Day 10: All over red rover - and now to plan the next one

At this stage, any transport will do

There was no stone unturned in the stakes for getting us a seat tonight - we had prayers, positive thinking and even a little back magic and voodoo at the round table of breakfast this morning.

Needless to say it was necessary to reprise some of the clothing items of the last 24 hours, but with a solid 6 hours sleep under our belts and steaming hot showers, the late, leisurely and somewhat quieter breakfast had us ready for the new day.

The issues were "no cash" and "no communication." The concierge drew us a map (and just quietly, thank goodness we had @Von because @Carolyn and I had it upside down and turning left instead of right as soon as we walked out the door) and the morning plan was to get out and stretch the legs.

Working out the map

And besides, our 4 km round trip walking adventure was another perfect opportunity to shop. Found a street full of bargains. This was full-on, in-dressing-rooms, trying-on -all-sorts-of-layers type of shopping. The problem was lack of funds. Visa cards, travel money cards, bank cards, credit cards - in fact any card - all failed despite the commitment and desperation of the sales assistants to make it happen. The only purchases were for cash.

At 3 yuan - we can afford this

Really is was only @Denise and @Cheryl still flush - I think the rest of us had a measly 20 yuan each left. Enough for a bottle of water and a piece of pineapple on a stick.

This was round 1 of shopping and then it was back to the Vienna for a lunch. @Denise and @Cheryl went back to the shops for round two and literally had an entourage looking after them. Tried the bank tp cash up, but were advised they needed to wait an hour for service.

Lots of looking - nit too many purchases

My two hours was spent working with @Mac via an internet connection that dropped in and out trying to re-establish connection with OPTUS and getting some credit added to the WISE card. Went round and round in circles with attempted authorisation of new devices as @Mac tried to set-up from his end. Eventually, with a little continuous stream of connection at my end amd the magic of a VPN, I was set.

The group rallied in the foyer of the Vienna at 4.45 pm for a round two attempt at the airport. Laughing becaise the hand luggage continues to grow.

This is HAND luggage!

Reported to the China Southern checkon desk amd met up with the Melbourne crowd. A big sigh of relief for us - got 6 seats on the direct flight for later tonight. Not so fortunate for the Melbourne crew. Only half could be accommodated - the remainder of the group have another sleep over!

Spot the new cashmere

Settled into the airport - @Denise and @Cheryl found shops, at last, that took their cards and a cashmere pashmina was now gracing @Denise's shoulders.

I need to get back to the money thing. @Von had Aussie dollars and thought it might be a good idea to go to the cash exchange at the airport. Just want a little yuan on board in case we were at the airport for a while, or heaven forbid, delayed overnight again. Anyway, flashed her $20 at the counter and was expecting somewhere close to 100 yuan to slip into her money belt. After lots of clickety clacking on his calculator the offer, after fees and at the exchange rate today was ....  drum roll ..  52 yuan. A whopping 48 yuan in fees! Almost half the value. Um, no thanks, she'd rather be yuan-less!

Plenty of opportunities to relax

Found ourselves a very comfortable spot to relax before the flight and kept our eyes on the board which seemed to be constantly changing with hints at delay. Ended up being just 30 minutes late and we were excited to take up our seats across three rows in the 30s.

The eight and a half hour flight just disappeared -mind you I had the benefit of sleep along with @Denise and @Julie, while @Carolyn pulled nurse duties and @Cheryl and @Von were wide awake helping with navigation.

Nice and close to the front for exit, coaxed our legs into movement and were greeted with multiple surprises - all our luggage arrived (@Julie's was last out on the carousel,) the most incredible clear blue skies (hadn't seen that since we left home) and the wide smiles and open arms of our meeters and greeters. So good to be home.

Home - now to sort the extras

Home - with duty free bags for meeters and greeters

Not bad really. Six women in various states of confusion over twelve days and we all returned in one piece, relatively healthy and with only one lost item - @Denise's extension 🚽.

Great shared experiences on this trip, terrific memories to carry us to the next decade and a continued commitment to giving thanks that we are in a position to just say "yes" when the opportunity presents. 

