“The mountain blew up right in front of us. There were tremors every few minutes. I will never forget the thunderous echo of those boulders – as big as two-story buildings – crashing down the mountain and into the gorge. We saw a small bridge that crossed the gorge and led to a small hotel with an open field in front of it. We reluctantly crossed it and our way to the wide grassy area in front of the hotel.”  —  The Ace of Diamonds: Surviving the Sichuan Earthquake on a Daoist Mountain

A few days after the initial report of a big earthquake in Sichuan, I e-mailed my friend Charlie with whom I stayed in Chengdu for two weeks this past March. He has written a harrowing account of his experience on the side of a crumbling mountain.  Thankfully, he and his friends escaped without injury.

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