Susanne:
There is a saying in China “He who does not reach the Great Wall is not a true man”. Hmmm.....
Well, regardless, it has been on my bucket list and here we were: we signed on for a tour run through the hostel here in Beijing and did so with our new Danish friend Liz (Lisabeth). The section which is usually the one recommended by many which is from Simatai to Jinshanling....was actually closed and under construction so that we had to choose another section of the wall called Mutianyu.
The wall was described to us as being over 5000km long, and if it were only about a meter in height, it would reach all the way around the planet. Well, my math isn’t strong enough to prove or disprove this...just passing on facts :) The first people started working on it in the century BC.
The part we were about to visit had a great plus: it came with a ski lift kind of part to go up to start it (it is up in the hills) but also had a toboggan part to come down in. We did not quite understand until we took the lift up and looked below: it was like a cool luge sort of track out of metal and they put the toboggans on the back of the lifts to go up.
We arrived at watchtower 6 and would have time to climb to tower 20 on this part of the wall and could then come back down to 6 to take the cool toboggan down. The towers divide the wall into sections from about 200 maybe 400 meters and the wall changes direction, some parts are straight and some bend which gives the wall the snaking look.
It was absolutely awesome to be standing on the wall. I am not sure what I expected, I certainly heard of the restoration etc but it was in really good shape. Again, we were looking at stairs and steps to make our way up. What a neat experience. We decided to climb steadily up and see how we did for time before taking our time to come down and to take pics etc. We were the first ones of the group to go that way and once we were past tower 14 which allowed another way to get down via cable car, it got more and more quiet so that we could actually grab some pics on our own. It was a foggy day, and we were not able to get km’s of view of the wall snaking its way through the hills, but it was enough. We were excited to be there. Liz had been to China before and it was not her first climb but the four of us still had a lot of fun, took lots of pics, drank litres of water (we were drenched again from the climb even though it was only 27 degrees today). There are vendors every watchtower or so selling cold water and cold beer (huh!). The section we climbed was about 1.7 km long, so we certainly can’t say that we “know” the wall :)
Then we got in line for the toboggan ride down. It was on hold as it had drizzled a little bit and they took a few sleds down with blankets in front of them to dry the tracks off. It said to not use a camera and hold on to the brake (between your legs when sitting down) with both hands, but I wanted to take a video and took a 4 1/2 minute video all the way down. It was awesome!!! We got some good speed and could lean into the corners...felt like a real track even though it likely should have been covered with snow or ice. Our sled had wheels and after a few slowdowns caused by people in front of us who were too cautious and actually used their brakes almost causing a few collisions as we pretty well rear ended one another, we arrived at the bottom laughing and pretty proud of ourselves.
What a great day. At the bottom, the sky suddenly got dark and we got soaked on our way to a restaurant before getting into our bus for the hour or so ride home as the wall is actually about 70 kms outside of Beijing. What a high!!!
We got showered and are now sitting downstairs in our ‘entertainment/restaurant’ at the hostel which is super social. The room which is always dim afternoons and later and serves beer as well as coffee and food. Has a nice TV screen where we are watching an old Michael Jackson Movie right now and has a wifi connection. We are waiting for our 8:30 pm free BBQ....the second free dinner the hostel put on this week.The rooms are small here but the entertainment and atmosphere is great.
One more day tomorrow seeing the temple of heaven and maybe a market and then we leave Friday. It will be quite a culture shock to have to go back to responsibilities after these amazing 5 weeks....
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
August 10th- China's "other" sights!
Chelsea:
Back on schedule. We headed down for a nice breakfast at our hostel (which has very good food by the way, no matter what the meal time) around 8:30 and then it was off to see the surrounding sights. After chatting with our two friends from China yesterday, we learned that it was best to visit the Forbidden City early in the morning if we hoped to avoid the crowd. We quickly discovered that it doesn't seem to matter what time you visit one of China's famous sights, the place was filled to the brim with tourists. We waited in line and bought our 60Y entry tickets (about $10) then it was off to the main entrance gate where we were forced to merge in and out of massive Chinese tour groups while watching for errand umbrella spokes that seemed to come out of nowhere.
Finally, we were herded through the gates like cattle in to a large open space inside the walls of the City. In front of us stood thousands of onlookers, staring and taking photos of one of Beijing's most popular sights- the first of three huge halls, each leading to the next, dating back to 1406. The three main halls are known as: The Hall of Supreme Harmony, The Hall of Central Harmony, and the Hall of Perserving Harmony. The Forbidden City was the Chinese Imperial Palace from the start of Ming to the end of the Qing Dynasty. For almost 500 years, it served as the home of emperor's and their households as well as the ceremonial and political centre of Chinese government. It was known as the "Forbidden" City as no one was allowed to enter or leave without the emperor's permission, those who did would be executed. We strolled amongst the crowds for almost 2 hours checking out the halls, their impressive structures and detailed exteriors, while at the same time people watching. Sometimes, especially here where things are so different, there is a lot to be said about simply just watching things take place around you; it can be incredibly interesting.
Upon exiting the south gates we consulted our trusty (but extremely heavy and thick) Lonely Planet guide book and made our way towards Beihai Park. It was a welcome change from the hustle and bustle in the Forbidden City. Walking through the entrance we were struck by the scenery in front of us. There was a beautiful lake filled with floating lotus plants, a pretty white bridge leading to the other side and a large bell tower poised atop the mountain ahead of us. We stopped a moment to watch the boats glide in amongst the lotuses and grab a popsicle to try and combat some of the heat before trekking across the bridge and up towards the tower. The view from the top was spectacular- you could see the entire Forbidden City and of course the traffic jammed streets of Beijing for miles.
It was time for our next stop. We hailed a taxi outside the park and drove north to the Summer Palace. We had a cool cab driver this time around- he still spoke very little English but upon hearing us speak, quickly changed the music to the international hits station- first time we have heard western music aside from through our iPods in quite awhile! :) We followed the crowd in and walked around a few moments before arriving at the lake inside its gates. We watched people out in paddleboats and quickly decided that we'd like to join them. We jumped in line and laid down a 300Y deposit for our boat. An hour's ride was 40Y (only about $7) which is essentially nothing split between three people. Michelle decided she'd be the first to rest and grabbed a seat up front while Susanne and I took on the pedals. I also got the job of steering the boat- haha, we figured it out! It was lovely being out there on the calm water watching dragon boats motor by and people flocking to a nearby island via a large stone bridge designed with beautifully sculpted arches. After passing under the bridge it was Michelle's turn to paddle for a bit and I got to take in some of the sights, dragging my feet through the water while looking at the Chinese architecture peeking out from the lush green surroundings- so peaceful. Luckily for me, Susanne and Michelle enjoyed the paddling and I got to sit back and relax.... ahhhh, it ended far too soon but there was more we had to see, so off we went.
We grabbed the first taxi we saw outside the Palace. Note- read the Lonely Planet section on taxis before jumping in to them. This cab was tinted through and through with the exception of the front window and tiny sections of the drivers and passengers windows up front to allow access to the mirrors- great we thought, at least it will be cool in there. The ride started fine, we pointed to Olympic Park on the map and saw him start the meter, 10Y, the usual starting price. We were enjoying our air conditioned drive, weaving in and out of traffic, passing on the inside, passing on a solid yellow line with oncoming traffic a 100m away, listening to the blaring of horns we've become attuned to- business like usual here, when I happened to look down at the meter- 178Y!!! What in the world- it costs no more than 50Y to get anywhere in the city... it only cost us 100Y for the hour drive from the airport and we've only been driving for maybe 20mins! The cabbie must have noticed the hint of anxiety in my voice when I told the girls in the backseat as he pointed to a little tag hanging from his rear view mirror, he was a VIP cab. Apparently these are altogether different than normal cabs, although you wouldn't necessarily notice the difference aside from the color of the car but there are lots of different companies to choose from and none of them look alike. Needless to say we were pleased to see the Birds Nest a short distance down the road and motioned for the taxi to pull over. Luckily we had brought a little extra cash with us to pay for our VIP ride- that's us "Very Important People!" We learned our lesson though, yellow and green cabs from here on out!
Being the sports enthusiasts that we are, our stop at Olympic Park was a given and despite the cab ride, we were in no way disappointed. Wow, it's hard to explain what it felt like to be standing in front of the infamous National Stadium, the "Birds Nest" as it's more popularly known from the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. We bought an entrance ticket for 50Y (about $6) and walked towards the towering metal structure; it quite simply dwarfed us. Walking in to the stadium was surreal, they were showing moments from the opening and closing ceremonies and loud inspirational music filled our ears- it was like that feel-good scene from the movie Rudy where he plays for Notre Dame in front of thousands of fans; when he fulfills his lifelong dream of playing football in a ND jersey. I can only imagine what it must have felt like to compete in such a incredible atmosphere- I just wanted to jump the rails and run on to field- crazy! We took some pictures and sat in awe for a few moments, taking it all in. We gradually got up and made our way back outside and towards the famous Aqua Dome where they held the swimming and diving events in 2008. You will most likely remember it as the building the appeared to be covered in giant color-changing bubbles. It was the middle of the afternoon so the lights weren't on but it was still pretty neat to see the structure up close. Beijing's Olympic Park, although not overwhelming with tourists, was a refreshing sight considering that Susanne and I had visited the almost deserted and run down Olympic Park in Greece last year. Beijing still uses the stadium to host big soccer games as well as swimming events at the Aqua Dome. We can only hope that Vancouver follows suit and continues to use it's facilities- it seems like such a huge waste not to considering all of the time and money that went in to building them. The public should get the benefit of utilizing them long after the Olympics have passed; they are after all, state of the art. Time will tell, I guess. Off to hike the Great Wall tomorrow!
Back on schedule. We headed down for a nice breakfast at our hostel (which has very good food by the way, no matter what the meal time) around 8:30 and then it was off to see the surrounding sights. After chatting with our two friends from China yesterday, we learned that it was best to visit the Forbidden City early in the morning if we hoped to avoid the crowd. We quickly discovered that it doesn't seem to matter what time you visit one of China's famous sights, the place was filled to the brim with tourists. We waited in line and bought our 60Y entry tickets (about $10) then it was off to the main entrance gate where we were forced to merge in and out of massive Chinese tour groups while watching for errand umbrella spokes that seemed to come out of nowhere.
Finally, we were herded through the gates like cattle in to a large open space inside the walls of the City. In front of us stood thousands of onlookers, staring and taking photos of one of Beijing's most popular sights- the first of three huge halls, each leading to the next, dating back to 1406. The three main halls are known as: The Hall of Supreme Harmony, The Hall of Central Harmony, and the Hall of Perserving Harmony. The Forbidden City was the Chinese Imperial Palace from the start of Ming to the end of the Qing Dynasty. For almost 500 years, it served as the home of emperor's and their households as well as the ceremonial and political centre of Chinese government. It was known as the "Forbidden" City as no one was allowed to enter or leave without the emperor's permission, those who did would be executed. We strolled amongst the crowds for almost 2 hours checking out the halls, their impressive structures and detailed exteriors, while at the same time people watching. Sometimes, especially here where things are so different, there is a lot to be said about simply just watching things take place around you; it can be incredibly interesting.
