The entrance of 9VV was packed with tourists and there were some daily performances of Tibetan dances and songs. We bought the tickets which had our group picture on it. This was to facilitate 2nd entry to the valley tomorrow. Kenneth didn’t buy the eco-bus ticket as he felt it was too expensive. Although the rest of us bought the bus ticket, we decided to walk today and take the bus tomorrow. After training in Tibet, we thought we were invincible.
Walking along the side track in the forest reminded us of our climb in Mt EMei. We stopped occasionally at the lakes to take pictures and at first it was all beautiful and scenic. The lakes had unique names like Sleeping Dragon Lake, Double Dragons Lake, Tiger Lake, etc. But soon we were sick of all the water and just wanted to move on as fast as possible to the NuoRiLang Waterfall.
Throughout the trek, JH was in a grumpy mood as he wanted to stay behind in Chengdu alone shopping or interacting with other foreigners. Seemed like we dragged him into this. To be frank, I wanted to stay behind alone also; just break away from the party for one or two days. The fellowship of the ring had been broken. I wonder if we were the 4 hobbits who left Shire, who would be what character. I guess Kenneth would be Frodo as he was the only one interested in this trip. CCG who was always with him could be Sam. But JH and I don’t fit into Pipin nor Merry. I guess LOTR story doesn’t suit us at all.
What about Journey to the West? After all, the old version was shot here in 9VV many years ago. JH could possibly be WuKong since he is the fittest. CCG could be Monk Sa since he is the quietest. I could be Pigsy though I am not that fat nor lecherous. But can Kenneth be Monk Tang? Well think Journey to the West is not applicable either.
Anyway, I tried to enjoy as much as possible the trip observing everything around me in great detail instead of just blindly walking. JH and I discovered a red tree beside a lake and thought it looked mythical. What was unique about the lakes was that the mineral made the water looked blue or green. And the water was extremely clear such that the trees and mountains surrounding it had their reflections on the surface.
9VV has different views for the 4 seasons and it was said to be a fairyland in autumn when there is a mixture of green, orange, red and yellow together with the bluish-green water. At that time, I thought people were being exaggerating when they said that but after watching the latest Chinese version of 神雕侠侣 (my idol 刘亦菲!), I truly believe what they said.
We reached a big village called 树正寨 around noon and had our lunch at an eatery. Kenneth went to ask the monastery for accommodation and got himself a bed for tonight for a very low price. At this point of time, there was no way I would be joining him because I wouldn’t want to stay in a place where I couldn’t have a hot bath. No more such torture.
We had agreed that by evening, the 3 of us would return to the hotel while Kenneth stayed back inside the Valley. Tomorrow we would rendezvous at one of the prongs of the Y-shape valley at noon. Then we would all leave together. I suggested to Kenneth that we keep his $ (of 1000rmb) for him since he was staying alone, it was better he brought minimum cash.
Finally we reached the NuoRiLang Waterfall which was indeed majestic as the entire length spanned over quite a distance. This was the only reward I got out of this trip. As usual, this place was packed with tourists and it was rather difficult to get a full picture of the waterfall without them blocking.
We decided to take the bus to the end of the left prong of the valley. There was nothing along the way as the lakes there were seasonal. Since it wasn’t the rainy season then, all the lakes there were waterless. Kenneth had no bus ticket but the driver didn’t check us at all and so he got a free ride. There was a female guide on every bus and I thought all of them looked rather sweet with the Tibetan costumes. But they weren’t professional guides and looked more like machine dolls reciting the information which they had learned by rote earlier. In fact, I caught one of them memorizing on the bus!
The tip of the left prong had 2 lakes, 1 is called the Long Lake while another is called Five Color Pool. The S-shaped Long Lake looked like a sea, with the other end disappearing into the horizon. The Five Color Pool on the contrary, was indeed just a pool as the name suggested but there weren’t 5 colors. We were told that the pool is best viewed early in the morning when the sun just comes out. The 5 colors would be evident when the sun rays get reflected by the water.
We had decided that tomorrow the 3 of us would take the earliest bus in the morning back to this 5 Color Pool. Then we would meet Kenneth at the tip of the right prong at noon. With nothing much to see, we left the 9VV and parted with Kenneth at ShuZheng Village.
Outside the valley, we settled at Dicos for dinner. This was the 3rd time I had dinner in Dicos, a lousy fast food restaurant that tried to emulate KFC. On the way back to hotel, we passed by some stalls selling local delicacies and I wanted to buy some 山楂 seeds. I had never eaten the original raw seeds. I told the hawker clearly I wanted half jin 斤 which cost 8rmb. In the end he gave me 1 full jin and asked for 16rmb. I told him I wanted only half but he insisted that was not what I said. Seeing that I was about to walk away, he gave in and gave me only half jin worth of seeds. When can I get fully immune to these Chinese cheaters? I wonder what he gave me really weighed half jin or not.
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