In March 2024, I and my friends decided to travel back to China together in May. The four boys from our family who grew up together are all in college. The opportunities to return to China together will become less and less. Zhangjiajie was selected by several children after comparing Guilin, Yantai and Xiamen. Ctrip's promotional website is well done. Our two families are not in the same city in the country. So we chose our destination to participate in the delegation.

We set out from Shanghai. The flight time is not good. and it takes off from Shanghai's Pudong Airport. The K71 train from Shanghai to Chongqing became my first choice. However, there is no way to get soft sleeper tickets to Zhangjiajie. We waited until May 9th to get the soft berth ticket for K1373 from Shanghai to Huaihua on May 13th. This train was very disappointing. There is no smoking in the car. We closed the door of the soft sleeper room, but there was still a burst of smoke wafting in. What's worse is that all the windows are closed, so there is no way to open them for ventilation. In addition, there are no small vendors selling snacks on the train platform now. Food delivery and boarding services are also not available on this train. The plan to taste the flavors along the way completely fell through. You should still take the high-speed train to Changsha and then transfer to Zhangjiajie. Our friend's family took the K1 soft sleeper from Beijing to Changsha. They did a good job of smoking on that bus. The journey was pleasant.

On May 14, our trip to Xiangxi in Zhangjiajie officially began. Ctrip's pick-up service is very thoughtful. Our train is at Zhangjiajie Station, and my friend's train is at Zhangjiajie High-speed Railway Station. Ctrip arranged for two cars to pick up the station separately. At twelve noon, we met at Huatian Hotel two minutes later.

Our first meal in Hunan was at Aunt Qin's family heirloom beside Huatian Hotel. Two families, eight people, one private room, just right. I don't remember what dishes I ordered, but I only remember eight or nine dishes on a table, but none of them were spicy. A total of more than 400 yuan. Hunan people are still very friendly to us foreign tourists.

After eating, turn to Xingmin Road behind the hotel. It is full of restaurants. There are also fruit stalls with carts pushed. We found the small supermarket marked on the map. His family has a lot of fruits, vegetables, snacks, and drinks. Loquat prices have been reduced this week. When the train entered the station, I would see loquat trees covered with golden fruits flashing by the roadside from time to time. The round papa bananas attracted the attention of several young people. You must try something you have never seen before. The landlady watched us buy this and that, and she couldn't close her mouth from ear to ear.

At 3:30 in the afternoon, we set out for the 72nd Mysterious Building. Tickets for the Seventy-two Wonders Attractions are 20 yuan per person before 4:30 p.m., and 88 yuan per person after that. There are three streets in the scenic spot, and the one on the far left is Northwest Flavor Street. At the end of the street is a roasted naan shop opened by Xinjiang people. There are also various snacks on the other two streets. Our dinner was served at various food stalls. There is a kind of pasta that is said to be a characteristic of the Tujia people. It is shaped like a rugby ball, with only a thin shell and is crispy. We asked the Tujia tour guide the next day, but he had no idea what we were talking about. When it gets dark, the colorful lights in the scenic area light up. Various performances began to be held on the stage in the center of the scenic area. Ancient costumes, modern ones. No wonder they have to sell tickets for 88 one. We were really tired from shopping. After watching a few programs, he withdrew. Before leaving, I specially went to buy a roasted naan. The roasted naan sprinkled with sunflower and melon seeds is dry and refreshing, and it is just the right choice for us to go up the mountain the next day.

Huatian Hotel has a wide variety of buffet breakfast, both Chinese and Western. Some of the diners spoke Cantonese, some spoke Shandong, and some spoke Korean. It was very lively.

At eight o'clock sharp, our little trip reunited in the lobby. This has officially started our trip to Zhangjiajie and Xiangxi in the past few days. We Xiang Zhijie, a tour guide, was not tall and his face was a little tanned. There are a total of sixteen tourists in our group. The eight of us are the first group. There are three other groups. One of the guide's leading students acted as his assistant. We were each given a pair of headphones. You can listen to the explanation or help the guide call for those who have fallen behind.

