30 March 2007
The long hike from Ping’An to Di zhai Guest House
With little more than a spare T-shirt, their
waterproofs, lunch and water, the packs felt light as
we climbed steeply from the village to a viewpoint 500
m above the guest house. The view was spectacular –
mountains, endless rice terraces and small villages
half hidden by folds in the hills. I thought it would
make a great location for a film like the Lord of the
Rings.
Thousands of bangers (long strings of Chinese
firecrackers) were being let off in one of the
villages. Depending on which way the wind blew, the
tiny explosions sounded like heavy rainfall on a tin
roof or a spaghetti western shoot-out on an old
televisions set. On the other side of the mountain
there was a slowly moving procession of villagers all
dressed in white. They were carrying a man to his
burial site. Last night, we had watched a stone mason
carving lettering on his tombstone.
The hillsides are dotted with elegant graves, each a
stone tablet carved with many Chinese characters, held
vertically in a carved footstone and caped with a
protecting lion. These final resting places have been
chosen with great care, enjoying superb views over
the rice fields and mountains. Many of the headstones
had been gruesomely smeared with a dismembered
chicken, bloodied feathers, torn flesh and shattered
bones inside a blood stained circle. Twice a year the
villagers feed their ancestors in this way.
A group of local Yao minority women followed us until
lunch. The Yao are famous for their long hair. They
cut it only once in their lifetime, when they are 18
years old. From then on they let it grow, washing it
every three days in a shampoo made from rice water.
They wind their enormously long hair into a gently
twisted pony tale that starts at the forehead, before
tying it in a natural turban. Five of the ladies
unwound their hair for us to see; it reached their
shins. A lady from Ping’An, we were told, holds the
world record for the longest hair.
By mid-afternoon, the light packs were feeling heavy
but the kids managed to get to the guesthouse ahead of
schedule nevertheless.
In the evening Xiao Si put the students into four
groups and gave them an hour to prepare skits. There
was much laughter at the camp humor that followed.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
29th March
29 March 2007-3-30
Today was mainly taken up with traveling as we had to
fly down to Guilin in order to start our next trek. A
small lunch was served on the flight with that rarest
of luxuries here, a bread roll. There were many small
deals made as students and teachers swopped treasures
from their plastic trays. Mrs Little was delighted to
exchange cucumbers for tomatoes and some of the larger
boys did all they could to persuade others to give up
their food.
There were two busses waiting for us at the airport,
one to take the excess baggage down to Yangshuo, the
other to take us to Longsheng. We had to stop part
way there to change to two other busses that were
small enough to make it round the short roads up to
Ping’An.
Ping’An has a population of perhaps 800, with large
wooden houses clinging to the steep hillside and
surrounded by small rice terraces that stretch along
the slopes like the contours on a map. There is a lot
of building going on in the village at the moment.
The main structure of the houses appears to be made
without the use of nails. It is a fascinating place to
walk through. The narrow paths between the houses are
covered with polished, roughly shaped paving stones,
made slippery in places by the deposits of passing
ponies or seepage from the paddy fields above.
It was a steep walk from the road head to our guest
house. Some of the students’ legs were obviously still
tired and there were a few groans at the number of
steps involved.
We had been invited to look around the local school –
four classrooms and a small boarding house overlooking
the mountains. The classrooms were simple, with a
blackboard and rough wooden desks and chairs, but it
smelt and felt well cared for. Joined by two athletic
local students, the boys played basketball for a while
in the playground.
Our guesthouse looked very new and still smelled of
freshly cut wood. Four floors perched almost
impossibly on long stilts and shaky foundations. This
isn’t an earthquake zone … I hoped. Looking at some
of the similarly constructed, but obviously old,
buildings in the village put my mind at rest.
Sound really traveled in the guesthouse – we could
hear every footstep, every whisper. This
notwithstanding, many of the students said they got
their best night’s sleep yet. Maybe it was something
to do with the air.
My bathroom (well, the one at the end of the
corridor), was a squat toilet. I overbalanced and
grabbed the sink. It came off the wall, much to my
horror. Emergency plumbing whilst squatting isn’t my
forte. Sadly, I did exactly the same on two subsequent
visits, which made me question the gradient of my
learning curve: flat, obviously.
After dinner the women from the village put on a show
of traditional dancing and singing in the school yard.
They were dressed beautifully in traditional
costumes. There were dances about the yearly
agricultural cycle – planting, harvesting, tending,
grinding, winnowing. They encouraged the staff and
teachers to get up and dance too. The whole group
participated in a courtship dance, where they linked
hands and ran around in a circle. A boy in the middle
had to select the girl he wanted and then, carrying
her piggyback, had to try and escape the circle. A
bamboo dance caused much amusement. The students had
to step up and down quickly between long bamboo poles
that were being slapped together by parallel rows of
women.
Today was mainly taken up with traveling as we had to
fly down to Guilin in order to start our next trek. A
small lunch was served on the flight with that rarest
of luxuries here, a bread roll. There were many small
deals made as students and teachers swopped treasures
from their plastic trays. Mrs Little was delighted to
exchange cucumbers for tomatoes and some of the larger
boys did all they could to persuade others to give up
their food.
There were two busses waiting for us at the airport,
one to take the excess baggage down to Yangshuo, the
other to take us to Longsheng. We had to stop part
way there to change to two other busses that were
small enough to make it round the short roads up to
Ping’An.
Ping’An has a population of perhaps 800, with large
wooden houses clinging to the steep hillside and
surrounded by small rice terraces that stretch along
the slopes like the contours on a map. There is a lot
of building going on in the village at the moment.