Upon exiting the south gates we consulted our trusty (but extremely heavy and thick) Lonely Planet guide book and made our way towards Beihai Park. It was a welcome change from the hustle and bustle in the Forbidden City. Walking through the entrance we were struck by the scenery in front of us. There was a beautiful lake filled with floating lotus plants, a pretty white bridge leading to the other side and a large bell tower poised atop the mountain ahead of us. We stopped a moment to watch the boats glide in amongst the lotuses and grab a popsicle to try and combat some of the heat before trekking across the bridge and up towards the tower. The view from the top was spectacular- you could see the entire Forbidden City and of course the traffic jammed streets of Beijing for miles.
It was time for our next stop. We hailed a taxi outside the park and drove north to the Summer Palace. We had a cool cab driver this time around- he still spoke very little English but upon hearing us speak, quickly changed the music to the international hits station- first time we have heard western music aside from through our iPods in quite awhile! :) We followed the crowd in and walked around a few moments before arriving at the lake inside its gates. We watched people out in paddleboats and quickly decided that we'd like to join them. We jumped in line and laid down a 300Y deposit for our boat. An hour's ride was 40Y (only about $7) which is essentially nothing split between three people. Michelle decided she'd be the first to rest and grabbed a seat up front while Susanne and I took on the pedals. I also got the job of steering the boat- haha, we figured it out! It was lovely being out there on the calm water watching dragon boats motor by and people flocking to a nearby island via a large stone bridge designed with beautifully sculpted arches. After passing under the bridge it was Michelle's turn to paddle for a bit and I got to take in some of the sights, dragging my feet through the water while looking at the Chinese architecture peeking out from the lush green surroundings- so peaceful. Luckily for me, Susanne and Michelle enjoyed the paddling and I got to sit back and relax.... ahhhh, it ended far too soon but there was more we had to see, so off we went.
We grabbed the first taxi we saw outside the Palace. Note- read the Lonely Planet section on taxis before jumping in to them. This cab was tinted through and through with the exception of the front window and tiny sections of the drivers and passengers windows up front to allow access to the mirrors- great we thought, at least it will be cool in there. The ride started fine, we pointed to Olympic Park on the map and saw him start the meter, 10Y, the usual starting price. We were enjoying our air conditioned drive, weaving in and out of traffic, passing on the inside, passing on a solid yellow line with oncoming traffic a 100m away, listening to the blaring of horns we've become attuned to- business like usual here, when I happened to look down at the meter- 178Y!!! What in the world- it costs no more than 50Y to get anywhere in the city... it only cost us 100Y for the hour drive from the airport and we've only been driving for maybe 20mins! The cabbie must have noticed the hint of anxiety in my voice when I told the girls in the backseat as he pointed to a little tag hanging from his rear view mirror, he was a VIP cab. Apparently these are altogether different than normal cabs, although you wouldn't necessarily notice the difference aside from the color of the car but there are lots of different companies to choose from and none of them look alike. Needless to say we were pleased to see the Birds Nest a short distance down the road and motioned for the taxi to pull over. Luckily we had brought a little extra cash with us to pay for our VIP ride- that's us "Very Important People!" We learned our lesson though, yellow and green cabs from here on out!
Being the sports enthusiasts that we are, our stop at Olympic Park was a given and despite the cab ride, we were in no way disappointed. Wow, it's hard to explain what it felt like to be standing in front of the infamous National Stadium, the "Birds Nest" as it's more popularly known from the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. We bought an entrance ticket for 50Y (about $6) and walked towards the towering metal structure; it quite simply dwarfed us. Walking in to the stadium was surreal, they were showing moments from the opening and closing ceremonies and loud inspirational music filled our ears- it was like that feel-good scene from the movie Rudy where he plays for Notre Dame in front of thousands of fans; when he fulfills his lifelong dream of playing football in a ND jersey. I can only imagine what it must have felt like to compete in such a incredible atmosphere- I just wanted to jump the rails and run on to field- crazy! We took some pictures and sat in awe for a few moments, taking it all in. We gradually got up and made our way back outside and towards the famous Aqua Dome where they held the swimming and diving events in 2008. You will most likely remember it as the building the appeared to be covered in giant color-changing bubbles. It was the middle of the afternoon so the lights weren't on but it was still pretty neat to see the structure up close. Beijing's Olympic Park, although not overwhelming with tourists, was a refreshing sight considering that Susanne and I had visited the almost deserted and run down Olympic Park in Greece last year. Beijing still uses the stadium to host big soccer games as well as swimming events at the Aqua Dome. We can only hope that Vancouver follows suit and continues to use it's facilities- it seems like such a huge waste not to considering all of the time and money that went in to building them. The public should get the benefit of utilizing them long after the Olympics have passed; they are after all, state of the art. Time will tell, I guess. Off to hike the Great Wall tomorrow!
August 9th, 2010: The Journey to The Happy Dragon Hostel
Michelle
So we arrive at Beijing airport for the second time, a month after our first arrival. It started out fairly well, we waited for our luggage, Chelsea rather nervously, as again hers was the last suitcase to appear, then we went down to hail a taxi. This is when it all started downhill........First we realized that we had not copied down the address for the hostel. We decided to give it a try and see if we could find a cabbie who knew where the Happy Dragon Hostel was. Looking back at it now, this was probably not the smartest thinking on our part as Beijing is a huge city with a population of 15.8 million. Chances of finding someone who spoke English AND knew where this mystery hostel was were not in our favor. Nevertheless, we tried anyway. So grabbing a cab from the airport in Beijing is kind of like being in a race where you are trying to grab a cab before anyone else. You literally stand in a huge line and the taxis all pull in forming a huge line, two cars deep. The attendant then opens the gate and everyone goes running for the closest cab, if you're unlucky you have to walk to the end of this huge line while taxis are taking off all around you or beeping at you to get out of the way. So there we are, the three Canadians, trying to get a cab to our unknown hostel. We keep running to different taxis which all keep waving us away as they don't speak English and just want an easy fare where they don't have to try to decipher what we are saying. Anyways, as you can probably guess, we were not successful at all and were left standing in the dust, as all the other successful travelers took off in their taxis. The next batch of taxis started to pull in, so we shuffled to the side out of the way and decided to go back into the airport to try to get the address off the internet.
Finding wireless or even anywhere that has access to the internet at midnight in the Beijing airport is like finding a needle in a haystack. We went up escalators, down elevators, to Starbucks, to an information desk, to another information desk.......and so on. We were not successful in our search and the girls at the final information desk just did not seem to know how to help us. We finally settled on getting to the general direction of the hostel. We knew it was in the downtown core so we aimed for that area hoping to find an internet cafe that was still open. The girl at the desk gave us the name of the central train station and wrote it on a piece of paper for us so we could hand it to the taxi driver. We headed down to the taxi 10m dash for the second time. Again, we broke away from the starting gate and tried our hardest not to be left behind. We kept meeting with the same reaction we got the first time: no one wanted to take us. Finally, after a few rejections there was only two taxis left at the end of the line. We kind of surrounded one so no one else could take it and he could not drive off. We tried to pass him the paper with the address on it which he unwillingly took. We also got the attendant involved who spoke a tiny bit of English and said "Make him drive us!" He finally relented and we were on our way away from the airport.
After about an hour drive, we arrive at the Beijing Train Station at around 1:45am. We are tired and all we want to do is find this hostel and crash into bed but unfortunately, we still do not know where our hostel is. The train station was an experience all unto itself. I am sure it is probably a very decent place in the daylight but it was not where I wanted to be in the middle of the night. We kind of skirted around it to get to a walking overpass so we could cross the road and ask to use the internet at a hotel that looked decent across the way. I can say one thing, I will not miss the smell of pee when I leave China. Due to the popular form of toilet over here, the squatter, the smell of unrine is pretty strong in all public washrooms. The public washroom at the Beijing train station was the strongest I have ever smelled in my life, and this washroom had great air circulation, being that it was in the great outdoors. So there we are walking through the cabbies, and random people sleeping on the cement so they will not miss their trains in the morning, gagging and trying to hold our breath. We walked up and over the crosswalk, with Suzanne and I groaning about our legs which were still sore from the mountain, and made it to the hotel. The hotel then directed us to this internet cafe outdoors and downstairs. So we are looking at the entrance to this so called internet cafe and decided that Susanne and I would wait outside with all our luggage while Chelsea quickly ran down to check the address. Well it was not so quick. Chelsea yelled up that there were lots of computers but the clerk was on the phone and she'd have to wait. While Susanne and I patiently waited, looking around at our beautiful surroundings (not so beautiful- deserted streets, brick buildings, looming dark mass that was the train station across the street) people kept coming up to us and laying their heads on their hands trying to ask us if we wanted a hotel. Other people kept coming out of the internet cafe but not Chelsea. At one point one guy came out with no shirt, and started doing stretches on the stairs below us, then went back in. Finally Chelsea came up and explained that the clerk was still on the phone but she finally got fed up and went to use a computer anyway and just left some money. She also explained that there were a whole bunch of people down there playing video games, which would explain the guy that came out to stretch. We finally had an address, now all we had to do was find a cab.
We walked to the road and saw a few cabs lined up. The first one waved us away when we approached him but the second cabbie was very nice and took us in. He even spoke a BIT of English. We negotiated with him, trying to use our Mandarin phrase book to aid us. He was not really sure of the address but Chelsea had written some main things that were beside our hostel, so we negotiated a price and took off. The hostel was really not far from where we had originally been let off but the cabbie was not sure where to go so we stopped on the side of the road while he made a call. While we were stopped, a woman just happened to walk by the cab and looked in. We quickly asked her if she spoke English. Thankfully she did, and while hanging in through my window she had a lively discussion with our cabbie. She must have told him that the number we had on the paper was the hostel's number so he called them to get directions. They said a few more things and laughed, then we thanked the nice lady and literally drove 10 seconds down a side street and found the Happy Dragon Hostel. (That must have been what they were laughing about). I have never been so happy to see a hostel in my life. There was finally a happy ending to this story even though it took until about 2:45am to reach it!
We decided to sleep in after our long, adventurous night. We woke up and showered and finally left the hostel at about noon time. We walked towards the Forbidden City and found a restaurant to eat along the way. We had a huge meal of assorted Chinese dishes which were very tasty and then headed back on our way. Susanne ended up not feeling well and headed back to the hostel to rest, while Chelsea and I decided to just roam around and see what kind of trouble we could get into. We walked around the moat of the Forbidden City and then through its Main Square. The Square was packed with people entering and leaving the City. We just happened to bump into a couple of Chinese girls who were visiting Beijing from their rural town and got to talking with them as we headed out with the throng of sightseers. They spoke very good English and asked us if we would like to hang out with them for the remainder of the afternoon. They took us to the Emperor's park and explained many things to us about Chinese culture and asked us all about Canada. One of the girls was studying to be an English teacher so she had tons of questions for Chelsea and I. After we visited the park, we went to a traditional Chinese tea house to relax and have a drink. We sat in this little room while a server brought us in two plates full of snacks and then made us tea from a selection that was displayed on the table. The tea was unlimited and I think I ended up drinking about 10 cups. It was very cool though to be spending the afternoon with local people and being able to learn about Chinese culture in a way that you cannot from a book or a tour guide. The bill was quite hefty compared to what we were used to spending on food and drinks but it was well worth it.
