Yak Burger

Oct 2:  After checking into the hotel of dorm rooms with beds, we went to the horse trek office to fill out paperwork where we signed our lives away.  If we were injured, they would get us to a hospital, but we would have to pay the bills.  We received a 2 minute culture class.  Do not comb your hair in the tent.  Because there are no tables, the floor will be the table; therefore, do not step over people's food.  Do not hang and dry your wet socks near the fire.  The guides will find a more suitable place. With a couple hours of daylight left, we explored the city.  The guys paid 20 RMB to visit the monastery and we gals explored the surrounding hills.  My favorite thing to do in a new city is to walk and explore rather than pay and explore.  Just being in a new city is good enough for me.  The town is a mix of tourist shops and hotels plus worn down houses with large sun windows warming enclosed front porches and houses with wooden roofs that have survived the brute force of winter. When the sun set, we went to Leisha's Restaurant on the main street because it was advertising a Yak Big Mac.  In China, people share dishes.  In America, we want our own, so we debated a bit whether or not to order the large 20 RMB yak burger or the extra-large one.  The owner made the decision for us and said get the large one.  We ordered four and a plate of delicious thick french fries.  Each yak burger was HUGE.  Only two of us finished.  Yes I was one of them.  The other two probably ate about a 1/4th of their sandwich.  If you are a group, I would recommend ordering one and trying the other dishes.  Order family style.  As we were working our way through the burgers, more and more delicious food was being brought out to the packed house of diners.