My National holiday fun started Friday 9/26. Friday evening, Alex (a foreign teacher from Britain who lives across the hall from me) and I met up with two American students studying abroad at our university. Turns out they bumped into a Chinese friend that one of them knew and so all 6 of us ate dinner and had good laughs. Next, our American student friends took us to an "international students" party. I use quotation marks because it really was a Korean students party. TJUFE has tons of Korean exchange students here studying Chinese. So the emcee spoke entirely in Korean and played some rowdy games like having couples eat Pocky sticks from opposite ends and work towards the middle. We also saw some really weird/hilarious talent shows of dancing and singing Korean-style. It was pretty fun, even although Alex, our two American friends, our Chinese friend Leo, and I understood nothing of it. After that, we went for late night kabobs and dumplings and had a great time laughing and debating with our majorly drunk American friend Chad, aka "the Legend." (He gets his nickname from his "legendary" status among all the Korean, Japanese, and Chinese students at TJUFE. I don't think there's any student at the university who doesn't know of the American guy who can speak a ton of Mandarin.)
Below: Korean guy singing and dancing in the talent show.
Shandong Adventures
The next day (Saturday 9/27) I left for my Chinese tour of Taishan, Jinan, and Qufu (Confucius' hometown). The travel agency was terribly unclear about a lot of things. For one: they told me it would be a 4 hour ride. It ended up being 5 hours. From 2:30pm to 8:30pm, I was sitting on the train with my legs squeezed together, unable to pee because that would mean leaving my bags unattended. For two, I found out when I got to Taishan that I was not going to arrive in Tianjin by 9/30 as the tour pamphlet suggested. Instead, i would take an overnight train and arrive in actuality on 10/1. They didn't mention this important detail to me. That foiled a lot of plans I had made.
When I got to Tai An (the town at the foot of Taishan), it was raining really hard and I couldn't find the guide who was supposed to be holding a card with my name on it. It was a little scary, but I had the cell phone number of the local contact and eventually found her. To be honest, it's stressful and a little lonely to travel on my own. But I often find myself doing that a lot because it's so hard to find people who share my interests and love of travel.
The first night I got to the hotel, I was feeling sad being in that double-bed hotel room by myself. There were only five people on our tour: two couples and me. I had to pay 70 yuan extra every night to make up for not having a roommate. The room was of course better than that hutong hotel I stayed at in Beijing, but still not good by American standards. The bathroom was a showerlette (shower and toilet in one) and the drain in the floor had cracks and a few tiles missing. A bunch of little jumpy, winged bugs also crawled or flew out of the drain, even though we were on the second floor. The toilet was a sit-down one, but the seat was cracked. I don't understand how they could let customers continue to use a cracked toilet seat. The carpet was threadbare and stained in several places, so I wore slippers with me all the time. They called this a two star hotel, but it would never pass inspection in the U.S. On the positive side, at least I didn't see any roaches and I didn't get bitten by any fleas/bed bugs. I could manage.
The same night I got to Tai An, I asked for directions to the nearest internet cafe (mainly b/c I had some business to attend to via email). It was just two stores down from the hotel. I ended up going there every night. Just like in Vietnam, Internet cafes give me a taste of home. When I see the familiar New York Times homepage and the familiar Gmail inbox, I am transported from this foreign, lonely place back to the English-speaking cyberworld I am used to in America. The 1.5yuan I spent every night for 1 hour of familiarity and comfort was well worth it.
The next day, our tour guide took us to Jinan, the city of springs, to see Lake DaMing (大明湖）and Baodu Springs (趵突泉). Because it was still a day before the start of the National Holiday week, there weren't that many people and our walks around the gardens of Baodu Springs and Lake DaMing were very peaceful and serene. I enjoyed the natural scenery, fresh air and trickling sounds of water.
Taking a sip of fresh spring water from Baodu Springs (the tour guide said this spring water is supposedly good to drink without boiling, I was cautious and only took a small tiny sip)
Look at the goldfish swarming around me! Someone before me was feeding them.
