Three weekends ago on a clear, sunny Saturday morning, I hopped on a bus with the A-level Chinese class to Laoshan (or Mt. Lao, "shan" being the Chinese word for mountain). Laoshan is a smooth, rocky Pacific mountain that sits on the coast of China's Shandong peninsula. The mountain and its foothills (footrocks?) surround the small fishing village that we arrived at before starting our trek. The village was yet another example of how technology and tradition coexist in China; people in the foreground zipped around on mopeds and pickup trucks while fishermen on dozens of hand-made wooden junks cast their nets into the sea. If there's such a thing as a second world country, China is the definition.
Disembarking from the bus, we started up the mountain. The first forty five minutes were mostly pleasant, with flat or slightly sloping trails cutting through the thick, aromatic pine forest, and occasional clearings that allowed for spectacular views of the ocean.
About an hour into the hike, the trail became less a trail and more an endless stone staircase that stretched up to the peak. Water and conversation became scarce. But suddenly, around the bend of the trail I spotted one of my favorite parts of Laoshan...
These characters have to do with Daoism, though I'm unsure of their meanings and whether or not they're actually used outside of the world of cliff-side calligraphy (or whether the Chinese government carved and painted them... more discussion on that when my posts aren't being scanned by the internet police). There're aroundtwelve of these massive characters in the area, but this one's the largest. One can only wonder how many monks it took to cut this into rock, considering the average Chinese shoe store has about a 1:1 customer to sales clerk ratio. Government subsidised labor aside, the characters were neat.
Me and several classmates sitting in front of a shrine to mountain spirits, posing as Bodhisattvas. And mixing Buddhism with Traditional Chinese religion. A rookie mistake...
Taking a rest after winding through more pristine, unspoiled forest, punctuated by the occasional tent stall selling Coke, ramen noodles, and assorted produce. No wonder the Chinese are all so thin.
And finally, after almost two hours of walking, we made it... sixty percent of the way to the top. In order to continue on, we had to make our way through a cavecalled Xi Tian Dong, or "Looking for Heaven Cave," which kind of sounds like a place that high school couples hang out and lie to their parents about. The jury is still out on whether the cave's name comes from a wise monk and his quest for longevity, or a claustrophobic monk and his quest for fresh air, as the cave can be around two feet wide or high in some place, and it's pitch black to boot.
But before you enter, some rules. Thank you, Vanna...I have to be honest, when I'm on Laoshan, I really do feel fairyland, and very much on the scoop.
This was the most spacious part of the cave. The camera flash and the pen flashlight in Robert's hand are all that light up this scene. None of the other pictures I took really captured how creepy it was in there, especially when the flashlight was off.
I think Laoshan has some of the prettiest scenery in China. I love the fog, it makes everything seem more mysterious.
The next order of business, immediately after exiting the cave, was to cross a delightfully rusty chain bridge. What one can't see in this picture is that the bridge is suspended over a sloped chain link barrier, which drops off over the edge of the mountain, affording the imminently deceased a stunning view before splatting on a rock.
"Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto Laoshan, and few there be that find it."
Breathtaking. This about eighty percent of the way up.
Just don't do it.
On the edge of the trail was this giant pillar of rock that stuck up in the air, with a boulder on top of it. On the other side was a drop of over one hundred feet onto a slope that would have rolled you down and into and even deeper chasm. Scary.
Needless to say, I had to get a picture on top of it.
And doing something dangerous and stupid is only fun if you have someone to do it with.
Robert's quite the mountain goat. (And I'm quite the photographer).
And here we are, on the top-most area of the mountain, taking a breather. Again, the view of the countryside is incredible. We're done. Well, almost...
I needed to go to the actual peak, or it didn't count.
Riding the cable car down. I'm obsessed with that little village.
The turely feeling, indeed.So that was Laoshan. It's one of the five famous mountains in ancient China. As of this posting I've climbed three of them (Laoshan, Taishan, and Huashan), and Laoshan is still my favorite. Tune in tomorrow or the next day for another post and another huge batch of pictures!
