Sunday morning at 8:15 I boarded a tour bus full of many people from the center. The trip started out with the tour guide talking in Chinese for an extended period of time. After she was done talking a couple people started singing songs into the microphone. Before I knew it I was called up. I gave a extremely poor rendition of our national anthem, but considering I was singing from the front of a bumpy bus it was to be expected. The roads on the trip varied hugely. Some of the roads were nicely paved and mostly smooth but others had pot holes like I had never seen before, and other were not paved at all! For the majority of the trip the bus moved in series of jolts and bumps.
At about one o’clock we came to our first stop at a temple. It was the temple of an ancient emperor who was really honored in Chinese history. When we arrived it was only slightly overcast, so I went up to see the view from the top of a fire rock monument. While I was up there is started to down pour, by the time I made it all the way back to the temple I was soaked but it was totally worth it for the view.
At about one o’clock we came to our first stop at a temple. It was the temple of an ancient emperor who was really honored in Chinese history. When we arrived it was only slightly overcast, so I went up to see the view from the top of a fire rock monument. While I was up there is started to down pour, by the time I made it all the way back to the temple I was soaked but it was totally worth it for the view.
After one night in a hotel we headed up the steep, winding, narrow road to the Jing Gang Mountains. They were absolutely beautiful. For the next two days we hiked and rode all around the mountains. I especially enjoyed the waterfalls. I got to see six different ones. Waterfalls have always had the ability to make me fall completely in love with nature. The trails were also extremely beautiful and scenic, even though my slight fear of heights was tested a couple of times. Mostly on the lifts (which were similar to ski lifts but higher and more enclosed), and on this glass platform that hung out the side of one of the highest trails. With much coaxing I did eventually face my fear, and get a picture despite my terror.
My favorite part of the trip was the landscape but that is not why most Chinese people make the trip. There is much historical significance in the mountains. It is the place where the Red Army fought for communism, and won. There were a lot of landmarks and ancient buildings that I got to explore. My favorite was the hospital, because one of the rooms was filled with jars and ancient Chinese medicine which I find fascinating.
The people on the trip were all very friendly and welcoming toward me. They were also very concerned about me at all times. It was sweet how much they looked out for me; it was like having 20 guardians for the three days I was there. They were all especially worried about me being hungry. Because the food was so spicy at all the restaurants we went to it was hard to me to eat very many of the dishes. Most of them had more peppers in them than anything else! They do not think about spicy, so they thought I didn’t eat because I couldn’t use chop sticks well enough. To try and help me they would just put food into my rice bowl. It was so spicy; I had tears rolling down my cheeks on the first day. After that I served myself, filling my bowl with mounds of rice so they would not think I was going hungry. On the way back I calculated it out and I ate an average of 7 bowls of rice per day! I am very pleased to be at the center where the food is mild and eatable for me.
At one of the stops I was sitting, reading my book and waiting for the rest of the group to catch up. A little boy came and stood on the opposite side of the table. I was not surprised, I had not seen any other foreigners while I was there and I was used to people staring, pointing and asking for pictures with me. Another person from the group came up and sat by me, after a little while the boy looked really embarrassed and turned away. The person from my group got up to catch up with him. He gave the boy his empty water bottle. I had not noticed it before but the boy was carrying a plastic bag, he was collecting empty water bottles to sell as his source of income. I tried to imagine what his life had to be like for this poor little boy. I wish I could have helped the little boy more than just giving him an empty water bottle, I wanted to give him the contents of my wallet but he had disappeared into the small crowd of people, and was nowhere to be seen. I then had to board my bus, but I will not forget this boy.
At one of the stops I was sitting, reading my book and waiting for the rest of the group to catch up. A little boy came and stood on the opposite side of the table. I was not surprised, I had not seen any other foreigners while I was there and I was used to people staring, pointing and asking for pictures with me. Another person from the group came up and sat by me, after a little while the boy looked really embarrassed and turned away. The person from my group got up to catch up with him. He gave the boy his empty water bottle. I had not noticed it before but the boy was carrying a plastic bag, he was collecting empty water bottles to sell as his source of income. I tried to imagine what his life had to be like for this poor little boy. I wish I could have helped the little boy more than just giving him an empty water bottle, I wanted to give him the contents of my wallet but he had disappeared into the small crowd of people, and was nowhere to be seen. I then had to board my bus, but I will not forget this boy.