After tea, we parted ways and Chelsea and I headed back to the hostel to check on Susanne. We were about three quarters of the way back when all the tea we had drank kicked in. Deciding that there was no way we were using a public toilet when we had a nice clean, non-squatting one at the hostel, which was so close but so far, Chelsea and I basically walk/ran the rest of the way and then nearly burst the door down on Susanne. We made it though! Susanne was still feeling kind of gross, so Chelsea and I headed down to the hostel bar/restaurant for the Peking Duck party. There we used the internet, had a jenga tournament with a guy we met from Austria and ate some duck. It was delicious! I didn't know if I'd be a fan but it was very good. You roll it up in rice paper with onion and cucumber and this really good sauce. We finished off with sharing a sundae, which is fast becoming a tradition for Chelsea and I and then headed to bed!
So we arrive at Beijing airport for the second time, a month after our first arrival. It started out fairly well, we waited for our luggage, Chelsea rather nervously, as again hers was the last suitcase to appear, then we went down to hail a taxi. This is when it all started downhill........First we realized that we had not copied down the address for the hostel. We decided to give it a try and see if we could find a cabbie who knew where the Happy Dragon Hostel was. Looking back at it now, this was probably not the smartest thinking on our part as Beijing is a huge city with a population of 15.8 million. Chances of finding someone who spoke English AND knew where this mystery hostel was were not in our favor. Nevertheless, we tried anyway. So grabbing a cab from the airport in Beijing is kind of like being in a race where you are trying to grab a cab before anyone else. You literally stand in a huge line and the taxis all pull in forming a huge line, two cars deep. The attendant then opens the gate and everyone goes running for the closest cab, if you're unlucky you have to walk to the end of this huge line while taxis are taking off all around you or beeping at you to get out of the way. So there we are, the three Canadians, trying to get a cab to our unknown hostel. We keep running to different taxis which all keep waving us away as they don't speak English and just want an easy fare where they don't have to try to decipher what we are saying. Anyways, as you can probably guess, we were not successful at all and were left standing in the dust, as all the other successful travelers took off in their taxis. The next batch of taxis started to pull in, so we shuffled to the side out of the way and decided to go back into the airport to try to get the address off the internet.
Finding wireless or even anywhere that has access to the internet at midnight in the Beijing airport is like finding a needle in a haystack. We went up escalators, down elevators, to Starbucks, to an information desk, to another information desk.......and so on. We were not successful in our search and the girls at the final information desk just did not seem to know how to help us. We finally settled on getting to the general direction of the hostel. We knew it was in the downtown core so we aimed for that area hoping to find an internet cafe that was still open. The girl at the desk gave us the name of the central train station and wrote it on a piece of paper for us so we could hand it to the taxi driver. We headed down to the taxi 10m dash for the second time. Again, we broke away from the starting gate and tried our hardest not to be left behind. We kept meeting with the same reaction we got the first time: no one wanted to take us. Finally, after a few rejections there was only two taxis left at the end of the line. We kind of surrounded one so no one else could take it and he could not drive off. We tried to pass him the paper with the address on it which he unwillingly took. We also got the attendant involved who spoke a tiny bit of English and said "Make him drive us!" He finally relented and we were on our way away from the airport.
After about an hour drive, we arrive at the Beijing Train Station at around 1:45am. We are tired and all we want to do is find this hostel and crash into bed but unfortunately, we still do not know where our hostel is. The train station was an experience all unto itself. I am sure it is probably a very decent place in the daylight but it was not where I wanted to be in the middle of the night. We kind of skirted around it to get to a walking overpass so we could cross the road and ask to use the internet at a hotel that looked decent across the way. I can say one thing, I will not miss the smell of pee when I leave China. Due to the popular form of toilet over here, the squatter, the smell of unrine is pretty strong in all public washrooms. The public washroom at the Beijing train station was the strongest I have ever smelled in my life, and this washroom had great air circulation, being that it was in the great outdoors. So there we are walking through the cabbies, and random people sleeping on the cement so they will not miss their trains in the morning, gagging and trying to hold our breath. We walked up and over the crosswalk, with Suzanne and I groaning about our legs which were still sore from the mountain, and made it to the hotel. The hotel then directed us to this internet cafe outdoors and downstairs. So we are looking at the entrance to this so called internet cafe and decided that Susanne and I would wait outside with all our luggage while Chelsea quickly ran down to check the address. Well it was not so quick. Chelsea yelled up that there were lots of computers but the clerk was on the phone and she'd have to wait. While Susanne and I patiently waited, looking around at our beautiful surroundings (not so beautiful- deserted streets, brick buildings, looming dark mass that was the train station across the street) people kept coming up to us and laying their heads on their hands trying to ask us if we wanted a hotel. Other people kept coming out of the internet cafe but not Chelsea. At one point one guy came out with no shirt, and started doing stretches on the stairs below us, then went back in. Finally Chelsea came up and explained that the clerk was still on the phone but she finally got fed up and went to use a computer anyway and just left some money. She also explained that there were a whole bunch of people down there playing video games, which would explain the guy that came out to stretch. We finally had an address, now all we had to do was find a cab.
We walked to the road and saw a few cabs lined up. The first one waved us away when we approached him but the second cabbie was very nice and took us in. He even spoke a BIT of English. We negotiated with him, trying to use our Mandarin phrase book to aid us. He was not really sure of the address but Chelsea had written some main things that were beside our hostel, so we negotiated a price and took off. The hostel was really not far from where we had originally been let off but the cabbie was not sure where to go so we stopped on the side of the road while he made a call. While we were stopped, a woman just happened to walk by the cab and looked in. We quickly asked her if she spoke English. Thankfully she did, and while hanging in through my window she had a lively discussion with our cabbie. She must have told him that the number we had on the paper was the hostel's number so he called them to get directions. They said a few more things and laughed, then we thanked the nice lady and literally drove 10 seconds down a side street and found the Happy Dragon Hostel. (That must have been what they were laughing about). I have never been so happy to see a hostel in my life. There was finally a happy ending to this story even though it took until about 2:45am to reach it!
We decided to sleep in after our long, adventurous night. We woke up and showered and finally left the hostel at about noon time. We walked towards the Forbidden City and found a restaurant to eat along the way. We had a huge meal of assorted Chinese dishes which were very tasty and then headed back on our way. Susanne ended up not feeling well and headed back to the hostel to rest, while Chelsea and I decided to just roam around and see what kind of trouble we could get into. We walked around the moat of the Forbidden City and then through its Main Square. The Square was packed with people entering and leaving the City. We just happened to bump into a couple of Chinese girls who were visiting Beijing from their rural town and got to talking with them as we headed out with the throng of sightseers. They spoke very good English and asked us if we would like to hang out with them for the remainder of the afternoon. They took us to the Emperor's park and explained many things to us about Chinese culture and asked us all about Canada. One of the girls was studying to be an English teacher so she had tons of questions for Chelsea and I. After we visited the park, we went to a traditional Chinese tea house to relax and have a drink. We sat in this little room while a server brought us in two plates full of snacks and then made us tea from a selection that was displayed on the table. The tea was unlimited and I think I ended up drinking about 10 cups. It was very cool though to be spending the afternoon with local people and being able to learn about Chinese culture in a way that you cannot from a book or a tour guide. The bill was quite hefty compared to what we were used to spending on food and drinks but it was well worth it.
After tea, we parted ways and Chelsea and I headed back to the hostel to check on Susanne. We were about three quarters of the way back when all the tea we had drank kicked in. Deciding that there was no way we were using a public toilet when we had a nice clean, non-squatting one at the hostel, which was so close but so far, Chelsea and I basically walk/ran the rest of the way and then nearly burst the door down on Susanne. We made it though! Susanne was still feeling kind of gross, so Chelsea and I headed down to the hostel bar/restaurant for the Peking Duck party. There we used the internet, had a jenga tournament with a guy we met from Austria and ate some duck. It was delicious! I didn't know if I'd be a fan but it was very good. You roll it up in rice paper with onion and cucumber and this really good sauce. We finished off with sharing a sundae, which is fast becoming a tradition for Chelsea and I and then headed to bed!
August 8th: last Day in Xìan, Wild Goose Pagoda and Starbucks
August 8th: last Day in Xìan, Wild Goose Pagoda and Starbucks
Susanne:
Today was out last day in the city and after seeing some sights already, we were looking forward to a lazy day seeing a few things around the city such as the Muslim Quarters for a bit of shopping and the Wild Goose Pagoda which is also quite famous.
Early in the day, we ran into all kinds of arguments with the hotel. After they called us at 10 pm the night before and insisted we come downstairs (by this time we were in our PJs), finally coming and knocking on the door, they were now also trying to charge us for a dirty pillow case....it was not about the money but we were basically accused of having dyed our hair and having caused a faint stain being from hair color. Anyhow, to make a long story short, we were glad to leave the hotel and spent the day doing a bit of sightseeing and escaping the blazing heat with a couple of visits to Starbucks for some coffee in the morning and later a shake in the afternoon.
The Muslim quarters were very nearby and allowed us to get a few things, but it was mostly fake shirts (lots of Polo and Lacoste), sneakers, watches (Rolex, anyone?) and some local souvenirs. The Goose Pagoda was quite pricy to allow us in the yards, but then you had to pay even more to look inside the building which we did not do.
It was a relatively eventless day and we caught a cab to the airport at around suppertime. Air China was kind to me with an emergency seat for more legroom (too bad it was such a short flight) and also some Star Alliance points. Since we flew Air China from NYC, we will also get the miles from our long flight added to our aero plan miles which is helpful.
Other “points to ponder”:
• Little boys here have pants without the bum parts to have easy access to do a number 2, I assume.
• Lots and lots of smoking at restaurants and in buildings as explained in an earlier blog. Yikes, hard to get used to when eating .
• Not many Toyotas here which surprised me after the total domination in Thailand and Cambodia. The Chinese make a car called BYD which is very common here, likely like a Ford or something at home. All cabs are BYDs. More money here than the town of Yangshuo obviously with all kinds of city money....you can see Audis, Benz, BMWs and other expensive cars everywhere.
• MacDonald’s Big Mac meal deal: $4, tastes exactly the same (Chelsea made us go...)
• We went to an Adidas and Nike store: same prices as at home, fairly expensive if it is the real stuff but you can find fake Adidas and Nike at all the cheap markets.
• Very hazy here, did not see the sky at all while in the city. We assume it is smog but the air does not feel like you have to cough or anything.
• Wow....we are in our last week, hard to believe!!!
Susanne:
Today was out last day in the city and after seeing some sights already, we were looking forward to a lazy day seeing a few things around the city such as the Muslim Quarters for a bit of shopping and the Wild Goose Pagoda which is also quite famous.
