Yangtze Cruise and The Three Gorges
Trip Start
Sep 01, 2007
1
16
58
Trip End
Oct 22, 2007
Badong,
China
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Time for a quick breakfast before the next gorge. We were instructed on our daily schedule, which we got each night before, to "ensure heavy breakfast please". This was because we were going on an outing in the third gorge later that day and would only be getting lunch on our return around 14H30. I think it has something to do with big tour groups and the daily timed routines of meals and activities.
The second gorge, the Wu Gorge, was a lot longer so we had more time admire the spectacular scenery. We saw some terrace farms as well as water height markers. Sadly a lot of the farms and houses will be under water by 2009 when the dam is due for completion. We are told about a beautiful red bridge over this gorge. Compared to the landscape and scenery it is difficult to use the word "beautiful" to describe a bridge in this environment.
Speaking of bridges, it seems the Chinese have become bridge-obsessed. They are building or have built so many new bridges over the Yangtze River. When we were talking to the boat / hotel manager he told us that when he started his current job about 8 years ago there were only about 5 bridges in total. Now, because of The Three Gorges Dam project, every town, village and city has at least one if not two or three bridges across part of or crossing the entire river.
This also showed the scale of the relocation project.
Qu Tang Gorge
The number of communities that have been or are being relocated is quite mind-blowing. Some are being moved across the river as a group, some are being dispersed far and wide. Apparently, where there are family ties to the general area or in different towns, they get to stay. Those who have no family ties could end up anywhere. For all people relocated, most of them end up in apartments, regardless as to where they came from. Many apartment blocks don't even have an elevator and, where they do, it usually does not stop below the 9th floor! The Party Line goes along the lines of saying that people are generally better off and happy with the changes as they will be living in bigger and newer homes. It goes on to say that only the older people are unhappy as it is unsettling for them, young people are better off and many farmers are happier with their new lives. I leave it to you to form your own opinion!In this gorge we also went on our excursion for the day. We docked in Badong and were taken first by ferry along part of the Shennong Stream until it became too shallow and then by bamboo boat for the rest. Along the way we saw the magnificent scenery of the smaller gorges called Mianzhu (Bamboo), Yingwu (Parrot) and Longchang (Dragon Boat) including the famous hanging coffins. There is only one left to view but lots of caves in the cliff face where others must have been. The bamboo boats were first rowed and then pulled by farmers from the Tujin nationality.
Qu Tang Gorge
The traditional boatmen would do this naked but clearly (and perhaps thankfully :-) they now wear some clothing. This is the only time we saw crystal clear water, for the rest the Yangtze is a murky dirty brown.This is also the place where The Three Gorges Dam project's impact hit home the most for me. Before this all started, the Shennong Stream was a mere 1 metre deep and, at best, tourists were pulled by the boatmen to see the hanging coffin. Now, still 2 years away from completion, for a long way beyond the coffin, the Shennong Stream is 60 METRES deep! They say this boating tradition will remain but clearly it will be from further and further upstream and the initial ferry ride from Badong will be longer and longer.
Although this second gorge is beautiful and meant to be the most beautiful, I think the first, and narrowest, was even more spectacular.
Our third and final and the longest gorge for the day was the Xiling Gorge. It Was also the most Dngerous in past times as it was quite shallow but, with the flooding of The Three Gorges, this is no longer the case. We passed through in the late afternoon so everyone sat very sedately on deck watching the scenery and listening to the commentary. What a privilege and a dream fulfilment it was to be cruising down the Yangtze River!
The day ended with us going into the Three Gorges Locks System to get down to the river beyond the dam. It is a 5 stage lock system and the second biggest in the world after the Panama Canal locks. We were apparently very lucky to be able to sail straight in and have very little wait before starting to move through the locks.
Dinner that night was another banquet, this time the theme was The Emperor's Banquet and I was lucky enough to meet a few Concubines :-)
