by the crook who runs the operation; finally in a police van. Let me
explain:
We arrived in Shangri-La yesterday, a town that is a fine example of
Tibetan architecture (though not in Tibet itself, the people of the
area are ethnically related). This is one of the many places claiming
to be the inspiration for the earthly paradise in the novel Lost
Horizon by James Hilton. The Chinese government authorised a change
in name in order to encourage tourism. The plan worked. They got so
much tourism that now there is nothing else. The old town is one big
tourist trap, all restaurants and shops. Some of the shops do honest
business in selling groceries, beer, and so on, but most sell "genuine
Tibetan" artefacts of dubious origin including yak-horn combs and shoe
horns, yak-leather belts and bags, and yak-hair cloaks and scarves.
So for a break we went horseriding outside the town. In fact it was a
very tame affair with the horses being led around by two local girls,
but the scenery was beautiful. We chose a circuit that was described
as taking two hours but were led back to the start within an hour. We
demanded a partial refund but to no avail. We then went to the
tourist office to report the guy. They said they could do nothing and
sent us to the police. The officers listened with interest to our
story and took us in a van to confront the crook. The guy brazened it
out with the cops and refused a refund. He offered us another go on
his horses but we declined and went back to town in the police van.
It was typical of the rip-off that is "Shangri-La".
