中文桌子was amazing on Friday. We went to a nearby 火锅 (hot pot) restaurant where each person had their own individual hot pot. They brought on plates of meats, vegetables, noodles, mushrooms etc but also let you go up to a self-service seasoning bar, that had everything from "salamander" to a very scientific looking "xyli......" (i don't remember exactly). I had my doubts about 火锅 in such hot weather - I usually only have it in the middle of a Minnesota winter - but sitting in front of the 空调 balanced it out nicely.
On Friday night, we were scheduled to leave for the Datong/Pingyao midterm trip at 10:00 and catch the 12:38am overnight hard sleeper train. At 10:00, I was showered and in my pajamas, ready to sleep on whatever bed they gave me, when the laoshi informed us that they bought the tickets for the wrong day....our tickets were for 12:38am on Friday, not Saturday. Instead, they chartered a coach bus to take us to the Shanxi province. We took this coach bus to 长城 a few weeks ago...they are made for people under 5 ft. There was a collective slump in the room, but what could we do?
Thus, we boarded a bus for an 8-hour bus ride on one of the busiest highways at night in Beijing. The Badaling 公路 is frequented by the giant freighter trucks, and thus we got stuck in the worst traffic I have ever seen at my life....at 3 in the morning. It actually got so bad that we turned off the bus. Apparently, it isn't uncommon for drivers to do this and then fall asleep, blocking off yet another lane of traffic.
The first site in Datong was worth the pain, however. We went to the Yungang Grottoes, a series of over 50 caves that house over 51,000 Buddha statues. In my favorite cave, there was a 17 meter high Buddha statue, surrounded by hundreds of smaller statues and carvings. It was really dark in the cave, so it took a while for my eyes to adjust but once they did, it seemed like every time I turned my head, I saw yet another statue or carving. The other caves were all similar, but I was stunned at how intricate and well-preserved most of the caves were. We were also blessed with amazing weather, making the day much more bearable.
The swastika camel at Yungang
The next sight we went to was the Hanging Monastery. In a nutshell, there is a monastery that juts out the side of the mountain. It did not feel safe, and when I slipped I thought that would be my end. But it was extremely cool.
Clearly, safty comes first.
After another 5 hours on the bus, making a total of about 16 hours on a bus in 24 hours, we arrived in Pingyao. This was representative of what I always imagined China to be before I ever came. There were no tall buildings; everything was a small alley and there were red balloon lanterns on most doors.
Our hostel was very unique, with extremely Chinese decor. The bathroom was smaller than my closet, which made showering interesting. Also, there was no lack of hot water; rather, it was unbearably hot. I believe I now know what it feels like to pour boiling water on your head.
The sightseeing in Pingyao was less fun. I think a lot of my impressions of a place depend on the weather, and Pingyao was muggy and hot. We were also forced to walk about a mile on the 城墙，or city wall.
We did see an old bank, an old monastery, and an old government building. There was a little bit of time for self-exploration and shopping, then back to our beloved bus to go to Taiyuan and catch the 动车 (fast train) back to Beijing. The train was really nice, it was like the Metro North but much newer and cleaner.
One of the many stray dogs in DatongI'm glad we got back around 11, because it meant we could go out and watch the 世界杯 final! The game was at 2:30am, but we went out to Sanlitur and fought until we saw the sunlight. I felt outnumbered in my red shirt, surrounded by a sea of orange, but we were the last ones standing!
Well that was the midterm trip!
My blog looks so much better with pictures...it took me way too long to figure out technology. I'll work this week to get past pictures up.
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