http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , China , Anhui , Huangshan en-us Thu, 04 Dec 2008 23:11:14 UTC Thu, 04 Dec 2008 23:11:14 UTC Took the train from Xi'an to Hefei this was to be our first experience of sharing a soft sleeper four bunks we have not built up the courage to take the hard sleeper as yet not sure about sharing with the masses and their livestock. Pleased to report our first soft sleeper experience was a good one we shared with a lady and her daughter about 5 years old the mother spoke limited English s http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-334628.html Thursday October 2 Friday October 3We didn't have a tour guide the rest of our time in Huangshan. We spent Thursday morning being very lazy at the hotel but soon tired of that and decided to head out for some sort of activity. We got a taxi to take us to a park we had seen on a map and soon discovered our parks in Shanghai are much different than small town parks. This park had some pretty vie http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-330421.html Quick note I'm still catching up on posting the stuff I wrote while on our trip...we are back in Shanghai safe and sound. Many of the trip photos were taken by Mark so I wanted to credit his efforts. He took some fabulous shots that really capture what we saw and experienced.Wednesday October 1 2008We met some other western looking tourists at the hotel breakfast. They ended up sitting at our t http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-330384.html Tuesday we left the hotel at about 715am. The drive to the Mount Huangshan took an hour and then we had to take a bus to the cable car which took us across to the scenic areas. We knew we were going to be walking around and seeing sights but I had not really prepared myself or the kids for the 7 hours of hiking we ended up doing. Oops. They were for the most part troopers. They were for the res http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-329908.html Oh where to begin There is so much good stuff packed into the last 3 days. We have been on a true adventure just as we planned. The kids are amazing. So brave and willing to adapt. They are my heros. Whenever I want to whine and complain I look at them dealing with it all and I just try to suck it up appreciate that we are all here together. The bus Not so bad I had such low expectations an http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-329902.html The bus was grand and we arrived in Tunxi 7 hours later. The town was deadly really typically Chinese and really well kept we were impressed and ready to give China another fair go. The hostel was pretty cool too.We had to leave at 6 the next morning to get to the mountain which was a total epic to get there. Itrsquos a mountain range that has apparently inspired all of Chinarsquos poets pa http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-328908.html This weekend the Chinese celebrated the midautumn festival and we got a fourday weekend. My friends Gina Kristen and I chose to visit Huang Shan 4064423665 which can be literally translated to Yellow Mountain.Huang Shan is a six plus hour train ride North of Nanjing. We left Nanjing Thursday night and bought hard bed tickets for the overnight train ride. Some of our less forward thinki http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-323389.html According to China Daily the Chinese governmentowned English language propaganda newspaper 862 million Chinese watched the opening ceremony of the Olympics. A good week later it seemed like those same 862 million Chinese had chosen to climb the Yellow Mountains at just the same time that we were climbing it. The masses of people and the noise on the mountain were just unbelievable and comple http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-311170.html PrologueHuangshan is in Anhui province. It's very accessible by buses trains and private vehicles these days. James and I always have fond memory of it since we both visited it in our college years. This is one of the most amazing mountain in China if you ask me. So many other mountains are associated with religious activities but this one is not. Huangshan is famous for three wonders 1. Huang http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-308083.html We've also added some new pics onto the last entryOK onto today.. I could go on and on about hidden charges in China and especially the Yellow Mountains I could even start to write an entire blog on the noise the Chinese make when they prepare a good spit... oh... and possibly a complete Dicken's sized novel on the lack of common politeness when Chinese come together and form a mass.. and tha http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-295879.html The train to Huangshan was very uneventful. Some lady on the train was very insistent on me speaking and understanding mandarin and no matter how many times I told her that I dont understand she kept on trying which turned pretty comical after a while. Once I arrived in Tunxi the base city from which you have to travel another hour by bus to get to the base of the mountain. I was completely http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-288769.html Dj VuIt wasnrsquot until this trip was well under way that I realized my sneezing was not from allergies but from a cold that was spreading around the Shanghai Summer Program students. The worst of it hit me on the mountain making the climb extremely uncomfortable. I tackled Philmont with mononucleosis though so I wasnrsquot going to let a cold hold me back.Getting ThereThe bus trip went http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-288093.html Beautiful HuangshanThe Huangshan mountain which translated literraly means Yellow Mountain is part a mountain range in southern Anhui province in eastern China. The area is very famous for its scenic beauty which lies in the peculiar shapes of the granite peaks in the weathershaped Huangshan Pine trees and in views of the clouds from above. The Huang Shan are a frequent subject of traditio http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-287037.html Full speed aheadIn theory it should have only been a little over an hour bus ride back to the hostel. But taking into account two strait days of pouring rain and maybe it could anger the river enough to engulf and submerge the road about three feet.Which was exactly what happened.But never you mind seeing other busses and cars stuck in the deep water our bus driver didnrsquot even slow down as http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-286906.html