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Jiuzhaigou, Huanglong, Langmusi, Xiahe, Pingyao, Datong

19.8: Bangkok -> Jiuzhaigou
20.8: Jiuzhaigou
21.8: Jiuzhaigou -> Huanglong
22.8: Huanglong
23.8: Huanglong -> Langmusi
24.8: Langmusi
25.8: Langmusi -> Xiahe
26.8: Xiahe  
27.8: Xiahe -> Pingyao (via Chengdu and Taiyuan)
28.8: Pingyao
29.8: Pingyao -> Datong
30.8: Tour to Shanxi, back to Datong
31.8: Datong -> Beijing
1.9: Beijing -> Munich

Planning and overall impression

The idea was to visit Sichuan or let's say the mountains area at the start of the Tibetan plateau and then head northeast towards Beijing, in order not to be too far away from Beijing shortly before the flight back to Germany (because flights sometimes get cancelled or postponed). Also the weather conditions played a role. It was quite hot in most of China and rainy in the south. On the other hand, high altitude mountain areas are quite cold in winter and can be cold even in spring. The places I selected had little rain and at the same time were fresh enough due to the altitude.
It wasn't easy to make a plan, because I found not so much information about these mountain areas and it was a bit difficult to guess how much time to spend in each place. Then, getting from one place to the next wasn't easy either, because not all places had suitable train connections or flights. For instance, you can't just fly in and out of Jiuzhaigou. The closest airport is in Huanglong, and this is two hours by car from Jiuzhaigou. The train from Chengdu stopped another 80km further away from Jiuzhaigou (although a new, closer train station is under construction). Langmusi is over three hours by car from Huanglong and I was lucky to find a Didi car willing to do the trip. In Langmusi there is no Didi service.
Shanxi turned out to be more interesting than I had thought. There are countless historical places and natural sights to visit. Perhaps I'll visit Shanxi again another time.
Finally, this time things worked out even smoother than in my last trip in April. Communication was no problem (I practically spoke Chinese with everybody), the Wechat Pay and Alipay payment systems worked without a glitch and I was able to get cash and a SIM card upon arrival at the airport.

Costs

The travel cost in China is not moderate. Most hotels I stayed in were in the 30-40 Euro/night range. Food was inexpensive. The highest cost was the cost of travelling from one place to the next.

Food

Food was a bit of a problem, because lots of food in China is heavily cooked or very greasy. A bit difficult to find good meat dishes, or fresh salad dishes.

Accommodation

Hotels, good ones, are readily available and bookable in hotel booking platforms. Booking.com is not so suitable for China - trip.com has a much larger choice of hotels and the app provides names and addresses in Chinese characters - very important if you need to tell a taxi or Didi driver where to go.

Money  / Exchange rate (August 2024)

1 Euro = 7.8-7.9 CNY

Mobile phones and prepaid cards

I bought a SIM card of China Mobile (125 CNY, 15 days, 30GB, 200 minutes of local calls) in Chengdu airport (T1), upon arrival. The China Mobile outlet is immediately out there in the arrivals hall

Internet access

WLAN was available in all hotels, although I often relied on the mobile phone. This time I managed to set up VPNs and used them occasionally to read news on European websites (but otherwise I used local apps for navigation and communication).

Weather

In the mountain areas of Sichuan and Gansu it was mostly sunny and daytime temperatures were above 20°C, but well below 30°C. In Shanxi it was a bit hotter, but still well below 30°C during the day. Overall, it only rained a bit.

Health / Vaccinations

None needed for this trip to China.

VISA / Entry requirements

I used the 15 days visa exemption for this trip to China. In fact, I planned the China trip in order not to exceed the 15 days.

Security

No problems here. China is a very safe country.

Getting around

This was the tricky part, because I visited a number of remote places, not easily reachable. I mostly relied on private cars with drivers to get from one place to the next (expect for the flights from Xiahe to Taiyuan, and the train trips from Pingyao to Datong and from Datong to Beijing). There are bus connections also in the mountain areas, but these buses do not always leave at convenient times, it can take time to reach a bus station and there might not be a direct bus from one place to another.






19.8: Bangkok -> Jiuzhaigou
Jiuzhaigou Old Story hotel, Jiuzhaigou. The equivalent of 33 Euro for a room with a bed, some furniture (but no place where to hang the clothes), A/C, LCD TV. The room is ok, but the attached toilet has a broken shower and looks messy. No toilet paper roll in the toilet, there are just some tissues in the room.
Weather: sunny, blue sky with some clouds in Bangkok. Fresh (15°C) in the evening in JZH airport and Jiuzhaigou, some light rain.

I get up at 6:30am, then at 7:32am take the car to the airport, arriving before 8am. Check-in, security and passport control are quite fast. Then there is a train transfer to the other terminal, and by 8:45am I'm at the gate.

The 8-days Thai SIM I bought when arriving was supposed to expire yesterday at 3:05pm (I got an SMS from AIS stating that). In reality today I still have Internet access with this SIM card.

At the airport I change the remaining THB into CNY (5.06 rate).

