On the train to Huangshan

We have been on the train a few hours and arrived Yangrao, a city on the way to Huangshan. All at once everyone got up and pressed the lever on the end of each row and spun the seats around to face the other way. The train reversed directions and this way we are all still facing forward. I had never seen that before but it made a lot of sense.

We made it to Yu Gardens yesterday at Laurie's urging, this time getting up early and catching the subway. We beat the crowds and it was a beautiful place. It is surrounded by a wall with dragons on the top and has old pavilions, ponds and trees. One of my favorite things about China is the presence of dragons everywhere.

Then we took a ride on the Huangpu River to see the Shanghai skyline. There are 24,000,000 people in Shanghai, so there is a lot to see. On the way back to the hotel we stopped for boiled dumplings, which you can see being made in this photo.

Today on the train we have made the transition from coastal plain to hills. Graves are dug into some hills, I would guess to save flat land. Rice is just sprouting from the paddies and we have seen a few cows and water buffalo. This train is not as fast or as slick as the one from Beijing, but it still beats anything we rode in India.

This evening we will stay at the base of Huangshan, a very popular scenic mountain. Tomorrow we will go up the mountain and spend the night there. If you want to see some pretty photos, do an image search for Huangshan.