Tall wall

Our friend John hooked us up with rock-climbing at this wall in the middle of town. It's really high; a lot higher than the ones at the gym back in Bloomington. 20 meters, is what the guide told us: almost 66 feet

The wall is next to a shopping mall (of course), so one doesn't lack for an audience, especially from the under-12 demographic.

The guy holding the rope is Panji, the climbing guide. For a very reasonable fee, he brings a bunch of gear and belays you for as long as you want. He also organizes outdoor trips, which we really want to do.

Panji is wearing an Asian X-Games shirt. A competitor's shift. He'll be competing in the next one too, in May in Kuala Lumpur.

Panji can make it up this wall in 12 seconds. When he speed-climbs it, he has to have two people belaying, just to take the rope in fast enough. I didn't worry about safety at all, climbing with him -- he's ridiculously overqualified to be standing around holding a rope for me.

I didn't make it to the top. The holds are all nice and chunky, but they were pretty reachy for me, with my short arms and short legs. That's good. If I scampered right up the first time, I wouldn't have much to work on next time. Chad will get bored sooner than me, but there's a thoroughly evil overhanging wall just to the right (you can see a bit of it in the top pic) that should keep him in fits for a long time to come.