The plane takes off with about 20 minutes of delay (was supposed to depart at 10:15am), but arrives on time around 2pm. Then I go through passport control, retrieve the luggage and buy a SIM card of China Mobile (125 CNY, 15 days, 30GB, 200 minutes of local calls). The China Mobile outlet is immediately out there in the arrivals hall.

I'm in terminal T1, but my flight departs from T2. After some searching I find the train (automatic shuttle without driver) which connects T1 and T2 (you have to go one level lower). With that I get to T2.

In T2 I check in for the flight to Jiuzhaigou (JZH airport). Then I have some food in a restaurant (very bad food - hongpao chicken with almost no meat, very bad taste).

When I try to go through the gates I can't. After some trying I go to the counter of China Airlines where finally the matter gets clarified. Somebody scanned the suitcase, saw the camera batteries and these are not allowed. Special counter (E20) for these issues.

So finally I can proceed to the gates. Very careful screening at the security check, but it's ok because these people are doing their job and make flying more safe.

I'm at the gate at 5:50pm. Around 6:15pm boarding for the 6:40pm flight starts. It takes off with about 10 minutes of delay and lands around 8pm in Huanglong airport (JZH).

Now the problem is how to get to Jiuzhaigou. There is no bus, only some taxis. The Didi app shows a price of 285 CNY, but no Didi driver accepts my request. Some discussion with a taxi driver, who for 300 CNY offers to bring me to Jiuzhaigou. I accept (perhaps I should have negotiated a bit, because 300 CNY is too much).

Then the driver drives me down the road and at some point hands me over to another driver in a private car.

Turns out that the taxi driver is from Huanglong (where the airport is) and is pocketing 240 CNY of the 300 I pay. The remaining 60 CNY go to the driver who actually brings me to Jiuzhaigou. This guy is from Jiuzhaigou and would drive back empty otherwise - that is whe he is willing to do the trip for so little.

Still, the taxi driver shouldn't keep 240 CNY for the 1-2 km he drove. The Jiuzhaigou guy is not allowed to drive to the airport and pick up customers, because that is the "territory" of the Huanglong taxi drivers. And Didi drivers apparently are also not allowed to pick up customers at the airport, so the local taxi drivers can overcharge customers.

In any case, I reach the hotel around 10pm.




20.8: Jiuzhaigou
Jiuzhaigou Old Story hotel, Jiuzhaigou.
Weather: sunny, blue sky with a few clouds, no rain. Fresh, in the afternoon the temperature climbs to perhaps 25°C or more.

Around 10am I take a taxi (15 CNY) to the visitor centre. I could have walked but it's a bit late already.

The visitor centre is ok, but not as big and well organised as the one in Wuyishan. For instance, there are not so many shops where you can buy drinks or food (just a few restaurants) and no counter selling (paper) tickets.

To buy a ticket, you have to scan a QR code from within Wechat, then fill out a template in Chinese (the lady at the information counter does it for me). A one day ticket costs 280 CNY (standard) and 90 CNY (reduced, for instance people 60 years or older).

Jiuzhaigou consists of Y-shaped valleys, i.e. one big valley at about 2000m of altitude, gradually climbing and then bifurcating into two valleys, Zangmalongli and Zechawa.

I get the ticket, then queue up for the bus. Despite the large number of people the waiting time is very short. The bus trip to the Zangmalongli valley (primeval forest station, about 2500m of altitude) takes about 35 minutes and I arrive at 11:35am.

The scenery is really beautiful: a forested valley with alpine scenery and high mountains at each side, a stream flowing through the valley, breaking up into several substreams and creating a multitude of small ponds, lakes and some waterfalls. So many parts of China (especially in the north and northeast) and dry and arid, but this place is green and full of life.

Until about 6pm I will gradually walk down until the Nuorilang waterfall near Mirror lake, occasionally taking the bus for some short sections. The entire path is on wooden planks, so you can walk above the streams and never have to touch the ground.

Lots of people today, almost all Chinese (I only see a few non-Chinese visitors), many families with kids. Sometimes there are brief people "traffic jams".

There are lots of tourist facilities spread around here and there, many public toilets. The restaurants are simple, i.e. they offer simple dishes such as instant noodles for instance. And there is a large number of tourist buses all the time driving up and down the valley.

Around 5:40pm I take a bus back to the visitor centre, arriving there at 6:15pm. Then I have some dinner in a McDonalds restaurant (just because I'm hungry - later I discover some Chinese restaurants which probably are not bad) and buy food and drinks in a small grocery shop.





21.8: Jiuzhaigou -> Huanglong
Seercuo International Hotel, Huanglong. 41 Euro for a big elegant room in a four star hotel. Just 8 Euro/day more than what I paid for the hotel in Jiuzhaigou, but a difference like day and night. This place feels like a luxury hotel. Carpet, lots of furniture, marble floor in the toilet, breakfast included, sofa chairs... Interestingly in the evening the temperature drops to below 20°C in the room.
Weather: sunny, spotless blue sky, hot in Jiuzhaigou. I should have left the jacket in the hotel. In the sun the temperature probably climbed above 25°C.

I check out around 10am and leave the bags in the reception. I discuss briefly the transfer to Huanglong with the owner. He suggests a driver who will do the trip for a bit less than the Didi fee, i.e. charging 300 CNY instead of 335 CNY.

