JIUZHAIGOU VALLEY NATURE RESERVE

When mumsie said that she's going to JIUZHAIGOU eveyone raised their eyebrows and asked
??????? Now how did we know about this place? Well 2 years ago whilst on holiday to Tibet, we heard about the beutiful sceneries at Jiuzhaigou...but got no time to visit it then...even though it was very near to LAHSA SO this place is always in mumsie's mind...

Jiuzhaigou, which means "Valley of Nine Villages"' is regarded as one of the most beautiful place in China. This nature reserve is located on the north of Sichuan province in central China, bordering Tibet. Since becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992, Jiuzhaigou has become China's biggest landscape destinations, this despite having one of the highest entrance fees of any parks in China. During peak travel season in October, the park is crowded with domestic tourists, undeterred by the remoteness, long journey, and by one of the highest entrance fees in China.. Travellers keen to visit Jiushaigou are advised to book early to avoid disappointment, as hotel rooms are hard to come by during the peak travel period.!!!

Although Tibetans and Qiang people have inhabited Jiuzhaigou for centuries, the scenic valley was only "accidentally discovered" in 1972 when a Chinese lumberman stumbled upon it. In 1982 Jiuzhaigou was made a national park. From then on, tourism in Jiuzhaigou took flight, and Jiuzhaigou quickly became China's number one landscape destination. Its status was further propelled forward when UNESCO inscribed it as a World Heritage Site and a World Biosphere Reserve.
This is how our hotel looks like in the day time

Holiday Inn Jiuzhai Jarpo is a four-star hotel ideally situated in Jarpo Ancient City of the Jiuzhaigou Scenic Area, Sichuan province. Its architecture is of Tibetan sytle


Inside the main Holiday Inn hotel...this is the ceiling at the hotel lobby
Hotel lobby

Hotel is 55 km from Jiuhuang Airport, 27 km from Jiuzhaigou.
This is Jiuzhai Paradise Theatre
After breakfast we got some time to roam around the hotel before we set off to Jiuzhaigou Valley Nature Reserve

Look at the amount of tourist buses...

Finally we arrived at the entrance of the Nature Reserve...and we were advised to book our own 'personal coach" (as private cars are not allowed in for ecological reasons) with our own personal tour guide (instead of using their shttle bus) so that we don't have to fight with other tourists whilst on our tour in the Reserve

Here she is our very own "personal tour guide"

Waiting for the tour leader to get our entrance tickets....
This is taken from the coach window whilst on our way to different scenic spots
Jiuzhaigou is also known as the 'Fairyland on Earth" Beautiful sceneries taken from our coach!!!

This is our first stop...the Shuzheng Waterfall....
Though this is the smallest of the four main water

falls in Jiuzhaigou Valley, it will bring heart quakes to first time visitors..

The sprays fly in the air, creating an elegant screen
Then there was this Pearl (Zhenzhu) Shoal water fall...gotta to be there to absorb its sound and beauty...We were told that a scene from the TV adaptation of Journey to the WEST was filmed here.

You can feel the energy that surges down the fall as you stand there on the wooden platform and be enveloped by the spray
Blocked by trees in the upper lake, it turns into streams of water dashing against protruding rocks midway and exploding into millions of petal-shaped falls. Viewed from the distrance, it looks like a water lily bursting in the sky.

Then the Nuorilang Falls which is regarded as the widest highland waterfall in China and a landmark of Jiuzhaigou

More pics taken from within the coach as we travel around the park

Jiuzhaigou's best-known feature is its dozens of blue, green and turquoise-coloured lakes. The local Tibetan people call the lake "Hai" = sea
The lakes vary in colour and aspect according to their depths, residues, and surroundings. It is strictly forbidden for tourists to be in direct contact with the lakes!!

Mirror Lake (Jing Hai) is a quiet lake casting beautiful reflections of the surroundings when the water is calm
Doesn't this look like out of your calendar decor??

Mumsie must be a 'pro' to capture this type of photography.

Seems to be a place "haunted" by brides..... During our visit there we witnessed quite a few of them taking their "wedding" photos
They come with their "Pro" with sun shades and reflectors for photography

Another couple...



