Eryuan Hot Springs

---

Day 5Eryuan Hot SpringsFlat riding today except a hill just above Shaping as we left the top of Lake Erhai. This hill is on the edge of a quarry producing slate for roof tiles, pillars and other fancy stonework and marble for tiles and a huge range of vessels. These products can be seen at the side of the very narrow and busy road and in the small businesses producing them by hand and with very basic machinery. We saw ploughing with two water buffalos pulling a one furrow wooden plough and just behind it a large tractor ploughing with modern machinery. This was the sixth large tractor seen this trip as opposed to just one when I came three years ago.As we approached Eryuan we saw a coal briquette yard where coal is ground to a powder, made into a sloppy mix and cast into a round using a mould. These briquettes are used for cooking using an old barrel similar to a barbecue.Eryuan has many of the hot springs which criss cross Yunnan and home of the Jiuqitai Nine Air Terrace with springs of varying temperatures but having an annual average of 76 deg celsius. The springs contain sulphur and multiple micro elements which are thought to be very good for helping many ailments of the stomach and according to the Chinese guide book, impotence, cough and gasp, and sterility for women. Everybody is going in, just in case. The water in the spring at the Erhai Jiuqitai Hotel was very warm although a little green and the bottom of the pool was slippery. Maybe this was caused by the man at the side who we saw spitting into the pool and then emptying the remains of his flask into the water. The swim was short lived. It could only happen in China. So much for my cough and gasp cure and my impotence will have to wait a little longer too. A walk into town saw us in the old quarter, which has many old houses made of timber with ornate roof fronts and just two very small rooms still occupied by some very small ladies who looked about 90, living in very poor conditions. Bottles of very good squeezed orange juice were bought for 35p each and then some biscuits at 30p for 6. This made us more thirsty so,were were directed to a non-descript building across the street which turned out to be a very nice authentic Chinese Tea House. As much green tea as we could drink for £1 each. Our return was through the produce market where there all manner of vegetables and some fish at least 18" long in large washing up bowls with air being pumped in to keep,them alive. The main town of Eryuan is like most other towns in Asia, a concrete jungle of shops that have large open fronts like Lock Up Garages and concrete non-descript houses with dirt and litter everywhere.

---

Photos

Eryuan
Angus preparing for a dip