We have arrived at our final destination!
Today, we had a very busy day! We started by visiting the Forbidden City which was extremely impressive and bigger than we had imagined! We then moved on to Tiananmen Square which was also massive and full of police and guards which gave it a rather regimented atmosphere. We were going to see Mao's pickled body but soon changed our minds upon seeing the queue which must have stretched for more than a kilometre! Amy insists we will be back on Monday... Then we headed to the Temple of Heaven (again on foot!) and this was slightly further from Tiananmen than we thought! The Temple was set in beautiful grounds, which were peaceful and a welcome escape from the crowds of the Forbidden City. After walking all day, we decided to try out the brand new metro system which was fantastic!! We paid just 20p for a journey which can be as long as you want it to be! Definitely using it on Monday when we hope to visit the Summer Palace and the Olympic Park :). Great Wall tomorrow!
The Great Wall was fabulous. We walked with our guide Lucky from the Jinshanling section to the Simatai section. The views were fantastic- you could see the wall stretch away over the ridge of the mountains into the distance. It was a 10km walk up and down steps but it was very relaxed as we kept stopping to rest in the sunshine (more for Lucky's benefit than ours!).
In the evening we went out with a few new friends for our Beijing Duck dinner which was delicious. We tested the buses which are even cheaper than the metro! We were the last to leave the restaurant and we witnessed all the staff eat their meal together- they were super fast!
Today we went to the Summer Palace and the Olympic Park. We were using the metro again, and of course walking. I think we exhausted the girl who joined us (she is now having a lie-down in our room.....) who didn't understand why we walked a few k to the metro instead of taking a taxi! The Summer Palace was lovely. 3/4 of the grounds is a large lake. we also found the 'long corridor' which is said to be the longest in the world, stretching over 728m. It was a sunny day but much colder- lots of Chinese people stared at George in her flipflops (don't ask)! The Olympic Park was very grand and we were impressed by the Birds Nest stadium but overall we thought it was a bit of a waste. Plus the same two songs were played on loudspeaker over and over again!
I was disappointed not to get to see the pickle today but unfortunately we ran out of time. I'm not sure George felt the same way... We are both looking forward to going home but at the same time it's sad our tour is now over.
:(
We will post photos of China on here when we get home.
Friday, 20 March 2009
Thursday, 19 March 2009
Yangshuo
Yesterday was our FREE day! We had a day to recover from our long cycle ride and explore Yangshuo. We had the first lie-in for as long as we could remember which was nice :) Down by the river, where we had planned to read our books, we were immediately pounced on by a Chinese man wanting to practice his English..2 hrs later, we made our excuses and escaped! We also visited Yangshuo Park where we enjoyed watching some Martial Arts lessons, and climbed up one of the smaller Kaarst Peaks to a small pagoda which gave great views over the town and the Li River. In the evening, we met some foreigners who were teaching English in a local school and had fun playing them at pool and table football!
Today we got back on our bikes to cycle out of Yangshou on some tiny dirt tracks. We got to see some of the smaller villages down the Yulong river. It was interesting to see the more traditional way of life in the area. After about 20km, we left the bikes and headed out on our mystery trek back to Yangshuo. Our guide had found the route by mistake a year or so ago, and it was pleasantly off the beaten track. Literally- the local villagers would point at the mountains and tell us it was not possible to cross them! But we did, taking some goat tracks and old stone paths that hadn't been used in ages. Luckily our guide had brought along his secateurs!
The walk was amazing. Unlike the rest of China, none of the land was being used- it was a complete wilderness and very peaceful. The only living things we saw were a few goats and a random man with a pet bird in a cage (!).
Today we got back on our bikes to cycle out of Yangshou on some tiny dirt tracks. We got to see some of the smaller villages down the Yulong river. It was interesting to see the more traditional way of life in the area. After about 20km, we left the bikes and headed out on our mystery trek back to Yangshuo. Our guide had found the route by mistake a year or so ago, and it was pleasantly off the beaten track. Literally- the local villagers would point at the mountains and tell us it was not possible to cross them! But we did, taking some goat tracks and old stone paths that hadn't been used in ages. Luckily our guide had brought along his secateurs!
The walk was amazing. Unlike the rest of China, none of the land was being used- it was a complete wilderness and very peaceful. The only living things we saw were a few goats and a random man with a pet bird in a cage (!).