Then I take a taxi to the visitor centre. This morning somehow I can't manage to buy a ticket with Wechat, so I go to the counter. Then I proceed to the buses.

Today I would like to go to Long lake in the Zechawa valley, but to get there I need to get out at the mirror lake and change buses. The problem is that the bus driver does not stop at the mirror lake, so I have to walk forward, talk to the service lady and finally a few stops later I'm able to get out of the bus, walk to the other side of the road and take a bus back to the mirror lake.

Once at the mirror lake I walk to the bus stop to the Long lake and take the bus to the long lake.

The curious thing is that the staff at the information counter at the visitor centre also didn't know that you have to change at mirror lake (because all buses go straight to the Primeval forest protection station in the Zangmalongli valley.

I'm finally at the Long lake bus station at 12:10pm. From there it's a short walk down to Long lake. This is at 3100m of altitude in a wildly photogenic setting among the mountains.

Actually the entire Jiuzhaigou area is wildly gorgeous, especially when the sun is out. I get some images with incredible colours.

After a short walk around Long lake I walk to the Colourful Pond, about 870m from Long lake.

Again also here all trails are on wooden planks. The tourist infrastructure here in Jiuzhaigou is really very good.

The Colourful Pond is a wildly beautiful small lake with countless colours in the green-blue range. Crystal clear water, turquoise waters, patterned ground. Tons of people competing for the best spot where to take a picture.

From the Colourful Pond I walk down to the next bus stop and take a bus. I was thinking to make another stop somewhere in the Zechawa valley, but the bus goes non-stop to the Mirror lake bus stop (17km away).

Never mind, I take from there a bus to the Tiger lake and then walk all the way down the main Shuzheng valley, until Bonsai Shoal / Heye village bus stop. It's another area with beautiful scenery and countless photo opportunities.

Around 4:30pm I take a bus back to the exit. From there I walk to the town and have some early dinner in a KFC restaurant. Then I walk back to the hotel.

The owner isn't there. I call him on the phone, he arrives about 10 minutes later. Then we have to wait for the car for Huanglong.

The transfer to Huanglong starts at 6:30pm. It's a good mountain road, but has only one lane per way, so that the driver has to overtake several slow trucks and some buses. We arrive in the hotel at 8:38pm.




22.8: Huanglong
Seercuo International Hotel, Huanglong.
Weather: sunny, spotless blue sky (only a few tiny clouds late in the afternoon). Strong sun, in the afternoon it gets really hot. A bit windy at altitude, more fresh in the evening.

I'm at the breakfast area shortly before 9am. There is not so much food left, and it's a Chinese style breakfast, but it looks promising. Should have arrived earlier.

After the breakfast in the reception I ask again for a car to Langmusi. They tell me to check with the taxi drivers on the street.

The cablecar station to the Huanglong scenic area is about 200-300m from the hotel. The ticket counter is much closer. I get a ticket for the cable car (adults 170 CNY, reduced 80 CNY). Then I queue up for the cablecar.

It's a long queue, and it takes 20 minutes until it's my turn. The cable car cabins seat 8 people.

The cable car trip takes about 10 minutes and at 10:35am I'm on top at 3500m of altitude. From there you either take some kind of shuttle to the travertine ponds area or walk along a trail. I choose the trail.

The trail consists completely of wooden planks and crosses a nice forested area, with good top down views of the ponds area. It's about 3km long and I walk for about an hour before reaching the ponds area.

This ponds area extends from about 3576m of altitude (highest level ponds) all the way down to about 3200m, where the exit is.

It's roundish ponds with yellow-orange stone, in various sizes, shapes and patterns. Also here the trail consists completely of wooden staircases and wooden planks. And there are plenty of toilets along the way.

The only problem is that there are few places selling food and drinks. In fact at some point I get quite hungry.

The other thing is that the scenic area is not too big. In principle it could be done in less than 2-3 hours, if you take the shuttle from the cable car station.

On the other hand it seems to be the only activity in Huanglong, i.e. after you finish the ponds area there is nothing else to do.

I exit the scenic area after 4pm and have a look at the area near the exit. There is a huge parking for the buses (really huge). Very few shops and no convenience store. Difficult to find food also here. I walk into the tourist information centre and in the souvenir shop grab a bottle of milk tea and some pineapple cookies (I'm really starving now).

Then I check with the taxi drivers if they can bring me to Langmusi tomorrow. The answer is no. That raises the question how to continue with this trip, because I was planning to go to Gansu from here.

From this place to the hotel it's about a 1.5km walk on a good path consisting again of wooden planks.

Close to the hotel I try with the Didi app to book a car to Langmusi for tomorrow morning at 10am. Seems to work - inclusive of all fees it's 866 CNY. Not cheap but better than losing perhaps half a day with a bus from Songpan (and I don't even know what time this bus would be leaving).

I get back to the hotel and have a short rest. Then I get out again and check the area around the hotel. The urban area continues until the cable car station, then there is nothing (only road). I get back to the hotel and later have a dinner in the restaurant of the hotel.




