Day 35

4. June 2000, Rest Day in Lanzhou

Our last rest day before Beiijing is very welcome as the last days have been tiring. Lanzhou also suddenly feels like being in the modern world again: At last we have an English-language TV channel again (StarTV), the hotel is a Singapore joint-venture and therefore has none of the Chinese hotel peculiarities and the hotel buffet is equipped with English-language description (after several weeks on the road, small things can make a difference).

Overall 1 hour 10 minutes penalty

The official results can be looked up on this website

Lanzhou skyline next to the Yellow River, one of the culturally and economically important waterways in China.

Many use the rest day for repair, although Anders from Sweden insists that he is just maintaining his Volvo "Buckel".

 

Even Lanzhou traffic sees lots of bicycles, rikshas, motorbikes, motorcycle-car hybrids and yes ... rollers.

Lanzhou, a two-million people city caught between hills, therefore always prone to smog. Not many sights and therefore not many foreigners but a modern city with all facilities and friendly inhabitants.