| Feature Article
Highlights of the 2004 China Trip :
Shanghai, Mount Wudang, Xian, Huashan, Luoyang,
Shaolin Temple and Beijing
|
| Yu Garden, Shanghai |
Twenty-nine students and family members joined the Tai
Chi Academy tour this year. Our journey commenced in Shanghai, one
of the largest cities in the world. It is a city with many faces;
it combines the old with the new. Places such as the Peace Hotel
reflect the rich colonial architecture of its time. The beautiful
Yu Garden, built between 1559 and 1577, preserves the traditional
Chinese culture of days gone by. The striking TV tower shines like
a monument to modern architecture. We also visited the Shanghai
Museum and saw Shanghai in all its glorious neon lights on our night
cruise. And, of course, there was the shopping which everyone
enjoyed – great bargains and never-ending stories.
After Shanghai, we went to Mount Wudang, a legendary
place where Taoist Master Chang San Feng developled Tai Chi Chuan
(generally known as Tai Chi for short). Tai Chi was unlike any other
martial arts in China at that time. Chang successfully combined the
internal Taoist practices of healing and strengthening one’s vitality,
energy and spirit into one dynamic form of training, which also served
as a form of self defence. Mount Wudang is the perfect place for
training. It is peaceful, majestic and full of qi and vitality. You
can literally feel the energy of this sacred mountain. Training at our
hotel every morning gave us a beautiful view of mountains and trees and
a sense of another world. We had our training sessions with Taoist
Master Yuan from the Wudang Taoist Martial Arts Institute. Master Yuan
talked for an hour about various aspects of Taoism first before he
taught us some of the Wudang Tai Chi form – a thoroughly enjoyable
experience.
From our peaceful mountain abode, it was on to Xian to
see the magnificent terra cotta warriors. Xian is a very interesting
city, oozing with history. In recent times, it has been developed into
a major tourist attraction. Its modern buildings and shining night
lights are testament to a place of fun and leisure.
|
| Yin Yang Stone
Carving, Huashan |
After a short but interesting stay at Xian, we headed for
Huashan, a mountain which is famous for its near-vertical cliffs and
plunging ravines. The name “hua” means flower. The mountains in this
range are shaped in the form of five petals of a flower. The fame of
Huashan derives from its natural beauty which takes the form of huge
granite peaks towering over the plains of the Shanxi province.
Throughout its many peaks and valleys are Taoist monasteries. During
the Song Dynasty, the fate of Huashan
was played over a game of chess between Taoist
sage
Chen
Tuan (c871-989
A.D.)
on Huashan and Emperor
Zhao
Kuang Yi. Emperor
Zhao wanted to use Huashan for a military garrison.
Chen wanted Huashan to remain as a sacred mountain. Although the
Emperor was famous for his expertise at chess, yet Chen was skilled in
the art of divination, so he predicted the Emperor’s every move.
The Taoist sage
won the game and the Emperor kept his word and
left Huashan alone.
The Chess Game Pavilion, a monument to the contest, still stands today
on the top of the central peak of Huashan.
Huashan is filled with many such legends. The more
you know about Chinese history, the more interesting travel in China
becomes.
From Huashan, we travelled through China’s vast
agricultural interior – farms and produce as far as the eye can see.
Five hours later, we arrived in Luoyang, one of China's seven ancient
capitals. Luoyang was the beginning of the famous ancient trade route,
The Silk Road, linking China with the Mediterranean. Unfortunately,
most of its history was destroyed during the Japanese occupation. We
visited the Longmen Grottoes, caves which have over 10,000 Buddhist
statues of all different sizes carved into the walls. These grottoes
are built along the edge of a river, a truly beautiful setting.
|
| Shaolin Monks
performing at the Shaolin Temple |
From Luoyang, we went to the famous Shaolin Temple. We
had training sessions on Yi
Jin
Jing, Muscle Tendon Changing Qigong,
with a monk who is one of the coaches. This is an ancient set of
exercises passed down from the Buddhist Monk Damo (born around 440 A.D.)
who had a great influence on the direction of the Shaolin Temple. Damo
spent many years meditating in cave. He had many realizations. One was
the use of various movements and breathing to influence the body’s
internal organs and meridians. The Yi
Jin
Jing set is an important
part of the monks’ training, enabling them to develop flexibility,
internal strength and healing capabilities.
