F*ck*d Up!

.. So Ganzi was THE place.. beautiful people, beautiful scenery, beautiful light, beautiful sky.. well.. beautiful place!
And it's only 13 hours of nasty mountain roads in a beat up bus to get to Kangding so really nothing to complain about!

Now, after hearing as many different stories as i've met different travelers, i finally went to the police here in Kangding and for the first time got a clear definitive answer to my question from a competent authority in charge: this "st*p*d f*ck*ng ch*n*s* g*v*rnm*nt" -as i would personnaly call it without yet having the balls to write it it full letters!- won't let me reach Lhasa by land.. no land permits for foreigners, period.. makes you wonder what they're so ferociously trying to hide from us.. the only way is to get to Chengdu and get a packaged flight to Lhasa..
I'm still convinced that it's not impossible.. but in the end, if it requires non stop driving for 5 days without being able to visit anything.. and for twice the price of the plane.. well, screw it..
So the bottom line is that i'll change my plans.. no Lijiang and no Tiger Leaping gorge for me.. Hopefully at least it'll give me some more time to hang out between Lhasa and Kathmandu.. (well, yeah, believe it or not i'm running short on time.. the september appointment with my parents is coming quick and i already had to forget about Myanmar)

Tomorrow is the "Kangding love song festival"! So whatever it is, it's probably a good excuse to chill here one more day before hopping on the bus again!

The Lonely Planet (which i keep reading from fellow travelers as i don't have one myself) describes Kangding as the entrance gate to the Tibetan world, expecting people to come from Chengdu.. so for me it's actually a temporary exit gate from Tibet..
Kangding, just like Maerkang did, looks to me a bit too much like a settlers town: the whole region and neighbouring villages are obviously tibetan, but in town everything and everyone is chinese.. the few tibetan places are tourists attractions and the tibetans in town look like an ethnic minority, selling some vegetables on the sidewalk.. pretty sad if you consider the town is originally theirs .

Anyway.. i'll be in Chengdu on the first of august, trying to get a plane ticket to Lhasa..