‘So where are you from?’ says me to the other western woman in the group I’m with after visiting the local market to buy designated ingredients for a planned hotpot shared group meal. ‘I’m from Australia’ says she, ‘Darwin’. Two sentences later, we establish that her husband, also in the group, probably knows my sister (and it turns out he does and is delighted to find out how she is and the more recent story of her life). So how far does one have to go to escape the neighbours? A lot further than Chengdu, it seems. And I’m delighted to be able to reconnect old friends and to chat about people I know rather than just travel chat/tales. This family has also saved me from the disappointment of visiting Leshan to see one of the world’s biggest Bhuddas only to find out that it is under restoration and not visible – that’s a 300 km trip that I do not regret making. Thanks, Darwinians all!