One of the last lotus flowers still in bloom at Lake DaMing
A toddler baby in downtown Jinan running around with his butt wide open. To save on diapers, many Chinese parents dress their babies in pants with a split in the front and back and they pee or poo out in public.
The next day, we climbed Taishan. Because it was only the first day of the National holiday, there weren't as many people as there would be later on, but still, it was a busy place. We took a little bus halfway up the mountain to the Mid-Heaven Door 中天门, and then walked the rest of the way up to the peak. The path was all staircases, and in some cases the steps were so steep I felt afraid to look down. For most of the area around Mid-Heaven Door, we were surrounded with mist (see photos). But as we ascended, we found ourselves above it. Nearer and nearer to the top at South Heaven Door 南天门, we could see oceans of clouds below us and the bright blue sky above us. It was the freshest air and bluest sky I've ever experienced in China. No pollution, no haze, just pure nature, earth, and sky. Amazing.
Here's a short video of the view above the clouds.
The little bus we rode from the foot of the mountain to Mid-Heaven's Door 中天门.
Beginning the climb up Taishan from 中天门.
All produce and goods on Taishan are carried up by human laborers bearing loads balanced on their shoulders, just like in the old days.
Police officers and tourists crowding a bridge on the way up to Taishan. Notice the heavy fog.
Taishan's famous Welcoming Pine 迎客松. See how the lone pine tree stretches its branches out in welcome to us visitors.
Twisty, gnarly trees enveloped in mist.
We get past the mist and glimpse the first sight of South Heaven Door 南天门, but we still have a long way to go.
Oceans of clouds brushing against Taishan.
The crowds approach the South Heaven Door 南天门.
Right after passing South Heaven Door, there are restaurants, bathrooms, souvenir shops, and hotels all along Heaven Street 天街.
Vendors everywhere sell these Chinese crepes wrapped around a scallion. They are dry and hard and don't taste very good, but these 煎饼卷葱 are supposed to be a Taishan specialty.
Locks being sold at a temple on Taishan. People leave a lock at the temple to "lock in" their prayers and blessings.
Dreamy rooftops and distant mountains. A heavenly sight indeed.
Sitting on top of the world, with the clouds behind me.
The highest part of Taishan. Notice all the locks in the background.
Riding the tram down halfway. Look at the cars disappearing into the mist.
Qufu 曲阜- Confucius' hometown and burial place. I enjoyed Qufu the least because it was the day after climbing Taishan and I was still tired. Also, it was the second day of the National holiday, so there were so many more people than before. There was no place to move and you just kept being pushed ahead by the people behind you. Also, there's not that much to see in Confucius Temple, Mansion and Forest.
View from inside the world's largest Confucius Temple
An ancient tree in the Confucius Temple. They call it Dragon Tree because it looks like a dragon. Right beside (not pictured) it is another tree they call the Phoenix Tree.
People pushing and clawing to touch one of the legendary trees for good luck.
Confucius' Tombstone in the Confucius Memorial Forest
FOOD
Another great thing about Shandong province was the food. The city of Tai An is supposed to be famous for its tofu because the water used to make it comes from Taishan, it's sweet mountain water. I have to admit that the tofu fa and soft tofu dishes I had here were delicious, so smooth and silky, like butter that melts away in your mouth.
Northern Style breakfast: Savory tofu fa with cilantro, carrots, chili sauce, and soy sauce.
A refreshing cold plate appetizer of soft tofu, raw green and red peppers, onions, and pickled duck eggs in a light soy sauce. So silky and smooth.
The Green Onion Pancakes here are awesome. So crispy and fried right in front of you. They sell by the pound. I got a ton for only 2 or 3 yuan.
Other great Shandong breakfast foods are the pan-fried buns 煎包子 and filled crepes 韭菜煎饼.
Wow, they even sell rabbit here.
We have roasted lamb skewers in Tianjin too, but have you ever seen so many being cooked all at once? There were at least 50 skewers there.
In the end, I really enjoyed my time in Tai An, especially after the nice older couple from Tianjin took me in and looked after me on the way back to Tianjin.
1 comment:
what a pretty sight from the mountaintop with all that mist!!
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