Huang Shan
(Yellow Mountain)
It all started in Tangkou. The little bus made its way into this city and then everyone ran off into the night except for a lady that haggled with me to take a room in her hotel. Her daughter spoke some English and directed me to the Bank of China. I stayed in their hotel before and after going up Huang Shan and so at the end, I had quite a lot of respect for this young girl who learned so much English although I could not and still dont know how she could pick it up...I left her some Time magazines hoping that they help to improve her reading rather than discourages her with politics. Not that all politics is discouraging, but the past four years have been to me, and so i wonder how she interprets these magazines that focus on the presidential election.
The rocky peaks reached for the sky. The highest point was about 1900 meters (roughly the height of the Appalachian mountains), so I thought I it would be a challenge to be up and down this mountain in one day (like in the Grand Canyon). Now i think that it is possible, but sacrifices a lot of time enjoying the scenery. They have hotels at the top although they were really expensive. i made a reservation for one night at the Belhai, but it would have been $70 when i was used to paying $10/night. Luckily, i met a nice Czech couple and we found a hostel that was that reasonable so I stayed at the top for the night.
Why were the hotels expensive? Because these guys that make about $10 per week carry food and BEER up the mountain and bring laundry down. Lots of respect for these guys because they really were lean and fit and that bamboo on your shoulder with about 70 lbs must take it out of you.
There are three ways up. The Eastern Steps which take about 4 hours to get up and is packed with people. The cable car, because that is what you get. And the Western Steps, which I came down on the second day and found to be some of the most spectacular scenery.
Unfortunately, when i got to the top of the mountain, the clouds had rolled in, and it would appear that this is the natural state.
Huang Shan is a 72-peak mountain range in the Anhui province in Eastern China. It is one of China's most famous landscapes and is very sacred to the Chinese. My lab mates at Georgia Tech prepared me for the experience and told me how good the sunrises can be. so make sure you check out this whole page because it is surely one of my favorites.
At some point i will have more access to website space and then i'll put up videos and more panoramics to give a better feel of the view (which take up too much memory). i am currently hosting these Asian pictures on a 10mb user account from Bellsouth.
'Beginning to Believe' peak.
The following day, we got up at 5.30 to go to Lion's Peak so we could get the best view of the sunrise. The names of the peaks were great, like 'Double Cats Chasing a Mouse', or 'Monkey Gazing at the Sea.'
Jan and Ratka from Praha. I really enjoyed meeting them at the summit and appreciated getting to enjoy the sunrise and all of this nature with them and our fourth friend, Alex, in what i now call 'the breakfast club.'
The Breakfast Club :)
I like this photo because of the pockets where the clouds rest.
Some said these locks were for lovers to symbolize that they are 'locked' together. Others have told me that it is so that you keep the key and remember that you have something to do at Huang Shan.
Yeah, these steps and the entire pathway was paved. Not so rugged as it might look, but it is fantastic that people can come to these places which are completely remote and difficult to get to otherwise. I think the people who built this pathway were of the most hardy type.
'Cloud Dispelling Pavillion.' Can you see it in the middle? it has a whitish patio in front.
Do you see all of the pathways? It may only be 1900 meters, but the pathway basically goes up and down that a few times. The Western Steps are for the strong and are far less busy, but worth every step.
I have never seen Autumn like this. I made a movie of some leaves flying around this canyon. So if anyone wants to see, just come to Atlanta and visit and i'll show you until your heart is content :)
A nice spot for lunch, right? i came around this corner breathless and in shock over the heights, an mnbhd these people were having lunch, as casually as if they were reading the paper on a Sunday morning.
I was fortunate to have this guy walk down the last few thousand steps with me. He taught me to count to 10. He spoke about as much English as I did Chinese.