Wild West Sichuan trip Photos

Oh my. Where do I even start to recapture a wild and wooly trip to Western Sichuan province? It’s a bitch sometimes being a writer, because I can’t just say something is indescribable.. it’s not really acceptable for me as it would be for others. It’s my job to describe the indescribable.

But these four or five days in Sichuan province.. well, man, they were indescribable, in every possible way — more beautiful than I can describe; more remote than I can describe; more interesting than I can describe, driving through and visiting Tibetan villages. It was also scarier than I can describe – winding up 12,000 foot mountain passes under construction and with no rails and barely enough room for us to fit through; more annoying and maddening than I can describe, with every “three hour drive” being at least twice that; more frustrating than I can describe, arriving at beautiful, stunning places, with no times to check them out – because another long drive loomed.

I am going to post these photos, which will at least begin to paint a picture. And then I will continue writing about this.. and attempting to describe the indescribable.

I will say that the kids were remarkably well-behaved throughout all the ordeals and Hal, Ruth and Aunt Judy were great sports. I felt terribly guilty for leading all of us onto this insane journey. They all ultimately enjoyed the whole thing. We really did see some truly remarkable sights. We were in Tibetan autonomous region and visited several Tibetan homes, and passed by some of the most stunning mountains I have ever seen, ranging in height from about 4,000-almost 6,00 meters. That is 12-23,000 )!!) feet. And that’s not to mention the panda sanctuary where we ended the trip..

More to come soon, I promise, including the tale of the terrifying bus ride that seemed like it would never end. I will also try to put some of these images into a video that tell the tale.