Soaring through the sky, arriving in Changsha#
Soaring through the sky, occasionally catching a glimpse of the ever-changing purple lightning in the clouds, accompanied by the slight tremor during the journey, finally, the wings lightly touch the ground, and I land on the familiar land of Changsha.
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Even though I have spent countless hours here, this is my first time landing at Huanghua Airport. Following the signs, I enter the arrival gate and see the bustling traffic flow in front of me, with various colored car lights reflecting against the red and blue police lights in the distance, creating a subtle contrast with the grayish-brown night sky. On the phone, the driver communicates with me in Mandarin mixed with Changsha accent, indicating the direction for me to go. However, amidst the chaos, I am unable to find his whereabouts. The phone rings again, and he hurriedly tells me that his car has been driven away by the traffic police - even though he had falsely claimed to be picking up his elderly grandmother from the airport. He finally moves his car away from the pickup area and walks back to me, gently carrying my luggage, and we navigate through the crowd together.
Inside the car, my reserved jazz melody flows, adding a touch of relief to the weary journey. Sensing my slight fatigue, the driver remains silent and focuses on driving. Although it is already late at night, the streets of Changsha are brightly lit, and the scenery outside my car window seems dreamlike. Unknowingly, I fall into a dream.
When I wake up again, the car is waiting quietly in front of the hotel. The driver kindly assists me in carrying my luggage into the lobby. I provide my name, and after the staff verifies my identity, they check me in and guide me to the elevator.
Arriving in the room, I unpack my luggage, hand over the coffee-stained clothes to the front desk for handling, and take a simple shower before falling into a deep sleep. It is not until the next morning's sunrise that I wake up leisurely in the warm sunlight.
Climbing Yuelu Mountain, talking about the green mountains#
In the faint morning light, we set out from the hostel and head straight to Wuyi Square. In the bustling market, we randomly choose a barbecue restaurant to satisfy our hunger. Afterwards, we take a car to Hunan University. Our friends from Hunan University warmly guide us around the campus and even accompany us to visit the campus museum. I can't help but feel grateful that our solemn university has been preserved and not disturbed by such worldly hustle and bustle.
At dawn the next day, we arrive at the foot of Yuelu Mountain. We slowly climb along the mountain path, and I mention to my friends the trip I took to Changsha last summer, when the mountain peaks I climbed were similar to the ones in front of me - winding paths and moderate altitude. I am immersed in the feeling of the similarity of southern landscapes when suddenly I reach the foot of the mountain and am surprised to find the familiar mountain gate. I look up and realize that the mountain peak I thought was similar to Yuelu Mountain is actually Yuelu Mountain itself! At that moment, I realize that I have made a big joke - there is only one mountain in downtown Changsha, and that is the Yuelu Mountain I mistakenly thought was elsewhere. And yet, I had been talking non-stop to my friends about the monotony of southern landscapes.
Tianxin Pavilion and modern buildings#
Indeed, the scenic spots in Changsha are not abundant, but my affection for this land keeps pulling me back time and time again. Today, we enter the embrace of Tianxin Pavilion. In front of the ancient pavilion, the crowd gathers, and we weave through the bustling crowd to find the ticket office. Two half-priced tickets cost only thirty yuan, a privilege for students that brings joy.
Although the park is not large, it hides the last trace of the ancient city of Changsha, and the historical context flows heavily in the ancient city walls. Here, you can often encounter elderly people doing morning exercises, holding their senior citizen cards, enjoying the free tranquility in this historical courtyard. The silent bell tower of the Wenxi fire stands in a corner, emitting a solemn and dignified atmosphere.
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Leaving Tianxin Pavilion, a man-made mountain waterfall comes into view. Young people come and go in a hurry, walking briskly, occasionally pausing to capture the moment, and then disappearing into the bustling crowd. In contrast, the elderly people are leisurely, playing chess in the pavilion, and the middle-aged women are laughing and talking on the flat ground. Tianxin Pavilion is like an island, standing quietly in the modern architecture jungle of Changsha. The tranquility of the elderly and the serenity of the ancient pavilion contrast with the buildings, symbolizing the busy and lofty pace of the young.
