What would YOU do at the “Center of Asia”?

I made yellow snow…well, not on the center…about a meter away. When nature calls…and well, there is an opportunity to say, “I pee’d at the Center of Asia!” – how can you resist?!

Both cameras are non-functioning in the cold. I was able to warm up the Nikon D700 to get a couple of shots and the point and shoot wouldn’t let me use the timer. Every time I would turn it off, and then back on, it would be reset.

Couldn’t help but think of my artist pal, Stephen Talasnik.

It was a ride down (then a climb) to the “Center” and even saw a frozen tear on my eyelash. No, I wasn’t that moved by where I was going…the wind was being mean to me.

I’ve been riding UP for the past two days, along the 216.
Yesterday was rough, I realized how out of shape I was.

Today, well…um.

So, after visiting the Center of Asia I continue South and I know I need to cut off to get off this route. There is no way I’m going to live through a 4000m pass in the middle of February. I am pretty sure I would freeze to death. My cameras can’t even handle this cold.

I got in close to 60km today and a hearty lunch and I’m looking desperately for the turn off. Something is very strange. There should be signs but I see nothing.

After a couple of baby climbs today, and then watching a crazy ass looking dog run a kilometer down the mountain to come eat my face off, I pulled over to the police checkpoint.

I gave in. The sun was setting an my options were bleak. I saw nothing ahead…except one or two dump trucks with coal. Not even locals.

“Excuse me, I need to find some accommodation tonight. Ahead or behind and how many kilometers.”

“Ahead, you can’t go, the road is very very bad. It’s not safe. You should go back.”

“How many km behind.”

“40”

Quick math…shit, that’s taking me back where I slept LAST NIGHT!

I can’t freeze to death…I don’t know if I could make it through the night.

“Okay, thank you.” Now, if I wasn’t freezing I would of gone on and said screw it…but this is my life I’m talking about.

As I begin to turn around.

“If you wait a moment, you can put your bike in the back of the pickup truck and we can give you a ride.”

Oh hell yes!

The bike gets thrown over some frozen vomit and I pile in with an officer and his two adorable children. Something is different about their appearance. The boy has brown hair. His name is Jerry and he is 6…Alice is 10. Their English pronunciation is fantastic and Jerry starts chatting in English from the beginning. Dad is giving Alice a speech in Chinese about how she needs to practice and she says she can’t and he repeats, very gently and even loving…”yes, you can do it yourself…you can.”

It turns out he is Hazu (Kazakh minority) and his wife, their mother, is Russian! Beautiful children.

We pass the road I should of taken to cut over and he tells me the road is bad. Still mountains and the roads are not paved. These are the roads I LOVE when the weather is warm and the locals spend their free time sitting about.

In winter…no one is around, no one to ask for directions, no one to sit with and have a picnic with. Right now, my mission is to get out of this cold. Especially when my camera is malfunctioning.

He gets me to last nights town and he offers to take me back to Urumqi…as the other route is “fangbian”.

It takes me 2 minutes to “cut my loss” and I say, “okay, lets go!”

So, here I am, on the Southern tip of Urumqi…where I’ve lived for the past 2 months.

I’ve been thinking all day if I should just cut my losses and turn back and do it. From the maps, it was showing no towns of any kind. Little villages along the way but not even restaurants.

I HATE backtracking…it’s probably my #1 of stuff I DON’T DO. But…I guess, we can say it takes more guts to cut my losses and realize I could die if I were to continue on that insane road up and over the Tianshan mountains.

Shepherd. He was looking at me strangely so I flash my big ol’smile and give him a nice American “Hello”. He returns the smile and “Hello” from his amazing 5 o’clock shadow.

I thought boys on bikes made me weak in the knees…Uyghur cowboys are a whole other story. I’ve told some people I can’t buy my naan from handsome men because I blush too much. Yeah, I need to get a hold on that one.

This is where I should of turned off to head East…this was across the road.

And, see, I told you “zhusu” walls are the best. This was next to my head. I’m trying to figure out if it’s homegrown porn and then what’s the deal with the foot print like 1 meter from the ground? Click on the photo for a larger image.

Maybe they were stomping the Hepatitis out!

