Well, with the China tour now finished and pretty much everyone flying home on Monday, it was just me and Alan left in Beijing until Saturday. Luckily for us the hotel room is huge (so we can spread ourselves out), there is an internet place over the road, a bakery (which we visit at least twice a day, for brekkie and an afternoon cake) and supermarket next door and the Pearl Market, 5mins walk away.
With Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Great Wall all checked off, we had to dust off our lonely planet guide to find out what else there was to see and do in Beijing.
Monday - Sleep, we'd had a very hard weekend so spent most of the day resting. Then in the late afternoon we decided we'd better go out for a little walk and maybe get a cake, but we stumbled into the Pearl Market and bought a little gadget for about £12 to watch our "genuine" dvd's on.
Tuesday - We went to the Temple of Heaven. The sky was quite clear so at the highest point in the temple, we could see for a couple of miles. Beijing has its own London Eye - I can't imagine what you would be able to see up there when its smoggy.
Wednesday - We spent most of the day getting our blog up to date, as we have been behind for quite a while now. We also went to the Pearl Market again and haggled for a few personal trinkets - Alan had to get a matching wooden samurai sword, but the woman recognised him and made him pay the same price as the first one. Oh and we got a cake!
Thursday - We have been out and about all day! We rode the underground to the Lama Temple, which is still a working Tibetan buddist monastery. It was very colourful and there were monks wandering around and lots of people praying. We found a huge shopping centre and had some really cheap but nice chinese food for lunch. And we got a cake!
Friday - Our last day in Beijing and the last day of the World Tour 2007 (part 1)! I was up at 5am because I wasn't very well, I woke Alan up and he went downstairs to find out if there was a Dr available and he was informed that this was a hotel not hospital. How rude!! Anyway in Beijing you can buy antibiotics for about 60p so he went out to get me some and came back with breakfast from the bakery as well - what a star.
The Pearl Market is like a magnet for Alan so once we had saved enough money for the taxi to the airport and dinner, we took our remaining yuan and went shopping. Alan drove a hard bargin but managed to convince this woman to sell him 2 webcams for £6.
We are coming home!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Saturday, September 22, 2007
The Great Wall of China
When Vicky told us, we needed to be downstairs and ready to go at 5:30am for our trip to the Great Wall, the whole group simultaneously groaned. Having just come off an overnight train this was more than a little harsh.
Everyone made it up for 5:30am but I'm not sure how many people were actually awake. Once we were all on the bus I think it took about twenty seconds for most people, including me to go straight back to sleep.
After two hours on the bus we caught our first glimpse of the Great Wall, it looked amazing but scary as it tracked almost vertically along a mountainside.
It wasn't long after that, that we arrived at the entry point for our walk. The section that we were walking was not the normal tourist route and this was evident as we were the only people there. Having got our tickets we set off on our 10km walk. We were soon joined by a group of locals that would escort us along much of the Wall.
I originally had a local man walking with me and Samantha had a woman, however they seemed to swap round when it appeared Samantha needed help on the rougher sections. Both of them spoke amazingly good english and I even got another Chinese lesson as we walked along.
Everyone made it up for 5:30am but I'm not sure how many people were actually awake. Once we were all on the bus I think it took about twenty seconds for most people, including me to go straight back to sleep.
After two hours on the bus we caught our first glimpse of the Great Wall, it looked amazing but scary as it tracked almost vertically along a mountainside.
It wasn't long after that, that we arrived at the entry point for our walk. The section that we were walking was not the normal tourist route and this was evident as we were the only people there. Having got our tickets we set off on our 10km walk. We were soon joined by a group of locals that would escort us along much of the Wall.
I originally had a local man walking with me and Samantha had a woman, however they seemed to swap round when it appeared Samantha needed help on the rougher sections. Both of them spoke amazingly good english and I even got another Chinese lesson as we walked along.
The Wall itself was a spectacular sight, snaking across the mountain tops as far as the eye could see. The scenery either side of the Wall was also breathtaking. We found out that the Wall used to lie along the boarder between China and Mongolia, but that boarder is now 1000km's away, although the local people with still consider themselves Mongolian.
By the time we hit the harder section of the walk Samantha and I had separated, as I was keeping pace with Paul and the two South Africans near the front and Samantha was with Vicky and Sinéad further back. As they were quite far behind the group their guide took them on a different route that missed out the steepest part of the wall to help them catch up. This, in the end put them about 10 minutes ahead of us.
When we had finished the walk and had left the wall the group celebrated with a nice cold beer whilst we waited for Vicky, Samantha and Sinéad not knowing they were waiting for us in the restaurant down the road. After a while Paul and I were just about to go and try and find them when Vicky appeared looking for us.
We then revived ourselves with a nice cold drink and some food at the local restaurant before our bus back.
On the way back totally knackered and dying for a nice shower the bus had a blowout and we ended up standing on the side of a Chinese motorway for nearly an hour, not the best way to finish the day.
By the time we hit the harder section of the walk Samantha and I had separated, as I was keeping pace with Paul and the two South Africans near the front and Samantha was with Vicky and Sinéad further back. As they were quite far behind the group their guide took them on a different route that missed out the steepest part of the wall to help them catch up. This, in the end put them about 10 minutes ahead of us.
When we had finished the walk and had left the wall the group celebrated with a nice cold beer whilst we waited for Vicky, Samantha and Sinéad not knowing they were waiting for us in the restaurant down the road. After a while Paul and I were just about to go and try and find them when Vicky appeared looking for us.
