Last Sunday, the interpreters organized a day trip to Fengdongshi Scenic Park on the Dongshan Peninsula.
We left early on a twelve person bus.
There were two new additions to our party, Andy and Gilles.
Andy arrived the week before. He's a trainee from UOP. This is his first time outside the U.S.
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| Andy in a tuk-tuk. |
Gilles is French and an Axens veteran. He's been on assignment in Zhangpu before.
Gilles was jet-lagged and sick when we went to Dongshan. He said the weather was about 36˚ F (2˚ C) in France and nearly 88˚ F (32˚ C) in Zhangpu. Talk about a flash-thaw of any viruses or bacteria.
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| Gilles waiting for the boat to Tayu Islet |
The two hour drive to Dongshan was quiet. We were tired, jet-lagged, and a little hungover from the night before.
Many of us slept, but the interpreters didn't. They were excited to show us the place they visited weeks before.
The interpreters (Aubrey, Elanor, Sarah, and Wendy [pictured below]) are new to Zhangpu, too. They come from different cities and provinces. Zhangpu, and the surrounding area, is just as new to them as it is to us.
Dongshan Peninsula is across the bay from Gulei, where they work. Fengdongshi Park is on the eastern tip of the peninsula, and we could see the Dragon Aromatics refinery.
Fengdongshi is part tourist and pilgrimage destination.
The first attraction we saw upon entering the park was the Dongshan Fengdongshi Stone.
The stone is more like a boulder. It balances on a cliff's edge.
Sarah told me the local folklore about the stone.
The Japanese wanted to pull the stone into the sea to demoralize the locals.
They connected a couple tug boats to the rock with ropes and chains. When the boats started pulling, the rock didn't move.
They went full-throttle, but the rock didn't budge.
Eventually, all the ships' engines failed, and they sank into the sea.
At least, that's how the story goes.
The rock reminded me of the Balanced Stone at Devil's Lake, Wisconsin.
A short walk from the rock is a temple. Aubrey said it's one of the luckiest temples in China.
Practitioners from all over the province come there to pray and make a wish. Calling them "practitioners," though, is too stern. They are more like revelers.
Before we reached the temple, we were pushed aside to make room for a parade. A menagerie of color and noise passed us.
People dressed in costumes, carried shrines, waved flags, towed speakers blaring Gangnam Style, and dragged ropes of firecrackers. It was a party as prayer and prayer as party.
The revelers did a circuit of the park at least three times that I saw, and the temple was their start and end point.
When we got to the temple, it was packed with tourists and revelers. The only way I could tell them apart was by the bags around their arms. If they were tourists, they had cameras and purses. The revelers had plastic bags filled with food and candy as offerings.
Aubrey taught us how to visit temples in China:
1.) Don't take pictures
2.) Enter the temple with your left foot first
3.) Walk counter-clockwise
4.) Don't point with one finger
5.) Exit the temple with your right foot first
Follow those simple rules and luck result.
Like all things China, though, the rules are just suggestions. There were plenty of people taking pictures, walking clockwise, and using any foot to enter or exit the temple.
After the temple, we walked through a garden to the beachfront boardwalk.
Signs forbade swimming, but that didn't stop Elanor and Wendy from getting their feet wet.
The rest of us climbed on the rocks.
It was past noon, and we were hungry and sunburned. We walked the boardwalk back to the van and headed into town.
Sarah's friend lived in Dongshan and recommended a hotel restaurant that served local seafood.
The lunch was a delicious reprieve from the sun. Many of us were sobering up at that point, but the sapping energy of sunburn was hitting us.
After lunch, we went back to Fengdongshi Park and boarded a boat for Tayu Islet.
Tayu is directly between Dongshan and Gulei Peninsulas. It's an L-shaped island with a walking path through two mountains and ending at a temple complex across the bay from the port.
The sun didn't diminish during our lunch, so we roasted climbing the first mountain.
Despite the heat, it was a beautiful hike. Stairs wove between rocks and trees.
Halfway up the mountain was a observation area with a view of the temple complex across the bay.
The view at the top, though, was the best.
A stone marker topped the first mountain, but the real attraction was the South China Sea.
It spread out all around us stretching to infinity. The blue sea and sky blended together. The boats below looked minuscule. The heat and exhaustion was worth the view.
Time, however, was running short. The last ship back to Dongshan left at 4:30 P.M. and it was 3 o'clock. We needed to descend the mountain and take a fishing boat across the bay.
Thankfully, there were a few small boats willing to take us across. Unfortunately, the owners wanted to charge us triple because we're laowai.
The interpreters saved us. Elanor and Sarah haggled with two owners, trying to get the best price.
