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Dave and Ivan (John was otherwise occupied) wanted to join us on the trip scheduled for Saturday, May 2, part of the three-day Chinese holiday to celebrate May Day. We figured we could make it a day trip since the mountain was supposed to be around three hours away by bus.
The day turned out to be beautiful so we all caught the bus down to the town circle to catch another bus to the main bus station. The plan was to go to Hongya City and there transfer to the bus to the mountain. We had also heard about an ancient city, Luojiang, which was on the way to the mountain.
Here we are waiting for our bus to take us to the station. We had left a little past eight so we figured we had plenty of time.
I played around with my camera on the bus which happened to be a bit crowded by the time we got to the bus station. Nice reflection out of the bus mirror.
We arrived to the bus station at . . . 0846. We had hoped to be able to get some breakfast like we did last time. Sunee went to get the tickets and found we had about an hour before our bus was to leave. We were all surprised to find Zoe and Mia heading to the same place. As we ate our dumplings, Zoe came looking for us and said there was another bus leaving now, so Sunee went and changed the tickets and the six of us (Dave, Ivan, Sunee, Zoe, Mia and me) all got on the same bus and planned to travel together to the mountain. What great luck!
The trip from Emei to Hongya took about two hours and went through the forever typical Sichuan countryside of mountains and a green fertile flat lands with plenty of water and veggies everywhere.
I took a few pictures, all noteworthy but all basically showing the same type of geography. Sichuan is blessed with abundance.
This is the first glimpse of the city of Hongya across the river. Looked new and very well placed.
The bridge to Hongya looked to be coming up on the right and, of course, it was. The bridge was new as was everything we saw in Hongya. Well, at least new compared to what we would call ancient.
Here we are waiting for our bus to take us to the station. We had left a little past eight so we figured we had plenty of time.
I played around with my camera on the bus which happened to be a bit crowded by the time we got to the bus station. Nice reflection out of the bus mirror.
We arrived to the bus station at . . . 0846. We had hoped to be able to get some breakfast like we did last time. Sunee went to get the tickets and found we had about an hour before our bus was to leave. We were all surprised to find Zoe and Mia heading to the same place. As we ate our dumplings, Zoe came looking for us and said there was another bus leaving now, so Sunee went and changed the tickets and the six of us (Dave, Ivan, Sunee, Zoe, Mia and me) all got on the same bus and planned to travel together to the mountain. What great luck!
The trip from Emei to Hongya took about two hours and went through the forever typical Sichuan countryside of mountains and a green fertile flat lands with plenty of water and veggies everywhere.
I took a few pictures, all noteworthy but all basically showing the same type of geography. Sichuan is blessed with abundance.
This is the first glimpse of the city of Hongya across the river. Looked new and very well placed.
The bridge to Hongya looked to be coming up on the right and, of course, it was. The bridge was new as was everything we saw in Hongya. Well, at least new compared to what we would call ancient.We all went into the bus station and found our bus was leaving at around 2 PM which gave us about 40 minutes for some ice cream. Since Sunee had no chance to eat her rice soup she needed some noodles to eat so we went outside to a restaurant close by. At that point, I looked at our tickets and they said 1:40 and not 2 PM as we were told. Once more, Sunee had to hurry with her food so we could get on the bus. She was not having a good day with eating for some reason. The bus left fairly close to schedule and we were on our way to Wawu mountain some three hours away. Wait, three hours! We had expected to be able to get to Wawu and back to Emei in one day. We were not prepared to stay overnight. Zoe and Mia, though, had come prepared. What the heck, we will just tough it out and make it another Chinese adventure. Three hours to sit back, relax and enjoy the Sichuan landscape go by.
This is a typical bridge that crosses the many rivers and streams in this part of Sichuan. The rivers looked to be full and running fast.
A quick picture of one of the temples we passed on our way to the mountain. No idea where were what kind, but the picture is nice.
Along the way, we saw a lot of terraces like this and with the mountains in the background, the view was stunning.
Chinese compounds could be seen as we approached the mountains. These compounds were surrounded by terraces and lots of green veggies and other products. Amazing greens everywhere.
The people of Sichuan simply do not waste any land in their growing of products. It makes the landscape really photo worthy.