 As I sit and reflect, I'm sort of feeling a little warm and fuzzy because the effortless love and laughter of the #Fab5+1 was sprinkled generously across the wider group ... it touched, warmed  and perhaps even enriched the lives of some other travellers who have now made their way onto our contacts list.

That's a wrap on this one - it continues to be a laugh a minute celebrating our collective march into maturity.

PS It's over to @Von now, the baby of the group who celebrates her birthday early in 2026. We have a destination and a loose commitment for a time frame. Let's get that party started.

PPS Have heard from both the Melbourne and Sydney crews. They made it home via some interesting connecting flights with more delays and lots of mad dashes through multiple airports. We were so fortunate to get a direct flight! 

Day 9: Thinking this is the last day

All smiles thinking this is last day

It's funny, once it is time to go home, everybody is keen to get there. Will be nice not to have to wake up to @Jenny announcing the start of the day. And as a heads up, I'm definitely ordering a steak for Monday night.

What did we do today

Final breakfast up on Deck 5 and lots of farewells to the staff, especially @Tina, @Shesheba and @Jenny, who have been so kind and attentive.

That is the way out - first if 5 flights of stairs - porters already at work

A final check of the room, keys handed in and a meetup with @Leila and @Molly in the Deck 2 dining room. We were a little worried when the roll call and room check had been completed and @Denise and @Cheryl were MIA. Contacted them via a phone call only to learn they had by passed the dining room and had already scaled the 200 steps from the boat to the ground level of the shore.

Roll call and list property check

@Leila waved her flag at that news and we were off. It was a marathon start to the day. The porters, with bamboo pole and rope had already ferried the bags two at a time to the bus and were now ready with chairs to carry up those passengers who couldn't make it. I was a definite target! Mobbed and touched and followed - the workers were definitely hoping that I succumbed ro fatigue somewhere along the journey. Some did and their ascent was accompanied by a loud, sing song heaving rhythm to keep the porters in time.

No way I was getting in that chair

Next stage of the process was to run the gauntlet of the hawkers. What a boon business they were running. They had loads of sales on our bus - aided by our very own middle man @Brenda - particularly for the flying toys.

Glad we could leave our hand luggage on the bus because the bits and pieces were certainly mounting up.

Extras mounting up as hand luggage

And further good news, @Cheryl had left her jacket hanging up in the cupboard back on the China Goddess 2. The unflappable @Leila organised for it to be delivered to the bus - via a taxi servicd - jacket and @Cheryl were reunited.

We have found all hospitality staff extremely honest on this trip. Things have constantly been lost and found. @Leila held up all the items in the meeting room this morning to be claimed and invariably, someone has left something behind every place we have been. In fact, I left an unopened bottle of a 42% alcohol content liquer on the dining table last night as a thank you gesture only to find it wrapped and left on the table this morning. Had to convince @Shesheba to accept it.

Chongqing visibility also impacted by "weather"

TripaDeal offered a guided tour of Chongqing as an alternate to sitting at the airport all day for trippers with an evening flight departure. We all embarked on the adventure which entailed a ride on the train to a monirail station, a visit to an old town precinct and finally to a shpping complex.

I think our two bus group made an impact on the economy this morning - the shopping reached new heights.

Liziba Monorail Station

@Leila herded us through the walkways of the railway station to travel two stations to Liziba Station. The train delivered us into the the building and we alighted insude the 8th floor and took a series of stairs to pop out on the congested street. It is Sunday after all. 

Walk though station - stick together

 This station is famous for its unique engineering where the monorail passes directly through a residential building. Pretty impressive and very busy. Lots of locals making sales, the river far below, the bridge high above, the train being swallowed by the building and the mosaic cover of the facade all combine to make it a must do stop.

No need to sot - it's just 2 stops

Yep, train went straight through the building

Lots of people

It was wall to wall people that carried heightened potential for getting lost. There was a meetup time at a specific spot followed by a long walk to the bus. Needed to be on time to pick up the flag to follow.