We then revived ourselves with a nice cold drink and some food at the local restaurant before our bus back.
On the way back totally knackered and dying for a nice shower the bus had a blowout and we ended up standing on the side of a Chinese motorway for nearly an hour, not the best way to finish the day.
Beijing; Tiananman Square and Forbidden City
We reached Beijing, our final destination of the World Tour ( part 1) and it feels very strange to be here as a week today we fly home to England.
We were absolutely shattered from our last overnight train journey from Xi'an to Beijing. Luckily the hotel allowed us to check-in straight away so we could have a shower and little rest before heading out to Tiananman Square and the Forbidden City.
There were alot of people/tourists in the square and lots of clourful flower displays celebrating and promoting the forthcoming Beijing Olympics. It was hard to believe that 17yrs ago, in 1989, Tiananmen Square was the site of a huge massacre, in which 1000's of people are still missing including the famous fella carrying the shopping bags right up to a tank.
Whilst we stood in the square listening to the historical information Vicky was giving us, she was constantly looking over her shoulder. Tiananmen square has a heavy police/guard presence and Vicky could have been arrested for inciting polical hatred.
After we left the Square we walked over the road to the Forbidden City.
Its's called the Forbidden City because for 500yrs it was off limits to the ordinary chinese people. It was home to the Ming and Qing emperor dynasties and they didn't like to leave their santuary unless they really had too.
We found the Forbidden city very unimpressive, it wasn't very colourful and there was still alot of scaffolding up around some of the inner temples. It was also very hot in the grounds with little or no shade. The Imperial gardens at the far end of the Forbidden City were far nicer.
We spent the rest of the day recovering from the overnight train and taking it easy as we had a big day tomorrow.
We were absolutely shattered from our last overnight train journey from Xi'an to Beijing. Luckily the hotel allowed us to check-in straight away so we could have a shower and little rest before heading out to Tiananman Square and the Forbidden City.
There were alot of people/tourists in the square and lots of clourful flower displays celebrating and promoting the forthcoming Beijing Olympics. It was hard to believe that 17yrs ago, in 1989, Tiananmen Square was the site of a huge massacre, in which 1000's of people are still missing including the famous fella carrying the shopping bags right up to a tank.
Whilst we stood in the square listening to the historical information Vicky was giving us, she was constantly looking over her shoulder. Tiananmen square has a heavy police/guard presence and Vicky could have been arrested for inciting polical hatred.
After we left the Square we walked over the road to the Forbidden City.
Its's called the Forbidden City because for 500yrs it was off limits to the ordinary chinese people. It was home to the Ming and Qing emperor dynasties and they didn't like to leave their santuary unless they really had too.
We found the Forbidden city very unimpressive, it wasn't very colourful and there was still alot of scaffolding up around some of the inner temples. It was also very hot in the grounds with little or no shade. The Imperial gardens at the far end of the Forbidden City were far nicer.
We spent the rest of the day recovering from the overnight train and taking it easy as we had a big day tomorrow.
Xi'an and the Terracotta Warriors
We arrived in Xi'an in the early evening after our suprisingly good flight with China Eastern Airways, even though everyone had expected the flight to be a white knuckle ride.
The first day we had there was a free day and with both of us feeling a little under the weather, a 13km bike ride round the city wall or a city trek didn't appeal so we opted for the expensive option (or at least by the time we finished) the muslim quarter market.
We once again put our hard bargaining skills into action and picked many of the items we wanted (we just wonder now how Tesco will react to our skills when we return).
I picked a Mont Blanc pen (real Mont Blanc is very, very, very expensive) and the trader said to us whilst negotiating "more money, it's Mont Blanc" we both turned to him and had to point out, "it's not Mont Blanc, it's fake!". It's gone down as our quote for China because the guy said it like he really believed it.
Day two was the reason for the tour stopping in Xi'an and our number two reason for coming to China, the Terracotta Warriors.
Back in 1976 a group of local farmers discovered the hidden warriors whilst digging a well. Only one of them actually realised there importance, he is now really quite famous and very rich.
Pit one was the main excurvation site and contains hundreds of terrecotta statues. It was enclosed in what looked like a massive aircraft hanger and had about 11 trenches that held the remains and restored warriors.
The first day we had there was a free day and with both of us feeling a little under the weather, a 13km bike ride round the city wall or a city trek didn't appeal so we opted for the expensive option (or at least by the time we finished) the muslim quarter market.
We once again put our hard bargaining skills into action and picked many of the items we wanted (we just wonder now how Tesco will react to our skills when we return).
I picked a Mont Blanc pen (real Mont Blanc is very, very, very expensive) and the trader said to us whilst negotiating "more money, it's Mont Blanc" we both turned to him and had to point out, "it's not Mont Blanc, it's fake!". It's gone down as our quote for China because the guy said it like he really believed it.
Day two was the reason for the tour stopping in Xi'an and our number two reason for coming to China, the Terracotta Warriors.
Back in 1976 a group of local farmers discovered the hidden warriors whilst digging a well. Only one of them actually realised there importance, he is now really quite famous and very rich.
Pit one was the main excurvation site and contains hundreds of terrecotta statues. It was enclosed in what looked like a massive aircraft hanger and had about 11 trenches that held the remains and restored warriors.
The other pits were smaller with not as many statues but was no less impressive.
There was a 360 degree cinema that told the story of why the terracotta army was built and how they were destroyed during the peasants revault.