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
On to Yangshuo
Then our marathon bike ride adventure began! We cycled 60km from Guilin to a little town called Xing Ping on the Li River. We started early and stopped in a village for some rice noodles for breakfast which were delicious. The scenery was fantastic, especially when we were out of the towns and cycling between the Kaarst Peaks. However, this also meant a huge hill, which Amy somehow managed to go up in third gear and wondered why it was so hard...oh dear. We both made it though, which is more than I can say for our guide who hitched a ride in the car!! We went through lots of small farming villages and it was a great way to see the "real" China. The road wasn't at all busy, though we did run into a herd of goats and a few buffalo which the villagers use to plough their fields ready for the rice. The fact that no other tourists do this route made it even more special (most are not crazy enough to cycle 60km and instead choose a leisurely cruise down the river to Yangshuo...so lazy). In Xing Ping, we went to the spot where the image on the 20 yuan note comes from, which was rather cool. We stayed in a really nice hostel and made our first friend in China! She was equally excited to see us and we stayed up late talking. It was nice to meet someone new our age who spoke English, a rarity in China where nearly all tourists are Chinese.
Today, we had some delicious vegetable noodle soup for breakfast with our new friend, before getting back on our bikes. This was a rather painful experience to say the least. Fortunately the ride today was only about 20 km and mostly flat. All the villagers were out in the fields, very busy getting ready for the rainy season when they grow the rice. We just thought we would mention that we also saw a lot of puppies around the streets, though not many dogs. We found out why when we were offered dog meat with our noodles at lunch...We opted for beans and pork! These noodles were by far the best noodles we have ever had. MMM! After lunch, we took a bamboo raft up the river to a little village called Liugong. There were no other tourists there which was lovely and we enjoyed just wandering along the narrow streets seeing how the villagers live. They were all really friendly, especially the children who would shout "hallooo" when they saw us! We cycled the last 3 km to Yangshuo where we are staying for the next 2 nights. The town is a haven for backpackers and has a very relaxed feel to it. We like it here :) We found a cute little cafe for dinner where we had some yummy fried rice with chicken, and cheesecake for pudding!!
We seem to have given the wrong idea about the food on the blog! We just wanted to stress the fact that the food here is actually very good. So far our favourites have to be the bean noodles we had today, chinese cabbage, soy beans, dumplings, duck, beans with pork and I like the tea!
Today, we had some delicious vegetable noodle soup for breakfast with our new friend, before getting back on our bikes. This was a rather painful experience to say the least. Fortunately the ride today was only about 20 km and mostly flat. All the villagers were out in the fields, very busy getting ready for the rainy season when they grow the rice. We just thought we would mention that we also saw a lot of puppies around the streets, though not many dogs. We found out why when we were offered dog meat with our noodles at lunch...We opted for beans and pork! These noodles were by far the best noodles we have ever had. MMM! After lunch, we took a bamboo raft up the river to a little village called Liugong. There were no other tourists there which was lovely and we enjoyed just wandering along the narrow streets seeing how the villagers live. They were all really friendly, especially the children who would shout "hallooo" when they saw us! We cycled the last 3 km to Yangshuo where we are staying for the next 2 nights. The town is a haven for backpackers and has a very relaxed feel to it. We like it here :) We found a cute little cafe for dinner where we had some yummy fried rice with chicken, and cheesecake for pudding!!
We seem to have given the wrong idea about the food on the blog! We just wanted to stress the fact that the food here is actually very good. So far our favourites have to be the bean noodles we had today, chinese cabbage, soy beans, dumplings, duck, beans with pork and I like the tea!
Guilin
On Saturday we walked all the way to the bus station for the service to the airport, but got a shared taxi there instead for the same price. This meant we were ridiculously early and couldn't even check in for an hour!!!
When we arrived in Guilin in the south of China it was hot! (Well, warm anyway). We were met by our guide for the next few days who was an Aussie living in Yangshuo!
The next day we did all the touristy things to do around Guilin. First we went to the Reed Flute Caves which was designed for chinese tourists (i.e. had a laser show, coloured lighting, and even a bubble machine...!). Tacky as it may sound, it was pretty impressive. There were huge stalamites and stalagtites in strange formations. These were, of course, all named. My favourite was the 'centipede fleeing from the magic mirror', although the 'vegetable patch' comes a close second. The caverns were so big that you could easily see how 20,000 Chinese had used them to hide from the Japanese.
Next stop was Elephant Trunk Hill. Equally as touristy, though with a few less neon lights! However the Chinese managed to amuse themselves by posing for photos on the backs of some fake marble elephants kindly built for them in the river... We got some great views from the top of the hill of the Kaarst peak scenery. For those not in the know these are pointy limestone hills- for more information on the formation etc. Google it :).
