久久久无码人妻精品无码_6080YYY午夜理论片中无码_性无码专区_无码人妻品一区二区三区精99

Travel
Ride the iron horse
2010-Jan-14 09:16:24

Ride the iron horse
The Jiayang steam train continues its journey in the mountains
of Qianwei in Leshan, Sichuan province.

The Jiayang train in the mountains of Leshan, Sichuan province, is one of the few steam trains running on narrow gauge railways in China, Victor Paul Borg reports

Blacksmith Yang Fuzheng doesn't normally work on Sundays but he made an exception on the day we visited. He greeted us, dressed in crispy clothes, with a whiff of a moustache and hair combed up - somewhat incongruous in the diminutive and ramshackle workshop.

Perhaps he had never had visitors who were appreciative of his anachronistic craft, a traditional blacksmith making spare parts for an equally old steam train that runs outside with great clamor.

"This business is now in its third generation, like the train," Yang said. "My father learned the trade from his father, and I learned it from my father. It's a fine craft and when I was young I could do a hexagonal nut by free forging, which requires good skill, but now I work with a die forge."

As he talked, Yang heated a rod of metal in the coal-fired oven until it was red-hot. Then he switched on the die forge, the only piece of mechanical equipment in the dim workshop, and the metal monster started pounding away with a rapid rhythm.

Yang held the red-hot metal, his hands swinging, nimbly forging the long metal spikes that serve to hold the rail-tracks in place. It was a scene from a bygone era.

Then we smelled the acrid burning coal, and heard the whistles and jangles and hisses, and we stepped outside to herald the steam train as it rumbled into Bajiaogou station.

"It's like a toy," mused Chen Yong, my travel companion and an aficionado of model trains. "My model trains are more technically advanced, but the paradox is that because it has no electronic controls and everything is manual, the Jiayang train can run whatever the trouble, unlike modern trains, when even the smallest breakdown in an electric element or circuitry can render the train idle."

The Jiayang train is one of the few steam trains running on narrow gauge railways in China. It still runs commercially a full 50 years after it was first launched. Next year the train will be designated as a State-protected historical relic.

Fifty years ago the State company Jiayang Group started extracting coal from a major mine in the mountains of Leshan in Sichuan province. At first the coal was hauled on a barge for the journey downriver out of the mountains, but a rail track was substituted for the barge after the river was dammed in 1958.

About 10,000 laborers were mobilized, but the job was arduous, and the construction dragged on for a year to complete the 20-km line that meanders along the contours of the mountains and goes through six tunnels. The company, short of cash, made compromises: An extraordinarily narrow track of 600mm was laid along an unusually steep gradient of 3.6 percent. The track also curves wildly; the line has more than five bends for every kilometer.

These conditions made the track treacherous. It took three days for the train to finish its first run, and for the ensuing year it was beset with failures - the locomotive sliding backwards, derailing, capsizing - and just one of the six expert engineers that were brought in managed to rein and pilot the train. Eventually, after a year, Jiayang stabilized the train by widening the track to a gauge of 762 mm (still narrow compared with the 1,435mm standard gauge) and devised a chute that dribbles sand onto the rail-track at the front of the train to increase friction between wheels and tracks.

"The company was proud that it had managed to succeed in such difficult conditions," said Yuan Chengfang, director of the tourism department at Jiayang Group.

Ride the iron horse

Much of the Jiayang steam train operation relies on manual labor, including switching tracks.

The coal was eventually mined out by 1988 (now only a small, commercially insignificant mine remains), yet the Jiayang Group continued to operate the train as a social service. There is no road, and the train remains the only mode of transport out of the mountains for the inhabitants of Bajiaogou, the town that sprouted up at the end of the line on the back of employment opportunities presented by the mine.

The ticket price has remained unchanged, at a token 5 yuan and has run at a loss for 20 years. It takes a staff of 100 to operate the train and the company has to make all spare parts for the train in its workshop. By the turn of the century, the annual operating losses had risen to 2 million yuan ($292,800).

"In 2004, the provincial government asked us to find ways to minimize our losses and the local people wanted a road," said Yuan, the tourism director. "But when we decided to build a road and retire the train there was an outcry from train enthusiasts, and a lot of media coverage lamenting the loss of such a valuable piece of industrial heritage."

There was a reassessment and the provincial government decided to keep the train running for the sake of heritage preservation, and to foster a local tourist industry as a new economic lifeline for the train and Bajiaogou's inhabitants.

Now, three years later, tourism is taking off. Around 5,000 people visited last year, offsetting the train's operating losses by half.

