LynanBreeze/embedded-mock-tools: An embedded network request interception and mock panel prototype with Service Worker support.

Simply put, it is a Mock panel that can be embedded directly into a page. Load a devtools-panel.js file and a floating button appears. Open it to see the request list, request details, and the Mock rule editor. It can intercept both fetch and XMLHttpRequest, and with a Service Worker, mocked requests can also show up in the browser’s native Network panel.

Flowchart

Why I Built It

Mocking APIs is neither new nor difficult, and there are already plenty of tools for it. The annoying part is that I often only want to verify one page state, yet getting there requires a long detour.

For example:

1. The API is not ready, but the page still needs to be built
2. I want to check an empty list, a 500 response, a timeout, or missing fields
3. Test data exists today, but someone may change it tomorrow
4. I do not fully control the project, so changing the proxy or starting another service is inconvenient
5. The page may only be a demo or embedded in another system, and setting up a full Mock Server for it feels excessive
6. Mixing mocked and real requests through a Mock Server can get awkward

There are a few common ways to deal with this. One is to temporarily put something like this in the application code:

if (IS_MOCK) {
  return {
    users: []
  };
}

This is the fastest option, but also the easiest thing to forget to remove. Another option is a proxy tool or a Mock Server. That is more formal, but it means configuring routes, starting a service, and keeping the rules in sync. If all I want is to quickly inspect one UI state, it feels a little heavy.

So I wanted something simpler: let the Mock tool travel with the page. As long as the page can load a script, I can inspect requests and change responses.

<script src="./devtools-panel.js"></script>
<script>
  window.MockTools.init();
</script>

That is enough.

Why Not Chrome Overrides?

I do have something to say about Chrome Overrides, because I used it for a long time. Before that, I also used HTTP interception tools such as Charles, mostly for packet inspection. While building this tool, I naturally thought about Local Overrides in Chrome DevTools: what does it not handle well, and what could this tool add?

Chrome Overrides can replace local web resources and HTTP response headers, and it can modify the response body of XHR and fetch requests. The advantage is obvious: no application code changes and no extra service. Right-click a request in DevTools, choose Override content, and edit the response. For many situations, that is already enough.

For example:

1. Temporarily change an API response, even on a production page, and see whether the UI behaves correctly
2. Replace a static resource such as CSS, JavaScript, or HTML
3. Debug response headers such as CORS or Permissions-Policy locally
4. Keep changes across refreshes without touching the project code

But a few parts of it do not quite fit the problems I wanted to solve:

There Is Only a Global Switch

The Chrome Overrides switch lives in the Sources panel. For URLs with override files, everything is either on or off. There is no straightforward way to enable only one override. I can delete the overrides I do not need, but then I have to recreate them the next time I want them.

Rules Are Not Easy to Reuse

Chrome Overrides feels more like saving the response of one request as a local file. That works well for a specific resource, but it is less obvious when I want to maintain a set of Mock rules organized by method, URL pattern, status code, delay, and headers. embedded-mock-tools keeps them as a rule list, and each rule can have an alias that is immediately visible in the Mock Rules panel.

{
  method: "GET",
  pattern: "/api/users",
  status: 500,
  delay: 800
}

To me, this looks and behaves more like actual Mock configuration.

It Is Not That Simple to Hand Off

Chrome Overrides is a browser feature, which is perfectly fine when I am debugging by myself. But if I send a demo to someone else, they also need to open DevTools, choose an Overrides directory, grant file access, and save the corresponding override files. That may be fine for another developer, but it becomes inconvenient for product managers, QA engineers, or anyone unfamiliar with DevTools. embedded-mock-tools takes the opposite approach: embed the tool in the page, and the panel is ready as soon as the other person opens it.

State Transitions Are Awkward

Some APIs do not return one fixed JSON response. I may also be developing a feature several steps deep while still wanting to run through the entire flow during development. Saving those responses as a Snapshot lets me develop and debug in a way that follows both my intuition and the final user flow.

Its Relationship with the Project Is Different

Chrome Overrides is personal browser configuration, so it is better suited to temporary debugging. embedded-mock-tools is closer to a development helper that belongs to the project. It can be committed with a demo or test page, and a set of Mock rules can be shared through JSON import and export. They are not really replacements for each other.

This is roughly how I choose between them:

Chrome Overrides is more like an advanced DevTools feature. embedded-mock-tools is more of an in-project development tool.

Features

Request List

The left side of the panel contains a live request list. It shows the request method, URL, status code, duration, request headers and body, and response headers and body.

At first, I only wanted a simplified Network panel so I would not have to scatter console.log calls throughout the application. The list is capped at 200 requests to prevent it from growing forever during a long debugging session.

Mock Rules

The Mock rule editor is on the right. A rule looks roughly like this:

{
  enabled: true,
  method: "GET",
  pattern: "/api/users",
  status: 200,
  delay: 200,
  headers: { "content-type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({ users: [] }, null, 2)
}

pattern currently supports two forms. A plain string:

/api/users

Or a simple regular expression:

/\/api\/users\/\d+/

I deliberately kept it simple. The more complicated a rule is to write, the less obvious it becomes when something goes wrong. For most cases, checking whether a URL contains a string is enough.

One Rule can contain multiple Configs. More Configs can be added, but only one can be active at a time. After all, one endpoint cannot return two different responses at once.

Snapshots

Snapshots came later. A regular Mock works well when an endpoint should keep returning the same response.

But there is always a “but.” Here is a familiar situation:

Developer: What kind of bug is this? It is so hard to reproduce. Can I borrow your account?
QA: Sure, but give it back soon. I still need it for testing.
Developer: Yep, I will return it as soon as I check this bug.
QA: Do not change anything. It took me ages to prepare that data.
Developer: Got it, boss.

It is hard to imagine a developer, especially a front-end developer, who has never run into this. Take a task-status endpoint: the first response is pending; after a few clicks, the second is processing; after a few more, the third is done. A single static JSON file cannot reproduce that process very well.

A Snapshot can store a sequence of Responses and replay them in order. When it reaches the end, it can either keep returning the last response or loop back to the beginning.

This is useful for polling, pagination, state transitions, and similar flows.

Persistence

Mock rules should not disappear after a refresh, so the configuration is stored in IndexedDB first. If IndexedDB is unavailable, it falls back to localStorage. Data saved by older versions in localStorage is also migrated to IndexedDB during initialization. Import and export are included as well, because browser storage is not a backup. Clear the site’s data and it is gone. An exported JSON file can restore the configuration or be sent to someone else as a reproducible setup for a specific issue.

Why Introduce a Service Worker?

At first, JavaScript hooks were enough. To intercept fetch, the tool can replace window.fetch. To intercept XMLHttpRequest, it can wrap the original XHR object, override open, send, and setRequestHeader, then simulate readyState, status, responseText, and the relevant events when a rule matches. This approach is simple and also works with file://, so opening index.html directly is enough.

The problem is that these requests do not really pass through the browser’s network stack. The embedded panel can see them, but the browser’s native Network panel may not show a complete record. That is why I added a Service Worker.

On http://localhost or https, the tool attempts to register mocktools-sw.js. When a rule matches, the Service Worker returns the Mock Response from its fetch event, which also makes the request visible in the native Network panel.

Service Workers are not a universal solution, though.

• They cannot run on file://
• They require a secure context, normally https or localhost
• After the first registration, the current page may not immediately be controlled
• Rules need to be synchronized between the page and the worker

The tool therefore keeps both approaches. When the Service Worker is available, it handles requests. Otherwise, the tool falls back to JavaScript hooks.

Difficult Parts

The tool does not have complicated dependencies, but it contains quite a few details.

A fetch Response Can Only Be Read Once

The body of a Response is a stream. If the interceptor reads the original response to display its content, the application may no longer be able to read it. For a real request, the tool must call response.clone(), read the cloned response for display, and return the original response to the application. This matters: a debugging tool should not change application behavior just because it wants to show the response body.

Simulating XHR Is More Complicated

XMLHttpRequest is more difficult than fetch. When a fetch rule matches, returning a new Response is enough. XHR has its own state machine and event model.

Application code may listen for:

• readystatechange
• load
• loadend

It may also read:

• status
• statusText
• response
• responseText
• getAllResponseHeaders()

So an XHR Mock cannot simply return a string. It also needs to reproduce those states and events.

Synchronizing Service Worker State

Mock rules are edited in the page panel, but the Service Worker may be the component that actually intercepts the request. Every rule change, global toggle, and Snapshot update must therefore be sent to the worker through postMessage. The worker may be installing, waiting, or active, or it may already be the page’s controller, so synchronization cannot target only one fixed object.

UI State

It started as a request list and a details view, but the number of states kept growing:

• Whether the panel is expanded or collapsed
• The selected request
• The selected Mock rule
• Request search and sorting
• Group tabs
• The Snapshot list, selected Snapshot, and editing draft
• The details-pane layout
• Storage status and error messages
• Whether the Service Worker is available

The tool is still written in plain JavaScript without React, Vue, or other dependencies. The upside is that it stays small and works by simply including a few files. The downside is that I have to keep the state management under control myself.

Persistence Fallbacks

IndexedDB is not always available. Private browsing, browser restrictions, and unusual environments can all cause reads or writes to fail. When that happens, the tool falls back to localStorage. If both fail, the current in-memory state should at least remain usable.

Where It Fits

I think it works particularly well for:

• Quickly debugging API-driven UI states
• Seeding a set of API responses for a UI demo
• Continuing interaction development without a complete back-end environment
• Giving QA or product managers a reproducible error state
• Lightweight debugging in static pages, embedded pages, WebViews, or third-party containers
• Exporting and sharing a particular Mock configuration

It is not meant to replace every Mock solution. If a project already has a mature Mock Server, API platform, or contract-testing setup, those are still the better choice. This is more like a small panel that is handy when needed and stays out of the way when it is not.

Closing

That is it for now. At least when I need to quickly change an API response or reproduce an unusual state, it already solves the problem for me.

In 2023, after leaving my previous job and taking a break between jobs, I traveled to western Sichuan at the end of the year. It was also my first real trip in the true sense.

After that trip, I wrote my first travel journal. Because it received a lot of positive feedback, this travel series slowly came into being.

Western Sichuan Trip Starting from Shanghai and arriving in Chengdu, I joined a tour group for the route Chengdu -> Bipenggou -> Dagu Glacier -> Jiuzhaigou -> Huanglong.

On that tour, I visited many places, saw majestic snow mountains for the first time, and also saw the beautiful Jiuzhaigou. The slight regret was that it was cloudy when I went to Jiuzhaigou. After that visit, I kept thinking I should come back the next summer when the weather was good. In the end, it was only today, three years later, that I finally returned.

The main goals of this trip:

1. Visit Jiuzhaigou ✅
2. See giant pandas ✅

Itinerary

Day 1 Heading to Jiuzhaigou

I took a ride-share to Pudong Airport.

Check-in, security, takeoff, flight, and then I arrived at Mianyang Nanjiao Airport at 11:20.

The airport is very small. Once I came out, I could take a taxi directly to Pingzheng Bus Station. The DiDi driver asked where I had flown from, and I said Shanghai. He asked whether plane tickets were expensive now, saying they used to cost one or two thousand yuan. I said it probably was not peak season yet, so mine was relatively cheap, 700 yuan. Along the way I saw the name “Tongli” everywhere. I looked it up and it seems to be a fairly large local company. The coach I took this time was also operated by Tongli. There were many banyan trees planted along the streets of Mianyang.

