3rd Day with Bradley and Jingjing

Up for breakfast at our hotel and then off with Jingjing and her dad and aunty to visit Beichuan where a terrific earthquake happened in 2008.  They have left a circuit for visitors to walk and see the destruction.  it is very well laid out with signs and notices around explaining the loss and devastation.

This note is a child saying they
miss their mummy.

Among the rubble were some pretty birds.

Lunch time

buildings just dropped down.

Looking back up the valley.

The Gateway in.

deep discussion.

 Wherever we went people tried to talk to us.  These guys were explaining about the school that was demolished and only a few children survived because they were outside playing basketball.

Salted animals. Not sure of their taste but they sure did look interesting.

 After this we had a swim at a local hotel with hot pools.  Was lovely - very much like Rotorua hot pools.  Then it was back for a hotpot meal at an uncle place.  The meal was so yummy.  They even made sure that nobody put anything chili into the soup in the middle so I was able to eat what they were but without the chili.

Such a nice meal to finish the day.  we then went around to the bar that Bradley likes to have drink at.  Again another day that we thoroughly enjoyed.  We can see why Bradley is really enjoying life here.

King Ape Lovers Bridge

Looking on the internet for things to do in and around Mianyang I came across a photo of a swing bridge that looked like it might be fun to do.  Bradley and Jingjing arranged for her father to take us there.

The bridge is in the distance. 

The Ticket counter.

First we had to climb a few steps to get onto the cable car.  Then off the cable car to walk up and down, up and down many different steps...hard work for me but I did it.  The view going up the cable was incredible looking down.

Wayne on the bridge.

I decided to be one of the first onto the bridge knowing that the more that go on the more it sways.  Was a good choice.

Each link in the bridge had a padlock with this engraving on.

Wayne on the bridge with a view down ..
it was a long, long way down.

And this one shows just how far down..
That is the river beside the road we travelled on to get here.

Lunch was at a little place here that Jingjing's family had organised.  Very tasty local food.

From here we went to visit a cave.  It was impressive on the inside.  Amazing stalagmites and stalactites.  There were different coloured lamps throwing lights which was creating some great reflections.

Our last view of the bridge before we boarded a luge type car on a rail to drive down to meet up with the cable car.

 

Our last stop for the day was at the biggest temple in Mianyang.  We waited for Bradley to meet us here after finishing teaching for the day.

It was huge as well as stunning.
They were in the middle of repairs to many of the statues.

Just the beginning of being photographed many, many times.
This group did ask...most of the others didn't.

Just a corner of the building.  Such intricate detail.

One of the many lazing around here at the temple.

Looking across the river from the temple.

The Coffee Shop.  This night we had dinner here.

It was a very full on day and we packed so much into it.  

Sichuan, China

We had decided to visit Bradley in his little corner of the world for our arch holiday.  We were pleasantly surprised on our happy and settled he seemed to be.  One of the highlights of our trip was to visit him in his school and sit in on a lesson.  I believe teaching might be his vocation.  The children were literally and metaphorically hanging off him.

We arrived in Chengdu late at night.  After leaving a very warm Kuala Lumpur we arrived in Chengdu to a lower temperature and everyone was concerned that we wouldn't be warm enough but to me it was lovely to feel the coolness of the evening and yes it was quite cool.  It had been raining too which helped to bring the temperature down.  We were met by Bradley, Jingjing and her father.  It is a two hour drive from there to Mianyang and it was fascinating watching cars, trucks bikes passing us on highway going in the other direction.  i didn't realise that they drove on the opposite side of the road to us.

Arriving late at night at our hotel only to find that I had inadvertently booked a single room.  The lovely young man on the desk quickly changed this for us and we were taken to a lovely room overlooking the intersection below.

The snacks available in the room.

  There was dust in the air as Mianyang and the surround areas are still rebuilding after the 2008 earthquake.  I didn't realise just how much dust until I watched a lady getting the table ready outside the hotel at breakfast time.  I thought the tables were wooded with a nice grain on them...well thats what it looked like from inside but no it was a huge layer of dust and the tables were actually glass.  It was then that I Looked at the parked cars and again was astounded in the layer of dust on them and some of the cars hadn't been parked there long.

We went for a walk around the block...it was a rather large block but it was all so fascinating and wonderful.

Wayne with a rainbow coloured bridge int he background.

 Looking out our window we could see this bridge and our goal was to reach it and walk back to the hotel (in time for lunch with Jingjing and her father) but there was so much to see and do that we had walked for nearly 3 hours before finding ourselves back at the hotel.

Reading the local newspaper.

Planing the chopping board.

Walking across the bridge back towards our hotel.

It still amazes me how much they load onto their vehicles.

Bradley and Jingjing met us in a taxi to take us to her fathers restaurant for lunch.  here we met her grandparents and uncles and aunties and cousins/sisters.  We were treated to an amazing meal where they made sure I didn't eat any of the dishes that had chili in.  Wayne was toasted a number of times with Mijii (local rice wine) whereas I had a lovely red wine.  The meal was daunting but very enjoyable and we felt like we were very special.

Coffee was in one of her aunties coffee shops...not like what we know of coffee shops in Asia but an up market one.  Coffee was delicious.

Entering the market.

That night we went back to Bradley flat where they cooked us a lovely meal.  They took us down to their local market and we wandered around while they bought the stuff to cook with.

Looking into the market as we exited it to catch a bus back to Bradley's place.

Bradley buying one of his favourite sn

The local but

Beautiful coloured spices.

A row of butcher shops outside the market building.

Jingjing holding and enormous capsican.

A busy but rather nice introduction to their corner of the world,