This post will be about a certain teahouse in China. Yes, you read the right: a teahouse in China. You’re probably asking yourself, “What’s so weird about a teahouse in China?”
Nothing. Nothing is weird about a teahouse in China.
“Well is it haunted or something?” you might be asking.
Nope, it isn’t. What makes this particular teahouse peculiar is not the teahouse itself but the journey one must undertake to get to the teahouse.
It all starts at the “heavenly stairs” located at the base of Mt. Huashan. This is a steep staircase carved into the mountain side. There are so many stairs that a few villages even exist alongside them, and believe it or not, the stairs are one of the easier parts of the trek.
Image from http://www.uqpu.net/teahouse/
Once you make it well beyond the point where you’ve stopped counting those endless stairs feel free to take a breather on a gondola ride across the giant chasm to another peak.
Image from http://www.uqpu.net/teahouse/
This is where it gets interesting. The faint of heart should probably just turn around and go home if they’ve managed to make it this far. You’re destination is at the top of this peak, but this is the path you must follow:
Image from http://www.uqpu.net/teahouse/
Yes, those are wooden planks attached to the face of a cliff and chains to hold on to as you go. My question is what happens if someone is coming down while you’re going up? How do you manage to pass each other? Does one of you have to backtrack or do you risk falling and a few moments of awkwardness hugging a stranger against a wall. This is actually probably one of the easier parts of the trek. Next up are some toe holes carved into the wall.
Image from http://www.uqpu.net/teahouse/
Afterwards you’ve got a few more stairs to climb and you will have arrived at your destination for a cup of tea before making the return trip down the mountain. I wonder how much their tea costs…
Image from http://www.uqpu.net/teahouse/
Personally, I’d go for the journey. The tea at the top would just be a bonus.
So, who’s up for a cup?
Adam Ickes 
January 31st, 2014 at 7:43 PM
I would do it in a heartbeat!!!!!!
February 1st, 2014 at 6:49 AM
Make the arrangements. We’ve got some tea to drink! haha
January 31st, 2014 at 10:22 PM
Nooooo thank youuuuuuu…
February 1st, 2014 at 6:49 AM
Aw, c’mon. It’ll be fun. All the cool kids are doing it.
February 1st, 2014 at 3:27 AM
It had better be a damn fine cup of tea.
But you know what it’s like when you go abroad to visit these places – you’ll get all the way there, having diced with death several times, and it’ll say “Closed for renovations”.
February 1st, 2014 at 6:51 AM
How’s that saying go? Life is about the journey, not the destination. I wouldn’t mind one bit if it was closed when I got to the top, because the journey would be the part I’d be going for anyway.
February 1st, 2014 at 6:02 AM
A serious journey for a cup of tea!
February 1st, 2014 at 6:52 AM
A seriously fun (I would imagine) journey for a cup of tea!
February 3rd, 2014 at 11:25 AM
That’s awesome! Not sure I would do all that for a cup of tea, but maybe, if you caught me in the right mood…I’d be up for a crazy journey like this one. 🙂