I had bought a flexible coach ticket on 12306 for the 8:00 to 14:30 time window. I reached the station at only 12:00, and the bus waiting to depart belonged to the 8:00 to 12:30 batch. The driver said he needed to see whether his bus would be full, because passengers from the 8:00 to 12:30 batch had priority. If there were empty seats, he would call me over. He was pretty nice.

I went back to the waiting hall for a while. Just before 12:30, the driver asked me to get on another bus. Since they were all station-dispatched buses, there should not be any trap, right 😂. This bus was very comfortable. It was a new vehicle, the seats and air conditioning were both just right, and it was not tiring to sit in. There was a camera above the driver and speed limits too, so it looked fairly standardized.

At 3:30 in the afternoon, we arrived at Jiuzhaigou’s new county town. The road was smooth all the way, with barely any traffic, which was great. I had booked a hotel near the valley entrance. All the other passengers got off in the new county town, leaving only me. The driver said I could later switch to the bus driven by the driver from Mianyang station, so he would not have to make a separate trip to the valley entrance. Fair enough.

There was a little more traffic from Jiuzhaigou County to the valley entrance. I got off at the Goukou Bus Center and walked to the hotel, about 1 km. I had not eaten lunch either, so I ordered KFC. KFC is still my favorite 🥹. The yak hot pot I had in Jiuzhaigou in 2023 tasted bitter and made me not want to try it again, so I chose something safer this time.

After a whole day on the road, I went to bed early. Tomorrow morning I would catch the first entry batch and enjoy a full day in the scenic area!

Day 2 Jiuzhaigou

I got up a little after 6 and washed up.

At 7, I went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. The toast was not good, but the butter was Anchor, so paired together it was acceptable. I ate a bit more, because today would be a full day of serious walking.

After eating, I took a taxi to the entrance of Jiuzhaigou. It was not quite 7:40 yet, and the queue was not too long at that time. Everyone was waiting for the first entry batch at 8 😄. As it got closer to 8, more and more people arrived.

The line moved quickly. Before 8:10, I had already boarded the sightseeing bus, and I even got the left-side window seat I wanted, so I could enjoy the sights along the central route.

Routes for Jiuzhaigou’s sightseeing buses are assigned by scenic-area dispatch. Today my bus was headed to the Primeval Forest. A staff member on the bus introduced the scenic area, recommended routes, and things to watch out for, which was quite helpful. When we passed Mirror Lake, there was no wind yet in the morning. It really was as calm as a mirror, with clear reflections on the water.

Primeval Forest

I got off at the Primeval Forest stop and planned to hike from the Primeval Forest, through Grass Lake, to Swan Lake.

The weather was clear this morning. Every blade of grass and every tree under the sunlight, even the shadows, looked so beautiful.

This rocky mountain must look even more magnificent when it is covered with snow.

The rhododendrons were also in bloom.

Grass Lake

At Grass Lake, sunlight fell on the green grass, and the dew was sparkling.

Such layered beauty!

I saw two little ducks. What a lovely scene.

Swan Lake

I walked to Swan Lake. Before we got off the bus, the staff member had explained that it got its name because, in winter, heavy snow covering the grass looks like swan feathers.

Arrow Bamboo Lake

I took the sightseeing bus to Arrow Bamboo Lake. I did not see any arrow bamboo, only a lake full of horsetail plants.

Arrow Bamboo Lake Waterfall

There is a small waterfall below Arrow Bamboo Lake.

Panda Lake

I continued walking to Panda Lake.

Looking down from above, I could see lots of fish.

There were grilled sausages for sale here, but I was not interested.

Five Flower Lake

I took the sightseeing bus to Five Flower Lake. I feel like many of the most representative Jiuzhaigou photos online are taken here.

There was algae growing on the lake surface, which slightly affected the view.

After walking a little further downstream, those “dirty things” disappeared from the water surface.

There were many calcified trees in the lake. One auntie was really odd. I had only stood by the railing for one second when she came over and kept chanting beside my ear, “Are you done? Are you done? Are you done?”

A deep, profound blue.

Pearl Shoal

I took the sightseeing bus to Mirror Lake.

Mirror Lake

By noon, the wind had already picked up, so it looked like a very ordinary lake.

I took the sightseeing bus back to Nuorilang Center and transferred to the bus for Long Lake. You can have lunch here and buy milk tea or coffee.

Long Lake

After arriving at Long Lake, the clouds thickened again. By the lake, the scenery was slightly less impressive because the sky was no longer clear.

The wild roses were blooming beautifully.

From Long Lake to Five-Color Pond, the official sign says 820 meters, but in reality it felt longer than that.

Five-Color Pond

It was the dry season, so Five-Color Pond had relatively little water, but that did not stop it from being the clearest and most transparent water in Jiuzhaigou. When the wind blew across the surface, it looked like glass.

After seeing Five-Color Pond, I took the sightseeing bus back to Nuorilang Center Station. Then I walked toward Nuorilang Waterfall. Last time I only looked at it from below, so this time I definitely wanted to go up to the viewing platform and see the whole waterfall.

Nuorilang Waterfall

There are not too many steps. It takes about 10 minutes to climb to the viewing platform.

From here, you can see the lake above the waterfall, like the waterfall’s reservoir.

I came down from the viewing platform and walked toward the sightseeing bus stop.

Rhinoceros Lake

It looked a little bit like Long Lake here.

Tiger Lake

I walked toward Tiger Lake. There were prayer flags over flowing water here.

The sunlight streaming through the clouds was gorgeous.

So many little fish.

Shuzheng Waterfall

Walking further down brought me to Shuzheng Waterfall. It was beautiful.

I kept walking and reached the entrance of Shuzheng Village. Below it was Shuzheng Lakes. You cannot see the full view from the roadside, so I climbed to the viewing platform above Shuzheng Village to take a look.

Shuzheng Lakes

The view was nice.

After coming down, I continued walking toward Sparkling Lake.

Sparkling Lake

The lakes here clearly felt very deep. All I could see was blue; I could not see the bottom.

The sun was almost setting, so I could not see the scene where sunlight falls on the lake like flickering sparks.

It was almost 6, so I took the sightseeing bus to the final stop, Bonsai Shoal.

Bonsai Shoal

I skipped Double Dragon Lake. Bonsai Shoal gets its name from the trees in the river that look like individual bonsai.

Reed Lake

I walked back 600 meters to Reed Lake.

From Reed Lake, I walked back to Bonsai Shoal and took the bus out of the scenic area.

I called a DiDi back to the hotel. I had already walked too much today and did not want to walk anymore. There were many taxis at the scenic-area entrance. I was ripped off there in 2023 and still remember it.

DiDi was not much cheaper, but at least it was a price I had accepted, not a price I was tricked into. The driver asked how long it had taken me to get a ride. I said it had taken quite a while and that it was a bit hard to get one. Pretending it was my first time here, I asked the driver, “This is not even peak season yet, right? I cannot imagine how crowded it gets in peak season.”

The trip was very short, less than 2 km, and I soon arrived at the hotel. I originally wanted to order KFC, but most of the menu showed sold out, so I switched to McDonald’s.

It was a little hard to sleep tonight. I had walked too much during the day, my body felt slightly hot, and my face was a bit red. I went to bed after 9, but my body temperature did not come down enough for me to fall asleep until around midnight.

Day 3 Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

Heading to Chengdu

This morning’s bus to Huanglongjiuzhai Station departed at 6:30. The Guoda boarding point was very close to the hotel, less than a 10-minute walk.

I got up a little after 5, washed up, packed my backpack, ate a small piece of bread, checked out, and went to take the bus.

The weather was a bit cloudy today. Luckily, I had already visited Jiuzhaigou yesterday and seen the scenery in better weather. The bus ride actually took about 2 hours, following the national highway. There was a little rain on the road.

When I arrived at Huanglongjiuzhai Station, I found that there were still more than 2 hours before the train I had booked. I quickly opened 12306, changed to an earlier train, and boarded smoothly.

In less than 2 hours, I arrived in Chengdu. The rise in temperature was very obvious, and the smog was also quite heavy. It felt hot and stuffy.

Arrived at Chengdu East Railway Station.

The smog in Chengdu was very obvious, and the weather was also hot and muggy.

After leaving Chengdu East, I went nearby and had a bowl of Laoma Tihua, pig trotter soup.

In the afternoon, I planned to go see giant pandas. Amap showed a Giant Panda Express Bus Line 4, but I could not find the boarding point. The location on Amap was in the middle of the square, but how could a bus possibly drive into the square? I really could not find it, so I took the metro instead.

After exiting the metro, I still had to take a bus for 2 stops. There were many unlicensed cars soliciting passengers at the metro exit. The bus costs 2 yuan and runs point to point, but those cars wanted 10 yuan. They really do squeeze out-of-towners…

Panda Base

At the panda base, I bought a ticket on Meituan and entered the park by scanning my ID card. At the entrance, there were many “guides” soliciting visitors, saying they could take you along the best route and so on.

The walkway near the west gate is open-air and rather sunny, with the trees on both sides still quite short. Because it was hot, the pandas had all gone indoors. At this time, some pandas were still napping, while others had already woken up.

The first giant panda I saw today was also the first giant panda I had ever seen in my life 😊.

The indoor hall had air conditioning, so I could rest inside. There was a lot of bamboo outdoors. I wonder if, when the weather is cooler, the pandas can just munch on it directly.

It looked awake, yet also not quite awake, pondering panda life.

After visiting a few panda halls, I went to the golden snub-nosed monkey hall. The air conditioning there was even stronger and very cool.

Next, I went to the Star Nursery, where there were recently born pandas.

After coming out, I reached Panda Walking Street. I had KFC for afternoon tea and took a rest. It was too hot.

Then I went to the Moon Nursery. Many rooms had their curtains drawn today, so I did not see any pandas there.

Then I went to Red Panda Activity Yard No. 2.

There was a red panda sleeping on a tree. So cute.

The weather was too hot, and the park was spraying mist. The red panda seemed to be using the mist to cool down.

Beware of fierce beasts! Rawr!

I continued to the Panda Villa Area. This is an older part of the panda base, with denser woods and bamboo groves, so it was cooler than the west gate area.

I continued visiting a few more panda halls and went to Red Panda Activity Yard No. 2.

After seeing the red pandas, I was ready to leave the park.

I exited from the south gate, took a bus to the metro station, then took the metro to the hotel. The hotel was near Tianfu Square. At Tianfu Square, I had a bowl of pork intestine noodles. The noodles were made from sweet potato starch, which I do not like. Rice noodles are still better.

After eating, I went to Chabaidao and bought a cup of lemonade. It was 2 yuan, so cheap.

I checked in at the hotel, showered, did laundry, and rested.

Day 4 Chengdu - Mianyang - Return Trip

I slept quite well last night. I got up, packed everything, and had breakfast. The breakfast at this Hi Inn was pretty simple: soy milk, vegetable buns, steamed rolls, and tea eggs.

I checked out and took a bus to Wenshu Monastery.

Wenshu Monastery

There were many not-that-old grandmas selling jasmine bracelets here. Some even touched my arm while trying to sell them, which I did not like.

Wenshu Monastery is free to visit. It seemed like there was complimentary incense available, but I did not light any. I simply walked around.

I also visited Wenshu Pavilion, where many bodhisattva statues were displayed.

Huanhuaxi Park

After leaving, I took the metro toward Du Fu Thatched Cottage. This metro station may have taken the long transfer walking distance into account, because it even had a moving walkway installed.

What? The ticket for Du Fu Thatched Cottage costs 50 yuan? Then I would not go in. I just walked around Huanhuaxi Park outside.

It felt very leisurely there, quite nice.

After walking around the park, I came out and had qiaojiao beef across the street. It was good. The beef soup tasted quite similar to Hakka beef soup.

