Mom Says I’m Running Away

Day: 285

I am at home now after the last seven weeks wandering about China, Tibet and Mongolia. I was less than impressed with the northern region of China, but as a gateway to the amazing places in Tibet and Mongolia it was a necessary evil.

Here are some of my favorites from the last 7 weeks. Look forward to the next adventure on the John Muir Trail here in California! 225 miles of backpacking through the Sierra Nevadas! Good times and sore feet expected…

I won’t go into vivid details, but leaving her was harder than I ever expected. One of the most astounding people I have ever met. As much as I was ready to be home, I am here now and alone…

Day:284

In a city that throughly depresses me, I was happy to spend the day wandering though the endless catacombs of what Felicia and I dubbed “The Great Mall of China”.

My flight home is early tomorrow and Felicia’s back to Singapore is in the afternoon, a few meals and a few hours at my computer making her CD’s of pictures from the last month and the day ended.

Day: 283

So in a city where you can’t see the sky because of insane amounts of pollution, the greatest athletes are going to converge, next summer, to achieve their worst times and scores of their careers. How anyone expects these stars to give their best when their eyes are bleary from the particles in the air, and lungs are on fire from the constantly grey skies is beyond me. I have difficulty walking out to get a plate of dumplings, much less run a 2000 meter relay. All the while the construction continues; while the city is alive with anticipation for next summer, every corner will sell you a “Beijing 2008″ hat or sweater. Seems obscene in a place where Blogger.com and Wikipedia.com are banned because they are not healthy for the general Chinese welfare.
I know, all I do in Beijing is complain but it is excessively well deserved. London in 2012 will at least have clear skies and a place to get a decent beer, I’ll wait until then to get my fill of the Olympics…

Day: 282

Felicia (who obviously eats some disgusting things) and I arrive at the Beijing train station around two this afternoon, a taxi ride and we had found a room in an underground hostel beneath China’s biggest shopping mall.  After some well deserved wandering from being cramped in a train for two days (which included me buying a copy of War and Peace for the flight home), we found a theatre with an english version of Pirates 3 and enjoyed.

Day: 281

Essentially today consisted of getting back on a train to spend 30 hours going the other direction back into China.  Lots of snacks and Ipod time.

Day: 280

Today consisted of a day of recovery back in Ulaan Bataar, I really didnt even drag out my camera for more than a few minutes.

Day: 279