This is actually my last post from Middle Kingdom (for now) and as such it will be very brief. Main reason for that is to avoid any pathetic crap people usually write when departing place they lived for some time. Crap will follow in September when I will sort out my thoughts and write things I did not manage yet.
It was fun! I'd gladly come back. And really, thanks for all the fish :D :P :)
Adijo!
8/26/2009
Into the unknown
As this is probably the last meaningful post from the Chinese soil, it is only the most appropriate to write about the most memorable trip I took in China. I don't dare to say that this was the best but it ranks high up there. On other trips I have seen more things and I have more time to soak up the atmosphere but three days in Sanqingshan (SQS) offered condensed experience and everything you can wish for for a trip in mountains. I promise that this time it will be much shorter than those novels no one wants to read I have offered previously.
We decided to explore SQS - an UNESCO listed mountain in Jiangxi province. As not mentioned (yet) in Lonely Planet, we can consider ourselves lucky as we were positively one of the first westerners to visit this national park. Of course, Chinese tours make their presence felt even here. SQS is located c. six to seven hours by train (normal speed train) but can be approached by D-train within four hours limit. We took a D-train to Quzhou in Zhenjiang province where we transferred for a bus to northern gate of the SQS National Park. Thanks to the courtesy of our bus driver, we were dropped by other bus at the original bus driver family house, where we found roof for the night. What we saved on accommodation (70 RMB / 7 EUR for two people) we overpaid on food. Although we were offered the option of a chicken to be killed just for us, we preferred veggie and fish dinner at our hotel :)
Getting up at 5.30am and on trail at 6.30am was first achievement of the day. We continued to climb through wonderful subtropical forest for good three hours. Towards the end I discovered my second (this time unrepairable) mistake. Battery in my camera was not charged. Unlike pictures from Chengdu which I completely restored upon my return to Shanghai, this time no such luck was at hand. I left my recharger at home as just before we left I checked and found battery fully charged. Probably it has something to do with incredible humidity in the area but by the time we reached our first crossing, battery was absolutely empty. Therefore there will be no pictures from the most beautiful national park I have seen in China so far.
Anyway, after three hour steep ascent from Northern gate we reached the first crossing where we took direct way to Sanqing temple. Entrance to the park is paid on top of long long flight of steps so basically you are happy to do anything they ask you (80 RMB / 8 EUR for student after 50% discount - not only one of the most beautiful but also the most expensive mountain in China). There we explored beauty of place (another short loop with beautiful views of surrounding mountains and temple area is available) and paid our homage to Taoist gods (at least one of us). After short meal (be warned that SQS is considerably expensive mountain compared to others in China - 30 RMB / 3 EUR for roasted rice and this was the cheapest dish) we continued along the Sunshine coast - a plank road on Northeastern cliff of the mountain. We took the first chance to ditch this way as this was our relax route for next day and climbed the highest peak in the area - Yujing shan (1,817 meters). All the way we enjoyed incredible views of pine forests, huge rocks and granite boulders and many many dragonflies :) On top we made quick acquittance with whole Japanese family or tour and left for some more adventure.
On our way down we took temporarily or permanently closed road which continued in our preferred direction. The road was closed probably because of the rockslide which destroyed only a hut on trail but otherwise it was perfectly safe way (although much steeper then our ascent trail). We reached West coast sea road (plank road rimming Southwestern cliff of SQS) and continued through other peaks and gates (understand - tiny cracks in between huge walls of rocks) towards fascinating shapes and compositions of boulders in eastern part of the park. There we saw boa towering over the pines, statue of goddess with head gently inclined and many others. Best thing came shortly before final descent to our targeted hotel. On a plateau around Yutian scenery spot we saw our first Buddha light - the very famous and in China very revered natural phenomenon when rainbow shapes up in the perfect circle. It looks awesome especially if you position you head in the middle :) We were left speechless for good twenty minutes and acted like little giddy children who got some super cool new toy (of course I complained constantly about my camera because chance to see Buddha's light is extremely rare). Afterward we descended to our hotel, had a quick dinner and tired went to bed - after 13 hours of constant hiking and c. 1,700 vertical meters we were pretty much spent for the day. Accommodation on the mountain is frankly of very poor quality and certainly extremely overpriced. From our inquiries we settled for the cheapest option of 260 RMB (26 EUR) for two person accommodation in dirty, full of bugs and humid room. Unfortunately our hotel (the one called 'hotel' also on map of the area - others are called villas) was the best on the mountain - at least from outside look.
Next day we woke up at 4.00am and run our tired legs towards Yutian plateau to see the sunrise. We enjoyed whole experience uninterrupted by anyone else as most of the Chinese tourists came towards the end of the whole show. Colors and sky with sparse clouds were fantastic (easily the best sunrise of all my attempts around China - with majority being bust). Cherry on top was visit of uncle eagle on our way back. He flew towards our bright colored jackets to check upon those rude intruders within 10 meters and sailed away to hunt for some breakfast. Still giddy but feeling already tired from extremities of yesterday we filled our stomachs as well and continued our journey around West coast and Sunshine coast plank roads to complete our exploration of SQS. If previous day and morning were almost tourist free, then rest of the day was from classic Chinese tourist book - people everywhere. After seeing monkey king with his treasure we decided to run for our lives and peace of our souls and finished the loop as early as possible. Totally exhausted we jumped on cable car and descended to Southern gate of National Park (my co-traveler almost killed herself from exhaustion as she was so excited to finish the trip that she literally flew down last 20 steps bruising any part of her body possible - except for head).
Upon descent we took local bus (two hour bumpy bus ride for 15 RMB / 1.5 EUR) to Yushan and after big dinner with famous chicken being cooked finally we jumped on sleeper train to Shanghai. SQS is magnificent mountain with extremely green pine forests in higher and subtropical jungle in lower elevation. Granite boulders and rocks make you wonder 'what are men compared to rocks and mountains' in line with heroes of that Austen girl. Anyway, although beautiful in nature it is already being kissed by Chinese tourism authority and build up in and around SQS National Park is in full throttle. On the other hand, it might improve competition and quality of accommodation on mountain since currently it is abysmal. My personal disagreement is with Jiangxi cuisine as I find other Chinese cuisines better and more nutritious. Be alert that this is still undiscovered corner of China for Western traveler as no Lonely Planet guide described it and therefore everything is in Chinese standards :)
We decided to explore SQS - an UNESCO listed mountain in Jiangxi province. As not mentioned (yet) in Lonely Planet, we can consider ourselves lucky as we were positively one of the first westerners to visit this national park. Of course, Chinese tours make their presence felt even here. SQS is located c. six to seven hours by train (normal speed train) but can be approached by D-train within four hours limit. We took a D-train to Quzhou in Zhenjiang province where we transferred for a bus to northern gate of the SQS National Park. Thanks to the courtesy of our bus driver, we were dropped by other bus at the original bus driver family house, where we found roof for the night. What we saved on accommodation (70 RMB / 7 EUR for two people) we overpaid on food. Although we were offered the option of a chicken to be killed just for us, we preferred veggie and fish dinner at our hotel :)
Getting up at 5.30am and on trail at 6.30am was first achievement of the day. We continued to climb through wonderful subtropical forest for good three hours. Towards the end I discovered my second (this time unrepairable) mistake. Battery in my camera was not charged. Unlike pictures from Chengdu which I completely restored upon my return to Shanghai, this time no such luck was at hand. I left my recharger at home as just before we left I checked and found battery fully charged. Probably it has something to do with incredible humidity in the area but by the time we reached our first crossing, battery was absolutely empty. Therefore there will be no pictures from the most beautiful national park I have seen in China so far.
Anyway, after three hour steep ascent from Northern gate we reached the first crossing where we took direct way to Sanqing temple. Entrance to the park is paid on top of long long flight of steps so basically you are happy to do anything they ask you (80 RMB / 8 EUR for student after 50% discount - not only one of the most beautiful but also the most expensive mountain in China). There we explored beauty of place (another short loop with beautiful views of surrounding mountains and temple area is available) and paid our homage to Taoist gods (at least one of us). After short meal (be warned that SQS is considerably expensive mountain compared to others in China - 30 RMB / 3 EUR for roasted rice and this was the cheapest dish) we continued along the Sunshine coast - a plank road on Northeastern cliff of the mountain. We took the first chance to ditch this way as this was our relax route for next day and climbed the highest peak in the area - Yujing shan (1,817 meters). All the way we enjoyed incredible views of pine forests, huge rocks and granite boulders and many many dragonflies :) On top we made quick acquittance with whole Japanese family or tour and left for some more adventure.
On our way down we took temporarily or permanently closed road which continued in our preferred direction. The road was closed probably because of the rockslide which destroyed only a hut on trail but otherwise it was perfectly safe way (although much steeper then our ascent trail). We reached West coast sea road (plank road rimming Southwestern cliff of SQS) and continued through other peaks and gates (understand - tiny cracks in between huge walls of rocks) towards fascinating shapes and compositions of boulders in eastern part of the park. There we saw boa towering over the pines, statue of goddess with head gently inclined and many others. Best thing came shortly before final descent to our targeted hotel. On a plateau around Yutian scenery spot we saw our first Buddha light - the very famous and in China very revered natural phenomenon when rainbow shapes up in the perfect circle. It looks awesome especially if you position you head in the middle :) We were left speechless for good twenty minutes and acted like little giddy children who got some super cool new toy (of course I complained constantly about my camera because chance to see Buddha's light is extremely rare). Afterward we descended to our hotel, had a quick dinner and tired went to bed - after 13 hours of constant hiking and c. 1,700 vertical meters we were pretty much spent for the day. Accommodation on the mountain is frankly of very poor quality and certainly extremely overpriced. From our inquiries we settled for the cheapest option of 260 RMB (26 EUR) for two person accommodation in dirty, full of bugs and humid room. Unfortunately our hotel (the one called 'hotel' also on map of the area - others are called villas) was the best on the mountain - at least from outside look.