23.8: Huanglong -> Langmusi
Langmusi Linjiang Holiday Hotel, Langmusi. 36 Euro for a room, less high level than the one of yesterday, but adequate. Two beds (hard unfortunately), table+chair, toilet with shower. No heating, no A/C but you don't need them here in the summer. Fast Internet in the room. Walking distance from the main Tibetan temple.
Weather: some light clouds layer in the morning in Huanglong. After 10:30am and until the evening sunny, spotless blue sky. Heavy rain in the evening after 8:40pm and it rains for hours.

At 10am the car transfer to Langmusi starts. It's a Didi car and later I hear the driver came all the way from Jiuzhaigou to pick me up.

The car quickly climbs from 3100m to 3800m at the highest point, then down to about 3400m. It's a high plains area, with occasionally tents, herds of yak, Tibetan cultural symbols and small temples.

It's not a narrow and winding mountain road. It's a quite straight and wide road, allowing high speeds. In fact we reach Langmusi at 1:40pm, earlier than I had thought.

I get settled in the hotel and have a late lunch between 2:30pm and 3pm. After that I start having a look at Langmusi.

Looks like my hotel is on the main road where all the shops and restaurants are. Langmusi doesn't look like such a big place, but it is very tourist-oriented.

I quickly find out where the big temple is. It's a wildly photogenic complex, with shiny golden roofs everywhere, and everything in an excellent status. It's so perfect that it's quite possible that the temple has been restorated or partially rebuilt recently.

The interiors of the temple buildings are even more stunning. Very richly decorated.

After 6pm I leave the temple and walk back to the hotel. After a brief rest I'm out again around 8pm for a light dinner, then manage to get back to the hotel before it starts to rain.

In the evening I book a flight with Loong Air from Xiahe to Taiyuan via Chengdu. The problem is the short time in Chengdu (1:30 hours to change flights - not clear if they check through the luggage until Taiyuan).




24.8: Langmusi
Langmusi Linjiang Holiday Hotel, Langmusi.
Weather: overcast in the morning, then the clouds gradually go away and after about 10-11am the sky is blue and sunny. Nothing is visible outside of the torrential rain of yesterday. I was expecting mud everywhere, but the ground is solid and the streets of Langmusi are even dusty again. Somehow all the humidity and water just disappeared. A bit windy.

In the morning I spend some time researching what there is left to see in Langmusi.

I email Loong Air and ask if my luggage will be checked through from Xiahe until Taiyuan. No answer from them until the evening.

Then I try to book a Didi car for tomorrow to Xiahe, but no driver picks up the request. I suspect it may be because Didi are calculating a too low fee (just 274 CNY for over 180km). So I briefly talk to the hotel manager. Apparently there is an early morning bus (6 or 7am).

Alternatively he suggests to go by taxi to Hezuo (Gansu) and there fetch a bus to Xiahe (busy bus station with hourly buses). The problem is just that this Hezuo is already 170km away, so why not go straight to Xiahe which is only 12km further away?

Around 12pm I finally leave the hotel and try to walk to the rock outcrop above Langmusi, from which there should be a good view of Langmusi. It's not far away, but it takes some time to get there, because it's not obvious how to get up there.

In the end I ask a guy how to get up and he gives me the right directions. There is even a small trail going up there, because apparently I'm not the first one who has thought about climbing on that outcrop. In fact on top I find many empty plastic bottles.

I'm on top at 12:45pm. The sun is very strong and I'm using a special UV-blocking umbrella instead of a hat. The umbrella gives more shadow, but blocks one hand.

After 5 minutes on this outcrop I'm done with the pictures and walk back to the hotel. It wasn't a very long walk, but I'm tired.

This may be related to the altitude (3300m), because the air is thin and it's already the fourth day I'm staying above 3000m. Other people get sick at these heights and have to take pills, I'm lucky and am just a bit tired.

After a rest in the hotel I go out again and have some lunch (curry potatoes beef with rice for 90 CNY; very poor quality meat with big pieces of fat and tendons). Then I start walking towards the Namo gorge.

On the way, I have to enter into another temple (another 30 CNY ticket). This seems to be the temple where the monks live. It's older and has houses where monks live. Not as big, new, flashy & shiny as the temple I visited yesterday.

Right behind the temple there is a field with grass where monks do physical exercises. Next to it is a small stream. You have to walk next to it to reach the Namo gorge.

It's not a very long walk along this small river into the gorge. At some point you reach a place where there are horses you can rent for riding. Very smelly place, because there are many horses in a narrow area and everywhere it's full of horse shit.

Then, in this area I cannot find the shrines and Buddha statues described in the Lonely Planet guidebook.

It's 4:25pm now and while the trail seems to continue, I'm a bit tired and the trail doesn't look terribly interesting. So I start slowly walking back towards Langmusi.

On the way back I try again one ATM which I had spotted and tried without success earlier today. Again I can't get cash from this ATM. There is an Agricultural bank of China branch near my hotel, but their ATM is out of service (requires maintenance). Another ATM I find only accepts Union Bank cards.

At 6pm I reach the hotel and take a rest. Shortly before 8pm I get out again and have dinner (noodles dish for 18 CNY).