After eating, I took the metro to Chengdu East Railway Station and then took a high-speed train to Mianyang.

It was my first time seeing a metro carriage with this kind of seat layout. Sitting there felt very cool.

Shengshui Temple

Shengshui Temple is located in the northern section of Changhong Avenue, Fucheng District, Mianyang, Sichuan, on the right bank of the Fujiang River at the southern end of Tazi Mountain. The Baoji-Chengdu Railway and Chengdu-Mianyang high-speed railway pass in front of it. Covering more than 100,000 square meters, it consists of Shengshui Temple and Luohan Temple. The temple was first built during the Yonghui period of the Tang dynasty (650-655), originally named Ganquan Temple. In the first year of the Zhengtong reign of the Ming dynasty (1436), it was renamed after the mountain spring “holy water.” The “Longqiu” spring beneath the cliff behind the Guanyin Hall still flows year-round. The temple complex is arranged along a central axis with main buildings such as the Hall of Heavenly Kings, Mahavira Hall, and Dabei Hall, with auxiliary halls including the Jade Buddha Hall, Jialan Hall, and Patriarch Hall on both sides. The hip-and-gable roofs and gilded eaves show the style of Han Chinese Buddhist temples.
https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E5%9C%A3%E6%B0%B4%E5%AF%BA/9733

The entire long corridor was filled with sculptures. It felt very solemn.

From the overpass, you can watch trains. This track might be for freight, because I only saw container trains like this.

Turning from here leads to the neighboring Luohan Temple.

Luohan Temple

Mianyang Luohan Temple is located in Shengshui Village, Chengjiao Township, Mianyang, Sichuan, at the southern end of Tazi Mountain on the right bank of the Fujiang River, near the Baoji-Chengdu Railway and the Mianyang-Jiangyou Expressway. The temple was funded and built by Master Guoqing over more than 20 years. Its main buildings are arranged along a central axis, including the Weituo Hall, Hall of Heavenly Kings, Seven Buddhas Hall, and Mahavira Hall. On both sides are architectural groups such as the Ten Thousand Buddhas Holy City, Luohan Hall, Bell and Drum Towers, and Vulture Peak, combining the solemn style of northern Buddhism with features of Jiangnan gardens.

The Ten Thousand Buddhas Holy City enshrines more than 12,000 small Buddha statues and over 40 Buddha and bodhisattva statues taller than nine meters. The Luohan Hall contains 1,250 arhat statues in different poses, while Vulture Peak contains 500 serene statues of nuns. The temple’s core Qing-style Mahavira Hall features carved beams and painted rafters. The scripture library has an elegant exterior and modern facilities inside, and the reclining Buddha is 42 meters long with a peaceful form. The whole temple follows the mountain terrain, with groups of arhat statues on both sides of the 260-step stone stairway, forming a layered architectural complex amid greenery.
https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E7%BB%B5%E9%98%B3%E7%BD%97%E6%B1%89%E5%AF%BA//15826469

These stairs were quite steep. I had to rest for a while after climbing up.

After leaving, I took a taxi to Wanda and ate at a local restaurant called Liuyuexue Dry Pot. It was delicious!

Return Trip

The sky gradually darkened.

After landing, I took a ride-share home and wrapped up the trip beautifully.

Expenses

Thoughts

• I visited almost every attraction in Jiuzhaigou
  I walked about 20 km. Because there are many attractions and they are quite spread out, I did not feel completely exhausted.

• Chengdu was pretty hot
  The temperature was not actually that high yet, but it was muggy and uncomfortable.

• A new way to get to Jiuzhaigou
  Going from Mianyang was a good experience. The route from Mianyang to Jiuzhaigou County is expressway all the way and takes about 3 hours.

After the May Day holiday, I returned from my hometown to Shanghai and could already feel summer approaching. It was time to go to Northern Xinjiang, where spring was warm and flowers were blooming 😄

Last September and October, I visited Northern and Southern Xinjiang respectively to enjoy the autumn colors. Back then, I told myself I must come back to Sayram Lake when it was full of flowers. And here I am!

I arranged my work handover on Thursday, took two days off, and combined them with the weekend. Here was my itinerary:

1. Day1 Friday Fly from Shanghai to Urumqi, then take a high-speed train from Urumqi to Bole
2. Day2 Saturday Get up early in Bole and head to Sayram Lake, then take a car to Yining in the evening
3. Day3 Sunday Join a one-day round-trip tour from Yining to Nalati Grassland
4. Day4 Monday Take an early high-speed train from Yining to Urumqi, have a meal and a short walk around Urumqi, then fly back to Shanghai

Day1 Shanghai-Bole

I booked a ride-share last night. The driver was a middle-aged man. He asked what time my flight was, and I said it was a 6:30 domestic flight. He said picking me up at 5:15 would be perfectly fine. It was indeed fine, but a little tight. Boarding had already started when I arrived at the airport.

The flight took five hours. I slept for about an hour and a half, then could not fall asleep again. I was like a caterpillar, twisting every now and then, otherwise sitting for too long made my whole body uncomfortable. It was cloudy today, and for most of the flight I could only see thick clouds outside the window.

After landing in Urumqi, the temperature was around 8 °C. I took out my thick jacket at the airport to avoid catching a cold. I took the airport bus to the high-speed railway station. The ticket was 20 yuan. It was still a bit warm inside the bus. After arriving at the station, I went upstairs to KFC for lunch. I had actually already eaten brunch on the plane, but since I would be on the road for a long time in the afternoon, it felt better to fill my stomach again.

I bought a coffee at KFC, went downstairs, and boarding had just started. Along the way, I could see the endless snow-capped Tianshan Mountains and the Gobi desert at their foothills most of the time.

Sitting by the window, with sunlight shining through the glass, I suddenly felt dazed for a moment and forgot whether this was a dream or reality.

Arrived in Bole! I took a taxi to the hotel. It was still early, but after spending the whole day on the road, I no longer had the energy to wander around. Tonight’s room was on the 16th floor, with a great view. The west-facing window was perfect for watching the sunset.

Xinjiang time feels about three hours later than Shanghai, and sunset was not until around 21:30. I ordered takeout, showered, did laundry, and booked the Sayram Lake shuttle car on WeChat with the same driver I rode with last year.

The sunset was beautiful.

Day2 Sayram Lake

I got up early, and the driver came to pick me up. Three people in the car had taken the overnight train from Urumqi to Bole. I did the same last year. Surprisingly, nobody was sitting in the front passenger seat. Haha, just like last year, I got that seat again. It really felt surreal.

The driver asked if we wanted breakfast. I said yes, since it was too early for the hotel breakfast. Some passengers in the back hesitated a little, just like I did last year, probably worried about being taken to some shady restaurant and overcharged. Haha. There was no need to worry at all. I ate even more than my usual breakfast and only spent 10 yuan. By the way, breakfast milk tea in Xinjiang is salty. I am not used to it 😄.

When we arrived at Sayram Lake, the driver asked if we wanted to drive around the lake ourselves, 150 yuan per person. The price was actually okay, but I prefer stopping and walking around on my own, so I went to the visitor center and took the sightseeing bus.

This was my second time at Sayram Lake, and there were some places where I did not get off last year that I wanted to see this time.

Santai Ancient Post Station

The first stop was Santai Ancient Post Station.

The morning light was from the right direction, and the mist had not risen yet. I could see the clear, transparent lake water, and the snow-capped mountains in the distance were also extremely sharp.

Songshutou

Songshutou. Last year, I took the left-side boardwalk and climbed to the top to see Guozigou Bridge. This year I skipped the climb and went to the other side to enjoy the lake view.

The yellow wildflowers on the hillside were blooming everywhere. It felt so much like spring, full of vitality. Sunlight, snowy mountains, flowers, and the lake. So beautiful.

After coming down from the viewing platform, I bought a naan. It was delicious. I sat by the lake for a while. By then, a bit of mist had started rising from the lake.

Jinhua Zihui

I took the shuttle bus to Jinhua Zihui. This is the stop with the popular lighthouse. But I did not see any purple flowers here. Maybe it was still too early in the season.

Kele Yongzhu

The next stop was Kele Yongzhu, where there were many swans. Some tourists were feeding them naan. Besides swans, I also saw ducks, the flying kind. When I came last autumn, I only saw seagulls and no swans. This time there were only swans and no seagulls.

I looked up and saw a big swan. It looked like flying was rather hard work.

The big swan landing.

The water of Sayram Lake is very cold. I really admire these swans and ducks.

West Sea Grassland

West Sea Grassland. There was a little dog sleeping. I made a little clicking sound, and it raised its head to glance at me, then lay back down and kept sleeping.

Tian’e Leshui

Arrived at Tian’e Leshui. There were no swans here, but on the other side of the road, the snow-capped mountains felt closer. The view was open, beautiful, and magnificent.

There was a “snow mountain” by the lake.

Dianjiangtai

Arrived at Dianjiangtai. Climbing up gives another overlook of Sayram Lake. The view is great, and the lake water is incredibly blue. There is a Dicos and boat rides here.

Someone was parachuting in the sky.

Qinshuitan

The next stop was Qinshuitan. I sat on the sandy, actually rocky, beach by the lake and chatted for a while with a university student from Hubei. This place is really perfect for zoning out.

Blue Sayram Lake, like the sea.

After that I did not go to any more stops and returned to the visitor center. There are many hotels near the East Gate Visitor Center of Sayram Lake, and it has already started to look like a small town.

Tonight I planned to go to Yining. The official bus was full, so I took a shared business van.

On the way, we passed Guozigou Bridge. One section of the road was under construction, so there was a bit of traffic. For a long stretch, the road was inside a canyon, where we could enjoy the canyon scenery, as well as herders and cattle and sheep on the mountains.

It was almost 10 p.m. when I arrived in Yining. I planned to visit one of the grasslands in Ili the next day. I wanted to see a grassland with a stream, so after briefly looking at some photos posted online, I decided to join a one-day tour to Nalati Grassland.

The tour offered departure from either Yining Railway Station or the bus station. For convenience, I stayed tonight at a local non-chain hotel near the railway station. The actual stay was very nice, and I slept well.

Day3 Nalati Grassland

Got up early. The hotel breakfast had not started yet, so I simply ate some small bread and went to the railway station to wait for the tour bus.

I signed up for a large 50-person group, but there were actually only 17 people today, so the agency changed us to a midibus.

There were also beautiful views on the way to Nalati. At first everyone was sleepy and slept for about two hours. On the bus, I heard a few people speaking a dialect. The more I listened, the more familiar it sounded, and then I realized they were speaking Hakka. I am Hakka too. I asked and found out they were from the city next to my hometown. Haha, what a coincidence. I also asked whether they eat taro dumplings, and they said yes. Seems like Hakka eating habits are quite similar, especially since we are not that far apart.

We took a short break at Mus Service Area, then continued on.

The guide explained today’s schedule and reminders to us, then chatted with the other travelers. The atmosphere was nice.

After arriving in Nalati Town, we went to lunch first. My expectations for this group meal were zero, and because I had no expectations, it actually tasted okay, not that bad.

After lunch, we went to the Nalati Scenic Area, and the guide bought tickets for us. Most people in our group went to the Valley Grassland, while I and three others went to the Sky Grassland.

We took the scenic sightseeing bus to the first stop. The bus speaker played an introduction to the Nalati Scenic Area.

Even from the bus, I could already see the green meadows covering the mountains.

