Like some other Shanghai residents, have thought at times that Ching must have been defrauded of her share of the world's natural wonders, Therefore, I welcomed eagerly the chance to explore in a ear with {wo friends that garden spot of China, Chekiang Province. This trip had been contemplated a long time, and every available bit of information about routes, conditions of roads, and places of interest had been gathered together. We got vises for our passports, rolled up our bedding, packed provisions for two weeks, into our Ford sedan and with maps in our pockets, started forth to find five mountains.
We did not consult the moon calendar to find a propitious day on which to begin our journey, but on the eve of our departure we learned that, nevertheless, we had made a happy choice. October @ happened to be the ninth day of the ninth moon, which is the "Day for Ascent" to a high place in order to avoid the visit of the evil spirit. Tt seemed very appropriate that We were set~ ting out to ascend not one high place, but five, The trip to Hangchow we had all made a number of times before, 50 that seemed like 9 necessary preface to the real beginning of our explore: tions, On the other side of Hangchow we crossed the wide Chien Tong River on a ferry made by chaining together two big junks and placing a platform across them, approaches to the ferry were excellent and the service both quick and eMclent. We would have appreciated that ferry more had we Known then all we now know about ferries 'The thirty-three miles to Shaohsing we covered in a short time. 'The road is better, the countryside more beautiful, and the people decidedly more' prosperous looking than on the Shanghai-Hangchow We had been informed by that cars could not fo into the city of Shaohsing, so we stopped at the bus station outside the city and asked how to proceed to the home of our friends. We pected Information as to where we could leave the car for the night and to go by rickshaw.
First Time In History the station man said to us, "Hao Kali Hao kal." (The car fo), Although there was some diver Hence of opinion in the crowd gathered round, "he still insisted, "liao kal," s0 off we went with 9 guide standing on our running board.
Down the narrow cobbled lane between the rows of shops and tea houses we bounced and bumped, The vendors quickly jerked in their housewives scurried to rescue baskets of vegetables in time; several chicks and one child had ' narrow escapes when We jerked to a stand~ sill, to avoid them. At last we arrived at our destination on the other side of the city. Our friends didn't conceal their amazement when they saw our ear. Tt was the first time in the history of man, they said, that guests had driven into. the city in a car. We began to feel that we had accomplished somewhat of a feat on the first day of our trip. 'Then came the antic climax. No gate, not even that of the hospital, was wide enough to admit such a' vehicle. The alley was too narrow (o permit parking. There was nothing to do but retrace all those slippery stone streets ud park the car in the bus station.
Shaohsing is famous as the city built on of marshland by Emperor 'YN, n contemporary of Noah. He accomplished great engineering feats. among them a system of canals in that area, In order to visit his tomb, we set out early the next morning in a foot boat, so-called Because the boatman propel one oar by foot. An hour's journey along the canals took us outside the city to Yd Wang Miao (Emperor Yu's Temple), There around the rebuilt temple stood many famous tablets, Men were busily pressing puper onto some of them in order to make rubbings. Above the place where Tegend says YN is buried, we saw the "stone needle with which the world was sewed up." More like-the heavy stone was used 9s 2 counterweight on the other end of the rope which Tet the heavy coffin down intovits resting place.
The First Mountain, Hsuchtoshan By eleven o'clock we were on the road to Ningpo with Hsuehtoshan (Mountain of the Snowy Valley) as our objective, There was some doubt fas to-whether cars could cross the river st Pokwan, and we were re-Heved to see that a ferry could be made out of boats, though it war evident from the grass growing among the stones in the approach to the ferry that not many cars do cross. Also the fee was two dollars Instead of usual one dollar.
We travelled almost in a semicircle, passed through several small towns, had frequent glimpses of the sea, and arrived in Ningpo at 4 O'clock. In the city we crossed the pontoon bridge and proceeded along a beautiful road between hills through what Is known as the Feng-hua area, Passing through the vil~ Tage of Chikow, we drove on to the private garage of the China Travel Service at the foot of Hsuehtoshan. On all sides of us were small friendly hills. Ahead lay the stone walk up the gentle slopes of the mountain. Our luggage was taken up by carriers and we proceeded at leisure wit" njoy the few pink along the path and the wind in the pine trees above our heads.
Just at dusk we rounded a curve and crossed a stone bridge into the Snowy Valley. On the way up we had wondered whether to go to thr temple or to the China Travel Ser~ vice Guest House for the night. When we saw the great red gate. the tall old ginko trees, the quiet courtyards, the question was de-elded for us. We could do nothing but stop at the temple. Tt has beer redecorated recently, but the new paint has not taken away the peaceful, dignified atmosphere of a temple really old. Our hosts made us very comfortable in one of their immacu-Tate guest room suites. We used our alcohol stove to prepare our ow> evening meal, The summit of the hill was reached sarly next morning When we elimbfed the remaining short distance and looked out over the valleys far below where terraced folds resemble big Jig saw puzzles. We descended by steep rocky path branching off from the main road in order to have a close view of the very high waterfall about halt way down the mountain. We had seen both the evening lights and the morning mists on our frst mountain and we carried away with us a sense of satisfaction at having made its acquaintance.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.