Nyalam – Faithful

A Sichuan guesthouse in Nyalam, gratis

Yup, there is something missing from my bags. For sure, the books are still complete. I lost a Tibetan cloth for my mom and my favorite Indonesian batik trousers. Actually it was just clothes, I can buy a new one easily. But I foolishly answered them when they asked whether there was something missing. The family became very anxious, and they searched whole over the house, without no result.

The atmosphere was very unpleasant. My driver tried to explain to me, it was not him who steal, nor his family (I believed). I said to him, it was just clothes, no worry at all. But for them, it seems that faith is the most important thing. There were many people coming to this house, so I dont blame the family at all. But it was really makes me feel bad when everyone tried to convince me that they didnt steal (It was only clothes!!!). My driver even, suddenly, cried in front of me. Saying that they never steal anything from others. I felt really really bad. Just two clothes missing and the family atmosphere turns to be a very strange feeling.

I flew from the house, tried to get a lift to Old Tingri (the way to Nepal). Two hours waiting, no cars at all. Suddenly I met a Chinese girl, a traveller looking. And she was also going to Nepal, with her boyfriend. So we decided to find a lift together. There is a car can be chartered to the border (Zhangmu) for 1000 yuan, too expensive for our pockets (I only have 250 yuan in my wallet, and in Chinese 250/erbaiwu means “fool”. I am indeed a fool right now, erbaiwu).

Two hours waiting, there were two trucks going to Zhangmu. What a luck. But when we tried to hitch, the driver say, no lift no lift. There were not enough place for 3 of us. So I let they two to hitch, I can wait another car. The price were 300 yuan for two of them, but they managed down to be 150 yuan. The Chinese girl (Xiao Bai) thought it should be better if all of us could travel together. So she tried again to negotiate with the driver, and we managed to get 200 yuan for 3 of us…..(only 70 yuan/person for a 260 km journey).

So, I feel really lucky of speaking Chinese and look like Chinese. I bet it’s much more difficult for westeners to be lifted, as the truck drivers are afraid of the fine. And travelling in a truck is a different experience. In my truck, there were the driver, his son, and his wife. Also another Tibetan woman (a hitchhiker also, but she pays nothing).

The journey passes many beautiful areas…, you can see snow mountains, vast grassland, and naked young boys (also old boys – the truck drivers) swimming in the lakes beside the highway (non asphalted, just mud way). The driver was really excited with the fact that I studied in Tsinghua, the number one university in China. He was very friendly, and even offered to stop the trucks to let me to take pictures of the mountains.

When we almost arrive in Nyalam, our truck was stopped by the Chinese military. They have caught a Nepali smuggler trying to enter China, and asked us to bring this “prisoner” to Nyalam checkpoint. We arrived in Nyalam almost midnight, the checkpoint guard even didnt know what to do with this poor Nepali man, as he didnt understand any Chinese.

The truck was not allowed to pass Nyalam. Everyday only 10 vehicles are allowed to go to the border town of Zhangmu, and today the quota has been reached already. We had to stay in Nyalam.

In the restaurant where we had dinner, my driver praised me in front of other guests (I was really embarassed….). He said that I was worth more than the whole city of Nyalam, he said that it was only 2 among some ten millions of people can be enrolled in Tsinghua, he said that he was very proud to be hitchhiked by a Tsinghua student, bla bla bla. And without me noticing, he paid for my hotel room (40 yuan). Now I really see how powerful a Tsinghua student card is. (So guys, if you have Tsinghua student card, better keep it with you all the time )