December 8, 2011 – “Nowhere” to Urumqi

High Point: Arriving to Urumqi
Low Point: A day of riding in snow and ice
Tomorrow’s Banana: Rest

I wake up in my windowless room, still too warm. Collecting my clothing from my delirious strip down from the previous night, I let out a few grunts and moans of my sore back. Nothing like an upper body work out when pushing a bike up a mountain.

Laoban instructs, very kindly, I stay for breakfast. Congee, hard boiled eggs, and bread. There is something about Han breakfast I love…especially when I can find fresh “youtiao” – which translates to oil stick – and soy milk. Mmmmmm…Han breakfeast………

Anyhow. Laoban is kind enough to turn the tv onto a CCTV foreign channel. I laugh and tell him very kindly and somewhat embarrassed, “oh laoban, this channel is in French, I don’t understand French. I’m sorry.”

We are both chuckling together and he tells me he can’t understand French either! Well what do you know…this American and my Chinese friend have something in common! The next hour is spent in front of the CCTV News…which I can understand a little – context helps.

I tell him I must get going but he says I should stay a little longer. “It’s very cold right now and snowing.”

“It’s snowing?! Really???”

Yes, it’s snowing.

So after about another 30 minutes I walk down to the first floor with laoban to load up and set off. Damn it! Laoban points out that I have a flat.

Okay, do I unload the bike and find the flat or do I pump it up and see what is to come of it? I’m lazy and try not to work as much as possible. Urumqi isn’t that far away and if it’s a slow leak, I can probably make it. Also, my bike froze up last night so who knows what that bitter cold did.

I pump up the tube outside, with laoban and his friend watching me. Laoban says “goule” but it’s not enough. I know, even though my pump gauge broke about 4,000km ago. But, you know, I don’t like to hurt anyone’s feelings so after a few more pumps I decide I’ll just stop up ahead to finish my pumping. I’ve done this before, at least a dozen times.

It’s a day of heavy traffic, near white out conditions, and cold.

Around 5:00 pm I arrive in Urumqi.

There is a nice Dutch boy as my roommate. We spend the next couple of days together. He wanted me to travel to Gansu with him but I decided I really wanted to rest.

The second rest day, I could barely walk. Being out in the cold and constantly working everyday, I didn’t realize how the last 2 days kicked my ass.

Then, I was blessed with a wonderful eye infection which led to eye surgery here in Urumqi.

My Visa is on it’s way here, should arrive in a couple of days and I’ll be out of here faster than you can say “Wulumu…”

If you have been keeping up with me via this blog or Facebook…or maybe you are a close friend I’ve been corresponding with…you know that my time here has been difficult/challenging but productive on a personal level. I think I needed this time to sit down and really work through some thoughts. So I send the biggest hug to all of you – you know exactly who you are. And another thanks to all of my new followers.

Along with that, some important networking and email writing.

I had over 700 page views yesterday…that’s quite exciting. Looks like this site picked up around 5000 page views in January alone. You all are welcome to send me an email or even text me. I love correspondence and, again, thanks for the love and support.

December 6, 2011 – SanTai Zhen to Fukang

Morning…nice and warm room, don’t want to leave.

Who ever can give the best “What am I thinking?” title to this photo wins…um, I don’t know what…but you win. (Message privately, as some of you do, or leave in the comments.

During the ride I noticed that I’m putting in a lot of power and not feeling a lot of progress. Doh! I have a massive fender icicle. There is minuscule clearance and it’s only getting colder and colder. It’s a big black nasty block of ice.

I had ridden through a lot of open air coal earlier in the day. There were mounds on both sides of me, steam rising into the air. I’m now wondering if this is what triggered the funk in my eye.

It’s still light out upon my arrival to Fukang, and it’s a legit city. So I begin the hunt for a home on the outskirts to find the cheapest place.

Ah-ha! A total hole next to a police station, that’s perfect for a solo babe. And…the 2 flights of stairs are near 2 meter wide…I swoOOoooOOOOosh right up those with my loaded bike.

15rmb and private room…but then the whole police hassle begins.

Laoban takes my copies of Passport/Visa to the station. I have to go to the station with the real ones. Then from there we have to drive over to the main government building. I’m sitting in the back seat trying to count all the times I’ve sat in police vehicles in the past 6 months. Too much police interaction out here.

Then when all that is taken care of they tell me I can catch a taxi back. Um…I don’t think so…you are taking me back.

Home sweet home and there is a about 3 liters of black water under my bike. Ooops, sorry laobanniang.

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