(C) We are sitting in the plane waiting to depart for Guilin. 25 minutes have passed since we were supposed to have departed and we haven't moved an inch. I have finished reading the newspaper and inflight magazine and now switch the iPad back on to write about our last destination Mt Huangshan.
Prior to arriving in Mt Huangshan we had our final overnight train ride from Shanghai to Tunxi. Unlike our previous train rides the 4 of us did not have beds in the same cabin. Ian and Julie were ticketed with a top and bottom bunk in one cabin and John and I had the 2 top bunks in the cabin next door.Well this was going to upset our train ritual of a couple of beers for the boys and a bottle of Chinese red wine for the girls before shut eye. Something had to be done. Luckily a man from another cabin who spoke some English was nearby so I was soon able to negotiate some bunk swapping so that Julie and Ian could join us in our cabin. The only thing was that the two people who were supposed to be in the bottom bunks were getting off the train at 4am and 6am and we weren't sure if new passengers would be wondering who were in their beds. Luckily this did not happen, however the train guard did come into the cabin about 3.30am to jab Ian awake as he was in the bed of the man who was getting off at 4am. Fortunately for Ian, Julie was awake and quickly signalled to the guard that the man was in the next cabin.
(J) Miriam was our guide for the next part of the tour. She picked up the dishevelled travellers from the train station, she amongst us being in apparent good cheer. The bus took us to a local restaurant only open for our sakes to provide an egg and toast breakfast.
Miriam proved to be a very friendly and knowledgable guide. She is only small but has a big smile and a very sincere and compelling laugh. Her English was very good and like all the guides was more interested in learning more English from us than she was teaching us any of the local lingo....most of what she did tell us seemed to fall on deaf ears as only the most straight forward Chinese can we seem to grasp.
The first day was a tour of some local villages in which Miriam spoke with the locals and relayed some of their daily lives to us. They were more than willing to chat and we were even sincerely congratulated on Australia's part in helping with the search for the missing Malaysian airliner, which was of course full of so many Chinese nationals. The village life was quite simple, the primary cash crop being tea. Like other places we had been, most of the young people had left the villages to work in the cities. Now apparently the govt is looking at tax incentives to encourage people to stay on the land. The ground is steep and I imagine the work to be backbreaking....much better a job in the city I expect. A good moment was when a very proud local puppy came scurrying around a corner carry a soiled nappy as a prize.
Our first evening meal was in the hotel restaurant. I had just been to the gym before dinner to use up a bit of energy as the last few days had not been overly busy. The offerings included western food which, for a change, sounded appealing. Miriam was quite persuasive this would be a bad plan and recommended a number if dishes that Chez and I decided to try, including a local soup of bamboo with pork which was really good. Our travelling companions had their hearts set on the western menu and went for steak. I am pretty sure Chez and I made the right choice. I should mention here that we were in a part of China that was still catching up on the beer thing. No local bars and what beer we could find was invariably room temperature with mid strength being the strongest available...which I regret to report was a much better option than a couple of cold light beers we tried.
After a good nights sleep and a hearty breakfast we headed off for a day of hiking in Mt Huangshan, also known as Yellow Mountain. We caught a cable car that ended fairly close to the top. The walking was along different tracks that took you from one summit to another. The maximum height was only 1860 meters and the tracks were good so it was easy breathing and walking. There were some pretty substantial staircases which were a bit of a challenge, just to keep you honest. There were a number of different cable cars and in these areas the crowds were thickest, a lot of Chinese visit the mountain, it is a holy place apparently but there are no temples on the mountain any more and most people seemed to be content site seeing. The views were spectacular if a little difficult to find. The mist and cloud rolled in and out at different times during the day. Many of the rock formations represented different images. Our guide, Miriam, said you had to use 70% imagination to see what was there..monkeys, elephants, sitting Buddah. One particular rock was supposedly an elephant or something but one look at it, with no imagination required, suggested something totally different...essentially a male organ standing at attention. After a bit of coaxing, eventually Miriam confessed that yes, that was what it really looked like.
After we caught the cable car down, we opted for a relax in a natural hot spring bathing area at the foot of the mountain. After 4 hours or so of hiking this was a really good plan. The spring included many pools all over 40 degrees in temperature and were a great way to relax the muscles and the soul. We spent about 2 hours their trying all types of different pools, most of which contained added extras such as green tea, rose petals, coconut milk...one even included vitamin C apparently. All these additives supposedly providing health benefits, from minimising cholesterol to removing wrinkles. For an additional 30 yuan we were able to go into a pool where the fish like to nibble at your dead skin. We passed this type of thing up some years ago in Malaysia but thought we would give it a go this time around. In Malaysia the offering was to place your feet in the water, here you sat in a large pool and let the fish come to you....you could totally immerse the body if you chose to....which I did. The fish seem to be having a great time of it. Ian's feet were particularly attractive to them. I am not saying what part of me was most popular, but I was wearing properly fitting speedos. Once again room temperature mid strength beer was the order of the day.
Tipping is a necessity in China. As there were limited eating options near our hotel, we ate in the restaurant two nights running here. We got our best reaction to our tips on these occasions. The first night once the girl realised the change was also the tip, she skipped joyfully back to the service counter, it was very funny to see. The second night was a different, older woman who didn't get so carried away, however the next morning at breakfast she was very attentive, although it was a buffet, she was providing us with table service!
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(Some words from our guest blogger and travel companion Julie) -
I stare... The mountain, granite, pines, bamboo and yet to bloom varieties of tree.
The stair.... More than 7000 up and down, muscles aching, heart racing... Help!
They stare.... Only a few big noses up here, gradually smiling faces and some helping hands, have reached the second highest peak... 1860 m, the Bright Summit
We all stare.... Beautiful rock formations, steep ravines, magnificent vista, sweet smelling air....Use the imagination - 70%? This rock is a rabbit on the back of a turtle on top of an elephant. This pine the Welcome Tree, that pine The Lovers, thousands of padlocks on chains - a solemn promise, symbols of undying love...Mist closing in
More stairs ................ Huangshan the Yellow Mountain. What a great day.
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