The main structure of the houses appears to be made
without the use of nails. It is a fascinating place to
walk through. The narrow paths between the houses are
covered with polished, roughly shaped paving stones,
made slippery in places by the deposits of passing
ponies or seepage from the paddy fields above.
It was a steep walk from the road head to our guest
house. Some of the students’ legs were obviously still
tired and there were a few groans at the number of
steps involved.
We had been invited to look around the local school –
four classrooms and a small boarding house overlooking
the mountains. The classrooms were simple, with a
blackboard and rough wooden desks and chairs, but it
smelt and felt well cared for. Joined by two athletic
local students, the boys played basketball for a while
in the playground.
Our guesthouse looked very new and still smelled of
freshly cut wood. Four floors perched almost
impossibly on long stilts and shaky foundations. This
isn’t an earthquake zone … I hoped. Looking at some
of the similarly constructed, but obviously old,
buildings in the village put my mind at rest.
Sound really traveled in the guesthouse – we could
hear every footstep, every whisper. This
notwithstanding, many of the students said they got
their best night’s sleep yet. Maybe it was something
to do with the air.
My bathroom (well, the one at the end of the
corridor), was a squat toilet. I overbalanced and
grabbed the sink. It came off the wall, much to my
horror. Emergency plumbing whilst squatting isn’t my
forte. Sadly, I did exactly the same on two subsequent
visits, which made me question the gradient of my
learning curve: flat, obviously.
After dinner the women from the village put on a show
of traditional dancing and singing in the school yard.
They were dressed beautifully in traditional
costumes. There were dances about the yearly
agricultural cycle – planting, harvesting, tending,
grinding, winnowing. They encouraged the staff and
teachers to get up and dance too. The whole group
participated in a courtship dance, where they linked
hands and ran around in a circle. A boy in the middle
had to select the girl he wanted and then, carrying
her piggyback, had to try and escape the circle. A
bamboo dance caused much amusement. The students had
to step up and down quickly between long bamboo poles
that were being slapped together by parallel rows of
women.
Friday, March 30, 2007
28th March
28 March 2007
Many of the kids didn’t make it to breakfast this
morning, having ignored or slept through the early
morning call.
We drove back to Chengdu, some three hours away. Once
there we visited Jin Li Cultural Street. This street,
very popular with Chinese, is really a recreated
version of the sort of places I found in Beijing when
I went their in the 1980s, except that all the shops
are aimed at tourists. It is a pleasant area and
great for souvenir shopping and snacks. The kids no
doubt thought I was mean when I told them that they
couldn’t go to KFC, Starbucks or any of the other
western fast food joints further up the road. Later
though, having tried the local snacks, they seemed
happy enough. There was some delicious food on sale
and at very reasonable prices. Once they had finished
their shopping, we let them raid Starbucks.
After lunch we visited the famous Wu Hoa Temple. Many
of the students are getting really interested in
photography and they spent two hours wondering about
the peaceful gardens and buildings taking photographs.
Digital cameras are great – they really encourage
students to look at the things they are visiting,
especially when there is come competition to get the
best shot.
We had a couple of hours to relax at the hotel (Wen
Jun Mansions again) before dinner – a ‘traditional
Sichuan BBQ’. The restaurant was large, loud and, to
my mind at least, more American than Chinese. Waiters
came around the tables with huge skewers of barbequed
meat and sliced pieces directly onto our plates. The
food was good, and although I found the experience
painful to say the least, the students loved it. They
ate huge quantities and there were a number of
dangerously extended bellies by the time we left. One
of the guides ate so much that I doubt he will be able
to climb for a month.
Many of the kids didn’t make it to breakfast this
morning, having ignored or slept through the early
morning call.
We drove back to Chengdu, some three hours away. Once
there we visited Jin Li Cultural Street. This street,
very popular with Chinese, is really a recreated
version of the sort of places I found in Beijing when
I went their in the 1980s, except that all the shops
are aimed at tourists. It is a pleasant area and
great for souvenir shopping and snacks. The kids no
doubt thought I was mean when I told them that they
couldn’t go to KFC, Starbucks or any of the other
western fast food joints further up the road. Later
though, having tried the local snacks, they seemed
happy enough. There was some delicious food on sale
and at very reasonable prices. Once they had finished
their shopping, we let them raid Starbucks.
After lunch we visited the famous Wu Hoa Temple. Many
of the students are getting really interested in
photography and they spent two hours wondering about
the peaceful gardens and buildings taking photographs.
Digital cameras are great – they really encourage
students to look at the things they are visiting,
especially when there is come competition to get the
best shot.
We had a couple of hours to relax at the hotel (Wen
Jun Mansions again) before dinner – a ‘traditional
Sichuan BBQ’. The restaurant was large, loud and, to
my mind at least, more American than Chinese. Waiters
came around the tables with huge skewers of barbequed
meat and sliced pieces directly onto our plates. The
food was good, and although I found the experience
painful to say the least, the students loved it. They
ate huge quantities and there were a number of
dangerously extended bellies by the time we left. One
of the guides ate so much that I doubt he will be able
to climb for a month.
28th March 2007
27 March 28, 2007
If they don’t shut up soon, I will have to go and
speak to them. The girls were talking in whispers –
the sort of whisper that carries over half a mile. It
was only the effort of getting out of my sleeping bag,
getting dressed and putting my boots on again that put
me off. They went on and on and on … and then I fell
asleep.
