Day 244 Staycation in Beijing Day 1- Peking Man

Friday morning I got up, packed a lunch, looked at the map one
more time, and made my way to the subway station.  It was
going to take me three trains and a city bus to get south to Fangshan
District- 50 km and two hours away, but still in Beijing.
Damn, this city is HUGE!
I saw this guy on the way to the station and he reminded me of
another place I want to go see here in Beijing, the Bird & Fish Market.
I am guessing that was where he was headed, unless he was
taking his birdies out for a scooter ride. It's possible. No, for real.

It was only fitting to see this old, very traditional
looking Chinese man with his walking stick on the
subway ride.  I am headed to Peking Man- the
Zhoukoudian archaeological site for the day.

Sometimes I do feel lonely here :/

Three trains to the 917 bus; getting close :)

The first stop was the Zhoukoudian Site Museum, to get some
understanding of the findings and historical significance
of the archaeological discoveries that were made over
eighty years ago.  This dig has served as a model of
international cooperation among many nations to
piece together the evolution history of human beings.

The Zhoukoudian site is where the fossilized
remains of over forty ancient human beings were
discovered dating from 700,000-300,000 years ago.  

The site was first discovered by Johan Gunnar
Andersson, a Swedish geologist, in 1918.

Gathering was a primary way of life for Peking man and his
descendants for thousands of years.  They subsisted on fruits,
shoots, tubers of wild plants, and bird eggs.  

It was discovered that later they also became
hunters, building crude tools and weapons.
In addition to small animals, fish, snakes and
birds, they hunted deer, wild boar and buffalo.
They also made ornamental jewelry, and in 2007,
Chinese and American scientists concluded that
Peking man was the first to craft shoes for his feet.

A fossilized necklace was found in the upper cave in 1927.

To date, 157 teeth and 15 mandibles have been discovered.

These caught my eye; a frontal lobe skull portion on the left, and an occipital lobe on the right.

After the museum visit, I took a 15 minute walk
to the base of the hill to visit the archaeological sites.
There are 27 caves and localities in all.  

I decided I had better consult the map. Repeatedly.

I hiked up, up, up to the first cave.  In 1927,
systematic excavations began up until the
beginning of the Japanese invasion in 1937.
Yep, that there's a cave alright :)

I hiked up, up, up to the upper cave to see
another hole in the ground.  I should have known
better.  Time to consult the map.  Wait!
There's a waterfall on this mountain?!
Time for a new mission!!!

Perfect spot for my picnic lunch :)

It was peaceful. and beautiful. and COLD.
The rain came. Thankfully, I brought an
umbrella, but I was dressed in shorts, a
Tshirt and flip-flops; not my best planning.

After lunch, I followed the trail up to the highest look out point.
The wind picked up, more rain was coming over the ridge,
and my fingers and toes were already going numb.
To think yesterday it was sunny and in the upper 80's
at the Botanical Gardens.  Brrrrrrr.

The wet mountain rocks were beautiful. And very slippery.
In flip-flops, no less.  I finally had to admit defeat for
the second time in as many hours and hike back to town
to catch the bus.  After a forty-five minute hike back down
the mountain and into town, in the rain, the 917 bus
was absolutely nowhere to be found.  I waited about
as long as I could stand it, and I finally had to just hop
on the next bus to thaw out.  I would figure out where
I was headed to once I got on board.  I hoped.

Being the only laowei on board, and the fact
that this laowei plays a mean game of charades,
(and has the Beijing metro app on her IPhone)
this kindly older gentleman took it upon himself
to ask around to all the other passengers where
they were headed.  Sure enough, this young couple
was on their way to the same train station as me.
They were all too eager to help a poor old, soaking
wet, coldest girl in China to find her way back home.
The Chinese have always been helpful to me :)

Well, Day 1 of the 'staycation' in Beijing was a moderate success.

Let me tell you, a hot shower never felt so good.

G'nite, y'all!