China got our goat

Plan for August 8th:

• 6:30 - Stroll around Langmu Si
• 7:30 - Chinese breakfast
• 8:30 - Hit the road for an easy trip to Huanglong park
  
• 12:00 - Tour scenic Huanglong, taking in the beauty and tranquility of rural China
• 6:00 - Check into plush hotel
• 7:00 - Sichuan feast
• 9:30 - Pass out, happy and full
  

Actual Events of August 8th:

• 6:30-8:30 - As planned
• 9:15 - Tunnel on shiny new road unexpectedly closed (no prior signage); along with miscellaneous other cars/buses/trucks/mopeds/motorized tricycles, head off along the old (unpaved) road on a 45 minute detour through the hairpin turns of a mountain pass. Whee!
• 12:00 - Come to a sudden stop on the road a mere 50 km from our destination, taking our place among the trucks full of curious-looking yaks. Discover that China, in its continual quest for progress and unceasing drive towards the future, has decided to pave the road ahead of us. The entire road. In both directions. And so we, along with the increasing line of cars and trucks around us, are told to sit tight indefinitely until the paving is done.
• 1:00 - Paving not done
  
• 2:00 - Paving still not done
• 3:00 - Truck filled with 200 goats arrives. Paving not concluded
• 4:00 - Hunger takes over in our van. Each member of the group (secretly) decides who would be most delicious to eat. Settle for watermelon instead.
• 5:00 - Finally, we are given the green light and all cars, trucks and vans make a break for it. After a few stops and starts and one more unpaved mountain road drive, we are en route.
• 6:00-9:30 - As planned