Next day we woke up at 4.00am and run our tired legs towards Yutian plateau to see the sunrise. We enjoyed whole experience uninterrupted by anyone else as most of the Chinese tourists came towards the end of the whole show. Colors and sky with sparse clouds were fantastic (easily the best sunrise of all my attempts around China - with majority being bust). Cherry on top was visit of uncle eagle on our way back. He flew towards our bright colored jackets to check upon those rude intruders within 10 meters and sailed away to hunt for some breakfast. Still giddy but feeling already tired from extremities of yesterday we filled our stomachs as well and continued our journey around West coast and Sunshine coast plank roads to complete our exploration of SQS. If previous day and morning were almost tourist free, then rest of the day was from classic Chinese tourist book - people everywhere. After seeing monkey king with his treasure we decided to run for our lives and peace of our souls and finished the loop as early as possible. Totally exhausted we jumped on cable car and descended to Southern gate of National Park (my co-traveler almost killed herself from exhaustion as she was so excited to finish the trip that she literally flew down last 20 steps bruising any part of her body possible - except for head).
Upon descent we took local bus (two hour bumpy bus ride for 15 RMB / 1.5 EUR) to Yushan and after big dinner with famous chicken being cooked finally we jumped on sleeper train to Shanghai. SQS is magnificent mountain with extremely green pine forests in higher and subtropical jungle in lower elevation. Granite boulders and rocks make you wonder 'what are men compared to rocks and mountains' in line with heroes of that Austen girl. Anyway, although beautiful in nature it is already being kissed by Chinese tourism authority and build up in and around SQS National Park is in full throttle. On the other hand, it might improve competition and quality of accommodation on mountain since currently it is abysmal. My personal disagreement is with Jiangxi cuisine as I find other Chinese cuisines better and more nutritious. Be alert that this is still undiscovered corner of China for Western traveler as no Lonely Planet guide described it and therefore everything is in Chinese standards :)
8/21/2009
Mad dash to the sea (and beyond)
As mentioned in the previous post, we travelled from Wudang shan to Luoyang (one transfer in Xiangfan needed) which was the first city of our 8 cities 2 showers 8 days 'are-you-on-crazy?' tour concluding our three-weeks-long trip. In these eight days we visited all imperial capitals, birthplace of Confucius, swam in the sea, the best part of Great wall, climbed yet another Taoist mountain and indulge in tea culture and tea plantations of Hangzhou. The sleep was scarce and time for shower virtually non-existent. Some days we could not stand ourselves, such was the effect of 35 degree weather and constant movement from one historical sight to the other. On the other hand, we covered crazy amount of kilometers and anything worth of visiting in the below described cities (only exception is Beijing). Looking back, I would do it all over again, anytime :)
Luoyang
Capital of 13 dynasties (several dynasties had more than one capital city - e.g. Tang) was center of Chinese empire up until 10th century and the decline of Tang. Importance of Luoyang in the history of China magnifies number of temples in the city proper including Bai Ma Si (White horse temple) - the first Buddhist temple in China (built in 68 AD). We arrived late in the evening and happily accepted train station hotel offered by station staff (its all connected as usual - uniformed men and women instead of taking care of trains offer accommodation to anyone getting off the train). Heavy bargaining and two near walk-outs ended in 70 RMB (7 EUR) De-luxe bedroom. My guess is that this was lower price than Chinese people, who got to the hotel first, paid (talk about bargain power :).
We dedicated the first day to visits of temples and important sights such as Longmen caves. Longmen caves are member of the famous triumvirate of Buddhist grottoes (with Magao and Dazu carvings) dating back as early as 5th century. There are another Buddhist caves around Datong, which are even older then Longmen caves, but as I have not seen them I would not dare to comment. Grottoes here were created over two centuries following relocation of capital from Datong in 494 AD. Size-wise, the caves are the biggest one from the above mentioned triumvirate with over 100,000 statues stretching along banks of Yi He (Yi river). Beauty-wise, Longmen caves are the most beautiful and the most tourist-friendly of the three, offering best value for money as well. Dazu is too small compared to these caves and Magao is by far the unfriendliest one as you can visit only pre-selected caves your tour guide will take you in. In Longmen, you can enjoy walking from cave to cave and only thing you have to worry about is the amount of Chinese tourist groups. Although no statue is as big as 50 meters high Magao Buddhas, some of the caves offer wonderful 20 meters high statues and carvings. Work done by chisels is precise and detailed, representing top of grotto art in China. Unfortunately Longmen caves were the closest and the most convenient for Red guards to visit. During their reign of cultural (or rather uncultural) terror great amount of statues was damaged and beheaded (talk about saving art and history for the future generations). Although heavily damaged, undisputed beauty of Three Binyang Caves, Ten Thousand Buddha cave and Lotus Flower cave are preserved (more detailed description can be found on the web so I will not bother you here). Opposite bank of the river offers some more grottoes, freshly renovated temple where you can still enjoy fresh paint aftertaste and tomb of one of the most revered Chinese poets (don't ask for his name).
After some hopeless search for forgotten / stolen camera of my friend we used public transport to get to the Guanlin temple. All major destinations in Luoyang are served by public transport; Longmen and Guanlin temple by line 81 starting at the train station and Bai Ma Si and the old town by lines 56 (starting at the train station) and 58 (from Guanlin temple). Guanlin temple is dedicated to general Guan Yu of Shu kingdom (my beloved Three kingdoms period), whose head was allegedly buried here. His bravery and fearlessness brought him posthumous title of the Lord of War (something like 1,000 years later). His fame was spread mostly after his life when he became revered by people and both Buddhism and Taoism embraced him in their pantheon. You can recognize him in most of the temples you visit as red faced, mostly angry looking statue with long thin mustache. Temple is rather big complex of buildings and halls with simple round tomb at the end.
From Guanlin we moved towards Bai Ma Si to see some real stuff. Name of the temple comes from legend of how Buddhism came to China. Legend has it that two Indian monks brought first Buddhist sutras on two white horses. They stayed in this temple built for them and translated scriptures into Chinese. Since then temple housed the most important and oldest relics and became center of Chinese branch of Buddhism. If Guanlin is big, Bai Ma Si is huge. Besides main halls on the south-north axis complex includes living quarters and special buildings to host sutras and scriptures. Most buildings are dating back to Qing and Ming dynasties but new worshiping halls are introduced. The motives are mostly Indian (I guess legacy of monks lives on) with some of shrines being built and financed from India (as a proof of friendship).
After Bai Ma Si we had left some time and energy for exploration of night market and choosing of restaurant for our highly deserved dinner. Ah, those restaurants of Luoyang! The quality and price of food is one of the best in China and I would rate it as the best food on our trip. To discover and explore just get off at Bei Da Jie and walk along Zhongzhou Dong Lu. You can either follow Lonely Planets recommendations (night market looks awesome but recommended restaurants look pricey and half empty) or do as we did - follow the locals and walk into the fullest one. First day we enjoyed Beijing duck for quarter of the price in Beijing (normally just half but that day was some special festival) with free beer and other three dishes altogether for 86 RMB (less than 9 EUR). Unfortunately this was the first time when we left something behind and did not destroy the food within seconds. It was just too much for us. Next day we visited neighbor restaurant and again were overwhelmed by how cheap and huge are the dishes. Both restaurants can be found on Zhongzhou Dong Lu - left side if you walk eastwards - and are easily recognizable by huge crowd inside. The best thing is that kids (you cannot call them otherwise) working in these restaurants are so nice and excited that some foreigners walk in that they will make the dinner all worth it (and you will be attraction for rest of hosts).
Xian
We get off at Xian after overnight train from Luoyang and after dropping our bags at train station immediately went to visit Terracotta army, Big goose pagoda, Bell and Drum towers and concluded our day at Big Mosque and by dinning at Muslim quarter night market. Besides extensive walking through old and new town (outside and inside city walls) I have seen all sights (see previous posts) and thus we can move on.
Kaifeng
After yet another overnight train ride we spent pleasant day in Kaifeng exploring this Song dynasty capital. Considerably smaller than Xian and Luoyang, all major sights are within walking distance from train station. In one day we visited Iron pagoda (the oldest glazed pagoda in China), Old Guanyin temple (currently under full renovation), Sacred Heart of Jesus Church (my first church in six months or so), Dongda Mosque (old mosque open for all visitors in the middle of Muslim quarter), Longting Park (site of former imperial palace hidden today under two enormous lakes and pavilions), Shaanshangan Guild Hall (old guild house built by wealthy merchants in good old imperial times), Temple of Chief Minister (pleasant oasis in the middle of old town housing four-faced four-thousand eyed arms Guanyin statue and other notable Buddhist treasures) and Yanqing temple (small and not-much-to-see Taoist temple).