A visit makes for a fascinating trip. Riding on the train or wandering around Bajiaogou is like entering a 40-year time warp. The town's urban fabric is stitched of dense and rugged tenements, but the atmosphere of industrialization is strangely quaint and even tranquil - partly thanks to the absence of cars. There are no roads, only alleyways and stairways meandering among the weathered old buildings.

Chen and I spent a few days dawdling aimlessly. One day we descended more than 100 m underground into the defunct mine, seeing the kind of claustrophobic drudgery and toil that miners have to endure. Then we trudged up a nearby slope for a high vista over the valley, surrounded by slopes of terraced fields and copses of bamboo and forest.

Other times we lost ourselves in the town's alleyways, marveling at the architectural tapestries - the cluster of buildings with attic windows built by the British technicians who worked in the mine during the war, the neo classical facades of the former administration building designed by Russian consultants, the squat utilitarian architecture of the old hospital and the imposing auditorium.

Former chairman Mao Zedong survives on some facades, along with his slogan about the glory of serving the people. Elsewhere murals depict the revolutionary in his Mao suit, hat and solemn gaze.

The exotic market has snake blood and herbal medicine stalls, outdoor dentists and barbers. The elderly chat over mahjong sets at the teahouse, the young men play basketball, the women gather at dusk to twirl delicately to music in the town square - typical of an earlier era.

More local bustle can be found on the train, watching the inhabitants go to town with agricultural produce and return laden with meat and household accessories. The locomotive runs like clockwork, taking a full hour to run its course, and the inhabitants have learned to time their lives by its passage.

We rode back and forth, like joy-riding teenagers. It occurred to me that the constraints and challenges that made the train an engineering feat 50 years ago are the same features that now make it a thrilling ride. A straight and flat line would make for a boring ride; it's the uphill struggle and constant bends - 109 bends to be exact - that makes the ride rousing, as the steam engine heaves like an iron horse.

The author is an associate in a niche company that leads tours to offbeat and authentic pockets of nature and culture in China and Asia (more info at www.peppermountains.com)

 

[Jump to ]
Nation | Biz | Comment | World | Celebrity | Odds | Sports | Travel | Health
ChinaDaily Mobile News
m.chinadaily.com.cn
To subscribe to China Daily, call 010-64918763 or email to circu@chinadaily.com.cn
久久久无码人妻精品无码_6080YYY午夜理论片中无码_性无码专区_无码人妻品一区二区三区精99