25.8: Langmusi -> Xiahe
Sangpei Dongzhu Inn, Xiahe. 37.59 Euro for nice room with attached bathroom with shower, bed with soft mattress, nicely decorated in Tibetan style, free WLAN, LCD TV. There is a table, but no chair and even if there was one, you couldn't use it because a wooden plank under the table blocks the knees. Breakfast included.
Weather: mostly overcast the whole day, rain in the evening after 7pm, strong after 8pm.

At 10am I'm in the hotel lobby and try one more time to book a Didi car, this time including the taxis in the selection (price goes to over 500 CNY). No response. The hotel owner tells me that there is no Didi service in Langmusi.

Some discussion with the hotel owner. In the end he organises a driver (not a professional driver), who for 400 CNY will bring me to Xiahe (180km distance).

So we start driving. The road is good all the time (wide, no narrow curves). We cross mountains and a high plateau, and again mountains before reaching Xiahe. The maximum altitude is above 3500m.

Above 3200-3300m there are no trees, only grass. This seems to be the tree growing limit at this latitude.

We reach the hotel around 1:50pm. I check in (hotel staff seems to belong to the Tibetan minority, as I don't understand what they say when they talk to each other).

I have a lunch in the restaurant of the hotel. The food is not good (very small amount of meat in the rice I order, no vegatables, just some potatoes).

After 3pm I start checking Xiahe and the Labrang monastery. The ticket is inexpensive (only 40 CNY), but I can't use the phone to pay, so I give them cash.

Since I have only 60 CNY cash left, I look for an ATM and find one. This time the ATM works and I am able to get some cash. Then I walk to the Labrang monastery.

At the ticket check they make everybody wait for a long time. We are only allowed to get in after 4pm.

Not really a big problem, because the weather is not good anyway (sky is overcast) and this place looks best with a sunny blue sky. Tomorrow and after tomorrow I have other chances to get some good photos.

The compound of the Labrang monastery is huge. It is surrounded by colurful prayer wheels at the outside perimeter. Inside the compound most buildings are closed. For those which are open for visitors, photography is not allowed inside the buildings (only outside).

There are a few nice buildings inside the compound, but this place is best observed from above. At the southwest exit you can cross the river. On the other side there is a staircase to a viewing platform from which there is a good view of the southern part of the monastery.

I try to find a better (= more central) place from which to observe the monastery from above, but the mountain slope opposite the monastery is heavily forested and not accessible easily (a wall blocks the access - you'd have to climb a bit).

Around 6pm I'm back in the hotel. I will go out after 7pm to have a look at Xiahe and find a place where to eat something.

There are countless shops selling souvenirs, dried food and ethnic Tibetan clothes, but not so many restaurants. Also, I can't find shops selling food and drinks or convenience stores.

The other thing is that after 8pm most restaurants close. In addition it has started raining, so I walk back to the hotel and have a dinner there.




26.8: Xiahe
Sangpei Dongzhu Inn, Xiahe. The restaurant of this place is actually not too bad. You only have to choose the right dishes.
Weather: overcast in the morning. After 1:30pm the sky opens up and we get sunshine and a blue sky. After 6pm the sky is overcast again. No rain, but windy.

I got some light cold (a bit of sore throat, running nose), so I sleep long until 9:50am. In order to recover, I continue taking a rest, and only leave the room at 12pm.

Loong Airlines have finally replied to my email. They don't assume responsibility for delivering my luggage to Taiyuan - they say the first leg from Xiahe to Changdu is operated by Sichuan airlines.

They suggest to check with the check-in staff in Xiahe airport if there is a direct baggage check-in service (not sure what exactly this is). If they can't check through the luggage to Taiyuan, I might lose the flight from Chengdu to Taiyuan.

At 12pm I walk down to the restaurant (I've skipped breakfast) and order a good, big meal (a dish of beef, potatoes, vegetables and flat bread for 100 CNY).

At 1:30pm I go out and start my tour of the Labrang monastery. There are still clouds in the sky, but you can see that the sky is opening up.

In fact we soon have a nice sunny day with a blue sky. It will be like this until about 6pm, and I use this time slot to take the pictures of the Labrang monastery.

Quite a few people today. I guess this place is more or less always busy. Besides the tourists there are also many pilgrims.

The Labrang monastery looks great under any weather, but when the sun is shining, it is really magic.

It's possible to walk on top of one of the stupas and from there there is a good view of the monastery.

At 4:30pm I'm on the Thangka display terrace and take some panoramic shots of the monastery. Then I walk down to the street level and check what there is in the western part of Xiahe.

There is a temple, but photography is not allowed there. So I walk back to the monastery and walk eastwards along the northern kora (the outside perimeter of the monastery). Many people walking here are pilgrims.

With a number of stops here and there I'm back at the monastery entrance on the east side around 6pm. I have some bubble tea in sort of a fast food outlet in the visitor centre, then walk back to the hotel.

There I take a rest for a bit over an hour. After 7:20pm I'm out again for some blue hour photography and some shopping.

After dark I'm back in the hotel and have a dinner.




