Let\'s Talk About The Roads - 120 kilometers
Dunhuang -- Mon, Aug 8, 2005
Sorry for this tirade of complaints -- but come on -- I've been sick... You'll at least be happy to know that I feel better now. Let's hope it stays -- I am running out of Cipro.

So this morning we had 30km of dirt, rock, sand, dust, you name "highway". No this isn't some off-track short cut that my compass told me might work. This is 312 -- the only major road to the West.

So for what reasoning should huge trucks come barreling at me blasting me with clouds of dust so big that render useless the surgical mask that I am futilely wearing. Well... I haven't quite figured that one out. They are supposedly building an express highway right next to what used to be 312 -- but from the looks of things I don't see much building going on -- just a lot of tearing up.

Supposedly they have been working on this for four years -- this tearing up thing. What about just doing it a piece at a time or maybe just leaving the old highway there until things are all set with the new one... Not sure the logic here, but maybe there is a good answer... maybe there's not.

But then again -- how fast would you work if you were being paid 22 renembi ($3.75/day) working 14/hrs and living in 100 people to a room migrant "houses". That is what we learned from our migrant highway worker from Nigexia provenice. Rough life... I guess biking 120 km over dirt roads while sick ain't that bad.