May 9. Xichang.

We are stuck in Xichang and tackle a rainy afternoon writing in a strange upper class restaurant, taking in only one shared latte for economical reasons. It’s a strange place and we can imagine many a Chinese businessman coming here to show off his spendthrift to the members of his class. It stops raining later so we walk a few blocks up to a restaurant I have seen earlier, when I went to the bank. The place offers some nice dishes that we order by pointing at pictures (that did, alas, not include dumplings).
We stay in a local guesthouse with a stubborn lock on our door and a smelly lukewarm shared shower, but the family who runs the place makes up for everything, as always.