Charming Chengdu And Jiuzhaigou

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I finally made my way to the west central China after wanting to start on this side and i was right i love this city so vibrant and lively. I checked in to my hostel which is cool good cheap food and beers, good company happy with my choice there seeing as i will be spending a fair bit of time in this hostel. They also have the cutest little family of cats that mill around all day seeking attention adorable until they are trying to climb all over me.

For the first few days i didnt do a great deal just enjoyed having my time to myself and being able to relax without worrying that i didnt have enough time to do everything. I managed to buy some decent walking shoes as my trainers bless them were no longer fit for this world and have now gracefully passed on having served me well through repping, gaming and climbing mountains they will be remembered fondly.

I booked my trip to go to Jiuzhaigou which was one of the sights i had picked To visit before coming to China and i was not disappointed. Leaving my hostel at 7:10 collected by minibus i feared for my sanity for about 5 minutes as I wasn't sure if we were making the full journey in this bus. We were however dropped off were the coaches and lots more people were waiting. As the guides did not speak any English and I can say out of three coaches full of people i was the only one so who can blame them, I was adopted by a lovely chinese girl who spoke very good english and she kindly acted as my translator for the majority of the trip more than a blessing there! We traveled by coach for the entire first day stopping off for toilet breaks, lunch and to visit a park called mounigou. It was only a fairly short stop but we got to climb up and look at a beautiful waterfall my new friend Evelyn and i paired up with another group and we all went together and took lots of photographs along the way. Seeing the icicles dripping from branches as streams were flowing beneath them was something indeed. We dont get to see much snow in the UK and when we do its usually in dread of falling over on the way to work, so to be able to look at these sights up close was memorable.

We continued on our journey towards jiuzhaigou making the occasional stop until we came to a traditional Tibetan families house but this was not the little hut you would expect it to be it was huge and they put on a big show for us while we were eating hot pot. Now this hot pot is not what we know it as were its like a stew this is literally a steaming bowl of water/oil in the centre of the table were you systematically add more food from the various plates surrounding the table and you cook it as you go. Everybody joins in adding and reclaiming the food but i will admit not without making an almighty mess of the table especially when trying to take noodles back out of the bowl. It was fun and i even got to taste lambs tongue. The singer that they put on during the show was great and i found my first chinese song that i like so overall was a nice stop. Off we went again to the hotel, i was expecting something quite scary but on arrival found we were staying in a mid range hotel which was a nice surprise although nothing could save us from the cold outside so I layered up and went to sleep.

Jiuzhaigou

Early start and off to the park all wrapped up and ready for the cold. Evelyn and I paired up with a lovely couple from near Shanghai who also spoke some english and we stayed together for the day. First the took us in a bus up to the highest point the weather would allow the top area of the park was closed as it was unsafe due to snow etc but we were high enough for the air to be thin and quite difficult to breathe especially when climbing stairs. The cold was intense and i had to buy a cute little face mask to keep my chops warm. My phone decided at regular intervals that it also did not lime the cold and kept turning off so i had to keep it warm like a kitten hiding it in my glove to try and warm it back up so it would once again allow me to take photographs. The views throughout the park are amazing and to see nature at it's best was truly breathtaking even without the high altitude. We made our way down the mountain stopping to look at various sights each one as beautiful as the last frozen lakes and waterfalls crystal clear blue green waters so deep but yet you could see right down to the bottom i have never seen anything so beautiful. As we got further down the mountain it got a little warmer but then we had to go up the other side and back in to the cold, when we arrived a place called long lake it looked like something out of a fairy tale scene the partially frozen lake with rolling hills surrounding and snow covered mountains behind. So stunning you felt privileged to be able to stand in its presence. After walking for a good 8 hours we made our way through the last few sights on the way back down the mountain and had taken so many photographs that i could fill an album from this day alone. At the end of the day we were taken to watc a traditioanl Tibetan show where i was able to see dances and costumes from all eras of their history the colours and music were hypnotising such bold movements nothing like our own history of dance. After the show we went back to the hotel for dinner.

The journey home was a gruelling 10 hours by bus and by this point a believe my back and bum had given up on feeling anything at all. I also managed to finish an entire book over the course of the three days traveling which I was quite impressed with and the choice of book being fantasy also increased my awe of what i was getting to see. A very long journey but 100% worth it! I'm hoping to go back in the autumn season as that is apparently the most beautiful season to visit when the leaves are changing colour and falling to cover the ground.

So now im safe and sound back in slightly warmer conditions having had a wonderful journey i can only hope that everything else i will see from this point forward will be able to match up to Jiuzhaigou.

Enjoy 😊

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