The starting point of the cableway to Tianmen Mountain in Zhangjiajie is behind Huatian Hotel. Five minutes walk. The tour group booked both A and B lines in the morning. Individual customers can only choose line C. The cableway has a total length of more than 7,000 meters, taking us from the noisy urban area to the top of Tianmen Mountain in one go. The wind and clouds are clear on the top of the mountain and the sun is shining. All eyes are green. It's mid-May, and the season of blooming mountain flowers is over. It is estimated that by autumn, this place should be covered by layers of forest and have a different scenery. From the top of the mountain, Tianmen Temple and the Meteorological Observatory are clearly visible. It is said that if there are clouds and clouds, it will be a different scenery. The guide told us that during the May Day holiday this year, dark clouds were densely covered here. You can't see your fingers on the top of the mountain. It seems that if you want to experience the different styles of Tianmen Mountain, you have to live there for a year.

Starting from the top of the mountain, we first went to the glass plank road. The plank road is built on a cliff. You can see the abyss from the glass at your feet. However, the camera in his hand could not capture the precipitousness of the towering wall. The guide introduced that four people met to commit suicide here last year. Three people jumped. The other one was pulled back. However, he also took the poison and died. Life is so fragile.

The biggest attraction of Tianmen Mountain is Tianmen Cave. As early as the Three Kingdoms period, the mountain suddenly collapsed, forming such a big hole. In the early days of the development of Tianmen Mountain Scenic Area, a flight demonstration team flew planes through the cave. There are also high-altitude high-wire walking performances. There is also wing-suit flying. His popularity suddenly increased. It is said that a sign of success for South Korean youth is their ability to arrange for their parents to travel to Zhangjiajie and Tianmen Mountain.

There are still gravel falling from time to time in Tianmen Cave, so you cannot enter directly below the cave. He could only take a few glances from a relatively safe place on the side. When the Tianmen Mountain Scenic Area was developed, a road was built from the foot of the mountain to Tianmen Cave. Because of the steep mountains here, this road has 99 180-degree turns. There is a 999-step staircase in front of Tianmen Gate, and below it is Tianmen Cave Square. Those who don't want to challenge their physical strength can take the elevator in the mountain tunnel. Take the seven-section elevator to Tianmen Cave Square first. Then there are five more sections to the foot of the mountain. You can see Tianmen Cave much more clearly from Tianmen Cave Square. This is also a place for tourists to take photos and rest. The small shopping department next to it is good. The thermos cup I brought can be heated for free at his place.

After coming down from Tianmen Mountain, we drove straight to Huanglong Cave. There are cement steps in Huanglong Cave. Going up and down is still quite strenuous. I remember that in Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, USA, there were steps made of wooden shelves inside. There is a waterway in Huanglong Cave, which is the underground river here. I don't know if there are fish in it. There is a special liquor storage area in Huanglong Cave. It is said that one year of storing liquor in the cave is equivalent to three years of storing liquor in the cellar. Coming out of Huanglong Cave, there is a special wine tasting area on the road. Several of our older children who were not yet qualified to drink in the United States went to taste real white wine. The white wine there tastes and tastes really good. However, we still have a few days to travel, which is really inconvenient.

Dinner was our first group meal. We have a table for eight people. What served is the specialty three-pot here, fish with pickled cabbage in golden soup. Eight dishes. Because we greeted the tour guide, they didn't give us anything very spicy. However, a guy in the restaurant recommended a free tasting of hot sauce, but it tasted extremely fragrant, not very spicy. It is suitable for accompaniment and cooking.

After dinner, our group all went to watch the performance of "Charming Xiangxi". There are many programs, as well as interactions on and off the stage. Enjoy yourself.

Stayed at Pullman Keiwu at night.

At 5:10 in the morning, three groups of tourists gathered in the hotel lobby to take a bus to watch the sunrise. It's about twenty minutes 'drive. The observation deck faces the canyon between two high mountains. The small village in the canyon was quiet. Only the rooster crowed from time to time. There is a low cloud in the distance. I can't see the sunrise horizon. After waiting for about ten minutes, a touch of red suddenly appeared in the clouds. Soon it disappeared again. It's the sun, digging into the clouds again. After a while, the sun finally slowly climbed to the top of the clouds. It gave off dazzling light and illuminated the entire valley. "It's time to go back." I don't know who said this. Everyone returned to the car one after another. Rush back to the hotel.

Breakfast has already begun. There are still many people and many delicious food. Looking at the waiter's rush, I really feel that the economy here will not be bad.

We entered Wulingyuan National Park today. I went to take the Hundred Dragons Ladder in the morning. It is the famous sightseeing elevator built on the cliff. There are many people you can carry in the elevator at one time. I happen to be the last one. Standing at the elevator door, there were heads in front of him. Looking at the scenery outside the glass window, there is no feeling of riding the clouds at all. I think it would be more interesting to stand by the window.

