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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
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May 07, 2006 02:00 PM To the Golden Summit...
At 5 am the monks pray in the main hall of the monastery... It is good opportunity to watch and to listen. Then rice porrige and steamed buns - mantou for breakfast and I we started to climb again. I am lucky - it is not raining but there is a lot of clouds ant visibility is poor. I wish you to have better weather in Emeishan! After two hours of climbing we reached Leidong with little temple and big car park - if you do not want to climb by foot the minibus from Baoguo will bring you by mountain road for 30 yuan. Then it is again 2 hours climb or cable car to the Golden Summit. Dissapointment! The Golden Summit now is a big construction place. They build new big and fancy monasteries there and new, huge terraces. I hope it will be ready next year. So far I enjoyed the huge, golden statue of Buddha located on the back of four golden elephants. It is like 30 m high! The sea of clouds below - it is 3000 m above the sea level - it is not easy to take your breath. The pilgrims use small, old monastery buildings for praying. Well, it was worth to climb Emeishan anyway, but not for the Golden Summit but for all those tiny monasteries on the trail...
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May 06, 2006 02:00 PM Climbing Mt Emeishan - China
The bus from Chengdu to Emei town cost 33 yuans. Then you must go to the tourist village Baoguo located at the bottom of Emeishan. Left your backpack at well known Teddy Bear Hotel and go... The most common trail to the one of four holy Buddist mountains in China goes via Wanian Monastery. It is large and old monastery beautifuly located in the lush forest on the altitude of 1000 m. There are many buildings to see but the most impressive is those who houses the statue of Buddha on the elephant... It was also first place where I saw nasty monkeys - they beg for the food. After visit in Wanian I took a trail to the the next places of worship located on the Emeishan peaks. The trail is well maintained - you just follow with local pilgrims the stone steps - up 100, 200, 1000 of them. Then 200, 300 down through the rainforest. And up again. A lot of sweat, but there are many snack shelters on the trail so you can buy water, coke etc...
At 6 pm we reached the old monastery of the "Elephant Bath Pool". It is far fom the crowds, a bit run down but very nice and authentic. They offer overnight stay there for 40 yuan a bed. What a place for the evening tea with clouds sailing below! The monastery is located on the level of 2070 m...
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May 05, 2006 02:00 PM A day in Sichuan...
The train from Beijing to Chengdu goes 34 hours! I decided to take Air China domestic flight for this segment to save a time.
I landed in Chengdu... Good news for you my friends: They confirmed that on 1st July the new railaway line will be open: the train will go to LHASA - Tibet!!! What a great journey ahead we have! Along the highest mountains of the world! Years ago I took transtibetan highway to get overland to Lhasa it was horrible journey in the crowded bus with smoking local passengers. Now it will be much more comfortable and it will allow the tourist to see the areas closed before.
Chengdu is nice provincial capital with more then 4 mln people... 28 deg Celsius. I stay in the little old part of the town: Dragon Town youth hostel is highly recommended - it is located in the old chineese mansion, has special atmosphere and friendly staff.
In Chengdu it is the must to see Wenshu Buddist Temple - 1400 years old monastery complex. It was nice to sip there green tea in the tea house located in the old pagoda pavillon... Tomorrow new adventure is waiting for me: I want to climb Emeishan - one of four holy mouintains in China... Hope the weather will be nice...
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May 04, 2006 02:00 PM 10 kms along the Great Wall...
19 years ago I saw the Great Wall for the first time: in Badaling with hords of tourists, vendors, photographers etc,...
I was impressed anyway. But today I made the other and better choice: 10-kms walk on the wall from Jinshanling to Simatai... I was lucky: yesterday it was raining in the afternoon but when today I got by bus to Jinshanling the sun was shining there! It was fantastic day: climbing the picturesque towers located on the mountain ridges, enjoying scenery and landscapes. Parts of the wall are still in bad shape so it is necessary to take trekking boots. It took 4 hours including photo stops to walk to Simatai... Youth hostels in Beijing organize drop off and pick up by bus and it cost 110 yuans. In addition you must pay entry fee to the two parts of the Wall: 40+30 yuan, and 5 y to traverse the chain bridge in Simatai. But it is worth: We returned tired but happy at 9 pm.
What a day!
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May 03, 2006 02:00 PM Back in Beijing...
