Black Valley hike

I've decided the preoccupation with being cold here comes from the fact that there's no heat, so once you're cold, it's really hard to get warm again.  I learned this first hand yesterday on a trip back to Wansheng, not far from where I was last weekend, the Stone Forest, which is at the top of the mountains.  This time, I was hiking with about 40 people down below, in Black Valley.

blurry pic... cold people, lots of food

People here are obsessed with staying warm.  I learned on Wednesday afternoon that Friday afternoon the Department of International Relations would leave for an overnight trip, "dress warm and bring your passport."  Never mind that I already had plans for the weekend; there was no question from the department about Bailey and I going, and how could I refuse a free trip?  Over the next 48 hours, I was called 3 times about bringing warm clothes.  Bailey called laughing, wondering about all of this.  Bailey is one of the recent Drake U. graduates who also teaches at SISU, and she and I both teach in this department.

no heat

We were also warned, with great concern, that we'd be hiking 8 kilometers, and would we be ok?  "Uh, yeah, I think that will be no problem." 

We got to the hotel up in the mountains about 6:30 pm, and they thankfully had dinner ready, but oh man was that building cold!  We all huddled around tables full of food.  The only source of heat was electric blankets on the beds, so after dinner that's were I went, to bed.

Black Valley is beautiful, and it reminded me of hiking in Idaho, except for the mega-developed walkway.  Despite the cold, everyone was happy to be out, and showed it by yelling at the top of their lungs for the first kilometer; these are no little yelps of joy, picture Tarzan's call. I've heard this yelling before on Gele Mountain.

After my counterpart teacher, "Jack," gave it his best shot, I asked him, "What's up with the yelling?"

"It's healthy; it clears the lungs."

lots and lots of waterfalls

On good days, I stop myself from saying, "That's crazy,"  and I instead say, "Oh, we believe something different in American."  On this occasion, I just opened my mouth, not knowing what to say.  My Chinese friend, "Zoe," stepped in to explain that I was "speechless," a word I taught her last week, and we all laughed.  What I was thinking: "If you want to blow out your lungs, try running or mountain biking up hill."  But who knows?  Maybe yelling is really good for the lungs or heart or head.  All I know is I find it more than a little disruptive to my hiking experience. 

taking pictures of clear water, seriously

"relax your body and adjust your breath"
the bottom of the sign explains walking times based on age,
really?

with Bailey

"floating walkway"

monkey stool
 there was a monkey population here,
 but they've all left because of
people yelling

one of many swinging bridges

my Chongqing host, Fang
the sign says, "no swimming"

wishing tree