Go west, young man!
Chen Xun cycles to Lhasa in 2005. Photos: Courtesy of Chen Xun
Chen Xun first fell in love with Lhasa in the Tibet Autonomous Region after two cycling trips to the region. And this Shanghainese was so taken with the area that he decided to open his own hostel there. Today he is the proud owner of the incongruously named "Nest Motel" on Xianzu island in Lhasa.
"Returning home to Shanghai after my second trip to Lhasa in 2006, I realized my heart had been captured by the beauty of the Himalayas," Chen told the Global Times. "And the idea of returning to Lhasa obsessed me every day and night. When one of my friends decided to give up her hostel in Lhasa, I decided to take it over right away."
Blue skies
Chen, 36, said that he first became fascinated with Lhasa when he read about it in books at the library when he was in middle school.
"I was deeply impressed by its unbelievably blue sky and its exotic atmosphere which struck me as so different from Shanghai," said Chen.
After graduating from a technical secondary school in 1996, Chen turned his hand to an eclectic range of jobs including machine fixer, map maker, market researcher and IT worker. "But I wasn't happy with city life at all," he said.
In late 2004, he decided to undertake a cycle journey to Tibet, preparations for which lasted more than six months. The Internet was still in its infancy in China at that time, and he had to ask for advice in person from other cyclists who were well-versed in long-distance cycling adventures. He also did plenty of research work on customs, climate and geography of the places he intended to visit.
On June 3, 2005, he finally set off along the China National Highway 318 (G318) leading to Lhasa, which is also called the South Sichuan-Tibet Line. The route is famous for its precipitous dangers, but also for its breathtaking views.
And during this journey, Chen experienced his first narrow escape from death. About 5 kilometers before the Salween River Bridge in Yunnan Province, he stopped by the river for some drinking water and rested his foot on a rock overhanging the water.
Unfortunately the rock gave way under his weight and he fell down the cliff side, thankfully landing on a protruding ledge, a piece of luck that prevented him hurtling to a watery death.
"I would have been sleeping with the fishes that night," Chen recalled.
After 33 days of cycling from Sichuan Province to the Tibet Autonomous Region, Chen finally reached Lhasa, a place he found to be everything he had ever hoped it would be - blue sky and all.
The terrace of Nest Motel in Lhasa.
The year of 2008 marked the year when Chen became an official Lhasa resident. He took over the Nest Motel which comprised two traditional Tibetan houses. The initial rent and re-decoration cost set him back more than 100,000 yuan ($15,840). He paid for this from both his savings and money borrowed from friends.
Speaking of his own free spirit Chen likes to quote the famous line from the movie The Shawshank Redemption: "Some birds aren't meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright." He believes travelers are birds fluttering here and there, and the Nest Motel is an ideal stopping-off place for such people.
"I get up at 7 am every morning and make breakfast for my guests," he said. "I suggest travel routes to them according to their individual needs. And when they return in the evening, we sing, chat and tell stories."
Chen's first-ever guest was a young man from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region nicknamed Chang Gong (meaning "long-term labor") and who painted an amazing picture of a Bodhi tree for a wall of the hostel. He also created an artistic sign for outside and helped Chen with the cleaning, cooking and grocery shopping. "He didn't ask for any wages and still paid me the rent. Now he is running a studio of industrial design in Dali, Yunnan Province, and I usually stay with him when I am there."
Chen Xun has befriended many of the guests who have lodged with him from all over the country. And whenever he travels to other parts of China, they are happy to welcome him.
"If I hadn't gone to Lhasa what would my life be like? I'd be doing an ordinary job, and probably be married and raising a child," Chen said.
Every eight or nine months, Chen Xun takes a trip back to Shanghai. "It's increasingly difficult for me to get accustomed to the life there now. The weather is so rainy, the air is dirty and the traffic is awful," he said.
Yet regardless of these feelings he admits he will almost certainly return to live in Shanghai at some point in the future.
"One's mind is changing all the time," he explained. "And when I do come back, I'll transfer the Nest Motel to someone I believe can look after it. If there is no such person, then I'd rather close it down. I think of it as a work of art in progress as opposed to just a business," he said.