We dined in the western style restaurant and reached all tourist attractions either by foot (Kaifeng is conveniently small town) or public transport (lines run between main tourist attractions). Old town around Muslim and Jewish quarter offers particularly pleasant walks in between stalls of peddlers and family run restaurants. Also worth paying the visit is exhibit in Guild Hall where you can compare models of old and new Kaifeng. Somehow we both ended up siding with old one as the more beautiful. While admiring old buildings we felt sadness about newly built theme and entertainment parks luring Chinese tourists. After spending day in Kaifeng we hoped on another night train to Qingdao, so called Chinese Switzerland and coastal town promising some true beach culture (a'la China).
Qingdao
Coastal city in Shandong province was under German concession for all 16 years from 1898. Still German influence on city architecture, spirit and people is palpable. Besides architecture which very much resembles Europe (German part of it) as both old and new building blend together unlike nowhere else in China, it offers beaches, parks and most of all brewery (the most famous and the biggest in China). Basically in day spent here we managed to see everything worthwhile except for that brewery. We explored streets (almost as hilly as those in Zizkov in Prague), churches (small and simply but still very much admired by gasping Chinese), parks (nice and very nicely located on hills of the city, offering good views of harbor and coastline) and beaches (crowded). Basically, besides churches and former German governor villa where Mao once spent his vacation and discussed plans for China's future, we just wondered freely from street to street in general beach direction. The best advice is to obtain some general simple map of Qingdao and walk around - all interesting (unless you enjoy business districts) is located within walking distance on peninsula on which Qingdao is spread.
We realized we are not in ordinary Chinese city immediately when we got off our train as train station is situated in historical building right in the heart of town. What a difference to enormous glass / steel / concrete behemoths of other places we visited (with only exception of Dunhuang with its classy modern train station blending traditional characteristics with modern materials and needs). After walking around city we parked ourselves at beach no. 1 for a quick swim in the sea and shower afterward (what a relief!). Getting our hands dirty munching on crab meat we realized it is time to run for a train or we would miss our trip to Tai shan. Of course, last minute arrival was at hand once again. Qingdao meant also end of our dash to eastern seashore as from now on we turned back to accomplish one last magnificent loop back to Shanghai.
Tai shan
We arrived to Tai shan around 10.30pm in accordance with our plan to climb this holly mountain of Taoism (the most visited one) in one long overnight hike in time for sunrise. We started our climb after refilling our supplies at c. 11.30pm by long walk across town. Although originally we were afraid whether there are any such fools like us to attempt the climb at night (Lonely Planet only briefly mentions that some of the Chinese do it) we learned very soon that our idea is not so original. Further up the mountain it looked sometimes like on Tian'an men square in the middle of day. Traffic jams ensued as apparently half of Shandong decided to climb Tai shan that night.
80 RMB (8 EUR) ticket gives you opportunity for four hours climb up the mountain and some shivering at the top. Surprisingly early morning was cold even though mountain itself has only 1,545 meters. Probably our totally sweated through T-shirts did not help as well. The climb is strenuously long and after first six kilometers of relatively modestly steep hike you start some serious step hoping. Steps seem to be never ending (similar to crowds) and when you think you reach the top you realize you have somewhere else to go. On your way you pass obligatory three gates to heaven (First, Middle and South Gate to heaven), extending hand greeting pine (as usual on all mountains in China) and other notable hills, sights and temples. Nature is rich in pine forests (but nowhere near the beauty of Sanqingshan - see next post) and temples which are mostly located on top.
Upon climbing to the top we decided to borrow (5 RMB / 0.5 EUR) army looking coat which must have remembered the Long march. After one hour of shivering and waiting for sunrise we ended up totally empty handed as with first rays of sunshine huge mist sprang along the cliffs and covered any view possible. We healed our hurt souls by visit to Dai Miao - temple where emperors started their climb up. Unlucky and still unsatisfied we returned down and hoped on the first train to Qufu.
Qufu
Qufu is an old small town and the birthplace of Confucius. Yet another quasi-historic town which got lucky as one of his former citizen and dissatisfied bureaucrat started what is today one of the three most important philosophies in China. Although he lived his life in poverty wandering from place to place around several provinces, his family - Kong - became over generations that followed one of the richest people in China, rivaling the court. Kong mansion and temple are both huge complexes located next to each other. Temple offers one-sided history of sage's life casting extremely positive light on his achievements. The philosophy suited (and still suits) perfectly those on top as it emphasizes hierarchical structure of society as wife respects husband, son respects father and commoners respect officials (pyramid goes on). The popularity of Confucianism shows perfectly that history in China is written not by the winners but by bureaucrats. Thus Qin emperor and the first one who united the whole China was viewed as malice and Confucius is revered. Although his philosophy is embraced even today, commercialization, capitalism, and individualism win the hearts of young generations (especially apparent in the cities).
Both temple and Kong family house offer nice view of Chinese traditional architecture with several halls impressively decorated and marvelous carvings on pillars of at least two major halls rivaling those at Forbidden city. After visiting both (ticket for about 150 kuai / 15 EUR) we transferred ourselves to his tomb. More like a family cemetery, it is where all members of Kong family are buried. It appears that this tradition will be broken as the eldest male heir of 78th generation escaped to Taiwan... Tombs show progression of ornaments and burial customs over the years and dynasties. Confucius tomb is simple small hill with single stone tablet marking it.
Beijing
From small, walled town Qufu we went to Beijing to see some wall. Basically we had one day in Beijing to spent as we were forced to return to Shanghai on fourth or third and we were planning to see Hangzhou on our way as well. As I have already seen Badaling part we decided to try Jinshanling. It is one of the longest parts available for hiking and connects directly to Simatai part. Taking bus 980 will bring you to Miyun. Of course local clique worked here as well and we were dropped in the middle of nowhere at bus station turned minibus station of some taxi drivers. We bargained hardly for rental of a car and we got best price of 25 per person (one way) to Jinshanling. Together with two Spanish girls we met in the bus from Beijing we set off.
Road to our destination should have give us warning of what to expect later but we happily ignored minor congestion and progressed to the main gate. Paying tickets (80 RMB / 8 EUR - no student discount available) opened wall of opportunity for us. We spent something like four hours hiking along the most beautiful part of Great Wall I had seen yet. Unlike Badaling it is not so renovated (only towards the end, near Simatai) and by far less populated. Ever present hawkers, if you push hard, offer decent discounts for drinks (just double the price in your local Walmart) and shirts (you can get one for 15-20 kuai (1.5-2 EUR). I would not even start with views and pictures I have taken - just wait till I upload something. Jinshanling part of the Great Wall spreads along horizon wherever you look. Sharp ascents and breathtaking descents are good for hikers. Don't worry about 'proper' equipment as it is possible to walk this part of the Wall with only sandals on. Upon paying another 40 RMB (4 RMB) at Simatai part of the Wall and another 5 RMB (0.5 EUR) for crossing rope bridge over river (no other option - we checked) we finished our journey by taking local bus (2 kuai / 0.2 EUR) to Miyun. This bus goes allegedly once a day at 2.30pm and is unknown to any foreigner (we are still grateful to local hostel stuff). Unfortunately, perfectly planned journey which should have enabled us to visit both Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven turned into five hour nightmare where we were really scarred to make it on time for our train again (we managed to squeeze some picture time at Tian'an men square).
Hangzhou
Night train (first class after three days without no shower) took us directly to Hangzhou where we managed to walk around Xi Hu (West lake), Lingyin temple (local super temple which turned into touristic gold mine as coach after coach after coach full of Chinese tourists turn at its gate) and Longjing village. This village is epicenter of the best green tea in China (Longjing - Dragon well). Plantations are all around hills south of Xi Hu and public transport buses run there. Anybody visiting Hangzhou should pay it a visit as calm environment is in as big as possible contrast to overcrowded shores of Xi Hu. Of course, that was a time to run again to the train station to catch our last one train to Shanghai (close but we did it).
Finally, last post about my crazy trip all over the middle China. Although, incredibly exhausting it was all worth it :) Next will follow the post about Sanqingshan - probably the most beautiful trip since I am in China. Stay tuned :)
Luoyang
Capital of 13 dynasties (several dynasties had more than one capital city - e.g. Tang) was center of Chinese empire up until 10th century and the decline of Tang. Importance of Luoyang in the history of China magnifies number of temples in the city proper including Bai Ma Si (White horse temple) - the first Buddhist temple in China (built in 68 AD). We arrived late in the evening and happily accepted train station hotel offered by station staff (its all connected as usual - uniformed men and women instead of taking care of trains offer accommodation to anyone getting off the train). Heavy bargaining and two near walk-outs ended in 70 RMB (7 EUR) De-luxe bedroom. My guess is that this was lower price than Chinese people, who got to the hotel first, paid (talk about bargain power :).