On the way out there were loads of hawkers trying to sell replica warriors and despite having already bought some in Xi'an, I still tried to bargain them down to 2RMB (13p) but the lowest they would go was 3RMB so we left empty handed (much to Samantha's delight).
There was a 360 degree cinema that told the story of why the terracotta army was built and how they were destroyed during the peasants revault.
On the way out there were loads of hawkers trying to sell replica warriors and despite having already bought some in Xi'an, I still tried to bargain them down to 2RMB (13p) but the lowest they would go was 3RMB so we left empty handed (much to Samantha's delight).
Yangtze River Cruise Day 3
The last day of the cruise and our final excursion was the Fengdu or Ghost City. Fengdu links the mortal world with the afterlife/heaven or hell.
We had to climb 600 steps to get to Fengdu, which was of course situated at the top of a steep hill. I climbed the steps with the aid of some red bull, which we had to haggle for because the woman wanted 2 quid for it (this is China not England), we paid around 50p for it in the end.
Our guide told us that it would take about 30mins to climb all 600 steps and reach the top, but he then shot off like a rocket whilst the rest of us wheezed, panted and sweated behind him, trying to keep up. The result was we reached the top in less than 15mins.
Once we reached the top there were 3 tests that had to be completed which would determine if you were a good person and go to heaven.
1st test - Run up a flight of stairs in one breath
2nd test - Walk through the ghost corridor looking straight ahead. Men had to enter left foot first and women right foot first.
3rd test - Balancing on either left foot (men) or right foot (women) for at least 3secs whilst looking straight ahead at the temple of the underworld.
Luckily me and Alan passed all these tests and can go to heaven.
There were also 2 bridges that had to be crossed and these had special meanings.
Bridge 1 - Had to be crossed in 9 steps - left side for men and right side for women. If you are married and want to be together in the afterlife as well, then you crossed the bridge together holding hands. Me and Alan crossed the bridge side by side.
Health or Wealth bridges - Depending on what you most desired you crossed the bridge in as many steps as possible. We both chose to cross the health bridge.
Back on board ship, we had a relaxing rest of the day. The evening entertainment was a cabaret show with performances by each of the tour groups. Our group didn't participate as mostly our group consisted of accountants in many shapes and forms and they are not known for their talents. We were kept very entertained by the Americans singing "Old Macdonald had a farm".
We had to climb 600 steps to get to Fengdu, which was of course situated at the top of a steep hill. I climbed the steps with the aid of some red bull, which we had to haggle for because the woman wanted 2 quid for it (this is China not England), we paid around 50p for it in the end.
Our guide told us that it would take about 30mins to climb all 600 steps and reach the top, but he then shot off like a rocket whilst the rest of us wheezed, panted and sweated behind him, trying to keep up. The result was we reached the top in less than 15mins.
Once we reached the top there were 3 tests that had to be completed which would determine if you were a good person and go to heaven.
1st test - Run up a flight of stairs in one breath
2nd test - Walk through the ghost corridor looking straight ahead. Men had to enter left foot first and women right foot first.
3rd test - Balancing on either left foot (men) or right foot (women) for at least 3secs whilst looking straight ahead at the temple of the underworld.
Luckily me and Alan passed all these tests and can go to heaven.
There were also 2 bridges that had to be crossed and these had special meanings.
Bridge 1 - Had to be crossed in 9 steps - left side for men and right side for women. If you are married and want to be together in the afterlife as well, then you crossed the bridge together holding hands. Me and Alan crossed the bridge side by side.
Health or Wealth bridges - Depending on what you most desired you crossed the bridge in as many steps as possible. We both chose to cross the health bridge.
Back on board ship, we had a relaxing rest of the day. The evening entertainment was a cabaret show with performances by each of the tour groups. Our group didn't participate as mostly our group consisted of accountants in many shapes and forms and they are not known for their talents. We were kept very entertained by the Americans singing "Old Macdonald had a farm".
Yangtze River Cruise Day 2
Our second day on the boat started with an earlier morning than the previous day, for our boat ride up the Shennong stream.
For our trip up the stream we had to transfer into two different boats. The first of which was a fairly large boat that carried a number of groups including ours.
As we travelled along the stream we saw some of the best scenery that the Xiling gorge had to offer. The main sight was the hanging coffins, these were coffins that had been lodged in crevices in the gorge walls and that date back two thousand years. Many of the coffins have been removed ready for the dam flooding next year.
At the top of the stream we changed into a much smaller boat that only accommodated our group. These boats were paddled upstream by a five strong crew until the river got shallow enough for them to jump out and pull the boats. Traditionally the crew would have dragged the boats in the buff to prevent chaffing but thankfully due to tourists influence our guys were fully clothed, also some other crew only wore pants and shirts.
We had a ready nice guide would spoke very good english and told us all about the Tujia minority people and the stream. On the way back she sung for us and tried to sell us her local CD of songs.
After getting off the boat there was a small market where we pick up some small pressies and in line with my mission to pay less than other people, we did managed to pay less than Becs one of our fellow travellers (however a couple days later Paul got some cheaper, doh).
For our trip up the stream we had to transfer into two different boats. The first of which was a fairly large boat that carried a number of groups including ours.
As we travelled along the stream we saw some of the best scenery that the Xiling gorge had to offer. The main sight was the hanging coffins, these were coffins that had been lodged in crevices in the gorge walls and that date back two thousand years. Many of the coffins have been removed ready for the dam flooding next year.
