the nomad lab

Yup, there’s a Part 3. 

I spent my last day in Huangshan visiting a few of the other villages and sites around the area. 

I also stopped at the Mukang Bamboo Forest, where scenes of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon were filmed. It’s spectacular. Not a single sound but bamboo rustling in the wind. I climbed about 1,000 steps to the top, with a beautiful view of the tiny little town of Mukang. 

Photos below. Enjoy!

Pig’s Heaven Inn is a hidden haven in the midst of a beautiful ancient village called Xidi, just outside Huangshan (the Yellow Mountain). 

After finding myself at just another oak doorway in a narrow alley, I was surprised to find such an warm escape waiting inside. Sunlight streams in through the skywell into the patio. Brightly colored lanterns line the sitting area in the bottom floor. 

The guesthouse stays true to its intricate Hui architecture, with carved wood and stone fixtures. Furnishings are simple but authentic. My bedspread looks like the one I used to always sleep under when I was a kid visiting my Grandma in Shanghai. Teacups painted with flowers can be found all over the house waiting to be filled with Huangshan’s famous Maofeng green tea. 

Every view from every window is unique. Clay pots, hand-blown glassware, and well worn books line the shelves. I keep discovering one hidden nook after another with comfy seats and unique treasures. The whole house just feels… lived in. 

The two sisters who run the place cook delicious home-made meals and are super helpful when it comes to the best places to see. 

And the view!

I spent an hour on the roof deck watching the sun set over the rooftops the first day. 

Other things to know about Pig’s Heaven Inn: 

Breakfast is included, lunch and dinner upon request (will cost extra). Rooms include heaters, electric blankets, and Western-style toilets. Some rooms have TVs. Free wi-fi! Rooms include amenities like slippers, shampoo, toothbrushes and toothpaste. Emails can be conducted in English (with the owner) but the girls there speak very minimal English - so brush up on your Chinese (or hand gestures).

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Pig’s Heaven Inn

Xidi Village, Huangshan, Anhui Province

Phone: 86 559 515 4555

Email: zhulanjiuba@vip.sina.com

I check out of the Kerry Hotel in Shanghai at 5AM, when it’s still dark outside. Jump in a cab and ask him to take me to the bus station. Weird look. “Really? You want to take a long-distance bus…?” “Yes sir, the bus station, please.”

Apparently girls don’t travel alone by bus too often in Shanghai. 

We speed past the city, bridges, skyscrapers just beginning to silhouette against the dawn. The bus station is bustling already. Everyone else is weighed down with boxes, suitcases and shopping bags, compared to my little backpack. I maneuver through the crowd and find my nearly empty bus, a seat by the window, and settle in. 

After a few minutes pressed to the window watching Shanghai’s cityscape rapidly melting into rural farmland, I fall asleep. 5 hours later, the driver is yelling at me to get off at the Huangshan bus station. 

So.. the inn was supposed to send a driver named Chang to pick me up here. Where is he?

I sit and wait. 10 minutes later, Chang shows up with a sign with my name scrawled on it. Whew! We make the one hour drive to Xidi, chatting about the sights along the way. Weaving past horse carts, pushcarts, and tractors seems to be a standard thing around here. You think the police car with his siren on is driving too slow? Pass him.

Yep, that happened.

We arrive, safe and sound!

I pay the Xidi village 100RMB entrance fee for visitors, and Chang walks me down a narrow alleyway to the Pig’s Heaven Inn. I read a few articles saying fantastic things about this inn and knew I had to check it out. The owner turned an old house with a pig’s pen into an unforgettable three-story guesthouse.

As we walk up to the wooden door, I smell a real pig. And then I see it, next door. Huge. Covered in dirt. Snorting and grunting and whatever else pigs do. 

Seriously? I’m staying at a place that used to be… this?

Yep. And as soon as they open the door, the warmth and the smell of sweet bamboo and pork rushes out. I’m totally sold.

Pig’s Heaven Inn is a carefully curated showcase of ancient architecture, historical culture, and the personal touch of the owner’s artistic eye. There’s a sky well, leaving an open courtyard in the center of the house with comfy furniture and a carved stone table. There are pieces of intricate carved wood and stone, colorful lanterns and elements of Chinese cultural art everywhere. Plus, a gorgeous third floor view of the sunset over crumbling grey-shingled rooftops.

The sisters who run the place show me up a steep wooden stairway to my room on the 2nd floor. It has a heater and an electric blanket… and a Western-style toilet, which is definitely not your standard default when traveling in China. They leave me to wander around, running after me out the door to ask:

“Are you coming back for dinner? What would you like to eat?”

Um, YES. PLEASE. 

I arrange to be back in a few hours for dinner, she gives me a business card so I can ask for directions if (…or rather, when) I get lost in the narrow, winding stone alleys. And, I’m off! 

And back in time for a homecooked meal. 

Delish. 

Stay tuned for more details on the Pig’s Heaven Inn in my next post!