Wudang
12 October 2014, Wudangshan
Yesss, we found the old China from textbooks, stories and paintings; the Wudang Mountains. A large area of 400 square Km's in an inaccessible mountain-range with steep hilltops and deep gorges. Many monasteries, temples, shrines and hermit huts are spread throughout this area. It started very old and was build over a period of 1000 years. Home of Tai Chi and Kung Fu, the monks still live there in very simple conditions. We could stay in a similar 'lodging' for the reasonable price of 250 Yuan per person, giving us a prison cell and ditto beds, no heating no warm water and no food or any cleanliness. We preferred the luxury of a small modern hotel with nice soft beds, clean bathroom and nice furniture and excellent views for 200 Yuan for both of us. There is value in authenticity but as experienced travelers we value the authenticity at a bit more distance.
Nowadays the Chinese have learned that tourism can be profitable and this area, forgotten for many decades in the early communist time (and thus preserved) has been developed. Good roads and safe buses bring loads of tourists every 15 minutes up the mountain along a 25 km ride, a cable car brings us up the last 500 meters and comfortable footpaths allow us to climb from one temple to the next shrine and monastery. The monks have to live with the cacophony of sounds and intrusion on their lives. A bit aside from the monasteries, but still high in the mountains, a small amount of hotels have been built demanding exorbitant prices in the high seasons. Only to be very negotiable in the low season, which is most of the year. Nonetheless the Chinese building frenzy has led to massive hotel complexes being build at the entrance to the mountain park, not even opened yet. We wonder how negotiable those prices will become.
We wander around the area and ponder how life would have been in the old times. We find enough peace and tranquillity outside the big attractions and decide to go down on foot, it being only a 4 km walk. That turned out to be 4 km of staircases taking us about 4 hours to complete. Our rewards are wonderful views of nature and culture and the next day pairs of legs that feel like wooden logs.
We decide to prolong the sensation by staying up the mountain for another week. One of our companions will be Jimmy, a 79 year old Chinese living in San Diego who rented the presidential suite in our small hotel for three months. You will hear more about this character.
To prepare for our recluse in this luxury above the clouds, we buy supplies of milk (to make morning coffee), orange juice (expensive up there) and Julie has her cast taken off at the local hospital after 2,5 months. A relief, but she has to re-learn how to use her right arm now incapacitated to do much more than wriggle her fingers. We also secure a place on the bus back to Xian for when we descend from our mountain. This turned out to be a difficult task:
The 'bus terminal' where we were dropped off initially is not much more than an empty dirt field with only occasional local bus passengers.
When we ask the few people who speak English where we can buy the long distance bus tickets, they deny that such a thing as a long distance bus exists and try to direct us to the train station (taking about twice as long for the ride).
We guess that around 15:00 a bus must arrive and await the bus driver to question him about the tickets. Helas the bus is delayed.
In the end someone points to a sign with a telephone number that seems to point to a ticketing office. When I photograph the number for later, a guy walks up to me and asks what I need, as it is his phone number. And yes, he can sell us a ticket! (had been there all the time and had no clue I was looking for him). With the help of an English speaking girl I become in possession of our desired tickets.
So now we are all prepared for our recluse.