Our final destination was
Beijing.
Apart from the many historical sites such as the Forbidden City, the
Summer Palace, Tian An Men Square, the Ming Tomb and the Great Wall, we
were very fortunate to train with Grandmaster Feng Zhi Qiang,
founder of the Hun Yuan Tai Chi system. Grandmaster Feng guided us
through the Hun Yuan Qigong and the Hun Yuan Tai Chi 24 form on the
lovely grounds of the Temple of Heaven Park – one of the highlights of
our trip.
I hope that this brief description of the tour has given
you a glimpse of our experience of travelling in
China.
There are many fascinating stories about people, places and food. I
hope you can join us on our next tour and experience the places, people
and culture that is China.
–
Chief Instructor Brett Wagland
It was an
incredible, eye-opening experience for Tash and myself. Twenty-nine Tai
Chi students and partners plus Brett left for
China
on 13 September and returned to Australia on 1 October. In between was
an amazing journey. The observations of participants in the China tour
last year were all reinforced.
|
| Shanghai |
Our
impression was of a country undergoing rapid change. There is a huge
investment in infrastructure, particularly the road network and in new
buildings, both commercial and residential. There is a big emphasis on
the beautification of public places, with instant, Floriade-style,
plantings of flowers and shrubs along nature strips, parks and public
places. It also appears that the Chinese have a tradition of tree
planting in urban areas, with all roadsides, central nature strips and
even the narrow alleys of the Hu Tong, growing significant numbers of
mature trees. In all, the Chinese appear to be making a great effort to
present their country to visitors to the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Our
tour started in Shanghai, a most dynamic city. Most impressive was the
innovative architecture of the new buildings. High rise office
buildings with walls of waving glass, crowned by roof features, or a
tubular space needle structure supported by angled columns. It made
even the most modern Australian buildings look rather pedestrian by
comparison.
We
could spend only limited time at the Shanghai Museum where there are
excellent collections of artefacts from all eras of China’s cultural
history. We particularly enjoyed the exhibition of ceramics and
calligraphy. Other highlights were the Yu Garden, an excellent
combination of water features, architecture, sculpture and garden, and
the Bund along the river where older Soviet style architecture
contrasted with modern Shanghai.
|
| Nan Yan Palace, Mount Wudang |
And
so to Wudang, centre for Taoist martial arts and Taoist philosophy. The
journey required a bus trip from Wuhan to Wudang. What a journey! The
road winds through rural China. As the harvest had started, the road
was also used for drying corn, threshing grain, stacking produce to be
transported as well as transporting rural workers in overloaded trailers
drawn by single cylinder diesel engines travelling at about 6km/hour,
while through traffic attempted to travel at more than 10 times that
speed. With road rules apparently regarded only as guidelines, it made
for an interesting trip. It was particularly interesting to see how the
Chinese lived in the villages, even if only viewed from the bus.
Wudang Shan (Mountain) is magic. I had seen the depictions of Chinese
scenery of high, steep sided mountains with temples impossibly clinging
to the top and sides and thought of them as being caricatures, but it is
all true. Nan Yan Palace clinging high up on the side of a mountain and
overlooking the steep slopes to the valley floor, was breath taking.
The effort involved for the ancient Chinese to build these temples and
shrines must have been enormous.
Our
hotel was adjacent
to the Wudang Taoist
Martial Arts Institute
where we were introduced to Master Yuan. For the next three days, the
Master would give a dissertation on the development of Taoism and Taoist
history, then would lead us in Tai Chi practice. What an experience for
us! We were also treated to a demonstration by the students. A star
was a lad of about 10 whose enthusiasm and precision in the movements
was astounding.
|
| Terracotta
Warriors, Xian |
Next to Xian, an ancient yet modern, pleasant city, close the the vault
of the terracotta warriors and the site of the Banpo Neolithic Village.
Alas, the actual site of the village was closed for conservation and
related works, but there was an extensive interpretive display of the
many artefacts from the village which was particularly interesting.