Arriving at the top of the mountain, we followed the guide and walked across the world's No. 1 Bridge, Charming Platform, Qiankun Pillar, Lianxin Bridge, and Back Garden. In front of him were stone pillars and mountain peaks of different heights and shapes. The American blockbuster "Avatar" a few years ago was filmed here.

Lunch is on the mountain snack street. What a crowd. It was hard to find an empty table. Everyone goes to see for themselves and buys what they like. There are corn, roasted sweet potatoes, dumplings, rice noodles, noodles, and stinky tofu. Various and rich. I went to Tianzi Mountain in the afternoon. The most famous part of Tianzi Mountain is the tomb of Marshal He Long. Along the way, there are also Yubi Peak, fairies scattered flowers, and Xihai Peak Forest. After taking the cableway down the mountain, we went to the Shili Gallery. I'm really tired from going up and down the mountains these few days. At Shili Gallery, everyone chose to take the small train. But I really should walk here. Otherwise, you can't see clearly the mountains along the way.

Dinner is Hunan style as usual. There is a kind of small fish that is dried and fried. Very hard. If you can cook it in soup, it will taste good. Fresh live fish will taste better if they are fried directly.

The hotel at night is Country Garden Phoenix Hotel. The hotel's decoration is extremely luxurious. The entire hotel is built on the mountain. The scenery outside the window is beautiful.

On the third day, after two days of marching up and down Zhangjiajie, a member of our regiment fell ill. Our journey has to continue. The shortcomings of traveling with a group become apparent. The guide took us to Jinbian Creek and Huangshi Village. In front of the Five Finger Peak, the guide asked us to see which peaks were the Five Finger Peak opposite. What we saw was inconsistent with what the guide pointed out. In fact, standing on our mountain top, there are several mountain peaks opposite us. At least two places can be regarded as the Five Finger Peak. The weather was also sunny these days, otherwise the mountain peak opposite was hidden in the clouds and mist, and nothing could be seen.

At noon, we went to a farmhouse. Before I even entered the door, I saw the loquats on the trees in the yard. While we were eating, three more tour groups also came here. In the restaurant, an old lady put a basket on the floor. There are loquat inside. I quickly bought some and they tasted good. So, all the tourists who had dinner at our tables passed over. The old lady's basket was soon empty.

In the afternoon, we drove to Fenghuang Ancient City. After an hour and a half, I stopped in Furong Town. Furong Town was the location of a movie in the early years. The ancient streets and alleys in the town are well preserved. Walking here is like returning to a hundred years ago. Because there has been no rain in recent days, the waterfall in Furong Town has no water. The scenery of this waterfall city is much worse.

It is another hour and a half drive from Furong Town to Fenghuang Ancient City. After staying at Fenghuang Most Xiangxi Hotel, the guide took us to a restaurant. The plum wine in the restaurant tastes good. After dinner, we walked around the night market in Fenghuang Ancient City. The night market is on both sides of the Tuojiang River. There are many Miao clothing rental houses here. Handsome men and women rushed to change into Miao clothes and take photos by the riverside. We took a night cruise back. Looking at the lights on the shore on both sides, the crowd couldn't help but sigh at the high popularity!

When I woke up, it was the last day of our trip to Zhangjiajie and Xiangxi. In fact, the journey only lasts half a day. And it began to rain. Is it rainy day? Is it a day to stay guests? In the morning, I first saw the phoenix statue in the ancient city of Fenghuang. I also visited Shen Congwen's former residence. After walking around the streets of the city for a while, we headed straight into the tourist street. There are many interesting foods. There are also people who carry baskets and sell loquats. She also has bayberry in her pick. I tasted one. It was slightly sweet and slightly sour. It's much better than the bayberry I ate when I was a child.

It seems that there is a virus circulating in our regiment. When I had lunch at noon, I found that our eldest brother was not in good spirits. By the time we went home, two more people had fever. After lunch, our group officially ended. The guide put us on the bus to Fenghuang Ancient City High-speed Railway Station and said goodbye to us.

Because I watched many videos of Xiaohei Zhuming, a famous tour guide in Hangzhou, I decided to go with a group this time. There are advantages and disadvantages. Will you choose this again? Not necessarily. Decisions should still be made based on attractions.