Blogs from Emi Shan, Chengdu, Sichuan, China, Asia - page 2

We left this morning from Beijing after being heavilly scrutinized and having our tibet travel permit checked three times. Once on the plane it seemed like nothing could stand in our way. We changed planes in Chengdu, some unknown huge city somewhere in western China whose only claim to fame is being a hub for transfers to Tibet, and a panda reproductive center where you can hold a baby panda for like $50. Our flight from Chengdu was supposed to take three hours to Lhasa. I anxiously watched the TV on the plane show us inch closer to Lhasa, and I began to see the snow capped peaks of the Himalayas. I felt our plane begin its inital descent, and then a fair amount of turbulence for awhile. I noticed the computer animated airplane turn around ... read more

I organised the trip to Mount Emei for 31st August with the help of the staff at the Nova Travellers Lodge. I had to get a taxi to the main bus station in Chengdu and then the 2 ½ hour bus to Emei Shan followed by a taxi to the Teddy Bear hostel. In the afternoon I walked up to the nearest temple where there was a nice waterfall and some carvings built into the rocks. In the evening I ate Sweet and Sour pork at the hostel and bumped into some people I’d met in Xian the week before. We watched King Arthur on the hostel’s massive projector screen. Early the next day I purchased the entrance and bus tickets and headed to the top. I was planning on spending two days to trek down ... read more

Pandas - China is famous for them, but if we're honest, they shouldn't exist. They've been around for 6 million years, which according to Darwinians is 2 million longer than most species survive. On top of this is the fact that they don't really like to breed that much, and when they are successful, often they manage to kill the babies by doing what pandas do best - Sitting. Just outside of Chengdu in China is a breeding centre where the staff encourage the shy bears to get jiggy and when they give birth the babies are partially cared for by humans. there are about 60 pandas at the centre and they're really happy doing not much at all, I don't really think I've seen so much laziness since we left Cayman. The project is pretty ... read more

25th July We left Chendgu on a bus headed for Emei, close to the base of the sacred mountain Emei Shan. It took about three hours, but is supposed to take two, we just got stuck in traffic. Needless to say there was lots of horn beeping on the way. If you have any kind of nervous disposition, do not travel in China, especially on the roads - with horns beeping all the time I find myself in a general sense of alarm. I'm used to alarms having the meaning of danger, rather than "move over I'm coming through no matter what!" You're also lucky if you get a bus with seatbelts! We took a cab to the teddy bear hostel and soon set off for the scenic area at the base of the mountain whilst ... read more

To save time we flew from Xian to Chengdu in 75 mins. instead of 18 hours on a sleeper we treated ourselves. Taxi took us to near the centre of this small(4 million)city to some old style narrow traffic free alleys to find our digs for the next 3 days at the Dragon Town Youth Hostel. The streets had been repaired since the last earthquake in 2008,the alley looked very smart and fresh but still with an authentic feel,bar all the tourists. The temperature had dropped from Xian to low 30's but at 500m alt. and 600km further south the climate is humid. So this is a very green region, the vegetation very flush, ideal to breed Pandas. This is one of the main reasons to visit Chengdu, the other is to arrive or leave on ... read more