We searched for about an hour and finally found an internet cafe (after remembering the correct character and feeling very proud) which was enormous and must have held over 300 computers in several rooms. These were all being used by teenagers battling monsters, but we managed to get on. We treated ourselves to some Dragon Fruit (tastes a bit like Kiwi).
When we arrived in Guilin in the south of China it was hot! (Well, warm anyway). We were met by our guide for the next few days who was an Aussie living in Yangshuo!
The next day we did all the touristy things to do around Guilin. First we went to the Reed Flute Caves which was designed for chinese tourists (i.e. had a laser show, coloured lighting, and even a bubble machine...!). Tacky as it may sound, it was pretty impressive. There were huge stalamites and stalagtites in strange formations. These were, of course, all named. My favourite was the 'centipede fleeing from the magic mirror', although the 'vegetable patch' comes a close second. The caverns were so big that you could easily see how 20,000 Chinese had used them to hide from the Japanese.
Next stop was Elephant Trunk Hill. Equally as touristy, though with a few less neon lights! However the Chinese managed to amuse themselves by posing for photos on the backs of some fake marble elephants kindly built for them in the river... We got some great views from the top of the hill of the Kaarst peak scenery. For those not in the know these are pointy limestone hills- for more information on the formation etc. Google it :).
We searched for about an hour and finally found an internet cafe (after remembering the correct character and feeling very proud) which was enormous and must have held over 300 computers in several rooms. These were all being used by teenagers battling monsters, but we managed to get on. We treated ourselves to some Dragon Fruit (tastes a bit like Kiwi).
Friday, 13 March 2009
Xian
We arrived in Xian and decided to walk to the hotel instead of taking a taxi...sound familiar?! Anyhoo it was slightly further than we thought but we managed to find it and check in... although to save money we got a double room and now I think the hotel staff believe we are...well...
Later on we went on a 2-hour long search for a supermarket and a bank, which we eventually found about 2m from each other! We were so hungry by this time that we sat on the steps outside and devoured a whole packet of Tuc biscuits, earning us more weird looks than normal.
In the afternoon we went on a bike-ride around the top of Xian city walls which gave us a good view of the city. Well, ok, of the traffic and some ugly buildings! But the walls were pretty impressive- 12m high and 18m wide at the bottom. We cut the time a bit fine and ended up racing the last few kilometers back to the start! We had our fav for dinner- pot noodles...
In the morning, we got up early (again!) and trekked to the bus station where we caught the local bus to the Terracotta Army, saving about 150yuan by avoiding the English-friendly tours. Yay! The terracotta warriors were amazing and we couln't believe how well preserved they were after spending more than 2000 years underground! We were further impressed by their weapons which we learnt they coated in Chromium to avoid corrosion, a technique only developed by Americans in 1950!! Lol!
Back in Xian, we visited the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower, where we watched a Drumming/ Bell-ringing show which made us feel very cultured :) We then headed to the Muslim Quarter where we bought dinner from various different street vendors-mmm! (Don't worry we stuck to veggie options!)
Later on we went on a 2-hour long search for a supermarket and a bank, which we eventually found about 2m from each other! We were so hungry by this time that we sat on the steps outside and devoured a whole packet of Tuc biscuits, earning us more weird looks than normal.
In the afternoon we went on a bike-ride around the top of Xian city walls which gave us a good view of the city. Well, ok, of the traffic and some ugly buildings! But the walls were pretty impressive- 12m high and 18m wide at the bottom. We cut the time a bit fine and ended up racing the last few kilometers back to the start! We had our fav for dinner- pot noodles...
In the morning, we got up early (again!) and trekked to the bus station where we caught the local bus to the Terracotta Army, saving about 150yuan by avoiding the English-friendly tours. Yay! The terracotta warriors were amazing and we couln't believe how well preserved they were after spending more than 2000 years underground! We were further impressed by their weapons which we learnt they coated in Chromium to avoid corrosion, a technique only developed by Americans in 1950!! Lol!
Back in Xian, we visited the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower, where we watched a Drumming/ Bell-ringing show which made us feel very cultured :) We then headed to the Muslim Quarter where we bought dinner from various different street vendors-mmm! (Don't worry we stuck to veggie options!)
