Taken the Hill!

The hill has been stormed and the day is mine. Photos to soon follow, so will inevitably my spawn.
Keepin' it gangsta!

The final countdown!

Were leaving together,
But still its farewell
And maybe well come back,
To earth, who can tell?
I guess there is no one to blame
Were leaving ground
Will things ever be the same again?

Its the final countdown...

Heading back to URC where it all began. Time to bite the bullet and take that hill!

Little personal update

There are some rumors flying around so just to get it right from the horse's mouth, yes my house was burgled last week.

I had just arrived in from overseas, came home, had beef noodle soup at my favorite Hui place around the corner (at an incredible bargain of CNY 5), went for foot reflexology, came back and watched two crappy DVD's then went to sleep.

At 5pm the next day I woke up feeling complete groggy and slow with a weird taste in the back of my throat. I looked at the clock and thought there is no way I could sleep so late so I reach for my Blackberry but can't find it. Finally I get up to call myself from the landline and notice the door is wide open. I clearly remember closing it the previous night. Uh-oh. I go into the living room and notice my laptop is missing. Crap.

Most items of value from the house were taken including some items of sentimental value. All old emails, photos, and work related files accumulated over the last 5 years (since leaving the US) were in the back up device that was taken. They used some kind of gas / drug to render me unconscious while they did their deed, but on the bright side I'm well. All the material things can be replaced but it's a bit inconvenient when trying to do transition. At least I'm not hurt and it'll only be a good story one day, not a memory.

Back from beyond, back to the future!

That's right, daddy's back!

I have two things to say:
1) I'm getting married on Dec 4th, 2008
2) I'm moving to Cairo (Egypt, not Ohio) in Dec 2008
3) I'm back to blogging

Now prepare to reap the whirlwind!

Destination Kucha

Tracking Buddhism on the Silk Road. Kucha or bust!

The sleeper has awakened

I echo the same sentiments uttered last year regarding the showdown with time.

As the blog has been silent for a while (which is convenient when you go to Urumqi and disappear off the face of the world), now that I'm back in Shanghai it will rise like a phoenix from the ashes. Funny how once you stop it's hard to get back in the swing of things; but I will not succumb. Non ducor, duco.

Time for another chapter, Shanghai II.

California

I was converted to the other side
From the day I'd gotten there
I met a girl who took me on a ride
I was young I had no cares

When I moved to California
California

She played me records I had never heard
While we toked on purple hairs
Who, Zeppelin, Beatles
Kiss, The Rolling Stones
While we played guitars in air

When I moved to California
California
California
California love !

Runaway truck mows down sheep in Xinjiang; kills 110 animals

A heavily laden cargo truck plowed through a flock of sheep crossing a highway in China's remote western region, killing 110 animals and closing a highway for eight hours, state media reported Saturday.

A shepherd was also seriously injured when the 50-ton truck loaded with coal ash suffered brake failure and was unable to avoid smashing into the flock, which was being taken to pasture, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

The truck eventually ground to a halt because of the massive pile of sheep carcasses in front of the vehicle, it said. It took police eight hours to clear the carcasses off the road, it said.

The accident occurred Thursday in the far western Xinjiang region's Yili district, it said.

The report said the shepherd was hospitalized. (source)

Absolutely ridiculous! I'm certain the above article will surely make a few people chuckle but it's actually quite sad; several families livelihood is completely destroyed without compensation.

hot hot hot!

Westernmost China's Xinjiang region was under a blistering heatwave Sunday, with the mercury hitting as high as 44.8 degrees Celsius (112.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in Turpan city, a local official said. (article)

Yikes, it's getting too hot too soon... normally the temperatures don't go up that high until July. I'm working out of Shanghai for this month but it's not much better here; muggy, humid and oppressive. Perhaps Xinjiang has grown on me too much.

China's "Austria"

There are some things that make us all need a brief escape; in my case (besides an intense new assignment at work -- they must be putting something into the workahol) the first step was having my house raided by the po-po. Then a few days later an apartment official came to "inspect the gas" at 11pm, and then swiftly left without inspecting any other flats (I was later informed she's our friendly neighborhood spy). The final straw was getting my internet cut (no they don't send you bills here, they call you... if you don't understand what they say on the phone then it's tough luck). Not to mention I was already annoyed at flickr getting blocked in China but bless Firefox for their problem solving extensions. I must admit that the internet is the only modern amenity I can't live without.

Well when the going gets tough, the tough get going. One of my favorite things about Xinjiang (besides the people and the food) is that nature is near; and nothing quite able to boost one's spirits as a weekend in the beautiful surrounding hills. On a rare clear day one can see the snow capped tops of the Tian Shan mountains in the distance, elegantly stretching for the heavens; it makes one want to laugh and sing all at once.

China's "Austria" as Nanshan was named during the nomadfest is only about 2 hours away by bus. The bus fare is 9RMB while the park entrance fee is 10RMB; they have no shame as they ask for the "entrance fee" with a wicked toothless grin, the bandits! Of course there are ways around it; one just asks the bus driver to stop a bit before the entrance to the reserve, leaps across the creek, clambers up a hill and voila, there you are at "Kamil the Kazakh's" little village house. We refer to him as "Gollum" however, never mind that he has a heart of gold. He always treats us to some dish which is mostly meat, and will also provide ample quantities of his salty milk tea and hard bread one becomes quickly accustomed to. This time he taught me how to make cream from milk and also served the best homemade yogurt I've ever tasted (the cheater milks his own cows though). His wife is twice his size, but can't live a minute without him... what a guy. :)

The landlords' came too; and after getting tipsy off spirits the Uyghur and Kazakh engaged in the most ridiculous historical debates (both of which having a very distorted view thanks to the different communist systems they were both brought up under), which had me laughing so hard two drops of pee escaped. They found the common ground by teasing me and trying to drop chunks of butter into my soup when I wasn't looking. The food gives one strength though, or perhaps it was the beauty of the scenery that inspired hours of hiking.


Now that I'll be working out of Shanghai for the next month I'll certainly miss the people, the food, and the ability to escape the city to lose myself in nature. On the other hand the sea is indeed closer (not that one can swim in it)... I might just find myself in Hong Kong again.

I used to be a scoffer...

... but it's true. In some parts of the world the internet really slows down when it rains. Forget slowing down, it CRAWLS!!! In fact it is safe to say that it practically doesn't work.

This is one of those rare occasions that you are aren't thrilled about rain in the desert... that and when it interferes with the weekend plans.