It was up before the sun this morning as we had a bus to catch at 7:15 am for Xiahe, 6 hours from Xining. We knew from our fellow passengers that we were heading to an unusual place right from the start as many were Tibetan nomads dressed in sheep skin clothing and prayer beads.

Our 6 hour journey was full of interesting scenery, starting out as red rock cliffs then to grassy meadows with a backdrop of snow covered mountains in the distance. After plenty of passes climbed and descended, we finally entered the valley of our destination and from the bus stop checked into our accommodations, Tibetan Overseas Hotel. A larger hotel with not the warmest staff but since it had clean beds and Lianna’s favorite, a private toilet, it seemed good enough for a few nights.

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