2021 Self-driving Tour: Flower-viewing Trip through Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou, and Yunnan - Changsha: Yuelu Academy, Aiwan Pavilion, and Orange Isle

On April 4, we left Puzhehei and stopped in Guiyang for the night. On April 5 (Monday), we arrived at Hunan Hotel in Changsha. The two-day trip covered about 1,550 kilometers. The main reason we chose Hunan Hotel was its proximity to the Hunan Provincial Museum, but when we got there we learned that they had adjusted the Monday closure to Tuesday due to the Qingming holiday! Oh my, it seemed they were deliberately opposing us! On April 6, we drove to Yuelu Mountain. Unfamiliar with the area and being cautious, we parked at the multi-story parking lot closest to the visitor center (25 yuan per car). However, from there it took three bus stops to get to Yuelu Academy, or a 30-minute walk. During our visit, we noticed that near the main entrance of Yuelu Mountain and around Hunan University, there were many places allowing social vehicles to park, though we didn't inquire carefully! The ticket for Yuelu Academy was 40 yuan per person. Below is Aiwan Pavilion. Below is the Ancient Lushan Temple. Below is exiting the Yuelu Mountain scenic area and walking through the campus of Hunan University. Along the way, we indulged in some Changsha snacks! At 13:55 we left the Yuelu Mountain parking lot, and at 14:00 we arrived at Orange Isle. At 17:35 we left Orange Isle, parking fee 10 yuan per car. At first, when we entered Orange Isle, we didn't feel tired, and based on previous visits, we thought Orange Isle was very small and a short walk to the end, so we gave up on taking the battery car (40 yuan per person). Who knew... alas, old memories are misleading! It took us 2 hours to walk from the parking spot to the head of Orange Isle (including taking photos)! Even the return trip without photos took 1.5 hours. In the end, we were so tired we could barely walk. Back at the hotel, we didn't want to go anywhere, but we did think of ordering takeout. Body tired, but the mind couldn't stop! Where to stop tomorrow? Kaifeng, Zhengzhou, or Luoyang? Suddenly thought, could the Luoyang peonies bloom early? After all, peach blossoms and rapeseed flowers had also bloomed early. We asked someone, and indeed, it was as we expected! So we decided: tomorrow go to Luoyang to see the peonies!