[My brother Joe lives in Guam and travels all over that part of the world whenever he gets vacation. Right now he’s off to China, and he’s letting me post some of the travelogue notes he’s sending out. Pretty interesting stuff.]
Post 5, Chengdu:
Chengdu part one, mission complete.
Went to a Sichuian Opera (fire breathing, circus type stuff intertwined with singing and music), Giant Panda Research and Breeding Center (held a baby Panda for a small donation), and the worlds largest Buddha (carved out of a mountainside 71M high). Pretty incredible stuff.
Half of the fun is making it around in public transport and trying to speak Mandarin with people. The sum total of my interpersonal interactions with the people so far add up to a strong personal impression that China is a country boiling over with possibilities. It seems the people can sense they on the verge of an economic explosion. It has one of my true marks of a great people, they don’t talk about their culture and how progress is destroying it. They adapt. Like the Balinese, Thai, and others their culture is evident and it doesn’t require lip service. Coming from Guam this is so refreshing.
I am in Lllasa, Tibet now and waiting approval for Everest Base Camp.  The scenery is very similar to Bolivia and the Peru Altiplano, not much of a surprise as the Chinese established the Quechu/Inca Empire as a tribute colony.
More facts:
The Chinese discovered the moons of Jupiter 1,000 years before Galilleo. They used them to determine Longitude for navigation and mapmaking. They also established colonies around the world by 1430 including North Carolina, New York, California, and comprised the bulk of the Inca Ruling party. They transplanted many crops into the Americas which made large scale habitation possible. They had a liberty port and trading post set up in Saipan, pre-1400’s. And the punchline: Montezuma, the great Aztec Emperor was a Chinese Admiral. (All claims here recently proven via DNA studies and extensive factual evidence).
On to the “Rooftop of the World.” We leave via 4wd tomorrow moring early. From base camp we will hike to advanced Base Camp and make the call then. That is 15 -17 hours already so we will probably turn back then.