Mountain Getaway

With the weather being cooler and less muggy for this time of year, we decided to take a hiking trip last weekend.  We visited with our Chinese friend Bill about taking an excursion to a nearby national park.  He was very excited about the opportunity and accepted our invitation.

Our trip was to last just a couple of days.  We would leave right after school on Friday around 4:00pm and return either later Saturday evening or early Sunday morning.  Originally we thought about taking the train, however this would also require us to take a short distance bus from the train station all the way to the town where the mountain park is located.  It just so happened that a good friend of Bill's was willing to drive us all the way to the park and back.  The only request was that we pay for his hotel room and his entry fee to the park.  Since Bill offered to share a room with his friend "Gary," we said okay. 

The trip was roughly 200 kilometers distance from our city--Dongguan.  Our destination was Mountain Dan Xia Shan, a newly designated UNESCO Geopark.  This 112 square mile park is on the banks of the Jin Jiang, Jin River, and is unique due to its vivid formations of red sandstone cliffs.  In fact the name Dan Xia Shan itself means "Red Cloud." Some have even drawn comparisons between this geopark and the planet Mars.

It took us about three hours to drive to the town of Renhua, where  Dan Xia is located.  Once we arrived we searched for a clean, but affordable hotel.  It took a couple of tries, but eventually we found one.  It was a "mom and pops" kind of place.  The owner seemed very nice, but we could hardly understand her as Bill spoke to her in Cantonese.  Bill would later tell us how she reminded him of his mother.  She gave us an excellent rate of 300RMB (about $44.00) for two hotel rooms for the night.  the rooms were quaint, but had all the necessities.  Pazi was thrilled to learn that each room had a built in heater!  This is not very common in south China.

Once we got settled in it was well after dark and we were hungry.  We decided to take the owner's recommendation and eat at a traditional Cantonese snack shop.  It was located at the town's city center, about 15 minutes from the hotel by car.  The snack shop, which is really a cross between a tea house and a restaurant seemed to be a popular spot for locals.  The first floor of the building was a KTV karaoke club.  The snack shop was on the second floor.  We made our way up and were quickly seated.  The place was not very full, but the waitress assured us that by the time we left the restaurant would have more people inside.

Gary and Bill were quite hungry.  We were a bit hungry, but let the two of them do most of the ordering.  We ended up having porridge soups, dim sum, chao mian (chow mein), and other Cantonese treats.  The meal was pretty good.  Everything was steamed so the concept of eating this food is either loved or hated by most.  We fall into the minority group that finds it to be delicious at times, however never so good that we get cravings.  For the next hour we chatted with Gary about his work for a company that makes parts for Apple iphones and learned about his son and wife.  Finally, as we asked for the bill to pay, we saw that sure enough the shop had begun to fill up.  Two large groups came with the intentions of chatting and enjoying Cantonese snacks late into the evening.

After dinner we decided to grab snacks to take with us into the park for our day at the geopark.  We figured items would be expensive inside, so we loaded up.  We purchased breads, cakes, cookies, and drinks from a local Chinese bakery.  Then since we had a long day planned that was fast approaching, we decided to go back and get some rest.

Inside Da Xia
Since the weather was partly cloudy, getting up for sunrise was not even an option.  We slept in a bit and then drove to the park's entrance.  The fee to get in was 120RMB (roughly $17.50) per person.  We paid and drove into the main parking area.  From here we spent the next six to seven hours exploring some amazing rock formations such as Zhang Lao Peak, Yang Yuan Hill, Xiang Long Lake, and the Jin River.  Additionally, several hillside monasteries are nearby for viewing.

We were quite lucky to arrive well before 10:00am.  For at around this time we noticed dozens of tour groups crowding in on the trails.  By getting there early, we avoided the masses and had a great time viewing the scenery.  Although at times the weather looked questionable, it did hold up and we were able to have a very enjoyable day of hiking.         

At around 4:00pm we had an early dinner at a local restaurant before heading back home.  Gary told us that he had a wonderful time and we thanked him for allowing us to use his car.  Then we all shared wonderful plates of local fish, pork, and vegetables.