I was so reluctant to wake up this morning because surprisingly, the bed and blanket was super comfortable! I don’t know if it is because I was too tired during the bus journey, but I find the bed more comfortable than the ones in the hostel! ;o Anyway we were asked to get ready for breakfast at 6.30am at the ‘dining area’. The breakfast wasn’t much to our liking and furthermore they don’t provide spoons when there’s actually porridge! Well their habit of consuming porridge is by drinking from the bowl! D: This is something we should learn huh.
After breakfast, the timing was just right as the ship docked at another port, nearer to where we are going to.
We went to 白帝城, an ancient temple complex on a hill. The temple is now an island due to the rise in water levels since the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. We had to climb several hundred steps just to reach up there. That is why they have such laborers to carry us up.
This place is also known as the City of Poems because many poets, including the famous Li Bai wrote about it and Du Fu, resided there for a while. It also tells a story about the people of the past- 刘备, 关羽, 张非, 诸葛亮, heroes of the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. (三国演义)
After about an hour and a half, we had to return back to the ship. We had to be on time or else we will cause the subsequent activities to be held back. It is one’s responsibility to return back to the ship at the specific time given. As mentioned by the tour guide that we will be seeing good sceneries and passing high mountains, our group decided to stay at the upper deck to play games until we get to see the beautiful landscape. Truly, it wasn’t a disappointment. We then returned to our rooms to watch movie since we brought laptop and discs! After our show, it was about time to board another small boat which will bring us to see the 3 gorges! :D I never knew that there was such a long story behind it.
According to geologists and archaeologists, the area of the present 3 Gorges was a vast expense of water. A strong movement called Yanshan Crustal Movement took place, resulting in the gradual rising of the Earth’s crust. After years of water erosion, the gorges appeared. The 3 Gorges consist of 4 natural sections called Shennong Gorge, Mianzhu Gorge, Yingwu Gorge and Longchang Gorge. The view of the 3Gorges just gives a perfect scenic landscape.
SEE THE COFFIN?!
Upon passing by the 3 gorges so quickly by boat, we were transferred to a sampan, which travelled along a stream, rowed by what they call, boat trackers. The age of these trackers are not of a young age at all. One of them is of age 74! Can you imagine? They still have such fit body and high energy for harsh labours. It is just so amazing. There was a guide on each boat to entertain us and give us more details about story of this vicinity. In the past, these boat trackers are naked because they realized when they pull the ropes, it will tend to tear their clothes. Hence they decided not to have clothes on. However, times have improved and all is advanced. Naked boat trackers do not exist anymore due to embarrassment.
We then had a return journey from the sampan to the boat to the ship. Not long after, it is time for dinner. Dinner served tonight was better than all of the other meals! But i didn’t eat much as i wanted to save a portion of my stomach for the snacks and instant noodles that we brought over. It is a must for us to finish them or else we have to bring them back to Wuhan! At about 10, everyone gathered on the upper deck and waited for the ship to reach the 3 Gorges dam. The gate of the dam will open only when all the ships that registered to enter, are present. There are 5 gates in total and the entire process takes about 4-5 hours long! The time taken for each gate to open and close takes already about an hour. I do not know why it takes so long, but by morning at 6, we were still at the 5th gate! D: When the gate opens at ships enter, the gate behind will close, and the water level will start to decrease. As the level decreases, the ship will follow as well. There is a simple logic to it: 水长船高，水降船低。As we pass each gate, the level just gets lower and lower. From the very first gate, we were about 170m high. However when we reached the last gate, it was less than 100m!
The area at the last gate is considered low land, hence the water level cannot be too high. This is why a dam is created to control the amount of water level or else flood will occur very often.
Reflection
AFTER SEEING ALL THE SCENIC PICTURES, DON'T YOU ENVY THE NATURAL BEAUTY CHINA HAS? I find them so valuable :)
The journey on the sampan this afternoon was memorable. The scenery, consisting of high mountains, trees, clear water and gorgeous rocks, was just magnificent. I’ve never been surrounded by so many mountains ever before. I wonder why Singapore do not have such attractive natural beauty :/ The experience I managed to have on the small little sampan allowed me to practice what I’ve written in my learning plan about how I’m going carry out my learning- The use of my 4/5 senses. I see the stunning mountains and rocks; I hear the sounds of the nature; I smell the freshness of the sea; I feel the toughness of the boat trackers. I feel that this is a once in a lifetime experience. I know that I can buy a ticket easily and return back here again, but i believe that it will be something new that I’ll learn. Furthermore, I will not know when I’ll be able to return there again or how it is going to be in the future. If it is me at 74 years old, I doubt I can put in such effort and strength to pull the sampan or even row the sampan. I feel for these elderly as this is how they earn for a living.
I think it took a lot of effort into constructing this entire system, and it is a very tedious process. I feel that Singapore should look upon China on this aspect as their technology is advancing rapidly. I find the rationale behind the rising and decreasing of water level in each stage of the dam really cool. When the gate is closes, water will be absorbed and the sand will be filtered out into the sea! This helps to maintain a constant amount of water level in the earlier and later stages. I can say today's outing is considered an adventure as i see and feel things that I've never before!