At the top of the stream we changed into a much smaller boat that only accommodated our group. These boats were paddled upstream by a five strong crew until the river got shallow enough for them to jump out and pull the boats. Traditionally the crew would have dragged the boats in the buff to prevent chaffing but thankfully due to tourists influence our guys were fully clothed, also some other crew only wore pants and shirts.
We had a ready nice guide would spoke very good english and told us all about the Tujia minority people and the stream. On the way back she sung for us and tried to sell us her local CD of songs.
After getting off the boat there was a small market where we pick up some small pressies and in line with my mission to pay less than other people, we did managed to pay less than Becs one of our fellow travellers (however a couple days later Paul got some cheaper, doh).
Back on the cruise boat we had a really nice lunch before our afternoon of chilling out.
Yangtze River Cruise Day 1
The Yangtze river cruise was one of the things I was most looking forward too when we booked this tour through China.
The first day of the cruise started at 7am, when we went up to the top deck to watch the ship enter the first gorge - Xiling (said shilling) gorge. We were offered green tea and coffee to help wake us up as it was so early.
At 8.30am it was time to go ashore for our first excursion - the three gorges dam. We got a very close view of the outside of the dam, unfortunately the turbines are now enclosed so we were unable to see any of the inner workings of the hydroelectric dam. The dam wasn't supposed to be finished for at least another 2/3 years, but the efficiency of the chinese workers means that the dam should be finished and fully operational by the end of 2008.
The three gorges dam is an amazing feat of engineering and it is huge. It encorporates a 5 step ship lock and very soon with have a working ship elevator. It takes on average 4hrs to pass through all 5 steps of the ship lock.
When we got back on the ship it was lunch time. The buffet style meals were fantastic, with a wide variety of chinese food. We ate a lot, trying everything that was on offer.
After lunch, we entered the ship lock and our cabin got quite dark because the walls of the lock were very high. I took this opportunity to catch up on my sleep and had a 4hr nap! I was very refreshed when I woke up later and ready for the afternoon lecture on the Yangtze river.
The lecture didn't really tell us anything interesting about the Yangtze, just that it was foreign explorers that named it the Yangtze and that local chinese people know it as the "long river".
The Captain held a welcome banquet before dinner which our tour went too. We were given champayne and there were some nibbles. Unfortunately the Americans, Dutch and Germans on the ship polished off the nibbles before we could even get close, so our tour just made do with the endless champayne refills - lovely jubbly!
There was some evening entertainment in the bar - a fashion show of all the lovely silk clothes that were sold in the lobby area. The clothes were fantastic but totally made in delicate, chinese lady style, not tall, western lady style.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Longsheng
Throughout our travels we've seen some good driving, some bad driving and some damned awful driving. Our bus driver from this leg of the journey definitely fell into the last category, with all his honking, dodgy overtaking moves and general rubbish driving. But he did manage to top all that when we started on the steep section up to the rice terraces of Longsheng by getting the bus stuck on a particularly steep section and rolling backwards repeatedly towards a sheer drop. At this point virtually everyone on the bus was shouting to get off and all I could think of was the final scene of the Italian Job (the original, of course). Once the driver listened, everyone got off and he made it up that section easily.
Once at the top we were met by a larger group of so called porters who would carry our bags on the twenty minute uphill walk to our hotel. They were actually women about the size and age my granny. We were both horrified at thought of these women carrying our heavy backpacks, but we were told this is what they do to earn money and they would be highly offended if we didn't allow them to do so.
After dinner we were treated to a cultural show by the locals that consisted of singing and dancing before they plied us with rice wine (it wasn't that nice, very sweet and yeasty). People who were only sipping their wine were helped to drink quickly it by singing women.
After the wine it was time to play the local party type games, one which resembled blindman's buff and another was a kind of dancing thing, most bizarre.
The following morning we had an early start for our hike through the rice terraces. The scenery was simply breath-taking acentuated by the mist that kept rolling in and then clearing. Along the hike we saw some really cute puppies and lots locals with things to sell. We gave in to some of them and bought some postcards and a Chinese table set.
Further along the walk we were met by a group of local women, who for a small fee would let down their hair which was about 5-6 feet long.
Following the walk we had a rest and some dinner before the shame of have our bags carried back to the bus by the same little old ladies. Thankfully though a new bus with a new driver awaited us.
It was then onto our second overnight train of the trip to get to Wuchang on our way to Licheng and the Yangtze river boat cruise.
Once at the top we were met by a larger group of so called porters who would carry our bags on the twenty minute uphill walk to our hotel. They were actually women about the size and age my granny. We were both horrified at thought of these women carrying our heavy backpacks, but we were told this is what they do to earn money and they would be highly offended if we didn't allow them to do so.
After dinner we were treated to a cultural show by the locals that consisted of singing and dancing before they plied us with rice wine (it wasn't that nice, very sweet and yeasty). People who were only sipping their wine were helped to drink quickly it by singing women.
After the wine it was time to play the local party type games, one which resembled blindman's buff and another was a kind of dancing thing, most bizarre.
The following morning we had an early start for our hike through the rice terraces. The scenery was simply breath-taking acentuated by the mist that kept rolling in and then clearing. Along the hike we saw some really cute puppies and lots locals with things to sell. We gave in to some of them and bought some postcards and a Chinese table set.
Further along the walk we were met by a group of local women, who for a small fee would let down their hair which was about 5-6 feet long.
Following the walk we had a rest and some dinner before the shame of have our bags carried back to the bus by the same little old ladies. Thankfully though a new bus with a new driver awaited us.
