I survived My first National Holiday trip

I survived my first National Holiday like the (July 4^th) plus the mid Autumn Moon festival. However the experience will not be forgotten soon. Once again my experience surpass my expectation, the thrill and the scare, some of it, I should have save it for the Halloween blog.

For starter, I survived my first Chinese hot pot experience, it is an obsession here, people gathering around a pot of hot cooking flavored soup and cook your own food in the boiling soup. It is kind of fun if you had never cook in the kitchen before and wanted to cook your own food rather than being served. You know what I rather choose.

Secondly, I climb the Lupu Bridge that span the Huangpu River that snake thru the heart of Shanghai divided her into two half like many great cities in the world. 360 steps later, I was standing on the platform on top of the second longest arch bridge in the world. For those who are not able to make this climb, I am sorry there is no other way to get up there. But you have my photos instead. The only regret was that they do not open at night. Otherwise it would be awesome.

Third, a trip to Hangzhou, the famous ancient city about three hours from Shanghai with it center piece the West Lake. For century the lake attracted artists and Poets alike for her beauty and the charm of the surrounding hillside. I thought it could be a nice treat to relax in the hillside surrounding the lake, and view the beauty of the slivery moon light reflection on the lake. Unfortunately Romanizing the tranquilly images did not last long.

The huge crowd inside the train station actually forms hazy smog inside if it is going to rain, the noise was unbearable, I got my ticket at lighten speed of 20 minutes consider the long line. 45 minutes later on the high-speed train, I am approaching the City of Hangzhou.

My first impression of the city was: Wow, I really arrived in a real Chinese city. Not much high rises and not much cosmetic. Just street full of people.

Due to the recent economic slow down in China, the government had unveiled massive public project in second tear cities by improving their infrastructure. Hangzhou is getting her new metro system. The whole city is like a war zone, there were dust everywhere, and you can hardly even saw the sky. My god, why am I trading the cool temperature and blue sky for the air polluted dust fill city. My Taxi can’t even get into the driveway of the hotel.

After I settled in, I ask for direction to the lake, then my exodus began, it was like in the Pamplona Bull Run, just follow with the crowd. If everyone crosses the street you did so as well. The road was all dig up and full of mud and dirt, every passing vehicle kick-up more dust. People were pushing. That was not fun it was madness.

Until the first of the glimpse of the West Lake behind the willow tress all my trouble was forgotten. It was magical. The ancient cause way, the rental boats, the willow trees, just like I saw in the Chinese ink paintings, minus the people of course. In the historical photographs, there was only hand full of people on the causeway connected by long arched stone bridges. However what I saw instead was a mountain of ants like people pile on top of the historical bridges. Moving about in both directions.

Moving along the willow trees lined lakeshore, I can’t help to fall into deep thought on how it must had been so beautiful, until I woke by the noise of vehicles and thousands of orange colored ugly rental bikes with riders maneuvering their bikes on the narrow sidewalk. Ran over any one at their will, because were not qualify riders. There is no room for biking here, just get off of it people. No I did not, I minded my manners.

The sun starting to set, I thought perhaps it was time to Taxi to the hotel for a foot message before head out for an evening cocktail on the lake to watch the Sunset over the hazy horizons. What a perfect ending to an adventures filled day.

Life is never perfect, no matter how careful we often thought we had it all planned. I discovered that, I was off the tourist map. A wrong turn while taking my walk hugging the lakeshore in fact put me deep in the inlets. I was desperately seeking a way out before the mountain lion appear under the moonlight and target me as their USDA graded steak dinner.

Many friendly and helpful locals gave me the “round about” directions; Perhaps my limited Chinese skill is not getting me any where, but I have a map baby and I know how to point isn’t that enough?

I finally ran into a couple international tourists they were exploring with their GPS, I had my as well, except I do not know the name of the cross road I entered the lake earlier. Well, I tag along for a little while and exchange travel stories as if we were long lost buddies, until we came to a cross road and they told me that they were going to get in their car to drove down the hill, they point out that all I need to do is to follow the road down.

