That morning, I felt like a total idiot since I rode exactly four times for 5 kilometers back and forth in order to find the new road leading to Erguna City. Baidu Maps couldn’t help since the new road is not even listed. It’s another 130 kilometers to the city of Eerguna. The journey took one whole day.

Country Road S203 is perfect for riding a bicycle, flat and smooth. The road went for more than 110 kilometers straight until I reached the biggest farm land I’ve ever seen in my life, Shangkuli. I decided to stop here for today to see this great place.

I stood in the place of brother Li and his friends. Within two years the four guys and one girl constructed a farm homestay with BBQ fire place, greenhouse, a playground for kids, Mongolian tents and many animals that run around freely. If you ever visit Shangkuli, you should visit them.

The next day I meet a couple from Beijing that just got married. I was invited for lunch to the couples’ parents home, the farm house next door. The local delicacy is called Shouba Meet. It’s freshly cooked sheep meat on bones, blood sausage and intestines. Everybody uses his own knife to get chunks of meet from a big plate. As a side dish there is some fresh salad. The first time I eat an uncooked vegetable dish in China. A big feast.

As I get a tour around the village of Shangkuli I realize that this place had nothing to do with a poor Chinese farmland. Everywhere is high tech equipment and new agricultural machines. People seem to live a good life selling corn, milk, and all different kinds of meat. New apartments and the huge local administration building with nearby sports center show the wealth of this place. “And in winter when it’s cold”, tells me one of the friends of Li,  “people play Mahjong and drink wine”. I loved my stay on the farm. Let’s see what the city of Eerguna has to offer.

Your Jorg