Water everywhereSpent four days in the Huangshan region itrsquos about a five to six hour bus ride from Shanghai depending on how many stops the bus driver decides to make. Hard to get used to people spitting into buckets and smoking on the bushellip even with a baby on boardWhen we finally arrived it was pouring down rain that wouldnrsquot let up for even a few minutes. We had to call http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-286754.html Well Hangzhou was very nice and certainly a lot less hectic feeling than other places. It was a little boring as far as just gardens and stuff but really it was nice to have a day to sit around and relax. Today I hiked at Huangshan. It was one of THE most beautiful places I have ever seen and also DEFINITLY the most difficult hike I have ever done. When I finally get to post pictures you wil http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-280358.html Well I don't even know where to start. I suppose that adding chrono to the beginning of logical would make the appropriate word however there's so much to say that it will be difficult to stick to that. I have returned from my escapades in Shanghai and Huang Shan. Granted I returned the Sunday before last May 4 but I had to rent an apartment do some work for my internship final exa http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-274176.html Afgelopen week was het zover mijn ouders voor het eerst buiten europa Net als voor mij was China hun eerste ontmoeting met het verre oosten.De eerste stapjesNa ruim twee maanden alleen maar contact met Nederland te hebben gehad via nu.nl en msn was het een verademing om weer wat familie te zien Gewoon weer even lekker over bekende zaken ouwehoeren en weer een beetje normaal kunnen praten lekk http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-218090.html Omdat onze vorige treinrit zo fantastisch was meegevallen hebben we vanuit Xi'an maar weer een nachttrein genomen naar Hefei. Van daaruit zijn we met de bus verder gegaan tot Tunxi een stadje in het zuiden van de provincie Anhui zo'n 150 km ten westen van Shanghai. Hier begint het rurale China zich meer te manifesteren in tegenstelling tot het meer op industrie gerichte noorden landbouwter http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-217361.html At the offer of visiting the legendary Yellow mountain we could not decline. We bought the tickets and endured our first Chinese train ride in the sleeper berths. These consisted of six beds per unit with small seats and tables in the hallway. Having the option to stretch out is fantastic I tell ya. I let Dave sleep on my lap and rest his legs while I took in the Chinese country side which was co http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-215454.html Celebrating Alexes and Katie's birthdays http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-205126.html Of course there was too much fog and we didn't see the sunrise despite getting up insanely early. We had overpriced breakfast buffet with disgusting coffee and then checked out of the hotel to begin a days' hike. CL decided she needed to try the hotel cafe's coffee to last the hike. Still icky coffee but better than breakfast's. I'm so glad she's a coffee addict. We explored more of the sum http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-203231.html We arrive the Hangzhou bus station and hop onto a full bus of passengers to Huangshan. We weren't exactly sure when or where in Huangshan the bus was going. A new expressway was built between Hangzhou and Huangshan making the bus ride a bit shorter. I read online and in travel blogs that it would take around 3.5 hours. The bus driver said it would take close to 4.5 hours because we have to go http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-203230.html Note Before I've finally gotten around to adding the remaining photos 44 of them to my last Yangshuo journal. Lot's of sunsets and scenery and seeing as you all only look at my photos I suggest you click this link before even bothering to read further here.The Ethereal Mists of Huang ShanNestled in the southern reaches of Anhui province is one of the most beautiful places in China if not t http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-196257.html What can you say about a mountain when along with your bus ticket from the entrance to the foot of the mountain you are also handed a receipt for the life insurance included in the fare Being somewhat afraid of heights this was not the first thing I wanted to see. Yellow Mountain Chinarsquos most famous mountain is a paradise of unusually shaped peaks and trees as well as seas of clouds tha http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-166599.html Once you have climbed Yellow Mountain under heaven there is no other mountain. So the saying goes but it's a lot more eloquent in Chinese as it only takes 8 syllables to convey the meaning. Emperors have graced its lofty peaks and marvelled at the unusual scenery composing poems to express their appreciation. It's pretty high up on the Chinese 'do before you die' list. Not that Huang Shan Hu http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-160615.html I had a trip with my family to Huangshan in Anhui in April. Due to time constraints we went with a tour. So basically I didn't have to do any research before leaving homejust show up in the right place at the right time and pay and you will be taken to the destination and shown around. This has not been my favourite mode to travel because i it is not challenging and ii sometimes you ha http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-150028.html Mattrsquos in Brazil Ty and Jessie have vacation. So whatrsquos a mom to do with 2 teenagers who have a week of time on their hands in China Hmmm something active. I know lets climb a mountain So climb we did. Not anything like what the local porters did but enough to make all of our little American legs fatigued and ready for rest. Huangshan also known as Yellow Mountain is reputed http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-147447.html Well...maybe not THE most beautiful place but it has got to be up there. I arrived this morning dazed by the train ride and was greeted at 545 AM by people trying to sell me things as I got off the train. No kidding. Tea maps food etc. Huangshan is known for both its tea and mountains. I kept saying booshewan thinking I was communicating only to realize later that I had been saying http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Anhui/Huangshan/blog-100997.html