Xin cu!

Ha! We finally found what we were looking for. As we rolled away from Chendu the roads kept getting smaller and smaller and finally we found a stretch with very little traffic, with incredible mountain side villages and zero tourists. Hurray. For this last stretch we have been camping and sleeping in family houses along the way. We havent had to buy food or pay for lodging and have made good friends. Of course not everything is perfect. There are the uphills to contend with and this last section had three surprise mountain passes. As it happens though, the road is under construction so at times we ride smooth jet black freshly poured ashfalt, and at others well... its a white knuckle ride through thick mud, loose gravel and bottomless puddles. The construction gangs working on the road at intermittent stretches have become our biggest fans. Confused sun-scorched faces stare out in disbelief as we approach but quickly produce the biggest smiles upon hearing our greetings. "Rest a little," they say, inviting us into their company. At one stop they were so persistent, we stopped and stayed for a roadside lunch, prepared under a plastic tarp on a stove fashioned out of mud. "Xin cu!" They kept on saying as we passed by. We loved it as we thought they were saying "you're very cool." Their mantra pushed us up the mountain. Only later did we learn it had the less flattering meaning of "very tired" which might not have had the same motivational effect.