Early in the day, we ran into all kinds of arguments with the hotel. After they called us at 10 pm the night before and insisted we come downstairs (by this time we were in our PJs), finally coming and knocking on the door, they were now also trying to charge us for a dirty pillow case....it was not about the money but we were basically accused of having dyed our hair and having caused a faint stain being from hair color. Anyhow, to make a long story short, we were glad to leave the hotel and spent the day doing a bit of sightseeing and escaping the blazing heat with a couple of visits to Starbucks for some coffee in the morning and later a shake in the afternoon.
The Muslim quarters were very nearby and allowed us to get a few things, but it was mostly fake shirts (lots of Polo and Lacoste), sneakers, watches (Rolex, anyone?) and some local souvenirs. The Goose Pagoda was quite pricy to allow us in the yards, but then you had to pay even more to look inside the building which we did not do.
It was a relatively eventless day and we caught a cab to the airport at around suppertime. Air China was kind to me with an emergency seat for more legroom (too bad it was such a short flight) and also some Star Alliance points. Since we flew Air China from NYC, we will also get the miles from our long flight added to our aero plan miles which is helpful.
Other “points to ponder”:
• Little boys here have pants without the bum parts to have easy access to do a number 2, I assume.
• Lots and lots of smoking at restaurants and in buildings as explained in an earlier blog. Yikes, hard to get used to when eating .
• Not many Toyotas here which surprised me after the total domination in Thailand and Cambodia. The Chinese make a car called BYD which is very common here, likely like a Ford or something at home. All cabs are BYDs. More money here than the town of Yangshuo obviously with all kinds of city money....you can see Audis, Benz, BMWs and other expensive cars everywhere.
• MacDonald’s Big Mac meal deal: $4, tastes exactly the same (Chelsea made us go...)
• We went to an Adidas and Nike store: same prices as at home, fairly expensive if it is the real stuff but you can find fake Adidas and Nike at all the cheap markets.
• Very hazy here, did not see the sky at all while in the city. We assume it is smog but the air does not feel like you have to cough or anything.
• Wow....we are in our last week, hard to believe!!!
August 7th: Huashan Mountain Climbing Day
First of all: it is Susanne writing again. After carefully reviewing Michelle’s and Chelsea’s entries, I had to consider very hard whether I would let them continue writing after using words like ‘slogging’ (Chelsea) and ‘hunkering’ (Michelle). But they did a good job otherwise, so after this one, they will be at it again. I take no responsibility for strange words they may use :)
So how did we end up wanting to go to Huashan Mountain? Lynn Spreadbury’s email. Lynn is my world traveler friend extraordinaire and she sent a joke on a few months ago with some funky pics of these planks on a cliff you could climb on the side of a mountain. It was a joke, but under the picture it said that this pic was taken in China. After I tried to get more info, Lynn hunted down exactly what and where they were and voila: it ended up on our to-do list. You will also see a pic on the very bottom of the blog as our first entry where I posted it, I think.
It looked quite inviting for a little adrenaline junkie like me and like something I could add on top of my skydiving, bungee jumping etc. I sent the email on to C&M (my fellow travelers) and they were both in agreement that we should check it out.
So fast forward a few months and here we are: we had wanted to get there on our own and planned an overnighter on the mountain (they have hostels), but we really had very little time and decided to take a tour. We were told that the rest of the tour would be Chinese but that the tour guide would speak some English. Good enough, we signed up.
Well, the tour was completely Chinese, so that we were exposed to some of the usual excited chatter on the 2 hour drive, some pushing and shoving and the obligatory stop at a merchant’s on an organized tour. Whether it is a factory, store, or other....tours always stop somewhere and want you to buy something. This time it was a Chinese medicine presentation. But again: Chinese only...so that did not help. Michelle and I had our worst bathroom experience in China yet after wanting to use the facilities there.....when looking for the bathrooms, the urine smell from the men’s bathroom should have given things away. The women’s bathroom was also filthy with stalls about 4 feet high (remember: I am 6 feet tall..). Most stalls missed the front door except the 2 Michelle and I used. We did our usual with the squat toilets: pull up every single piece of clothing so that nothing dare touches anything on the ground, try to keep your elbows or anything which could could potentially touch the walls close to your body and get out as quickly as possible: then douse yourself with hand sanitizer. brrrr....
The mountain was really pretty and we decided to take the cable car halfway up in order to have 3 or 4 hours to climb the top peaks before coming down. Chelsea had not been feeling well on the bus ride and things were getting worse as we took our ride up. Once we started climbing a few minutes, she decided that it would be best for her to sit and rest and let us go on alone. Too bad as we had really looked forward to this hike, but she felt nauseous and dizzy: not a good combo for a hot, steep climb up a mountain. Michelle and I joined what seemed like thousands of other tourists all around the mountain (all Chinese with the exception of about 30 or so westerners we saw) and climbed towards all the highest points and peaks we could find. It was exhausting. We thought the 888 steps up Moon Hill in Yangshuo were tough a few days ago and our calves were still tight from that climb: well, this was likely thousands of steps chiseled into the mountain and steps built up steep cliffs. It was a crazy hard climb. We were drenched, had to rest often and made our way past the crowds efficiently as we had learned quickly that the polite Canadian “excuse me” way does not cut it in this country. There are just too many people so the people here learned to be more aggressive when it comes to making your way though crowds and line-ups. That is how most of us explain the shoving and pushing here which is a bit of a zinger when you are first exposed to it. We tried to fit in with swift passing of others on the stairs on left or right and a few “nudges” and got all the paths done we wanted to do. We did finally make it to what they call the cliffhanger on the side of the South peaks, which was the highest at about 2100 meters. We took a narrow path with a simple chain on the side and ended up being faced with a woman trying to charge money (she had a wad of it in her hand) to go straight down on some wires and then along same planks we couldn’t even see from where we were ( as per the pics I had seen). I started pondering the safety and maturity level of wanting to climb this thing (how many lectures would I get later...), when I saw another westerner arguing with the lady trying to use his own ropes from his mountain climbing gear. Then he said : your stuff is not safe, your ropes are not safe.....hmmm. He looked like he knew what he was doing. Michelle was not keen on this adventure, so I did the mature thing: I passed. It just didn’t give me good vibes at all.
We climbed back down to get Chelsea who was very happy to see us after spending a few hours stretched out in a hard spot surrounded by noisy crowds and joined the rest of the tour for the drive home.
I had a moment of fame in the parking lot when a girl asked me something in Chinese and said “camera”. I thought she wanted me to take a picture of her, but it turned out she wanted her pic taken with me. We all stand out due to the fact that we are westerners but my height augments that interest. I have never felt so observed in my life. Eyes are always on us and you can be assured to make eye contact with most people even if you are walking and looking into a bus or Tuktuk. We are almost famous here, it seems!
We could not wait to get into a shower and dry clothes after sweating up a storm during our climb. Took it easy in the evening after some sushi (well, something close to it) for Michelle and myself and a nap for Chelsea. Great day, the sights were beautiful and it was amazing to see that someone put all of these paths onto a mountain. The locks you will see in the pics can be purchased on the way up and you can get them engraved right then and there with something and then you put it somewhere on the mountain along many of its chains. It is supposed to bring luck...many things here are supposed to bring luck, it seems. Lots of tradition and beliefs, which is really interesting.
Tomorrow we have a day of sightseeing before catching an evening flight to Beijing for our last leg of the trip.
So how did we end up wanting to go to Huashan Mountain? Lynn Spreadbury’s email. Lynn is my world traveler friend extraordinaire and she sent a joke on a few months ago with some funky pics of these planks on a cliff you could climb on the side of a mountain. It was a joke, but under the picture it said that this pic was taken in China. After I tried to get more info, Lynn hunted down exactly what and where they were and voila: it ended up on our to-do list. You will also see a pic on the very bottom of the blog as our first entry where I posted it, I think.
It looked quite inviting for a little adrenaline junkie like me and like something I could add on top of my skydiving, bungee jumping etc. I sent the email on to C&M (my fellow travelers) and they were both in agreement that we should check it out.
So fast forward a few months and here we are: we had wanted to get there on our own and planned an overnighter on the mountain (they have hostels), but we really had very little time and decided to take a tour. We were told that the rest of the tour would be Chinese but that the tour guide would speak some English. Good enough, we signed up.
Well, the tour was completely Chinese, so that we were exposed to some of the usual excited chatter on the 2 hour drive, some pushing and shoving and the obligatory stop at a merchant’s on an organized tour. Whether it is a factory, store, or other....tours always stop somewhere and want you to buy something. This time it was a Chinese medicine presentation. But again: Chinese only...so that did not help. Michelle and I had our worst bathroom experience in China yet after wanting to use the facilities there.....when looking for the bathrooms, the urine smell from the men’s bathroom should have given things away. The women’s bathroom was also filthy with stalls about 4 feet high (remember: I am 6 feet tall..). Most stalls missed the front door except the 2 Michelle and I used. We did our usual with the squat toilets: pull up every single piece of clothing so that nothing dare touches anything on the ground, try to keep your elbows or anything which could could potentially touch the walls close to your body and get out as quickly as possible: then douse yourself with hand sanitizer. brrrr....
The mountain was really pretty and we decided to take the cable car halfway up in order to have 3 or 4 hours to climb the top peaks before coming down. Chelsea had not been feeling well on the bus ride and things were getting worse as we took our ride up. Once we started climbing a few minutes, she decided that it would be best for her to sit and rest and let us go on alone. Too bad as we had really looked forward to this hike, but she felt nauseous and dizzy: not a good combo for a hot, steep climb up a mountain. Michelle and I joined what seemed like thousands of other tourists all around the mountain (all Chinese with the exception of about 30 or so westerners we saw) and climbed towards all the highest points and peaks we could find. It was exhausting. We thought the 888 steps up Moon Hill in Yangshuo were tough a few days ago and our calves were still tight from that climb: well, this was likely thousands of steps chiseled into the mountain and steps built up steep cliffs. It was a crazy hard climb. We were drenched, had to rest often and made our way past the crowds efficiently as we had learned quickly that the polite Canadian “excuse me” way does not cut it in this country. There are just too many people so the people here learned to be more aggressive when it comes to making your way though crowds and line-ups. That is how most of us explain the shoving and pushing here which is a bit of a zinger when you are first exposed to it. We tried to fit in with swift passing of others on the stairs on left or right and a few “nudges” and got all the paths done we wanted to do. We did finally make it to what they call the cliffhanger on the side of the South peaks, which was the highest at about 2100 meters. We took a narrow path with a simple chain on the side and ended up being faced with a woman trying to charge money (she had a wad of it in her hand) to go straight down on some wires and then along same planks we couldn’t even see from where we were ( as per the pics I had seen). I started pondering the safety and maturity level of wanting to climb this thing (how many lectures would I get later...), when I saw another westerner arguing with the lady trying to use his own ropes from his mountain climbing gear. Then he said : your stuff is not safe, your ropes are not safe.....hmmm. He looked like he knew what he was doing. Michelle was not keen on this adventure, so I did the mature thing: I passed. It just didn’t give me good vibes at all.
We climbed back down to get Chelsea who was very happy to see us after spending a few hours stretched out in a hard spot surrounded by noisy crowds and joined the rest of the tour for the drive home.
