ShiBaoZhai :
This place has a prominent feature of a huge protruding 700 foot rock on its river bank, on top of the rock has a temple built around the year 1736 -1796 (about 60 years.)
Legion has it that a Goddess named Nuwo (女媧) caused this shear rock to come to existence after a battle between two warring Gods. She had to repair the gaping hole in the sky. (女媧補天). This huge rock was the aftermath of the battle of the Gods.
Our little cruise ship has six decks; the top deck is an open deck that has lawn chairs and walking corridors all around.
Weather was mild and pleasant enough, a little misty in the water due to temperature differences between land and water.
The next port of call is called White Emperor City (白帝城)
It has a population of about a million people, and five thousand square kilometers. It is 8 kilometers from the ancient city of Fengjie (奉節縣) which has more than 2300 years history. This city has been relocated 5 or 6 times through out Chinese history. The last time was in 2003 when the construction of the Three Gorges Dam was in its peak.
Life on board ship was no different from any other cruises; you could have class on tai chi, or understand the significance of the ecological and financial impacts about building the Three Gorges Dam. The souvenir shop had on display some very exquisite items. But they certainly were not cheap.
Yes, the bar on the 5th floor, the prices are reasonable, but not inexpensive. I didn’t hang around the bar much. Instead, we brought beers and spirits on board every chance we got. Price is right that way.
The next attraction is Wu Shan (巫山) Wushan is a town in existing for more than three thousand years. The town has a population of 30,000 people. All of the population were relocated to a new town before the old town site was dismantled and subsequently submerged because of the construction of the Three Gorge Dams.