Huang Long

   Huang Long 黄龙 , the literal translation being "Yellow Dragon", is a UNESCO World Heritage site located in the Sichuan province. After finishing 4 weeks in a language program in Guangzhou, it was our first destination for our 6 day mini-tour of Sichuan. 

Trees and Mist at Huang Long

   The park, when we saw it, was not at its best. The clouds we had seen from the airport, clinging to the sides of mountains, came alive after the three-hour drive and when we arrived at Huang Long, the sky was a stark grey and it was drizzling.
   After entering the park (well, it was still drizzling), the mist (and the drizzle) seemed to turn the forest on either side of us into a spirit world we had accidentally trespassed into. It was mysterious, eerie, and (as much as I hate to mention this) looked straight like a scene from Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. That is to say, its surreal beauty, had we not been directly experiencing it, would have looked slightly cliche and more than slightly photoshopped.
   Huang Long, and as we would later learn, Jio Zhai Go, was a place of ethereal beauty that sometimes pushed the boundaries of beliefe.

My Aunt and I, with Lakes in the background

Tiered ponds of Huang Long

    Though the mist lent a sense of surreality to the park, the light rain (which later escalated) made hiking a little irksome, especially when you take the fact that we only had 2 small umbrellas amongst the four of us into consideration. The tiered ponds, formed by calcite deposits didn't sparkle with 5 different colors, but they were still a gorgeous and interesting sight.

My Mom and I with Lakes in the background

   The only thing about the park that really bothered me, though, was the vast amount of people (all of the asian, by the way) that packed the path and jostled for place at good photo sites.    This place, for instance, that my mom are at in the picture was simply awful. The view behind us of the crystal-clear ponds was beautiful (though it didn't show up that well in the pictures). We had to push our way through the swarming mass of people, and then try to keep the eager photo-takers away until we had finished shooting our own pictures.

Paths are jam-packed!

   This picture is one that we snapped while there was a bit of breathing room from the crowds (relatively speaking), and as you can see, it's one gigantic parade of umbrellas*. Overall, though the mist, soaking rain and crowds were a bit of a deterrent, I would definitely say that Huang Long is a must-see if you're in the area. Every part of the path we took was gorgeous, even the woody area that preceded the lakes. 

*probably even on the sunny days, as Asian women (and some men) are in the habit of carrying parasols in order to keep their skin white.