We dedicated the first day to visits of temples and important sights such as Longmen caves. Longmen caves are member of the famous triumvirate of Buddhist grottoes (with Magao and Dazu carvings) dating back as early as 5th century. There are another Buddhist caves around Datong, which are even older then Longmen caves, but as I have not seen them I would not dare to comment. Grottoes here were created over two centuries following relocation of capital from Datong in 494 AD. Size-wise, the caves are the biggest one from the above mentioned triumvirate with over 100,000 statues stretching along banks of Yi He (Yi river). Beauty-wise, Longmen caves are the most beautiful and the most tourist-friendly of the three, offering best value for money as well. Dazu is too small compared to these caves and Magao is by far the unfriendliest one as you can visit only pre-selected caves your tour guide will take you in. In Longmen, you can enjoy walking from cave to cave and only thing you have to worry about is the amount of Chinese tourist groups. Although no statue is as big as 50 meters high Magao Buddhas, some of the caves offer wonderful 20 meters high statues and carvings. Work done by chisels is precise and detailed, representing top of grotto art in China. Unfortunately Longmen caves were the closest and the most convenient for Red guards to visit. During their reign of cultural (or rather uncultural) terror great amount of statues was damaged and beheaded (talk about saving art and history for the future generations). Although heavily damaged, undisputed beauty of Three Binyang Caves, Ten Thousand Buddha cave and Lotus Flower cave are preserved (more detailed description can be found on the web so I will not bother you here). Opposite bank of the river offers some more grottoes, freshly renovated temple where you can still enjoy fresh paint aftertaste and tomb of one of the most revered Chinese poets (don't ask for his name).
After some hopeless search for forgotten / stolen camera of my friend we used public transport to get to the Guanlin temple. All major destinations in Luoyang are served by public transport; Longmen and Guanlin temple by line 81 starting at the train station and Bai Ma Si and the old town by lines 56 (starting at the train station) and 58 (from Guanlin temple). Guanlin temple is dedicated to general Guan Yu of Shu kingdom (my beloved Three kingdoms period), whose head was allegedly buried here. His bravery and fearlessness brought him posthumous title of the Lord of War (something like 1,000 years later). His fame was spread mostly after his life when he became revered by people and both Buddhism and Taoism embraced him in their pantheon. You can recognize him in most of the temples you visit as red faced, mostly angry looking statue with long thin mustache. Temple is rather big complex of buildings and halls with simple round tomb at the end.
From Guanlin we moved towards Bai Ma Si to see some real stuff. Name of the temple comes from legend of how Buddhism came to China. Legend has it that two Indian monks brought first Buddhist sutras on two white horses. They stayed in this temple built for them and translated scriptures into Chinese. Since then temple housed the most important and oldest relics and became center of Chinese branch of Buddhism. If Guanlin is big, Bai Ma Si is huge. Besides main halls on the south-north axis complex includes living quarters and special buildings to host sutras and scriptures. Most buildings are dating back to Qing and Ming dynasties but new worshiping halls are introduced. The motives are mostly Indian (I guess legacy of monks lives on) with some of shrines being built and financed from India (as a proof of friendship).
After Bai Ma Si we had left some time and energy for exploration of night market and choosing of restaurant for our highly deserved dinner. Ah, those restaurants of Luoyang! The quality and price of food is one of the best in China and I would rate it as the best food on our trip. To discover and explore just get off at Bei Da Jie and walk along Zhongzhou Dong Lu. You can either follow Lonely Planets recommendations (night market looks awesome but recommended restaurants look pricey and half empty) or do as we did - follow the locals and walk into the fullest one. First day we enjoyed Beijing duck for quarter of the price in Beijing (normally just half but that day was some special festival) with free beer and other three dishes altogether for 86 RMB (less than 9 EUR). Unfortunately this was the first time when we left something behind and did not destroy the food within seconds. It was just too much for us. Next day we visited neighbor restaurant and again were overwhelmed by how cheap and huge are the dishes. Both restaurants can be found on Zhongzhou Dong Lu - left side if you walk eastwards - and are easily recognizable by huge crowd inside. The best thing is that kids (you cannot call them otherwise) working in these restaurants are so nice and excited that some foreigners walk in that they will make the dinner all worth it (and you will be attraction for rest of hosts).
Xian
We get off at Xian after overnight train from Luoyang and after dropping our bags at train station immediately went to visit Terracotta army, Big goose pagoda, Bell and Drum towers and concluded our day at Big Mosque and by dinning at Muslim quarter night market. Besides extensive walking through old and new town (outside and inside city walls) I have seen all sights (see previous posts) and thus we can move on.
Kaifeng
After yet another overnight train ride we spent pleasant day in Kaifeng exploring this Song dynasty capital. Considerably smaller than Xian and Luoyang, all major sights are within walking distance from train station. In one day we visited Iron pagoda (the oldest glazed pagoda in China), Old Guanyin temple (currently under full renovation), Sacred Heart of Jesus Church (my first church in six months or so), Dongda Mosque (old mosque open for all visitors in the middle of Muslim quarter), Longting Park (site of former imperial palace hidden today under two enormous lakes and pavilions), Shaanshangan Guild Hall (old guild house built by wealthy merchants in good old imperial times), Temple of Chief Minister (pleasant oasis in the middle of old town housing four-faced four-thousand eyed arms Guanyin statue and other notable Buddhist treasures) and Yanqing temple (small and not-much-to-see Taoist temple).
We dined in the western style restaurant and reached all tourist attractions either by foot (Kaifeng is conveniently small town) or public transport (lines run between main tourist attractions). Old town around Muslim and Jewish quarter offers particularly pleasant walks in between stalls of peddlers and family run restaurants. Also worth paying the visit is exhibit in Guild Hall where you can compare models of old and new Kaifeng. Somehow we both ended up siding with old one as the more beautiful. While admiring old buildings we felt sadness about newly built theme and entertainment parks luring Chinese tourists. After spending day in Kaifeng we hoped on another night train to Qingdao, so called Chinese Switzerland and coastal town promising some true beach culture (a'la China).
Qingdao
Coastal city in Shandong province was under German concession for all 16 years from 1898. Still German influence on city architecture, spirit and people is palpable. Besides architecture which very much resembles Europe (German part of it) as both old and new building blend together unlike nowhere else in China, it offers beaches, parks and most of all brewery (the most famous and the biggest in China). Basically in day spent here we managed to see everything worthwhile except for that brewery. We explored streets (almost as hilly as those in Zizkov in Prague), churches (small and simply but still very much admired by gasping Chinese), parks (nice and very nicely located on hills of the city, offering good views of harbor and coastline) and beaches (crowded). Basically, besides churches and former German governor villa where Mao once spent his vacation and discussed plans for China's future, we just wondered freely from street to street in general beach direction. The best advice is to obtain some general simple map of Qingdao and walk around - all interesting (unless you enjoy business districts) is located within walking distance on peninsula on which Qingdao is spread.
We realized we are not in ordinary Chinese city immediately when we got off our train as train station is situated in historical building right in the heart of town. What a difference to enormous glass / steel / concrete behemoths of other places we visited (with only exception of Dunhuang with its classy modern train station blending traditional characteristics with modern materials and needs). After walking around city we parked ourselves at beach no. 1 for a quick swim in the sea and shower afterward (what a relief!). Getting our hands dirty munching on crab meat we realized it is time to run for a train or we would miss our trip to Tai shan. Of course, last minute arrival was at hand once again. Qingdao meant also end of our dash to eastern seashore as from now on we turned back to accomplish one last magnificent loop back to Shanghai.
Tai shan
We arrived to Tai shan around 10.30pm in accordance with our plan to climb this holly mountain of Taoism (the most visited one) in one long overnight hike in time for sunrise. We started our climb after refilling our supplies at c. 11.30pm by long walk across town. Although originally we were afraid whether there are any such fools like us to attempt the climb at night (Lonely Planet only briefly mentions that some of the Chinese do it) we learned very soon that our idea is not so original. Further up the mountain it looked sometimes like on Tian'an men square in the middle of day. Traffic jams ensued as apparently half of Shandong decided to climb Tai shan that night.
80 RMB (8 EUR) ticket gives you opportunity for four hours climb up the mountain and some shivering at the top. Surprisingly early morning was cold even though mountain itself has only 1,545 meters. Probably our totally sweated through T-shirts did not help as well. The climb is strenuously long and after first six kilometers of relatively modestly steep hike you start some serious step hoping. Steps seem to be never ending (similar to crowds) and when you think you reach the top you realize you have somewhere else to go. On your way you pass obligatory three gates to heaven (First, Middle and South Gate to heaven), extending hand greeting pine (as usual on all mountains in China) and other notable hills, sights and temples. Nature is rich in pine forests (but nowhere near the beauty of Sanqingshan - see next post) and temples which are mostly located on top.
Upon climbing to the top we decided to borrow (5 RMB / 0.5 EUR) army looking coat which must have remembered the Long march. After one hour of shivering and waiting for sunrise we ended up totally empty handed as with first rays of sunshine huge mist sprang along the cliffs and covered any view possible. We healed our hurt souls by visit to Dai Miao - temple where emperors started their climb up. Unlucky and still unsatisfied we returned down and hoped on the first train to Qufu.
Qufu
Qufu is an old small town and the birthplace of Confucius. Yet another quasi-historic town which got lucky as one of his former citizen and dissatisfied bureaucrat started what is today one of the three most important philosophies in China. Although he lived his life in poverty wandering from place to place around several provinces, his family - Kong - became over generations that followed one of the richest people in China, rivaling the court. Kong mansion and temple are both huge complexes located next to each other. Temple offers one-sided history of sage's life casting extremely positive light on his achievements. The philosophy suited (and still suits) perfectly those on top as it emphasizes hierarchical structure of society as wife respects husband, son respects father and commoners respect officials (pyramid goes on). The popularity of Confucianism shows perfectly that history in China is written not by the winners but by bureaucrats. Thus Qin emperor and the first one who united the whole China was viewed as malice and Confucius is revered. Although his philosophy is embraced even today, commercialization, capitalism, and individualism win the hearts of young generations (especially apparent in the cities).