"LOST" seemed to be the trend of the day - and @Leila's head count revealed we were 7 short on the bus. Five were just "laggards" but @Brenda and @Catherine were missing. @Denise's phone was ringing and it was @Brenda on the other end. No worries, ever unflappable @Leila followed their descriptions to find them and then called for the bus to come to their new location. Reunited to load cheers on the bus.

Old Town at Hongyadong

This 11-story building complex, was set into the hillside and built in Chongqing's traditional stilt architecture style. It seemed that everything we saw was built "up" in this city that ia built on th side of slopes.

Yep, ready to sniff out some bargains

This place was really bustling - wall to wall people, lots of food stalls, great shopping, views of the river, walkways withh love locks and wishes, an open area temple and the best sculptures. 

Plenty of sculptures, a mix of old and new

There was one statue of a little boy complete with a water spout depicting him "peeing in the pond" with the cheeky message warning you not to swim. Could have been tempted actually, because it was hot and humid.

Speaking of hot and humid, I know you have heard of the saying "wouldn't that rip the fork out of your nightie?" Well I have a new one for you: "It's so hot, it'd melt the panty liner out of your undies."

That's exactly what happened. There it was in all its glory - flat on the path - escaped. That monkey from yesterday at the caves had nothing on me for speed - it was "spot, swoop and bin" in the blink of an eye. Admitting, with a city population B of 35 million I am surprised that only @Julie, @Carolyn and I were witnesses. I bet that's one that makes the highlight reel of the CCTV though.

Seems like a rinse and repeat across China - locked in ANOTHER toilet and accosted by ANOTHER student who wanted to practise their English.

And you guessed it - at head count time for @Leila - we were two short. We eventually spotted @Denise and @Cheryl bouncing along in the distance 😀 laden with more loot.

Jiefangbei Pedestrian Way

Well someone is haappy for another shopping stop

Can't believe the size of everything in Chongqing but with so many people guess it is all par for the course. We were dropped at the base of the Liberation Clock Tower in this 36000 square metre shopping precinct. 

All the brand names are here along with food outlets and every sort of shop you can imagine. All so overwhelming! People EVERYWHERE. @Von and I picked our way through lots of options and got close to finding the single orchid stem @Von was looking for. We settled on some small stuff, including cranberry tea and rounded our 90 minutes with an ice cream. Others found some more significant items and @Leila was very relieved when we all reported back with a solid two minutes up our sleeves.

Nearly ...

And that was it - time to gather up all the belongings and with @Leila's help, make our way through the checkin process.

A long wait at the airport

Oh dear, if it could go wrong it did. We were delivered on time to checkin and of course 20 out of the 36 in the group had to open their luggage to repack and reorganise the contents after today's shopping. 

It will definitely fit

The checkin lines were then held up because @Parvi's name on the boarding pass didn't match her passport. That took so much time at the counter and even after this first attempt, she was still "taken away." I had a flashback to our China Great Wall adventures years ago when our driver was removed from the vehicle never to be seen again! But she did reappear about 60 minutes later and joined us at the gate. It does raise the question though, how did she actually get into the country. Highlights the need to carefully check the TripaDeal details.

Roll on the next problem. @Julie's name was up in neon lights rolling across the "naughty luggage" person display. And yep, secreted in her luggage was her personal stash of scotch! Stored in a convenient little glass bottle it hadn't been completely consumed over the 10 days. Hope it wasn't a good one because it had to be tipped out.

Next @Denise's name was rolling across the noticebiard. But when her luggage was rechecked, it didn't hold any secrets and she was waved away.

Made the run through security with ease and found our gate only to be informed we were delayed due to bad weather in Guangzhou.

First it was 35 minutes.

Then it was an hour.

Or two ... now they offered food to tide us over.

Then it was three ...

Eventually at plus four hours over due we boarded for our two hour flight to deliver us to our connecting international flight. Our hosties immediately did the run through the cabin with the "green stickers" of the priority passengers. Priority means "likely to miss connecting flight."