The monastery was very peaceful until the kitchen
staff got up to make breakfast, then there was a
chorus of hoiking and snooking and the clashing of
pans. Breakfast wasn’t greeted with any great
enthusiasm, although one or two of the kids are
developing a fondness for the white steamed buns,
taken plain or dipped in thin orange jam. There were
four small brown cubes of what could have been tofu on
each of the round tables. The portion was
exceptionally meagre, considering the size of the
dishes that had been served. My appetite isn’t
terribly adventurous first thing in the morning and so
I ignored its existence. Just as I was about to leave
the table, Xiao Sun, one of the guides, came over and
asked if we had tried it. Saad was with him,
grinning. Something was afoot. Dutifully, I armed
myself with chopsticks and picked one of the cubes up.
“No, just a little!” Xiao Sun said quickly, and so I
took the barest morsel. The intensity of the flavour
was incredible and I pulled a face. Saad, poor chap,
had eaten a whole cube and was still scarred by the
memory.
It was a short walk from the monastery to the waiting
busses. Every so often we had to leave the path to
allow ponies carrying stones and cement to pass by on
their long journey up the mountain to where the steps
are still being constructed. The animals didn’t look
very happy about the steps, but they were even more
wary of the foreigners I their way. As we neared the
road, the stalls selling straw overshoes (for the icy
weather), plastic trinkets (monkey, monkey), snacks
and drinks (water, water) and walking sticks became
more common.
Back at Emei Shan we checked into the hotel, before
walking into town for a local meal in the food
market. Amongst the local dishes we tried were
bull-frog and baby eel. The food here was fresh.
Indeed it has been swimming around as we placed the
order.
In the afternoon we went to Lin Xiu Hot Springs.
After visiting hot springs in Borneo last year, I was
not enthusiastic. There the pools had been dirty and
unattractive. At Lin Xiu though I was pleasantly
surprised. The facilities were excellent – well run,
attractive and spotlessly clean. I think that quite a
few of the students were surprised too. They had been
expecting something quite downmarket and these springs
wouldn’t have disgraced any western spar town.
One of the highlights of the hot springs was the fish
bath. Here hundreds of small fish, between 6 and 12
cm long swarmed over your feet, knees and back,
nibbling off dead skin cells. The sensation was rather
strange, especially when they went for the soles of
your feet or the more ticklish parts of your body.
In the evening the students played games in the local
park before writing postcards home and having an early
night.
If they don’t shut up soon, I will have to go and
speak to them. The girls were talking in whispers –
the sort of whisper that carries over half a mile. It
was only the effort of getting out of my sleeping bag,
getting dressed and putting my boots on again that put
me off. They went on and on and on … and then I fell
asleep.
The monastery was very peaceful until the kitchen
staff got up to make breakfast, then there was a
chorus of hoiking and snooking and the clashing of
pans. Breakfast wasn’t greeted with any great
enthusiasm, although one or two of the kids are
developing a fondness for the white steamed buns,
taken plain or dipped in thin orange jam. There were
four small brown cubes of what could have been tofu on
each of the round tables. The portion was
exceptionally meagre, considering the size of the
dishes that had been served. My appetite isn’t
terribly adventurous first thing in the morning and so
I ignored its existence. Just as I was about to leave
the table, Xiao Sun, one of the guides, came over and
asked if we had tried it. Saad was with him,
grinning. Something was afoot. Dutifully, I armed
myself with chopsticks and picked one of the cubes up.
“No, just a little!” Xiao Sun said quickly, and so I
took the barest morsel. The intensity of the flavour
was incredible and I pulled a face. Saad, poor chap,
had eaten a whole cube and was still scarred by the
memory.
It was a short walk from the monastery to the waiting
busses. Every so often we had to leave the path to
allow ponies carrying stones and cement to pass by on
their long journey up the mountain to where the steps
are still being constructed. The animals didn’t look
very happy about the steps, but they were even more
wary of the foreigners I their way. As we neared the
road, the stalls selling straw overshoes (for the icy
weather), plastic trinkets (monkey, monkey), snacks
and drinks (water, water) and walking sticks became
more common.
Back at Emei Shan we checked into the hotel, before
walking into town for a local meal in the food
market. Amongst the local dishes we tried were
bull-frog and baby eel. The food here was fresh.
Indeed it has been swimming around as we placed the
order.
In the afternoon we went to Lin Xiu Hot Springs.
After visiting hot springs in Borneo last year, I was
not enthusiastic. There the pools had been dirty and
unattractive. At Lin Xiu though I was pleasantly
surprised. The facilities were excellent – well run,
attractive and spotlessly clean. I think that quite a
few of the students were surprised too. They had been
expecting something quite downmarket and these springs
wouldn’t have disgraced any western spar town.
One of the highlights of the hot springs was the fish
bath. Here hundreds of small fish, between 6 and 12
cm long swarmed over your feet, knees and back,
nibbling off dead skin cells. The sensation was rather
strange, especially when they went for the soles of
your feet or the more ticklish parts of your body.
In the evening the students played games in the local
park before writing postcards home and having an early
night.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
26th March
26 March 2007-3-27
Qingyin Monastery – Wannian Monestery (1020m)
The students weren’t particularly happy about the
hotel yesterday evening. Perhaps it was the generally
run down air of the place of the spiders in Casey’s
room. I suppose they were rather large. Or it could
have been the rudimentary plumbing – the pipes that
stuck out of the wall and the ancient, rusted switch
boxes that had once controlled the hot water boilers.