Huashan, with its very steep granitic mountains was the next
destination. A spectacular cable car ride followed by steep walks to
the peaks, including, at one section, steps cut into a near vertical
rock face with a hanging chain as a hand rail. Even though, at
this stage we reckoned on developing some strength in our legs from the
climbing, spare a thought for the porters. All supplies for the
restaurants and shops in the mountains were brought in by porters in the
classical tradition of a pole over the shoulder with a balanced load on
the ends. One of our number calculated the load at up to 60kg. If ever
I feel like complaining of being tired or sore from hard work or
walking, I shall just remember those porters.
Shaolin was another highlight. Deng Feng city is a modern centre of
300,000, with some 300,000 Wushu (kung fu) students at the many schools.
We visited one of the schools where the 5,000 students receive both
academic and Wushu lessons. It is quite an exercise in logistics as
students live in the schools, thus requiring living and academic
accommodation. The city was preparing to host its First International
Wushu Festival, a major event given China’s reputation and status in
kung fu. There was a lot of building activity and preparation of public
places with sculptures, street plantings, etc. At the Shaolin Temple,
we were led by the Master in Muscle and Tendon Changing Qigong (Yi Jin Jing), exercises that really tested our body flexibility and strength.
|
Practising with Grandmaster Feng,
founder of the Hun Yuan Tai Chi system |
We
arrived in Beijing after an overnight train trip (sleeper cars). Our
stay was to be the climax of the tour with Tai Chi practice conducted by
Grandmaster Feng, along with Miss Feng and other instructors from the
Hun Yuan Academy. What an experience! Much emphasis was placed on
the Qigong exercises, leading to the practice of the Hun Yuan form of
Tai Chi. Grandmaster Feng, Miss Feng and the instructors demonstrated
the subtle energy generated in their practice of the form and how to
truly relax through the movements. It was very powerful stuff. For
myself, I realised that how much I still had to learn and how much my
enthusiasm was revived.
Otherwise in Beijing, the major historic and cultural attractions were
covered in our tour itinerary. For first time visitors it was an
excellent program. Of course, there was not enough time to do all that
we would have liked. But then, that gives us a reason (if one was
needed) to come back.
Coda
- The tour was
great value for money. To do all that travel with accommodation and
meals included at that price was amazing.
- Conditions in
China for travelling tourists are better than we had been led to
believe. China is putting in a huge effort to present itself to the
world it seems. Attendants and cleaners are present at all major
venues to keep the places clean and there are street cleaners
everywhere, so the cities are kept spotless.
- Chinese people
are very friendly. A smile and a “hello” to them always produced a
warm response. Apart from obvious risk places, it seems to be a very
safe place to travel and walk in the cities. We did quite a bit of
walking in the cities (time permitting) and really enjoyed it. Travel
by taxi is no problem if you have the destinations written down for
the driver to read.
|
| Longmen Grottoes, Luoyang |
- Shopping was
something else! It was hard to get used to just how much bargaining
was involved and the adjusting to the difference between the first
price asked and the final price set.
- Tour guide
Vincent was great, his hard work ensured that there were no problems
on the tour.
- I haven’t
reported on great character moments, such as the meal at the Old
Beijing Noodle House, more a Mongolian feast, bringing out the
primeval in people such as John, or the refined bargaining skills
developed by Wendy and Patsy, or the keen navigation skills shown by
Angela or the all night “500” card tournament held in one sleeper
compartment by the younger set, led on by Carla or the armful of
watches proudly displayed by Ray, and ask Alex how to carve Peking
duck.
- Nor have I
reported the numbers of citizens in the cities where we stayed,
practising Tai Chi and Qigong in groups in public places in the
morning. When the group practised in unusual places (airports,
hotels) we were often joined by strangers.
Finally having an experienced tour guide in Vincent Wu with us was
invaluable. The tour went so smoothly largely due to his efforts.
And
a big thanks too to Fontane and Brett for the organisation of the tour.
They must have made a big effort and it showed.
Would I go again, - yes in a heartbeat.