27.8: Xiahe -> Pingyao (via Chengdu and Taiyuan)
Pingyao Dumenjiadi Inn, Pingyao. 21 Euro for a small (maybe 12 m²) room with attached bathroom in an ancient mansion in the historic centre of Pingyao. I booked this place mainly because of the 4.9/5 score on trip.com. The initial impression is negative (small room, not so modern), but gradually I understand why this place gets such a high score. The bed is soft, there is good A/C, the Internet is fast (but on the 2nd day in the evening I have no Internet). The bathroom is well designed and functional with everything you need, the shower is good (hot water with no limitations). Good service provided by the staff (hotel guy picks me up in his motorbike when I cross the walls; he is helpful and provides advice about Pingyao).
Weather: sunny blue sky with some clouds in Xiahe. 39°C in Chengdu. Fresh in the evening in Taiyuan and Pingyao.

Today is a quite crazy travel day. I check out after 10am, then ask in the reception if there is a way to reach a good place in the mountains south of the monastery, so that it's possible to get a good picture from above of the monastery.

They suggest to take the road next to the Thangka display terrace and walk south. I start walking along the street towards the Thangka display terrace and at one point I spot a trail which goes up the mountain.

I pick that trail and start walking upwards. The problem is that this trail at some point dissolves into nothing. I find myself in deep forest, so dense that you would need a machete to open the way.

I try to continue walking like this for a while. Actually, I lose a lot of time trying to get out of this dense forest. It's ends up being well after 12pm, and I wonder how to get out of the forest.

Then like a miracle I find a trail which leads to an open space and ultimately to a meadow with a view of the monastery. But it's not a perfect view - I see only the eastern part of the monastery. Still it's better than nothing.

I run into a Chinese couple who apparently managed to get up here using a good trail.

When trying to go down I do a stupid thing and walk down a trail, which disappears at some point and I'm on a very steep slope of soil with few points I can grab, which is getting more and more vertical. With great effort I backtrack up the slope, then walk eastwards, finally getting on a staircase which at the bottom goes though a door which happens to be open.

This entire mountain trek turned out to be not such a good idea. It would have been better to go there with a guide.

It's after 1pm when I'm back in the hotel. I prepare my luggage and call a Didi car. No Didi car shows up, so I ask the hotel staff. The guy somehow arranges a taxi driver who for 150 CNY will bring me to the airport.

I would like to be early at the airport, but this guy takes his own sweet time and only leaves after 1:30pm (picking up his friend who will travel with us to the airport - not sure why).

The Xiahe-Gannan airport is about 60 or 80 km from Xiahe. The road to the airport crosses some beautiful grasslands area with herds of yak every now and then.

Very nice scenery and really a pity I can't make stops here and there and take some pictures. The atmosphere is really magic, but the big problem of this place is transportation - you need your own car (and a driver).

We reach the airport at 2:30pm. Both my flights (Xiahe-Chengdu and Chengdu-Taiyuan) are with Loong Air, but they can't issue both boarding passes and check through the luggage until Taiyuan. They tell me to contact the transfer desk for support in Chengdu.

But at least the flight takes off without delays around 4pm and lands a few minutes before the scheduled arrival time of 5:25pm in Chengdu.

I get out of the plane and can't find a transfer desk, so I just walk to the luggage belt. By 5:46pm I have the luggage, by 5:57pm I have the boarding pass and have checked in the luggage. Quite impressive.

Then it takes a while to go through security and reach the gate. I'm there at 6:27pm.

So it seems everything went well and I managed to catch the flight to Taiyuan.

The plane will take off with some delay (7:17pm instead of 6:55pm) and lands late in Taiyuan (8:58pm instead of 8:35pm).

When I walk out with the luggage I'm approached by a guy who offers to be my driver. For 340 CNY (270 are the Didi fee, 70 CNY are motorway tolls; the distance is about 100km).

By 9:30pm we start driving to Pingyao and will arrive about an hour later.

While driving the guy offers to be my driver and bring me to Wutaishan the next days.

The problem is that my hotel is inside the city walls and the car cannot go in. So we drive to the closest wall gate (closest to the hotel) and from there I start walking with the luggage to the hotel.

Suddenly I'm approached by a guy on a scooter who has my name. Turns out he is the hotel owner who came looking for me. He picks me up with the scooter and brings me to the hotel with all my luggage). Good service. I'm in the room around 11pm.




28.8: Pingyao
Pingyao Dumenjiadi Inn, Pingyao.
Weather: sunny, blue sky, almost no clouds. Fresh in the morning, in the afternoon the temperature climbs to well above 25°C. Fresh again in the evening. No wind.

After the tiring day of yesterday I sleep until 9:50am, then get up. Some discussion in the reception about what to see in Pingyao. The reception guy provides lots of advice. I hand over some clothes for washing (15 CNY cost), then leave the hotel after 11am.

Pingyao is a walled city in a square shape and quite big. Given that the city walls perimeter is over 6km long, Pingyao should be around 1.5km x 1.5km or more. Quite a long walk from one side of the city to the other one.

I'll spend all the day exploring the city, visiting in a more or less random way a number of places in the city, climbing on the wall at the western and northern gate.

Pingyao is indeed a very well preserved historical city, although I wonder if all structures are old and authentic or if perhaps some restoration or even reconstruction has taken place. The city wall and most buildings are clean, perfect and immaculate as if they had been built yesterday.