Mind you, such plumbing was reserved for the better
rooms. Some had no toilet at all. The worst room was
the one with the Western style toilet. It hadn’t been
plumbed in, but it had been used. Not much chance of
putting a bucket of water down it either – there
wasn’t one. Still, the beds and sheets were spotlessly
clean and it was a good place to sleep. Sometimes you
have to rough it a bit.
Before breakfast I decided to take a walk down to the
monastery. A pipe had been dripping all night and I
thought that the path might be slippy, so I took
special care. Thirty seconds later and I was flying
down the stairs, camera held high in the air to save
it from damage.
If you were to ask the students about today’s walk
they would, I am sure, shout “Steps, thousands of
steps.” We followed a route through the forest past
small tea houses and mountain monasteries, each linked
by beautifully crafted granite steps. Thousands of
them. This area is very popular with Chinese tourist
groups and as each one passed we were regaled with
dozens of “Nee How” greetings.
Well dressed in cheap suits and following yellow flag
bearing guides, they were a cheerful lot. They
weren’t carrying packs. They weren’t swearing and they
were going down hill. Nevertheless, they were kind
enough to keep on telling us that we were strong.
As yesterday, the group spread out quite a bit, but
nobody was particularly slow. We reached Wannian
Monastery in good time, dumped the packs and had an
early lunch.
Rested and refreshed we set off to walk to the next
monastery up the mountain, but this time without
packs. There were no complaints until the top of the
first major flight of steps. Then, or so I heard
later, the complaining began. The steps were steep and
seemingly never ending. No sooner had we reached the
top of a flight of 300 or so than we would round the
corner and see another impossibly long flight soaring
skywards. Quite intimidating. Some of the girls who
hadn’t made much attempt to get fit before the trip
were suffering a little, but their difficulty was, I
felt, more lack of determination than lack of ability.
This was confirmed when they reached the monastery
only 2 or 3 minutes after everybody else, and with
huge grins on their faces.
At the monastery, we split into two groups, the slower
students and the ones who didn’t feel like tackling
any more steps went back down. The stronger walkers
continued upwards, covering about the same distance
again, to the next monastery.
The steps are, in places, still being built. They are
quite an achievement, as each stone and bag of sand
and cement has to be carried up on the backs of men
and ponies. Hard work, especially as the labourers are
paid by the kilo transported.
Returning to the Wannian Monastery, where we were to
spend the night was no easy feat. We had to return the
way we had come. Going down is often harder than going
up, and there were quite a few wobbly and stiff legs
by the time we got to the bottom.
The Wannian Monastery is a glorious place, so peaceful
despite the bustle of tourists, monks and monastery
staff.
Having spent sometime stretching in an effort to avoid
stiffness after the climb, I walked around the
monastery grounds taking photographs.
We ate wonderful vegetarian food in the monastery
dining room – once more tofu and soya produces
prepared to seem like meat.
IN the evening we had the students go off and find a
quiet place to sit and write and think for half an
hour. They seemed to enjoy this and so we let them
take longer. After that we all gathered in an open
pavilion and asked the Chinese guide questions about
Buddhism, Chinese culture and politics.
We finished the evening by learning to count in
Chinese – this time to 41.
The monastery accommodation is clean and basic -
dormitories in a beautiful old wooden building. The
walls don’t go to the ceiling however and I could hear
every thing that was being said in the building …
Qingyin Monastery – Wannian Monestery (1020m)
The students weren’t particularly happy about the
hotel yesterday evening. Perhaps it was the generally
run down air of the place of the spiders in Casey’s
room. I suppose they were rather large. Or it could
have been the rudimentary plumbing – the pipes that
stuck out of the wall and the ancient, rusted switch
boxes that had once controlled the hot water boilers.
Mind you, such plumbing was reserved for the better
rooms. Some had no toilet at all. The worst room was
the one with the Western style toilet. It hadn’t been
plumbed in, but it had been used. Not much chance of
putting a bucket of water down it either – there
wasn’t one. Still, the beds and sheets were spotlessly
clean and it was a good place to sleep. Sometimes you
have to rough it a bit.
Before breakfast I decided to take a walk down to the
monastery. A pipe had been dripping all night and I
thought that the path might be slippy, so I took
special care. Thirty seconds later and I was flying
down the stairs, camera held high in the air to save
it from damage.
If you were to ask the students about today’s walk
they would, I am sure, shout “Steps, thousands of
steps.” We followed a route through the forest past
small tea houses and mountain monasteries, each linked
by beautifully crafted granite steps. Thousands of
them. This area is very popular with Chinese tourist
groups and as each one passed we were regaled with
dozens of “Nee How” greetings.
Well dressed in cheap suits and following yellow flag
bearing guides, they were a cheerful lot. They
weren’t carrying packs. They weren’t swearing and they
were going down hill. Nevertheless, they were kind
enough to keep on telling us that we were strong.
As yesterday, the group spread out quite a bit, but
nobody was particularly slow. We reached Wannian
Monastery in good time, dumped the packs and had an
early lunch.
Rested and refreshed we set off to walk to the next
monastery up the mountain, but this time without
packs. There were no complaints until the top of the
first major flight of steps. Then, or so I heard
later, the complaining began. The steps were steep and
seemingly never ending. No sooner had we reached the
top of a flight of 300 or so than we would round the
corner and see another impossibly long flight soaring
skywards. Quite intimidating. Some of the girls who
hadn’t made much attempt to get fit before the trip
were suffering a little, but their difficulty was, I
felt, more lack of determination than lack of ability.
