Emei Mountain on National Day

The students, Jim and I have just returned from a week of traveling to Sichuan Province. Tourism has been down by 60% since the earthquakes there, so we thought we'd encounter very few people. We were wrong. We went during the week of National Day. October 1, the day China celebrates its 1949 start as a country, is the equivalent to our 4th of July. Four million people, as measured only by those who went through travel agencies, were traveling in Sichuan Province that week. I think all of them went to Emei Mountain at the same time we did.

Emei Shan is one of China's four revered Buddhist mountains; it is about 9500 feet high. We packed some overnight things in backpacks and started on the bus ride up the mountain. The road was so congested we couldn't get close to the point where we were going to catch a cable car to the top. So, we left the bus stranded, and walked and walked - straight up. It was only about 2.5 kilometers, but I was definitely the last one to arrive at the top. An active monastery is there, adorned with a golden Buddha whose faces look in all directions.

We slept overnight in a spartan setting, before being awakened at 6:30 a.m. It is considered extreme good fortune to see the sun rise; we did not. While overcast and raining, it was still an incredible experience, following waves of umbrellas undulating up the stairs in the pre-dawn dark and mist. Many people were carrying lit candles.

After breakfast, half of the students walked down the mountain to the bus below. This walk is about 15 kilometers, and I did take the cable car this time! It took the hikers over 5 hours - and, their legs are still wobbly! The strong-kneed students who walked all the way are pictured above.

Last, I can't fail to mention the monkeys along the way down who demand food for passage. Several were quite aggressive and jumped on the packs of at least three students. No one was scratched, and all loved the monkey bandits! (Connie)