After leaving Lijiang, I went downhill for a while and then uphill for a long time. Unlike the other villages I had visited, this one was made of logs and was built like a log cabin.
![Lijiang](https://feel-the-earth.com/keiichi_english/wp-content/themes/the-thor/img/dummy.gif)
The dress of the villagers was also clearly different, they wore thick Samui cloth with hems up to their ankles, beads around their necks and cloth ornaments on their heads.
I could see that the ethnic group inhabiting the area had changed.
In addition, the temperature was dropping and without gloves, my hands were cold. There was a rest stop for the buses, so I went in to get some water.
![A complete change of atmosphere](https://feel-the-earth.com/keiichi_english/wp-content/themes/the-thor/img/dummy.gif)
The staff seemed to be bored and when they saw that I am Japanese, they said “here, here” and gave me a seat by the wood burning fireplace.
The fireplace was so warm that once I got close to it, I couldn’t leave. I wrote in my handwriting,
“How many metres above sea level is this? ”
He immediately wrote “3300m” on a piece of paper.
“What, 3300m? ”
I asked again to be sure, but the answer came back “3300m”.
I was already over 3000m above sea level.
It was difficult to get away from the fireplace,
but when I ventured out of the rest area, a group of men beckoned to me,
“Come here, come here! ”
They were building a fire outside, so I said
“thank goodness”
and crossed the road. The men seemed to be working here, processing wood.
There was a covered storage area and I asked if I could sleep here. They said “yes”.
It was getting dark and cold, so I was about to leave the tent when he gestured
“Come here, food, food”
and led me to a hut built right next to the construction site.
When I entered the room, there was a fire burning and a light bulb hanging, but no light.
![Fires in the house](https://feel-the-earth.com/keiichi_english/wp-content/themes/the-thor/img/dummy.gif)
A young man brought out a bamboo tube, I thought it was a water tobacco, which I often saw in Yunnan,
but it was not. He put butter and hot water in a bamboo tube and put it in a small diameter bamboo tube, and moved it up and down.
![with the boss](https://feel-the-earth.com/keiichi_english/wp-content/themes/the-thor/img/dummy.gif)
I had heard of this Tibetan drink, butter tea. He offered me a bowl of freshly brewed butter tea, and I approached him with trepidation.
I can’t see the color in the light, but I can smell the butter in the steam.
I take a sip. For some reason it reminded me of Sapporo ramen soup, perhaps because of the butter.
Despite the butter in the soup, it was surprisingly light and warmed me up.
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