jiuzhaigou/huanglong

a journey of a thousand li begins... through the jerkways additional gates, ie the terminal for flights within chengdu. there was time for lunch before the connecting flight to jiuzhai, 39rmb for bear palm tofu (exotic name for a simple dish; no bears involved) and yuxiang rousi (fish sauce pork strips).
arrived at jiuzhaigou to find that the bus option to jiuzhai paradise was out as the people manning the counter had “left for the day.” this was 2 in the afternoon. ended up taking a cab for 200rmb. the listed price was 180rmb, the 20rmb top-up was due to icy roads.
enroute to the hotel, ma shifu whipped out a disc and the front right flap rotated downwards to reveal a screen. he was pushing huanglong for some reason but we weren't sure if we had enough time to go but i nodded along, hoping he would keep his attention on the road instead.
it snowed twice during the car journey. once for a brief spell, the other time growing steadily heavier with hail getting into the mix.
the journey to jiuzhai paradise took abt an hour. entered into a freezing atrium where the reception was located, dotted by the occasional brazier. c proclaimed it vegasy. perhaps the tibetan stone buildings, the ponds crisscrossed with wooden walkways and replete with swans and ducks and egrets would have been right at home on the strip. unusually for me, had decided to splurge on accommodations and be pampered at a five-star resort. a rave from e, who had just been, certainly helped. at any rate, 690rmb a night for a standard room seemed reasonable. since it was the lull season, we were bumped up to a mountain-view room, which featured tibetan motifs mixed with lampshades with beaded fringes and a mock fireplace. the overall effect was actually quite pleasant instead of bewildering as unfortunate mix-n-matches were. the mountain view was bracing and the mock fireplace alcove with a thoughtful configuration of a sofa and a lounge chair was perfect for reading/watching tv/snacking/napping.
realised the paintings in the sprawling 1200 room hotel could all have been by the same artist. with 3 in each room and a couple lining the hallways, sometimes even in pairs, that must have worked out to a really sweet deal. the paintings themselves featured a yellow and green background marked with random chinese ink brushstrokes. inoffensive enough for a few thousand pieces to congregate in one location i guess.
was alas affected by the altitude - had a headache, mild nausea and zero appetite come dinner time. good thing the panadol helped. listened to some music before going to sleep and found an unexpected beat - the pounding of blood in my head.