This was confirmed when they reached the monastery
only 2 or 3 minutes after everybody else, and with
huge grins on their faces.
At the monastery, we split into two groups, the slower
students and the ones who didn’t feel like tackling
any more steps went back down. The stronger walkers
continued upwards, covering about the same distance
again, to the next monastery.
The steps are, in places, still being built. They are
quite an achievement, as each stone and bag of sand
and cement has to be carried up on the backs of men
and ponies. Hard work, especially as the labourers are
paid by the kilo transported.
Returning to the Wannian Monastery, where we were to
spend the night was no easy feat. We had to return the
way we had come. Going down is often harder than going
up, and there were quite a few wobbly and stiff legs
by the time we got to the bottom.
The Wannian Monastery is a glorious place, so peaceful
despite the bustle of tourists, monks and monastery
staff.
Having spent sometime stretching in an effort to avoid
stiffness after the climb, I walked around the
monastery grounds taking photographs.
We ate wonderful vegetarian food in the monastery
dining room – once more tofu and soya produces
prepared to seem like meat.
IN the evening we had the students go off and find a
quiet place to sit and write and think for half an
hour. They seemed to enjoy this and so we let them
take longer. After that we all gathered in an open
pavilion and asked the Chinese guide questions about
Buddhism, Chinese culture and politics.
We finished the evening by learning to count in
Chinese – this time to 41.
The monastery accommodation is clean and basic -
dormitories in a beautiful old wooden building. The
walls don’t go to the ceiling however and I could hear
every thing that was being said in the building …
25th March
Breakfast was a mixture of Chinese and Western food,
with delicious dumplings, rather sweet bread and eggs
boiled and fried. Liam excelled himself and ate 8 eggs
without obvious ill-effects.
The trek up Mount Emei Shan began from the hotel.
After 5 minutes we stopped by the pagoda at the top of
the road to do warm-up stretches and exercises, much
to the amusement of the Chinese onlookers.
Mount Emei Shan is a sacred mountain and home to many
monasteries and temples. People come from all over
China on pilgrimage, and so the trail up the mountain
has been paved. There are thousands of steps that lead
up and down the tree covered slopes.
For some reason, a number of the kids decided to wear
huge amounts of clothing this morning – long johns,
water proof over-trousers, fleeces and down jackets -
all this despite the fact that the morning was quite
mild. Within an hour or so they began to realize that
the teachers and guides were right and that a light
pair of pants and a T-shirt would have been better.
Having removed their waterproofs and down jackets,
they literally steamed.
Today’s walk wasn’t particularly long but the steep
flights of stairs up and down the hills between the
Buddhist temples were tough.
We passed a monk on pilgrimage. When I first saw him
he was prostrate on the ground. He picked himself up,
placed his hands together in front of his head, took
three steps, knelt and prostrated himself once more.
A tough way to travel and not one that I could ever
see me finding the urge to try.
During the course of the day we split into two large
groups – one fast and one a little slower. Although
there was some groaning about the number of steps, all
the students did really well.
We reached the Qing Yin Monastery about 3pm, dumped
the bags and then headed further along the trail,
where it entered a steep sided gorge. Although there
was quite a bit of shrieking as we crossed the river
on the stepping stones, nobody fell in. Nevertheless,
there were several cameras at the ready to catch the
decisive moment, should someone be unfortunate enough
to put a foot wrong.
Near the top of the gorge there is a complex of
elegant wooden pavilions linked with pathways of faux
logs – carefully crafted out of concrete. For years
tourists have been coming here to feed the monkeys
that come down to the paths. They are now completely
without fear – to the extend that each party of
tourists that visit can only do so with a guide
bearing a large stick to ward off over-enthusiastic
animals.
Some of the older males were battle scared, reminding
me of boxers several rounds past their sell-buy date.
There were mothers too, with tiny babies clinging to
their bellies.
Across the gorge were several suspension bridges with
chain supports and sides. They swung alarmingly as we
crossed. Signs warned us not to swing from side to
side and stand whilst crossing. Some of the signs here
use rather unusual English.
We had dinner at the monastery. The vegetarian food
was quite remarkable. Tofu had been prepared in
different ways to give it the flavour, texture and
appearance of pork, beef and chicken. Even more
remarkable were the prawn dishes. The ‘prawns’ –
totally soya based, were so realistic that I wouldn’t
have known that they weren’t real. The same was true
of the ‘fish’ which, even had a blackened skin. All
quite delicious.
In the evening the guides had prepared a trivia quiz
for the students and tried to teach them to count in
Chinese. Whilst they did that, I sat in the courtyard
trying to write this journal. It was a difficult job.
Every paragraph or so, either a student or a local
would come over to chat, ask me a question or peer at
my writing. Eventually, surrounded by about a dozen,
local men, I h\gave up and instead got them to teach
me how to write the numbers in Chinese.
Quote of the day: “Mr Hardcastle did you hear? Itch
farted and it made Joshe’s nose bleed!”
with delicious dumplings, rather sweet bread and eggs
boiled and fried. Liam excelled himself and ate 8 eggs
without obvious ill-effects.
The trek up Mount Emei Shan began from the hotel.
After 5 minutes we stopped by the pagoda at the top of
the road to do warm-up stretches and exercises, much
to the amusement of the Chinese onlookers.
Mount Emei Shan is a sacred mountain and home to many
monasteries and temples. People come from all over
China on pilgrimage, and so the trail up the mountain
has been paved. There are thousands of steps that lead
up and down the tree covered slopes.
