So while I was in Yokohama at the World Table Tennis Championships May 1, I met a Chinese journalist who told me about the Chinese National Table Tennis Championships Qualifier in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia (neimenggu huhehaote), May 10-16.  Since I had no plans, I took a REALLY REALLY cheap one-hour flight Friday night, May 15, and then flew back Monday morning, May 18. 

Quick point of clarification:  "Inner Mongolia" is an autonomous region inside of China, while "Mongolia" is a separate country.  However, people living in Inner Mongolia still call themselves "Mongolians."

This tournament was SUPER SECRET.  It wasn't by choice, but it seems that the Chinese media doesn't follow inter-Chinese table tennis very much, and the host of the tournament wasn't seemingly proactive about letting people  know about the event.  When I attended the final day on Saturday, May 16, there were probably around 599 Chinese spectators - and one foreigner!  Even better, I saw members of the Chinese Olympic and National Team members play much closer and in a more personal setting.

Sunday was tourist day.  I was lucky and hooked on to a previously-formed, 15-passenger van tour group headed for Xilamuren, the famous Inner Mongolian grasslands about 90 miles away from Hohhot.  On the way back we visited a local factory that produced everything from swords to wallets to camel-haired clothing.  The tour was from 9am to 4pm.  Total cost?  200 RMB ($34 USD).  That is why I am able to travel so much - everything is sooo cheap!

When I got back at 4pm, I hit the streets of Hohhot to visit some of the local sites.  The coolest place I went was Da Zhao Temple, were I hunk out  with some Buddhist monks in their early twenties, having a lazy Sunday watching bull riding on CCTV5.

I also visited Five Pagoda Temple (Jingangzuo Dagoba).  It was built in 1732 (377 years old) and inside has 1,563 images of Buddha carved into its walls, each differing slightly.