–
Richard
|
| Shaolin |
The trip to China was a great way to get an insight into
modern
China,
and to gain an appreciation of some of its long history. The visits to
Wudang and Huashan were very interesting for the mountain scenery, the
history of the places and to gain some understanding of how these places
remain important in China today. The instruction that the group was
given in Wudang, Shaolin and Beijing was great
–
with the time in Beijing being particularly memorable. Some insight
into the commercial aspects of martial arts around Shaolin was very
interesting - some 90 schools operate in the area. We visited one large
boarding school with over 6,000
students, where students undertake 4 hours of martial arts training
daily, as well as the standard school curriculum.
The day-to-day sights, together with the big tourist attractions
(Warriors, Great
Wall etc.)
and the guides'
insights into Chinese
history and life today, all made the trip very rewarding.
– Pat
|
| Golden Hall at
the Summit of Mount Wudang |
Although we were concerned about traveling in China with
a 7 year old, we need not have worried. Tim had a great time. All of
us on the tour became used to being looked at but Tim attracted the most
attention. At one point he was surrounded by school kids wanting to
know things about him and where he was from.
The food was fantastic and we would travel there again,
just to eat the food. With the price of beer being the same as water,
we tried the different local beers at each of provinces that we travelled through.
The
highlight of the trip was the time spent at Wudang Shan, visiting the
temples around and the training at
the Wudang
Taoist Martial Arts Institute.
The first temple we visited was the Nan Yan Palace, which must have been
truly magnificent in its day. The buildings and paths (mostly steps!)
are built not only on the few flat spaces, but are also carved into or
hanging off the mountain face. The second temple we visited was the
Golden Hall, which is located at the top of the highest peak in Wudang
Shan, and is reached by cable car. Our final visit was to the Purple
Cloud Palace, a functioning Taoist temple.
–
Sharon, Shane and Timothy
|
| Marble Boat, Summer Palace |
The
2004 trip to China was great. Things started with a rush when we landed
in Shanghai during the middle of a typhoon. Did you know that a
Boeing 777 can still land when it approaches the runway sideways? On
our way from the hustle and unexplained smells of Shanghai to the quiet
misty peaks of Wudang, we experienced some of the most creative
high-speed bus driving I've ever seen. It seems that three large
trucks and a bus full of Australian tourists can all pass each other
simultaneously on a two lane road providing all drivers use their horns
excessively.
Wudang was definitely a highlight of the trip. From the impossibly
steep limestone cliffs with ancient temples perched at the top to daily
Tai Chi training with Master Yuan, Wudang is certainly worth a visit.
From here we travelled up through much of central China, visiting
various places to see the sights, and punch Shaolin monks as hard as
possible (without any discernable effect). Tai Chi training with
Grandmaster Feng, walking along the Great Wall and fabulous shopping
made the conclusion of the trip in Beijing another one of the
highlights. From the people, sights, sounds and smells, China is a land
of contrasts and well worth a visit.
–
Murli
When
I first started writing about
my experiences in China,
several highlights
came to mind. There was the
beautiful
Mount
Wudang, a place that I’m sure everyone found to be a highlight of their
trip. There was the Great Wall, which was also very special. It was
amazing to walk on a structure which was so old and had so much history.
But when I think back to which parts of the trip had the
most impact on me, I would have to say that the first walk through
Shanghai was one of them.
|
| Huashan |
We were delivered by coach from our hotel to a large car
park the morning after we touched down in Shanghai. The moment our
group got off the bus, we were assailed by street hawkers, all trying
desperately to sell us postcards or fake Rolexes. Although I was very
much used to it by the end of the trip, it was very alien for me to see
people so determined to sell you anything that they could. After
fighting our way past the four or five hawkers, we made our way down
through an opening in the fence to the street which would lead us to our
destination, the Yu Garden. The walk to the Garden was quite amazing.
We went past many small stalls selling a variety of things from food to
fireworks to Gameboy games (all very cheap). As we walked past each
stall, the vendors would call out, “Hello, hello” trying to get us to
stop and buy something.
Although it was a Tuesday, the place was full of people
doing all manner of things like playing checkers or ma
jong or just
hitting a shuttlecock to each other.
