Hey, I'm back

I know it's been a while since my last post, that's because I've been looking everywhere for a place to get online, and not been successful until this morning. I left Lige on Saturday, caught a ride on the back of a ute to Lesser Luoshui (as opposed to big touristy Luoshui). The ute hooned around the side of the mountain around hair pin bends, along unmade road past landslides and occasionally stalled while waiting for another car to squeeze past on a narrow stretch of road. I clung onto the back and enjoyed the very impressive view of the lake. Arrived in the village and jumped out of the ute. Asked some blokes by the side of the road if there was somewhere to stay there and one led me to his house where I stayed with him, his wife and daughter.

Interviewed them and some other villagers as well while I was there. Sunday morning started walking to the next village but a bus load of tourists from Chengdu gave me a lift. The next village, Dazui, turned out to be a Naxi, not Mosuo, village. They speak Naxi and have their homes designed in the Naxi way, but wear Mosuo dress and eat Mosuo food. My interview was not going to be very useful there, so I set off again and landed in Zuosuo (or Lugu Hu Town as it has been renamed). It was cold and started raining so I didn't do much Sunday.

Monday, I walked to Aokua, a village beside the lake. Did some interviews there, including one with a Daba- practitioner of Mosuo indigenous religion. Unfortunately, he was old and turned out to not be quite with it, as well as quite deaf. He told a story in Mosuo but I have no idea what it was about- have to wait for a translator for that. I even interviewed the guy who gave me a lift home in his truck at the end of the day.

Tuesday, I walked in the other direction, heading North further into Sichuan. Walked past a lamasery to some pretty little villages. On the way back, stopped at the lamasery to use the toilet and some people outside talked to me. They were young guys who now live outside of the area but had come home for New Year. They took me to their families homes for lunch and then tea a couple of hours late. As I arrived in the second home, several family members went outside to slaughter a chicken for tea in my honour. Great. We were going to go out to see Mosuo dance but ended up running late and I spent the evening in a boxy smoke filled room listening to drunk men sing karaoke. Not my favourite way of spending an evening. I didn't do any interviews but considered it a day well spent as I made some contacts and got to know the area.

Yesterday, I accompanied a couple of the people I had met, to a village. I planned to spend a few hours with them and then interview some of them, which they agreed to. But then they all got drunk over lunch, so I only got one interview (though it was a good one). Eventually left them to it and walked back to Zuosuo where I spent a quiet evening.

Today I am going out to a village, I will meet up with them again- they've promised interviews again, and when I'm done there I will go to a different village and do some more.

Happy I am finally back online. Everyone was telling me there was no internet in Zuosuo, but this guy led me through some back streets this morning to an office where they have been happy to let me use the net. Hopefully I can come back. I think that's it for now. Wish me luck.