I had a moment of fame in the parking lot when a girl asked me something in Chinese and said “camera”. I thought she wanted me to take a picture of her, but it turned out she wanted her pic taken with me. We all stand out due to the fact that we are westerners but my height augments that interest. I have never felt so observed in my life. Eyes are always on us and you can be assured to make eye contact with most people even if you are walking and looking into a bus or Tuktuk. We are almost famous here, it seems!
We could not wait to get into a shower and dry clothes after sweating up a storm during our climb. Took it easy in the evening after some sushi (well, something close to it) for Michelle and myself and a nap for Chelsea. Great day, the sights were beautiful and it was amazing to see that someone put all of these paths onto a mountain. The locks you will see in the pics can be purchased on the way up and you can get them engraved right then and there with something and then you put it somewhere on the mountain along many of its chains. It is supposed to bring luck...many things here are supposed to bring luck, it seems. Lots of tradition and beliefs, which is really interesting.
Tomorrow we have a day of sightseeing before catching an evening flight to Beijing for our last leg of the trip.
Friday, August 6, 2010
August 6th - Xi'an: Terracotta Warriors
Chelsea:
We got up as usual around 7am and headed down for a traditional Chinese breakfast. Chinese Chelsea, the lady who picked us up at the airport yesterday and also organizes tours for the hotel, told us that it was a very good buffet. Well, for us- it was more or less supper. We walked in and picked up a little stainless steel serving tray- one of those ones you would surely get in a hospital cafeteria- and then it was on to choose what we wanted, hmmm... let's see: fried vegetables, noodles with chicken, dumplings, some beef dish.... this is certainly not breakfast food in Canada! Michelle and Susanne finally settled on boiled eggs, a dumpling and some bread-like thing with green onions baked in. I went for the bread-like thing and a couple of slices of watermelon. It felt like we were choking down dry egg and thick dough with nothing to drink but it's business as usual here- looks like we'll be going out for breakfast tomorrow since our taste palettes have not been able to fully make the transition to include Chinese breakfast- we still crave our cereal and milk or toast and peanut butter.
Anyway, while we waited for our mini bus to the Terracotta Warriors to arrive, we had a chance to chat with Chinese Chelsea. You would be hard pressed not to notice the number of people who smoke here- especially in restaurants and common sitting areas. We've come to appreciate the fact that smoking in Canada is more or less confined to private homes and cars as opposed to public areas. When we asked Chinese Chelsea about this she said that pretty well every grown man in China smokes; that you might find one or two here and there who don't but that it would be unusual. She said that part of the reason is that at business meetings, the majority of people gather around the discussion table and smoke and drink. If one does not smoke or drink than it might be thought that they cannot do good business either. Very interesting. She mentioned that smoking among women is also on the rise, especially with young women (16-18) who are doing it because it's "cool." When we told her about the laws surrounding smoking and buying cigarettes in Canada she said that it was pretty harsh! :)
We finally headed out on our hour long drive to the see the army. Like you might expect- traffic is crazy here! I will never again complain about a traffic jam in downtown Halifax. We were stuck in one place for literally 25mins before moving. When we arrived, Chinese Chelsea gave us our entrance tickets and sent us off in the right direction. From the outside, the buildings just look like normal structures you would see anywhere but once inside, it's pretty neat. There are 3 pits currently being excavated at the site that was actually only discovered in 1974 by some local farmers trying to drill a well. They noticed some clay figures beneath the earth and ever since they have been working to uncover it all. Pit 2 is the least developed and really just looks like a massive pit of uneven clay mounds waiting to be unearthed. Pit 3 has a few statues of warriors and a horse and carriage but not much else. It is the smallest of the pits but said to have been one of the most important because it is where they found the most generals and other important warriors in Chinese history.
Pit 1 is by far the most exciting- it is the one you see in books and on tv. It is a domed-in, huge open space with thousands of life-size clay statues. There are two different types of soldiers (you can tell them apart by the side that their hair is knotted on- some have it on the left side of their head, others on the right and this determines their rank in the army). There are also lieutenants, a few generals and some horses and carriages. It is quite an impressive sight. They are extremely detailed, all the way down to the buttons on their jackets and treads on their boots. Pit 1 also continues to be excavated and they expect to discover some 6000 warriors in that pit once they finish. A very interesting place and must-see in China! Off to climb Mt. Huashan tomorrow!
We got up as usual around 7am and headed down for a traditional Chinese breakfast. Chinese Chelsea, the lady who picked us up at the airport yesterday and also organizes tours for the hotel, told us that it was a very good buffet. Well, for us- it was more or less supper. We walked in and picked up a little stainless steel serving tray- one of those ones you would surely get in a hospital cafeteria- and then it was on to choose what we wanted, hmmm... let's see: fried vegetables, noodles with chicken, dumplings, some beef dish.... this is certainly not breakfast food in Canada! Michelle and Susanne finally settled on boiled eggs, a dumpling and some bread-like thing with green onions baked in. I went for the bread-like thing and a couple of slices of watermelon. It felt like we were choking down dry egg and thick dough with nothing to drink but it's business as usual here- looks like we'll be going out for breakfast tomorrow since our taste palettes have not been able to fully make the transition to include Chinese breakfast- we still crave our cereal and milk or toast and peanut butter.
Anyway, while we waited for our mini bus to the Terracotta Warriors to arrive, we had a chance to chat with Chinese Chelsea. You would be hard pressed not to notice the number of people who smoke here- especially in restaurants and common sitting areas. We've come to appreciate the fact that smoking in Canada is more or less confined to private homes and cars as opposed to public areas. When we asked Chinese Chelsea about this she said that pretty well every grown man in China smokes; that you might find one or two here and there who don't but that it would be unusual. She said that part of the reason is that at business meetings, the majority of people gather around the discussion table and smoke and drink. If one does not smoke or drink than it might be thought that they cannot do good business either. Very interesting. She mentioned that smoking among women is also on the rise, especially with young women (16-18) who are doing it because it's "cool." When we told her about the laws surrounding smoking and buying cigarettes in Canada she said that it was pretty harsh! :)
We finally headed out on our hour long drive to the see the army. Like you might expect- traffic is crazy here! I will never again complain about a traffic jam in downtown Halifax. We were stuck in one place for literally 25mins before moving. When we arrived, Chinese Chelsea gave us our entrance tickets and sent us off in the right direction. From the outside, the buildings just look like normal structures you would see anywhere but once inside, it's pretty neat. There are 3 pits currently being excavated at the site that was actually only discovered in 1974 by some local farmers trying to drill a well. They noticed some clay figures beneath the earth and ever since they have been working to uncover it all. Pit 2 is the least developed and really just looks like a massive pit of uneven clay mounds waiting to be unearthed. Pit 3 has a few statues of warriors and a horse and carriage but not much else. It is the smallest of the pits but said to have been one of the most important because it is where they found the most generals and other important warriors in Chinese history.
Pit 1 is by far the most exciting- it is the one you see in books and on tv. It is a domed-in, huge open space with thousands of life-size clay statues. There are two different types of soldiers (you can tell them apart by the side that their hair is knotted on- some have it on the left side of their head, others on the right and this determines their rank in the army). There are also lieutenants, a few generals and some horses and carriages. It is quite an impressive sight. They are extremely detailed, all the way down to the buttons on their jackets and treads on their boots. Pit 1 also continues to be excavated and they expect to discover some 6000 warriors in that pit once they finish. A very interesting place and must-see in China! Off to climb Mt. Huashan tomorrow!
Thursday, August 5, 2010
August 5th : Watch out, "Dangerous Chicken"!
Susanne back at it, let's see when the novelty will subside with the other two writers..... :)
Sitting at the Guilin airport about ready for the next leg of our journey to X'ian, to Huashan Mountain and then onto Beijing. Hard to believe that we will be home in 8 days....then it`s a matter of paying off the accumulated visa bill. Yikes.
Other China impressions so far:
The drive from the airport to Yangshuo was quite pretty, roads were in good condition, speed limits were at 120 km/hr and cars outnumber motos again.
We had heard that facebook and blogger, both of which we use every day, are not available. Once we got our net books fired up, we discovered it was true: social networking sites appear to be blocked and when I googled a bit, I saw many opinions about censorship and then some that explained a more technical background. When we flicked on the TV, we found no stations that broadcasted in English whereas all other countries, however poor, have had some English channels.....interesting indeed. Hmmmm...I think I will learn a bit more about all this over the next week and will fill you in.
So we owe a big thanks to Andrea who has agreed to post our blog which we are going to email her every couple of days to keep you all updated while we are banned from the site here in China. We owe you, my friend! Also thanks to Tim who has hopefully by now updated my facebook page saying that I won't be on it to give updates or respond to any email until I`m home (if you have not done so yet, Tim: pressure is on now!!!)
The town of Yangshuo was not geared towards westerners as much as others have been, I think (lonely planet and I seem to differ in our opinions). Titles of stores were often only in Chinese and the letters/symbols obviously mean nothing to us, so we approached some places thinking it was a restaurant, only to discover it was a hotel, drugstore or other. Stores don't seem to have as much western food and restaurants have smaller western sections. We did see some horsemeat, frog and lots of duck on the menu. We played it safe last night with rice and veggies, but I will surely try some local delicacies that I would not be able to get at home before leaving China. Not horse meat, though.....(as many of you know, my Mom used to run a horse stable).
As Michelle said, the mountains around the town are lit up at night the same we saw in Greece last year, very pretty. Families are out until late with babies and small children in order to avoid babysitters, I guess.
Since we are visiting two larger cities, we wanted to try something small and scenic and Chelsea's friend Megan suggested this place, which really was pretty and quiet.
Since Chelsea and Michelle offered to write the last two blogs of our surfing day and biking day, I will just add a piece about impressions of Bali:
-high curbs, checkered black and white in most places. reminds me of being in Belfast and having the sidewalk borders colored differently according to protestant etc.
-motorbikes with little holders on the side for surfboards
-beautiful craft stores everywhere
-lots of colors in clothing, sarongs, blankets....everything seemed bright and colorful
-sidewalks often had big gaping holes in them, you really had to pay attention when you were walking
-Pringles and chips came in LOBSTER flavor
China's Yangshuo:
-when you walk on sidewalks, every 20 meters or so, you get dripped on. We are so used to rain that we first expected that it was just another rainshower, but it is the dripping air conditioners from the 1st floor windows hanging outside and condensation dripping down.
-a lot of people carry umbrellas when walking, they also have little umbrella holders on their bicycles which are commonly used here
-we walked into a supermarket: only chocolate bar we found was 'Dove' (not that good), they have Oreo cookies you can buy in a roll
-Pringles came in "Wild and spicy" (so wild, I could only eat a few) , salmon flavored, weird chicken ones...
