Stuck in China
Trip Start
Apr 06, 2007
1
19
33
Trip End
Nov 18, 2007
Mengla,
China
Saturday, August 4, 2007
From Dali to Laos it should have been a 3 day trip but this turned into 4, turned into 5... 1 week later and we eventually got there.
First set back: on our way back to the road after a bush camp in a quarry (no rock falls during the night this time!) we got stuck in the red mud. 2 hours gathering rocks, digging and edging the truck forward we got out. Strange that when we all have to team together some people just don't help. Didn't bother me too much but Kenny threw the bucket which was funny if a little tense. Second set back: A landslide had destroyed part of the road and we had to wait for the digger and co to make a temporary one. Somehow vendors had gotten hold of the news and were dotted up and down the traffic jam - we were in the middle of the forest with no towns nearby. Once allowed through on both sides vehicles rushed in, blocking both sides of the road completely unnecessarily adding 2 hours to the 3 already. Ludicrous! Third: Bloody paperwork! Bloody Chinese! We arrived at Mengla to pick up some papers but the guy who had the key to the desk had gone home for the weekend so we had to wait until Monday to hit the road again.
Mengla was just a typical Chinese town. So that we had to stay here was ace. Meeting locals wanting to talk to you not because you have a fat wallet was cool as was taking in normal Chinese life in a normal town. Such a smiley nation, friendly and cute, their mannerisms childlike. I would really like to go back to China because of how nice the people are. We spent one night with a group of truck drivers (though I think something was lost in translation as they just didn't seem like truckers) who could speak only a few words of English. We went to a club that just happened to be beside a pig abittoire so the sound of screaming pigs chased us inside the club. Grim. Very very grim. They bought us so much beer all night but when we tryed to pay they were almost insulted by our gesture. Bold, stupid and curious, Rach, Polly and I ventured inside the slaughter house on our way home. I wont go into too much detail but lets just say a nail gun to the head aint the way they do it in China. You could see the whole process; from live pig in a pen to piles of intestines the other side of the room. The screams were so terrified because the pigs could see as their piggy buddies got a hook through the chin and a blade down their throat. Splatter! Oh yeah, I said no detail... Didn't stop me having bacon noodle soup for breakfast the next day, no doubt from that slaughter house. I'm not a bad person! I guess I just rationalized it.
Onto Laos...
