20 Apr 2024
Once in a very long while, you feel as though an experience has just changed your soul, forever. This is one of those experiences. Let's start from the beginning:
My tour guide Sunny came to my hotel to pick me up at 9:30 in the morning. She was very courteous and very reassuring - the "reassuring" part is important because one needs to feel that his guide is well-experienced and well-informed, which Sunny very much was.
Our driver took us to the cable car station where Sunny and I began our journey up the mountain. It was my first ever attempt to go up a mountain that high, and to say that it was exhilarating is stating the obvious. Also, there were quite a few stops to be made along the way, and every stop was a wonderful photo opportunities because the scenery was just extraordinary, literally out of this world. I won't give away all the details here, but if you think that famous cave (or "hole") in the middle of the mountain is quite a sight to behold (and it certainly was), I'll give you a little hint: that's just the beginning. More surprises await you!
Forgive the cliche, but when we reached the top of the mountain, I did feel I WAS in heaven. We were well above the clouds. The irony was: I reached that place not so much by climbing, but mostly by escalators! I call that "going to heaven in comfort and in style" :))
Thanks to my guide Sunny, who in this case was also my superhero because I felt she rescued me many times, it was a hugely successful excursion of my wildest dream. Thank you, Sunny!
To other fellow travellers: Please, take my advice. Do not attempt this without an experienced tour guide. This trip to Tianmen mountain is too important to be handled by the inexperienced.