Holidayed in Jixian County

This is a super late post but you'll get over it.  Oh and it's crazy long.  Oops.

Every year on October 1, China celebrates the founding of the People's Republic with a public holiday called National Day.  This day somehow leads to everyone having a whole week off work and therefore gave us our first opportunity to travel.

After contemplating going to Shanghai, Qingdao and Hong Kong, we settled on a trip to the countryside north of Tianjin and an area called Jixian County.  I think the main selling point was that the train only cost £1.30 each way (a return trip to Shanghai can cost up to £100) but the promise of clean air, beautiful natural scenery and a chance to get out of the city all contributed to the decision.

When we arrived at Jixian Station we were mobbed by locals offering transportation and accommodation.  Needless to say I was one step ahead of them all and had booked a hotel in town for a couple of nights at a very reasonable price.

The hotel was a complete dive and I don't want to talk about it.

During our short stay in town we visited the Dule Temple where we found "the oldest multi-storey timber-structured pavilion in China".  I would go as far as to say that it was one of the most impressive multi-storied wooden structures that I have ever seen. 

Only partial sarcasm intended as the pavilion was built over 1,000 years ago and has survived around 28 earthquakes.  So it is a bit of a dude.

Inside the pavilion there is a huge statue of the goddess Avalokitesvara with her 11 Buddha heads.  Standing at over 16 meters tall, it is one of the biggest coloured clay sculptures in China.  It really is massive.

Big sculpture

Two days later we met up with some of our fellow Tianjiners and this time did the right thing and jumped into a taxi that took us to a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere (but near to the mountains).

Children running away from me near our remote farmhouse.

The farmhouse was quite pleasant with nice food and a rooftop you could chillax on, although we couldn't help but get the feeling that the owners were trying to squeeze us for as much cash as possible.  Oh and every morning we were woken at around 5 or 6 by the cleaners.  Sometimes because they were shouting, other times because they were listening to their radio (volume up to 11).

Good grub

 On the first afternoon we walked up "the first mountain to the east of Beijing".  It was very busy on the trail but it was nice to get some exercise in and the views along the way were definitely worth the effort.

Halfway up the mountain there is an endless flight of steps that everyone (those who did not take the cable car up) must conquer to reach the top.  The staircase reminded me of the slinky scene from ,one of the best movies of all time, Ace Ventura II - When Nature Calls.

They won't be smiling in about 30 minutes

There was no way to walk back down the mountain, which is absolutely ridiculous, so we had to pay for a cable car ride.  It was terrifying.

It looks tranquil, but those cars were making all kinds of noises.

The next day we made our way to the Huangyaguan Pass which is a section of the Great Wall in Jixian County.  The traffic was absolutely horrendous but again our efforts were rewarded as we pretty much had the wall to ourselves (unlike when we went in Beijing where it was RAMMED).

I would have called it "the Amazingly Great Wall".

Incidentally this is the stretch of the Great Wall where they hold a marathon every year.  I might get involved . . .

Culture Shock:  regardless of whether you are on holiday or not, in a city or the middle of nowhere, in a country of 1.3 billion people, there is always someone who is happy to wake you up before 6:00am.
Farmhouse Cost:  £10 a night which included breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Not too shabby but there are even cheaper options.
Dialogue Used:  "HEY CLEANING LADY. . .SHUT UP!"