Both temple and Kong family house offer nice view of Chinese traditional architecture with several halls impressively decorated and marvelous carvings on pillars of at least two major halls rivaling those at Forbidden city. After visiting both (ticket for about 150 kuai / 15 EUR) we transferred ourselves to his tomb. More like a family cemetery, it is where all members of Kong family are buried. It appears that this tradition will be broken as the eldest male heir of 78th generation escaped to Taiwan... Tombs show progression of ornaments and burial customs over the years and dynasties. Confucius tomb is simple small hill with single stone tablet marking it.
Beijing
From small, walled town Qufu we went to Beijing to see some wall. Basically we had one day in Beijing to spent as we were forced to return to Shanghai on fourth or third and we were planning to see Hangzhou on our way as well. As I have already seen Badaling part we decided to try Jinshanling. It is one of the longest parts available for hiking and connects directly to Simatai part. Taking bus 980 will bring you to Miyun. Of course local clique worked here as well and we were dropped in the middle of nowhere at bus station turned minibus station of some taxi drivers. We bargained hardly for rental of a car and we got best price of 25 per person (one way) to Jinshanling. Together with two Spanish girls we met in the bus from Beijing we set off.
Road to our destination should have give us warning of what to expect later but we happily ignored minor congestion and progressed to the main gate. Paying tickets (80 RMB / 8 EUR - no student discount available) opened wall of opportunity for us. We spent something like four hours hiking along the most beautiful part of Great Wall I had seen yet. Unlike Badaling it is not so renovated (only towards the end, near Simatai) and by far less populated. Ever present hawkers, if you push hard, offer decent discounts for drinks (just double the price in your local Walmart) and shirts (you can get one for 15-20 kuai (1.5-2 EUR). I would not even start with views and pictures I have taken - just wait till I upload something. Jinshanling part of the Great Wall spreads along horizon wherever you look. Sharp ascents and breathtaking descents are good for hikers. Don't worry about 'proper' equipment as it is possible to walk this part of the Wall with only sandals on. Upon paying another 40 RMB (4 RMB) at Simatai part of the Wall and another 5 RMB (0.5 EUR) for crossing rope bridge over river (no other option - we checked) we finished our journey by taking local bus (2 kuai / 0.2 EUR) to Miyun. This bus goes allegedly once a day at 2.30pm and is unknown to any foreigner (we are still grateful to local hostel stuff). Unfortunately, perfectly planned journey which should have enabled us to visit both Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven turned into five hour nightmare where we were really scarred to make it on time for our train again (we managed to squeeze some picture time at Tian'an men square).
Hangzhou
Night train (first class after three days without no shower) took us directly to Hangzhou where we managed to walk around Xi Hu (West lake), Lingyin temple (local super temple which turned into touristic gold mine as coach after coach after coach full of Chinese tourists turn at its gate) and Longjing village. This village is epicenter of the best green tea in China (Longjing - Dragon well). Plantations are all around hills south of Xi Hu and public transport buses run there. Anybody visiting Hangzhou should pay it a visit as calm environment is in as big as possible contrast to overcrowded shores of Xi Hu. Of course, that was a time to run again to the train station to catch our last one train to Shanghai (close but we did it).
Finally, last post about my crazy trip all over the middle China. Although, incredibly exhausting it was all worth it :) Next will follow the post about Sanqingshan - probably the most beautiful trip since I am in China. Stay tuned :)
8/14/2009
South v. North
As our journey continued, this time back in eastward directions, we left behind Sichuan and Chengdu and transported ourselves to Wudang shan - birthplace of Tai chi. In true nature of yin and yang (cornerstone of of tai chi, gong fu, and the whole Tai chi philosophy), we went after visiting Wudang shan to search for balance to our torn apart souls in Song shan - birthplace of Gong fu itself (for those completely ignorant - the world famous Shaolin temple is located at the foot of Song shan). In following paragraphs you can find description of Tai chi guan (hereinafter described and called simply tai chi) and Shaolin gong fu (hereinafter described and called simply gong fu) - distinct styles of the most famous martial arts of China. This is also the first stage of our 'mad dash' to the coast and beyond. Remaining part will be described in the next post.
South
Tai chi is a martial art which, when looking on those practicing it, gives you a feeling that it is really an art. Legend has it that gong fu master (shifu) and Taoist monk residing at Wudang shan monasteries - Zhang San Feng - got inspired by observing bird attacking snake. He implemented evasive movements of the snake (which by the way saved his life) into gong fu movements, which he mastered before, and thus 72 poses (today there is something like 108 basic figures) of tai chi were created. Tai chi, considered internal martial art, is striving to use fluent movements and minimal effort in order to disarm opponents. Today it has many forms and mostly it is practiced as an exercise in order to promote blood circulation, balance, muscle and joints relaxation. As it allegedly promotes health and longevity it is very popular in western world (something of yoga sort) and with Chinese elders (practicing it in parks in the morning and / or evening). It is also very suitable for those who neglected training or sports and suddenly realized that their body is no longer what it used to be and for those who are really clumsy (like me) as it does not require any physical talent or strength (perfect!).
From Chengdu we took overnight train and arrived in the city of Wudang shan (you already know about the Chinese ´imagination´ with respect to names of the towns) - another generic tourist town with hotel capacity exceeding three times its population. Unknowing how long will the ascent will take and whether we will make it in time down from the mountain or will be forced to take shelter in some 'high altitude' option we dropped our bags by friendly peddler and took cab / minibus to entrance gate. Entrance ticket is rather expensive (90 RMB / 10 EUR) but includes free bus service up to the middle of the mountain (strictly altitudewise). Considering that final station (after one transfer) is c. 45 minutes or 25 km away from entrance gate it is worth it. New bus service is all operated by park and no minibuses are needed (as alleged by Lonely Planet). Entrance gate is c. 800 meters from the city center and thus no minibus is needed but unless you know upfront you do the same as we did.
It took us approximately two hours to get to the top and of course we took the harder way up - through three heavenly gates. Ascent is pleasant as nature is nice, steps although plentiful are not very steep and every now and then you have a temple to visit. The first one is Langmei Xian temple - THE temple - where you can pay homage to above mentioned monk a.k.a. father of tai chi. Hour beyond the temple you come to the crossing where you can choose the right way (three heavenly gates) or 'sissy' way (less steep around the mountain trail). Each gate brings you closer to heaven and offers spectacular views. Upon reaching mountain top (Golden summit) you have opportunity to visit wonderful and really spiritual temples (listening to monks chanting sutras is just priceless) and heaven city (upon yet another modest payment of 20 RMB / 2 EUR). City commissioned by some emperor is protected by wall and has bronze (originally golden plated) temple - talking about lightning rod. On the top number of tourists increases significantly as besides walking trail there is a chairlift option (very popular with Chinese). Surprisingly, on the top of this tai chi domain I had my first encounter with gong fu practitioner. Maybe I just got it entirely wrong as my six years old shifu was practicing his horse stance at the toilet (although it sounded as if he was mastering it to the highest level). Descent the other way is little boring in the shadow of tall trees.
We made it down from the mountain before sunset and in time for delicious dinner. Do not worry at all about finding accommodation - hotels are plentiful and discounts are huge. We found shelter in the third hotel for 70 RMB / 7 EUR for bedroom with shower in renovated and I would even call it luxurious institution. We had little idea that our streak of 'hotel towns' would continue for rest of our journey. Do not hesitate to walk out when they do not want to settle on your price - either they will run after you or next door neighbor will do. In this town another streak of ours interrupted - streak of 'towns we visited and observed local breed of cockroach in'. Although it was most certainly not the cleanest, since Wuhan it was the first town we had not the pleasure of crossing our path with cockroach. Next day, next stop - Luoyang - former imperial city which was destroyed and resurrected as many times as Star Trek movie franchise :) More on the city in next post as we dedicate this space to Shaolin temple which is located nearby (in Chinese sense - 100km).
North
Gong fu is a martial art we admire the most - the legends of super strong and super endurance monks are true - believe me, I have witnessed what they can do. It is understandable as Shaolin monks were fighting on the side of righteous (emperors) for centuries. Protecting coastline from pirates, suppressing barbarian invasions, and peasant rebellions they earned reputation as incredible fighters and envy combined with respect (and disrespect) of those they fought against (maybe this is the main reason why temple was burned many times - rhe latest in 1970's - courtesy of Red guards). Unlike tai chi, gong fu is considered external martial art with little regard for smooth movements and little effort. Training requires incredible amount of effort and strong will. It further emphasizes inner 'chi' in order to strengthen shifu's body. To master this art you would need to practice for years and during this time as you continue to improve and aware of your powers you become less and less interested in worldly fortunes. True masters are not succumbed to commercial presentation and selling off the Shaolin legacy but remain removed or rather disinterested by outside world (basically, famous kung fu actors are sore losers who were not able to master the true gong fu and sold themselves out to consumerism of western world :D ). Unlike tai chi, gong fu draws its philosophy from Buddhism and as such is much more aggressive (at least to untrained eye) in movement and fighting style.
