day: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 epilogue

26 May 2007

to Tibet - Day Eight: Bullet Train to Lhasa

A twenty five hour ride through five kilometre altitudes is more stressful than you think. Varying levels of excitement over the scenery of yaks or antelopes on a landscape of mountains and patches of snow versus varying levels of comfort in oxygen preservation or fresh cool air in stuffy cabins makes for short and loud words. Every delay before getting away from our cabin fever group was a bad idea. But we eventually made it clear of eachother into our separate rooms to cool off before dinner.

It was a special train ride for sure. I believe it would have been better enjoyed in the company of old chums instead of a mixed bag of strangers tossed together finding out who the others were at an alarming rate.

A quick peek around the neighbourhood made it readily apparent that our hotel was at the crux of the red light district of Lhasa. An aggressive one at that. On the corner near "Cafe 69" one lady chased after me and said something like "you want?" and before i could get through the front gates to the hotel one of the half dozen ladies stationed there called out and gave me more of a fight face than a come hither look. Maybe a naked fight with puddles of massage oil. She certainly looked like she could take me with a kind of blocky frame and sturdy arms. That fierce glare was enough to send me packing.

The hotel itself was a work in progress. The front half was under renovation and it was a long dark walk haunted by memories of alpha night ladies to a gently run down lodging out back.

A sign in the lobby prominently advertised that massages and health spas were available 24/7. I'm not sure what a "Kip-fit" massage is but i'm pretty sure the "Vein" massage is exactly what it sounds like. On my way to the fourth floor a cute lady in a red Chinese robe got on the second floor. Before reaching the thrid floor she slowly turned in an almost robotic fashion with eyes wide open "you want massage?"

"Nope," i said and quickly went to bed.

joel

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