The story of the Nalati beekeeper is a poignant Xinjiang love legend, originating from the viral online song “The Shepherd of Koktokay” and its response song “The Beekeeper of Nalati.” It tells of two wandering souls who met and fell in love in Xinjiang, only to miss each other because of life’s realities.
http://grassland.china.com.cn/2021-01/08/content_41420710.html

Tianjietai

The first stop was a viewing platform overlooking Nalati Grassland. It was vast and spectacular. You can take a cable car up here, though it was not open today, and also play grass sliding here, which was not open today either.

From here, you can overlook Nalati Town.

Tianmutai

The second stop was the grassland. It was closer to the snow-capped mountains here.

Nomadic Family

The third stop was Nomadic Family. There was milk tea and hot food here. You could also pay extra to take a sightseeing bus to Xuelian Valley. I did not plan to go. I only wanted to walk along the stream.

There was a popular photo bridge here, and many people were lining up to take pictures.

The farther I walked upstream along the creek, the fewer people there were. The stream, blue sky, pine trees, and snow-capped mountains were so beautiful!

There were so many little flowers blooming, and eagles circling in the sky.

At 4:20, I started walking back and took the sightseeing bus from the Nomadic Family stop to the visitor center. The guide had estimated we should return to the visitor center by 5:30, and I arrived exactly at 5:30. I remembered seeing a KFC at the visitor center, so I opened the app to see what I could order. Hey, guess what I saw? A 10-yuan afternoon tea deal with the Dashen Card! I will love KFC forever 🥹 I ordered chicken nuggets and a triple-lemon tea, leaving a note to pick it up 25 minutes later. When I arrived at the KFC in the visitor center, the nuggets were packed for me on the spot. Good, good, very good 👍!

Returning to Yining

Sky Grassland is farther than Valley Grassland, so the guide thought we would get back to the visitor center later. In the end, the four of us were the earliest ones back. We waited in the bus for a while, and at about 6:20 everyone had arrived, so we headed back.

I enjoyed the grasslands and valleys along the way the whole time. The scenery was beautiful too. Watching cattle, sheep, and horses grazing made me feel completely relaxed.

As we got closer to Yining, the grasslands by the road slowly turned into Gobi desert.

I saw a beautiful sunset at the service area.

Tonight I stayed at the same hotel as last night. I originally planned to visit a nearby night market, but considering I had to take a train tomorrow morning and had already spent a lot of energy on the road today, I decided to rest early.

When I checked in tonight, the front desk upgraded my room. The whole room had smart controls. Very nice.

Day4 Yining-Urumqi-Shanghai

Got up, washed up, and had breakfast. Then I walked to Yining Station and took a high-speed train of about five hours to Urumqi.

It was already after 2 p.m. when I arrived in Urumqi, but here, a little after 2 is just lunchtime. The weather was great today. I planned to go see the Hongguangshan Giant Buddha, so after leaving the railway station, I took a taxi to a restaurant near Hongguangshan for lunch.

This was a very “Xinjiang” restaurant. I ordered lamb polo, yogurt, and two lamb skewers for 49 yuan in total. Everything was delicious! I was so full!

I felt the lamb polo was even better than the one I had on Hotan Second Street last year, and the price was good too. I saw someone next to me order stir-fried meat noodles, and there was so much meat that I got tempted just looking at it.

Hongguangshan

After eating my fill, I walked to Hongguangshan. At the entrance, an older man driving a sightseeing electric cart was calling for passengers. I asked, and it was 5 yuan. Pretty good, saved me the walk. I got on and went straight to the entrance of the Giant Buddha Temple.

From the entrance, you could already see the Giant Buddha and snow-capped mountains in the same frame. Today was sunny, and the Buddha shone golden in the sunlight. Up close, it looked majestic.

I bought two keychains, then took a taxi to the airport.

It was not far, and I arrived quickly. The taxi cost a little over 20 yuan, which was nice. After all, the airport bus costs 20 too, and taking the subway would have been too much hassle. I was not in a huge rush, but not idle enough for that either 😂

After security, I bought a cup of milk tea to drink on the plane, and also Tianrun yogurt. Delicious and not expensive.

After sitting for a while, it was time to board. The weather was good today, so I deliberately chose a window seat. Before leaving, I could take another look at the snow-capped mountains. When flying to the northwest, do not miss the view outside the window. It is basically National Geographic, visible to the naked eye.

Reflections

• Xinjiang is huge
  I spent a lot of time on the road.

• The air is very dry
  Do not suddenly open your mouth too wide, or your lips will probably crack 😂 Apply plenty of hand cream. It is really, really, really dry.

• The sunlight is strong and dazzling
  Protect yourself from the sun, and it is best to bring sunglasses.

• Add layers in the morning and evening
  The temperature difference between day and night is large, so dress carefully to avoid catching a cold.

• No traps
  Personally, I have had great experiences with tour groups in Northwest China. They did not take us shopping or make us buy weird things. It was simply a travel group, and the guide’s advice was practical too.

Expenses

Finally

Although the time was tight, and I spent a lot, a lot of time on the road, and my body may have been completely exhausted, my mood was incredibly relaxed. The weather was also very good, sunny every day.

I do not know how many more chances I will have to travel this year, because airport construction fees and fuel surcharges for flights have gone up a lot, making it less cost-effective.

See you in the next travel journal 👋

I actually planned to travel to Lijiang last year too, but those few days happened to be rainy. If I wanted to see Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, I probably would not have seen anything, so I refunded the flight ticket and went to Xinjiang instead, Northern Xinjiang. This year I finally got the chance to visit Lijiang. I have been genuinely busy lately. Even though there are all kinds of clever AI tools helping now, there are still plenty of requirements lined up. I felt embarrassed to take too many days off, so I only took one day. With early departure and late return, it made a three-day, two-night trip. Overall, I think the experience was okay.

My imagined itinerary, the super hardcore version:

• Day1 Lijiang Old Town
• Day2 Lugu Lake, but it was not a sunny day and it is too far, an 8-hour round trip from Lijiang, so I skipped it this time
• Day3 Tiger Leaping Gorge, but my butt still hurt from horseback riding, and the water volume is not very high right now, so I skipped it this time too

Itinerary

Schedule

Day1 Yuhu Village

I got up early and took a ride-share to Pudong Airport. Today’s shared car had four passengers including me, packed full. As soon as I got in, a strong stink hit me in the face 😅.

At the airport, I chose a front-row window seat at the check-in counter and headed to security. It was only just after 6, but the security line was already very long.

The plane took off at 8:55. I was too sleepy and slept for a while. When we were almost at Lijiang, I saw the Jinsha River on the ground and Gongga Snow Mountain in the distance, though I could not photograph it. The weather was great today, and before landing I could see Jade Dragon Snow Mountain very clearly.

Meili Snow Mountain in Shangri-La was also faintly visible in the distance.

After landing at Lijiang Sanyi Airport, I had no checked luggage, so I went straight out and took the bus to the city. The airport bus costs 20 yuan per person and runs every 30 minutes.

There was a “staff member” on the bus, whom I will call the bus lady for short. She introduced Lijiang’s geography, history, culture, and some things to watch out for. She said the most convenient and cost-effective way to get around Lijiang is “shared rides,” and if tourists wanted more information, they could ask at the visitor center near the bus drop-off point. She also said the weather was good today and it was very suitable to visit Yuhu Village, the village closest to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The flowers were blooming, and the scenery was beautiful.

I happened to have no idea where to go that afternoon, so after getting off at the South Gate stop of Lijiang Old Town, I went to the visitor center to ask how to take a shared ride to Yuhu Village. Only after asking did I realize the staff were actually from a travel agency. Whether they were “official” or not, who knows. The staff said there was no simple shared ride to Yuhu Village, only a package including sightseeing, horseback riding, boating, and lunch, priced at 148 yuan. I thought that was not expensive, so I bought the package and went to Yuhu Village.

Actually, by then I already had a slight bad feeling. We took a 7-seat car to Yuhu Village, and once we arrived, we went straight to the horseback riding place, which looked like a villager’s home. Before riding, they first served us cured pork rib hot pot. It was neither good nor bad, just bland. There was not even dipping sauce for the hot pot, and it felt like they mainly wanted to sell their sauce.

After lunch, we went horseback riding. I had never ridden a horse before, so it felt quite novel. The ride went up the mountain, looped around, and returned to the starting point. There was horse manure all along the way, and the horses would also poop while walking. The smell was just barely acceptable. Herbivore manure is not enough to make someone pass out. The whole ride took about 50 minutes. The saddle was not soft enough, like sitting directly on the horse’s spine. My butt hurt a lot, and it was still faintly sore the next day 😅.

After the ride, the horse owner invited us to taste tea. I tried their mountain tea, which was a little like the vine tea from my hometown, with a sweet aftertaste. It was 50 yuan for a small bag or 200 yuan for a tin.

They had also dug a pond below the courtyard. The boating activity mentioned in the package was in this pond. I could accept the horseback riding, but this boating thing really broke me.

While we were riding, someone else took photos of us. After we came back, they asked us to buy them for 20 yuan each. I thought it was too expensive and did not take any. Even if he had said 10 yuan, I still would not have taken them. Luckily nothing happened.

Some people in our group went boating in the pond. After they came back, the guide took us to Yuhu Village. At the Yuhu Village visitor center, we were asked to buy scenic electric cart tickets, 40 yuan round trip.

This stretch was not far at all. It only took a few minutes to reach the village. The village was still being developed, and many houses had scaffolding on them.

We walked through the stone road in the village, then took the second section of the electric cart to Longnu Lake.

This section was not far either. When we arrived at Longnu Lake, my inner reaction was: ?

Isn’t this just another pond 😅 Where is the promised forest? Where is the blue lake water?

The clouds in Yunnan look relatively low, and they are very pretty.

Fortunately, today’s weather was not too disappointing. Although the snow mountain was backlit in the afternoon and clouds and mist started to rise, the sunlight piercing through the clouds and falling onto the grassland was beautiful.

Let me see what kind of dog this is. The little dog was so happy, rolling around on the ground.

There was a dead tree by the lake.

The guide asked us to return to the visitor center at 6 to gather and head back to Lijiang City. I walked back and got on the scenic shuttle a little after 5.

I was really sleepy on the way back and slept in the car for a while.

When I got back to Lijiang City, it was already after 7. The sky was not dark yet, but it was probably dinner time here.

For dinner, I had a bowl of small-pot rice noodles upstairs in Lijiang International Shopping Plaza. It was good. I had previously bought pre-made small-pot rice noodles at Hema, and the flavor was about 80 percent similar to this. While eating, I also met a group of tourists from Taiwan.

After finishing the rice noodles, I went through the underground passage to the Big Water Wheel in Lijiang Old Town.

It was just an ordinary landmark, nothing especially novel.

There was a stage set up in the open space today, with song performances.

I was not interested in the night market, so I went back to the hotel to check in and rest. I had to get up early tomorrow to go to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.

Day2 Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

The day before, I booked today’s “Golden Sunrise on the Snow Mountain shared ride” tour at the South Gate visitor center. I got up at 5, and at 5:30 I met the driver at the designated spot to head to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.

On the way, the driver kept talking nonstop, saying one trip did not earn much, and now in the off-season he earned even less. Then he went on to say that golden sunrise on the mountain is rare, usually only in winter, and we should not expect it now.

When entering the mountain, staff boarded the car to check mountain entry tickets. You could also buy one on the spot. After arriving at the parking lot, the driver started selling glucose oral solution, 40 yuan per bottle. I did not buy any. The clouds were quite thick this morning, so seeing golden sunrise was indeed impossible. After arriving at Ganhaizi Visitor Center, the driver handed us over to another “staff member.” This staff member briefly explained some reminders and took us to an altar. After some setup, they led us to the place where prayer flags were sold. The prayer flags were not purchased directly. The staff asked tourists to put their hands on the table where the prayer flags were placed, which naturally meant whoever touched them would need to pay. Then they asked tourists in the front row to pass yellow prayer flags to the back rows. I was in the middle of the crowd and did not take one. Those who received flags paid on the other side of the room.

