Day 4- 一命，二运，三风水，四积功德，五读书。 much talk on elements, geomancy, then the 气 or 磁场 by the various gems and stones. Hmm..geomancy is really 信则灵，不信则不灵。amazing range of beliefs by us human. So ah moon narrated the stories of wu ze tian and ci xi tai hou. And also the investment by deng xp's daughter, and how geomancy has changed the business or removing the phantom encounters in the hotels. Feng shui will nv be my primary consideration. Doubting still, cos one can paint the story in whatever form after things happened wat. Plus, of cos give some backgrd jus before forcing us to visit the gem shop. An interesting story of the map of china being in the shape of a leaf which will be "eaten" by the wormy shaped japan during the war. Thus reason why china doesnt want mongolia but needs taiwan so that it is in the shape of a cockeral. Omoshiroi indeed, but seriously? Did the chinese leaders base on geomancy. I really doubt so leh. It will be too unbelievable. Hard core feng shui believers then.
Totally bored at the gem shop. Me and bro were jus self entertaining giving nicknames to each of the grp mates with peculiar idiosyncracies. Dont believe in the effects of the gems, if they look nice then ok lor, the effects are bonus. Amber looks unique and the cat eyes look ok. Tian zhu n turqoise not nice leh but we saw a ceiling light in the tian zhu design quite unique tho.
Next to a tea shop. Tried 3 different teas, one is not really considered tea leaves but cos it is can be drank like tea, it is introduced. Cant rmb the name, the other 2 are 九寨香 n 藏茶 which are half processed and fully processed respectively. Totally dont bother with the effects, even tho they may be true to certain extent, as the pple are considered healthy despite their oily eating habits. Their tea drinking habits is said to be the secret to longevity which the japanese came and learn frm. The sales pple are really getting pushy and desperate towards the end, terrible. Believing that the revenue went to the Project Hope n the tea taste relatively nice, we got the 九寨香 at 800rmb. They have reconstructed houses that were destroyed in the 汶川大地震 which we saw along the way. There r still insufficient funds for the schools.
Then we went to 松磻古城. Really looks like those in the 古装拍摄戏. Surrounded by the walls, it is also like the oriental version of vatican city. it is a self contained city. Lots of shops, altho there are those touristy ones, there are also locals living there, with provision shops, barber, herbal medicinal halls, baby care nursery lookalike etc. Many children there also, all with tanned skin and rosy cheeks, we wondered if the sch lessons jus ended. Very hot, but we ventured, the last to board the coach but still 10min before reporting time lo, the rest obviously skipped cos of the hot sun. And then to maoxian ulu hotel where there is nothing at all in the surroundings except for mountains. Dinner wasnt nice again, we ate little but we dont feel hungry. Strange.
Day 5 (actually dont quite rmb which day is which already)- 迎着朝霞开始今天的征程. Finally, since im using the phone, might as
well jot down what ah moon says. This is an eg of their conversational
mandarin. Do the chinese talk like tat?
从茂县回返成都路上，到了销售峰产
品的场所。wa..the narrator at the shop jus blabbered on and on, saying those
chemicals like serotine etc in mandarin! He speaks super fast,
introducing pollen grains and royal jelly n their respective effects on
human. I wonder how much is absorbed into our heads. Negatively, a
shopping tour, positively, an educational tour. Hmm think next time if
want to go those inaccessible china highlands jus sign up for land tours
here. Maybe fewer shopping places. The land is jus too big, the road
trips are enuff to kill time. Even the rich with private jets or heli
also cant bypass this?
Went to another old town,
huanglongxi. Super nice town with a central man made river running thru
it. But again very rush, not enuff time. Next went to bamboo town, 竹艺城.
really amazing at how they make all those bamboo products. Almost
impossible to make. The paintings are really nice but they din sell
those in the display halls else would have bought a couple. Ate bamboo
feast for dinner. The bamboo rice is not bad n the sweet kuay is super
nice. Bamboo flower was soso, too salty i think.
We
drove pass chengdu towards emei. Entering emei, very different town.
There are trees and shrubs lining both sides of the roads and all the
lamp posts look alike, all nicely constructed. The 5 star 红珠山宾馆 's lobby
is super spacious. Nice hotel except that there are no real windows cos
of the building being used as chiang kai shek's hq, the english
translation is atrocious but this is similar everywhere else we visited
as well. The bathroom has a see thru glass prolly for watching tv as u
shower, but the blind is brainlessly installed outside. Haiz.