Check out the timestamp - this was boarding our scheduled 4.25 pm flight

I have no idea what happened on the plane because I slept for the two hours on this domestic leg from Chongqing to Guangzhou.

Just as well because we needed our energy for the chaos that ensued. Collectively we were extremely disappointed that we were just turfed off the plane. Had no idea where to go or what to do and there was nothing from the staff on the flight and certainly nothing from the ground staff. There wasn't even a hint as to the status of our connection. No idea if we were still in play. 

Now in Chongqing, complete with green dot .... waiting ... look at that timestamp again ... but still smiling

I was determined that we should head for international transfers. That made sense. Nope. Wrong answer.

Thank goodness for @Brenda. With fluent Chinese language on board she literally saved the day. Herded all the TripaDealers into one spot and acted as interpreter.  

I was OVER committed to following the "International Transfers" signage but @Brenda was working herself into a sweatball trying to keep everything and everyone on track.

As it turned out, if you miss your connecting flight you have to report to the Domestic Transfers desk and sort out new connections.

@Brenda collected passports for the Sydney group .... and matched them with a ground staff person. Then the same for the Melbourne group.

As a group of just six we were the third group dealt with. Definitely had missed our connection.

No @Brenda to help us ...had to rely on the translator

Inconveniently, both @Denise and I no longer had an independent data plan to connect us with home. Luckily, @Mac was tracking both flights and could see that our Brisbane bound flight had taken off before our Chongqing to Guangzhou flight had landed.

All we could do was wait patiently. If we moved off the spot at any time, the ground staff lady looking looking after us would point to the spot and say "stay." We were exhausted, didn't really have a clue what was going on and to a bladder, we were busting to go to the loo.

After copying our passports and boarding pass and with lots of charades, limited language and the use of the translator, we deduced we were staying overnight, would be transferred to a nearby hotel and were on standby for the same flight tomorrow night.

A bus ride, where I managed to snaffle a front seat delivered us to the Vienna Hotel along with 25 local Chinese people who had missed their flight.

The front seat was important, because it meant I was in a prime position for a jostled rush from the bus to the checkin counter. Admitting, two spirited Chinese people passed me on the sprint, but more by good luck than speed, I had secured one of the three front row spots for checkin. 

It was 1.45 am and we were checked into our spacious comfortable over night (one night only we hope) rooms. Connected to the best free WiFi of the trip, updated home with the new "projected" details, hit the shower and settled into a deep sleep!

Comfortable... fingers crossed it is just one night 

What a day - so glad we had a change of clothes, toiletries, PJs and medication in our backpacks - otherwise it would have been another 2 hours at the airport to reclaim luggage. Also relieved that our luggage trackers showed our luggage had arrived and was stored at the airport.

We'll be ready to do it all again tomorrow.

PS The airline has picked up all expenses including motel accommodation, meals a d transport. We do have some questions playing through our collective consciousness - do we need to extend our insurance, how can we access some money and can we reconnect data plans ... all questions for breakfast tomorrow.

Day 8: Jaw dropping caves and breath taking gorges

Ready for the Rift Valley Walk

A bit of planning needed for today because it was a big one. Because the Ship Lock tour had been cancelled way back in the program at that dam wall, which meant we had an opportunity to add an additional tour to our schedule. @Denise had spotted this one during @Jenny's original briefing on the boat and we had signed up. It was a little daunting physically and meant we were off the ship for 10 hours. 

Enjoyed breakfast on board and certainly fuelled up becuase there was a promise of steps as in, FLIGHTS of steps  

Good morning!

It was a Ilittle surprise to wake to a still moving boat. The weather was so closed in, it was hard to see anything beyond the balcony rail. It was raining and visibility was non existent. @Jenny's voice was piped into our room to acknowledge that we would be late arriving because we were travelling at a snail's pace along the river.

I used the time to pack. Yep, it's all coming to an end and we needed to have the checkin bags organised for the porters to collect tonight. 

