This kind of mountain climbing can be addictive

If yesterday's climb of Yuanbao Mountain was just a chance encounter with spiky chestnut shells, today's hike in the back mountain of Jinjiangshan Park, which seems to be called Peacock Mountain, is like entering the kingdom of spiky chestnut shells, and the area is much larger. The air in Dandong in the morning is quite moist. Walking on the small paths in the mountains, stepping on the soft fallen larch branches and spiky chestnut shells, and breathing the fresh air mixed with the scent of the mountains and the sea is very comfortable. Before I went to sleep yesterday, I checked and saw that I had walked 41,000 steps. That's a lot more than my usual 20,000 to 30,000 steps, but my knees and leg muscles didn't feel any soreness at all. I thought about it, and it might be related to spending most of the morning climbing in Yuanbao Mountain Park yesterday. Because I was not walking on asphalt and stone paths. Instead, I was on dirt paths that were full of moisture. Although they were a bit muddy, they actually provided excellent protection for the knees. After climbing for an hour and breaking a slight sweat, I suddenly found myself in a kingdom of spiky chestnuts, with the ground covered everywhere with them, looking like a bunch of fluffy hedgehogs, very cute, making me reluctant to step on them as I passed through. Along the way, I picked up many pine cones, chestnut shells, and various seeds whose names I couldn't recall. I am indeed different from most people. Others may prefer bright, beautiful, and spectacular exotic flowers and plants that are very photogenic, but I find the fallen leaves, seeds, and moss by the roadside to have more flavor. These layers of dead branches, rotten leaves, and discarded seeds all belong to one color scheme, but when put together, they have more depth, an old-fashioned taste. Along the way, I saw several man-made caves that had been dug out a long time ago, and I hope they will never be used. War seems very far from us, yet also seems just around the corner. I hope human wisdom can overcome the foolish means of war. The cities in the northeast have one thing in common: they are livelier in the morning. Before coming to Changchun, I noticed in Chifeng that because it gets dark early and cools down quickly, there really isn't much to see at night. But in the morning, many places are bustling with people as early as five or six o'clock, like this street market. When I left the hotel and turned left, I saw a long stretch of vendors selling seafood and fruits. Since the area I'm staying in is considered the old town, there are many red chimneys, and I wonder if they are still in use. These red brick chimneys, which I often saw in Beijing when I was a child, have almost disappeared from the city area after so many years. Dandong's old town still has its unique flavor, even though the roads are in disrepair and the houses are old, but the local life here is more vibrant. Visiting such old districts requires mental preparation for encountering dirtiness and disorder. But the modernization of cities like Beijing, including various sanitation and urban renewal efforts, has been going on for a decade or two, while for Dandong, it may have just begun.