Huang Shan - in praise of the vertical

I travelled quite a long way east to get to Huang Shan National Park, while most people I know headed straight down to Xi'an (where the terracotta army is). I'd heard mixed things - a couple of Chinese people on the train said that they were basically just some mountains, and I'd be better off going somewhere closer instead. And when I got to the hostel, the Italian girl sharing my dorm had just spent a day there and hadn't liked it because of the crowds, although she did mention that the scenery was nice. So I wasn't sure if it would be worth the journey.

I thought it was amazing. The national park is not visible from outside and was quite a way from the hostel town, so there was no preview. The weather was overcast with some mist, which is normal for this time of year, and swirling mist is all part of the experience. I decided to walk up instead of taking the cable car, so came to the first good viewpoint after an hour or so of steps. When the mist cleared, it was spectacular. Huge rocks loom up on all sides, with trees growing out of every crevice. It's really like a fantasy world, and indeed is meant to be the inspiration for all those scroll paintings that China is famous for.

It's the steepness and verticality that's so breathtaking. A lot of it wouldn't be accessible if it weren't for the paths, which are basically staircases built into the rocks. You can see them stretching into the distance, winding around the peaks, most of them full of people looking like colourful colonies of ants crawling over huge boulders.

It was crowded, of course, on a Sunday in August. Apparently every Chinese person has an ambition to come here (apart from those two I met on the train, it seems) and no wonder. I think it's as impressive as any other natural wonder I've seen. I didn't walk the length of the park, but I walked from bottom to top - the entrance to the highest point - and back again. It was chaos at the top where the cable car delivers to, but the crowds lessen (slightly) as you move away. And it's good-natured chaos as ever. Chinese people are just used to being in large noisy groups, and don't understand that westerners find it difficult.

So after reviewing all my photos I now have a free day in the small town of Tunxi to rest my aching legs. It has a charming old town full of shops selling calligraphy, artwork, local dried funghi and some kind of sweet that you make by bashing something with a very large hammer. I am sitting in a huge restaurant with wooden floors, tables, chairs and screens, and white teapots and crockery on every table. You have to go to the counter where all the food is on display and write down the numbers of what you want on a little clipboard. It's all very pleasant.

I'll be getting on a train to Guilin this evening, where it's meant to be very scenic again. More from there!

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