Next, the staff took us in front of the altar for a prayer before entering the mountain. A Dongba priest beat a drum and sprinkled holy water, said to be snowmelt from above 5000 meters on the mountain, very rare. One drop landed on me. Although I did not buy a prayer flag, I still hope it brings me good luck 🍀.

In short, we were stuck there for an hour, and I had not even eaten breakfast 😅. At that moment, a little sunlight broke through the clouds and shone on Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. There were some clouds in front of the mountain, very beautiful! The driver told us not to take photos now, saying it would be better at noon when we came back. Anyway, I took some very nice photos.

My cableway ticket was for 8:00-8:29. According to the rules, I could enter before 9 and board the cableway before 9:30. At the visitor center, I queued for the bus to the Blue Moon Valley cableway station.

At Blue Moon Valley Station, we were already very close to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. I looked up at the mountain, and the peak was covered by clouds.

The driver kept telling us that the Blue Moon Valley route was 4.8 km one way, and if we did not buy the sightseeing car ticket, we would have to walk 9.6 km round trip, which would take hours. He also said that after getting off the cableway at Spruce Meadow, we would need to walk 3 km. In short, he was trying to get us to buy sightseeing car tickets, 60 yuan in total. (Don’t buy it, unless you have money to spare)

We queued for Spruce Meadow. After going up, the place selling sightseeing car tickets said the distance was 2 km. If you walked further in, you would see the actual walking distance was 900 meters. This electric sightseeing cart was completely ridiculous.

After arriving, the clouds grew even thicker, and the upper part of the snow mountain was completely hidden. As its name suggests, the scenic spot is a large meadow surrounded by fir forest.

I walked a big loop around the meadow. There is an older boardwalk loop and a smaller newer boardwalk loop. I took the old one.

There were many couples taking wedding photos on the meadow. This was really the first time in my life seeing a place with so many wedding photo shoots.

It was still a bit cold here, and my nose kept running uncontrollably. There were many little sheep in the meadow. Lots of small yellow daisies were blooming on the ground, and the sheep ate them one bite at a time.

The forest here was quite beautiful, a bit like the forests I saw in Jiuzhaigou, with lots of moss on the trunks. But everywhere you could see trash left behind from wedding photo shoots, though I did not include it in the photos.

At this time, the grass was not very green yet.

After walking around, I took the cableway down the mountain. Halfway down, looking over Blue Moon Valley, the lake water looked like gemstones. There was a little sunlight then, shining on the lake surface, very beautiful. At the cableway station, I bought 4 xiaolongbao for 10 yuan to fill my stomach a little. They were not good.

After eating, I took the sightseeing bus to the lakeside of Blue Moon Valley. The main scenery of Blue Moon Valley is made up of several lakes cascading down from higher to lower levels.

The waterfall looked artificial. Behind the waterfall was cement, so it looked kind of fake.

A dead tree. Some of the water here looked blue, while some looked green. Maybe it has something to do with light reflecting off algae or deposits from water dripping through stone.

It felt a little like Jiuzhaigou. The water was very clear, though there was some algae.

The clouds over the snow mountain were still there.

A duck, seemingly eating fish.

The calm lake reflected Jade Dragon Snow Mountain like a mirror.

Rainbow trout. Here it seems to be called “snow mountain fish.”

After finishing Blue Moon Valley, I took the bus back to Ganhaizi Visitor Center. This “shared ride tour” I joined included lunch. The driver said the meal was quite average and we could decide whether to eat it. I skipped it and went to KFC.

After eating, I went upstairs to the morning photo spot and looked at the snow mountain for a while, then headed to the parking lot to get in the car and wait to return to Lijiang City.

This one was taken with iPhone, because the longest lens I brought for my camera was only 70 mm, a little shorter than the iPhone’s 100 mm. It was majestic and stunning.

It took about an hour to return to the city. When I got off, the temperature was quite high.

After getting off, I went to Black Dragon Pool Park. There were not many people today. The park has an iconic photo spot where you can see the snow mountain and the five-arch bridge in the same frame.

After leaving, I bought a drink from Cotti Coffee at the entrance, then walked to the hotel to check in and rest. I passed a fruit shop that looked like it was run by a father and son. I asked the owner how much sugar apples were per jin. He said 25. I saw the skins were a bit bruised, so I did not buy any. Then I asked how much salak was. He said 15 yuan for two. I had just passed another fruit shop selling salak for 10 yuan for three, so I told him another shop was 10 yuan for three. The owner replied grumpily: “Then why didn’t you buy from that shop?” Me: 🙄 This owner really does not know how to do business.

I returned to the hotel to check in and rest. Today’s room could see a corner of the snow mountain. The location was very convenient. From the entrance, I could take the underground passage directly into the old town. I did not know what to eat for dinner and was too lazy to go out, so I ordered takeout: porcini mushroom braised rice and tossed luffa tips. Both were things I had never eaten before. The porcini rice was a huge bowl, and I could not finish it. The luffa tips had soy sauce and were a bit salty. Overall, not a disaster, but not amazing either.

I had not slept enough for two nights in a row, and my watch had already shown three abnormal alerts, heart rate, blood oxygen, and sleep duration. I did not plan to go anywhere far tomorrow, just wander around near the old town.

Day3 Lijiang Old Town

I slept until I woke up naturally and had breakfast. After eating, I still did not feel like moving. I lay in bed scrolling on my phone and got sleepy again, so I took another nap.

At noon, I checked out and went to the Big Water Wheel. There are two pretty good spots here for photographing the snow mountain.

I walked to Dashiqiao. Along the river, there were lots of flowers, with a clear stream lying in the middle. It was beautiful.

Small stream, flowing water, music.

At Dashiqiao, two very photogenic people held poses there for 10 minutes. I stood nearby feeling a bit awkward.

I walked back and bought a milk tea from Chagee near the Big Water Wheel to quench my thirst.

I saw on Xiaohongshu that there were two photo spots where you could capture “the old town beneath the snow mountain.” It looked very appealing. I checked navigation and it was only 500 meters on foot, so I decided to go.

Passed by Wenchang Palace.

Overlooking Lijiang Old Town.

Street view.

The first spot was in front of “Shan Kaka.”

The second spot was in front of “Zai Shanye.” This photo is the cover of this post.

Today, there was a ring of clouds around the top of the snow mountain, so it did not reveal its full appearance. But these two photo spots are indeed great!

My return flight was at 18:20. I booked a ride-share for 3:40, expecting to arrive at the airport two hours early. On the way, the driver asked if I wanted to take the expressway. I thought it was better to be safe, so I chose the expressway and paid an extra 10 yuan toll.

At the airport, check-in and security were very quick, only a few minutes in line. It was still early, so I ate a bowl of black-bone chicken rice noodles. It was good, very fresh-tasting.

After takeoff, I saw mountains in light and shadow. Beautiful. I had deliberately chosen a left-side window seat because I wanted one last aerial view of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain as I left, but there were too many clouds and I did not see it.

Arrived in Shanghai! I took a ride-share home, sorted myself out, rested properly, and had to go back to work tomorrow.

Expenses

Reflections

• The flowers, plants, and trees are all neatly trimmed
  The streets are very well maintained and tidy.

• The scenic shuttles are a small trap
  The distances are obviously not that far.

• The so-called shared ride experience was not very good
  It is probably better to take a taxi yourself or use public transportation. My small-group tour experiences in the Northwest last year, Xinjiang and Gansu, were all very good, which made me lower my guard.

• Altitude sickness?
  Did not encounter it.

• A feeling of being tricked
  It did not cost much money, but it affected the mood a bit.

• Blue Moon Valley: a substitute for Jiuzhaigou?
  I have always believed that all kinds of so-called “substitutes” can never truly replace the original. If you come for a “substitute,” you will definitely be disappointed. But if you do not treat it as a substitute and instead look at its own characteristics, it is still pretty nice.

Finally

See you in the next travel journal 👋

Since 2023, I have traveled to Japan several times, but I had never been to the Kanto region. I wanted to see Mount Fuji with my own eyes, so around New Year’s Day I started planning a cherry blossom season trip. Looking at previous years, peak bloom was usually around Qingming Festival. Taking two days off plus the three-day Qingming holiday did not feel too rushed. I booked the flights and deliberately chose red-eyes so I could make full use of the daytime on both my arrival and departure days.

There were two sights I wanted to see on this trip:

1. Sakura in full bloom ✅
2. Mount Fuji with its snow cap ✅

Before Departure

Itinerary

Schedule

Day1 Tokyo

The first flight was at 1:50 a.m., and I arrived at the airport a little after 11 p.m. the night before. Since I did not bring a suitcase, I could check in at the self-service kiosk and skip the long counter queue. There were not many people at that hour, and security was quick. I lay down on a chair near Gate 230 for a bit, but did not fall asleep.

After boarding and takeoff, I still could not sleep. There was even a meal in the middle of the night, and finally I had all kinds of drinks to choose from. I asked for apple juice, and it went nicely with the curry rice. Let me sigh for a second: I only got to fly on a wide-body plane and eat a pretty decent airplane meal at the age of 30. This was already the most premium flight I had ever taken.

The seatback screen had some interactive features. You could watch movies or view footage from the aircraft cameras, though it was too dark at midnight to see anything. This airline also offered free Wi-Fi throughout the flight. It was not smooth enough for videos, but fine for reading posts with images and text. Being able to charge my phone on the plane was nice too.

I only dozed off for a little while around 5. We landed at Haneda Airport at 5:45, and I started queuing for immigration at 6. There were so many people that entering the country took about 45 minutes.

It was raining in Tokyo in the morning and would clear up in the afternoon, which was also an important reason why I planned to head to Mount Fuji and Lake Kawaguchi later that day.

Kanda River

I took the train to Takadanobaba and headed for the Kanda River. When I arrived, it was drizzling. Walking in the rain felt so romantic. Scenes from Makoto Shinkai’s films surfaced in my mind. Wow, I was finally in Tokyo.

Along the Kanda River, the section from Toda Hirabashi to Omokagebashi has many cherry trees planted on both banks. I arrived right at full bloom, though some petals had already fallen onto the water because of the wind and rain.

Maybe because it was a weekday, I did not see a single tourist on the road. I quietly enjoyed that comfort.

Next stop: Shukugawara.

Shukugawara

I took the train and got off at Shukugawara Station. I thought cherry trees should probably be planted by the river, so I walked in that direction. After crossing the road and stepping onto the little path along the riverbank, I suddenly thought: the place where Shin-chan and his friends often play probably looks like this too.

There were many egrets, probably, on the river in the distance.

I passed a shrine, where several cherry trees beside the torii gate made a very pure-looking scene. A few teenagers rode over on bicycles, and I thought: these must be the real-life Nobita Nobis.

I kept walking until I reached an intersection. Looking down the small river from the bridge, I saw so many cherry blossoms that I finally realized: this should have been my “destination.” From that intersection, the wooden path along the riverbank was all beneath blooming sakura. It was bright, delicate, and almost fairy-like. Still, I barely saw any tourists.

A train happened to pass through the cherry blossoms.

If the cherry blossoms fall at a speed of five centimeters per second, then…

After leaving Shukugawara, my next stop was Shinjuku Gyoen.

Shinjuku Gyoen

Makoto Shinkai’s film The Garden of Words has many locations set in Shinjuku Gyoen. There are many varieties of cherry blossoms in the garden, and because different varieties bloom at different times, the viewing season here lasts for about a month.

