White Emperor City

I signed up for the extra tour to the White Emperor City. It is not the city that is white, but the emperor, and he wasn’t really an emperor, but a usurper during the Three Kingdoms Period (around the time of Christ), the bloodiest in Chinese history. Most of his story didn’t stick with me, but this was his headquarters, easy to defend because the Yangtze was so narrow here at the entrance to the Qutang Gorge that he could string a chain across to stop invaders.

The hill in the foreground to the left is the city.

 We crossed a bridge to get to the island at the mouth of the gorge. 

From there it was a climb of 300+ steps. Before the dam, it was a thousand, so we got off easy. Sedan chairs were an option. This 91-year-old Filipino man in our group took advantage of that.

 The sedan chair carriers came and went up this stair with the rest of us. I felt like China of a century ago.

There was a pagoda and temple-style monument at the top. Our guide told us that since he was not a real emperor, he does not merit worship so it is a monument, not a temple.

Our guide told us that one of the motivations for Chinese tourists to come here was a TV mini-series about the White Emperor. This tableau represents a scene from the TV series where the emperor commends his two sons to his prime minister.

The views of the entrance to the gorge were fabulous. Someone even took my picture.

Nearby, several painters we capturing the incredible scenery in traditional art styles.

The way back to the ship passed an unbroken line of vendors.

I am extremely sales resistant. The pushier the salesperson, the less likely I am to buy.