Lots of people today in Pingyao, most are Chinese, but I manage to spot an Italian tour group and a few other western travellers. Pingyao is a famous attraction on the international tourist trail, so this doesn't come as a surprise.

Many, many Chinese women and girls wearing the traditional Chinese dress (hanfu) and the hairstyle and make-up. And there are plenty of places renting out hanfus and offering make-up and hairstyling services. Even some guys in traditional Chinese dress and I see one (extended) Chinese family in traditional dress doing photoshoots in one of the mansions.

Between 2:20pm and 3:30pm I'm at the Shuanglin Si temple a few km outside of Pingyao. It's a place listed in the Lonely Planet guidebook because of its ancient staues in the buildlngs. It's there that I run into the Italian tour group.

In the evening after 8:30pm there should be a sound and light show at the southern gate. But after waiting there for 30-40 minutes I leave the place because it is getting fresh and I have no jacket with me. So I walk back to the hotel.




29.8: Pingyao -> Datong
Hotel Datong Ancient City Xinyue Homestay, Datong. 31.79 Euro for a big, modern room in the 20th floor of a skyscraper. There seems to be no reception - you have to call a phone number when you arrive and a lady shows up. The room has a big bed (hard mattress), bathroom with shower, sort of a kitchen area, projector TV, WLAN (reasonably fast), A/C.
Weather: sunny, blue sky. Not so hot in the morning, but the sun lets the temperatures climb quickly. Quite warm and sunny in Datong when I arrive, fresh in the evening. No rain.

I check out after 10am. The hotel owner sends me in his motorbike minitruck to the east gate. There at 10:47am I fetch a taxi to the Pingyao Gucheng railway station, where I arrive at 11:10am.

The railway station is a relatively small one (for Chinese standards) with just one big waiting hall and a convenience shop selling food and drinks.

The train to Taiyuan departs on time at 11:47am and arrives at 12:19pm. I rush out of the train and get to the KFC restaurant on the upper level, where I grab some take away food, then rush again to the platoform where the train to Datong is waiting.

The train to Datong departs on schedule at 12:51pm. For Chinese standards this is a slowish train, taking over two hours to reach Datong (scheduled arrival time is 3:22:pm). It's also quite full and the seats are a bit narrow.

The train arrives on time in Datong and I quickly walk to the taxis area. It's a bit far away and not easy to find. Anyway, I finally get into the taxi and the driver suggests a tour for tomorrow, covering three places around Datong, total time needed is 11 hours, for 350 + 24 CNY. Seems reasonable and we agree that he picks me up tomorrow at 8:30pm. We reach the hotel around 3:45pm.

Interestingly Datong is a 1000m of altitude.

I check in the hotel, drop my stuff in the room and at about 4:10pm am back down and drive with the same taxi to the Yungang caves for a late afternoon visit.

Driving to Datong takes half an hour and I arrive at 4:40pm. This place is open until 6pm, but they let people in until about 7 or 8pm. Still, for a place like this, you better have at least three hours available.

It's quite a big compound and from the place where the taxi drops you off you first have to walk several minutes until you reach the tickets selling booth. From there you walk for quite a long time until you manage to reach the first cave (a shuttle bus is available for a fee). I'm in the first cave only at 5:11pm.

The Yungang caves are really impressive. There are several smaller ones, exposed to the elements and these have no colours and the statues are not so well preserved.
But the main ones, which are inside the rock, have excellently preserved statues and with colours. Really beautiful. I can't remember having seen something like this elsewhere.

Time is short and I quickly move from one cave to another, skipping the museum. Perhaps I'll go again to Yungang the day after tomorrow.

By the way, lots of visitors in this place, all of them Chinese (I can't see a single non-Chinese looking person).

After 6:30pm I start walking back towards the exit. Brief noodle soup dinner in a restaurant at the Yungang complex entrance, then I walk out and take a taxi back to Datong.

The driver offers to be my driver for tomorrow, even suggest that I dump my planned driver for tomorrow and use him. He offers to do the trip for 300 instead of the 350 CNY I agreed with the other driver.

I get off the taxi at 7:50pm inside the city walls of Datong. Interestingly all buildings here are quite modern. Plently of life on the streets. Many shops, many people on the streets. I run into a night market, then walk towards the walls.

Beautiful street lanterns in the trees. Beautifully illuminated city walls, very nice towers, magic atmosphere. Maybe I should be here for the blue hour.

Datong (and the area around it) seems to deserve more time than I have allocated to it. Perhaps I come back to Datong next year and spend a few more days here.




30.8: Tour to Shanxi, back to Datong
Hotel Datong Ancient City Xinyue Homestay, Datong.
Weather: sunny, blue sky (with a few small clouds in the afternoon) the whole day. No rain. Top temperatures probably well above 25°C. Not cold in the evening.

At 8:20am the taxi driver calls to tell me that he is already there. I'm down at 8:34am (some traffic jam in the lift). The tour to Shanxi starts.

The first stop is the Yingxian Muta temple at 9:44am. 50 CNY ticket, a bit pricey for what you get to see, because the only highlight is that wooden pagoda, of which you can only visit the first floor.

