(1) The bridge in Zhaoxian is famous for being the "world's oldest open-spandrel stone segmental arch bridge"--whatever that means. I wanted to see it because it features in Zhaozhou's teachings.
Alas, when I got there, I discovered the bridge had been enclosed in a "scenic area," which is secret code for "tourist trap." Sure enough, admission was set at 40rmb, nearly $6US. Sometimes I get stubborn, and this was one of those times: I refused to pay, and tried to get a view of the bridge without going in.
(2) The tourists' gate
(3) The VIP (vehicular) gate
(4) Some of the gardens, shot through a "window" in the wall. As pleasant as it looked, I was in no mood to be screwed, so I continued looking for another means of viewing the bridge--without paying.
(5) Walking around the outside, I discovered that the view had been obscured by this newly-installed pedestrian bridge. Clever.
(6) See the red ribbon? It's on the stone bridge.
(7) I began to creep down alleyways...
(8) ...until I found this gap in a wall. You can just see the bridge through the trees in the left background. Really bad pop music was booming from speakers around the bridge, so I had to work fast before my brain melted.
(9) With my telephoto, between the trees
(10) Close-up on one of those all-important "open spandrels"
(11) I was disappointed, yes, but it makes for a good story. And it could be worse: these bricks are piled near the gap, and I suspect it will soon be closed.
On a trip in 2006 Bill Porter claims to have driven across the bridge; how quickly things change in China--now you can't even look without paying.
It's just a bridge, after all.
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Last Updated August 21, 2019
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