It seems that even the weather in China adheres to the strict principles of Yin and Yang; in Tunxi there is the frigid, freezing winter and the stifling, sweltering heat of summer. Though I am ecstatic the long cold winter has gone into hibernation, I have to admit that the heat here is a lot stickier, heavier and more energy sapping than what I’m used to. At home I would rejoice if we got this type of heat because it would give me a perfect excuse to sip Mojitos and lounge by whatever cool body of water was nearest. But as with so many things, the culture is much different in China.
Though mint would likely grow in abundance here if given a chance, nobody plants it. So much for Mojitos. And though the town I live in is literally surrounded by various rivers, each of them is a suspicious color of murky, oily brown and trash bags, shoes and other random debris can be found floating by at any given time. That doesn’t deter the locals from doing their laundry and washing their dinner meat in the river however. In fact, they often wash them side by side. Needless to say, I won’t be swimming there anytime soon.
In the absence of Mojitos and swimming water, I recently found a rather entertaining and effective alternative for avoiding the heat of the day: head for the hills and hide out in some caves! For one of my mini-day trips, my friend and I went to the HuaShan Mystery Caves just on the outskirts of Tunxi.
These Mystery caves are both alluring and upsetting because virtually nothing is known about them. Often we like a place not so much for what it is, but for the story behind it, so in the heat of the moment this lack of knowledge made the caves a whole hell of a lot less interesting to me. Without the history attached, it just felt like a big black hole. But in true Chinese fashion, what color they couldn’t provide in terms of history they made up for with lights. Literally. The caves were illuminated with various hues that gave it a more playful edge. From an artist’s perspective, I thought it was actually pretty cool. It was kind of like walking into a three dimensional neon version of a Mondrian painting. And sometimes it was as though the textures and shapes that were chiseled into the rocks were some abstract, modern artist’s interpretation of the Aztec aesthetic.
Upon reflection, it’s been kind of fun to let my imagination wander and come up with my own theories about why those caves are there. Are they really more than 1,200 years old, or is it all just a farce? Maybe they just dug them out within the last 200 years as a quarry for all of the stone steps they have going up Huangshan and various mountain paths nearby. Or maybe during the Cultural Revolution people were assigned to go in there with a pick ax and chop away for no other reason than “thought reform through physical labor.” Heck, for all we know it could’ve been aliens. Apparently this site is on the same mystical latitude as the Pyramids at Giza and the Bermuda Triangle.
Whatever the reason for the caves existence, I am happy they were there to provide a cool and quiet alternative to spending a day melting away in the city. Furthermore, it was nice to chill out and let my mind wander as freely as my feet did.
Summary: Perhaps the HuaShan Mystery caves were originally a palace. Perhaps the place was a burial site, or intended to be a tomb similar in grandeur to the one in Xi’an. Perhaps it was something we can’t even dream up. But maybe that’s the point. Maybe that’s what makes this place exciting; what makes it different. We get to dream up whatever we want to, it challenges us to think for ourselves and appreciate the place for what it is now, not what it was or might have been before.
For more info on the HuaShan Mystery Caves:
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