It was then onto our second overnight train of the trip to get to Wuchang on our way to Licheng and the Yangtze river boat cruise.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Yangshou
WOW - China is amazing!
We overnight train'd it to Guilin and then got a bus to Yangshou. We were both shattered from not sleeping to well on a train but the scenery was enough to keep me awake. It was lush and green with lots of craggy, mountains appearing from no where.
When we arrived in Yangshou, there was just enough time for a shower and breakfast before our chinese lesson. This lesson was 1hr long and we were taught a few words and phrases in Mandarin (chinese). Alan can order us a 2 bottles of cold beer - which is very important.
Alan and I spent the afternoon browsing the market stalls and wandering down to the river. The scenery there was amazing, water buffalo grazing on the other side of the river and little chinese people sailing down the river on bamboo rafts.
We had an early night because we had an early start in the morning. Vicki wanted us all up at 5.30am for a 6am bike ride around Yangshou. I think we were up before the birds.
It was quite hard going in some places because the nice, smooth road turned to stoney, uneven dirt track very quickly, once we got out of town. But the views and scenery were stunning! I spent quite alot of time being worried that I was going to fall off my bike, but I was ok. The only minor incident I was involved with was when Anne-Marie (South African) rode her bike up an incline trying to pass me and fell off her bike into me - not chuffed!
Our bike ride was approx 3hrs in total, we did stop briefly for some brekkie but we did cycle for 3hrs. We arrived back in Yangshou absolutely shattered but it was so worth the effort and the early start.
We overnight train'd it to Guilin and then got a bus to Yangshou. We were both shattered from not sleeping to well on a train but the scenery was enough to keep me awake. It was lush and green with lots of craggy, mountains appearing from no where.
When we arrived in Yangshou, there was just enough time for a shower and breakfast before our chinese lesson. This lesson was 1hr long and we were taught a few words and phrases in Mandarin (chinese). Alan can order us a 2 bottles of cold beer - which is very important.
Alan and I spent the afternoon browsing the market stalls and wandering down to the river. The scenery there was amazing, water buffalo grazing on the other side of the river and little chinese people sailing down the river on bamboo rafts.
We had an early night because we had an early start in the morning. Vicki wanted us all up at 5.30am for a 6am bike ride around Yangshou. I think we were up before the birds.
It was quite hard going in some places because the nice, smooth road turned to stoney, uneven dirt track very quickly, once we got out of town. But the views and scenery were stunning! I spent quite alot of time being worried that I was going to fall off my bike, but I was ok. The only minor incident I was involved with was when Anne-Marie (South African) rode her bike up an incline trying to pass me and fell off her bike into me - not chuffed!
Our bike ride was approx 3hrs in total, we did stop briefly for some brekkie but we did cycle for 3hrs. We arrived back in Yangshou absolutely shattered but it was so worth the effort and the early start.
Start of the Hong Kong to Beijing tour
After a great 11 days resting with Alan's Auntie and Uncle, it was time for our final tour! We were both a bit apprehensive about this tour as so many people had told us alot of horrible stories about China, and the horrible habits of the chinese people. But we decided to go with our minds open and our expectations low.
Our tour leader is Vicki, a fellow Brit working in the Far East.
Our tour group consists of 10 Irish, 4 Brits, 2 South Africans and 2 Aussies. 8 of them came as one group which to us spelt trouble from the start, as large groups within a large group can split the group overall.
Everyone seemed very nice, but unfortunately nobody appeared to want to go out for a "getting to know you" session on the first night.
Our tour leader is Vicki, a fellow Brit working in the Far East.
Our tour group consists of 10 Irish, 4 Brits, 2 South Africans and 2 Aussies. 8 of them came as one group which to us spelt trouble from the start, as large groups within a large group can split the group overall.
Everyone seemed very nice, but unfortunately nobody appeared to want to go out for a "getting to know you" session on the first night.
Further Honkers
We had to pick our visas on the Wednesday, so we figured whilst we were out we would have another crack at making it to the botanical gardens.
With visas collected, we started making our way to the gardens, however the map in the lonely planet guide gave no indication of the steep hill we had to climb to get there (I think they should mark hills in future). We arrived out of breath and dying for a drink, our saviour lay in the small cafe just inside the gates. A nice cold drink and a half hour sit down was heaven.
The main reason for visiting the botanical gardens weren't the flowers and trees (they're all a bit boring), it was the animals as they have a small zoo (with free entry!). There were avaries full of exotic birds like toucans and also a jaguar (not the car) in one section and in another section they had frisky tortoises and lots of different types of primates. I'm sure there were a few familar faces amongst the primates (mum, dad, Helen....etc).
Uncle Tom and Auntie Valerie took us out in the evening to a Chinese restaurant called the American Club which was a bit of a weird name. The food their was amazing, we shared quite a few dishes including minced pigeon with nuts which actually really nice.
With visas collected, we started making our way to the gardens, however the map in the lonely planet guide gave no indication of the steep hill we had to climb to get there (I think they should mark hills in future). We arrived out of breath and dying for a drink, our saviour lay in the small cafe just inside the gates. A nice cold drink and a half hour sit down was heaven.
The main reason for visiting the botanical gardens weren't the flowers and trees (they're all a bit boring), it was the animals as they have a small zoo (with free entry!). There were avaries full of exotic birds like toucans and also a jaguar (not the car) in one section and in another section they had frisky tortoises and lots of different types of primates. I'm sure there were a few familar faces amongst the primates (mum, dad, Helen....etc).