There is a compound around the pagoda, but somehow the structures there do not look so old (as if they had been recently rebuilt). And then there is the usual "belt" of souvenir shops and small restaurants.

At 10:50am we leave to the next place, the Xuankong Si hanging monastery. We arrive at the parking around 11:40am.

The taxi is not allowed to drive to the parking near the monastery, instead I have to take a bus for 20 CNY.

This hanging monastery is supposed to be a highlight. In fact the ticket is expensive (115 CNY) and you have to spend a lot of time queueing up.

First there is a queue to buy the ticket (and I discover later that there is a separate counter for foreigners without a queue), then there is a queue when you actually want to get into the monastery (1:20 hours of queue - because they only let in 170 or 250 people at any given time). The total queueing time is almost two hours.

But once in the monastery it's a different story. Really a cool feeling to be there, like it was worth queueing up for such a long time. Because it is such a narrow place on such a steep slope, with great views.

After the temple I have some instant noodles in a stall next to the parking, then around 3:30pm I meet the driver. He is surprised that I came back to early. Turns out that I missed a place, Hengshan, some 2000m high mountain reachable by cable car with a temple on top. Some discussion, we decide that I won't got there now.

This Hengshan probably is an interesting place worth visiting, like countless others in Shanxi. Perhaps I'll visit these places in another visit.

At 4:10pm we stop briefly at the Yuan Jue temple, some small temple with a nice old pagoda built in 1158, then at 4:30pm we reach the nearby Yong’an temple. This temple is special because of the well preserved frescoes in the big hall.

Around 5pm I'm done with the temple. Because it is still a bit early the driver suggests to go to another place called Tulin (forest of mud - kind of a place with mud pillars and mud canyons).

These mud canyons I've seen them everywhere in Shanxi. It's the plain ground which suddenly is broken up by a steep canyon (probably caused by soil erosion / rain).

We reach this place at 6pm. It's quite scenic and peaceful, has a small pond / lake, not terribly special, but good for relaxing.

At 6:30pm we leave this place and drive back to Datong. The driver drops me off a the Wanda Guangchang mall. There I have some food and a drink, then take a taxi back to the hotel.




31.8: Datong -> Beijing
Qiu Guo hotel, Beijing. 53 Euro for a room, not too small, but actually not very big. There isn't much space where to put things. Attached shower cabin and toilet, A/C, WLAN, place where to hang the clothes, fridge, table + chair, LCF TV. Stylish and functional, in the Wangjing area (northeast Beijing), near the Wangjing SOHO (20 minutes walk to get there). Ths room has a double bed, but actually is too small for two people.
Weather: overcast in the morning in Datong, after 11am the sky opens up and there is sunshine and blue sky. Then clouds layers alternate with sunshine. Lots of wind, no rain. Quite hot (top temperatures of 29°C). About 25°C in Beijing in the evening, some rain after 10:30pm.

At 11am I check out and leave the luggage in the reception of the hotel. Then I walk into the old town.

It doesn't take long to reach the city walls. Quite big, imposing walls, entirely reconstructed in modern times. There is a moat and a belt of green (sort of a park) around the walls.

Then I walk into the walled area and run into an area of ancient buildings. That is, most likely recently reconstructed or restaurated buildings. A bit too immaculate and perfect to be original buildings.

Apparently these old style buildings only exist in a section of Datong.

Moving further towards the centre of the walled area I run into more old style structures. All very picturesque, but perhaps not original.

At some point I reach the drum tower. Turning left, I walk through an ancient style area, visit a mansion or temple, then get into the Huayan temple. This is a big compound with several halls. All structures neat and immaculate, but I wonder what actually is original.

After about 1pm I gradually get more and more tired and hungry. I have a fruit and jelly drink in one place, then some lunch in a KFC restaurant.

After lunch I continue walking a bit, then around 2:30pm I take a taxi to the Wanda Guangchang shopping mall. There I have a bubble tea in a Heytea, then call my daughters and do some shopping for them in the mall.

After 4pm I take a taxi back to the hotel, fetch my luggage, then drive to the high speed train railway station, arriving there at 4:40pm.

The train to Beijing departs on time at 5:28pm and arrives in Beijing North at 7:42pm. Then I take a taxi to the hotel, check in and leave the bags in the room.

In the evening I go out again for some food and drink.




1.9: Beijing -> Munich
Home, sweet home.
Weather: sunny in Beijing, abobe 25-26°C in the morning.

Around 10:30am I check out, by 10:37am I'm in a taxi (64 CNY) to the airport, arriving at terminal 3 at 11:06am. I check in, then have some early lunch.

At 11:53am I queue up at security and will only be through 27 minutes later, at 12:20am. Then there is a shuttle transfer to the gate area, then passport control. At 12:40pm I'm through. No shops selling drinks in the gates area, but I find a vending machine, where for 6 CNY I get a half litre bottle of tea (80 Euro cents, compare that to prices for drinks at Munich airport).

I proceed to the gate and at 12:53pm board the plane (A350-900). The plane is quite full. It starts rolling at 1:27pm and takes off at 1:41pm.

After a smooth flight the plane lands in Munich at 7pm. I'm back home at 9pm.