Exceeding expectations - HuangShan

Well we are used to this - where an institutional advertisement objective somewhat meets our emotional requirement. For instance, I am a big fan of the big yellow arches.

When I see a Mc Donald's advert, it instantly makes me happy, for I know I will be able to try it our soon. It is usually to my taste, comes at an incredible price.  However, there is an important expectation management for each one of us when it comes to advertisement vs. reality.

Over years, our minds have become tuned to accept this norm - of settling and being satisfied with something lesser than what is advertised. The Economics curve intersection of expectations and supply perhaps?

With this mindset, when we saw the pictures of Huangshan (yellow mountains) - over the internet, the station, at the hotel & each time, we dismissed them. We were looking forward to be happily content with a pleasant impending future experience - a fraction of what was being picturized of course.

And the moment we boarded the cable car , it all went wrong. For once, life had thrown a surprise - no words, no pictures do justice, it is just the experience. 

This was way beyond expectations..

For the logistics description, bear in mind the order: 

1. Reaching Tangkou village

2. Bus to cable car or elsewhere (multiple options-> Yungusi or Ciguangge)

3. Cable car to peak (two options)

For phase 1, we took the hotel car to reach the Tangkou village. 

The bus ride is again a scenic one and the driver was clearly under an oath to keep the vehicle in higher gear. Hence he did not stop building momentum on the straights (few) and when hair pin u-turns (plenty) came up ; like Goliath with his slingshot, he tried to hurl us around with all the centripetal and tangential force he could muster.

At the destination bus station, we were happy with the cloud cover, the mist, & the flora, and walked lazily to the cable car station. 

Ticket here again. Complex transaction, with two adults, 1 baby and 1 senior citizen ticket purchased at the right price ( I hope).

Once we boarded the cable car, it kept climbing and climbing. Lost in clouds, we actually lost sense of time! 

All that white - reminds me of: My fav drink! Shaken, not Stirred please..

Up there, there are plenty of hiking places. You could spend hours or even couple of days. As for the peaks to choose - I'd say not to bother if you are visiting for the first time. You cannot compare it to anything you would have seen; so experience whichever you like.. 

Summarizing the unique bit: 

Phase 1 (Tangkou): we had started at ground zero a couple of hours ago with clear view of mountains 

Phase 2: Post bus-ride had ascended to a misty place to meet the clouds 

Phase 3: Post cable car, we had finally ascended above the clouds!

For sure - Every minute will present something unique here.

On our way back, we did stop at the Hot Springs. This was a casual exploratory bit with the idea of visiting a natural hot spring. Our Mandarin illiteracy got the better of us. 'HuangShang Hot spring' turns out to have hot spring - yes; but this is actually a hotel that has developed this area and charges a separate fee for entry here. While views are spectacular, do plan visit here with the right mindset - time and dress for dip in your preferred spring (milk based, tea based baths, etc.) 

At edge of the world

We decided to stay at HuangShang downtown as against Tangkuo village for the following reasons:

- We had a baby traveler

- A vegetarian amongst us

- We are only at HSK 1.5  level (Mandarin beginners)

Based on Tangkou experience, we can now say Sona and I could have stayed here. Though do note that we struggled immensely to conclude:

Complex transactions such as:

- Communicating that we are tourists

- Buying water

And more so with highly complex transactions such as:

- Buying a ticket as a foreigner (fact alerts henceforth)

- Replying to the ticket vendor on her query on specifying our destination 

- Specifying that my mother 'bu chi rou/不 吃肉' (does not eat meat)

- Canceling our ticket to Hot spring and rebooking again

- Modeling the correlation between Credit Default Spread (CDS) of Belgian sovereign and that of a Congo based oil producer (gibberish alert)

Tip: If you do not read Mandarin and still want to stay at Tangkou, please buy a map at the airport/ station, befriend someone there and try to finalize your itinerary - mark the same in the map in clear big circles (in red/ pink/ fluorescent green, etc.) very well to show later around in Tangkou/ ticketing areas. Jokes apart, people are very helpful, and you will eventually get by. English and Tripadvisor will be of little help of course.

A big factor for us was the Crowne Plaza Huangshan. With a baby and a vegetarian amongst us, we had decided to stay near the city as against the Tongkuo village. Crowne Plaza rewarded us phenomenally:

A splendid property, grand swimming pool, lavish breakfast, IHG club benefits galore. Personal tit bit: This ranks 1st or 2nd in my experiential ranking (Nope not the Marriott, not the Ritz Carlton; the first place for me would be reserved again for the Crowne Plaza - the Bahrain financial district one with its squash court)

Oher things to do (near Downtown HS):

Tunxi ancient street: 

We went with an open mind and all of us were really very happy. We went expecting the same ol' China street as is with any town, but soon realized each one has its own character. The food, artifacts and everything else at Tunxi was way different from our earlier experiences..

Mark my words: Babies are a great way to bring nations together 

Liyang street: (Linyang Lao)

This was one of the most spectacular affair of our visit. This features in one of the bottom 'to-do' list at Trip Advisor and turned out to be a hidden gem. A mix of medieval Europe, Oriental mysticism and fun in the air - I personally guarantee happiness for you here..

Cafes here will surprise you with their antiques and quirkiness.

The clubs deserve a separate mention , and Phebe adventure is out here..

Sona & Shubham's adventures @ Phebe!!

By the way, did I not mention babies are social magnets?