Uncle Tom and Auntie Valerie took us out in the evening to a Chinese restaurant called the American Club which was a bit of a weird name. The food their was amazing, we shared quite a few dishes including minced pigeon with nuts which actually really nice.
We then experienced the Wan Chi area at night which looks totally different when all the bars are open with their neon signs illuminated. As it was ladies night the bars were full of Cantonese women and some of them gave it a seedy Phuket feel.
We were told by my Auntie that one of the Island's main attractions was the peak. So we decide to visit on what turned out to be the merkiest day of our whole time in Hong Kong. My Auntie was quick to remind me what she had said when we first arrived and we realised she wasn't exaggerating at all.
Having made the trip up the peak we decided to spent some time walking around, but after an hour we gave up as you could not even see across the harbour (lesson learnt always listen to those that know best).
My Auntie took us to Stanley on the other side of Hong Kong Island on Saturday to see the greener, more chilled out Hong Kong. It was a complete change to all the skyscrapers of the harbour area. There was a cool little market we had a look round with the hope of finding some rugby shirts but they had sold out of All Black shirts.
On our last night we took the whole family out for a meal at the Chilli Club, a nice Thai resturant to say thank you for having us.
We were told by my Auntie that one of the Island's main attractions was the peak. So we decide to visit on what turned out to be the merkiest day of our whole time in Hong Kong. My Auntie was quick to remind me what she had said when we first arrived and we realised she wasn't exaggerating at all.
Having made the trip up the peak we decided to spent some time walking around, but after an hour we gave up as you could not even see across the harbour (lesson learnt always listen to those that know best).
My Auntie took us to Stanley on the other side of Hong Kong Island on Saturday to see the greener, more chilled out Hong Kong. It was a complete change to all the skyscrapers of the harbour area. There was a cool little market we had a look round with the hope of finding some rugby shirts but they had sold out of All Black shirts.
On our last night we took the whole family out for a meal at the Chilli Club, a nice Thai resturant to say thank you for having us.
Disneyland HK
There comes a time in every 27/28 year olds life when they just have to spend the day at Disneyland. Lucky for us there is one in Hong Kong.
We arrived in style on a train with Mickey Mouse windows, which was very exciting and really got us in the mood for visiting the magical wonderland.
As soon as we were through the gates we saw our first celebrities; Mickey and Minnie Mouse. We could hardly contain ourselves but we carried on to our first ride which was the Jungle River cruise (which we went on twice). That was pretty awesome and we got a bit wet from the special effects.
Unfortunately Hong Kong weather is unpredictable and the heavens opened twice and everywhere got a soaking. Luckily we found shelter in the 3D cinema cartoon show, the carosel and the Winnie the Pooh ride.
We watched the superb Lion King Show, which was 30mins and a short recap with songs of the Lion King story. It was excellent. The Golden Mickeys (or Mikeys if your cantonese) was a little strange, because the whole performance was in cantonese with english subtitles on a television screen and all the songs the performers sang were in english.
We had a great day all in all, we went on all the rides at least twice and got soaked in Mickeys mid day parade. We stayed right until the end to watch the fireworks at Sleeping Beauty's castle - these were spectacular and set to music from Beauty and the Beast, Aladin and Mulan. We videoed the whole thing.
We arrived in style on a train with Mickey Mouse windows, which was very exciting and really got us in the mood for visiting the magical wonderland.
As soon as we were through the gates we saw our first celebrities; Mickey and Minnie Mouse. We could hardly contain ourselves but we carried on to our first ride which was the Jungle River cruise (which we went on twice). That was pretty awesome and we got a bit wet from the special effects.
Unfortunately Hong Kong weather is unpredictable and the heavens opened twice and everywhere got a soaking. Luckily we found shelter in the 3D cinema cartoon show, the carosel and the Winnie the Pooh ride.
We watched the superb Lion King Show, which was 30mins and a short recap with songs of the Lion King story. It was excellent. The Golden Mickeys (or Mikeys if your cantonese) was a little strange, because the whole performance was in cantonese with english subtitles on a television screen and all the songs the performers sang were in english.
We had a great day all in all, we went on all the rides at least twice and got soaked in Mickeys mid day parade. We stayed right until the end to watch the fireworks at Sleeping Beauty's castle - these were spectacular and set to music from Beauty and the Beast, Aladin and Mulan. We videoed the whole thing.
Hong Kong
After 21 years of saying I wanted going to Hong Kong to visit my Auntie and Uncle, I finally made it. We had a short ride on the airport shuttle before we were met by my Uncle Tom, the first familiar person we'd seen in quite some months.
A few hours after arriving at my Auntie and Uncle's apartment, they took us up onto the roof of their building to see Hong Kong at night, it was a totally amazing view. My auntie insisted that we were lucky to see it so clear, as it was usually misty, but we thought she was exaggerating.
A few hours after arriving at my Auntie and Uncle's apartment, they took us up onto the roof of their building to see Hong Kong at night, it was a totally amazing view. My auntie insisted that we were lucky to see it so clear, as it was usually misty, but we thought she was exaggerating.
Our first day started out with arranging our Chinese visas, which took us to the Wan Chi area. Where we had a look around the harbour area and some of the shops.
In the evening Auntie Valerie took us to their football club to watch my cousin Tom play football. He was very good and scored two goals in their 5-1 victory.
