From Xi’an, we took a 13-hour train ride to Yichang, where
we overnighted before our cruise on the Yangtze River. With less than 24 hours in Yichang, we didn’t
sightsee there and instead slept in and shopped for a few things we needed. The boys were very happy to try sushi on a
conveyor belt in a Yichang shopping mall, where we passed a few hours…
We boarded our cruise ship, the President No. 7, about 6 PM. The boys were
thrilled about the chance to “spend the night on a boat”.
We got settled in our cabin and enjoyed the
first beautiful sunset on the Yangtze River.
The boys eagerly consulted the ship map and explored every
inch of the boat that they could access.
It was nowhere near as big as the huge American cruise ships, but
Emmett and Colin were excited to locate all the amenities and public spaces.
Our first night on the boat was spent at the port, and about
6:30 AM the next morning we set sail. We
woke up to some beautiful views outside our cabin.
The cruise had one included excursion each day, as well as
one additional excursion that you could elect to do. On the first day “at sea” (“at river”?), the
additional excursion was in the morning, to the Tribe of the 3 Gorges. Bob
decided to go, and the excursion included a guided walk along the Yangtze River
and a smaller stream. There were
examples of former tribal life, including water wheels, boats, and
costumes. The best part of the excursion, according to Bob, was the tranquil scenery and a beautiful waterfall.
The boys and I were content to stay on the ship…the sun deck
was a pretty nice reading spot!
We passed through the first gorge, Xiling, while we were eating
lunch onboard. Filing Gorge is generally
regarded as the least scenic, and we actually didn’t realize we were in it so I
don’t think we missed much. The included excursion in the afternoon was to the 3 Gorges Dam. The guide emphasized the construction of the dam as a way to manage water levels and prevent disastrous flooding downstream. The dam is also the world's largest power station. While there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the environmental and social impact of this dam, it was an impressive engineering site to behold.
To get to the 3 Gorges Dam viewing site, we passed over the 5 step locks that our cruise ship would
pass through later.
Once we got back to the ship, we headed for the series of
locks that would allow our ship to continue upstream along the Yangtze. In Maastricht we lived very close to a lock,
and we always enjoyed watching the boats there…it was cool to think we’d be
passing through one of the biggest locks in the world soon, ourselves.
The lock walls and doors were impressively massive, as was
the small distance between boats and between the boats and the walls of the
lock itself. The boys and I were able to
touch the wall next to us.
Each step of the lock took 30-45 minutes to complete. The final step (heading upstream) is only in
use during the winter, when the water level is much higher. Even though we only passed through 4 steps,
the whole process took several hours. We
stopped watching to eat dinner and then went back to the sun deck as we finally
exited the final step.
The second full day was our most favorite of all, by
far. After a 6 AM wake up and early breakfast
(there are apparently no lazy mornings on Yangtze cruises), we transferred to a
medium size boat that ferried us up a smaller branch of the river. The views of the shorelines were
incredible. We saw mountain goats and
monkeys, as well as Chinese characters etched and painted into the rocks.
We also saw two thousand year old wooden coffins that had
been wedged into caves and cracks in the rocks.
The guide said that the higher the coffin was, the more honor was given
to the deceased person and that more fortune that would come to the family.
From the medium size boat, we transferred to even smaller
boats, about the size of large canoes and rowed by teams of local men. We traveled up the Shennong Stream and
continued to admire the breathtaking scenery surrounding us.
Once we returned to our cruise ship, we ate lunch and began
passing through the last two gorges, Wu and Qutang. These are regarded as the most spectacular
gorges along the Yangtze. You can see
the tree line along the cliffs, where the water level reaches during the
winter.
We sat outside, just watching the scenery go by. When the boys had had enough of scenery
watching, they read their Kindles in probably one of their most scenic reading
spots ever.
We saw some boats traveling the other direction, but most
cargo traffic on the Yangtze either passes through these gorges at night or
takes a detour to avoid the scenic areas.
In the afternoon we docked, and suddenly all these small
boats pulled alongside our ship. They
were selling all sorts of things and using huge nets to exchange products and
money with passengers on the ship, who were shouting down orders from cabin
balconies.
The third and final day of our cruise began with another
early wake up and excursion to a pagoda.
The pagoda used to flood, so the government built a concrete wall around
it and a bridge connecting it to the neighboring land.
We saw probably our favorite mistranslated sign yet at the
pagoda: “When the fire alarm press, the
police don’t move”. Not encouraging but
definitely funny.
After the excursion to the pagoda, we returned to the cruise
ship to prepare for the highlight of the cruise for the boys—the cruise ship
talent show. From the moment they heard mention of a talent show on board, they prepared to wow the other passengers with their rapping act. That evening, “The Rap Brothers” performed Alphabet Aerobics
(in the style of a Daniel Radcliff/Jimmy Fallon skit) in front of a cheering crowd of mostly Chinese tourists (along with a
smattering of Germans, Canadians, and a few other Americans).
The boys received a lot of congratulations from passengers the next morning at breakfast and as we disembarked the cruise ship in the city of Chongqing!
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