Here is a beautiful shot from the bus of a two story house with a small and well maintained courtyard out front.
The buildings in the background gave a great feel to these terraces surrounded by tall trees.
Can you imagine living in a setting like this. The stone stairs leading down to the beautiful stream made us all want to stop and stay a while. Fabulous little place!
We are now in the mountains and the valleys are full of terraces and water growing all kinds of produce. The road begins to become winding along the ridges of the mountains.
Farms and farmland nestled between the mountains and evergreen trees made this drive spectacular all the way. We went through the ancient town of Liujiang but I saw nothing except as we crossed the small bridge in the center of town. Looked like the old part was on our right as we passed through. We shall return.
More mountains, more terraces and more beauty under a blue sky full of fluffy clouds.
This was a huge house surrounded by field and trees and located a bit off the road. Another wonderful location.
We followed this big river along the valley floor and crossed it several times as our road meandered around the mountains and forests.
About two hours into our trip we came to this medium size dam that was controlling the flow of the water of the river we had been following. A large well-maintained lake with terraces surrounding it made for a great photo.
I fell in love with this little cabin on the side of this mountain. All kinds of veggies were being grown all around it and in the background some pretty good looking grazing areas for farm animals.
Figuring out what to do next, we all took some time to take some pictures of the area around the small town. We did get some snacks and I eyed some local tea. Must get some on the way back and report what I found in my Chineteatravels.blogspot.com.
I am not knowledgeable about flowers, I just like to take their pictures. Anyone have any idea as to what kind of flower?
More pictures with the river and mountains in the background. That's Mia on the right, Zoe in the center and Ivan, the gap guy from Leshan on the left. Mia is a computer teacher who is also in my teacher's training class on Monday and Wednesday night. She is a dandy!
Figured how to get to the mountain so we bought our tickets. Got a discount and good thing, too as the gap guys did not bring very much money, figuring on a one day trip. No problem as Sunee would act as their ATM until we returned to Emei. I think the tickets were around 28 Yuan for the bus and 26 to get in the park. I need to look that up. Here Ivan and Dave proudly showoff the tickets Sunee bought for them.
Mountains, clouds, and blue sky all the way. The trip was supposed to take another hour but we got stuck because of all the Chinese who had the same idea we did.
Views of the mountains continued to thrill us. This, even though we were forced to wait over half an hour until the place became less congested with cares. As we approached the lift area, we saw a long line of cars parked along side the road miles before we actually arrived.
Lift to the top of the mountain cost each of us 50 yuan round trip. Once more Sunee acted as the ATM for the gap guys. Unfortunately just as we walked up to catch the lift, Dave found he had lost his ticket and was forced to purchase another one. We figured it had been picked out of his pocket. Hey, we could not leave him behind.
Here is the view of the lift area where one could stay and where we bought the tickets.
Fairly long walk up to the actual lift. It was here that Dave found his tickets to be missing.
The lift was not new and was long, very long. It took around 45 minutes to get to the top. Because the last lift came back at 6PM and it was now 5PM, we decided to stay on the mountain. Zoe had called up to the top as we were buying our lift tickets and had reserved spaces on the floor of one of the buildings. We were not prepared but - adventure time!
There was actually a line of hundreds of people trying to get back down the mountain when we finally arrived to the top of the lift. As we walked by, they cheered us and greeted us. When some of the students in line had a small conversation with us, all the people around them cheered loudly and clapped. The line stretched back from the lift for several hundred meters before we finally ran out of people.
As we walked toward our destination and hotel we noted hundreds of azaleas in bloom. I took lots of pictures of them. Here Sunee is looking at one of the bushes full of flowers.
We had about an hour's walk from the lift to the hotel where we would stay. It was getting cold and the ups and downs of the path did not make things easier.
More azaleas in bloom. Most had become pretty ragged and spent but some were still in good shape.
Our final destination, Xiang Er Hotel, where we would spend the night in hopes of seeing a mountain sunrise. The area had all the convenience expected but very rustic.