The next day we made our way to central Hong Kong to explore the area, however it was more office buildings and shops than anything to see. So we jumped on the harbour circular ferry and spent an hour seeing Hong Kong from the water. On the ferry we were approached by a local artist who gave us a Chinese painting of our names (for free).
On our third day we had planned to go to the botanical gardens, unfortunately as soon as we had made it down the driveway towards the bus it started raining. Hoping and praying it was only a shower we continued on, caught the bus and then the tram but when we arrived at Central it was raining more than ever, so we abandoned the gardens and caught the tram back again.
Not wanting to give up on the whole day, we bought a cheap umbrella from the 7eleven and walked around the Causeway Bay area and got some lunch in a very Cantonese restaurant (Cantonese food isn't that great).
Follow the disaster of the previous day we opted for an indoor option, so we ventured over to the mainland of Kowloon and visited the space museum. The space museum was surprising good with lots of excellent displays and some cool interactive exhibits to have a go on.
After we had finished at the museum we made our way down to the Temple Street night market. We had fun bargaining in the market for a few small nik-naks for the family back home and for Samantha.
Friday, September 07, 2007
Phuket
Unfortunately due to the fact I was a little unwell we had to change our plans for getting to Phuket, instead of taking the overnight train we ended up flying (much to Samantha delight).
Anyway after a doggy taxi right we arrived in Patong beach where we were staying. Our first impressions weren't too bad it seemed fairly nice however within a few hours our view had changed. It would seem that for single men all they had to do was hire a moped and they got a free Thai lady to sit on the back and take around. The whole place was fill with expat bars and young Thai girls... well seedy.
However the hotel was nice even though we appeared to be the only ones there and their restaurant was only open for breakfast.
On our last day in Phuket we met up with Louise from our tour, she had been up to Chang Mai and come down to Phuket for a few days. We showed her the highlights of Patong beach (that took all of 30 seconds) and we went for dinner.
For the return journey to Bangkok we did manage to go by train although I think we had a learner driver judging by the way he crashed the train around.
Anyway after a doggy taxi right we arrived in Patong beach where we were staying. Our first impressions weren't too bad it seemed fairly nice however within a few hours our view had changed. It would seem that for single men all they had to do was hire a moped and they got a free Thai lady to sit on the back and take around. The whole place was fill with expat bars and young Thai girls... well seedy.
However the hotel was nice even though we appeared to be the only ones there and their restaurant was only open for breakfast.
On our last day in Phuket we met up with Louise from our tour, she had been up to Chang Mai and come down to Phuket for a few days. We showed her the highlights of Patong beach (that took all of 30 seconds) and we went for dinner.
For the return journey to Bangkok we did manage to go by train although I think we had a learner driver judging by the way he crashed the train around.
End of the tour
The last day of the tour. All good things have to come to an end and we have had the most amazing time and made so many good friends.
After only 6hrs sleep we dragged ourselves out of bed as we had arranged to go and see the Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha with Dan and Laura. The best time to go is early, before it gets too hot although the heat was still incredibly overbearing when we got there at 9am.
The Emerald Buddha is quite hard to see as it's 9ft high in the air. We watched people praying to it for a while and then I bought the 4 postcards of the buddha in his 3 seasonal outfits.
The grounds of the Grand Palace were bright and colourful. It was an astonishingly beautiful place but because most of the buildings were painted white, it made it very, very hot!
After only 6hrs sleep we dragged ourselves out of bed as we had arranged to go and see the Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha with Dan and Laura. The best time to go is early, before it gets too hot although the heat was still incredibly overbearing when we got there at 9am.
The Emerald Buddha is quite hard to see as it's 9ft high in the air. We watched people praying to it for a while and then I bought the 4 postcards of the buddha in his 3 seasonal outfits.
The grounds of the Grand Palace were bright and colourful. It was an astonishingly beautiful place but because most of the buildings were painted white, it made it very, very hot!
Bangkok
We arrived in Bangkok at 6.30am after an interesting night on the train. I think I woke up everytime the train stopped, which felt like every 10 mins. So its fair to say we were both pretty tired.
Our first stop of the day was at the floating market, this was an amazing market that was both on land and on the canals. We were taken by boat along the canals to look at the floating stalls first, this was only supposed to take 40 mins max, but ended up being almost an hour because we got caught in a gridlock situation. I bought a purse and new handbag at the market - I haggled hard and managed to buy my bag 10baht cheaper than Becci and Laura. I could have bought lots of things but thankfully I don't have the room for them.
We were then dropped off at the hotel and I went for a little snooze to recharge my batteries, as we had a BIG last evening planned!
We went for dinner at a street cafe, the food was delicious. We were then picked up from the cafe and taken to the Calypso hotel for the ladyboy show.
The ladyboy show was cheesy and fabulous! It consisted of post-op transexuals and pre-op transvestites and they looked absolutely amazing. They mimed ( sometimes really badly) to all the songs including "I am what I am" - a Shirley Bassey classic I think, and danced or pranced around the stage in some very skimpy little numbers. The show was well worth going to see and we got to have a few photos with them after - most of the fellas didn't seem too keen on having there pictures taken with the ladyboys.
Debs then took us to one of her favorite places for a beer - a Shell garage. Oh yes, we were all nervously sipping beer and cocktails by the petrol pumps (although we are not sure if it was an actual working petrol station) with candles on the tables. After a couple of drinks we trundled off down into the Khao San road area and ended up in a club shaking our stuff.
