lugu lake

 

Long after graduating from high school, the two of them finally had free time to travel with old friends. Within two or three days, they signed up for a group trip and embarked on their recent trip to Lugu Lake.

 

I haven't seen my old friend Bingbing for more than a year. It just so happened that I had no classes and she was unemployed, so we got together to go out for a walk.

 

Tired of making guides, I quickly organized a tour group and packed my bags on the third day to start the trip to Lugu Lake.

 

The night before departure, I stayed at her house for the night. The buns she made that night were very delicious. I can still remember the taste. Lying down at night, this is the first time we sleep together on the same bed after graduating from high school. I often recall the days when we all were fighting and going crazy, which was good.

 

I was woken up by a scream at four in the morning, and I got up in a hurry to wash up. Although it was very early, my stomach could still hold yesterday's buns. Bingbing’s boyfriend drove the two of us to the meeting place. Although it was not the twelfth lunar month of winter, it was already late autumn, and the chill in the morning was soaking into the bones, along with the drizzle that made it even cooler.

 

We already knew that it was a long way there and that the bus ride would take more than ten hours, but we never imagined that it would be so torturous. However, this journey time was also a precious time for communication, making up for the few years we missed in college.

 

The tour guide spoke very standard Mandarin and was very enthusiastic. Perhaps it was because he had been a tour guide in the north or due to the nature of his work. The noisy aunts in the back row are very close and know how to tell jokes. It is enough to be like this with the good sisters many years later. The couple in the front row are trendy, cool and social, and the old couple from Beijing are very kind.

 

When I passed Ya'an, I felt a sense of belonging back to my hometown. The tour guide introduced Jiuxiang's yellow beef, but I was shocked to realize that the Yucheng in my memory was only a dozen miles around the school. I had not fully explored the beauty of this city. , it can be regarded as a small regret.

 

spiral tunnel

 

The time arrangement for lunch and dinner was extremely unreasonable, and the food was barely swallowable. Fortunately, other passengers brought food, which added a little flavor to this sloppy meal. The journey passed through mountains with an altitude of more than 3,000 meters, and 80% of the people were vomiting. We were both drowsy, but we felt no discomfort at all.

 

After nine o'clock in the evening, night had already fallen, and a group of people arrived at the hotel. The room was allocated on the second floor. The wooden ladder was very old and steep, but the two girls still struggled to get on the suitcases. Facing the room with poor facilities, I can only make a few complaints. After a tiring day's journey, I could only wash up and fall asleep, looking forward to the next day's trip.

 

When I woke up the next day, I finished dressing up briefly and went downstairs with my camera to have breakfast. Standard ingredients: porridge, rice cakes, eggs, pickles.

 

In late autumn, the low temperature of Lugu Lake in the early morning is filled with fog, and the morning fog gradually opens, giving you a wide field of vision. The straight north-south road has a B&B on one side and Caohai on the other. Plants nearly as tall as a person grow haphazardly on the edge of the pond, huddled together. Layers of reeds surround the exposed pond. The water is as clear as a mirror, reflecting the white clouds, and the breeze makes waves. In autumn, the continuous reed swamps begin to wither, turning half yellow and half green. From time to time, white cranes stop by the water to comb their feathers. Half of the dilapidated wooden boat is left, the blue color has been rusted by weather and frost. Clouds are floating in the mountains in the distance, and the mountain streams are looming in the hazy mist.

 

 

The sun sets, the temperature rises, the car arrives, and we set off.

 

It took a few minutes to drive to the pier. It was the off-peak tourist season, but there were many tourists. The dark-skinned Mosuo people wearing thick coats and hats slowly held up their oars and reminded tourists to pay attention to safety in broken Mandarin. Most of their income comes from boating and selling seagull feed, and they make a living through the development of local tourism.

 

 

Sitting on the stern of the small wooden boat with Bingbing, the boat's drainage rippled, and the crisp sound of the oars hitting the water passed through the cochlea and hit the brain directly. After rowing out of the narrow waterway, several seagulls rushed toward us. The excited boat passengers rushed to take pictures with their mobile phones. The young couple on the bow immediately bought feed and sprinkled it into the water. A large flock of seagulls surrounded the boat overwhelmingly, and only the clicks and cries of cameras were heard.

 

Swim to the center of the lake, and the view will be fully opened, away from the cover of plants, and the complete Lugu Lake will be presented. A quiet lake was sleeping. She was sleeping deeply, but people didn't dare to disturb her, and they paddled across it gently. The disturbing seagulls were just a lullaby, and she fell into a deeper sleep.

 

 

The residences are built around the lake, most of which are inns. They protect this pure land while also opening their minds to the world.

 

 

The houses at the foot of the mountain are small and row upon row.

 

The small island in the middle of the lake carries the legend of the Mosuo people, and the girl's residence was built on it.

 

The boat stopped and arrived at the filming location of "Dear Inn". Tourists rushed to take photos, blocking the way of visitors. The old things are gathering dust, and only the memories of the show are left when you are there.

 

Went back to the inn to have lunch with the group mates. The simple home-cooked meal at the inn was full of warmth, far better than the dregs of food yesterday. The most impressive dish is the Mosuo pig fat. The special production process can make the pork fat not rotten for ten years. It is thick and oily and will burst with fat in your mouth. It is one of the must-have New Year products for the locals.

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Drive half way around the lake to the Wedding Bridge. The surface of the pond is scattered with dead grass, and there are many canoes lying on it, as if they have been parked for thousands of years. Time has stood still, bringing tranquility and calmness to the lake.

 

 

The most indispensable thing here is mountains, grass, and water. One of them can be seen at a glance. The long bridge crosses the entire swamp and extends into the forest, giving you endless views. Bathed in the sunshine, the whole bridge and the people on the bridge began to boil, and their hearts beat faster with love and appreciation.

 

 

There are many women selling food and braiding hair on the bridge, and the snack street on the other side of the bridge is mostly run by women. They are not as open and smart as the Han people, and they still live a life where men are the king.

The sky in Ninglang County got dark early, and after dinner there was only light left in the sky.

 

After night falls, the temperature drops sharply and the coolness hits you, but the Mosuo singing and dancing in the old yard begins. The young and handsome girl performed the whole process of walking marriage in a silent performance, a confrontation and integration of youthful love, shyness, courage and tradition.

 

The bonfire was lit and the cold air began to heat up. The two of us rushed forward with the crowd, singing and dancing hand in hand with a group of strange travelers, just like childhood, laughing and dancing carefree.

 

/Picture Source Network/

 

A Mosuo walking wedding performance and a bonfire party are better said to be a contact with traditional culture and a reflection away from the world.

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