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Now I'm in the western part of China, in a city called Kashgar. It is hot here and fairly uninteresting and unfortunately we are going to stay here for the whole of four nights. We arrived late Thursday evening, after spending a whole day crossing the border from Kyrgyzstan to China. The officials at the border crossing were mostly friendly but because of the Olympics and all the tourists they have to check everything. So most of the day went to waiting. And here in Kashgar it seems like we're doing the same, waiting to get over to Pakistan. We've seen the market place, the People's park, the Mao statue, the mosque and the old town and we still have two days left. The most fun is to go out with the group and eat and drink in the evening.
Naryn was a small place but it was nice. And the homestay arrangement was brilliant. The accommodation was good and the food was even better and it wasn't that expensive either so I found the homestay option to be a good one.
After Naryn we went to Tash Rabat, an old stone building where the merchants of the Silk Route rested (if I've understood it correctly). The building in itself was ok enough but the scenery was great. Green hills, rocky tops, yurts and horses around. A few of us went walking up a hill side and it was nice to move the body a bit more than just in and out of the truck. And I always enjoy camping. Even though it god really cold during the night. From Tash Rabat we went for the border crossing and that took most of that day. Actually it took the whole of that day.
We've been traveling together in this group for about six days and we've got to know each other better. I must admit, I was a bit worried about the group dynamics and stuff but so far it has been really good. The group consists of really good characters, some of them are really funny. So if this keeps up it will be a fantastic tour.
Last I have to say that toilets have been a point of interest on this trip. In this part of the world the 'whole in the floor'-type is the most common but once you get used to them there not too bad. And most hotels have the western style. But the standard has varied a lot so far on this trip. From really fancy looking with the stone tiles and high-tech flushing via the regular camping style, small wooden shelter with a hole in concrete floor to a hole in the ground, two planks over it, tin walls and a plastic curtain to cover (no roof, mind you). The last version was so disgusting that all of us refused to use it. A bush will do quite fine, thank you. And going in (almost) full public isn't that uncommon either. There might be curtains but they don't really cover. So this isn't the trip for the shy. It will be interesting to see what India and Pakistan has to offer.
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