Zhangjiajie

When my travel consultant Eileen first suggested I include Zhangjiajie in my itinerary I was surprised.  I had never heard of Zhangjiajie.  But then I started looking at photographs and information on the internet. I realized that this is quite a popular tourist spot.  Its claim to fame is that its scenery inspired the movie Avatar, with its towering peaks among the mist.  I was also surprised that she scheduled me here for 3 days with a private guide.

Zhangjiajia is located in Hunan province, almost in the middle of China.  My last stop was Lhasa, Tibet, in the western part of China.  I flew from Lhasa to Chongqing, then took a high-speed train from Chongqing to Zhangjiajie.  I prefer taking the train to flying, even if it takes slightly longer.  After traveling in China for almost a month I came to like the train.  They are comfortable, clean and you have plenty of room.  You can see the scenery as the train goes by the farms and countryside.  After landing at Chongqing airport I was supposed to take a taxi or Didi (China's version of Uber) to the train station.  However, Eileen was afraid that I may get lost and not make it to the train station on time.  So she sent a driver to pick me up at the airport and I had plenty of time to spare when I arrived at the Chongqing train station.

Again I was met by a driver at the Zhangjiajie train station and taken to the Wulingyuan Hotel, about an hour away.  He bought me some fruits and asked me if I was hungry.  Of course I was.  My last meal was at McDonald's at the Lhasa airport.  I had been traveling all day and did not have a proper meal.  He stopped at a restaurant and bought me some fried noodles.  He said that's where he and other drivers get together to eat their meals.

I met my guide Trevor early the next morning.  Our first stop is the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, China's first National Forest Park.  It is a very popular tourist spot for locals and foreign tourists.  I can tell by the languages and accents that there were many tourists from other parts of Asia.  I don't know if there's anywhere else in Asia that you can see such beautiful scenery.  We took the world-record tallest Bailong glass elevator to the top.  From there we took several paved trails to some of the most popular and beautiful spots where you can see different views of different peaks.

We covered a lot of territory on the first day.  We had a hearty dinner near the hotel.

My guide Trevor

Wulingyuan Hotel

On the second day we went to what is called the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Scenic Area.  Our first stop is the Glass Bridge that was built over the canyon.

The Glass Bridge

View of Canyon below

        

Bridge and canyon viewed from afar

I was not expecting this but next thing I know I was in a line waiting to get on the zip-line over the canyon.  I don't believe I have done zip-lining before but this looks quite safe.  They tie you down with a safety harness and all the equipment looked very sturdy.  It was quite an experience for me.

The first video was taken by the people who ran the zip-line.  I had to pay for the video, which was not very much.  The second video was taken by me, with a view of my dirty shoes in the way.

Next we slid down a chute just like we were bob-sledding to the bottom.

Sliding down a chute

Next we hiked along the 3.5km Yuanjiajie Scenic Trail which runs alongside the river at the bottom of the canyon.  The following photographs show some of the views along the trail.

After lunch we took a cruise on a boat in Baofeng Lake.  Here are demonstrations of Chinese singing of traditional folk songs and display of fishermen using cormorants to fish.

Canyon in the lake

Fisherman using cormorants for fishing

Singer singing traditional folks song

On the third night we moved to Zhangjiajie City, where I stayed at the local Wyndham hotel.  This is because I only have half a day the next day and I have to be at the airport by noon.  It's also because we'll be closer to Tianmen Mountain, another popular attraction in the area.

Tianmen Mountain is another one of those exhilarating attractions in the area.  To the get to the top requires a combination of riding cable cars, taking very long escalators and shuttle bus up a very winding road.  But the views and sights did not disappoint.

Welcome to Tianmen Mountain

Different ways to get to the top

The longest escalator I have been on

World's longest cable car - 7,455m

Misty on top

Misty even part way down

Tianmen Temple, a Qing Dynasty-style Buddhist temple

Tianmen Mountain - Soul of Wuling

It was truly 3 days of spectacular scenery.  I don't know how you can do a better job developing a beautiful area into one of the top tourist spots in China.  There were many personnel who made sure we go the right way and ensure our safety.  I would not have been able to visit so many places without my tour guide, although I see many foreign tourists who came on their own.  Although little known in the US, many of the European tourists must have read or heard about it.

This ends my 33-day trip to China.  It was an amazing discovery of places that I have never been to but always wanted to.  China, geographically is as big as the United States.  There are many lesser known places that I would like to visit in the future.  Or even some of the places that I have been to but would love to have a local guide to explain the history and culture behind those places.  I'd also love to bring my family here, especially my grandchildren - to understand their heritage, culture, and be part of the majority, instead of the minority.

That afternoon I flew to Shanghai, where I would spend the night at the hotel within the Pudong airport.  The next day I would fly to Taipei.  I would start a five-day tour of places outside of Taipei.  Places where I have always wanted to go but never had a chance to.  It's easier to follow a group tour than go on my own.  Then I would wrap up this 40-day trip with 3 days on my own in the beautiful city of Taipei.

