The first part of the travel note was written shortly after returning from Dunhuang, while the second part of the travel note was written after returning from a trip to Guangxi with my mother. The two were separated by nearly a month . It took me so long to post it because I was too lazy to type it.
The second morning we visited Mogao Grottoes, we had the Laotongguan Roujiamo recommended by Ms. Huang from Taiwan. It was delicious!
Today's viewing process is the same as before. Pugu is not much the same as the first time I watched it, but it is not a big surprise either. The biggest surprise and gain from this trip to Mogao Grottoes was the next special grotto time . In the second session, I was the only one to visit the special grottoes.
The explanation center arranged for a young man named Zhai Peng to lead the tour. The young man is tall (after asking, I learned: 186cm) and his interpretation skills are also high. Although the girl who gave the explanation on the first day was not bad, but comparing the two, it was probably the difference between ordinary masters and the most popular figures in the martial arts rankings.
Mogao Grottoes Cave 322 (picture source network)
If friends who read this article want to see the special caves, if you have the chance, be sure to name Brother Zhai Peng to talk about it. Your trip will be 100% worthwhile.
1
Timeline tour . The visited 217, 322 and 220 Special Grotto are all works from the Tang Dynasty. Brother Zhai Peng led the tour according to their development timeline.
While appreciating it, you can understand the influence of foreign civilizations on the painter's creation as time goes by, and the changes in the painting style of sculptures and murals in the same dynasty.
2
Comprehensive and easy to understand . On the basis of explaining the existing content, Brother Zhai Peng also used to compare and explain based on the relevant grottoes he had come into contact with, and also interspersed a lot of art history and historical content.
View of the Amitayus Sutra in Cave 217 (Photo source online)
For example, the architecture in the Western Elysium map of 217 Cave is beautiful, but this architectural form is almost invisible in China. Instead, it appears in large numbers in animation, film and television works in neighboring Japan. .
He would tell me which caves of Mogao Grottoes still present this similar form and what are the differences.
3
Humanize. During the visit, I asked many questions, and Brother Zhai Peng patiently answered them one by one. For example, what is the story of a certain character in the mural, how is the carbon dioxide value monitored in the Mogao Grottoes, etc.
What was even more touching was that after the explanation, he left me some time to watch alone so that I could consult him if I had any questions. I truly feel that I am a VIP customer, and it feels really good to earn money.
Notice of visiting the special caves
To sum up, call for brother Zhai Peng. I have not contacted many other excellent guides, and I hope that I will be lucky enough to meet them when I go to Mogao Grottoes in the future. But according to the expert classification, this guy must be ranked within the top 5 on the rhythm list.
There is also speculation here. Looking at the tour guides at major tourist attractions across the country, the tour guides at Mogao Grottoes should be very capable in terms of both skill and appearance .
When I came out after the visit, I asked a young lady at the exit to help take two tourist photos. In my arms were white chrysanthemums that I had been holding for a whole day. Holding the flowers in my arms, I went to buy the picture album I had been thinking about.
Regarding flowers and picture albums, these two simple things also contain adventure. The first thing is flowers. I went out in the morning and checked the flower shop closest to my residence. When I walked in, I told the shop I wanted to buy chrysanthemums , and I bought 9 branches.
After paying, I thought about it and asked the shopkeeper if he could wrap the flowers in a newspaper, because I had to take the bus and it would be too eye-catching to hold a white chrysanthemum. The landlady suddenly said: "Are you going to Mogao Grottoes?"
I was stunned for a moment, then reacted and immediately said yes. Then the lady boss packed the flowers and wrapped them carefully in newspapers without asking any more questions. When choosing flowers, I specifically told them that the yellow chrysanthemums in the past two days have been a bit weak, while the white chrysanthemums have bloomed better.
Colored sculptures in Cave 322 of Mogao Grottoes
I received a wave of silent kindness so early in the morning. I don’t know how the boss lady guessed it. Even though I looked like an outsider at first glance, there are several bus lines nearby to different attractions, but I guessed that I was going to Mo. Gao Ku , this is a wonder.