    久久网站最新地址| 伊人色综合久久天天人手人婷| 久久精品国产网站| 精品国产乱码久久| 国产成人午夜高潮毛片| 综合久久国产九一剧情麻豆| 欧日韩精品视频| 免费人成黄页网站在线一区二区| 精品粉嫩aⅴ一区二区三区四区| 成人午夜视频在线| 依依成人综合视频| 91精品国产入口在线| 国产精品资源站在线| 亚洲天堂久久久久久久| 欧美电影一区二区| 国产成人综合亚洲网站| 一区二区三区四区高清精品免费观看 | 欧美在线免费视屏| 精品一区二区三区在线观看国产| 国产精品你懂的| 欧美三区在线观看| 国产麻豆精品久久一二三| 玉米视频成人免费看| 精品黑人一区二区三区久久| 91在线观看视频| 久久成人av少妇免费| 亚洲日本韩国一区| 欧美草草影院在线视频| 99久久精品国产一区二区三区| 日韩福利电影在线| 国产精品电影一区二区| 日韩一区二区在线播放| 不卡的av电影| 麻豆传媒一区二区三区| 亚洲免费观看高清完整| 精品国产乱码久久久久久牛牛 | 99热99精品| 久久国产麻豆精品| 亚洲精品国产第一综合99久久| 欧美大片一区二区| 91成人网在线| 国产成人日日夜夜| 日本强好片久久久久久aaa| 中文字幕亚洲在| 日韩精品一区二区三区三区免费| 色欲综合视频天天天| 国产精品91xxx| 免费人成精品欧美精品| 亚洲精品高清视频在线观看| 精品久久久久一区| 欧美老肥妇做.爰bbww视频| a级高清视频欧美日韩| 国产在线不卡一卡二卡三卡四卡| 亚洲主播在线播放| 国产精品女人毛片| 久久伊99综合婷婷久久伊| 欧美蜜桃一区二区三区| 99国产精品久| 丰满亚洲少妇av| 久久66热偷产精品| 天天av天天翘天天综合网| 激情另类小说区图片区视频区| 亚洲一区二区三区四区五区黄| 日本一区二区动态图| 欧美mv日韩mv| 欧美精品777| 在线亚洲人成电影网站色www| 高清成人在线观看| 国产乱码精品一区二区三 | 国产一区二区精品在线观看| 爽好多水快深点欧美视频| 综合久久久久综合| 国产精品乱人伦| 26uuu精品一区二区| 日韩三级中文字幕| 欧美一区二区三区婷婷月色| 在线精品视频免费观看| 91美女视频网站| 99久久亚洲一区二区三区青草| 国产成人精品影视| 国产精品一区二区在线观看不卡| 琪琪久久久久日韩精品| 视频一区欧美精品| 亚洲国产综合91精品麻豆| 一区二区在线免费观看| 亚洲日本电影在线| 亚洲欧美日韩国产中文在线| 中文字幕一区二区三中文字幕| 国产欧美综合色| 国产欧美精品一区| 国产日产欧美精品一区二区三区| 久久伊99综合婷婷久久伊| 精品91自产拍在线观看一区| 日韩精品一区二区三区中文精品| 欧美一区二区三区免费| 日韩午夜精品视频| 日韩一卡二卡三卡四卡| 欧美一区二区三区精品| 欧美日本乱大交xxxxx| 欧美精品一级二级| 欧美一区二区在线视频| 欧美一区二区三区视频免费 | 日韩电影在线一区| 日本成人在线不卡视频| 日本sm残虐另类| 久久99久久久欧美国产| 国内精品国产成人国产三级粉色 | 懂色av一区二区三区蜜臀| 国产a级毛片一区| eeuss鲁片一区二区三区| 99久久精品久久久久久清纯| 91玉足脚交白嫩脚丫在线播放| 色婷婷综合久色| 欧美日本视频在线| 日韩美女天天操| 久久精品人人做人人综合| 国产精品美女久久久久aⅴ国产馆 国产精品美女久久久久av爽李琼 国产精品美女久久久久高潮 | 97国产一区二区| 在线观看不卡视频| 欧美日韩国产精品成人| 日韩欧美精品在线视频| 久久久久久久久久看片| 国产精品女主播在线观看| 亚洲女人****多毛耸耸8| 亚洲成人免费电影| 久久99精品网久久| 成人视屏免费看| 欧洲一区二区av| 欧美一级搡bbbb搡bbbb| 国产喷白浆一区二区三区| 亚洲欧美色综合| 午夜欧美在线一二页| 久草这里只有精品视频| 国产91在线观看丝袜| 91黄色激情网站| 日韩午夜激情免费电影| 中文字幕乱码久久午夜不卡| 亚洲乱码中文字幕综合| 男男成人高潮片免费网站| 国产成人免费视频网站高清观看视频 | 国产精品自拍毛片| 日本韩国精品一区二区在线观看| 6080国产精品一区二区| 久久久精品日韩欧美| 一区二区国产盗摄色噜噜| 麻豆视频观看网址久久| 91亚洲精品一区二区乱码| 91精品国产综合久久福利软件| 国产色产综合产在线视频| 一区二区三区精品| 激情成人综合网| 在线观看不卡视频| 久久久久久久久久久久久女国产乱 | 久久久精品日韩欧美| 夜夜嗨av一区二区三区网页 | 久久99精品国产.久久久久久 | av不卡免费在线观看| 欧美裸体一区二区三区| 中文字幕免费观看一区| 天天影视涩香欲综合网 | 99在线精品观看| 91精品免费观看| 国产精品国产自产拍高清av| 日韩精品91亚洲二区在线观看| 成人性色生活片免费看爆迷你毛片| 欧美日韩免费视频| 欧美激情综合在线| 日韩精品午夜视频| 91丨porny丨在线| 精品成人一区二区三区| 亚洲午夜电影在线| www.亚洲精品| 精品国产一区二区三区忘忧草| 亚洲综合视频在线| 成人免费毛片片v| 欧美一级xxx| 一区二区三区免费网站| 成人中文字幕在线| 欧美成人国产一区二区| 亚洲国产日韩在线一区模特| 大白屁股一区二区视频| 日韩欧美卡一卡二| 亚洲国产精品视频| 91女神在线视频| 国产欧美一二三区| 精品一区二区三区在线播放视频| 91搞黄在线观看| 国产精品免费视频网站| 久久成人麻豆午夜电影| 欧美日韩电影在线播放| 亚洲欧洲日韩一区二区三区| 国产精品一区三区| 日韩精品中文字幕一区| 午夜在线成人av| 一本大道综合伊人精品热热| 中文字幕精品一区二区精品绿巨人| 久久精品国产亚洲一区二区三区| 精品视频在线免费观看| 亚洲摸摸操操av| www.在线成人|