Still stunningly beautiful. Still incredibly infuriating!

The overcrowded, non air-conditioned bus to Hongya seemed to take forever! Not much fun when you have 2 seats between 4, one of them being an incredibly wriggly toddler! I was not in the mood to undertake bus journey number two to Gaomiao on the same day but Bill was desperate to get home and after a tea stop in Hongya's main square and a chance to stretch Isaac's legs, we picked up the yellow bus to Gaomiao which is actually a pretty pleasant ride. Bill's Auntie and Uncle were there to meet us and we were made to sit and be polite whilst they finished a business meal in the private room of a restaurant. The last thing any of us wanted to do after 2 long, squashed bus journeys but once we've arrived in Gaomiao, everything is out of my control - grrrr!! (the first of many!) Eventually I managed to insist that we all had a bit of fresh air and Isaac was able to run around the town square and the old town. Memories of my little attention loving boy leading a conga line, robot dancing with the lady line dancers and posing enthusiastically for selfies surrounded by girls have almost overshadowed the feelings of frustration!! 

Gaomiao was significantly colder than Chengdu and much to my annoyance, my baby probably wasn't wearing enough and caught a bit of a snuffle (ganmao!) In case I wasn't feeling guilty enough, I was reminded of the fact that my child had a cold at least twice a minute by tissue wielding passer-bys! 

The next day we headed for the village. As we climbed up the mountain in Bill's Uncle's car, Isaac became more and more excited, believing he was in dinosaur land. I can see where he was coming from with the tall bamboo and beautiful lush vegetation. Isaac was scared of a T-Rex, I was much more concerned about the lovely locals, definitely much more scary! Isaac and Lewis felt at home the minute they arrived. Maybe I'm just getting old and moody, but the place seemed even more filthy than ever! There are huge hazards everywhere - sheer drops, unattended cleavers, slippery steps, wandering dogs. With the number of knives, sticks, tools and fires Isaac managed to get hold of, I'm amazed (and extremely thankful) that he didn't have any major incidents. However, the hazard that was of most concern to Bill's family was slipping on chicken poo. Now I am definitely no fan of the stinky, slippery chicken poo EVERYWHERE but when faced with sheer drops into a ravine or putting one's hand into a huge fire, chicken poo somewhat fades into insignificance! 

Isaac definitely made his mark on the village. The valley vibrated with the sounds of the little dragon! He was particuarly excited when he saw his new friends, who followed him around calmly yet bemused. The best means of international communication was through a yellow seed fight! Lewis was just happily smilimg away in the background being passed from person to person. It was a bit like pass the parcel but instead of unwrapping a layer, they seemed to be adding layers at every opportunity! By the time we'd got to the obligatory family photos, Lewis looked like a small Michelin Man! 

Beautiful lush scenery goes hand in hand with an awful lot of rain and it started pouring it down on our first night! Stuck in the house, I became desperate to leave. Isaac had no qualms with the primitive lifestyle. One of his highlights was going to the toilet with the piggy! We gave up on trying to keep him clean! Before we could escape, we had to go and visit a dying relative. This seems to be a big part of the returning home traditions that I will never be able to get my head around! Another village traditional is the molesting of the foreigners 'useless big breasts' by a scary granny. I resigned myself to my fate yet was very grateful when my small prince pushed her out of the way, shouting 'no no no' and grabbing hold of me. His Daddy, who was just stood giggling, could learn a lot from him! We eventually made it to Gaomiao where Isaac played town celebrity at the town square again.