Shaolin temple is easy to reach destination as it is very popular destination for Chinese and Western tourists. Easily reachable from both Luoyang and Zhengzhou, minibuses will take you there for c. 20 kuai (2 EUR) one way. Of course, hardened negotiators like me can negotiate same price for return tour, but I have met other westerners paying up to 180 kuai (18 EUR) for approximately same tour (watch out since tour prices do not include tickets for sights - pay if you want to visit policy applies). Tour means that in the price are included visits to surrounding temples. Usually tour includes visit to Songyang academy (one of the oldest higher education institutions in China) with its allegedly 4,500 years old cypress trees, Songyue pagoda (the oldest brick pagoda) and Zhongyue Miao (Tao temple). Whole trip will take one day which is fairly comfortable as you got to see most things. Unfortunately, such arrangement do not let you climb Song shan (1,512m).
Believing in ourselves and in Lonely Planet, we clawed half of the price from our tour operator at Shaolin temple and decided to climb Song shan and return to Luoyang by ourselves. Of course, little had we know that Shaolin temple is so awesome and breathtaking that we will spent there almost the whole afternoon. We observed open air training grounds where local gong fu schools come for practice, Shaolin monks skills presentation (sooo awesome :) ), pagoda forest with pagodas dedicated to the most revered monks and wushu shifu's (those who watch Kung Fu Panda movie know that this means 'martial arts master') and the temple itself. Although Taoist temple with reciting monks at Golden summit of Wudang shan was impressive, the spiritual power of the famous entrance hall, Guanyin hall (with frescoes of fighting monks), Pilu pavilion (with depressions in the floor created over centuries by practicing monks), and wonderful quite pagoda forest was much much stronger. Honestly, it took me 24 hours to settle down and calm down my excitement (meaning stopping performing 'gong fu' strokes on my co-traveler). Awesome!
Anyway, after visiting temple we attempted ascent of Shaoshi shan (Song shan's highest peak) by taking Shaoshi shan chair lift. What was our surprise when we discovered that there is not marked or paved trail to the top and that peak itself is off any trails in the area (first time I had a feeling that Lonely Planet people did not do they work properly). Main trail, which starts at the start of Shaolin cable car (different from the one we took - 60 kuai / 6 EUR return ticket), goes along it. Beyond terminus it continues for additional 15 km via hanging bridges and cliff trails. Still Shaoshi shan is significantly off even of this main trail. According to our own little research and wander into the wild there are unofficial trails leading to the top (better and shorter route is from the terminus of Shaoshi shan chair lift and beyond the paved road - trail is clearly visible). Unfortunately, we were unable to explore these trails to the full extent as our time in Shaolin area was nearing to its end (understand sunset). We run down from the mountain and jumped on the first tour bus heading to Luoyang (plenty of them and locals will gladly assist you and shout Luoyang at parking lot for you (no affect on price as they derive their commission from those 20 kuai you pay to bus driver.
South v. North
Above you can find basic description of two fighting styles. Here, I will repeat main differences and summarize my findings (sounds almost academical). Tai chi draws from Taoism while gong fu draws from Buddhism. Tai chi is spread along southern provinces while gong fu is popular in the north. Tai chi is more concerned with smoothness of movement and do not use much power or strength. Gong fu concentrates on strong and explosive strokes sequences. Although, both are based on inner chi, each uses this inner power differently. While tai chi tries to balance yin and yang and as such is considered to improve practitioner's health, gong fu uses inner chi to strengthen practitioner's body so that it can withstand and endure more grueling training. While tai chi will make you live longer, gong fu will make you invincible (to the point you can bend spears and break iron plates on your head). Looking back at what I have seen, I can say that although tai chi master could evade and use less energy during fight, gong fu master would beat him to the ground anytime (of course this is based totally on no experience with one or the other whatsoever :).
Next post will describe how we blazed through all capitals of the ancient China and found time to swim in the Yellow sea. Enjoy!
South
Tai chi is a martial art which, when looking on those practicing it, gives you a feeling that it is really an art. Legend has it that gong fu master (shifu) and Taoist monk residing at Wudang shan monasteries - Zhang San Feng - got inspired by observing bird attacking snake. He implemented evasive movements of the snake (which by the way saved his life) into gong fu movements, which he mastered before, and thus 72 poses (today there is something like 108 basic figures) of tai chi were created. Tai chi, considered internal martial art, is striving to use fluent movements and minimal effort in order to disarm opponents. Today it has many forms and mostly it is practiced as an exercise in order to promote blood circulation, balance, muscle and joints relaxation. As it allegedly promotes health and longevity it is very popular in western world (something of yoga sort) and with Chinese elders (practicing it in parks in the morning and / or evening). It is also very suitable for those who neglected training or sports and suddenly realized that their body is no longer what it used to be and for those who are really clumsy (like me) as it does not require any physical talent or strength (perfect!).
From Chengdu we took overnight train and arrived in the city of Wudang shan (you already know about the Chinese ´imagination´ with respect to names of the towns) - another generic tourist town with hotel capacity exceeding three times its population. Unknowing how long will the ascent will take and whether we will make it in time down from the mountain or will be forced to take shelter in some 'high altitude' option we dropped our bags by friendly peddler and took cab / minibus to entrance gate. Entrance ticket is rather expensive (90 RMB / 10 EUR) but includes free bus service up to the middle of the mountain (strictly altitudewise). Considering that final station (after one transfer) is c. 45 minutes or 25 km away from entrance gate it is worth it. New bus service is all operated by park and no minibuses are needed (as alleged by Lonely Planet). Entrance gate is c. 800 meters from the city center and thus no minibus is needed but unless you know upfront you do the same as we did.
It took us approximately two hours to get to the top and of course we took the harder way up - through three heavenly gates. Ascent is pleasant as nature is nice, steps although plentiful are not very steep and every now and then you have a temple to visit. The first one is Langmei Xian temple - THE temple - where you can pay homage to above mentioned monk a.k.a. father of tai chi. Hour beyond the temple you come to the crossing where you can choose the right way (three heavenly gates) or 'sissy' way (less steep around the mountain trail). Each gate brings you closer to heaven and offers spectacular views. Upon reaching mountain top (Golden summit) you have opportunity to visit wonderful and really spiritual temples (listening to monks chanting sutras is just priceless) and heaven city (upon yet another modest payment of 20 RMB / 2 EUR). City commissioned by some emperor is protected by wall and has bronze (originally golden plated) temple - talking about lightning rod. On the top number of tourists increases significantly as besides walking trail there is a chairlift option (very popular with Chinese). Surprisingly, on the top of this tai chi domain I had my first encounter with gong fu practitioner. Maybe I just got it entirely wrong as my six years old shifu was practicing his horse stance at the toilet (although it sounded as if he was mastering it to the highest level). Descent the other way is little boring in the shadow of tall trees.
We made it down from the mountain before sunset and in time for delicious dinner. Do not worry at all about finding accommodation - hotels are plentiful and discounts are huge. We found shelter in the third hotel for 70 RMB / 7 EUR for bedroom with shower in renovated and I would even call it luxurious institution. We had little idea that our streak of 'hotel towns' would continue for rest of our journey. Do not hesitate to walk out when they do not want to settle on your price - either they will run after you or next door neighbor will do. In this town another streak of ours interrupted - streak of 'towns we visited and observed local breed of cockroach in'. Although it was most certainly not the cleanest, since Wuhan it was the first town we had not the pleasure of crossing our path with cockroach. Next day, next stop - Luoyang - former imperial city which was destroyed and resurrected as many times as Star Trek movie franchise :) More on the city in next post as we dedicate this space to Shaolin temple which is located nearby (in Chinese sense - 100km).
North
Gong fu is a martial art we admire the most - the legends of super strong and super endurance monks are true - believe me, I have witnessed what they can do. It is understandable as Shaolin monks were fighting on the side of righteous (emperors) for centuries. Protecting coastline from pirates, suppressing barbarian invasions, and peasant rebellions they earned reputation as incredible fighters and envy combined with respect (and disrespect) of those they fought against (maybe this is the main reason why temple was burned many times - rhe latest in 1970's - courtesy of Red guards). Unlike tai chi, gong fu is considered external martial art with little regard for smooth movements and little effort. Training requires incredible amount of effort and strong will. It further emphasizes inner 'chi' in order to strengthen shifu's body. To master this art you would need to practice for years and during this time as you continue to improve and aware of your powers you become less and less interested in worldly fortunes. True masters are not succumbed to commercial presentation and selling off the Shaolin legacy but remain removed or rather disinterested by outside world (basically, famous kung fu actors are sore losers who were not able to master the true gong fu and sold themselves out to consumerism of western world :D ). Unlike tai chi, gong fu draws its philosophy from Buddhism and as such is much more aggressive (at least to untrained eye) in movement and fighting style.
Shaolin temple is easy to reach destination as it is very popular destination for Chinese and Western tourists. Easily reachable from both Luoyang and Zhengzhou, minibuses will take you there for c. 20 kuai (2 EUR) one way. Of course, hardened negotiators like me can negotiate same price for return tour, but I have met other westerners paying up to 180 kuai (18 EUR) for approximately same tour (watch out since tour prices do not include tickets for sights - pay if you want to visit policy applies). Tour means that in the price are included visits to surrounding temples. Usually tour includes visit to Songyang academy (one of the oldest higher education institutions in China) with its allegedly 4,500 years old cypress trees, Songyue pagoda (the oldest brick pagoda) and Zhongyue Miao (Tao temple). Whole trip will take one day which is fairly comfortable as you got to see most things. Unfortunately, such arrangement do not let you climb Song shan (1,512m).