The trees in Shinjuku Gyoen are very tall.

The Japanese garden is also beautiful.

It started raining, so I took shelter for a while.

A flock of birds flew across the sky. The atmosphere was wonderful!

Standing in the cherry blossom grove, with full-bloom sakura overhead, felt a little like standing beneath the sacred tree in Avatar.

There is also a maple grove inside. It must be lovely for autumn foliage.

After leaving Shinjuku Gyoen, the sky gradually cleared.

Lunch was handled at a convenience store. In the afternoon, I went to Shinjuku Station and boarded the 14:37 JR train to Otsuki.

Why only to Otsuki? Because tonight I was staying at Toyoko Inn Fuji Kawaguchiko Ohashi, and this hotel provides free shuttle buses to several places around Mount Fuji, including a round-trip shuttle between Otsuki Station and the hotel. Very convenient. Excellent!

Looking out from the JR train to Otsuki, I saw many small rural towns. I nodded off several times on the train, which counted as catching up on sleep. After arriving at Otsuki, there was still some time before the shuttle bus came, so I walked around the station. There was a cherry tree in front of the station, also in full bloom, swaying in the breeze. So beautiful.

At 4:30, I got on Toyoko Inn’s shuttle bus. The driver checked the passenger information when I boarded. I was the only person who had reserved this bus today, which surprised me a little. I had assumed the cherry blossom season would mean buses packed with tourists 😄

The driver did not speak English, so he used a translation app to ask whether it was okay to stop for gas on the way. I said OK. After about half an hour, we arrived at Lake Kawaguchi. I looked out the window and saw Mount Fuji’s waist exposed, while the face was still hidden by clouds.

Lake Kawaguchi

I arrived at the hotel and checked in at the self-service machine. My room was on the top floor, but not in the building facing Mount Fuji, so I could not see the mountain directly from the window. After sitting for a short while, I headed to Kawaguchiko Bridge, which was very close and had a great viewing spot.

I passed a Lawson, which also had a nice photo spot. By the time I reached the bridge, the wind was already going wild. Luckily my jacket was windproof, but a baseball cap was definitely not warm enough. I also had to tighten the cap all the way, otherwise one gust could have blown it off the bridge.

The bridge was not very long, and the clouds around Mount Fuji’s snowy peak never dispersed. I hesitated over whether to keep going to the lakeside on the opposite bank and wait. It was quite cold, and I had not put on the down vest I brought. After thinking about it, I still went.

I waited by the lake until dark, but the clouds were still there. That was enough for today. It was truly too cold, so I went back, washed up, and slept.

Bought some water at the convenience store.

Day2 Mount Fuji

In the morning, I had breakfast on the first floor of the hotel. Looking around, I saw rice, curry, soft saucy eggs, small sausages, and grilled chicken. I took some and almost made myself nauseous, because everything was slippery and oily. Luckily, I got a coffee from the machine to drink with it, otherwise I really could not have eaten it. In the morning, I still prefer bread with milk.

The weather today was unbeatable. Just as the forecast said, Mount Fuji had perfect visibility. Any casual photo looked good.

I passed by Lawson again and finally got photos I was happy with.

Reverse Fuji at Lake Kawaguchi

I continued to Kawaguchiko Bridge and took some beautiful photos there too.

By the lake, Mount Fuji’s reflection on the water formed the scenery known as “Reverse Fuji.”

Reverse Fuji refers to the sight of Mount Fuji reflected on the calm surface of Lake Kawaguchi on a clear, windless morning, forming a mirror-like “double Mount Fuji” with near-perfect symmetry.

Apparently there are white swans at Lake Kawaguchi too, but I did not see any. I only saw black ducks. Ugly duckling: quack quack?

Walking further along the lakeside, I came across a cherry tree in full bloom.

Passed by a viewing platform.

Tenjoyama Park

At 10, I arrived at the Tenjoyama Park ropeway station and went up the mountain for a higher view of Mount Fuji.

From the observation deck on the mountain, one side faces Mount Fuji, while the other overlooks Lake Kawaguchi. In clear weather, the lake reflected the color of the sky.

Looking into the distance, you can see the Southern Alps.

On the other side is Mount Fuji.

From this angle, it had a chilly, austere feeling.

I took the ropeway down and walked to Kawaguchiko Station, preparing to head to Lake Yamanaka. Near the station, I accidentally ended up across the road from the famous Lawson that went viral online. Many young couples were lining up in front of it to take photos.

The bus ride to Lake Yamanaka was not far in distance, but it took quite a while.

Lake Yamanaka

Arrived at the Mt. Fuji Yamanakako bus stop.

I first went to Nagaike Water Park. The lakeside here faces Mount Fuji directly with no obstruction.

After taking some photos of Mount Fuji, I prepared to go to another spot: Hirano Beach. I checked navigation and found that the fastest route was to return to Mt. Fuji Yamanakako Station and take a bus in the other direction. So I began another 2 km “power walk” back to catch the bus.

By the time I took the bus and arrived at Hirano Beach, the sun had already climbed quite high. Under the overhead light, Mount Fuji looked less crisp. I took a brief walk around Hirano Beach, then went to the tourist information center entrance to wait for the bus back to Lake Kawaguchi.

Back at Lake Kawaguchi, there was still more than an hour before I had to leave for Otsuki, so I wandered around near Kawaguchiko Bridge again. By then there were some clouds in the sky, which made the view even prettier.

When it was almost time, I returned to the hotel lobby to rest and wait for the bus.

After arriving at Otsuki, I still had 40 minutes before my train, so I ate a bowl of ramen at a small shop in front of the station.

I arrived in Shinjuku a little after 8.

There were many people smoking in front of the station, and many cigarette butts on the ground.

Was this a street performer? He sang very well!

After checking in at the hotel, I went to the nearby Shinjuku Central Park.

Passing by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, I saw several cherry trees blooming nicely.

It was Friday, and the park was lively, full of laughter.

What a full day! I went back to the hotel, washed up, and slept.

Day3 Kamakura, Tokyo

I slept pretty well last night.

I got up early, washed up, had breakfast, and checked out. I originally planned to go to Nikko today to see Kegon Falls, but the weather did not look good, and heavy rain in Nikko would make travel inconvenient. So I changed course and went south to Kamakura.

I took JR toward Kamakura. Following Google Maps, I transferred to a bus at Ofuna Station for Kencho-ji.

After exiting Ofuna Station, I could see a large Kannon statue from upstairs.

I do not think I had ever ridden this kind of suspended train before. The bus driver below looked very young, maybe even younger than me. Then I saw him get out of the driver’s cabin, take a cloth, and wipe the wheels. My inner voice: is it really that clean???

When boarding the bus, the driver asks where you are going. After entering the fare, you tap your card. I could not understand what the driver was saying at the time. Later I realized he was asking whether I was going to Kencho-ji. I showed him the navigation information on my phone, with the stop name in Japanese, and got on smoothly. Arigato gozaimasu.

Today was rainy too.

Kencho-ji

Arrived. As soon as I entered, I saw an avenue of cherry blossoms.

There was also a garden inside.

I walked toward the back mountain to take a look.

Continued up the mountain.

There is an observation deck on the mountain. When the weather is good, you can see Mount Fuji from there.

Went down the mountain.

It was almost lunchtime, so I went to find something to eat.

I walked all the way to Komachi-dori, and the rain got even heavier. There is a Hachimangu Shrine here, but the rain was too heavy, so I did not go in.

Lunch was KFC in front of Kamakura Station. I had originally planned to go to Enoshima today too, but the weather was really not suitable, so I will save it for next time.

I took the train to Ikebukuro. On the ride, someone next to me was wearing Crocs and took one foot out of the shoe, leaving it exposed. The smell nearly knocked me out.

Tonight I stayed at a Toyoko Inn near Ikebukuro Station. After arriving in Ikebukuro, I saw a milk tea shop inside the station with quite a few people in line, maybe around 10. I queued up and bought a cup too. It tasted average, not as good as milk tea back home.

After checking in, I rested in the room for a while.

This pedestrian bridge had a nice view. Train fans would probably like this spot a lot!

For dinner, I had a bowl of Ichiran ramen and ordered almond tofu too. I had never tried it before. The almond flavor tasted oddly poisonous to me.

Chidorigafuchi Night Sakura

I took the subway to Kudanshita Station. Right outside the station was the cherry blossom viewing path.

There should normally be tourists rowing boats on the moat, but perhaps because of the rain, boating was suspended today.

Under the cherry trees, lights of different colors were projected onto the blossoms. Some colors looked awful, a bit too eerie, while others were beautiful.

It was beautiful and dreamlike.

Day4 Tokyo

The main destinations of this trip were already done, so I did not arrange any special sightseeing for today. First, I slept until I woke up naturally. This Toyoko Inn in Ikebukuro had bread for breakfast, so finally I did not have to eat myself into nausea 😁 Slippery food in the morning really does not work for me.

Ochanomizu

This is one of the locations from the film Suzume.

Sensoji Temple

So many people! It felt similar to Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto, the kind of place many tourists in Tokyo will come to see.

I drew bad fortune 😅.

There is a tourist information center across from Kaminarimon. You can go up to the 8th floor to overlook Senso-ji and see Tokyo Skytree.

Tokyo Skytree

I went nearby for lunch and took some photos of Tokyo Skytree along the way.

Shibuya

What an incredibly busy crossing! The shooting spot was on the 12th floor of Shibuya Scramble Square, and it was free.

It was still early, but there was nowhere else I particularly wanted to go. I went to the Starbucks upstairs at Shibuya Station and rested for a while.

For dinner, I had yakiniku near Shinagawa Station.

My flight to Kansai Airport was at 9 p.m. I would sleep there for one night and fly back to Shanghai the next morning. When I bought the tickets, there was an option to fly directly from Tokyo to Shanghai at 10 p.m., but I figured I would arrive in Shanghai around midnight and still need to take a taxi home. I would not rest well at that hour anyway. Better to sleep one night first, and it also let me experience a domestic flight in Japan.

The aircraft was the familiar A320.

Day5 Return

I got up, washed up, and took the hotel’s airport shuttle to Kansai Airport, saving another 530 yen, hehe. It took about 15 minutes to reach T1. Very quick.

Security was also fast, and it was still early. I took the little train inside the terminal to the area near Gate 11 and bought something to eat at the convenience store.

The haze was quite heavy today, so I could not clearly see the ground along much of the route. Back in Shanghai, this trip came to an end~

Expenses

Reflections

• Cherry Blossom Viewing

  The viewing period for cherry blossoms is truly short, and the frequent spring rain makes it even shorter. Their most beautiful moment is when they are fully blooming and you see flowers but no leaves. By the time I arrived, a few fresh leaves had already appeared, but it was still incredibly beautiful.

• Wide-body Planes

  They are indeed steadier than smaller planes. It was my first time using Wi-Fi on a flight, and it felt great. ANA’s in-flight meal was pretty good too.

• Lake Kawaguchi

  The view of Mount Fuji from here is excellent. The mountain appears as a fairly symmetrical cone. You can see Mount Fuji from many places around it, but the scenery is generally not as good as Lake Kawaguchi. For example, some spots reveal the crater on the mountainside, making the overall shape less perfect, while others have obstructions. Transportation is convenient, though buses seem to run about every half hour.

  Outside Japan’s big cities, road trips seem very suitable, if conditions allow. A video creator I follow, Lao Song CHANNEL, often travels to small places around Japan, and I really like his video style.

• AI Fails

  During this trip, I used Microsoft’s Copilot app for some searches, and sometimes its answers were wrong.