The Yu Garden was a very nice place. As with most places
in China, it was a fairly ancient structure and just about every part we
went to had a five-minute story attached by our very knowledgeable tour
guide. Although it wasn’t as crowded as some of the pictures you would
see on the postcards, it was still full of people everywhere you went.
The rest of our day consisted of lots of walking and visits to the silk
factory, Shanghai Museum and a very nice night cruise on the Huangpu
River.
I think the reason that this was one of the highlights of
my trip was that it was the first time I had been in a completely
different culture and it really stuck with me.
–
Chris
It is not easy to verbalise the many images and
experiences this trip has given us. Although we read up a little on
Chinese current affairs and history, China was a new country for Heidi
and me.
|
| Huashan |
The most striking discovery about China today was that
much of what we heard about the place was wrong or at least no longer
true. We never felt we were in a communist or military dominated
country as we never saw obvious propaganda, military hardware or any
guns, like we had experienced in Russia in the mid-90s. We saw people
trying to make a buck, people enjoying their cities and parks, lots of labour intensive hard work and busy big city life. You feel the place
humming along and you know that the rate of change in this society is
moving at a break-neck speed.
Contact with people was limited to the usual tourist
exchanges with restaurant/hotel staff, sales people or cabbies, but a
smile was met with a smile and people were helpful. If you could speak
a few words, people were interested to hear we were from Australia.
Chairman Mao and the Cultural Revolution are non-topics. People prefer
to remember 1980 and “the open door” policy as the time when their lives
started to change for the better. Occasionally, you hear stories
illustrating there is still a fair bit of central decision making. Like
the one about how now that dogs in Beijing have moved from being food
items to pets, a local ordinance has been enacted stipulating that they
“shall not be taller than 35cm above the ground” (try that in
Canberra!).
The accommodation was much
better than our expectations. Toilets too, did not match their
reputation. Our 2 imported toilet rolls and thick soled “shower
slippers” were soon ditched to make room in the suitcases for goodies,
which seemed to accumulate at an alarming rate. The sooner you get into
the routine of buying bottled water or tea every time you see it the
better, then you can just forget about the tap water issue. Most meals
were good, although dishes would improve significantly if Chinese cooks
used a lot less salt. Sometimes we felt we were eating at certain
places solely because our guide thought the toilets were acceptable.
These were in areas with lots of tourists and the food was catering
more for Western palates – more like Australian Chinese meals. The best
lunch was at an old couple’s place in a Hu
Tong courtyard
house. A couple of times Heidi and I ate extremely well in-house with a
couple of beers and a glass of wine thrown in for under AUD$40. Talking
of beers, drink lots of it
–
it’s cheap, low alcohol and very tasty (you get tired of bottled water).
|
| Pagoda Forest, Shaolin Temple |
Scenically, the highlights were the mountains, both
Wudang Shan and Huashan. These mountains are different to those of
Europe, USA and New Zealand. They are spectacular in their own right
and even more so with the temples on top
–
truly inspiring. The temples were calming, peaceful and located in the
most wonderful settings of parks or forests. I also liked the Pagoda
Forest at the Shaolin Temple for its history and tranquillity, in spite
of its many visitors. The Forbidden City in Beijing did not give me the
same lift; it is so large, so stark and there is a lot of renovation
going on. Perhaps it just doesn’t match “the temple on the mountain
top” imagery. Not so the Great Wall, it was even better than all the
docos and photos we had seen. It really is an amazing sight and leaves
you overawed by its magnitude and beauty.
The very long bus trip to Wudang took us through the
plains of the Hanshui river, a tributary of the big Yangtze river, where
the various grains and corn were being harvested. Again, most was done
by hand by many people. It was hilarious to see the locals use every
flat space, including the highway at times, to dry the harvest. Roofs
and balconies were adorned with yellow corn, and whole families from old
granddad to small toddlers were involved in the husking or turning over
of the grain.
