Having just spent the last day traveling by miserable train I decided to take it easy today.  I needed to catch up on my sleep so I slept in and missed the cheap breakfast buffet.  So instead I had beef noodle soup for lunch.  It was okay.  It was noodles, beef, bok choi (I think), some other kind of vegetable I have never seen before, and a spicy broth.



I then headed back to my room and caught up on my hygiene (shaving and all that stuff).  I even got a workout in as I haven't been able to workout for a few days.  Today was all about catching up.  I walked around the hotel a little bit too.  For dinner I had double cooked pork (although it should have been called double cooked fat as the pork was like 90% fat).  It still tasted delicious though.  It was pork with green things (I think they were bamboo shoots or some kind of green onion) and it came with steamed rice, egg flower soup, and some kind of spicy/pickled salad stuff.



My impression of Chengdu is that this is just another busy, crowded city in China.  I don't know how people can live here.  It is just constant chaos everywhere.  How do they relax or have fun without having to fight the world to do it?  Then I saw my answer.  I was checking my emails when out of my window I spotted a game of soccer going on (which reminded me of my nephew Ben).  The kids were probably like 12 years old.  I just sat and watched them and thought maybe, just maybe, the locals have found a way to not only survive here, but enjoy their lives here.  They definitely have their own unique rhythm to life.  I haven't been able to obtain that rhythm myself yet and I don't think I will here in China.  I think the language barrier is just too great.  This is not an easy place to get a handle on.  Not as many people speak English as I thought (or at least they don't want to).  Everybody has been nice for the most part, but it can be difficult at times to get around.  Epsecially if you get lost and you're not in a touristy area.  I have found that Shanghai and Beijing were more accessible to westerners where as the more local cities of Xi'an and Chengdu have been a lot more difficult to get around.  I am sure it is like living in New York.  I don't know how people can live there either, but at least I speak the language.  I guess I am just more of a small town type of guy.  I prefer peace and quiet.  I love nature and being outdoors.  I absolutely hate crowds.  Speaking of nature I am very excited for tomorrow because I am going to the Chengdu Giant Panda Research Base.  I will get to see lots of giant pandas, even little baby giant pandas, and the lesser or red panda.  I am hoping to get to hold one of the lesser pandas and get a picture with it.  I could get a picture with a giant panda, but it is expensive and I have already spent a lot of time with giant pandas as I was part of a research project with the giant pandas at the San Diego Zoo when I was in college.  I was able to get very close to them back then so I don't need to pay lots of money to get close to them again.  Anyways, this is the whole reason I came to Chengdu.  Then I leave for Guilin the next day.  Guilin is a much smaller town known for its beautiful natural surroundings.  There are lots of outdoor activites to do there.  So it will be a great way to spend my last few days in China before heading off to Cambodia.

Goodnight everyone.  Or maybe I should say Good Morning.  :)