Day 6 - October 10th

I had trouble sleeping last night… must be the dodgy kebab I had for dinner yesterday! A group of lads from Leeds also turned up last night.

Cold this morning, so I go and have breakfast. This consisted of slurp and greasy cake (congee and some sort of pancakey thingy!!!) which I didn’t finish! The cake was alright though, so I brought an extra one on the go. I walk past the sex shops again… it’s 7 in the morning, who in the world needs a blow up doll or a dildo at that time??? I walk to the bus station and the attendants ask where I am from. I tell them I am from Hong Kong. They call me ‘tong bao’ which means we share a womb (the womb being China) and I manage to get on a mini bus which cost me only Y6.5. The Lonely Planet suggests Y20 for the bus ticket! Sweet!!!

The mini bus journey takes me through all these villages (no wonder why it was Y6.5) and to my horror, people on the bus start smoking. Mainlanders aye? We go past a village called Lau Village.

I get to Shaolin Temple and pay the entrance and find out Chinese guides are only Y50! English guides are Y200, so I decide to go for it, learn about the place and practice my Chinese on the way… worth Y50 I think! She was actually very useful and informative and told me loads of odd facts which I would never have found out. Like how all the pagodas in the Pagoda Forest odd numbered levels as a monk has to be celibate, therefore cannot be in twos (evens). Also, all the pagodas were facing the mountains apart from one, the smallest one which is in honour of a child monk who was very good at kung fu and his pagoda faces Shoalin Temple to protect it!

Although I do get sort of scammed! I go to burn incense and make three wishes (yes… a bit like a genie!) and the monk asks for a donation as he oversees the ritual. Shit… no change. Only hundreds! Oh well, I suppose it’s good to be pious once in a while! Afterwards I ask the guide if Y100 was a lot. She said no! But then she asked me how much the pound was compared to the Yuan. I tell her and I tell her that I’m sort of on a budget, travelling for three months and all! She tells me that next time, maybe I could give a little less. A few kuai would be enough!

After the temple, I decide to have luncheon… a pot noodle! I then take on the mountain. I start walking in the general I direction indicated by the Lonely Planet, but I start to lose heart. But then a group of monks approach and I ask them which way. They decide to help me on my quest (proper kung fu stylie!). I really didn’t know how to make conversation with monks. What do I say? Phwoooar, look the rack on her? So you fancy a drink lads? They were sooo charitable! We stopped at a store and they brought me some water and biscuits. Our paths then diverged as they were heading to their temple and I was heading up the mountain. They point me in the right direction and I start my ascent. After about an hour, I reach a path way and see more tourists. They had come up the cable car. I then look around and head even higher until the path sort of ends and there was a sign in Chinese. I didn’t understand it all, but I could see two characters which meant tourist. I decide to ignore the sign and carry on climbing, at this point sometimes on my hands and knees! I finally get to a peak and peer over to see a cliff edge. I have gone up the wrong mountain!!! There’s more mountain further on, but I can’t get to it as it was far too dangerous. Those monks! Sent me up the wrong mountain!!! Worse of all, it starts to rain and I have definitely not brought enough layers for this hike!

I then decide to come back down the mountain on the scariest cable car ride ever! Things got even worse. As I get off the cable car a man approaches and shows me pictures of the places I wanted to see today and said he would take me there for Y5. So I jump on, only to find he drives me to the exact spot that I met monks. I couldn’t be bothered to walk on as I was cold and wet so I make him take me back. I give him his money and told him sarcastically in front of his friends ‘I hope your business goes well’ they laugh at him! Next I get fleeced again! I decide there are a few more places in the Lonely Planet which is near by which I can see. I ask directions and the tour assistant shows me to this booth to buy tickets to these attractions. So I buy tickets to two things. I get on the bus and then the driver explains to me, you’re not going to get a chance to see both, it’s too late in the day! Pretty gay! I get talking to two guys on the bus from Gansu and I go to see one of the attractions. The… library; it was shit!

I then manage to get to Dengfeng (the nearest town) to try and get a bus back to Luoyang. It was pretty hard finding a cab. I chat to the cab driver and he asks me what language they speak in Hong Kong? I’m amazed!

I go home cold and tired!

Miles walked: 37.489m
Steps taken: 95,392