Alright boys and girls, this is probably it for posts from Mainland China. I'm leaving Shangri-La in a couple of hours, heading to Kunming by bus (a nice, short 13 hours away), and will then hop on a plane bound for Shenzen, and then will taking the KCR or turbojet back to Hong Kong...total travel time is probably around 2 days. I

'm exhausted....for the last two nights, my roommate has been a Chinese guy who just doesn't seem to have an off button. From the moment you walk into the room, it's just chatter chatter chatter. I probably only understand half of what he's saying, but that seems to be enough to encourage him to keep talking. The only way to get him to shut up is to say "wo shui jiao" (I'm going to sleep)....and then cover my head with the blanket, and secretly put on my headphones and listen to music for the rest of the night, enjoying the relative peace and silence.

In any case, chatty roommate notwithstanding, I think I'm reaching the point of traveler's burnout. It's only been a little over two months, but I'm just mentally and physically exhausted. I've met a bunch of people who have been traveling for several months, and I'm in awe of their seemingly boundless energy. I feel like such a bad traveler.

China highlights?
1. Horse trekking in Sichuan
2. Beijing...finally climbing the Great Wall, and also meeting a couple of really interesting and inspiring Americans.
3. Cheap food....delicious food...spicy food....cheap food....giant bowls of steaming hot soup noodles for 3 yuan (less than 50 cents!!)?? Unheard of!
4. Bus/train rides through some really beautiful parts of the country, especially Sichuan and Yunnan.
5. Playing with a baby panda in Chengdu.
6. Meeting super friendly and kind Chinese people.

China lowlights?
1. Getting puked on.
2. Dealing with the ridiculousness that can be China...long "line ups" that are really just crowds of pushing and shoving people (especially at train/bus stations/post office)....really really grumpy customer service....etc, etc...
3. Hidden fees, getting ripped off because you're a foreigner.
4. The total non-existence of personal space....is this your seat? good, cause you're sharing it with me!
5. Endless rain...it is, after all, the rainy season here.
6. Snoring roommates...obnoxious roommates....

Alright, farewell from the Motherland...when next I write, it'll probably be from censor-free HK!