Sunday, May 27th
To start off the day we first ate breakfast as a group at a restaurant just a slight hike down from our inn. Visiting the birthplace of Taoism and sleeping on top of the Mount QingCheng (青城山) was a surreal opportunity and yesterday's tough climb to the top made the experience even more rewarding. After breakfast, I and a few others hiked up to the peak. There, we were greeted by a 360-degree view of Chengdu's mountains as well as the gorgeous LaoJun pavilion (老君阁). Following our hike to the peak, we made our descent down Mount QingCheng. The climb down was serene and luckily a lot less sweaty than the climb up.
Next, we got to visit China's national treasures at Panda Valley. Despite today's hot weather, we got lucky and were, fortunately, able to see some of the pandas actively moving around their habitats. We got to see the pandas eat, sleep and even poop. While observing the Pandas, a few of us got interviewed for a Chinese travel T.V. show (so keep an eye out for Chris and Leah when the episode airs)! After admiring the pandas, we ate lunch in a nearby town.
We then headed to Yingxiu (映秀), the epicenter of the tragic May 12th, 2008 earthquake. The earthquake tore through Sichuan Province and could be felt from as far as Beijing and Shanghai. The destruction that the earthquake caused was devastating. At Yingxiu we observed a middle school that had collapsed killing 43 students, 12 teachers, and two family members. Walking through the destruction was extremely emotional. We walked through the site in silence, listening to our guide recall what tragically occurred.
After visiting Yingxiu, we made our way to Wenchuan and checked into a gorgeous Qiang ethnic minority style hotel. We then headed out for dinner and ate at a local restaurant that specialized in tofu fish (豆腐鱼). Upon entering the restaurant, we were ushered into the kitchen where we selected our fish and watched as the chef chopped up the fish! Following dinner, we had our weekly group discussions where we discussed and reflected on the past week.
Thanks for reading!
- Leanne D.
No comments:
Post a Comment