Believing in ourselves and in Lonely Planet, we clawed half of the price from our tour operator at Shaolin temple and decided to climb Song shan and return to Luoyang by ourselves. Of course, little had we know that Shaolin temple is so awesome and breathtaking that we will spent there almost the whole afternoon. We observed open air training grounds where local gong fu schools come for practice, Shaolin monks skills presentation (sooo awesome :) ), pagoda forest with pagodas dedicated to the most revered monks and wushu shifu's (those who watch Kung Fu Panda movie know that this means 'martial arts master') and the temple itself. Although Taoist temple with reciting monks at Golden summit of Wudang shan was impressive, the spiritual power of the famous entrance hall, Guanyin hall (with frescoes of fighting monks), Pilu pavilion (with depressions in the floor created over centuries by practicing monks), and wonderful quite pagoda forest was much much stronger. Honestly, it took me 24 hours to settle down and calm down my excitement (meaning stopping performing 'gong fu' strokes on my co-traveler). Awesome!
Anyway, after visiting temple we attempted ascent of Shaoshi shan (Song shan's highest peak) by taking Shaoshi shan chair lift. What was our surprise when we discovered that there is not marked or paved trail to the top and that peak itself is off any trails in the area (first time I had a feeling that Lonely Planet people did not do they work properly). Main trail, which starts at the start of Shaolin cable car (different from the one we took - 60 kuai / 6 EUR return ticket), goes along it. Beyond terminus it continues for additional 15 km via hanging bridges and cliff trails. Still Shaoshi shan is significantly off even of this main trail. According to our own little research and wander into the wild there are unofficial trails leading to the top (better and shorter route is from the terminus of Shaoshi shan chair lift and beyond the paved road - trail is clearly visible). Unfortunately, we were unable to explore these trails to the full extent as our time in Shaolin area was nearing to its end (understand sunset). We run down from the mountain and jumped on the first tour bus heading to Luoyang (plenty of them and locals will gladly assist you and shout Luoyang at parking lot for you (no affect on price as they derive their commission from those 20 kuai you pay to bus driver.
South v. North
Above you can find basic description of two fighting styles. Here, I will repeat main differences and summarize my findings (sounds almost academical). Tai chi draws from Taoism while gong fu draws from Buddhism. Tai chi is spread along southern provinces while gong fu is popular in the north. Tai chi is more concerned with smoothness of movement and do not use much power or strength. Gong fu concentrates on strong and explosive strokes sequences. Although, both are based on inner chi, each uses this inner power differently. While tai chi tries to balance yin and yang and as such is considered to improve practitioner's health, gong fu uses inner chi to strengthen practitioner's body so that it can withstand and endure more grueling training. While tai chi will make you live longer, gong fu will make you invincible (to the point you can bend spears and break iron plates on your head). Looking back at what I have seen, I can say that although tai chi master could evade and use less energy during fight, gong fu master would beat him to the ground anytime (of course this is based totally on no experience with one or the other whatsoever :).
Next post will describe how we blazed through all capitals of the ancient China and found time to swim in the Yellow sea. Enjoy!
8/13/2009
About the typhoon that wasn't.
This is a quick post about typhoon Morakot and its impact on Shanghai. Basically, it was nonexistent as Shanghai lays way north of the main impact zone. Deadly in Taiwan and at Zhejiang and Fujian coast, it was weakened and disintegrated by the time it got into the vicinity of the city I currently reside in. Also I would like to praise Chinese authorities, which in this case showed a lot of competency and issued early warnings along potential zone of harm (all the way up to Shanghai). Little overreacting (warnings to keep windows shut were issued on Thursday) but anyway very organized and professional. Unfortunately, this made my first typhoon experience boring (same as my first riot experience in Xinjiang) to such an extent that I decided to seek out some adventure and get closer to action next time some storm decides to come ashore :) Enjoy!
8/12/2009
Chengdu! Chengdu!
Better late then never. Here is what we did in Chengdu, Sichuan's capital and important city of ancient China with history including Shu kingdom of the famous Three kingdoms period. It was also the westernmost place we spent night in on our journey through Chinese heartland. Just to absorb the city in its entirety we stayed not one, not two but three nights altogether. Dreams Travel became our base for trips to nearby UNESCO and not-so-UNESCO sights.
Templing inside out
Due to its history Chengdu 'suffers' by temple abundance. Their exploration itself requires several days, not mentioning city parks. Oh, and those parks! By amount of green, Chengdu trashes any city in China (including current Urumqi with its new green dress). We started with nunnery near Wenshu palace and old town (Chengdu's answer to Shanghai's Yuyuan bazaar but much less crowded), then explored Wenshu itself. Wenshu temple is important Buddhist temple dating back to Tang emperors. Its grounds hide several tea houses and it is place where we started our education and observation of Sichuan's tea culture, sipped quality green tea and ate 'piskoty' (Central European version of sponge biscuits). I mean piskoty - domestically produced but anyway, in China! Also we had our first encounter with ear wax removers. This custom and occupation has a long tradition in Sichuan and advanced almost to form of art. 'Artists' venture into crowd with their palette of brushes of various sizes and shapes ringing iron poles to draw attention and customers. They can play with your ears for lofty 30 minutes, which could be exactly half an hour you crave for if you are same ear freak as me. Unfortunately, I was too amazed by the sight of somebody making his living by cleaning others ears to try this procedure, although I promised myself that next time I walk into Chengdu I would do it.
From Wenshu we continued along tree lined streets to tomb of Wang Jian, a mausoleum of the king of the different Shu kingdom (Former Shu of five dynasties, ten kingdoms period). Tomb is significant for reliefs depicting the whole band of musicians (the most complete of that period in the whole China). We continued our walk towards Green Ram temple (the biggest Taoist temple in Chengdu) where we arrived after the opening hours but armored with a true Central European arrogance entered through side gate and explored it thoroughly. During this exploration, we had an opportunity to witnessed tai chi practice of the master and his students literally from all over the world. Nearby Culture park offers expensive opportunity to visit Sichuan opera performance (tickets from 120 RMB / 12 EUR up). Also nearby is big complex of the so called Dufu's village. Cluster of historical buildings intertwined with poetry of Dufu (famous Chinese poet who completely skipped my radar) and other Sichuan based poets (same goes for the nearby park dedicated to poetry). Of course, beauty of Chinese poetry stays still hidden from my ignorant soul. Maybe one day when I will understand it or at least grasp mandarin to such an extent that I would be able to distinguish verses, when they will be recited to me (on the other hand, I have this problem even in my native language).
As it was already dark by the time we get out of Culture park, we decided to slowly return to the hostel. On our way back we discovered another interesting gem of Chengdu - red light district (literally, as it was lit by red lanterns) of Wuhuoci. It is in fact commercial area spreading around Wuhouci temple, where local shops and western restaurant, bars and pubs are vying for tourists' money. Wuhouci is a temple dedicated to Zhuge Liang and others from Three kingdoms. In there I experienced a Popperesque moment and saw a black swan :)
Sightseeing outside in
The biggest problem we encountered in Chengdu is the fact that there are too many sights to see in near vicinity. Besides temples in the city, there is Leshan Budha (the biggest Budha statue in the world), Emei shan (holly Buddhist mountain), Qingcheng shan (another holly, but Tao, mountain), Dujiangyan irrigation project (this is what made Chengdu and Sichuan so rich), nature reserves (Wolong & co.), and other Buddhist and Taoist monasteries. Of course, there are also those Giant Pandas :) Easily you can spent two weeks in and around Chengdu but as we had only three and a half days and I had already pleasure of visiting Leshan and Emei shan, we dignified Dujiangyan and Qingcheng shan with our presence only. And also those oversized lazy black and white crossbreeds of rat and bear.
Be aware that, following the earthquake in 2008, provincial government introduced so called Panda cards in order to lure back tourists. This Panda cards are issued one per each person (must be complemented with passport or ID) no matter whether you are Chinese or foreigner (another reason why I really love this province - no white person surcharges or 'special' offers). Each Panda card entitles its owner for one free entry to major sights in and around Chengdu (it works on virtually all of the sights in Chengdu plus 100km radius but I am not sure about those further away, e.g. Emei shan).
First we visited Qingcheng shan and combined it with quick visit to Dujiangyan irrigation project. We were joined (or rather we joined) Chinese girl who kindly offered us her help (thank you Melisa). With her help we were able to get through for 40 RMB (4 EUR) per person into otherwise 100 RMB (10 EUR) Qingcheng shan natural park (of course we were unaware that with Panda card you can get in for free). There we spent half a day hiking around Taoist temples with long, rich and colorful history (some temples were hiding places for partisans, generals or princes, and scholars). Usual Chinese hikes (steps, steps, and more steps) were made more lively by the fact that our 'guides' who got us through the gate system unharmed, took us to some remote place which gave us opportunity to hike through not so civilised area with some ladders and unpaved trails.