Bit of a climb up from the river - one of the many flights if the day

Before we even start the run down, need to acknowledge that the photos do not do justice to today's adventures.  Scale and perspective finesse is needed to show digitally what was indelibly etched into our memory bank. Perhaps if I had counted the steps we tramped today or retained more of the measurements it would add the detail - but let's just sum up by saying, both trips were well worth the effort.

Congrats to @Cheryl for conquering her nervousness over the heights we were to travel and to @Carolyn for bouncing back from the cable car quick descent.

Our local guide today was @Sammi and it was definitely a challenge for her to manage a larger group when we had to travel in the confines of the cave. But, have to say, she didn't exactly win any brownie points for "leading" the group- @Cheryl, @Denise and @Von were part of the larger contingent from our group who were detached and left behind. Thank goodness they were resourceful enough to join a Chinese speaking tour leader. There were many twists and turns in the caves, with little to no directional signage, which meant they could have been lost in the bowels of the Jade Snow Caves for a very long time.

Hmm, was not our best experience with a local guide today but the granduer of nature made up for any shortfall. 

What did we get up to today?

Snow Jade Caves

It was a great drive through the mountains to reach our destination. An hour of climbing and twisting and turning accompanied by lots of beeping of horns. The man made features of bridges, highrise, railway lines and factories all combine on  any trip in this area to announce proudly "we can do anything."

Karaoke, curves and mountain views

The first part of the excursion was a walk up a steady incline and under a tunnel of 🐒 . Specific instructions not to feed them were given but they were attracted to the site because the locals tie pumpkins to the trees - so there was quite a lot of jumping, swinging and eating as we made our way to the entrance.

Making our way through the monkeys

Snow Jade Cave did present as a series of stunning underground limestone caves. They are known for their dazzling white karst formations and the cave extends up into the mountain through more than 1,000 meters of pathway (and steps) accessible to visitors.

Notice only three out of six accounted for .... and that top left pic is the "dumpling"

Its name comes from the pure white color of its stalactites and stalagmites, which resemble jade and snow under the artificial lighting that dots the cave.

Yes, it was hard yakka. And yes, it was all a little rushed but there were dozens of spectacular natural sculptures that looked like stone waterfalls, pillars, curtains, and even shapes resembling animals and human figures. Really only were close enough to@ Sammi to hear her mention "the dumpling" so that's the only one we are sure we identified correctly. 

Relieved to see the way out ... and all down!

Little did we know that somewhere in a line of 40 speleologists 'strung out like brown's cows,'  @Von @Cheryl and @Denise were betwixt and between stairways and entrances and had to tag onto another group. They were clueless in terms of what they were seeing, but the Chinese group looked after them to guide them along the correct pathway.

Had scored some sort of treat

The return to the bus was via the monkey tunnel. Someone had inadvertently dropped food in cellophane packing and the larger of the monkeys was sitting on the railing munching away. As any scrap fell to the ground, a little monkey sitting underneath was scooping up the crumbs. Of course all and sundry stopped to take photos. 

Monkey business 101 - don't feed the monkeys - phone located

It was at this precise moment that @Julie declared "I think I've lost my phone" and unzipped one of the openings on her backpack and slid her hand in to check for the phone. Every pair of monkey eyes was now focussed on @Julie. Predictably, as she withdrew her hand .... out fell a tissue and a muesli bar. Quick as flash that little monkey on the ground charged at the food and with gleeful squeaks, was off. So fast, so aggressive ... definitely reinforced the mantra of 'Don't feed the monkeys."

Running the monkey gauntlet

Made us quicken our steps a little. Back on the bus we relaxed in the air con, unaware that the other three were still trying to make their way to the exit.

Mt Wuling Great Rift Valley

Another opportunity to travel the mountain roads with the bus crawling along the edge of the road with very little other than a fence decorated with tyres as protection from the edge.

Living on the edge

I don't think there was anyone in our group who had heard of this place -  but we should have. It was spectacular. To reach the heart of the track, it was necessary to navigate lots of steps, ride 1600 metres  down the face of a cliff in a four person cable car (well never forget how FAST that car moved for loading) and take an electric buggy ride before strolling the 3 km suspended walkway. The final "extraction" was via a gondola ride which was at a jaw dropping 42°.

