To Charlie.
Heh, no, not been on any long trips here in China (apart from getting lost once and spending 2 1/2 hours getting from Chengdu to Longchuan), but that would be cool.
Tibet is, as you say, a bit tricky at present, but maybe aim for some other place? Some seriously nice round trips to be made over the course of a few days with Chengdu as the centre.