For twenty minutes, there was yelling and violent hand gestures. Sarah was the go between, and Elanor was the tension reliever. She'd laugh at the more animated of the owners, while Sarah calmly negotiated a price.
It worked. The original 220¥ ($37) came down to 80¥ ($13).
Boarding and disembarking the boat was a work out, though. There were no hand rails or docks. We had to walk down a set of stone steps and jump onto the bobbing vessel.
Once we were all on, the pilot fired up the engine. It was loud and smokey.
The ride over took about five minutes. We had to climb across the decks of three different boats to disembark.
The struggle was worth it, though, because the temple was unique and perhaps the most authentic we'll see on this assignment.
Statues scattered the temple grounds. Each was about three feet tall and depicted a Buddha, Bodhisattva, or person of lore. Aubrey said the statues were given to the temple as a donation.
There were real monks living on the island. Most temples on the tourist radar don't have live-in monks like that, or if they do, they're professional monks - paid to maintain the attraction and get their picture taken.
Not these monks. We were visiting their home.
Unlike the Fengdongshi temple, there weren't many tourists, revelers, or otherwise. There also weren't clear paths.
The trails wove around trees and through bushes. We'd walk up one stairway and suddenly be in their cafeteria or living quarters. It was surreal.
There were some Chinese characters and an arrow on one wall.
"It says 'Vegetarian Meals,'" Aubrey translated, "This is a vegetarian temple."
The monks' lives were difficult but peaceful. They worked hard in the name of enlightenment. I found it appealing.
Our disgruntled captain was waiting with his boat as we descended the temple stairs. He took us back across the bay just in time to catch our ship back to Dongshan Peninsula.
We were all sunburned and tired by the time we got in the van. Everyone slept on the way back to Zhangpu.
The four ladies that showed us around Dongshan aren't just interpreters or guides, they're our friends. The eleven of us went to Dongshan to enjoy our time off together. Despite our geographical and national difference, the joy of a sunny day spent with friends is the same.
SIDE NOTE:
There have been a lot of crew changes in the last week.
In addition to adding Andy and Gilles, SB's chief on this assignment arrived two weeks ago. His name is Rick.
He's a road veteran of nearly 18 years, and he lived almost three-quarters of that time in Beijing on an expatriate assignment.
Axens also added two new people to their crew, Osama and Mohcine. I look forward to getting to know them more in the coming weeks.
There have been two real low points in the last week, though.
Olivier got really sick and had to go to the hospital. He had a temperature of nearly 103˚ F and a cough that wouldn't relent. He's almost better, but the cough still haunts him.
I hope he gets better soon, because we miss his sense of humor.
Fabian left this week. He went back to France for three weeks to spend time with his family and take a much needed vacation.
We also miss him and his sense of humor. I hope he's enjoying his time off and we get to see him, again.
Many of us slept, but the interpreters didn't. They were excited to show us the place they visited weeks before.
The interpreters (Aubrey, Elanor, Sarah, and Wendy [pictured below]) are new to Zhangpu, too. They come from different cities and provinces. Zhangpu, and the surrounding area, is just as new to them as it is to us.
 |
| Left to Right: Elanor, Wendy, Aubrey, and Sarah |
Dongshan Peninsula is across the bay from Gulei, where they work. Fengdongshi Park is on the eastern tip of the peninsula, and we could see the Dragon Aromatics refinery.
Fengdongshi is part tourist and pilgrimage destination.
The first attraction we saw upon entering the park was the Dongshan Fengdongshi Stone.
The stone is more like a boulder. It balances on a cliff's edge.
Sarah told me the local folklore about the stone.
The Japanese wanted to pull the stone into the sea to demoralize the locals.
They connected a couple tug boats to the rock with ropes and chains. When the boats started pulling, the rock didn't move.
They went full-throttle, but the rock didn't budge.
Eventually, all the ships' engines failed, and they sank into the sea.
At least, that's how the story goes.
 |
| Left to Right: Wendy, Andy, SB, Gilles, Olivier, Aubrey, Fabian, Sarah, Galina, and Elanor |
The rock reminded me of the Balanced Stone at Devil's Lake, Wisconsin.
A short walk from the rock is a temple. Aubrey said it's one of the luckiest temples in China.
Practitioners from all over the province come there to pray and make a wish. Calling them "practitioners," though, is too stern. They are more like revelers.
Before we reached the temple, we were pushed aside to make room for a parade. A menagerie of color and noise passed us.
People dressed in costumes, carried shrines, waved flags, towed speakers blaring Gangnam Style, and dragged ropes of firecrackers. It was a party as prayer and prayer as party.
The revelers did a circuit of the park at least three times that I saw, and the temple was their start and end point.
