For Thanksgiving weekend, my colleagues and I traveled to Wulingyuan, in the Hunan providence in China. In one word, Wulingyuan was AMAZING! We were treated to breath-taking views, clean air, warm sunshine and friendly locals, including our tour guide, Isabel.
I was so happy the trip turned out to be a great success, considering things can either go really well, or really terribly here in China (squatty potties, spitting, screaming matches come to mind). It was actually very easy to get around, and we only had minor communication mishaps. It was definitely a good idea to use the guide, as she was able to get us in and around the three parks relatively quickly and brought us on some paths that were definitely the paths less traveled.
If you find yourself in Wulingyuan, please be sure to check this restaurant out, on the main road to the National Park entrance.
The logistics:
We flew into the Zhangjiajie airport. Make sure you arrange transport in advance, because we were ripped off by the taxis on our way to the airport, since they refused to use the meter. We stayed at the Wulingyuan Jianghan Hotel, which was basic and somewhat clean. The breakfast was terrible, so buy fruit on the street (close to the restaurant listed above). Also, the dinner at the hotel was rustic, as we sat at outdoor patio tables with fire pits underneath, and had many choices of unidentified meat to choose from. Luckily, the wait staff were very patient with us, as we entered the kitchen to physically show them which vegetables we wanted to eat, along with which spices/garlic/oil we wanted them to use.
Ahhh.... only in China!
T minus 10 days until my Christmas trip to Bali! WoowhoO!
Hope you and yours are enjoying the holiday season!
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