-a lot of people seem to spit a lot....hmmmm....Michelle seems to remember this from another country and thought it was maybe Thailand
Since starting this little write-up, we have managed to fly from Guilin to X'ian and are done with our Air Asia experiences: we actually had a bit of legroom on the China Southern flight (my knee caps were quite excited), and we got a meal and drinks. On Air Asia, "the world's best airline", you did not even get water for free...but it was cheap. So the flight was nice, they played a little video which showed a number of stretches and other things to relax muscles, push on tendons, cover ears...at first I thought it was only there to watch, but then I noticed that a number of passengers were following along. Quite funny actually. So it is almost like an exercise class on the plane. Chelsea and I both followed along with a smirk on our face while Michelle, who was seated between us with her Ipod on, was just shaking her head while watching us desperately trying to keep up with the rather speedy video....we likely weren`t the most trained plane-exercisers.
We had paid to have someone sent to pick us up which has been so nice on our travels. The costs are relatively inexpensive and it takes away the searching for buses or trains which might get you "close" to where you want to go and then roaming the streets with our bags. So we got a drive in, were able to ask a lot of questions from our little co-driver/hotel employee/helper whose English name was Chelsea (many Asians give themselves an English name for use with westerners to make things easier...similar to our Cambodian Habitat friends Eric and Raymond we mentioned earlier in the blog). We went out for dinner and walked up the central area where we saw the famous Bell and Drum Towers which we will visit again tomorrow in daylight. The restaurant we found was completely Chinese and we had two little waitresses who were pretty amused by us trying to make out the menu which consisted of pictures and Chinese writing. In order to explain meals (they knew a bit of English, but not exact menu words), we ended up making animal sounds like "Quack Quack" or "Baahaaaa" to narrow down the meats...it was pretty funny. we ended up being a bit of an entertainment focus in the restaurant, it seemed, as we were being watched and it seemed that the waitresses were bringing other ones to come have a glance. We were told that we were charming...I first thought she meant to say "chubby"... earlier in the conversation, she explained that the chicken was delicious...Chelsea thought it was "dangerous". Our language issues and mishaps have been numerous on this trip and have been the source of many laughs.
Well, I have to continue my beer updates: Michelle and I tried Tsingtao, the local Chinese beer. Very light, good and very tasty! We are now heading to bed at around midnight as we have an early morning ahead with 7:15 breakfast and a 7:30 meeting with Chelsea (Chinese Chelsea) to firm up our plans for Huashan Mountain where we are trying to head for the famous climb. We need to meet her to see how we can stay overnight there to see the sunrise, they have hotels on top of some of the peaks.
Sitting at the Guilin airport about ready for the next leg of our journey to X'ian, to Huashan Mountain and then onto Beijing. Hard to believe that we will be home in 8 days....then it`s a matter of paying off the accumulated visa bill. Yikes.
Other China impressions so far:
The drive from the airport to Yangshuo was quite pretty, roads were in good condition, speed limits were at 120 km/hr and cars outnumber motos again.
We had heard that facebook and blogger, both of which we use every day, are not available. Once we got our net books fired up, we discovered it was true: social networking sites appear to be blocked and when I googled a bit, I saw many opinions about censorship and then some that explained a more technical background. When we flicked on the TV, we found no stations that broadcasted in English whereas all other countries, however poor, have had some English channels.....interesting indeed. Hmmmm...I think I will learn a bit more about all this over the next week and will fill you in.
So we owe a big thanks to Andrea who has agreed to post our blog which we are going to email her every couple of days to keep you all updated while we are banned from the site here in China. We owe you, my friend! Also thanks to Tim who has hopefully by now updated my facebook page saying that I won't be on it to give updates or respond to any email until I`m home (if you have not done so yet, Tim: pressure is on now!!!)
The town of Yangshuo was not geared towards westerners as much as others have been, I think (lonely planet and I seem to differ in our opinions). Titles of stores were often only in Chinese and the letters/symbols obviously mean nothing to us, so we approached some places thinking it was a restaurant, only to discover it was a hotel, drugstore or other. Stores don't seem to have as much western food and restaurants have smaller western sections. We did see some horsemeat, frog and lots of duck on the menu. We played it safe last night with rice and veggies, but I will surely try some local delicacies that I would not be able to get at home before leaving China. Not horse meat, though.....(as many of you know, my Mom used to run a horse stable).
As Michelle said, the mountains around the town are lit up at night the same we saw in Greece last year, very pretty. Families are out until late with babies and small children in order to avoid babysitters, I guess.
Since we are visiting two larger cities, we wanted to try something small and scenic and Chelsea's friend Megan suggested this place, which really was pretty and quiet.
Since Chelsea and Michelle offered to write the last two blogs of our surfing day and biking day, I will just add a piece about impressions of Bali:
-high curbs, checkered black and white in most places. reminds me of being in Belfast and having the sidewalk borders colored differently according to protestant etc.
-motorbikes with little holders on the side for surfboards
-beautiful craft stores everywhere
-lots of colors in clothing, sarongs, blankets....everything seemed bright and colorful
-sidewalks often had big gaping holes in them, you really had to pay attention when you were walking
-Pringles and chips came in LOBSTER flavor
China's Yangshuo:
-when you walk on sidewalks, every 20 meters or so, you get dripped on. We are so used to rain that we first expected that it was just another rainshower, but it is the dripping air conditioners from the 1st floor windows hanging outside and condensation dripping down.
-a lot of people carry umbrellas when walking, they also have little umbrella holders on their bicycles which are commonly used here
-we walked into a supermarket: only chocolate bar we found was 'Dove' (not that good), they have Oreo cookies you can buy in a roll
-Pringles came in "Wild and spicy" (so wild, I could only eat a few) , salmon flavored, weird chicken ones...
-a lot of people seem to spit a lot....hmmmm....Michelle seems to remember this from another country and thought it was maybe Thailand
Since starting this little write-up, we have managed to fly from Guilin to X'ian and are done with our Air Asia experiences: we actually had a bit of legroom on the China Southern flight (my knee caps were quite excited), and we got a meal and drinks. On Air Asia, "the world's best airline", you did not even get water for free...but it was cheap. So the flight was nice, they played a little video which showed a number of stretches and other things to relax muscles, push on tendons, cover ears...at first I thought it was only there to watch, but then I noticed that a number of passengers were following along. Quite funny actually. So it is almost like an exercise class on the plane. Chelsea and I both followed along with a smirk on our face while Michelle, who was seated between us with her Ipod on, was just shaking her head while watching us desperately trying to keep up with the rather speedy video....we likely weren`t the most trained plane-exercisers.
We had paid to have someone sent to pick us up which has been so nice on our travels. The costs are relatively inexpensive and it takes away the searching for buses or trains which might get you "close" to where you want to go and then roaming the streets with our bags. So we got a drive in, were able to ask a lot of questions from our little co-driver/hotel employee/helper whose English name was Chelsea (many Asians give themselves an English name for use with westerners to make things easier...similar to our Cambodian Habitat friends Eric and Raymond we mentioned earlier in the blog). We went out for dinner and walked up the central area where we saw the famous Bell and Drum Towers which we will visit again tomorrow in daylight. The restaurant we found was completely Chinese and we had two little waitresses who were pretty amused by us trying to make out the menu which consisted of pictures and Chinese writing. In order to explain meals (they knew a bit of English, but not exact menu words), we ended up making animal sounds like "Quack Quack" or "Baahaaaa" to narrow down the meats...it was pretty funny. we ended up being a bit of an entertainment focus in the restaurant, it seemed, as we were being watched and it seemed that the waitresses were bringing other ones to come have a glance. We were told that we were charming...I first thought she meant to say "chubby"... earlier in the conversation, she explained that the chicken was delicious...Chelsea thought it was "dangerous". Our language issues and mishaps have been numerous on this trip and have been the source of many laughs.
Well, I have to continue my beer updates: Michelle and I tried Tsingtao, the local Chinese beer. Very light, good and very tasty! We are now heading to bed at around midnight as we have an early morning ahead with 7:15 breakfast and a 7:30 meeting with Chelsea (Chinese Chelsea) to firm up our plans for Huashan Mountain where we are trying to head for the famous climb. We need to meet her to see how we can stay overnight there to see the sunrise, they have hotels on top of some of the peaks.
August 4 - Moon Hill and Lucky Number 8!
Michelle:
So after we arrive at Kuala Lumpur airport at about 1:30am, we have 3 hours until we need to check in for our next flight. Even though we were tempted to check-in again at our super posh hotel and beat our record of the shortest hotel stay ever, we decided against it, and hunkered down for the night on the floor of the airport. It was kind of like playing camping as a child, we laid out our beach mats, blankets and pillows and then formed a wall with our luggage. It was quite cozy minus the cold, hard cement underneath us. We thought we had been quite clever because we had found a section of hallway that was a bit dimmer than other areas, but another man had the same idea.... So there we are, all cuddled up trying to sleep, blankets over our heads, when this god-awful snoring completely disrupts us (well actually just Susanne and I, Chelsea slept through it). After trying to ignore it for a while, I decide I can't take it anymore and pull the blanket from over my head. I had originally thought it was Chelsea snoring and I was going to wallop her but then I saw Susanne's face and burst out laughing. She looked like she was about to lose it!!! She had her ipod in and it was evident she hadn't come near to dozing off. Unfortunately she was only about a foot away from snoring guy and even with using her suitcase as a wall, blanket over her head and ipod in full blast she could not escape or ignore the snoring. I take a look at the guy and he's out cold, lying on his side even, snoring his face off. Anyways, Susanne moved to the other side of Chelsea and we all eventually were able to grab a little sleep.
We arrive at Guilin pretty tired and take a cab for an hour and a half with the friendliest driver I have ever met (as in not friendly at all, he barely waited while Susanne ran to the washroom and never said anything to us or cracked a smile the entire drive). So it was not a good first impression of Guilin but then we start driving through these beautiful mountains and when we finally arrive in Yang Shuo we are greeted by our very friendly and accomodating hostel owners. We decide to take a quick nap before heading out to explore. So in this little mountain city, it is very common for tourists to rent bikes and bike around for the day. Our hostel owners rented out bikes for cheap so we decide to take a look at our options. We could have an old-school banana seat bike complete with basket on the front, something that resembled a moutain bike but without gears and finally a pretty decent mountain bike. We opted for the most expensive mountain bike, which was still only about $3 for the day, and headed out at about 2pm. We are headed to a tourist attraction known as Moon Hill which you get to by biking through the countryside. We had been given a map by our hostel owner but it was not a very detailed map and it was all in Chinese, which made it a little difficult to find our way. We are winding through the countryside, surrounded by these gorgeous mountains, rice fields and little houses and the occasional river or pond. It was a beautiful sight but we definitely took some wrong turns. Luckily for us everyone was extremely friendly and we'd have these little old ladies biking alongside us pointing us in the right direction.
After biking for a while (probably 40 minutes) we decided to take a break since we are starving (we hadn't eaten since our McDonald's breakfast at 5am) and we are completely drenched in sweat and parched! We all realize that we are maybe not in as good of shape as we thought as little old ladies are flying by us on their bikes, not even breaking a sweat and we're struggling along behind them. In our defence, none of us has been on a bike in years and the temperature is a cool 37 degress plus humidity that makes it feel about 1000 degrees! We stop at a cute little place called The Giggling Tree, which is an old farmhouse that has been converted into a hotel, restaurant and courtyard to grab a bite to eat and some much needed water for the rest of the trip. We ask for directions and are told that it will take us approximately another 45 minutes on bike to get to Moon Hill......this news makes us really happy since we thought we were just going for a quick little drive through the countryside on our pedalbikes not a marathon!
