Linxia

The next day we were to leave Lanzhou and head to Xiahe. I thought it might be a good idea to take the bus to Linxia and from there take another bus to Xiahe. So much for the best laid plans. First of all after breakfast it rained. We had to go to the South bus station to take our bus. What's wrong with jumping into a taxi and head over there. When it rains, the traffic is a nightmare. It doesn't move. The taxi driver threw us out of his taxi, told us to find another way of getting to the bus station. We asked around and found a couple of buses to get us there. We boarded a bus for Linxia and reached it after 3 hours. Now we were at the bus counter inquiring about the bus to Xiahe. The usual Chinese answer was 'mei you' meaning 'none'. We have to go back to Lanzhou for the bus to Xiahe. I almost lost it. I thought we came all this way and to miss Xiahe. What she should have told us was the bus for Xiahe is at another station. Don't expect this kind of help. So we found a taxi to find out what alternatives we have. He told he could take us for 300 yuan. We agreed but actually it was his friend who was goint to take us. No matter, we weren't going to be picky. So we jumped into this friend's car and in 2 hours we were in Xiahe. Phew! That was close! A careful reading of Lonely Planet guidebook said, 'there are 3 bus stations in Linxia'. It was my fault, I should have known and asked about whiich station the bus for Xiahe leaves at. That would save us at least 200 yuan. It's really a minor snag, we did get to Xiahe.