In the afternoon, after some sampling of local cuisine, we finally got to Dujiangyan irrigation project, a site I wanted to visit most. It is project which tamed river Min and made of Sichuan the granary of China. It was built more than 2300 years ago by prefect Li Bing in order to prevent flooding of Chengdu plain which was pretty much annual thing. This project diverts waters from Min into series of canals irrigating fields all the way down to Chengdu (60 km away). We had an opportunity to walk around main diversion called 'fish mouth' as it has shape of fish head (Chinese fantasy working full throttle) on the banks of river and canal. To give you some idea: under the name 'canal' please do not imagine something we know from back home - two meters deep and two meters wide ditch. Min river is c. 100m wide strong and quick stream river. Fish mouth divides it into two streams - inner and outer - whose through flow is regulated according to needs. Working up until today it divides waters in 60:40 ratio (inner : outer) during floods period and sand in the ratio of 20:80 (that is some engineering!). Legend has it that this this levy system is the reason for happy and laid back attitude of Sichuan people. It is due to the fact that after its completion no floods occurred and thus people had and still have nothing to worry about :) Furthermore, steep banks offered good defense position for defending Chengdu plain from invading north armies (barbarians and those Wei soldiers as well). Old guarding towers offer wonderful views of Dujiangyan city and Min river stream. Here we had opportunity to witness some damage caused by last years earthquake as not everything was repaired or masked.
Next day was the panda day as we elected to visit local breeding station of Giant pandas. There we witnessed those small (year old cubs), smaller (red pandas which are generally smaller than giant ones), and the smallest pandas (one really ugly blind, hairless little newborn). Whoever says you that pandas are lazy, do not believe him - they are just like any other animals. Cubs are fighting like crazy, they eat like crazy and run around happily until tired. When sun comes up the activity decreases as even pandas are not crazy enough to run around in 30 degrees heat (just like humans - ask your Spanish, Italian or Chinese friends). Maybe the morning fight is staged each day to entertain the tourists but then I have to admit pandas are better actors than wrestling professionals :) Cubs smashing and climbing over each other is sight to behold and to take picture of. Lucky me I had my camera with almost infinite capacity :)
This brings me to one last thing I want to mention about Chengdu. During our stay we had an opportunity to witness sun eclipse - the longest one for next three hundred years. Unfortunately, Chengdu was all cloudy on that particular morning (imagine our disappointment when we realized that Chongqing which we left behind just one day earlier was all sunny) except for one small glimpse of sunshine when it was almost all over... Even worse, with the sun eclipse come also eclipse of my mind and I formatted one of my cards deleting a week worth of pictures (there goes Yangzi cruise). Further adventures of the two foreigners making it through the heart of China will be summarized in next posts. Read on!
Templing inside out
Due to its history Chengdu 'suffers' by temple abundance. Their exploration itself requires several days, not mentioning city parks. Oh, and those parks! By amount of green, Chengdu trashes any city in China (including current Urumqi with its new green dress). We started with nunnery near Wenshu palace and old town (Chengdu's answer to Shanghai's Yuyuan bazaar but much less crowded), then explored Wenshu itself. Wenshu temple is important Buddhist temple dating back to Tang emperors. Its grounds hide several tea houses and it is place where we started our education and observation of Sichuan's tea culture, sipped quality green tea and ate 'piskoty' (Central European version of sponge biscuits). I mean piskoty - domestically produced but anyway, in China! Also we had our first encounter with ear wax removers. This custom and occupation has a long tradition in Sichuan and advanced almost to form of art. 'Artists' venture into crowd with their palette of brushes of various sizes and shapes ringing iron poles to draw attention and customers. They can play with your ears for lofty 30 minutes, which could be exactly half an hour you crave for if you are same ear freak as me. Unfortunately, I was too amazed by the sight of somebody making his living by cleaning others ears to try this procedure, although I promised myself that next time I walk into Chengdu I would do it.
From Wenshu we continued along tree lined streets to tomb of Wang Jian, a mausoleum of the king of the different Shu kingdom (Former Shu of five dynasties, ten kingdoms period). Tomb is significant for reliefs depicting the whole band of musicians (the most complete of that period in the whole China). We continued our walk towards Green Ram temple (the biggest Taoist temple in Chengdu) where we arrived after the opening hours but armored with a true Central European arrogance entered through side gate and explored it thoroughly. During this exploration, we had an opportunity to witnessed tai chi practice of the master and his students literally from all over the world. Nearby Culture park offers expensive opportunity to visit Sichuan opera performance (tickets from 120 RMB / 12 EUR up). Also nearby is big complex of the so called Dufu's village. Cluster of historical buildings intertwined with poetry of Dufu (famous Chinese poet who completely skipped my radar) and other Sichuan based poets (same goes for the nearby park dedicated to poetry). Of course, beauty of Chinese poetry stays still hidden from my ignorant soul. Maybe one day when I will understand it or at least grasp mandarin to such an extent that I would be able to distinguish verses, when they will be recited to me (on the other hand, I have this problem even in my native language).
As it was already dark by the time we get out of Culture park, we decided to slowly return to the hostel. On our way back we discovered another interesting gem of Chengdu - red light district (literally, as it was lit by red lanterns) of Wuhuoci. It is in fact commercial area spreading around Wuhouci temple, where local shops and western restaurant, bars and pubs are vying for tourists' money. Wuhouci is a temple dedicated to Zhuge Liang and others from Three kingdoms. In there I experienced a Popperesque moment and saw a black swan :)
Sightseeing outside in
The biggest problem we encountered in Chengdu is the fact that there are too many sights to see in near vicinity. Besides temples in the city, there is Leshan Budha (the biggest Budha statue in the world), Emei shan (holly Buddhist mountain), Qingcheng shan (another holly, but Tao, mountain), Dujiangyan irrigation project (this is what made Chengdu and Sichuan so rich), nature reserves (Wolong & co.), and other Buddhist and Taoist monasteries. Of course, there are also those Giant Pandas :) Easily you can spent two weeks in and around Chengdu but as we had only three and a half days and I had already pleasure of visiting Leshan and Emei shan, we dignified Dujiangyan and Qingcheng shan with our presence only. And also those oversized lazy black and white crossbreeds of rat and bear.
Be aware that, following the earthquake in 2008, provincial government introduced so called Panda cards in order to lure back tourists. This Panda cards are issued one per each person (must be complemented with passport or ID) no matter whether you are Chinese or foreigner (another reason why I really love this province - no white person surcharges or 'special' offers). Each Panda card entitles its owner for one free entry to major sights in and around Chengdu (it works on virtually all of the sights in Chengdu plus 100km radius but I am not sure about those further away, e.g. Emei shan).
First we visited Qingcheng shan and combined it with quick visit to Dujiangyan irrigation project. We were joined (or rather we joined) Chinese girl who kindly offered us her help (thank you Melisa). With her help we were able to get through for 40 RMB (4 EUR) per person into otherwise 100 RMB (10 EUR) Qingcheng shan natural park (of course we were unaware that with Panda card you can get in for free). There we spent half a day hiking around Taoist temples with long, rich and colorful history (some temples were hiding places for partisans, generals or princes, and scholars). Usual Chinese hikes (steps, steps, and more steps) were made more lively by the fact that our 'guides' who got us through the gate system unharmed, took us to some remote place which gave us opportunity to hike through not so civilised area with some ladders and unpaved trails.
In the afternoon, after some sampling of local cuisine, we finally got to Dujiangyan irrigation project, a site I wanted to visit most. It is project which tamed river Min and made of Sichuan the granary of China. It was built more than 2300 years ago by prefect Li Bing in order to prevent flooding of Chengdu plain which was pretty much annual thing. This project diverts waters from Min into series of canals irrigating fields all the way down to Chengdu (60 km away). We had an opportunity to walk around main diversion called 'fish mouth' as it has shape of fish head (Chinese fantasy working full throttle) on the banks of river and canal. To give you some idea: under the name 'canal' please do not imagine something we know from back home - two meters deep and two meters wide ditch. Min river is c. 100m wide strong and quick stream river. Fish mouth divides it into two streams - inner and outer - whose through flow is regulated according to needs. Working up until today it divides waters in 60:40 ratio (inner : outer) during floods period and sand in the ratio of 20:80 (that is some engineering!). Legend has it that this this levy system is the reason for happy and laid back attitude of Sichuan people. It is due to the fact that after its completion no floods occurred and thus people had and still have nothing to worry about :) Furthermore, steep banks offered good defense position for defending Chengdu plain from invading north armies (barbarians and those Wei soldiers as well). Old guarding towers offer wonderful views of Dujiangyan city and Min river stream. Here we had opportunity to witness some damage caused by last years earthquake as not everything was repaired or masked.
Next day was the panda day as we elected to visit local breeding station of Giant pandas. There we witnessed those small (year old cubs), smaller (red pandas which are generally smaller than giant ones), and the smallest pandas (one really ugly blind, hairless little newborn). Whoever says you that pandas are lazy, do not believe him - they are just like any other animals. Cubs are fighting like crazy, they eat like crazy and run around happily until tired. When sun comes up the activity decreases as even pandas are not crazy enough to run around in 30 degrees heat (just like humans - ask your Spanish, Italian or Chinese friends). Maybe the morning fight is staged each day to entertain the tourists but then I have to admit pandas are better actors than wrestling professionals :) Cubs smashing and climbing over each other is sight to behold and to take picture of. Lucky me I had my camera with almost infinite capacity :)
This brings me to one last thing I want to mention about Chengdu. During our stay we had an opportunity to witness sun eclipse - the longest one for next three hundred years. Unfortunately, Chengdu was all cloudy on that particular morning (imagine our disappointment when we realized that Chongqing which we left behind just one day earlier was all sunny) except for one small glimpse of sunshine when it was almost all over... Even worse, with the sun eclipse come also eclipse of my mind and I formatted one of my cards deleting a week worth of pictures (there goes Yangzi cruise). Further adventures of the two foreigners making it through the heart of China will be summarized in next posts. Read on!
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