We did eventually make it to Moon Hill only to find out....... that you actually climbed the mountain! Of course we're going to do it, we just biked for an hour and a half, maybe longer due to our little detours down the wrong country roads, so we start up. Susanne and I are really prepared for our day of activity, both wearing flip flops while Chelsea of course was all geared up in sneakers. I think she secretly knew that we'd be doing a marathon bike expedition and then climbing a mountain but decided not to tell us so she could laugh while Susanne and I slipped all over the mountain in our flip flops! Anyways, this cute little Chinese lady accompanied us along our travels to the top. We encountered many of these women at the bottom of the hill, all carrying coolers and fans hoping to make a couple bucks off tourists. Anyways our little lady was very friendly and informative. She informed us as we began that the Chinese believe that the number 8 is lucky and that to get to the top of Moon Hill you had to walk up 888 very narrow, steep stairs. She laughed the whole way as we had to take numerous breaks and chug back the water in order to be able to make it to the top. She on the other hand did not break a sweat, did not have any water and fanned US the whole way up. She talked about farming, her family and taught us some common phrases in Chinese. She even invited us to her house for dinner afterwards! She was also great motivation saying things like only 8 mintues to top, only 2 mintues to top, etc. then she became our photographer. The view from the top of Moon Hill was breathtaking. You looked out over the entire countryside and could see the farms, towns, and other mountains for miles. Moon hill was given its name because there is a hole through the top of the mountain in the shape of a circle, so when you're at the top you stand under this huge rock arch. It was definitely worth the climb and the vibrating legs we had on the way down.
We thanked our lady then headed for home on our bikes. I can honestly say I have never had a leg workout like that in a long time! The bike ride back was not as bad as I had been dreading and we got to see the sun set over the mountains. When finally reached the hostel at about 7pm, the hostel owner asked if we would like to keep the bikes for later but the general consesus was "I don't want to ever see that bike again!" We were all very sore, especially our backsides! We showered up then headed out on the town for dinner. This town is beautiful at night with all the mountains lit up and framing the city streets!
This morning we had a much needed sleep-in, then went to a little cafe for breakfast, western style, and coffee which was more expensive than our meal! We hung out there for a while killing some time before taking a cab to the airport. We are now patiently waiting for our flight to Xi'an.
So after we arrive at Kuala Lumpur airport at about 1:30am, we have 3 hours until we need to check in for our next flight. Even though we were tempted to check-in again at our super posh hotel and beat our record of the shortest hotel stay ever, we decided against it, and hunkered down for the night on the floor of the airport. It was kind of like playing camping as a child, we laid out our beach mats, blankets and pillows and then formed a wall with our luggage. It was quite cozy minus the cold, hard cement underneath us. We thought we had been quite clever because we had found a section of hallway that was a bit dimmer than other areas, but another man had the same idea.... So there we are, all cuddled up trying to sleep, blankets over our heads, when this god-awful snoring completely disrupts us (well actually just Susanne and I, Chelsea slept through it). After trying to ignore it for a while, I decide I can't take it anymore and pull the blanket from over my head. I had originally thought it was Chelsea snoring and I was going to wallop her but then I saw Susanne's face and burst out laughing. She looked like she was about to lose it!!! She had her ipod in and it was evident she hadn't come near to dozing off. Unfortunately she was only about a foot away from snoring guy and even with using her suitcase as a wall, blanket over her head and ipod in full blast she could not escape or ignore the snoring. I take a look at the guy and he's out cold, lying on his side even, snoring his face off. Anyways, Susanne moved to the other side of Chelsea and we all eventually were able to grab a little sleep.
We arrive at Guilin pretty tired and take a cab for an hour and a half with the friendliest driver I have ever met (as in not friendly at all, he barely waited while Susanne ran to the washroom and never said anything to us or cracked a smile the entire drive). So it was not a good first impression of Guilin but then we start driving through these beautiful mountains and when we finally arrive in Yang Shuo we are greeted by our very friendly and accomodating hostel owners. We decide to take a quick nap before heading out to explore. So in this little mountain city, it is very common for tourists to rent bikes and bike around for the day. Our hostel owners rented out bikes for cheap so we decide to take a look at our options. We could have an old-school banana seat bike complete with basket on the front, something that resembled a moutain bike but without gears and finally a pretty decent mountain bike. We opted for the most expensive mountain bike, which was still only about $3 for the day, and headed out at about 2pm. We are headed to a tourist attraction known as Moon Hill which you get to by biking through the countryside. We had been given a map by our hostel owner but it was not a very detailed map and it was all in Chinese, which made it a little difficult to find our way. We are winding through the countryside, surrounded by these gorgeous mountains, rice fields and little houses and the occasional river or pond. It was a beautiful sight but we definitely took some wrong turns. Luckily for us everyone was extremely friendly and we'd have these little old ladies biking alongside us pointing us in the right direction.
After biking for a while (probably 40 minutes) we decided to take a break since we are starving (we hadn't eaten since our McDonald's breakfast at 5am) and we are completely drenched in sweat and parched! We all realize that we are maybe not in as good of shape as we thought as little old ladies are flying by us on their bikes, not even breaking a sweat and we're struggling along behind them. In our defence, none of us has been on a bike in years and the temperature is a cool 37 degress plus humidity that makes it feel about 1000 degrees! We stop at a cute little place called The Giggling Tree, which is an old farmhouse that has been converted into a hotel, restaurant and courtyard to grab a bite to eat and some much needed water for the rest of the trip. We ask for directions and are told that it will take us approximately another 45 minutes on bike to get to Moon Hill......this news makes us really happy since we thought we were just going for a quick little drive through the countryside on our pedalbikes not a marathon!
We did eventually make it to Moon Hill only to find out....... that you actually climbed the mountain! Of course we're going to do it, we just biked for an hour and a half, maybe longer due to our little detours down the wrong country roads, so we start up. Susanne and I are really prepared for our day of activity, both wearing flip flops while Chelsea of course was all geared up in sneakers. I think she secretly knew that we'd be doing a marathon bike expedition and then climbing a mountain but decided not to tell us so she could laugh while Susanne and I slipped all over the mountain in our flip flops! Anyways, this cute little Chinese lady accompanied us along our travels to the top. We encountered many of these women at the bottom of the hill, all carrying coolers and fans hoping to make a couple bucks off tourists. Anyways our little lady was very friendly and informative. She informed us as we began that the Chinese believe that the number 8 is lucky and that to get to the top of Moon Hill you had to walk up 888 very narrow, steep stairs. She laughed the whole way as we had to take numerous breaks and chug back the water in order to be able to make it to the top. She on the other hand did not break a sweat, did not have any water and fanned US the whole way up. She talked about farming, her family and taught us some common phrases in Chinese. She even invited us to her house for dinner afterwards! She was also great motivation saying things like only 8 mintues to top, only 2 mintues to top, etc. then she became our photographer. The view from the top of Moon Hill was breathtaking. You looked out over the entire countryside and could see the farms, towns, and other mountains for miles. Moon hill was given its name because there is a hole through the top of the mountain in the shape of a circle, so when you're at the top you stand under this huge rock arch. It was definitely worth the climb and the vibrating legs we had on the way down.
We thanked our lady then headed for home on our bikes. I can honestly say I have never had a leg workout like that in a long time! The bike ride back was not as bad as I had been dreading and we got to see the sun set over the mountains. When finally reached the hostel at about 7pm, the hostel owner asked if we would like to keep the bikes for later but the general consesus was "I don't want to ever see that bike again!" We were all very sore, especially our backsides! We showered up then headed out on the town for dinner. This town is beautiful at night with all the mountains lit up and framing the city streets!
This morning we had a much needed sleep-in, then went to a little cafe for breakfast, western style, and coffee which was more expensive than our meal! We hung out there for a while killing some time before taking a cab to the airport. We are now patiently waiting for our flight to Xi'an.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
August 3rd - Would you like rice with that?
Chelsea:
For our last day in Bali we decided that we'd like to see a little more of the countryside and according to the guide book, it's possible to drive around Bali in a day. We ended up renting a car and driver for 9hrs to take us around anywhere we wanted to go for only 400,000 Rupiahs which may sound like a lot but actually only works out to be about $40 US- super cheap when you compare that to prices in Canada. Our driver was great but you should have seen him. When he stood next to Susanne you couldn't help but chuckle. He was so short that he could hardly see over the wheel- he might have been 4'8" or 4'9"! Anyway, after consulting a map and deciding on a route we headed out around 10am.
Throughout our travels there has been no shortage of rice fields, nor rice on the menu. You can have it just about any way you can dream of: chicken friend rice, rice with vegetables, sticky rice, regular white rice, shrimp rice, pork rice, beef rice... you name, they'll make it for you! :) Rice is one of South East Asia's largest exports as I'm sure many of you already know. Everywhere you look there seems to be farmers knee deep in water planting and harvesting rice plants. The fields themselves are pretty neat- they at times appear to be endless patches of varying shades of green. Today's were extra special though- Bali is known for it's rice terraces- row upon row of rice fields that wind uphill, all at different stages of growth. You will see lush green rows mixed with yellowish-green rows and even some at the muddy water stage with tiny plants starting to sprout. It was quite picturesque, I have to say. It was also really neat to experience a bit of rural life in Bali as opposed to the bustling beach area we stayed in.
After the rice terraces we drove to the touristy town of Ubud. It is well known for its artistic small town style. Our driver dropped us off to do a little shopping at the road side shops where Susanne and I bought some neat glass bowls (hopefully they make it back to Canada in one piece). Shortly thereafter we got back into the car to head to our next stop but there was a slight problem- a parade had started in the middle of the one way street we had to drive through to get out of town! It was crazy- I can't even begin to tell you how many people were participating all dressed in traditional Baliense clothing. There was music, marching, umbrellas, dancing- at one point the street looked like a sea of white as a huge group of men walked so close together you would have been hard pressed to push through them, banging drums and chanting. Certainly an unexpected moment we won't forget! After slogging behind the parade for quite awhile we finally managed to take a short cut and head out of town for a popular market. We didn't buy much this time as we are almost "marketed-out" since they often have similar things. Susanne did however buy a big painting from this guy who started out at 800,000 Rp before eventually settling for 160,000 Rp ($100 to $20.... not bad bargining if I do say so myself!)
For our last day in Bali we decided that we'd like to see a little more of the countryside and according to the guide book, it's possible to drive around Bali in a day. We ended up renting a car and driver for 9hrs to take us around anywhere we wanted to go for only 400,000 Rupiahs which may sound like a lot but actually only works out to be about $40 US- super cheap when you compare that to prices in Canada. Our driver was great but you should have seen him. When he stood next to Susanne you couldn't help but chuckle. He was so short that he could hardly see over the wheel- he might have been 4'8" or 4'9"! Anyway, after consulting a map and deciding on a route we headed out around 10am.
