From Chengdu I went on a day trip to Huanglongxi as my trusty guide book mentioned that it featured in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
On the bus, the guy in the seat behind me translated what the conductor said (important return journey info). A few moments later he asked if I wanted to join him and his friends for the day. Only two people amongst the eight could speak any English and I had an absolutely amazing day. They were so warm and generous. We visited a temple, took a boat ride, snacked and dined together. They tried teaching me Majorn, we feasted on Kumquats picked from a tree. Through it all they refused to let me pay any money towards anything.
Did any of the town remind me of the movie? Can't say it did but then I was too busy having fun that I didn't really pay much attention to the scenery. Though I do remember taking pictures only to have Linyuan tell me that I was taking pictures of new buildings, in my defence they looked old. The timber isn't really timber. Later on I saw some semi complete buildings. They are actually made of brick and concrete. The brick is plastered over and the concrete painted to look like wood.