The second wonder was that after visiting the special grottoes, I went to the Mogao Grottoes bookstore to buy picture album and when paying, the female clerk suddenly asked: "Are these flowers for Director Chang?" I was stunned for the second time on the same day and answered yes for the second time.
At the end of the day, I went to say goodbye to the sleeping people while holding flowers and books, and ended the day's schedule very happily.
See Lele again, this time the photo was taken from the front
On the bus back to the Digital Center, I heard a gentleman with a nice and gentle voice in the front seat talking on the phone to someone about Yulin Cave. I happened to be looking for someone to charter a car with me to go to Yulin Cave . After the gentleman hung up the phone, he took the initiative to strike up a conversation, and we hit it off immediately. We left our contact information and went back to slowly discuss the details.
That night, I booked a one-night desert camping through the youth hostel. There was someone to pick me up and drop me off, which was very convenient. After returning to the youth hostel from Mogao Grottoes, I hurriedly packed my things and arrived at the appointed time. When we got downstairs, the driver called me and we chatted happily all the way.
When we arrived at the camping site we just found a tent, put our things away, and joined the sand sledding army. However, we got off to a bad start. During the second time sledding, someone lost a long pole in the middle of the desert. I didn’t have time to change direction and directly hit it. Fortunately, he had already slipped to the bottom of the sandy slope, but fell to the side, and the back of his hand scraped hard from above, causing the broken skin to bleed.
The scars on my fingers have not completely faded when I was typing today. Here is a friendly warning to everyone, Sandboarding is fun, but you must also pay attention to safety.
I thought hearing Brother Zhai Peng’s explanation would be the biggest surprise of the day, but it turns out there were a lot of surprise gift packages waiting for me. The owner of the youth hostel is an experienced driver who plays desert off-road vehicles. He drove me on his horse for several large circles in the desert. It was more exciting than a roller coaster!
The momentary feeling of weightlessness when diving down from the top of the sand mountain, the wind and sand kicked up on both sides when running forward, I am at a loss for words here, it is super fun, and I still feel that it is still unfinished.
When it was time to eat, we had hot pot, 6-8 per table. We sat at four tables that day. I met a pair of young friends from Anhui who sat at the same table. It is inconvenient to reveal their real names. Hereinafter referred to as Xiaoyang and Xiaoyu. They have been friends since high school and travel together.
Desert hot pot
During the dinner, the camp also hired a specially hired host to sing and dance throughout the whole process to liven up the atmosphere. The host worked very hard, but the audience was not very cooperative, so the whole process was carried out reluctantly.
The bonfire party after dinner ended in a hurry after everyone walked around for a few times.
Some people continued to drink and sing, others went to rest early, and I sat by the fire and played with the store's two puppies. Wangwang, the little puppy, fell asleep by the stove and looked as if he couldn't wake up.
Its mother, Youyou, has sheep-like hair and a personality as docile as a lamb. She leans on her schoolbag and looks relaxed.
Sleeping in a tent is no different from sleeping directly on the concrete floor. Although there is a sleeping bag, it is very thin. The temperature difference between day and night is huge in the northwest, especially in the desert. It was so cold at night, but I was so sleepy that I didn't see the text message from the youth hostel owner, asking if he would take me back to the youth hostel to rest and come back to watch the sunrise when it was almost dawn.
I was woken up by voices in the middle of the night. It turned out to be a couple in the back tent. The woman was drunk and talked loudly. She kept confessing her love to the man and asked him to marry her. The man kept comforting her but also Didn't say yes.
As I wrapped myself in my clothes and thought about when the couple's dog-fooding would stop, the plot took a turn for the worse. The woman began to ask the man whether he was with so-and-so when we were at a certain place before. The man denied it, but the woman shook her head even more and said, "I know everything." Amidst the repeated emotional pull, I fell asleep again, and I didn’t eat until the end. When I woke up, it was still dark.