Our first stop of the day was at the floating market, this was an amazing market that was both on land and on the canals. We were taken by boat along the canals to look at the floating stalls first, this was only supposed to take 40 mins max, but ended up being almost an hour because we got caught in a gridlock situation. I bought a purse and new handbag at the market - I haggled hard and managed to buy my bag 10baht cheaper than Becci and Laura. I could have bought lots of things but thankfully I don't have the room for them.
We were then dropped off at the hotel and I went for a little snooze to recharge my batteries, as we had a BIG last evening planned!
We went for dinner at a street cafe, the food was delicious. We were then picked up from the cafe and taken to the Calypso hotel for the ladyboy show.
The ladyboy show was cheesy and fabulous! It consisted of post-op transexuals and pre-op transvestites and they looked absolutely amazing. They mimed ( sometimes really badly) to all the songs including "I am what I am" - a Shirley Bassey classic I think, and danced or pranced around the stage in some very skimpy little numbers. The show was well worth going to see and we got to have a few photos with them after - most of the fellas didn't seem too keen on having there pictures taken with the ladyboys.
Debs then took us to one of her favorite places for a beer - a Shell garage. Oh yes, we were all nervously sipping beer and cocktails by the petrol pumps (although we are not sure if it was an actual working petrol station) with candles on the tables. After a couple of drinks we trundled off down into the Khao San road area and ended up in a club shaking our stuff.
Koh Pha Ngan
We had four days on the island of Koh Pha Ngan and our first impression of the area we were staying in was pure paradise. Upon arriving we all gathered in the restaurant where we were given a welcome coconut drink.
The weather was really hot on the island so we made a bee line straight for the beach and just like in Fiji the best place to sit was in the sea. After we'd been sitting in the sea chatting for a while Laura and Samantha decide we should all get buckets (these are buckets of cocktails containing whisky, redbull and coke) from the beach bar. As the buckets went down things deteriorated into drinking games, never good.
The weather was really hot on the island so we made a bee line straight for the beach and just like in Fiji the best place to sit was in the sea. After we'd been sitting in the sea chatting for a while Laura and Samantha decide we should all get buckets (these are buckets of cocktails containing whisky, redbull and coke) from the beach bar. As the buckets went down things deteriorated into drinking games, never good.
Our second day was spent mostly chilling out sunbathing and recovering from the buckets the day before. The highight was to be a sunset fishing tip that everyone had signed up for, except we found when we went to pay just before the trip they had doubled the price and as much as Debs tried they wouldn't take us for the original price.
The third day was the most energetic day of the whole tour (at least for the boys). The boys spent the whole morning playing bat and ball on the beach and in the sea, once suitably knackered it was time for lunch. Meanwhile the girls were very busy lying on the beach and reading. After lunch thought Samantha did come out kayaking with us although we shared a twin kayak and I think most of the momentum came fron me.
On our last full day on the island the heavens opened and the day was a bit of a wash out however we did manage a few social games of cards sat in the restaurant area.
By the evening the weather had drying out a little and we all decided to meet up for happy hour and then and evening meal.
The next morning we were all very sad to be leaving as everyone thought Koh Pha Ngan was the highlight of the tour.
The third day was the most energetic day of the whole tour (at least for the boys). The boys spent the whole morning playing bat and ball on the beach and in the sea, once suitably knackered it was time for lunch. Meanwhile the girls were very busy lying on the beach and reading. After lunch thought Samantha did come out kayaking with us although we shared a twin kayak and I think most of the momentum came fron me.
On our last full day on the island the heavens opened and the day was a bit of a wash out however we did manage a few social games of cards sat in the restaurant area.
By the evening the weather had drying out a little and we all decided to meet up for happy hour and then and evening meal.
The next morning we were all very sad to be leaving as everyone thought Koh Pha Ngan was the highlight of the tour.
Penang
We arrived in Penang fairly late, so our first evening consisted of Debs taking us on a short walk around the centre of Penang, so we could get our bearings. She took us to a Mosque (but we weren't allowed in there as most of us weren't appropriately dressed), a Hindu temple (we got shown around and a R.E lesson) and we watched a bit of a play in the chinese temple.
After all that religious education we went to "Little India" for a curry. We are not fans of indian curries but Debs advised us what to order and we both really enjoyed it.
The next day was spent at Penang Hill with some of our group. The view of Penang is supposed to be amazing and the bits we saw through the smog and haze was very nice. It took 45 mins by train to get to the top of the hill - it was incredibly steep. We had a little wander around at the top, looking for monkeys and avoiding the huge snakes that this bloke was foisting on people so they could have their pictures taken with it.
We decided it would be a good idea to take the local bus back to the hotel - but that ended up taking over an hour instead of 25 mins because 2 people couldn't decide whether to get on the bus.
We all went for dinner at the North Beach cafe and ordered some lovely malaysian food - pizza and beer.
After all that religious education we went to "Little India" for a curry. We are not fans of indian curries but Debs advised us what to order and we both really enjoyed it.
The next day was spent at Penang Hill with some of our group. The view of Penang is supposed to be amazing and the bits we saw through the smog and haze was very nice. It took 45 mins by train to get to the top of the hill - it was incredibly steep. We had a little wander around at the top, looking for monkeys and avoiding the huge snakes that this bloke was foisting on people so they could have their pictures taken with it.
We decided it would be a good idea to take the local bus back to the hotel - but that ended up taking over an hour instead of 25 mins because 2 people couldn't decide whether to get on the bus.
We all went for dinner at the North Beach cafe and ordered some lovely malaysian food - pizza and beer.
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