This is Todd Borgie calling in with the daily journal of October 22, 1999 on our Around The World tour.

Today we began the day after a grueling day of driving yesterday. Our destination is Golmud. This is really the last largest town before Lhasa. It is a strange mix of people and a strange location. In terms of arriving it has the feel of Las Vegas. We were driving, driving, and driving without seeing anything remotely like a town or a place where one could be. Pretty soon you skirt a mountain and there it is, in the middle of what seems to be nowhere.

The drive was great and certainly a lot more relaxing than the previous day. Although we had a slight gas leak from the previous day's bumping and rattling we were confident we could make it to Golmud and fix the problems there. It was really cold and we couldn't bring ourselves to lay on the cold concrete that morning to fix the gas leak.

The first part of our trip was a good omen, the sight of two pilgrims making their way to Lhasa. In this process they stand, kneel, placing their hands near their feet, and slide their hands forward so they are lying flat on their stomachs. They do wear hand protection. They get up and repeat this process all the way to Lhasa. This pair at this moment was about 800km from La Lhasa . In my understanding, and please correct me if I'm wrong, in the course of their journey they rely on the goodwill of their countrymen to feed, house, and protect them on their long journey. This devotional state is truly inspiring and makes our own journey seem like a walk in the park.

We left early so our guide fixed us up with an on-the-road breakfast. This consisted of two pieces of bread slightly marmaladed, a package of dried apple bits, water, and a chocolate bar. This was light and refreshing to help us start out the day. We started out the day a little higher than 10,500 ft. We were beginning to feel the effects of altitude. However, as the day progressed, the scenery was beautiful. We climbed a mountain pass. All of sudden the soil turned to sand. There were mountains all around us as we were driving through a desert valley.

The road on which we drove was on the average flat. We ended up descending about 1,000 ft. over about 370km. Mountains surrounded us nearly the whole way. We couldn't get over the fact that we were about 10,000 ft. and still had mountains towering over us. The mountains were rough and jagged rock formation. The environment seemed dry as a bone. I guess all the sand was a result of pure wind erosion. Again, correct me if I'm wrong. There were channels of snow melt-off which seemed to be rockier, but for the most part everything was entirely sand.

Another event that surprised us was the fact that we saw a shepherd cross our path. What made him stand out was the fact that he was riding a Bactrian Camel, the kind with two humps. I guess it is my ignorance, but I never thought of camels in China.

Then along on the journey we saw a prison. In terms of preventing a jailbreak, this is a perfect place. Wide-open land, dry and flat. That is until you make it to the rocky mountainside. Although the drive was fun and the road quality was good, we were happy to stop riding in the vehicles.

It was a short day for us, driving for us only 370 km in about six hours. Unfortunately, we had our last meal with our guide Mr. Lee who throughout our journey grew very dear to us. He always fixed us up with great hotels and great eats. He is also a talented mechanic and seemed to know exactly what to do with every situation. He was like our trip dad. I hope we didn't embarrass him too much. Our thoughts will be forever with him and we hope he finds success in all his endeavors. In token of his friendship he ordered us a special chicken dish. He said that six drumsticks symbolized good luck on a journey, as they are the legs of chickens. He emphasized the fact that six is a good number. As a token of our esteem we gave him a Leatherman knife. The best tool to have on the trip. We will miss it as much as we will miss Mr. Lee. Thanks, Mr. Lee.

When we finished lunch, we did what every other Land Rover owner does. We worked on the Land Rovers. We fixed the gas leak. It was the result of a bad fuel line and our driving with the s-bar heaters. I understand that our upcoming drive could be the toughest one of our whole trip. Hopefully everything will work so that we won't freeze. We are also preparing the Rovers for high altitude driving which includes beefing up the fuel systems. Higher altitude and the lower atmospheric pressure take its toll on driving. As a result of it, our vehicles will be starved for air, as well as ourselves. We hope to prevent problems by carburetor alteration and possibly timing adjustments.

We will get back to you on the results. As for now, this is Todd signing off. Until next time, Zai-Xie!