Journey to Everest Base Camp

There are two Everest Base Camps (EBC).  One on the south side of Mount Everest, in Nepal, and one on the north side, in China.  The base camps are rudimentary camp sites at the base of Mount Everest.  It is used for preparing and acclimatizing to the altitude before climbing Mount Everest.

In October 2018, four friends and I hiked to EBC on the Nepal side.  Here is a link to the start of a series of posts that I wrote about our hike:  Hiking to Everest Base Camp in Nepal.  If you have time I encourage you to read it because it was one of my most memorable and toughest hikes.  

On this trip we are going to the north side of Mount Everest, in China.  According to our guide, the Chinese government is allowing fewer and fewer climbers to climb on the north side, for whatever reasons.  Nepal is allowing many climbers because it is one of their biggest sources of tourism dollars.  Apparently, China does not need the money and it wants to keep foreigners out of Tibet.

Going to EBC is the highlight of the Tibet trip but it takes 4 days - 2 days to get there and 2 days to return.  However, the scenery along the way is truly amazing, driving through mountain passes in the Himalayas.  We stopped at several places along the way there.

Our first night's destination is the town of Shigatse.  We stopped at Yamdrok Lake, like many tourists.

Our location relative to Lhasa

Yamdrok Lake

Our location on the map

Plaque explaining where we are

Many tourists also stopped here

We had lunch at a local restaurant and was welcomed by a Yak dance, instead of a Lion dance.

Getting our lunch ready

We stopped to see the Karola Glacier but it was covered by mist.

Mist covered the Karola Glacier

The scenery through the Himalayas is amazing.  It's sparsely populated.

Very few people live here

No vehicles on the highway

A Glacier lake

A roadside stop

A monastery on the hilltop

We finally arrived in the town of Shigatse, where we'll spend the night.

A group picture on the highway

Where we are

Hotel in Shigatse

Before leaving town the next morning we stopped at a store to rent oxygen equipment for some of the travelers.  Coming from sea-level and going up to 5,000m or 15,000ft can cause altitude sickness.  In some severe cases it may cause death.

Warning of altitude sickness

Our guide Norbu explaining how to use the oxygen tank

At a small town where we stopped to take a break we were welcome by locals dancing a traditional Tibetan dance.

The staple crop in Tibet is barley.  A special type of barley grows well at this altitude and temperate climate.  We saw a couple using yaks to plough the land.

We are finally entering into the National Park where EBC is located.  We still had to travel 2-3 hours through winding roads and mountain passes.  The scenery is just outstanding.  This is called the Oomolongma Scenic Area.  We have to pay an entrance fee to enter the area.  Below are some of the scenes.

Our location relative to Mount Everest

Entrance into the National Park

Winding Road down the Mountain

Nothing but mountains

One of the Himalaya Peaks

A tunnel through the mountain

A village in the mountains

At about 7pm that evening we finally arrived at EBC.  It is more modern than I expected.  I was expecting to see in canvas tents but they have temporary fixed structure buildings that house several rooms each.  These are dismantled in the winter time when there are no tourists.  There is even a heater and sink in each building.  Toilets are common toilets shared by the buildings.  Surprisingly, they are quite clean considering how remote we were.

My room - spacious and comfortable

Common Area

Outside one of the buildings

Guests lining up to buy food

We were lucky that the sun was still up this late.  Without wasting any time we walked to an area where we could see Mount Everest.  There was a big crowd milling around, chatting and taking pictures.  Unquestionably we are at the right place for the reason that we have traveled so far.

Mount Everest

We were lucky that it stayed light until about 9pm.  In the morning we had another opportunity to take pictures of Mount Everest in a different light.

Morning view of Mount Everest

Next to EBC is the Rongbu Temple.  We were allowed to go in and take pictures.  There were many yaks hanging out outside the temple.

Our drive back to Shigatse and Lhasa was straightforward.  We stopped at very few sites to view the scenery.  At one stop I was able to take a video of the area to give someone an appreciation for what the landscape looks like.

Luckily, there are no McDonald's or KFC in this part of China.  We had a family-style lunch at a local restaurant.  It was good, tasty and inexpensive.  Less than US$8 per person.

A family-style lunch

We had so much food that we skipped dinner when we checked into our hotel in Shigatse for the night.

We still had one more temple to visit before we returned to Lhasa.  It's the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, one of the most important monasteries in Tibet.

Praying and walking around the stupa

An entrance to part of the monastery

Monks getting ready for their prayers

An assembly of monks

As a farewell gift to us Asia Odyssey Travel put together a splendid Tibetan dinner and dance for us.

Farewell Dinner

Final Group Picture

I am so glad I finally had a chance to visit Tibet.  We squeezed so much into one week.  You always picture what a place looks like before you visit but when you are there, it looks totally different.  Except for the Potala Palace I could have never imagined what Tibet is like.  It is so different from the rest of China but yet it is part of China.  I hope the Tibetans get to preserve their culture and language.  While being part of China has modernized Tibet it has come at a cost.  I am not sure I will be back but my memories hopefully will last a long time.  That's why I am writing this blog.