As we ended our trek at the big courtyard area in front of the hotel, we saw these people cooking what appeared to be rabbit and chicken. We were offered one for the crazy price of 150 Yuan. Normally one can get a chicken for less than 20 Yuan. We, of course, decided against it.
Here is the group after our trek up from the lift. It is now quite cool. As you can see, Ivan has only a T-shirt and I had also some pretty light cloths on. I began to worry a little bit about freezing to death.
The entrance to the sleeping area where several levels of rooms were available. We had settled for the floor area for 30 Yuan a piece. Had no idea what to expect. We were hungry so we decided to check in and get some food.
This is a typical bridge that crosses the many rivers and streams in this part of Sichuan. The rivers looked to be full and running fast.
A quick picture of one of the temples we passed on our way to the mountain. No idea where were what kind, but the picture is nice.
Along the way, we saw a lot of terraces like this and with the mountains in the background, the view was stunning.
Chinese compounds could be seen as we approached the mountains. These compounds were surrounded by terraces and lots of green veggies and other products. Amazing greens everywhere.
The people of Sichuan simply do not waste any land in their growing of products. It makes the landscape really photo worthy.
More farms with more terraces.
Here is a beautiful shot from the bus of a two story house with a small and well maintained courtyard out front.
The buildings in the background gave a great feel to these terraces surrounded by tall trees.
Can you imagine living in a setting like this. The stone stairs leading down to the beautiful stream made us all want to stop and stay a while. Fabulous little place!
We are now in the mountains and the valleys are full of terraces and water growing all kinds of produce. The road begins to become winding along the ridges of the mountains.
Farms and farmland nestled between the mountains and evergreen trees made this drive spectacular all the way. We went through the ancient town of Liujiang but I saw nothing except as we crossed the small bridge in the center of town. Looked like the old part was on our right as we passed through. We shall return.
More mountains, more terraces and more beauty under a blue sky full of fluffy clouds.
This was a huge house surrounded by field and trees and located a bit off the road. Another wonderful location.
We followed this big river along the valley floor and crossed it several times as our road meandered around the mountains and forests.
About two hours into our trip we came to this medium size dam that was controlling the flow of the water of the river we had been following. A large well-maintained lake with terraces surrounding it made for a great photo.
A temple of some kind set among the pines near the lake.
I fell in love with this little cabin on the side of this mountain. All kinds of veggies were being grown all around it and in the background some pretty good looking grazing areas for farm animals.
Clouds, blue skies, mountains, rivers, and terraces. One could not ask for more. Three hours and we reached our destination - Wawu City. This place was small and the actual building were built on both sides of the road with nothing but mountain in the back. A small river ran through the village on the right and evergreen trees were everywhere. The air was magnificent and the whole place was very "aspen-like" in its crispness.
Figuring out what to do next, we all took some time to take some pictures of the area around the small town. We did get some snacks and I eyed some local tea. Must get some on the way back and report what I found in my Chineteatravels.blogspot.com.
Closeup of a flower not far from the road. Little bit of a spider web as well.
I am not knowledgeable about flowers, I just like to take their pictures. Anyone have any idea as to what kind of flower?
More pictures with the river and mountains in the background. That's Mia on the right, Zoe in the center and Ivan, the gap guy from Leshan on the left. Mia is a computer teacher who is also in my teacher's training class on Monday and Wednesday night. She is a dandy!
Figured how to get to the mountain so we bought our tickets. Got a discount and good thing, too as the gap guys did not bring very much money, figuring on a one day trip. No problem as Sunee would act as their ATM until we returned to Emei. I think the tickets were around 28 Yuan for the bus and 26 to get in the park. I need to look that up. Here Ivan and Dave proudly showoff the tickets Sunee bought for them.
All aboard to Wawu Mountain. Nice bus, too!
Mountains, clouds, and blue sky all the way. The trip was supposed to take another hour but we got stuck because of all the Chinese who had the same idea we did.
Views of the mountains continued to thrill us. This, even though we were forced to wait over half an hour until the place became less congested with cares. As we approached the lift area, we saw a long line of cars parked along side the road miles before we actually arrived.
Lift to the top of the mountain cost each of us 50 yuan round trip. Once more Sunee acted as the ATM for the gap guys. Unfortunately just as we walked up to catch the lift, Dave found he had lost his ticket and was forced to purchase another one. We figured it had been picked out of his pocket. Hey, we could not leave him behind.