Foggy morning. The room reserved via hostels.com was waiting for me. After check-in I took a subway to the Lama Temple - the biggest tibetan temple outside Tibet -thay say. It is really worth to see - it is huge, living complex of ornate buildings. They charge 25 yuan entry fee ang the photography inside the buildings is not permitted. But you can still enough to photograph! I spent there two hours and I think it is the nicest temple in Beijing - second capital's attraction after Forbidden City. Not far from Lama - just a walking distance is Confucius Temple - it is under restoration (entry fee 10 y) but the Imperial College in the same complex is still worth to see. It was raining in the afternoon when I passed the narrow streets of Beijing's hutongs - old quarters. They almost dissapeared, it is pity - the city is changing the face... More and more skycrapers, highways, supermarkets...
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May 02, 2006 02:00 PM Bye, bye Northern Korea...
Our last breakfast in Phongyang... They are always serving them in the separate room... Then they check the room... Why? By car to the station... I have my passport back... Thank you... The train is departing on time - at 10.10 am. The same rice fields and sad villages. After 5,5 hours we are at the border station. Custom clearance. Some foreigners are receiving back from the deposit their cell phones. Customs officers do not speak english or russian. But the gestures are enough: digital camera? show me your pictures! Advice:keep your "proper" memory care ready! Some "bad" pictures are cancelled... After two hours we are crossing the river to China. Freedom! (Can you feel the freedom in China?). But here nobody is asking you to stay here or not to go there. You can speak to the people on the street without any risk, nobody escorts you...
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May 01, 2006 02:00 PM In Panmunjon...
Empty highway took us to south to the Demilitarized Zone. Control points... No pictures on the route! Our guides are very strict... Escorted by the soldier we came to the row of white and blue barracks where International Commission talks took place. You acn even take the seat at the table and have your pic there. Great tourist attraction... In the afternoon near the town of Kaesong we visited the tomb of the Korean who unified country thousand years ago. Nice, well restored place. But when we wanted to see also the second tomb located just 12 km away (it was mentioned in the guide book) the answer was: no! Sorry...
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Apr 30, 2006 02:00 PM May Day in Phongyang!
I selected specially the date of my visit to be there on the May Day. On the 1st of May there were always big celebrations in the former socialist countries... I expected a lot... Sorry... Since years there is no May Day workers parade in Phyongyang! I asked to allow me to attend any other celebrations... We attended the May Day Feast... There were a lot to see and to listen but sorry, I did not see the Son of The Great Leader. Dissappointing! In the afternoon we took a walk around The 170-m high Juche Tower in the center of the town to see how the people enjoy their holiday. They were eating, drinking, singing and dancing - it was great opportunity to take some nice and authentic pictures...
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Apr 29, 2006 02:00 PM Riding the subway in Phongyang
There are things that foreigner must see during his stay in the North Korea. Number one is 25-m high monument of the Great Leader. You must buy the flowers first. Keep ready few euro in cash - there is special stand to do that. You get the instruction: before taking any photo you must put there the flowers and greet the Great Leader. Pictures showing only parts of the statue are not allowed: full size only! Then you are allowed to approach the monument: flowers, greetings, proper pictures...
They took us also to the Nampho Barrage. The barrage must be the pride of N.Korea - it is protecting the land from high tides - impressive! Later we visited the birthplace of the Great Leader - it was the first place where we met local people face to face - staying in the long line. They were courious but nice, returning smiles and happy to be photographed... The guides had nothing to say - it was the birthplace of the Great Leader!
Finally we took the subway to ride only one segment of the route: station to the next station. This stations are nicely decorated but dark. The guide was in panic when I asked if we can go little bit farther... Why?
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Apr 28, 2006 02:00 PM Excursion to North Korean Mountains
Can I change some money to the local currency? No! Why?
There is no need, the foreigners are allowed to visit only special shops where they pay in euro, dollars or yuans... They are not allowed to take even small amount of local currency even as a souvenir.. Why?
We are going by car to Myohyang Mts - some 160 km from the capital. There is a wide highway, but the traffic is limited to just few cars per hour. We are passing control posts. Soldiers are nice... Our car has a special plate... But we need a permit anyway... Mountains are nice, there is elegant hotel. But first of all they took us to the International Friendship Exhibition - it is huge building housing the gifts presented to the Great Leader by different nations and politicians... There is much more to see then in the Stalin museum in Gori... We visited also second building with the gifts presented to the Son of Great Leader - present head of the state...
After we saw Pohyon temple - nice old monastery with one monk only residing there. Sorry, no time to go to the waterfall nearby. The waterfall is not in the program...
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