Dalian update: Tomb sweeping instead of egg hunting

The Chinese obviously do not celebrate Easter, but fortunately we can also enjoy the pleasures of a long weekend. Over here they celebrate Qing Ming Jie, i.e. Tomb Sweeping Day. This Chinese public holiday can be compared more or less to All Saints' Day in the West - honouring the ancestors - but at the same time it is a celebration of nature's rebirth and the beginning of the "outdoor season". Everybody will go to their families' graves the next two, three days to tend them and sweep them clean.

For expats and students it is a golden opportunity to do a bit of travelling. I have now practically recovered from my cold earlier in the week and have also dug out the map of China. Some fellow students are heading for Beijing or Shenyang and Dandong, the two closest and most obvious city tour choices coming from Dalian. But I visited the latter two in 2008, and do not feel any particular desire to return. Beijing may be on the cards for late April. So, I checked the ferry schedule for Shandong province. Fast boats to Yantai, from where you can visit several potentially interesting sites (Qingdao, Penlai, Qufu, Weihai, Tai Shan), only take 3,5 hours from Dalian! Unfortunately, these faster vessels only operate as of May... Sure, one could take a slow nightboat, but it must be freezing cold on those ships still at nighttime. No no. Checked flights to Shenzhen, airfares overpriced due to the long weekend. The Frenchies at the University suggested "some Buddhist temple" just over 2 hours from Dalian by bus. But all they know is the bus leaves at 7 a.m. on Saturday morning. Knowing their party spirit, I doubt one of them will actually make the bus! Anyway, I have forwarded the idea to do a three-hour-train trip to Anshan, Liaoning's third biggest city, and its adjacent Qianshan National Park. In there is supposed to be a gigantic and little known Buddha statue on top of a hill, which requires some hiking exercise. Along the way one should also see several Taoist temples... So, within the same Park you can get a feeling of both significant life philosophies, plus have the opportunity to stretch your legs in open nature. The French have not responded yet, Henry and Christina - a student from Hamburg - are interested but seem rather suspicious as the city and the National Park are not mentioned in the Lonely Planet Guidebook for China. Alors, we will see tonight.

I have been making a few pictures the past days, which I will upload to this blog or picasa soon.