  For example, when I was at Ikebukuro Station, I asked which floor Starbucks was on. It told me the 1st and 2nd floors. In reality, it was on the 3rd floor.

  Another time, I asked whether it would rain in Kamakura. The forecast I saw looked rainy, but Copilot confidently told me not to worry, that it absolutely would not rain. Then around noon I nearly got soaked, because my umbrella was small and I had to quickly hide under a storefront. I was so annoyed I laughed. Truly laughed. Sometimes when people are speechless, they really do laugh out loud.

• Big City

  Tokyo really is a major metropolis. After living in Shanghai for several years, I already felt Shanghai had the shape of a big city. Osaka felt just okay when I visited, but Tokyo gave me the feeling of Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden. Tokyo is excellent in urban construction, greenery, and transportation.

• Humid

  It felt a little like the movie Weathering With You. It had been raining recently, the air humidity was high, and with spring warming up, my body never felt quite dry. I did not like that much.

• Getting Lost

  I nearly got dizzy wandering around Shinjuku Station and Ikebukuro Station.
  Shinjuku Station truly deserves its title as Asia’s largest station, and even “the busiest station in the world,” with more than 3 million daily users.

• Mainland Tourists

  There were noticeably fewer mainland tourists, similar to what I noticed in Kansai late last year. On streets, roads, and at scenic spots, I barely heard Mandarin with a mainland accent.

• iPhone 17

  The thermal improvements on this generation are indeed very obvious. It heats up much less during charging and photography, and the battery can now comfortably last a full day.

• Prices

  Hotels are much more expensive than in Kansai. Everything else felt about the same.

• A Small Regret

  I did not get to see Tokyo’s night view from a high place. I think there will be another chance next time. If a trip leaves no regrets at all, then maybe I will not return to that place for a long time.

Q&A

• Transportation Passes

  Pass prices have gone up. Unless you are doing an extremely packed itinerary and visiting faraway places, it is hard to make the money back. Not cost-effective.

Some Links

• Mount Fuji visibility forecast https://fuji-san.info/zh-cn/index.html
• Train timetable search https://japantravel.navitime.com/zh-cn/area/jp/depArrTimeList
• Toyoko Inn shuttle bus reservation https://reserve.toyoko-inn-bus.com/

Easter Egg

My blog theme hexo-theme-linen is finally open source!

LynanBreeze/hexo-theme-linen: A clean Hexo theme.

Finally

Thank you for reading all the way here. I hope it brought you a little bit of good mood. See you in the next travel journal 👋!

I got my Exit-Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macau back in 2023, but never used it once. The endorsements that came with it expired untouched. Recently I found cheap flight tickets, so I decided to take a weekend mini trip.

After getting off work on Friday, I booked a carpool ride on Hellobike for the next morning to the airport. Unexpectedly, early the next day, the driver bailed. He had called me the night before saying he’d pick me up 20 minutes later than scheduled, but when the time came, he didn’t show up, and I couldn’t reach him via the platform or phone. Luckily, I woke up early and had extra buffer time, so calling a taxi still worked perfectly. I arrived at the airport smoothly.

At check‑in, the staff asked if I had purchased the ticket using my passport. I recalled that I did. She told me to go to the counter around the corner to update my passenger info to the travel permit. The “crisis” was solved in 5 minutes. Thankfully, I had flown a lot last year and upgraded to Gold status, so I skipped the line and boarded smoothly.

Main goals of this trip:

1. Buy an iPhone ✅
2. Eat Macau snacks, especially Portuguese egg tarts ✅

Saturday

It always looks hazy when looking down from the plane.

Honestly, Hong Kong looks more spectacular from above than Shanghai — mountains and sea.

I arrived at Macau International Airport a little after 11 AM, breezed through immigration, and headed to the bus stop next to the airport to take the free hotel shuttle (“Fortune Bus”) to Galaxy Macau.

The ride was short, just a few kilometers, about 10 minutes. The drop‑off point was the “Crystal Lobby” (probably named after the extravagant crystal chandelier inside). Once inside, indoor navigation basically stopped working, and I wandered around for a while before finding the Apple Store.

I asked a Genius and was told they were out of stock for now, but might restock in the afternoon. I could come back later.

It was lunchtime, so I decided to fix my hunger first. I ate beef tripe lo mein + milk tea at Tsui Wah Restaurant. The beef tripe slices were huge and delicious. The noodles were instant noodles by default and surprisingly tasty (the menu said “instant noodles,” but I didn’t expect it to literally be instant noodles 😂). The milk tea had too strong a tea flavor — not my thing.

Wandering Around the Peninsula

From the Crystal Lobby at Galaxy Macau, I took the Fortune Bus to StarWorld Hotel.

Right after getting off, I saw streets that looked straight out of Hong Kong dramas.

There happened to be a China Telecom Macau store nearby, so I went to check if they had iPhones in stock. They actually did — lucky me. The staff said there was exactly one left (white, 512GB). I asked if I could split the payment into two transactions so I could use two coupons. They said yes, so I happily completed the purchase. They even gave me a DIY phone case that could be printed on the spot.

After buying the phone, I headed toward the peninsula’s “most famous” attraction — the Ruins of St. Paul’s.

After crossing the footbridge, there was Mong Ha Municipal Park, with a lighthouse, fort, and lookout point. I went up to take a look.

The weather was quite warm — taking off my jacket and wearing just a T‑shirt felt perfect.

I continued walking toward the Ruins of St. Paul’s, about 900 meters left. The next morning I realized my hotel for the night was right next to it.

Loved the sunlight and shadows here.

Arrived at the Ruins of St. Paul’s — so many people!

The Ruins of St. Paul’s (Portuguese: Ruínas de São Paulo) are the remains of a 17th‑century Catholic religious complex in Macau’s St. Anthony Parish, including the original St. Paul’s College and the Church of St. Paul (Igreja de São Paulo), also known as Mater Dei. It is one of Macau’s iconic landmarks. The façade is part of the church ruins (the façade, forecourt, and staircase). The Chinese name “Da San Ba” comes from the transliteration of “São Paulo.” The typhoon name “Sanba” also originates from this.

There is an elevator next to the Ruins that goes up to the park. The Macau Museum is there — admission is 15 MOP (I didn’t go in).

From the top platform, you can see the Grand Lisboa Hotel.

Its shape reminds me of this:

A street performer was singing a song by Chang Chen‑Yue.

I walked through the alleys below the Ruins. The first section was packed with tourists, but it got better further in.

I saw this photo on Unsplash →
https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-people-walking-down-a-street-next-to-tall-buildings-8GIsOVL_rlY
Later, while browsing my own photos, I realized I had walked down the same street.

I ate a small portion of Wing Kee beef offal — 50 MOP, very delicious.

After that, I bought a milk tea from Hui Zhen Ji — very good.

Then I took the Fortune Bus from StarWorld back to Galaxy, and walked to The Parisian to see the Eiffel Tower replica.

The Parisian at Night

Passed by some casino — no idea what it was.

Passed another casino I didn’t recognize — also didn’t care.

Arrived. Rounding up, I guess I’ve “seen” the Eiffel Tower too 😊
I wondered how tall the real one is 🤔 (later checked: original is 330m, Macau’s is 162m)

After seeing the tower, I didn’t feel like walking anymore, so I took a bus back to the hotel.

The alleys were narrow, but the large buses still drove very steadily. There weren’t many pedestrian crossings — you often had to use footbridges.

Sunday

I kept my camera in my bag today — just wandered casually without trying to “get good shots.” Woke up, checked out, and took a bus to Taipa Village (Rua do Cunha).

Taipa Village (Rua do Cunha)

There’s a beautiful big tree at the entrance, next to a small square.

I arrived early, so most shops weren’t open yet.

Lord Stow’s Bakery on Rua do Cunha opens at 9 AM. I bought egg tarts, chocolate cookies, and milk tea — all delicious.

Wetland Park

A white egret.

A happy rolling cat.

Heading to the Airport

Leaving Rua do Cunha, I went to Galaxy’s Asia Food Street and bought a HeyTea drink that isn’t available on the mainland menu.

Turn left when exiting the Crystal Lobby — the light rail station (Pai Kok Station) is right there.

Pai Kok → Airport: 15 minutes, 8 MOP. Tickets can be purchased at the window using WeChat Pay or Alipay.

About to land.

Took a carpool ride home — a lovely end to this quick one‑day flash trip.

Expenses

Some Impressions

• Plants and greenery are very well maintained
  The streets are tidy and neatly managed.

• Building glass façades are spotless
  So clean they reflect like mirrors.

• Convenient transportation
  Free hotel shuttles, public buses, and the light rail are enough to reach most places in Macau. Public restrooms are easy to find, and there are plenty of seats for resting.

Small Tips

• Bus payments: Macau Pass / UnionPay QuickPass / WeChat Pay
• Hotel shuttle buses are free and do not require a room key
• Walking around the Cotai area is very convenient

Transportation Options

• Hotel Shuttle (Fortune Bus)
  Free. Runs between major hotels, the airport, and border checkpoints. Queuing is required. Intervals are about 10–15 minutes.

• Public Bus
  6 MOP per ride, roughly 5 RMB. You can use the Amap (Gaode) app to find bus routes.

• Light Rail
  The tracks and stations are elevated above the roads. A bit like the BRT system in Xiamen.
  
  Image source: https://www.mlm.com.mo/tc/route.html

Buying an iPhone

iPhones in Macau are tax‑free and slightly cheaper than in mainland China. They are Hong Kong‑version devices. Except for the iPhone Air (which is eSIM‑only), all other models have one physical SIM + one eSIM (and can store multiple eSIM profiles).

If you use a China Merchants Bank credit card, you can claim coupons in the CMB Life app, saving + cashback totaling around 500 RMB.

There are two Apple Stores in Macau, and neither supports online reservations — in‑store purchase only. They are:

You can also visit China Telecom Macau stores to purchase iPhones.

This monitor is pretty good overall. At around 2,000 RMB, it performs well in many areas, but for me it has two small drawbacks:

1. It is a bit slow to wake up, taking about 5 seconds when waking from the keyboard.
2. After the monitor goes to sleep, I can no longer use Xiao Ai voice commands.

I looked through the monitor settings and could not find an option to keep it on standby without sleeping, so I decided to make one myself.

Basic idea: This is a miniLED monitor. When HDR mode is enabled in macOS, the system can control the monitor brightness directly. This does not work in SDR mode, where brightness can only be adjusted through the monitor itself. Because of miniLED local dimming, when the brightness is set to 0, the whole panel stops emitting light.

So all I need to do is set the brightness to 0 when I am not using the computer. This effectively turns off the monitor panel and saves power, while the system keeps running and can still respond to Xiao Ai commands at any time.

Prerequisites

1. A miniLED monitor with HDR enabled in macOS - System Settings - Displays.
2. One Switch - Keep Awake.
3. Hammerspoon.

Implementation

1. Install Hammerspoon

1. Go to the official website and download Hammerspoon.
2. After opening it, click Hammerspoon -> Open Config in the menu bar.
3. This will open ~/.hammerspoon/init.lua.

You can also open ~/.hammerspoon/init.lua directly with an editor such as VS Code.

