D47: 庆阳 → 上肖

June 1, 2021

If I included the picture of me on a nearby bridge in the same position from 9 years ago, this picture would make a lot more sense

Even though this must be the road I took, it's a big city sort of ride out of the city with nothing looking even the slightest bit familiar until I'm off on the country roads. Some of the stuff I'm passing by is clearly new but there's other stuff (like a full sized refinery) that simply couldn't have not been there but which didn't imprint on my memories at all.

Even after I start finding things that are very definitely the exact same place as my pictures from 9 years ago, there's nothing that really clicks with me until I'm moving too fast on an amazing downhill that, given the roadworks which were happening last time round and the issues I always had with the brakes back then must have been absolutely terrifying.

Here is an equally contextless photo of the nearby bridge in question

No year shown but I'm pretty sure from the construction technique and the weathering on the concrete that it's late 70s

On the plateau looking down into the gorge. The holes in the canyon wall used to be people's homes.

Much to my annoyance, although it has nothing on what it had before the Qingyang bike shop's adjustments the night before, the squealing noise in my brakes decides that now is a good time to return. I'm definitely liking the stopping power of discs more than rim, but I miss the simplicity of something I could understand how to adjust.

At the bottom of the valley there's a temple. Called the North Grottoes, its a national heritage site—has been such a site since the 90s—and I'm baffled as to how I passed it without going in nine years ago as there's little to no doubt that this is definitely the road I was on.

A stela which I couldn't get close enough to read

Normally these have scripture on them. This one has something else. Attempts to read it were stymied by the idiot docent.

I want to imagine that after the ongoing renovations (which are being undertaken by the Dunhuang¹ Research Institute) that it will be amazing as there was a lot about the place that ought to have amazed me. Problem was, the staff wouldn't let me be amazed.

In a site which managed, throughout my entire visit, to have a grand total of two other visitors, I was regularly admonished (most often over a loudspeaker attached to a security cam, but also by a docent with a not very informative pre-prepared guide script and a green laser pointer) not to take photos as the invisible beams sent out by my camera and phone would weaken the sandstone, and I had multiple people go all "hover-y" and weird at me because I was spending too much time trying to read 400 year old grafitti.

No touching. The sign clearly says "no touching". It does not say "no photography". This is because the people who installed the sign aren't idiots.

If I hadn't had to deal with the docent, or if I had access to someone who could actually explain relevant or interesting information about the grottoes, I could have easily spent another hour here. Or two.

You'll note the presence of deep dark shadows in this picture. This is because I am neither using a tripod nor a flash but am instead photographing entirely based on ambient lighting.

I'm glad I paid the 60y to go in same as I'm glad I paid for a second visit to the Zhongshan Grottoes but I had way way way more fun at any of the nameless places where tourists aren't expected to go.

I am reasonably sure that I climbed my way back up to the plateau by a different road than my previous excursion through this region as the one I took seems to me to be the sort of thing you wouldn't be able to find without the help of GPS.

The very thorough number of options you had in paying for a trained lecturer (up to and including a full day package) gave me great hope for the Grottoes. My hopes were not lived up to.

The scope of the construction work still leaves me optimistic

But not so optimistic as to make this site a Destination (or intentional Detour) for any future travel

Both the main road on the plateau and the county road that took me to Shangxiao were completely unfamiliar to me though the only time I stopped to photograph something specifically because it was pretty, it would turn out to be something I'd photographed before.

I accidentally deleted the close-up from this entry but, if I recall correctly, it's all late Qing and early RoC "so-and-so performed on this stage" (and wouldn't it be so cool to have a side exhibit about the performers who could be identified?)

The condition of the fresco and the age of the building informs me that my horrified accidental damage to similar fresco in 2018 was only to 19th century materials and not (as I'd feared) 17th

The bike shop people were pretty sure that Honghe, the next township after Shangxiao, had lodging but I knew from past experience that if it didn't I'd very likely find myself walking my way back up from the valley towards Fengtai and the hope that the pissant miserable place I'd stayed at in 2012 still existed despite not showing up on Maps.

With one place showing up in Shangxiao as well as Honghe not even showing a police station, I made the call to dawdle over dinner and report myself to the Shangxiao Police on the cusp of sunset.

I thought I'd change vehicles for a while

They are very fond of recycled tire "art" in the countryside

Truly some of the most pleasant officers I've dealt with so far this trip, I wish I could be as nice in my estimation of the lodging (hotel definitely isn't the right word) where they sent me along with instructions to tell the owner "if there's any issue, just call us".

Not only did she not call them, she stood underneath the flashing electronic sign (one of two) which went on and off and on again reading "lodging, lodging, lodging" and griped on the phone to whomever she did call that she'd tried telling me they were closed and I'd had the bad taste to refuse to believe her.

Then, after a bit more arguing, which led to the other customer who had arrived at the same time as me to decide to drive elsewhere because frankly she was being a bitch and the rooms were the sort of overpriced that happens when you have zero competition, she just left.

I waited ten minutes for her to return then I let myself in through a window, unlocked the door, moved my bike inside, and waited for someone to eventually come and take my money.

¹ The Dunhuang Grottoes are a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 1,745 km (1,084 miles)

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