Here is the view of the lift area where one could stay and where we bought the tickets.
Fairly long walk up to the actual lift. It was here that Dave found his tickets to be missing.
The lift was not new and was long, very long. It took around 45 minutes to get to the top. Because the last lift came back at 6PM and it was now 5PM, we decided to stay on the mountain. Zoe had called up to the top as we were buying our lift tickets and had reserved spaces on the floor of one of the buildings. We were not prepared but - adventure time!
There was actually a line of hundreds of people trying to get back down the mountain when we finally arrived to the top of the lift. As we walked by, they cheered us and greeted us. When some of the students in line had a small conversation with us, all the people around them cheered loudly and clapped. The line stretched back from the lift for several hundred meters before we finally ran out of people.
As we walked toward our destination and hotel we noted hundreds of azaleas in bloom. I took lots of pictures of them. Here Sunee is looking at one of the bushes full of flowers.
We had about an hour's walk from the lift to the hotel where we would stay. It was getting cold and the ups and downs of the path did not make things easier.
In bloom.
More azaleas in bloom. Most had become pretty ragged and spent but some were still in good shape.
Our final destination, Xiang Er Hotel, where we would spend the night in hopes of seeing a mountain sunrise. The area had all the convenience expected but very rustic.
As we ended our trek at the big courtyard area in front of the hotel, we saw these people cooking what appeared to be rabbit and chicken. We were offered one for the crazy price of 150 Yuan. Normally one can get a chicken for less than 20 Yuan. We, of course, decided against it.
Here is the group after our trek up from the lift. It is now quite cool. As you can see, Ivan has only a T-shirt and I had also some pretty light cloths on. I began to worry a little bit about freezing to death.
The entrance to the sleeping area where several levels of rooms were available. We had settled for the floor area for 30 Yuan a piece. Had no idea what to expect. We were hungry so we decided to check in and get some food.
Zoe and Mia go check in amongst what appeared to be a very disorganized check-in procedure. We also found out that there was a restaurant open and we all were getting hungry.
We had to wait for our table as Zoe and Mia went to check out our sleeping arrangements. By the time they returned we had a table but had to wait as the staff was very busy. Here Zoe relaxes and talks about us all freezing to death but with a great view out the windows.
Mia and Dave relax as we drink our tea and wait for our food. We were all very hungry. Sunee especially was hungry as she had been "time cheated" on eating at both bus stations.
The people sitting at the next table offered some white liquor to toast. Of course, I could not but Dave and Ivan toasted. The stuff was like pure alcohol as Ivan here shows.
The rustic buildings that were our accommodations for the evening. Ours is out of sight at the end and to the right.
After our dinner, we placed our stuff in our large shared room and we went back out to the courtyard to see what was going on. Soon these people showed up and a bunch of us get into the act of dancing around a huge bonfire.
Sunee was lucky enough to find a place I could rent this PLA overcoat. Was I happy! It was extremely warm and only cost me 20 Yuan.
Here Ivan and I are celebrating. I was celebrating because I was warm. Ivan was celebrating to keep warm.
Dave enthusiastically gets to dancing and meets a bunch of happy guys out on the dance floor. Here a new found friend helps him celebrate.
WARM!
We had a great time sitting around the cooking fire keeping warm and dancing around the big bonfire in the middle. All things must come to an end and we were all very tire from walking and changing buses and getting excited. Time for bed.
Our accommodation was a huge room with quilts, mats and blankets spread out on the floor. Along with us there were several other people in various areas of the huge room. We were all going to be cozy because it was very cold. Here Zoe and Mia get their stuff together for a good night's sleep.
Sunee manages to get us ready. I figured we would be ok with the help of the heavy PLA overcoat. We should be warm enough.
As we prepped our beds, Dave took some time out to enter the adventure in his journal.
The party did not end at the courtyard. Dave and Ivan got to celebrate with our fellow sojourners in the big room. Lots of toasting going on it looked like to me. Lots of laughing and just having a good time
This is one of several shots taken doing the celebration on a cold night.
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