a smiling american who worked at the AIDS clinic around the corner popped his ... read more