Another train journey to Luoyang and I got off train in evening and went to search out hostel. got told differant directions by three differant people, well I say told pointed since the English here is even less spoken then previous places and this is probably due to the lack of tourists in this area. When finally arrived at hostel I had the dorm to myself, however was told that not available tomorrow as fully booked and this is due to it being a public holiday together with it being the time of year when the famous (apparently) flower is in bloom in Luoyang? Luckily had a triple room availble which I was able to move into.

Up and out next morning to try and find bus to take me to Shaolin Monestrary and back now this appears in writing to be an easy task but in practice when nobody speaks English (even hostel staff spoke only basic words) it is not such an easy one. After couple hours got myself booked onto a tour which went to Monestary but via a host of other sights, not what I wanted ideally but better then nothing!! Only Western person on bus and did not speak more then 2 or 3 words english all day. Finally got to Shaolin Temple in afternoon and was worth the troubles. This is place where Shaolin Monks originate from and is the home of Kung Fu. Lots of martial arts practice going on all around sight from basic punches and kicking practice through to pole and chain action. Really was good to see all this going on and made the trip to luoyang worthwhile.

Next day I decided since train out was not until late afternoon I would visit the longmen Caves which is a World Heritage site. So got on local bus here which at 2nd time of asking I managed to get on (first two were so full people were hanging out door) (not that that was any differant on the bus I got on just that I managed to use my weight and get everybody else out the way). Met local guy on bus Jonping and his sister Tefee who showed me the way to the caves. When I arrived here was very large queue as was public holiday which I had forgotten about. Therefore decided not to go in and I spent a few hours walking around with Jonping and Tefee as he wanted to practice his English and i used the opportunity to practice and learn a bit mor mandarin. Really friendly pair and was good to e\chat to a local and find out a bit about Chinese culture this was so really enjoyed the morning.

In afternoon after getting bus back I went to Wancheng park tosee this famous flower. The place was buzzing with people everywhere and it was craziness everywhere. Had people coming up to me to have their photo taken with me (well I suppose they thought I looked like a certain film star. Brad Pitt that is not Danny De Vito). Decided not to hang around too long and headed back to hostel to grab bags and go to station to get my next train down to Shanghai.