For some reason, a number of the kids decided to wear
huge amounts of clothing this morning – long johns,
water proof over-trousers, fleeces and down jackets -
all this despite the fact that the morning was quite
mild. Within an hour or so they began to realize that
the teachers and guides were right and that a light
pair of pants and a T-shirt would have been better.
Having removed their waterproofs and down jackets,
they literally steamed.
Today’s walk wasn’t particularly long but the steep
flights of stairs up and down the hills between the
Buddhist temples were tough.
We passed a monk on pilgrimage. When I first saw him
he was prostrate on the ground. He picked himself up,
placed his hands together in front of his head, took
three steps, knelt and prostrated himself once more.
A tough way to travel and not one that I could ever
see me finding the urge to try.
During the course of the day we split into two large
groups – one fast and one a little slower. Although
there was some groaning about the number of steps, all
the students did really well.
We reached the Qing Yin Monastery about 3pm, dumped
the bags and then headed further along the trail,
where it entered a steep sided gorge. Although there
was quite a bit of shrieking as we crossed the river
on the stepping stones, nobody fell in. Nevertheless,
there were several cameras at the ready to catch the
decisive moment, should someone be unfortunate enough
to put a foot wrong.
Near the top of the gorge there is a complex of
elegant wooden pavilions linked with pathways of faux
logs – carefully crafted out of concrete. For years
tourists have been coming here to feed the monkeys
that come down to the paths. They are now completely
without fear – to the extend that each party of
tourists that visit can only do so with a guide
bearing a large stick to ward off over-enthusiastic
animals.
Some of the older males were battle scared, reminding
me of boxers several rounds past their sell-buy date.
There were mothers too, with tiny babies clinging to
their bellies.
Across the gorge were several suspension bridges with
chain supports and sides. They swung alarmingly as we
crossed. Signs warned us not to swing from side to
side and stand whilst crossing. Some of the signs here
use rather unusual English.
We had dinner at the monastery. The vegetarian food
was quite remarkable. Tofu had been prepared in
different ways to give it the flavour, texture and
appearance of pork, beef and chicken. Even more
remarkable were the prawn dishes. The ‘prawns’ –
totally soya based, were so realistic that I wouldn’t
have known that they weren’t real. The same was true
of the ‘fish’ which, even had a blackened skin. All
quite delicious.
In the evening the guides had prepared a trivia quiz
for the students and tried to teach them to count in
Chinese. Whilst they did that, I sat in the courtyard
trying to write this journal. It was a difficult job.
Every paragraph or so, either a student or a local
would come over to chat, ask me a question or peer at
my writing. Eventually, surrounded by about a dozen,
local men, I h\gave up and instead got them to teach
me how to write the numbers in Chinese.
Quote of the day: “Mr Hardcastle did you hear? Itch
farted and it made Joshe’s nose bleed!”
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Day 2 Expedition
The day started with a very loud knock on the door at
6.45. Now when I say loud, I mean that you could hear
it across the street. Once wasn’t enough to shift
most of our students though and the China Climb guys
banged and banged away until somebody got out of bed
and opened the door. All very amusing as I was
downstairs eating breakfast already.
Chengdu is surrounded by distant mountains and this
has an interesting effect on the weather. It is hazy
almost all year round. The light before dawn was
strange and diffused, making the street outside look
even more like a film set.
Some of the kids don’t deal with the cold well.
Whilst the local Chinese were walking around in shirt
sleeves and pants, the students were appearing in
long-johns and down jackets. Goodness knows what they
are going to do when they get into the mountains. I
had one or two repack their bags after breakfast –
some had more things swinging from the outside of the
bag than they had inside.
First stop today was the Chengdu Panda Base and
Research Centre. Now Pandas are cute. And lazy. They
mainly sit down, lay back and eat bamboo. They are
also extremely well photographed. Kodak never had it
so good and you should look forward to seeing
thousands of rather blurred white and black cuddly
bears. The Chengdu Centre has a very successful
breeding programme. Last year alone they managed to
raise 9 babies successfully. From what we learned at
the centre it is not surprising that the Giant Panda
is an endangered species. They are solitary animals
and, in the wild, live in their own, huge territory.
Once a year they become amorous and decide to go in
search for mate. Even if they manage to find one, it
seems as though they don’t make particularly good
parents. We watched a video of a young mother giving
birth for the first time. As the baby popped into
existence and landed on the floor, it screamed and
squirmed. The poor mother looked most surprised, as
though a large maggot had just popped from her but.
So she smacked it. Hard. Twice. Fortunately for the
baby, a brave keeper dashed into the pen and rescued
the cub before it suffered any serious damage.
In one pen we watched as nine baby pandas were brought
out by their keepers for a bath. They were behaving
like naughty children, none too keen on the idea of
getting clean. In the wild they don’t take baths, but
in captivity it is apparently important that they are
washed regularly. Once bathed they clambered over
wooden frames, swings and bridges; falling about, off
or over anything that got in their way, pausing
occasionally to bite the Wellington boot of a keeper
or two.
Red pandas are much more active than their larger
cousins, and quite the performers too. Whilst the
Giant Pandas had largely ignored all their admirers,
the Red pandas waved, stood on their hind legs and
appeared to be smiling at the audience. Very cute.
From the Panda Centre we had a rather long bus journey
to the Post Office Hotel at Emei Shan. It was a
welcome opportunity for the kids to catch up on their
sleep.
Before dinner we went for a short walk to a pagoda and
fountain where there was a relief map of the mountain
we are going to walk tomorrow.
Dinner was traditional Chinese and enjoyed by all!