We were impressed with the cities. Lots of parks, wide
streets often with trees and while the traffic looked like a continuous
game of dare or chicken, there seemed to be some give and take in the
end that made things flow. Shanghai had an amazingly refreshing skyline
with buildings with interesting architectural features. Xian has a
lovely old centre which is protected from new high rise development. A
future trip could possibly spend a couple of days there. Beijing has a
nice mixture of old and new, although the old seemed to be disappearing
at an alarming rate. The parks were charming and were especially
colourful with pot plants, in preparation for the Moon Harvest Festival
and the National Day on October 1st.
|
Grandmaster Feng showing an Acupuncture Point
for Self Massage |
The Tai Chi and Qigong training we received in Wudang,
Shaolin and Beijing was really outstanding and made lasting impressions
on me. This is something you need to experience for yourself, but the
learning, the enjoyment, fun and sense of presence of the masters is
wonderful. And I can’t begin to tell you how funny it was to see our
very likeable tour guide, Vincent, turn into a Tai Chi practitioner
overnight. We saw locals do their morning practice, but somehow never
managed to join them, my one disappointment of the whole trip.
All up, it is a must do trip, no matter from which angle
you look at it. The experiences, the training, the sights, the value
for money, a group with at least one common interest and no worries
about where you are going to eat or sleep (too much of the first, not
enough of the second) all make it something you’ll never forget. Be fit
and well though, the mountains are testing, the pace is hectic, with new
and wonderful experiences coming at you thick and fast. We loved it.
–
Nick and Heidi
Thank
you for your organisation of the trip, Vincent the tour guide was great,
the Tai Chi crowd wonderful to be around and China was a brilliant
destination with kind people.
–
Alex
Notes at first lesson at
the Wudang Taoist Martial
Arts Institute
16 Sept 2004
|
| Mount Wudang |
A
concrete room
An oval table with an oval hole
Mahogany look, but chipped and worn.
Deep red velvet
Pennants with gold
Characters, fringes.
A mural.
What does it mean?
Men riding,
A dragon, a tiger, a horse,
A serpent, a deer,
A buffalo, donkey,
A leopard.
(That’s what they look like to me.)
The
Taoist master appears,
Slim and fit,
Top knot bound in black,
Navy robe wrapped neatly.
In
strong tones, with conviction of ages,
He explains the wisdom of Tai Chi learning.
It is, he says, based on your qi
Which takes time to learn, till one day you feel it.
The young do best here.
No social distraction to take their thoughts
Away from the contemplation of their qi
|
Dropping a Coin into the
Frog's Mouth for Good Luck,
Mount Wudang |
In winter, we hibernate to exercise
And meditate
All in the search of the elusive qi.
Tired
from our work, we lose our qi.
Exercise, says the master, is the key
Everyday – but concentrate
To hear your heart and your deepest self.
Relaxed, your blood flows freely.
Tense, it stops, and problems come.
Qi in the Dan Tian –
A feeling to aspire to,
Feeling it running through your body,
Taking the time to feel and listen.
A “hot” Dan Tian
Means good results.
Good qi
Means good health
In
a self-healing body.
Yin from the kidneys,
Yang from the heart –
The two parts
In harmony
Make the body whole.
The first aim - control yourself.
No movement needed.
This is Wu Ji .
|
| Taoist Master Yuan with the
Tai Chi Group, Mount Wudang |
Movement is added
To this potent art
And Tai Chi emerges.
Philosophy, meditation
And good health as one.
So good is such control
Martial arts can follow
With this as a base.
Outside we go
Into the sun,
Steamy, strange
Odours wafting near.
Our master leads us
We learn new movements
And marvel at his grace,
His strength, his calm.
The
secrets of his art
Expressed.
–
Patsy
|
|
The Great Wall |
–
Highlights of the 2003 Trip
- Shanghai, Wuhan, Mount Wudang and Beijing
–
Highlights of the 2005 Trip
-
Chengdu, Jiu Zhai Gou, Huang Long, Mount Qing
Cheng,
Le
Shan, Emei Shan, Beijing and Shanghai
–
Highlights of the 2006 Trip
-
Shanghai, Mount Wudang, Xian, Louguan
Terrace,
Huashan and Beijing
–
Highlights of the 2007 Trip
-
Beijing, Tibet, Chengdu and Shanghai
.TOP
|
