Chengdu, China

I'm in Chengdu, China. It's in the southwestern province of Sichuan which borders the region of Tibet. I took care of most of my plans for the next few days, so I am booked for Lhasa, Tibet on the 17th of August. I'm also planning to see pandas tomorrow morning and perhaps just wander around the city today.

I don't have much to say. It is hard to describe concrete jungles in a flattering light, although I have a feeling that Chengdu is much different from Beijing. Things are laid back - people are sleeping in the parks, playing cards and chess throughout the day and are probably not as .. industrious .. as those in Beijing.

ALSO, yesterday, while in search of Mapo Doufu (tofu) .. I gave up early since I had to catch the bus to a Sichuan Opera. I wandered into the busiest restaurant and pointed to the cheapest plate on the menu. I'm not sure what I ate, actually, but there was meat, cucumber, and rice. It didn't taste like beef, chicken, goat/lamb, or pork. I sat there for a good 25 minutes, chewing, and I could not identify it. I thought about bringing someone that can read Chinese into the restaurant .. but I have a feeling I should just have memories of 'mystery meat'.