I was looking at my phone at about 5:30, when I went out and met Xiao Yang and Xiao Yu, their other companion Xiao You, and another camping girl, the five of them formed a team to go to the nearest highest place Climb to the top of that sandy mountain. I was discharged from the hospital a month ago. I haven't exercised for a long time and the recovery period has not passed. Not long after the trip, I couldn't keep up with everyone. I could only walk and rest for a while. My throat and nose felt like burning, and my heartbeat was very fast. I tried my best to follow along. .
There was darkness all around, with no stars or moon in the sky. As far as the eye could see, there was only the light of the mobile phone flashlight and the messy footsteps underfoot.
Later, a couple caught up and walked to the front. I walked at the end and looked at the backs of the people in front. I thought it was very interesting, so I took a few photos as a souvenir.
Friends who have climbed a sand mountain should have experienced that there is simply no way to borrow strength in the sand, and you will sink half of the mountain with one step. When walking on the ridge, you have to carefully hold your mobile phone. If it rolls down and a strong wind blows, you can't find it.
After walking for nearly an hour and a half, we finally arrived at the finish line. It was almost dawn, but there was no sign of the sun rising. We both knew deep down that we couldn’t see the sunrise, so we sat on the top of the mountain for a while and took a few photos. After taking the photo, go down together.
There was a driver picking us up and back from the camping trip, and everyone said goodbye and left.
After returning from camping, I was so exhausted that I put my things away and fell asleep until after three o'clock in the afternoon. When I woke up, I found that the pillow was covered with sand. I touched it and there was sand in my ears, not to mention my shoes.
I was still a little tired when I got up, but I still got up, packed my things and went out to Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring Scenic Area
Aerial shot of climbing to the top of the sand mountain
Kind tips
There are direct buses to the Mingsha Mountain Scenic Area in the city, and tickets to the scenic spot are valid for three days ! After the day's visit, there is a self-service portrait collection at the exit of the park, and you can continue to visit the next day. At the visitor service center at the entrance, you can buy tickets with cash at the window or by mobile payment at the self-service machine next to it.
There is a scenic spot map guide in the exhibition hall that you can get for free. There is also a small encyclopedia explaining Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Moon Spring. Friends who have the habit of collecting ticket stubs can also take one back as a souvenir. In addition, there is a medical office, a small Mingsha Mountain natural material exhibition hall, etc.
Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring Entrance
The radio in the scenic area plays Tian Zhen's "Crescent Moon Spring" on an unlimited loop. Listening to Crescent Moon Spring and admiring Crescent Moon Spring, it's very enjoyable and beautiful.
I didn't rush to see Crescent Moon Spring, but wandered around the scenic area first. The trash cans looked cute, wow! Camel trash can!
I saw a camel team and it looked fun, so I went to buy a ticket. Here are tips:
Camel riding100yuan once, about half an hour? You don't need to go to the entrance ticket office, just buy it at the camel riding ticket office in the scenic area. Electronic payment is not allowed. You can only pay in cash.
After paying, you will get a plate with a number on it, which corresponds to the number of the camel you want to ride. Groups of five people set out, if there is not enough room, you will have to wait a while.
After buying the ticket, I took Ai’s number plate and found my camel friend numbered 98.
After setting off, the drama started again. We were in a team of five. The two Hong Kong couples in the front spoke all the time in Cantonese, and the two Korean girls in the back spoke all the time in Korean. They chatted passionately the whole time, and I couldn’t understand a word I said. The hump of No. 98 is as lonely as snow.
Little Friend No. 98
Selfie with difficulty
The camel is more thrilling when standing up and sitting down, but it is very interesting at other times. Sitting on the back of the camel and shaking slightly, you can feel the stability of every step it takes, which is silent and reassuring.
Imagine that you are a foreign business traveler on the Silk Road, traveling in the desert to Chang'an in your dreams .
