It’s been a while since I wrote the last blog. I had been
traveling for the last two months hardly had a moment to myself, but had many
interesting encounters. Now I am finally settled in a little it is time to do a
little catching up
In Mid Oct 2013. I took a trip to the Yunnan province in
China. The first city I visited was the capital of Kunming. If you ever visited
this city you know the number one attraction there the Stone Forest (Shilin),
known since the Ming Dynasty as the 'First Wonder of the World.
The forest is located in the Lunan Yi Nationality Autonomous
County, which is about 120 kilometers (75 miles) from Kunming and requires a
three-hour drive or you can easily get there using the local bus which will
cost you almost nothing, instead of spending some heavy green backs.
However the long distance bus station is not easy to get to,
it is located 45 minutes way from the city, it will take first a local bus ride
just to get there. There is no metro, so the other option will be Taxi, for a
budget travelers like myself. That is out of the question. I rather suffer or you
can look at it as experience the local ways. I do not understand why the
government officials in Kunming decided to build an enormous long distance bus
terminal at a place that is so inconvenience to get to. It is never logical and
no need to question the decision either.
Visitors to the Stone Forest marvel at the natural stone
masterpieces and are captivated by the intricate vista of the stone formation.
The magnificent, strange and steep landscape creates countless labyrinthine and
narrow passages; some of them are steep and so narrow that is barely passable.
Therefore make sure you slim down before you go. (At least loose the spare tire.)
It would be funny to see a tourist stuck
between two rocks. I never see a Park ranger around, so good luck if that
happens.
However I am not here to write a travel journal, instead I wanted
to share with you my frustration with tour groups. I know it is universal that
all tour guides use loud speakers to manage their groups, however if the site
is located in the crowded market place, or something big as the Forbidden City
I can understand that, because their voices became background noise. However in
this quiet natural park environment found it is unnecessary to use the device.
These huge groups usually from Asia, or local Chinese group were huge and they
are not interested in the history, the formation and the natural wonders, they
are just interested in taking their pictures on some of the hot spots and then
move on. That left individual traveler like myself trying to avoid them with
all cost. In consequences it allow me to discover many remote part of the park
that tour group will never take anyone there.
I climb to the highest point in the park and took in a vista
more amazing than anything I ever I saw. While struggling up these steeps to
get to the top, I was surprise to encounter an old woman sitting in the shadow
of the rocks selling water and sodas. This little old lady must be at least 70
years old short and small. How can she carrying all those heavy loads of water
up hundred of steps is beyond me. Especially at this part of the stone forest
hardly had any visitors every get there. She asks me to buy a bottle from her,
although I had my own water I can’t hardly refuse her request. It is a hard way
to make a living, and winter is approaching fast I wonder what kind of
livelihood she is going to have when the park close.
Another amazing encounter while I was I still in Kunming was
meeting a young man from France. I notice him on the first day I arrived at the
hostel, in the dinning room, I saw him finished his plate of rice, the plate
look like just been washed it. He is minding his own business, and was reading
a book in the middle of the day. I found it odd, because everyone will be
visiting the sites in the city. On my return to the same restaurant that
evening, again in same the dinning room I saw at this young man sat at the same
place reading his book again. I sat down and strike up a friendly traveler’s
conversation, it turn out that he is on a world tour on his bike. How can he do
that, he got my full attention, wont you? He told me he decided 4 months to the
day that he was very tire of his well paid software development job back in Paris,
decided that life experience worth more than wealth, he took all his savings
and one year off to travel the world on Bike.
In most of his journey he told me he camp on the countryside
after dark, eat local food, get water from the streams, never took the main
road, instead he ride on the country paths. He told me some locals may invite
him for a meal and offer a bed for the evening, but that does not happen too
often, therefore when he check into a hostel, he is resting for a couple of
days, sleep, do his laundries, and some time wait for visa or permit to enter another
country.
What a fantastic ways to really see the world, he won me
over, what a brave 25 years old. He inspired me to travel on a totally new
level on that Oct evening while we share a beer at this strange town. You will
hear some other amazing stories and people I met along my two months journey in
the later blogs
This young man’s trip according to him, he started from
Paris, rode to Turkey, by way of Bulgaria. From there he went thru Georgia, Azerbaijan,
Iran, Turkmenistan, then go north to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan to avoid the
conflicts in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He turned south at Kazakhstan to enter
China. He basically stays on the western park of China to avoid big cities,
when I met him in Yunnan, he was waiting for visa to cross over to Laos, then
go down to Thailand and Malaysia before flying to Sydney, then Melbourne, then
turn west to Argentina south America. Work his way up north and finally in NYC before
heading home to France. He told me he does not have a plan which he visit next,
his plan changes according to weather and political climatic. He had no
computer only a mobile with him at all time. I admire this young man; it took a
lot of disciplines to undertake such a trip. Everything he had is on the four
boxes that mounted on his bike. I only wish I can do that.
Chance Encounter Kunming, Yunnan China
No comments:
Post a Comment