2. Configure init.lua

Paste the following code into init.lua:

-- Screensaver dimming mode:
-- after entering the screensaver, wait delayBeforeDim minutes before lowering brightness;
-- dimDuration controls how long it takes to dim to 0.
-- When leaving the screensaver, for example by pressing Enter to wake, restore the original brightness.

local brightness = require("hs.brightness")
local caffeinate = require("hs.caffeinate")
local timer = require("hs.timer")

-- Configuration
local delayBeforeDim = 1 * 60      -- Wait 1 minute after entering the screensaver before dimming (seconds)
local dimDuration    = 5           -- Total time to dim from the current brightness to 0 (seconds)
local steps          = 2           -- Number of dimming steps; higher values are smoother
local originalBrightness = nil
local dimTimer = nil
local delayTimer = nil

-- Stop all timers and restore brightness
local function restoreBrightness()
    if delayTimer then
        delayTimer:stop()
        delayTimer = nil
    end
    if dimTimer then
        dimTimer:stop()
        dimTimer = nil
    end
    if originalBrightness then
        brightness.set(originalBrightness)
        originalBrightness = nil
    end
end

-- Start dimming
local function startDimming()
    -- Avoid starting another dimming timer if one is already running
    if dimTimer ~= nil then return end

    originalBrightness = brightness.get()
    if not originalBrightness or originalBrightness <= 0 then
        return
    end

    local currentStep = 0
    local stepInterval = dimDuration / steps
    local stepDelta = originalBrightness / steps

    dimTimer = timer.doEvery(stepInterval, function()
        currentStep = currentStep + 1
        local newValue = originalBrightness - stepDelta * currentStep
        if newValue < 0 then newValue = 0 end
        brightness.set(math.floor(newValue + 0.5))

        if currentStep >= steps then
            dimTimer:stop()
            dimTimer = nil
        end
    end)
end

-- When the screensaver starts: wait delayBeforeDim minutes, then start dimming
local function onScreensaverStart()
    -- Prevent duplicate timers
    restoreBrightness()

    delayTimer = timer.doAfter(delayBeforeDim, function()
        startDimming()
    end)
end

-- When the screensaver stops: restore brightness immediately
local function onScreensaverStop()
    restoreBrightness()
end

local watcher = caffeinate.watcher.new(function(event)
    if event == caffeinate.watcher.screensaverDidStart then
        -- Entered screensaver
        onScreensaverStart()

    elseif event == caffeinate.watcher.screensaverDidStop then
        -- Left screensaver, usually triggered by a key press or mouse movement
        onScreensaverStop()

    elseif event == caffeinate.watcher.screensDidLock then
        -- Screen locked, either manually or automatically
        onScreensaverStart()

    elseif event == caffeinate.watcher.screensDidUnlock then
        -- Successfully unlocked, after password or Touch ID
        onScreensaverStop()

    elseif event == caffeinate.watcher.systemDidWake then
        -- The Mac woke from sleep
        restoreBrightness()

    elseif event == caffeinate.watcher.screensDidWake then
        -- The screen woke from sleep
        restoreBrightness()
    end
end)

watcher:start()

Save the file.

3. Reload Config

Click Hammerspoon -> Reload Config in the menu bar.

The setup is now complete. You can press Control + Command + Q to lock the screen and test the effect.

Conclusion

With this custom script, I got the monitor rest mode I wanted.

Limitations:

1. On the macOS login screen, the script cannot listen for events and restore brightness. You can temporarily adjust brightness manually with the brightness keys on the keyboard.
2. Compared with true sleep, this will use more power. I have not tested it, but I suppose the difference is not too large.

Advantages:

1. There is no need to wait for the monitor to wake up, and I do not need to worry about issues such as burn-in.
2. Xiao Ai is always on standby. Last night, I called Xiao Ai in the middle of the night to turn on the air conditioner for me.

Amanohashidate is located in Miyazu Bay on the Sea of Japan side of northern Kyoto Prefecture. Together with Matsushima in Mutsu and Miyajima in Aki, it is known as one of the Three Scenic Views of Japan.

What are the Three Scenic Views of Japan? -> https://www.nihonsankei.jp/about.html

Use Passes

JR Kansai Wide Area Pass + Amanohashidate-Ine 2-Day Pass

Klook link: https://s.klook.com/c/awRZzp_v1B

Choose the 5-day pass, then under Add-ons select 5-Day Pass + Kyoto Amanohashidate Ine Sightseeing 2-Day Pass.

This means you can buy the Amanohashidate-Ine Sightseeing 2-Day Pass, worth 3,500 yen, for only about 39 RMB.

Schedule

The Amanohashidate-Ine Sightseeing 2-Day Pass covers both local buses and express buses. Express buses stop at fewer places than local buses and get to Ine faster.

If you do not buy the pass, you need to pay bus fares in cash. Suica and Icoca are not accepted. Local bus fares vary by distance, while the express bus has a fixed fare of 1,000 yen.

Kyoto Round Trip

Train

From Kyoto, take a JR train to Amanohashidate Station.

Direct train, recommended: The JR Hashidate Limited Express has only a small number of departures, but it runs directly between Kyoto and Amanohashidate. The one-way trip takes about 2 hours, and the fare is around 4,800-5,400 yen depending on your travel date.

Please note: JR trains to Amanohashidate are reserved-seat only, so you must reserve a seat. I recommend reserving your round-trip seats at the ticket machines in the first-floor hall of Kyoto Station the day before departure.

Enter Kyoto Station with your pass. When leaving Amanohashidate Station, show both your pass and reserved-seat ticket to the staff.

Bus

Tankai Bus operates several highway buses each day between Kyoto Station and Amanohashidate. The one-way trip takes about two hours, and the fare is 3,200 yen or 3,400 yen depending on the travel date. Online reservations are available through the Willer website.

Book online

Arriving at Amanohashidate

Inside Amanohashidate Station, exchange your voucher for the Amanohashidate-Ine 2-Day Pass at the Amanohashidate Information Centre. You can also pick up English and Japanese sightseeing brochures there.

The Kyoto Amanohashidate Ine Sightseeing 2-Day Pass covers the following:

• Admission to Nariaiji Temple
• Round-trip mountain bus to Nariaiji Temple
• Kasamatsu Park clay-disc throwing voucher
• Amanohashidate sightseeing boat: round trip between Miyazu Pier, Amanohashidate Pier, and Ichinomiya Pier
• Amanohashidate Kasamatsu Park cable car and chairlift: round trip between Fuchu Station and Kasamatsu Station
• Ine Bay sightseeing boat, Hikaribune: boarding ticket for the Ine Bay cruise
• Tankai route buses: route buses within Miyazu City, Kyotango City, Ine Town, and Yosano Town, excluding community buses
• Nariaiji shuttle bus: round trip between Kasamatsu Station and Nariaiji Temple

Sightseeing Route

Take the bus toward Ine to visit these places.

Bus stops:

1. Amanohashidate Station
   I recommend taking the express bus. The fare is 1,000 yen and is covered by the Amanohashidate-Ine 2-Day Pass. Just show your pass when boarding.
2. Ine Bay Meguri / Hide
   Take the sightseeing boat here. The boat fare is 1,200 yen and is covered by the Amanohashidate-Ine 2-Day Pass. Just show your pass. The cruise takes about 30 minutes. You can buy snacks at the pier before boarding and feed the seagulls on the boat.
3. Ine
   Walk around Ine’s funaya boathouses and enjoy the calm atmosphere of this seaside village. You can also climb up to Satsuki Park, near Roadside Station Funaya no Sato Ine, for a view over Ine. There are several cafes by the sea where you can sit down and rest.
4. Amanohashidate Motoise Kono Shrine
   Get off here and walk to the Kasamatsu Park cable car station. The cable car fare is covered by the Amanohashidate-Ine 2-Day Pass. Just show your pass. There are two options: chairlift and cable car cabin, and you can choose freely. One thing to note is that the chairlift stops earlier in the evening than the cabin-style cable car.
   After reaching the Kasamatsu Park observation deck, you can take the Nariaiji bus from the deck directly into the Nariaiji Temple area. The fare is covered by the Amanohashidate-Ine 2-Day Pass; show your pass when boarding. The one-way bus ride takes about 5 minutes. Before boarding, remember to ask the staff for a bus timetable so you can confirm the return bus time. Nariaiji Temple has a magnificent five-story pagoda, and there is also an observation deck overlooking Amanohashidate.

For related photos, see: Kansai Trip (2025)#Day 8 - Amanohashidate - Ine

This guide is for reference only. It is most useful if you only have one day and need to rely on public transportation. If you have enough time and can drive, I highly recommend going by car. The beaches at Amanohashidate are also very beautiful.

There is no need to fear missing the beautiful scenery others once saw; the most beautiful moment may simply arrive when you casually look up.

Have a wonderful trip. The scenery outside the train and bus windows is beautiful too.

A total of 1986 photos are counted (only photos containing exif data are counted)

Among them, 425 photos (about 21.40%) are from iPhone, and the rest are taken by Sony A7C2 camera.

in conclusion

24mm-35mm photos account for the highest proportion, accounting for about 52.57%.

My Lenses

1. Tamron E 28-200mm F2.8-5.6 A071
2. Samyang AF 35mm F1.8
3. Samyang AF 75mm F1.8
4. Viltrox AF 20mm F2.8

Data analysis

Although these data are a bit like asking questions based on the answers (because most of the photos are from the Tamron 28-200 lens), it is precisely because of this zoom lens that some of my shooting preferences can be calculated.

CoPilot summary:

The focal length distribution shows very obvious “two poles”:

• Extremely high at wide-angle end (24–35mm)
• Extremely high telephoto end (200mm)
• Low usage at intermediate focal lengths (50–120mm)

“People who enter the world”

——Wide-angle personality (24–35mm ultra-high body ratio)

24mm, 28mm, 35mm add up to over 52%.

This means you are:

• Likes to be close to the subject
• Likes to get into the environment
• Like real, natural and unpretentious pictures
• Likes to record life, cities, travel, and streets
  You are not the kind of person who “takes photos from afar”; you are the kind of person who walks into the crowd and into the story.

Photography personality summary

• ✔ People entering the world (wide angle)
• ✔ Distant observer (telephoto)
• ✔ Don’t like the average focal length (medium focal length)
• ✔ Not pursuing traditional blurred portraits (85mm)
• ✔ Like reality, story, sense of space, sense of compression

Samples

Super wide angle

Wide angle

Medium focus

Telephoto

Super telephoto

West Lake

Start walking from the broken bridge on Beishan Street with remaining snow.

Entering the water silently.

On the mountain is Baochu Pagoda.

Two mandarin ducks were on the branches, moving with the waves. This was the first time I saw mandarin ducks.

Zhongshan Park

Although the maple leaves have fallen, it is still beautiful. The calm water is like a bright mirror, without any ripples.

There is also a maple tree that has not yet shed its leaves.

Xiling Seal Society

Quyuan Fenghe

There are no lotus flowers now, and the simple water surface is also very elegant.

Prince Bay Park

The super cute puppy is playing with the gardener and looks very happy!

Climb Jiuyaoshan ing.

After climbing for about half an hour, we reach Jiuyao Pavilion and overlook the West Lake.

There is still a bit of haze in the distance.

Overlooking Leifeng Pagoda.

Looking into the distance…I don’t know where it is.

Going down the mountain, there is a deep cave on the roadside.

Looking up at Leifeng Pagoda, I didn’t go in.

Taurus out of water-sunset

The sunset is so beautiful!

The waves are as smooth as silk.

Renfeng Pavilion-Sunrise

I got up at around 5 a.m. and took a taxi to Renfeng Pavilion at 6 a.m. to wait for the sunrise.

Blues hour before sunrise.

Start to turn warm.

The temperature was very low, and I was almost freezing when I was holding the camera with both hands, but I couldn’t stop the sunrise from being so beautiful!

The hazy Leifeng Pagoda.

Su Di

I got up too early and felt sleepy. I sunbathed on a chair by the West Lake and closed my eyes to relax.

Three Pools Reflecting the Moon

Take another look and go back to Shanghai.