Come on, shouldn’t they offer me a ride? Well that was no Hollywood or Bollywood endings. I walked alone in the dark.

Eventually I was back on the shoreline after an 8 hours hike, I was exhausted I hailed a taxi, forget about foot message. I need a beer now. After I told him the location, he told me to get out of the taxi, it is just around the corner. After the dust was settled I was left on the sidewalk watch the taxi slip away into the neon filled street.

The beer and meal in this little place was fantastic, I was recharged. Again follow the lakeshore. I was rewarded by a special water show that last for half an hour. By the time I got back to the hotel, I can resist to have a foot and full body message. That night. I slept like a baby.

Hangzhou day 2

I got up early for a head start. The hotel concierge advise me that the best I can do is to take the taxi from the hotel to the most remote temple first then try my luck to go to the second location.

At 7 in the morning, while the rest of the cities were asleep, the road to the temple already experiencing dead lock jams. My taxi trip comes to a full stop that lasted half an hour. My driver took me on a wild ride thru the tunnel, 20 minutes later we arrive at the famous Lingyin temple.

The lines to the ticket office were all long and there were stampede going on at the front. No one care about rule, just try to get to the front. I elbow myself to the window like all others, but I stand tall, and keep cursing them in English. Chinese think that is entertainment, seeing foreigners loosing their cool.

Pilgrimage was never easy my 1^st ticket only got me thru the temple garden. I should have learned by now that “efficiency” is not a Chinese word. I realized that there was another line I had to conquer in order to enter the sacred grounds. This time the line is rather civilize, because a lot of the other locals were not willing to pay for a second ticket to enter the scared ground unless they were true devotees, and wanted to burn incense in the temple while burning a hole in the pocket at the same time. I am saying that is because you cannot bring incenses to the temple, you have to buy them there. How clever.  : )

Lingyin Temple is one of the most significant and beautiful Buddhist monasteries in China. "Ling-yin" means "Soul's Retreat" in Chinese; therefore, the temple's name is commonly literally translated as Temple of the Soul's Retreat.

The entrance to the monastery is lined with hundreds of rock grottos that contain detailed religious rock carvings. The Temple contains an important collection of Buddhist literature together with many other treasures. As a consequence, it is a great storehouse of information for those who wish to study aspects of Chinese Buddhism in detail.

On my way out I was fortunately to find Taxi outside the temple ground. I headed to the Leifend Pagoda

The Leifeng Pagoda was an octagonal, five-story structure built of brick and wood and with a base built out of bricks in 975 AD. During the Ming dynasty, Japanese pirates attacked Hangzhou. Suspecting the pagoda contained weapons; they burned its wooden elements, leaving only the brick skeleton. Later, due to a superstition the bricks from the tower could repel illness or prevent miscarriage, many people stole bricks from the tower to grind into powder. On the afternoon of September 25, 1924, the pagoda finally collapsed due to disrepair, and was finally rebuilt in 2011.
Once again I climbed the 7 stories to the top to take in the vista of the entire west lake. What a sight that was. After an hour of struggle to get a taxi I gave up the idea of lunch on the lake and headed straight to the train station. I had enough of humanities. I need to get back to civilization.
Hangzhou station is a far cry from the Shanghai station. The ticket office is on a separate building with 30 ticket windows, yet the hall was fill to the max; there must be at least 2000 souls inside a place with no air-conditioned. Again, I fight, and elbowed my way to the front, the Chinese have no concept of lines. While the younger generations were a little more polite, the other folks from the countryside or smaller cities would cut in front of you with no apologize needed.
Something I learn for me extended stay in China. I learn that these are the people so resilience, they can accept anything as they come while we foreigner think unacceptable, it is just the norm for them. The other fact is that Money not always works here wither, we can flex our dollar as much as we can, there are thousands of them can afford a lot more that we ever could. A single low-key night out can cost an upward of thousands in USD. And dinner is not included.
Everyday in this foreign land give me a new angle in live, I would otherwise able to experience back home.
Chance Encounter Hangzhou