The Mt. Wuling Great Rift Valley, spans nearly 30 square kilometers and features dramatic karst formations, deep fissures, towering cliffs, narrow gorges and  underground rivers. At various elevations it is shrouded in a mist, rich green vegetation clings to the cliff faces amd you are perched high above the valley floor.  In one section we passed through a  1,500-meter-long fissure flanked by cliffs up to 300 meters high which @Sammi referred to as "the most beautiful scar on earth."

A drone shot from the internet

Had to pay an additional 30 yuan to ride the re iprocal rope way up the last 300 metres ... worth it!

I guess we should expect it now - we did attract the attention of a group of Chinese teens who wanted conversation amd photos. Obliged with both and when I mentioned I was a teacher and somehow made the segue to Mei Mei (Taylor Seift) I was elevated to rock star status and shared lots of giggles had love 🫶.

Group shots AND solos .. always fun

As well as being spectacular,this spot was just good for the soul! Now that I am reading the background information,  realise we could have spent our entire 10 days in China right here. So much to see  and do and lauded for its excellent air quality and high concentration of negative oxygen ions. It is billed as a natural oxygen bar. If it has "bar" in the title, i'm sure we would fit in. 

Captain's banquet and evening tasks

Definitely glad to be back on board at the end of this day. The ship had relocated further along the river. Meant we didn't have to retrace our steps back the three hours we had already travelled - just needed a short 1 hour drive to meet up again with the ship.

Arrived a little later than we planned and it was a mad dash through the shower to try and report on time .Okay, I was late - I opted to wash my hair and then finish packing. Cut it a bit fine - had only left myself 20 minutes for dinner and drinks - but between @Tina and @Fab5 my favourites were lined up.

And YES, on return from the excursions, @Denise was welcomed by a large brown box standing outside the cabin door. Ripped it open to find her new suitcase! It had been ordered by @Jenny from the comfort of the dining room and delivered, on time, as promised.

Wow! Delivered as promised.

Certainly made her packing choices easier, and with space to burn, we were able to add any extras we may have had to the new case.

Not quite sure what the "Captain's Banquet" was all about although there were a few speciality dishes on the menu including toads, thinly sliced pig tongue and ear and slices of intestine. These were not hits with the Western guests and the plates were left untouched. We didn't see the Captain, but the night time activity was a top notch documentary on the history of the building of the dam.

 @Julie couldn't tear herself away but the rest of us had to get back onto packing duties. Needed to finalise our account and have checked-in baggage out by 10 pm. No worries for @Jules - still has the smallest bag by far!

Nailed all that organisation, easy peasy ... with enough time to enjoy the balcony one last time.

We met all deadlines and couldn't find the energy or the enthusiasm to join the VIPS on Deck 6 for a night time dance party.

Wrapping it up

@Denise has retired the sash and tiara and passed that baton on to @Von - the baby of the group, which is a promise that there will be an adventure next year. Think we have locked in a possible date and destination. Can't wait.

PS For today's activity we were travelling with people from other tours that we hadn't met before. And for some reason we were surrounded by a host of cough-ers- so much so that @Carolyn put on her designer silk face mask (thanks @John) for bus travel. @Von and I found ourselves shrinking lower in our seats trying to avoid the channelled spray of potential germs!!!  Not sure how effective either strategy is, but guess we will know in a few days .

And these "strangers" had us raising our eyebrows and giving thanks that we were in the "other group" on a daily basis - as mentioned, many members were sick, they had no idea (or cared less) about bus etiquette,  moaned and groaned when lost speleologists returned 1 minute past departure time and had a "star karaoke" singer who literally split our ear drums. Unanimous vote that we much prefer our easy going, fun loving, caring and tuneful regulars! 

Straight from the itinerary

This morning, after breakfast, you can choose to experience an optional adventurous shore excursion to Fengdu Xueyu Dong (not included) or the scenic

Wulingshan Mountain range (not included). The day finishes with a Captain’s Farewell Banquet dinner