When we got to the temple, it was packed with tourists and revelers. The only way I could tell them apart was by the bags around their arms. If they were tourists, they had cameras and purses. The revelers had plastic bags filled with food and candy as offerings.
 |
| A lion statue outside the temple. It symbolizes majesty. |
1.) Don't take pictures
2.) Enter the temple with your left foot first
3.) Walk counter-clockwise
4.) Don't point with one finger
5.) Exit the temple with your right foot first
Follow those simple rules and luck result.
Like all things China, though, the rules are just suggestions. There were plenty of people taking pictures, walking clockwise, and using any foot to enter or exit the temple.
After the temple, we walked through a garden to the beachfront boardwalk.
Signs forbade swimming, but that didn't stop Elanor and Wendy from getting their feet wet.
 |
| Elanor and Wendy cool their feet in the water. |
It was past noon, and we were hungry and sunburned. We walked the boardwalk back to the van and headed into town.
Sarah's friend lived in Dongshan and recommended a hotel restaurant that served local seafood.
The lunch was a delicious reprieve from the sun. Many of us were sobering up at that point, but the sapping energy of sunburn was hitting us.
 |
| I don't like taking food photos, but this Mango Shrimp Boat was cool. |
Tayu is directly between Dongshan and Gulei Peninsulas. It's an L-shaped island with a walking path through two mountains and ending at a temple complex across the bay from the port.
 |
| The temples on Tayu Islet |
Despite the heat, it was a beautiful hike. Stairs wove between rocks and trees.
Halfway up the mountain was a observation area with a view of the temple complex across the bay.
 |
| Fabian preparing for the final stretch. |
A stone marker topped the first mountain, but the real attraction was the South China Sea.
 |
| Elanor, Wendy, Aubrey, and Sarah on top of the first mountain. |
Time, however, was running short. The last ship back to Dongshan left at 4:30 P.M. and it was 3 o'clock. We needed to descend the mountain and take a fishing boat across the bay.
Thankfully, there were a few small boats willing to take us across. Unfortunately, the owners wanted to charge us triple because we're laowai.
 |
| Haggling over a boat ride. |
For twenty minutes, there was yelling and violent hand gestures. Sarah was the go between, and Elanor was the tension reliever. She'd laugh at the more animated of the owners, while Sarah calmly negotiated a price.
It worked. The original 220¥ ($37) came down to 80¥ ($13).
Boarding and disembarking the boat was a work out, though. There were no hand rails or docks. We had to walk down a set of stone steps and jump onto the bobbing vessel.
Once we were all on, the pilot fired up the engine. It was loud and smokey.
The ride over took about five minutes. We had to climb across the decks of three different boats to disembark.
The struggle was worth it, though, because the temple was unique and perhaps the most authentic we'll see on this assignment.
Statues scattered the temple grounds. Each was about three feet tall and depicted a Buddha, Bodhisattva, or person of lore. Aubrey said the statues were given to the temple as a donation.
 |
| Don't Blink. The statues at the Tayu Islet temple. |
 |
| Monks working at the Tayu Islet temple. |
Unlike the Fengdongshi temple, there weren't many tourists, revelers, or otherwise. There also weren't clear paths.
The trails wove around trees and through bushes. We'd walk up one stairway and suddenly be in their cafeteria or living quarters. It was surreal.
There were some Chinese characters and an arrow on one wall.
"It says 'Vegetarian Meals,'" Aubrey translated, "This is a vegetarian temple."
The monks' lives were difficult but peaceful. They worked hard in the name of enlightenment. I found it appealing.
Our disgruntled captain was waiting with his boat as we descended the temple stairs. He took us back across the bay just in time to catch our ship back to Dongshan Peninsula.
 |
| Olivier reenacting a scene from Titanic. "I'm king of the world!" |
The four ladies that showed us around Dongshan aren't just interpreters or guides, they're our friends. The eleven of us went to Dongshan to enjoy our time off together. Despite our geographical and national difference, the joy of a sunny day spent with friends is the same.
SIDE NOTE:
There have been a lot of crew changes in the last week.
In addition to adding Andy and Gilles, SB's chief on this assignment arrived two weeks ago. His name is Rick.
He's a road veteran of nearly 18 years, and he lived almost three-quarters of that time in Beijing on an expatriate assignment.
Axens also added two new people to their crew, Osama and Mohcine. I look forward to getting to know them more in the coming weeks.
There have been two real low points in the last week, though.
Olivier got really sick and had to go to the hospital. He had a temperature of nearly 103˚ F and a cough that wouldn't relent. He's almost better, but the cough still haunts him.
I hope he gets better soon, because we miss his sense of humor.
Fabian left this week. He went back to France for three weeks to spend time with his family and take a much needed vacation.
We also miss him and his sense of humor. I hope he's enjoying his time off and we get to see him, again.
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