In China, the weather is more predictable, at least in those parts I've lived in. I honestly admire all those people here, who after a VERY long week, instead of spending their whole weekend watching 'Running Man'(which they easily could do bearing in mind the show's annoying length) choose to walk up a mountain, walk around temples and enjoy picnics with their friends or family.
I personally love hiking and have done it quite a few times so far. I've been lucky enough to live in mountainous areas with plenty of easy walking paths. The experience is usually enriched by ponds, statues and temples along built for the hikers' pleasure along the trail. It might be a bit strange at first, walking up a tarmac road (NOT traffic free), sometimes up very many, very steep steps with tens of others(this is China, forget about solitude), stopping at all those temple-style buildings, most of which didn't even exist 50 years ago, it is hardly a private experience but nonetheless, you feel proud of yourself for one: joining in with the locals and two: doing something active:)
A few months ago my OH and I went on a hike to an (actual) old temple located on top of a mountain. Despite this being February, the weather was warm, which made our day out even more pleasant. I don't know about you but this is one of my favourite couple activities: walking together just chatting or singing along to each others' playlists, stopping to admire the nature around us. Cheesy?I love it though:)
Hiking has become somewhat of a national hobby in China. Large groups walking out of the city in the early hours of the morning are quite a common sight now. Chinese love nature and so often choose to go hiking on the infrequent days off they get. Whilst you could hardly call walking along a tarmac road trekking, I think the Chinese should be admired for their willingness to travel out of town, to be active and embrace the nature around them. Hiking, of course, is also popular in the UK, however (from what I've seen) not that many people are keen on waking up at the crack of dawn on a Saturday/Sunday morning, lacing up their hiking boots and spending their time off walking up the hill. Lots prefer to....well, visit the local pub/do weekly shopping in ASDA(Tesco/Morrisons,etc.)/watch a football match. I know older couples, who look forward to discovering new walking trails on their weekends but when I think of the younger generation, I can't really picture them packing off on a countryside walk. It's not always a matter of laziness/personal preference though, one needs to remember that the weather in the UK is very temperamental, which can easily ruin weekend plans...
A few months ago my OH and I went on a hike to an (actual) old temple located on top of a mountain. Despite this being February, the weather was warm, which made our day out even more pleasant. I don't know about you but this is one of my favourite couple activities: walking together just chatting or singing along to each others' playlists, stopping to admire the nature around us. Cheesy?I love it though:)
Hiking has become somewhat of a national hobby in China. Large groups walking out of the city in the early hours of the morning are quite a common sight now. Chinese love nature and so often choose to go hiking on the infrequent days off they get. Whilst you could hardly call walking along a tarmac road trekking, I think the Chinese should be admired for their willingness to travel out of town, to be active and embrace the nature around them. Hiking, of course, is also popular in the UK, however (from what I've seen) not that many people are keen on waking up at the crack of dawn on a Saturday/Sunday morning, lacing up their hiking boots and spending their time off walking up the hill. Lots prefer to....well, visit the local pub/do weekly shopping in ASDA(Tesco/Morrisons,etc.)/watch a football match. I know older couples, who look forward to discovering new walking trails on their weekends but when I think of the younger generation, I can't really picture them packing off on a countryside walk. It's not always a matter of laziness/personal preference though, one needs to remember that the weather in the UK is very temperamental, which can easily ruin weekend plans...