Trip West -- Langmusi

Leaving Lanzhou at 7:00 in the morning, our bus set out into the Chinese countryside. For the next five hours, we watched the scenery transform from semi-arid, brush covered hills, to green, tree-covered mountains, and eventually into beautiful grasslands dotted with herds of sheep and yaks. Even after a few hours when our relaxed eyes began suggesting sleep, Becky and I were far too fixed on the endless string of new, interesting, strange, and fascinating sights and people. Livestock of all sorts often appeared on the road, and people from various minorities strolled along in their traditional dress.

Around noon, we arrived in Hezuo. This pretty good sized town was just a transfer point for us. It is just a dusty, quiet city with nothing much to set it apart. A local man asked us why we had come since there was nothing interesting to do. The fact that we were just passing through made perfect sense to him.

While we were waiting for our second bus, we got a bite to eat in a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant. The cleanliness of the place didn't impress Becky, but the noodles did! They were very good.

Having a one-year-daughter going through potty training and a three-year-old son still learning how to "hold it," it was imperative to find a place for them to relieve themselves before embarking on the second phase of our journey. That's where we ran into trouble. The rather large bus station had no toilets. Fortunately, we are used to that, and we are also used to it's solution. Children and men are completely free to relieve themselves practically wherever they want to in China. When Amelia cried out, "Poopoo!" Becky sprang into action and rush with her to the dirt by the side of a building along the street which according the evidence of damp soil and small piles of toilet paper had already been well-used by numerous others. Becky took off Amelia's diaper, handed it to me, and continued to assist her. I now had a new mission: dispose of the used diaper. Scouring the area, I could find nothing resembling a garbage can. I asked a couple of local men observing nearby what to do. They told me to just throw it on the ground. Now this I am NOT used to. I can honestly say that even in the farthest back-country I have never knowingly littered. Now I was being told by local folks to dump my refuse on THEIR street. I hesitated. I repeated my inquiry about how to dispose of my trash. Again, gesturing with their hands they insisted I could throw it on the ground. Having no other choice I heaved the diaper comically in the air. It landed with a thud. I couldn't help apologizing as I walked away. I am now a litterer.

A few minutes later we were rolling toward our final destination for the day. For two hours we watched as beauty around us became more and more breathe-talking until we arrived in the quaint town of Langmusi. It lies right on the border of Gansu and Sichuan. There are very few Han Chinese living there. Almost everyone is either Tibetan or Hui. The Tibetans are Buddhist and nomadic, and the Hui are Muslim and entrepreneurial. The Hui seem to own most of the shops and restaurants.

There are two major lamaseries in this small town, so the town is dominated by Tibetan monks dressed in robes. These two lamaseries are the main source of attraction for most foreign visitors. The admission fees ($2/lamasery/person) seem to be the major source of income for the Buddhists. Though I found several back streets that could have gotten us in for free, we declined to visit either lamasery while there. However, I did get to talk to a few of the monks around town.

Arriving in Langmusi was like arriving in another world or another time. The afternoon we arrived just happened to be the day of a festival at one of the lamaseries. As a result, the town was packed with Tibetans coming to celebrate. Their clothes, manners, modes of transport, language--everything was so different from what we were used to. It was better than a science fiction movie. It was real!

We made our way to the hotel and checked in at a counter behind which was a plaque proudly displaying one star. After settling in a bit, we took a walk around town to build up an appetite. The kids were objects of great attention, but everything was an object of great attention for the kids too: horses, pigs, chickens...They were having fun!

Another thing that caught us a bit by surprise was the cold. Even in August, the evenings were very chilly. Very few local kids had much skin exposed, but our family was dressed for midsummer heat. So a rare and instant shopping spree came about in this little town. Becky and Amelia got sweaters, and Josiah got a little sweat suit.

Then we made our way to the most famous place in town among foreigners: Leisha's Restaurant. They cater to backpackers from all over the world who often come through the area. They feature delicious Yak Burgers, but they also have a good selection of other western food which is all creatively made from local ingredients.

After feasting on yak burgers, we took a peaceful stroll around part of the town. The kids threw rocks in the river that flows through town, chased pigs, yelled at horses grazing on the mountain side, collected sticks, stirred up clouds of dust, and picked themselves up after falling time and again. Meanwhile Becky and I walked along exchanging smiles with the local folks, taking in the scenery, admonishing our kids to stop getting so dirty, and dusting them off when they inevitably fell down in the dirt once more. We could have stayed out there forever, but bathes and beds were calling.

The next day after breakfast, we changed hotels to a smaller, quainter, and cheaper place. There we washed out our dirty clothes and hung them up. Then we went out and bought pretty hats for the ladies to ward off the bright sunshine. Best of all, I had an excuse to get myself a genuine cowboy hat! Looking cool and feeling cool, I led the family off on a long hike into the hills. There we enjoyed a picnic lunch surrounded by all the glories nature. While on our hike, we met two very friendly young girls who chatted with us for quite awhile. They invited us to their yurt, which was too far away, and they warned us of the wolves that lived in the forest ahead of us.

That evening after another delicious dinner of yak burrito at Leisha's, we took other evening walk following the river to the end of town. How beautiful everything was! Just as we were walking back into town, an older Hui couple was bringing in their cows for evening milking. They invited us into their courtyard so the children could see the animals. Josiah and Amelia had blast! Their favorite animal of all turned out to be a kitten, which they almost straggled. We got to watch the woman milk a cow. Then their daughter, a college student on summer vacation, heated it up and served us the fresh warm milk. It was excellent--especially once they had us add a little sugar. We spent a delightful hour at their home getting to know them and their fascinating culture better. They were very kind us, and refused to take any money that we offered.

The next morning we had to be up early again to catch the bus out of town. Langmusi was special place that still felt very little affected by the outside world.


Here are a few more miscellaneous shots of our time in Langmusi...