Throughout our travels there has been no shortage of rice fields, nor rice on the menu. You can have it just about any way you can dream of: chicken friend rice, rice with vegetables, sticky rice, regular white rice, shrimp rice, pork rice, beef rice... you name, they'll make it for you! :) Rice is one of South East Asia's largest exports as I'm sure many of you already know. Everywhere you look there seems to be farmers knee deep in water planting and harvesting rice plants. The fields themselves are pretty neat- they at times appear to be endless patches of varying shades of green. Today's were extra special though- Bali is known for it's rice terraces- row upon row of rice fields that wind uphill, all at different stages of growth. You will see lush green rows mixed with yellowish-green rows and even some at the muddy water stage with tiny plants starting to sprout. It was quite picturesque, I have to say. It was also really neat to experience a bit of rural life in Bali as opposed to the bustling beach area we stayed in.
After the rice terraces we drove to the touristy town of Ubud. It is well known for its artistic small town style. Our driver dropped us off to do a little shopping at the road side shops where Susanne and I bought some neat glass bowls (hopefully they make it back to Canada in one piece). Shortly thereafter we got back into the car to head to our next stop but there was a slight problem- a parade had started in the middle of the one way street we had to drive through to get out of town! It was crazy- I can't even begin to tell you how many people were participating all dressed in traditional Baliense clothing. There was music, marching, umbrellas, dancing- at one point the street looked like a sea of white as a huge group of men walked so close together you would have been hard pressed to push through them, banging drums and chanting. Certainly an unexpected moment we won't forget! After slogging behind the parade for quite awhile we finally managed to take a short cut and head out of town for a popular market. We didn't buy much this time as we are almost "marketed-out" since they often have similar things. Susanne did however buy a big painting from this guy who started out at 800,000 Rp before eventually settling for 160,000 Rp ($100 to $20.... not bad bargining if I do say so myself!)
Finally it was time to go so we headed back out to the car to look for our driver but couldn't find him. We found the car and there was another guy sitting in front of it so we just walked over planning to wait for our guy to come back- we figured he'd just gone to grab a drink or use the bathroom or something. Next thing we knew, this other guy unlocked the doors, let us in and hopped in with us! We were a little baffled as you can imagine since this was not the driver that we had had all day. When we asked what happened to our driver he said that he was gone and we had him now- too funny! Okayyyy... but really, where is our driver?? :) Turns out this new guy works for the guy who had been driving us all day and he had to take off so the new guy came and switched him cars unbeknowst to us... worked out fine- no worries. He dropped us off at a little local spot for Indonesian food which was really awesome and cheap too- only $4 for a huge plate, fruit smoothie and package of Mentos! Then it was off to the airport where we will boarding a flight to Kuala Lumpur and connecting to Guilin, China.
August 2nd- Surf's Up, Dude!
Chelsea:
The more we watched people learning to surf yesterday, the more we wanted to try it and today was the day! The water was a little cooler than the day before and the waves were only about 1.9m but we were ready! Most of the groups we had seen the day before were pretty large but we happened to notice that some people were getting private or semi-private lessons. Since Bali had been relatively cheap thus far, we figured that we would look in to that since none of us had ever tried surfing before. We approached one of the local surfer guys hanging out by his boards and umbrella and for $35 each, he and his buddy gave us lessons and a board each to use for the entire day. The guys were great- they strapped on the board line to our legs and took us through a dry run down on the beach. They told us where to put our feet and how to position our bodies. After about 20 mins of practice we headed out in to the water to try and catch a real wave.
It was definitely a learning curve with us wiping out and getting pumelled by the waves at the start but we all figured it out and managed to get the hang of it pretty quickly. Before you knew it, we were riding waves in to the beach on a consistent basis. Our instructors were impressed- apparently it tends to take people 2 or 3 days to get the hang of it, we got it in a couple of hours! :) Surfing is hard work though. The most difficult part has to be pushing your board back out in to the water through the waves because you are constantly getting pushed back in towards the beach by the water- there is no doubt in my mind that we will have sore muscles and a few bruises tomorrow. Especially Michelle because not only did she get smucked in the arm by Susanne's board but some other girl wiped out right beside her and literally speared her in the stomach! It's all good though, as they say, no pain, no gain! Unfortunately there aren't any pictures because it would have been too hard to hang on to the camera out in the water- I guess you'll just have to take my word for it all.
The more we watched people learning to surf yesterday, the more we wanted to try it and today was the day! The water was a little cooler than the day before and the waves were only about 1.9m but we were ready! Most of the groups we had seen the day before were pretty large but we happened to notice that some people were getting private or semi-private lessons. Since Bali had been relatively cheap thus far, we figured that we would look in to that since none of us had ever tried surfing before. We approached one of the local surfer guys hanging out by his boards and umbrella and for $35 each, he and his buddy gave us lessons and a board each to use for the entire day. The guys were great- they strapped on the board line to our legs and took us through a dry run down on the beach. They told us where to put our feet and how to position our bodies. After about 20 mins of practice we headed out in to the water to try and catch a real wave.
It was definitely a learning curve with us wiping out and getting pumelled by the waves at the start but we all figured it out and managed to get the hang of it pretty quickly. Before you knew it, we were riding waves in to the beach on a consistent basis. Our instructors were impressed- apparently it tends to take people 2 or 3 days to get the hang of it, we got it in a couple of hours! :) Surfing is hard work though. The most difficult part has to be pushing your board back out in to the water through the waves because you are constantly getting pushed back in towards the beach by the water- there is no doubt in my mind that we will have sore muscles and a few bruises tomorrow. Especially Michelle because not only did she get smucked in the arm by Susanne's board but some other girl wiped out right beside her and literally speared her in the stomach! It's all good though, as they say, no pain, no gain! Unfortunately there aren't any pictures because it would have been too hard to hang on to the camera out in the water- I guess you'll just have to take my word for it all.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
July 31st and August 1st: Beautiful, sunny Bali!
Susanni:
Saturday, the 31st was our travel day. We left the Pineapple guesthouse (definitely was on the lower spectrum of places we stayed in) at 5:00 a.m. for the airport and flew from Phuket via Jakarta to Bali. One thing that happened after I wrote the blog the night before was another bathroom flood. I was in the middle of writing the blog in my PJs on another floor to get a better wifi connection, when Chelsea came flying down the stairwell, saying that the bathroom was like ``old faithful``, exploding straight up to the ceiling. Not knowing the real story, I expected the worst as I pictured things spewing out of the actual toilet...wasn`t coming near that and grabbed onto my laptop to look busy.... Then Chelsea explained that it was actually the toilet hose....let me explain. Each toilet here (we are back to having toilets versus the holes in the ground we saw in most Cambodian places) has a hose attached to the side, almost like the ones that come out of sinks at home...I assume it is in case you want to ``spray your behind`` (I will leave it up to you to let your imagination wander...). So they are always attached and obviously also have some kind of a water supply. Well, ours must have sprung a leak while Chelsea was in the bathroom. The hostel management came up after Chelsea had to wake them and shut the water off, so all was good, but of course Michelle and I have been teasing Chelsea about what caused the breakage. Bathroom story after bathroom story :)
On a totally different point: I have to say that it is starting to get difficult to keep track of all the different currencies which are accumulating in my wallet. We always try to spend most of it and try to gauge how much we may need for a few days. Cambodia was easy that way as they actually dealt almost exclusively in US currency. Once in a while, you got Riel back as change is made available from US bills, but most menus etc and prices all showed in US dollars.
So far it`s been:
Thailand: Baht. About 30 to the US Dollar
Cambodia: Riel (they have no coins at all). about 4000 Riel to the US Dollar
Vietnam: Dong. About 20,000 to the US Dollar
Malaysia: Ringgit. 3 to 1
Indonesia: Rupiah. About 9000 to the US Dollar.
I have done more math in my head over the last 4 weeks than since grade school, I`m sure :)
One other thing I thought I would share with those knowing my passion for wine (and I know many of you are, as well) is that as a wine drinker, I have been on a bit of a forced drought as wine is very expensive here, so I thought I might as well try whatever beer is the national beer and have made that as my nightly drink along side dinner etc. Michelle usually still splurges her $3-4 for her white glass of wine every night.
So for beer it`s like this:
Thailand: Singha or Chang. good.
Cambodia: Angkor beer. Yum, my favorite so far.
Vietnam: Saigon. Not so good. A local bartender even said: order Tiger beer, it`s better (Singapore)
Malaysia: didn`t try one, too short a visit.
Indonesia: Bintang. Not bad.
Ok, back to where we are right now.
We got into Bali around suppertime and are staying in a very nice place for about $30/night. More on the expensive side as most of our places have been less at around $10 or so a night even with own room, AC etc. they are all in hotel kinds of places, I guess. Pineapple was more of a guest house and definitely a bit shady with no real front desk etc but clean. :)
We got settled into our new home for the next 3 days and starting walking toward the beach on our search for dinner. Michelle and I, both being sushi lovers, were quite excited to see a neat looking Japanese restaurant and the three of us had dinner there with shoes off, and sitting at low tables. Chelsea got her edamame and veg tempura, so all was good.
We actually slept in a bit today until about 9 am (Sunday), had breakfast at the hotel here (most places have breakfast included) and walked down to the beach. Lots of little shops and stores on the way on our 20 minute walk to the end of our street basically. The beach here is wide, with fine sand that is actually a bit darker than I thought. Beautiful, though. We got to the Beach at around 10:30 a.m., so it wasn't packed yet but certainly filled up during the day. There are a lot of people flying kites and lots of people learning how to surf which we are giving a hot tomorrow for about $30-40 each which provides lessons and a surfboard as long as we want it. Just like the other beaches, you often have locals approaching you trying to sell fruit, jewelry, sarongs, dresses or little instruments or local art. The water is amazing, even though it seems a bit cooler than in Thailand. The airport is right on the water, so that you can see planes in the background. We had an amazing flight in as you could fly low over the water and Chelsea and I were convinced that we saw some kind of big fish jumping or swimming close to the surface. Maybe dolphins, someone told us. We also flew over a mountain range and saw what looked like the tops of volcanoes. When we saw a map of Bali, we saw 3-4 mountains in its Northwestern part, so that must have been what we saw. Really picturesque. We should have bought shares in Air Asia, it is the cheapy cheapy airline here and we are getting accustomed to its red planes. One other note (don`t be alarmed by the pic!): When you first get on board, there must be something going on with the air temperature and A/C or something as there is always the mist or smokey stuff when we get on. As mentioned, we are Air Asia pros now, so we don`t worry about it anymore, but we sure did the first time we saw it :)
The weather is different here, as well. A bit of a breeze, still hot but we don`t mind it as much as it isn't humid. Really nice heat and a dip into the water today every 45 minutes or so also helped. Of course, we all got burnt a bit but I guess being in Bali, that is to be expected. We had a quick nap after getting back from the beach and went out for dinner, had some local Indonesian food. Very cheap and again, we paid more for our drinks than food, I think. Now we are sitting planning our last few days of travel in China.
Hard to believe it is August 1st and we head home on the 13th, still so much to see. We are getting a glimpse of life here. It seems impossible to see Southeast Asia and even only some of its countries in the short time we have. But it is nice to get this quick glance at the various countries, cultures and maybe an idea of which ones we may want to visit down the road for an extended period of time.
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