The small town of Tangkou near Huang Shan (Yellow Mountain)
As we made our way to the coach station on the local bus I looked out the window. We passed several places with Christmas decorations hanging on the windows and doors. It's May! This wasn't the first time I had seen "Merry Christmas" banners and tinsel still on display. Many shops and restaurants in China seem to enjoy these seasonal decorations all year round. I wondered what the fascination was. As we neared the coach station I couldn't help but watch a man let his young child wee on the floor of the bus. He cradled the girl in his arms and held her over the stairwell as she sprayed the floor. I couldn't believe it. Nobody on the bus seemed to care. We got off the bus (avoiding the wet area) and proceeded to the ticket office inside the coach station. I remembered the first time we took a train in Italy. I was so excited. The journey seemed to be almost as exciting as the place we were going. I loved the anticipation and eagerly awaited our train pulling in. Now I'm bored of trains and coaches. I can't wait for the journey to end. Occasionally however, there is some mild entertainment on the trains. The last time we took a train there was a man selling socks. Not just any socks, but indestructible, non-wearing, non-tearing, flame-resistant ones available in a rainbow of colours. I laughed at his demonstration. He pulled out a wire brush and dragged it through the material to prove how strong they were. He then asked me to hold one end as he pulled the other. Everyone in the carriage was laughing. He pulled harder. He pulled me out of my seat. The socks had been pulled so far and hard but never lost their shape. Amazing. Didn't buy a pair. I still haven't come round to the idea of eating chicken legs. The Chinese love them. They don't waste a single part of an animal. I haven't seen Chicken heads on sticks yet but I'm sure they exist - somewhere.
We took the coach from Huangzhou to a small town called Tangkou at the foot of Huang Shan (Yellow Mountain). The nearest hotel seemed to be a good choice and was recommended by Mr Hu (the man standing outside). Mr Hu lives in Tangkou and speaks reasonable English. He likes to help tourists and is a good person to know considering nobody else in the town speaks our language. He showed us the room and helped negotiate a good deal with the management. We got the double room for about 3 pounds. Mr Hu also informed us that he owns a small restaurant only 5 minutes away. His wife apparently cooks very good food. I was hungry and figured it was the least we could do for all his help. We showered and met him in the lobby 40 minutes later.
The restaurant was small and simple with only three tables and a counter. There were paintings of Huang Shan on the wall and a small display cabinet in the corner which had books in it. We looked at the menu. I was tempted to try the mountain frog but felt like I needed something more substantial. After dinner we walked around the main street which followed both sides of the river. We bought a walking cane for tomorrow's hike up the mountain. I also had my hair cut by a male Asian version of Tina Turner. His hair was wild and bleached with all sorts of colour. It wasn't a bad cut for a pound. I was desperate!
