Almost home

So the Tibetan song and dance show turned out to be quite an interesting event! It was in a beautiful Tibetan style building and when we got off the van we were each given a silk scarf around our neck. We walked to the second floor where there were Chinese tourists sitting at the tables eating yak cheese, barley and buckwheat bread. The Yak cheese was delicious! The evening was a kind of Tibetan variety show, with a woman acting as an m.c. and entertaining the dozens of Chinese tourists. There was an unlimited amount of barley alcohol, which is like 60% alcohol, so things got a little loud!

The next day, we visited Bita lake, which was absolutely beautiful. It was rainy and a little cold, but it actually made for a picturesque setting. The lake, along with the conifers, oaks, and rhododendrons, reminded me so much of the lakes in Maine. The air even smelled similar. Others were commenting that it reminded them of British Columbia. I'll post pictures soon.

We also visited a traditional Tibetan home, complete with a pet monkey! This was fascinating. We flew back to Kunming for our last night. We ended the tour with a visit to the Kunming Botanical Garden. I found lots of new plants and will post pictures and info when I get home. I'm in Beijing right now getting ready to fly home. I'm looking forward to seeing everything I've missed at Scott and getting back to work.