Since the Jiuzhaigour Scenic Park opened its doors to paying visitors in 1984, the number of tourists entering Jiuzhaigou has taken several quantum leaps, in tandem with China's growing middle class. From just 5000 visitors in 1984, the number ballooned to over 100,oo0 visitors in the 90's. By the end of 2002, the total number of vistors has exceeded a million. To preserve Jiuzhaigou for the future, and to halt environmental degradation, a quota of 12,000 visitors per day was imposed during high season.

Most visitors would agree that a major draw is the beautiful colour of the lakes and streams. This is caused by the high concentration of calcium carbonate in the water. Their water is very clear so that the bottom is often visible even at high depths.

There is an extraordinary spectacle here water

flows through the forest. The trees cling at the roots resisting the flow of the water. We were told that this landscape was formed over 2500 million years ago.

This lady "rented" this costume to take photo

The Jiuzhaigou Valley is an enchanged forest, a harmony of nature especially remarkable during the autumn months
As we travelled through the valley we passed by many small and large lakes ,about 40lakes representing half of all the lakes in Jiuzhaigou. Among these lakes the DOUBLE-Dragon,, Tiger Lake, Reed Lake , Five Flower Lake (Wuhua Hai) are the most featured.

Visitors are likely to reach a consensus that jiuzhaigou is the best of Nature creation.

The water is so transparent it is possible to see the reflections of the ripples at the bottom of the lake. It is amazingly white in colour because of the calcium.

Crystal clear water of the lakes


Mumsie buying some souvenirs.

Yet another bride & groom

Every where you look, there's lots of people
We were taken to Jiuzhaigou Shuzheng Village one of the 3 Tibetan villages that still remain th the Jiuzhaigou Nature Reserve today.
Although only traces of these villages remain today, what remains has now been taken over by tourism. Most of the inhabitants of Jiuzhaigou have been moved out of the park, so that the area can be kept pristine. At Shuzheng Village, tourists is confronted by mass commercialism. There is a lot of Tibetan souvenir that one can buy here.
Inside one of their houses...colourful ceilings
Tibetan prayer flags fluttering in the wind

Look carefully..there is a bride and groom under the tree in the shade
This bride wore black instead of the customery white

The peak season is October because its Autumn, when the surrounding trees and shrubs are very colourful (Changing colours of autumn leaves)

Ddda bought this hat from the Tibetan village

What a post from Dadda!!!!!

The water of Wuchai Chi is among the most colourful in Jiuzhaigou. Within Wucai Chi are patches of light green, milky white, bright yellow , deep blue, torquoise and more. This id due to the aquatic lifeforms such as planktons sponges,

algae, and ferns ect. that inhabit the water. The different plantlife produces varying percentage of chlorophyll. Together with a high concentration of calcium carbonate, result in the different colours of Wucai Chi

This is @ Pearl Shoal one of the most magnificent

sights in Rize Gully.

The Pearl Shoal got its name from the sparkling effect of droplets that resemble pearls as they cascade down the shoal towards the fall

Another scenic view of the Pearl Shoal Waterfall

The full power and majesty of Pearl Shoal Waterfall

After the tour we were rushed back to the hotel for dinner and then straight to the theatre for our show

The Tibetan Cultural Show was included as one of our optional tour. The show is held at the Jarpo Grand Theatre of Jiuzhai Paradise ie @ our Hotel. These 2 fellas opened the show the the greeting of Qiang tribe ' Cha-Zi Ter Ler' (welcome) and the whole theatre roared into life with at least 60 to 80 stars.
The show was about the creation of paradise on earth - one of the places is called the 'hidden paradise' is in Jiuzhaigou.

Beautifully performed by the locals- proudly calling themselves as the true descendants of the Tibetans. It is worth watching
Everyone received Tibetan greeting scarfs when we arrived
A nightly folklore show featuring the various songs and dances of the Tibetan and Qiang tribes is staged here.

And the fairy decided to live on earth.. and the gnomes and fairies dance of joy
Tibetan tribe celebrate life on earth
The show lasts 1.5 hours and features a extravaganza of acrobatics, songs, dances and sketches of the Tibetan and Qiang people.
See them dance and sing with great vigour to please the crowd, Indeed the dancers were very energetic and from strict regime of acrobatic dance, mumsie marvelled at how fit they are.

Closing pose -farewells
And the singers/dancers are beautiful

The show ends with a "marriage" of heaven and earth creating a much more colorful and a happily ever after life.
This represents the unity of heaven and earth

After the show we walked back to our hotel rooms....tired and "hungry" cos the dinner at the hotel was "bad"