Fragrant Hills Park

My students, mostly college aged, asked me last week if I would like to meet them at 8am on Saturday morning to go to Fragrant Hills Park and see the fall foliage.  Having never experienced autumn anywhere outside of Beijing, this is the only tradition I have ever participated in: the yearly pilgrimage to see fall leaves.  In previous years we have heard stories of how packed the most famous park, Fragrant Hills park, is and have avoided it at all costs, settling for lesser known outlets.  However, this year, I decided to take them up on it and experience this epic tourist journey in full Chinese style.  Justin, in an effort to support me and my career, came along.

I am chronically late, but Justin and I were on time, which I cannot say for my students.  Having lived in Beijing for 2 1/2 years, we are seasoned veterans compared to many of them.  They have come to the "big city" to study English and are constantly getting lost on buses.  At about 9am we were all together and boarded a public bus (after having waited in a longer line to have the priviledge of seats, of course).  An hour later we arrived and plunged into the current of humanity streaming up the stairs to the top of the mountain.  Conversation was interesting as my students tried their best to make small talk with Justin and I.  At one point, one of them asked me if there were this many people in America.  I, of course, told her "no", trying to imagine a Disney World line - including vendors, pushing, and litter - along the Appalachian Trail.  She told me that Chinese people have had to learn to see the beauty in other people's faces, as well as in nature, which I thought was a pretty good technique.

Some of my students (and me)

This sign says "Hard Work Room", one of my students suggested Justin have his picture taken here after she saw him sending work emails on a Saturday

After an hour or two we got to the top, spread out some paper on the ground and ate lunch.  The students asked Justin and I to teach them an American card game so we taught them "Spoons".  The consequence for losing was a dare, and they had a blast coming up with embarrasing things to make each other do.  Actually, they had a blast waiting for Justin and I to think of things. 

A few hours later, when it became clear they wanted to stay until nightfall, we excused ourselves and took the cable car back down.

View of Beijing

We're always on the outside in our Chinese tourism experiences, so for once, it was nice to be treated as one of the bunch.  I only had two random people ask to take their picture with me all day.  ;-)