Continuing through the desert

This morning, El wanted to set off early. That motivated me to do the same. After having noodles for breakfast, we got on our bicycles at 7:43 a.m. and rode off together. After only a few kilometers, our routes parted ways.

On the way out of the city, the road was still lined with trees, but before long I found myself back in the desert. I followed Provincial Road S314, which ran parallel to a motorway. There was hardly any climbing today; the route was essentially flat at just over 1,000 meters above sea level. Only shortly before reaching Guazhou did I begin to see patches of green on the horizon, and soon I turned onto the road leading toward the town center. I passed fields of sunflowers, corn, and potatoes, as well as rows of trees, until I arrived at my hotel in the heart of the town. I was standing in front of the hotel before the day's highest temperature had even been reached. The time was 1:40 p.m., and the temperature was 32°C.

Before dinner, I had time to get some rest. Even though the ride had gone very well, I was still a little tired—I had not slept quite enough, and I had also spent many hours riding under the sun. After dinner, I went to the market right next to my hotel and stocked up on fruit and other supplies for the evening and for tomorrow’s stage.