We entered the park and memories flooded back from being in the same spot just a few years ago. You know, I'm not usually one for going to the same place twice, because I'd rather spend my money on places I haven't seen. But I agreed on this trip because I really wanted Bailey to see Zhangjiajie. And when I got there today, I couldn't be happier to be back! It is seriously one of the most beautiful places in the world.
We started a hike right away. Now, one thing about hikes in China is that they consist primarily of STAIRS. I was well prepared for this, and none of us girls seemed to mind, but the boys lagged a little behind, haha.
Everyone was a good sport, though, as "hiking" up the mountain included some amazing sights. Every now and then we came across a lookout spot where we could take a break and take some pictures.
One of the coolest parts of today was when we were just walking, and all of a sudden coming down the stairs towards us was a whole big family of monkeys! They seriously came out of nowhere! Unfortunately Katey was carrying a clear bag of bananas that she had bought, so they headed straight towards her and started jumping at her, tearing open the bag and stealing her bananas!
When Katey tried to put the rest of her food in Mitch's backpack, a monkey jumped out of a tree, onto the backpack - Mitch had to shake him off! After watching all of this I was a little bit creeped out by these smart little dudes.
For about an hour after that we saw lots of monkeys. The babies were so cute but I was being careful to stay away because of the death glares their mothers were giving us.
The hike continued onwards and upwards, and the day was getting warmer. We were blessed with such a beautiful day! I would say at least. Some of my friends would have preferred to see the mist that Zhangjiajie is known for, which makes the mountains look as if they were floating. But I preferred the warmer weather. Plus, I've already seen these mountains in mist haha.
Finally we made it to the very top! What a view!
Zhangjiajie is filled with cable cars, which is really nice when you need a break from hiking. We took one to another peak. I love cable cars!
Throughout the day we just snacked and snacked. There weren't really any meal food options, but plenty of snacks! Bailey enjoyed his cucumber, I enjoyed my pineapple, flatbread, ice cream, roasted chestnuts, and more.
As evening approached we realized that we needed to start thinking about making it back to the entrance of the park. Our options were: take an expensive glass elevator then walk for four miles, hire a minibus for a ridiculous price, or walk for 3 to 4 hours to the entrance. We were hesitant to walk because it would be dark soon, and we didn't know if we could get out of the park past closing time.
We asked two local student girls what their plan was, and they said they were going to take a series of busses but that it would take hours. They weren't sure though, and followed us as we tried to bargain with the minibus driver. They decided they would just stick with us and do whatever we did, but they were terrified when we decided on the walking option! They told us it would be dark and dangerous, but we told them that in America, we hike in the dark all the time!
The moment we started our descent, I was glad that we chose the walking route. Seeing the mountains at sunset is a totally different experience!
It was fun to chat with the two locals on our way down. They stopped being nervous pretty quickly, and seemed to have a lot of fun! One girl was 18 and her sister was 19. The 18 year old spoke great English but her sister spoke none. Neither of them had English names, so by the end of the trip we gave them the names Malia and Jenny!
It was indeed dark by the time we reached the entrance, but it hadn't taken us nearly as much time as the people up top told us it would. In fact, we made it back faster than Rachel and Spencer who took the elevator route!
We ended the night with noodles and fried rice at a local restaurant, and went right to bed to rest up for another day's adventure.
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