From: Tony <theworldjog@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Feb 5, 2017 at 6:40 AM
Subject: Updated World walk blog China 12
To: Tony Mangan <theworldjog@gmail.com>
 myworldwalk2016@gmail.com



We continued walking in the mountains. These mountains will be with me for 2,000 kilometres, two months, all the way to Vietnam. One morning there was a light carpet of snow on the road with several slippery patches. A couple of cars slid off the road. I stopped to talk to a young couple who were trying to figure out their dilemma. The woman wore the biggest smile I saw in all of China. It was hard to believe their car had just crashed. Perhaps she was just happy to be alive.
Next day we were walking past bamboo plantations and ducks walking on the road.
We sometimes stopped for occasional snacks at lock up grocery stores where items were sometimes difficult to locate. Tubs of noodles stacked beside dusty packets of light bulbs and savoury sausages.
Meandering past villages with colourful murals. I joked as I wondered if Banksie had been flown in to do a few nixers!
Then a glorious 35 kilometres took us to Lianghezhen. On the way we marched through yet another picturesque valley and followed the Yanping river. Stopping in a restaurant that evening some nice people helped us find a hotel. Then they invited us back to the restaurant for breakfast.
We needed that breakfast for it was another long day along route 210 before we arrived in Shiquan.
En route Chrissy stopped at a shop and I walked on for we wanted to finish at a respectable hour. She was walking faster than me but I was strong that day and I only made two ten minute stops. One was when two friendly cops stopped me to check my passport. One of them gave me a big hug before I walked on.
Whatever you may have heard about China is possibly both true and false. Yes the food is the same as we have in the west, just better for they cook everything fresh, no reheats. If you have a squeamish stomach, the golden rule about Chinese cuisine is never ask what you are eating. They have a way to make everything taste delicious!
After dinner I asked Chrissy what she wanted to do after our 38 kilometre day. "Go for a walk!" And we did.
We passed a coffin maker and I joked it was for Chrissy. For one haunting moment I even wondered if it could be converted into a cart to sleep in!
Next day and after nine days walking almost 300 kilometres with me it was time for her to return to the real world. I walked on in my own fantasy world, for walking to me is the key that unlocks my imagination. When I walk I wonder. I want to find out how people live. I get really close to the people, I smile and wave at them on the road and try communicate as best as I can when I stop.
That day I walked 28 kilometres past mines and followed a long winding river. Four young people stopped me on the road for a chat and to take photos. A little later they noticed Karma outside a hotel in Chazhenzhen and came over to invite me out to dinner. The young woman spoke English and I was brought over to her parents house for dumplings and tea. It seems the area is famous for tea.
Then a memorable 36 followed. I was given a huge welcome in a village called Tai Bai Dong. About fifteen young people gathered on the road and escorted me to a shop where I was treated to my snacks. A little later two Chinese motor bikers stopped and have me some hot drinks and milk. Their bikes were identical, Birelli 600 cc. I figured they must be brothers and I was right.
43 kilometres further up the road I found the cheapest room so far in China. Just 20 Yuans, less than three euro for a bedroom in a restaurant. Downstairs I had a delicious spicy dumpling dinner for half that amount also. An hour earlier I walked through a 3 kilometre tunnel. I walked slowly on broken pathway for there were many hazards that I could have tripped on and fallen onto the road. Once out of the tunnel I frightened the life out of two men and a dog as I walked towards them in the dark.
That day I had been thinking a lot about Genghis Khan and how he with his small army conquered China. In those days China was by far the most advanced and affluent nation in the area. Yet with a small band of men, who were no more than Calvary, charge of the light brigade managed to defeat the might of China. The Chinese combatants had superior weaponry. However, at that time there were no national armies, just town or city armies. Khan, a brilliant  leader captured the Peking region first. Once a city was captured weapons and men on the loosing side switched allegiance over to him causing a juggernaut effect. If a city refused to surrender it was burnt to the ground and destroyed. Often because they feared this fate the next town meekly surrendered. I am wondering about the so-called Islamic State, isn't that what they do today? So, Genghis Khan went from strength to strength and didn't stop until all four regions of China were under his control.




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