Day 8

Yangtze River Cruise

Date - 10 May

Weather - Sunny, mild

Accommodation - "Yangtze Gold Three"


We woke to a cool morning sailing close to the bottom of high, steep mountains. We were clearly within the first of the three gorges. We sat on the balcony watching the scenery slowly go by and listening to the many birds hiding in the mountain-hugging trees and shrubs. We could clearly see where the flood line of approximately 15 metres on the banks of the river. It was a very peaceful way to start the day. 




At nine o'clock we disembarked and caught quaint small flat-bottomed, glass-ceiling boats and made our way up the Goddess Stream along a very narrow, deep gorge. The high cliffs and mountains came straight down to the water and it was stunningly beautiful. 



The gorge has become a tourist attraction since the building of the Three Gorges Project as the dam has increased the water level by 50 metres. This has allowed year-round boat access where previously there has been little activity in the Goddess Stream. At mid point we got off our little boat to a floating wharf and we were entertained with modern music by local Chinese. 



This allowed other boats to make their way further up and return from the increasingly narrowing gorge. It was then our turn to go further up and we weren't disappointed. It was difficult not to take photos as our little boat turned the corners. The entrance notice board said, "Three fantastic feelings after visiting The Goddess Stream - quiet, green and peaceful." We would agree with that! 




On returning to our boat and prior to lunch we moved from the first and longest gorge into the second gorge, the Wu Gorge which is about 40kms long. After lunch we had the afternoon free and it was great to have some time to take in the passing scenery and relax. Mid afternoon we moved into the third gorge and came alongside many hillside towns with terrace plots and citrus trees. Often the whole hillside was cultivated. 


At four o'clock afternoon tea was served in the bar area. It was just that! We got a cup of tea with no milk! However, things improved at 5.00pm with "Margarita Happy Hour" . Fellow Aussies Rosemary and Andrew and Kerry and Andrew joined us in the bar lounge and we had an enjoyable time before dinner. Carol and I tried a lychee margarita and a melon margarita. I loved my lychee one but Carol thought her Margarita was "Ma Ma Hu Hu" which means "so so" in Chinese. So Carol and I just had to have another lychee Margarita. Henk stuck to his "Virgin Colada" which he has been having for the past two nights. 


Dinner was the Chinese buffet but at each meal they manage to produce something delicious and different. It's hard not to overeat when it is all so tasty. 




After dinner the staff gave a varied one hour performance which focused on the life of the Yangtze River. This included a lantern dance and a re-enactment of the men pulling the boats over the low water before the building of the dam. When we returned to our cabin we noticed a large bridge in the distance bathed in colour featuring different scenes such as fans, lanterns, goldfish and chrysanthemums. It was very beautiful so Carol and I raced up to the top deck to get some photos and videos. As we went under the bridge we realised that the changing scenes were done LED lights. 



It was another great day on the trip.








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