This scene reminds me that Tianxin Pavilion is the accumulation of years, the tranquility of the elderly, while modern architecture represents the vitality of youth and the rushing pace of the young. Under the same sky, the two intertwine, weaving a picture of the blending of ancient and modern Changsha.
Antique Bookstore#
Although Tianxin Pavilion is one of our destinations, what we really want to explore is the nearby old bookstores. In the unique social context of China, many books have been banned or censored at some point, and certain academic masterpieces have had limited print runs due to subject restrictions. Recalling my enthusiasm for philology in high school, I spent two weeks searching for Mr. Lu Zongda's works.
At first, we followed the guidance of the map and arrived at a building called the Book City, expecting to find rare and valuable works there. However, reality was completely different. This so-called Book City only occupied a corner of a dilapidated shopping mall, and the dim lights barely illuminated the small book stalls. Even though it was noon, it felt like dusk, and it was difficult to get excited. We wandered among the small shops filled with various colored exercise books, and those familiar materials brought back memories of the tedious days of doing exercises. My friend seemed particularly disappointed, but we encouraged each other to continue searching for a bookstore that could escape the secular noise and collect truly valuable books.
Finally, we discovered a bookstore where we found what we were looking for. Neatly arranged on the counter were the complete works of Lu Xun published by People's Literature Publishing House, as well as classic ancient books. The books were in pristine condition. We felt like we had found true book lovers and approached them to inquire if there were any old bookstores nearby. Unexpectedly, the owner smiled strangely and mocked us for not reading new books and preferring old ones. His attitude made us realize that he was just a businessman pursuing surface glamour. So, we smiled politely and left this soulless Book City.
Leaving the Book City, we strolled along the street, dissatisfied with the difficulty of finding like-minded people nowadays. Suddenly, we noticed a simple shop on the opposite street corner, with its name written in traditional characters on a yellow sign. Our intuition told us that this was no ordinary place, so we crossed the traffic and entered the shop. The shopkeeper was an eccentric-looking old man with a sharp gaze. Three walls of the shop were lined with towering bookshelves, containing a mixture of new and old books covering a wide range of topics from ancient to modern, Chinese and foreign.
Just when we were desperate, we unexpectedly found this truly anticipated bookstore. My friend found a rare set of political science books in the sea of books, and I couldn't let go of a beautiful edition of "The Peony Pavilion." After negotiating the price with the owner, we happily made the payment, glad that this trip was not in vain.
Farewell#
On October 1st, we chose to stay in the room and rest, no longer going out for a stroll. At 6 a.m. on October 2nd, the loud alarm clock woke us up, and we quickly packed our luggage and checked out of the hotel, arriving at the hotel entrance. The reserved vehicle had been waiting for a long time. I embarked on the journey back, arriving at Huanghua Airport, going through security, and entering the quiet lounge, only to receive a message from my friend at this moment.
Originally, he planned to take a high-speed train to a nearby city in Changsha for a short visit and then head straight to his hometown in Shandong. However, he encountered a vehicle malfunction on the way to the train station, which hindered his journey, causing him to miss the scheduled train. The next available high-speed train time was not ideal, forcing him to spend a long half-day waiting patiently at the train station for the afternoon train back to Shandong.
In comparison, everything at the airport was in order. After enjoying a simple breakfast in the lounge, I proceeded to the boarding gate. This time, the flight was assigned to a remote gate, and I took a shuttle bus alone to reach the plane, once again sitting in my favorite front-row window seat in business class. However, the drink menu provided by Air China only had orange juice, a small disappointment that slightly dampened my excitement.
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This article is also updated on xLog by Mix Space
The original link is https://nishikori.tech/notes/10