Hey Hey and a Big G'Day Toya,

Finally after many years;
I managed to squeeze in the Baimiao River Temple Adventure.

I wish I had more time here as I'm finding more and more things to see situated around Qingyuan such as Ancient Yeo Peoples Villages etc but I guess that will give me a reason to return (maybe?). Yesterday what I was told was going to be a two hour journey ended up being almost four and a half, that'll teach me for listening and sleeping in as I ended up losing the entire afternoon. I must say that I am a little confused with the city as I've asked the locals where the city center is and they all tell me 'right here', I've also asked one of the six hundred thousand trillion Moto Taxis the same question and I've been given six hundred thousand trillion of the same answers along with six hundred thousand trillion beeps to get my attention.

The reason I'm confused is that there is nothing here!

Oh I did find a KFC this afternoon but that's way down the road, nothing there either but a large shopping complex that looks like it’s about to fall over with cracks in the walls and half the paint missing, surely that can't be 'the city center'? The LP says where I am is four kilometers from the center, I've taken several of the six hundred thousand trillion beeping motto taxis in all directions and I can't find a damn thing but half completed high rise residential complexes.

Chinese cities always have a lot of 'shopping' in the city center, brand names, many KFC''s and McDonalds competing, little snack streets and hands full of beautiful girls/women dressed like they are about to compete in a fashion show...um, I guess they actually are in a way. In the end I found a small vibrant local area and that’s where I begin to snack my way back to my hotel.

I was SnackAtallicA on tour in Qingyaun!
Anyhow, onto the reason I'm here.

The Baimiao Temple Adventure

I rose around mid morning and after a hearty fill of 'morning rice noodles' I grabbed a motto across to the old bus station and grabbed Bus No: 207 to the Baimiao Docks and as I thought it was a nice journey I decided that I would walk most of the way back to the city (oh gee that's new isn't it). When I arrived I asked a few other people how much they were paying and went about halving it which I did of course.

BUT they were in small tour groups;

The tour company charges them one hundred Yuan each and then probably pays the boat owner half of that per person. In the end I got it down to two hundred and seventy including lunch and no time limit on the stops. The boat owner’s daughter was more than happy with that as her baby was sick and motionless seems to stop him crying.

Here is where the big surprise came into it.

The old guy (boat owner) took me to an old large fishing boat that had been converted into a restaurant type thing and told me to wait. I thought he was going to go get the small fishing boat that for many years I thought I'd end up on. When he returned he untied us and off we went, ha ha I had the entire huge boat to myself....unbelievable!

LP: The first part of the trip takes you along the river past some mountain villages and ancient pagodas to the stately Buddhist temple of Feilai (first founded over one thousand four hundred years ago) nestled at the foot of a steep mountain. The temple is serenely located in a pine forest. When you get there follow the narrow path through the forest to the mountaintop pavilion that offers terrific views of the river gorge below...Done!

When your boat arrives at Feixia about four kilometers upstream you'll be dropped off at stairs that lead upwards from the riverbank and onwards to the temple. Founded in the late eighteenth century, it’s actually a complex of different halls, courtyards and pavilions connected by tree lined paths...Done!

The entire trip, from the docks to Feilai onwards to Feixia and return took me around five and a half hours. Normally it should take four but we sat for an amazing lunch of fresh fish, mouth watering duck, wild vegetables and beer and rice. The photo of me with the Full Face was during our 'See How Many Shots of Beer You Can Fit Into Your Mouth At Once' compatition.  

It was a close finish but i won but half a shot!

Qingyuan City History

Known as the 'The backyard garden of the Pearl Delta', Qingyuan is a young and vibrant city with the largest land area in Guangdong. It is surrounded by beautiful mountains, rivers, forests, streams, gorges, lakes and hot springs. Definitely a place worth exploring when you travel to Guangdong province. It is bordered by Guangzhou in the south, neighboring Hunan and Guangxi provinces in the north.

History: Before the Qin Dynasty (220BC-206BC) united China, this area was inhabited by many ancient minorities in South China, generally called Bai Yue. Qingyuan region partly belonged to Nanhai Shire and Changsha Shire during the Qin Dynasty. In the early Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD), it was governed by the Nanyue State, and the central government conquered it and brought this region into the Guiyang Shire later.

Present Qingyuan City was established in 1988.
Beers N Noodles toya...shane
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The Soundtrack to this entry was by The Foo Fighters
The album was 'The Colour and The Sound'
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