Topicsichuan
13 entries, newest first.
Three Hands of CardsThrough a common-room window: two veterans of the table, one guest, and an education paid in small change.The Bus on the Roof of the WorldAn old print behind glass in a guesthouse hallway, four strangers on a bus roof, and a fifth figure I cannot explain.The Costume Shop at NightA lightbox of borrowed identities on a dark street, studied from across the road like an archive after hours.Incense by QR CodeA monastery basin, one yuan by phone, and the oldest transaction on earth running on the newest rails.A Tile for LuckA rack of red wishes at the overlook, four characters for everything going smoothly, and a skeptic paying in.Writing at Three Thousand MetersA balcony over the grasslands: notebooks, a map, a shirt losing its argument with the morning, and thin-air prose.Six DogsA viewpoint photo racket with six huskies, a fixed price, and the customer satisfaction of surrendering completely.The Marmot TaxHigh meadow bureaucracy: a customs officer with fur, whiskers at the lens, and a levy paid in full.Flags at the PassA cairn, radiating prayer lines, wind doing the reciting, and a small figure quietly deciding that one week on this plateau will not be enough.The Wall of SnowFirst full sight of the big mountains: a glacier flank filling the sky, and the yell it pulled out of me.The Toll HorseA mountain road checkpoint operated by one brown horse, and the correct currency for passage.Lunch with the DriverWestward with Yan: a shared table, a lazy susan, and the diplomacy of ordering for two strangers.The Toes of the BuddhaLeshan from the bottom up: toes the size of furniture, a head in the cliff sky, and twelve centuries of patience.