6.45. Now when I say loud, I mean that you could hear
it across the street. Once wasn’t enough to shift
most of our students though and the China Climb guys
banged and banged away until somebody got out of bed
and opened the door. All very amusing as I was
downstairs eating breakfast already.
Chengdu is surrounded by distant mountains and this
has an interesting effect on the weather. It is hazy
almost all year round. The light before dawn was
strange and diffused, making the street outside look
even more like a film set.
Some of the kids don’t deal with the cold well.
Whilst the local Chinese were walking around in shirt
sleeves and pants, the students were appearing in
long-johns and down jackets. Goodness knows what they
are going to do when they get into the mountains. I
had one or two repack their bags after breakfast –
some had more things swinging from the outside of the
bag than they had inside.
First stop today was the Chengdu Panda Base and
Research Centre. Now Pandas are cute. And lazy. They
mainly sit down, lay back and eat bamboo. They are
also extremely well photographed. Kodak never had it
so good and you should look forward to seeing
thousands of rather blurred white and black cuddly
bears. The Chengdu Centre has a very successful
breeding programme. Last year alone they managed to
raise 9 babies successfully. From what we learned at
the centre it is not surprising that the Giant Panda
is an endangered species. They are solitary animals
and, in the wild, live in their own, huge territory.
Once a year they become amorous and decide to go in
search for mate. Even if they manage to find one, it
seems as though they don’t make particularly good
parents. We watched a video of a young mother giving
birth for the first time. As the baby popped into
existence and landed on the floor, it screamed and
squirmed. The poor mother looked most surprised, as
though a large maggot had just popped from her but.
So she smacked it. Hard. Twice. Fortunately for the
baby, a brave keeper dashed into the pen and rescued
the cub before it suffered any serious damage.
In one pen we watched as nine baby pandas were brought
out by their keepers for a bath. They were behaving
like naughty children, none too keen on the idea of
getting clean. In the wild they don’t take baths, but
in captivity it is apparently important that they are
washed regularly. Once bathed they clambered over
wooden frames, swings and bridges; falling about, off
or over anything that got in their way, pausing
occasionally to bite the Wellington boot of a keeper
or two.
Red pandas are much more active than their larger
cousins, and quite the performers too. Whilst the
Giant Pandas had largely ignored all their admirers,
the Red pandas waved, stood on their hind legs and
appeared to be smiling at the audience. Very cute.
From the Panda Centre we had a rather long bus journey
to the Post Office Hotel at Emei Shan. It was a
welcome opportunity for the kids to catch up on their
sleep.
Before dinner we went for a short walk to a pagoda and
fountain where there was a relief map of the mountain
we are going to walk tomorrow.
Dinner was traditional Chinese and enjoyed by all!
1st Day of Expedition
23 March 2007
Dhahran – Beijing – Dubai – Hong Kong – Chengdu
I knew that this was going to be a good day when I
arrived at school at 9.30. The busses were already
there waiting for us. With a group of 41, there is
always a fair chance that somebody is going to be late
or forget something vital like a passport, so it was
with a sense of amazement that I greeted the last
parent to arrive at 9.59, one minute before the
deadline. Twenty minutes, the passports checked
against the manifest and one or two tearful goodbyes
later and we were off.
The causeway and check-in all went smoothly and fairly
quickly. Having the Chinese visas in the passports
before we set off was a big help. There was none of
the last minute negotiation with check-in desk
official about who does or does not need a visa.
We took over the fast food restaurant in Bahrain
airport and I spent the most I have ever done on junk
food. Some of the boys found items of considerable
interest to them in the magazine store and were quite
excited about their purchases, talking loudly and
indiscreetly. Sadly, or luckily, these were
confiscated by security in Hong Kong, as indeed were
large quantities of shampoo, makeup and deodorant.
Once we had completed business at the transfer in Hong
Kong we broke into small groups and explored the
shops. I really wanted to buy something, anything
really, but couldn’t find anything I wanted. The
students found plenty that they wanted to buy, but as
I had their spending money ….
For lunch we gave everybody fifty HK dollars and sent
them off in groups to find food for themselves. Most
avoided Burger King and Starbucks and went to a
Japanese noodle store.
By the time we arrived in Chengdu we were all very,
very tired. It is always difficult to sleep on the
start of a school trip – there is just so much to talk
about. The aircrew handed out landing cards, customs
cards and health declarations on the plane. It was
quite a task to get them all filled in and checked
before we landed. The bags all arrived intact and on
time and the China Climb team was just pulling up in
the busses to collect us as we came through customs.
We have six China Climb guides with us. They seem
great – all really enthusiastic and keen to help.
The bus dropped us at our hotel – Wen Jun Mansions, on
a street in Chengdu that looks as though it was built
as a film set for a Kung Fu movie. The hotel’s rooms
open onto long balconies that overlook a small
courtyard.
We took dinner at a superb hot-pot restaurant just
down the road. In the middle of the tables there was a
large vat of hot liquid, soup on one side and water
full of spices and chilies on the other. The
waitresses, and a very large number of them there was
too, brought plate after plate of meats, leaves,
mushrooms and vegetables for us to cook ourselves. The
food cooked in just one or two minutes, after which we
trawled it out with chopsticks, dipped it into a bowl
of oil and crushed garlic and then burned our lips in
the hurry to get it down. Everybody is using
chopsticks and doing really well. Huge quantities of
food were consumed.