Antique buildings next to Crescent Moon Spring
Scenic area staff will take photos along the way, and then they will quickly develop the photos and put them at the exit. You can choose whether to buy them or not.
The person leading the camel will also ask if he wants to take pictures. If he takes a selfie on the back of the camel, he will only be able to take a picture of himself but not the camel. In the end, he will ask the uncle who leads the camel to help him take the photo for a fee20.
After arriving at the finish line, I asked my uncle to help me take a group photo with No. 98, and then I took a selfie with No. 98. A magical scene appeared. 98 took the initiative to move his head over and smiled evilly. . . . . That's right, it's an evil smile that turns all sentient beings upside down. This set of photos can be called the most classic photos of this trip.
After watching the Crescent Moon Spring, climb up the sand mountain next to it. There is a wooden rope ladder on the way to the top of the mountain. You can walk up it, which saves a lot of time and energy than climbing up by yourself.
It was very windy up there, and it was still a bit cold even after taking out my thin cotton clothes. After sitting there for more than half an hour, I figured I would go down when it was time for the performance.
I booked a ticket for the musical "Dunhuang Ceremony" , but I didn't have time so I took a taxi there. The owner of the youth hostel even called me and asked me why I hadn't picked up the ticket since the show was about to start.
When we arrived, the performance just started in a few minutes. It was not full, but there were many people coming to watch the performance, mainly middle-aged and elderly people.
The auditorium is open-air, directly facing the desert. There is a raised sand and stone performance stage on the desert. The opening is very exciting, with a camel team leading the stage, and a lot of people holding torches, which is full of gimmicks. I have seen many performances, but they were all in theaters . It was my first time to see an outdoor performance and it was very refreshing.
before the show starts
The story tells the story of a painter and a princess who fell in love, but the princess was sent away to get married, so the lovers eloped and fled. The king of the foreign race sent people to capture the pair of bitter mandarin ducks. For the sake of peace, the princess resolutely broke up with the painter and married the king.
The painter was heartbroken after losing his lover, but he transferred the depression of lovelorn to his passion for work. With superb skills and emotional investment, he created many beautiful Bodhisattvas and Apsaras. At the end of the story, the world has changed, people have grown old and died, and the painter and the princess reunited in the paradise world.
The advantages and disadvantages of "Dunhuang Ceremony" are very obvious. The stage effects and costumes and props all give people a moving visual enjoyment. The plot has little content and the story is not very good . It is obviously a love tragedy, but it is difficult for people to resonate emotionally. However, if you have to dance and perform at the same time, it is also a big challenge for the actors.
Although the story performance is not satisfactory, the stage effects are really worth the price of admission. The auditorium rotates 360°. First there is a desert scene, telling the story of the painter's experiences.
Then the auditorium moved to a huge building, 3D projected various lights and shadows, and the actors in front danced in coordination with each other to tell the story of the escape of the princess and the painter.
The auditorium once again rotated into a nest-shaped stage, and the sculpture mural of Mogao Grottoes was projected on the ceiling, holographically reproducing the beauty of the Buddhist world, and the separation of the two people was performed in the center of the stage.
At the climax of the performance, the ceiling opened, and a group of flying stars dropped down to dance in the sky. Flower petals fell from the sky, trying to give the audience a feeling of being in a paradise.
The auditorium finally turned to a Moon Lake created by lights. The painter and the princess were reunited. The beauty created became eternal, and the frustrations of the past became fleeting, like a dream.
Although the auditorium is quite far away from the stage, there are actors who interact with the audience in the middle. For example, the soldiers stationed at the border ran through the auditorium passage with swords and shouts. When the show ended, there were some lovely actresses standing around the square, and the audience could take photos with them.
After watching the show, I took a taxi back and returned to the Youth Hostel smoothly. There were still no other new tenants in the quadruple room that day. I fell into a deep sleep alone, looking forward to the next journey.