After dinner we walked briefly around a sculpture park
on our way to the Sichuan Opera. We were a little
early for the performance and so were able to watch
the dancers putting on their makeup and costumes. I
was impressed by the way they could do this whilst
being photographed by 50 people, some of whom were
getting very close indeed.
As we took our seats for the opera, ladies carrying
the most extraordinary teapots came around to fill the
cups that had been laid out before us. Made of
copper, these teapots had meter long spouts, so
enabling the waitresses to serve tea at a distance.
It looked a risky business, with huge potential to
scald the audience, but it was all accomplished
without a drop spilled.
The teapots figured in the first dance performance
too, with two men demonstrating how you could dance
and do acrobatics whilst pouring tea. A strange skill
to develop, I thought, but entertaining nevertheless.
I am sad to say that many of us were so sleepy by this
time that we tended to drift in and out of
consciousness during the show. It was impressive
though, with some superb costumes, music, singing and
dancing in the traditional Sichuan style. There was
also a puppet display, where the master managed to
coax a remarkable amount of expression and very human
emotions and movements from his master. The students
were, I think, most impressed with a shadow display.
Using nothing more than his hands the performer made
shadows on a circular white screen on stage. Birds,
horses, dogs and rabbits that appeared so lifelike
that the audience applauded spontaneously.
As I walked around the hotel to check people were OK
and in their rooms, all was quiet. It was 10.15. The
end of a hard day.
Dhahran – Beijing – Dubai – Hong Kong – Chengdu
I knew that this was going to be a good day when I
arrived at school at 9.30. The busses were already
there waiting for us. With a group of 41, there is
always a fair chance that somebody is going to be late
or forget something vital like a passport, so it was
with a sense of amazement that I greeted the last
parent to arrive at 9.59, one minute before the
deadline. Twenty minutes, the passports checked
against the manifest and one or two tearful goodbyes
later and we were off.
The causeway and check-in all went smoothly and fairly
quickly. Having the Chinese visas in the passports
before we set off was a big help. There was none of
the last minute negotiation with check-in desk
official about who does or does not need a visa.
We took over the fast food restaurant in Bahrain
airport and I spent the most I have ever done on junk
food. Some of the boys found items of considerable
interest to them in the magazine store and were quite
excited about their purchases, talking loudly and
indiscreetly. Sadly, or luckily, these were
confiscated by security in Hong Kong, as indeed were
large quantities of shampoo, makeup and deodorant.
Once we had completed business at the transfer in Hong
Kong we broke into small groups and explored the
shops. I really wanted to buy something, anything
really, but couldn’t find anything I wanted. The
students found plenty that they wanted to buy, but as
I had their spending money ….
For lunch we gave everybody fifty HK dollars and sent
them off in groups to find food for themselves. Most
avoided Burger King and Starbucks and went to a
Japanese noodle store.
By the time we arrived in Chengdu we were all very,
very tired. It is always difficult to sleep on the
start of a school trip – there is just so much to talk
about. The aircrew handed out landing cards, customs
cards and health declarations on the plane. It was
quite a task to get them all filled in and checked
before we landed. The bags all arrived intact and on
time and the China Climb team was just pulling up in
the busses to collect us as we came through customs.
We have six China Climb guides with us. They seem
great – all really enthusiastic and keen to help.
The bus dropped us at our hotel – Wen Jun Mansions, on
a street in Chengdu that looks as though it was built
as a film set for a Kung Fu movie. The hotel’s rooms
open onto long balconies that overlook a small
courtyard.
We took dinner at a superb hot-pot restaurant just
down the road. In the middle of the tables there was a
large vat of hot liquid, soup on one side and water
full of spices and chilies on the other. The
waitresses, and a very large number of them there was
too, brought plate after plate of meats, leaves,
mushrooms and vegetables for us to cook ourselves. The
food cooked in just one or two minutes, after which we
trawled it out with chopsticks, dipped it into a bowl
of oil and crushed garlic and then burned our lips in
the hurry to get it down. Everybody is using
chopsticks and doing really well. Huge quantities of
food were consumed.
After dinner we walked briefly around a sculpture park
on our way to the Sichuan Opera. We were a little
early for the performance and so were able to watch
the dancers putting on their makeup and costumes. I
was impressed by the way they could do this whilst
being photographed by 50 people, some of whom were
getting very close indeed.
As we took our seats for the opera, ladies carrying
the most extraordinary teapots came around to fill the
cups that had been laid out before us. Made of
copper, these teapots had meter long spouts, so
enabling the waitresses to serve tea at a distance.
It looked a risky business, with huge potential to
scald the audience, but it was all accomplished
without a drop spilled.
The teapots figured in the first dance performance
too, with two men demonstrating how you could dance
and do acrobatics whilst pouring tea. A strange skill
to develop, I thought, but entertaining nevertheless.
I am sad to say that many of us were so sleepy by this
time that we tended to drift in and out of
consciousness during the show. It was impressive
though, with some superb costumes, music, singing and
dancing in the traditional Sichuan style. There was
also a puppet display, where the master managed to
coax a remarkable amount of expression and very human
emotions and movements from his master. The students
were, I think, most impressed with a shadow display.
Using nothing more than his hands the performer made
shadows on a circular white screen on stage. Birds,
horses, dogs and rabbits that appeared so lifelike
that the audience applauded spontaneously.
As I walked around the hotel to check people were OK
and in their rooms, all was quiet. It was 10.15. The
end of a hard day.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Ready for departure
It is hard to believe that we set off for China this Thursday. When we get chance we will use this blog to keep family and friends up-to-date with what we have been doing.
Please check back regularly.
Please check back regularly.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)