Thursday, 12 March 2009
Huangshan
We experienced our first overnight train journey to Huangshan, which was rather luxurious as we ended up having a cabin to ourselves! We arrived in Tunxi in the morning and were met by our guide who took us to our hotel where we chilled out for a couple of hours before meeting her again to be taken around the town. She showed us the the old streets of the Tunxi District which were full of stalls targeting tourists like ourselves, and recommended some street food to sample! We then had the rest of the day to ourselves so true to form, we visited the gardens, where we were photographed, filmed and generally stared at by Chinese people. A particular group of girls followed us around, making a film of us and then finally made us pose for a picture whilst they all crowded round- crazy!! (Amy finally scared them off by getting her camera out and taking a photo of them- they didn't like that!) We then braved an internet cafe, managing (just about) to communicate that we wanted to use the internet for an hour! We had a bit of trouble with facebook which was all in Chinese. (We felt very sad when we realised that we could remember which buttons were which...)
The next day, we woke up hoping that we would be offered a continental alternative for breaky but...we were presented with dumplings and noodles- lovely but not for breakfast...just no. We took the bubble up the mountain which gave us our first spectacular views of Huangshan Mountain. We walked around the peaks, climbing up and down about a million steps! Our legs killed the next day! We were very lucky with the weather- clear blue skies both days. In the evening we walked up a peak near our hotel to catch the sunset which was beautiful.
In the morning, we went down to breakfast (after attempting to get up early for the sunrise and going back to bed when we realised our window wasn't facing due east as we thought) with some trepidation. We were led away from the buffet of delicious fruit and presented with shredded liver, frozen egg, watery rice, salty cucumber and possibly pickled cabbage. Not the best start. Luckily they then brought us some dumplings and sticky rice and beans wrapped in leaves so we were all set for the day... Back to the room for some supplimentary raisins and oreos.
We tackled two major peaks, including Lotus peak which I (Amy) would rather not repeat (it was v.steep and Chinese people tried to push you off the cliff). They didn't really (George). Ignore her- the next worse bit was going up a very steep narrow flight of steps through a crack in the cliff, and then realising I had left my gloves on Lotus peak. I didn't go back for them! Anyway, the views were awesome.
Back in Tunxi we spent a few more hours with Nicky our guide, and had a delicious meal of dumplings in soup (although George overdosed on the extra chilli...). We got on another overnight train back to Shanghai.
13hrs later, we arrived, only to get lost coming out of the station. We had a lovely meal with Dave and Angela. It felt as though we were only there a few minutes before we had to turn around again and get on ANOTHER overnight train, this time to Xian.
The next day, we woke up hoping that we would be offered a continental alternative for breaky but...we were presented with dumplings and noodles- lovely but not for breakfast...just no. We took the bubble up the mountain which gave us our first spectacular views of Huangshan Mountain. We walked around the peaks, climbing up and down about a million steps! Our legs killed the next day! We were very lucky with the weather- clear blue skies both days. In the evening we walked up a peak near our hotel to catch the sunset which was beautiful.
In the morning, we went down to breakfast (after attempting to get up early for the sunrise and going back to bed when we realised our window wasn't facing due east as we thought) with some trepidation. We were led away from the buffet of delicious fruit and presented with shredded liver, frozen egg, watery rice, salty cucumber and possibly pickled cabbage. Not the best start. Luckily they then brought us some dumplings and sticky rice and beans wrapped in leaves so we were all set for the day... Back to the room for some supplimentary raisins and oreos.
We tackled two major peaks, including Lotus peak which I (Amy) would rather not repeat (it was v.steep and Chinese people tried to push you off the cliff). They didn't really (George). Ignore her- the next worse bit was going up a very steep narrow flight of steps through a crack in the cliff, and then realising I had left my gloves on Lotus peak. I didn't go back for them! Anyway, the views were awesome.
Back in Tunxi we spent a few more hours with Nicky our guide, and had a delicious meal of dumplings in soup (although George overdosed on the extra chilli...). We got on another overnight train back to Shanghai.
13hrs later, we arrived, only to get lost coming out of the station. We had a lovely meal with Dave and Angela. It felt as though we were only there a few minutes before we had to turn around again and get on ANOTHER overnight train, this time to Xian.
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Back in Shanghai
We had a guide to take us around Shanghai and tell us a bit more about the sights. First we went up the iconic Oriental Pearl Tower (468m high), from which we got some great views. It is really close to the tallest tower in Shanghai (2nd in the world!) which looks like a bottle opener and is 492m high. From there (when we had finally got down- the crowds were insane. I think half of China had decided to visit!) we went to Yu Yuan again and actually got into the main garden this time! These were spectacular and we learnt about the significance of the dragons and the classic shape of the roofs. The guide ordered us some delicious chinese food. Next we visited the Jade Buddha temple. We saw the huge (2m) white jade buddha in the lotus position and a smaller reclining buddha. We then had a very brief stop at the Shanghai museum where we saw more jade examples and old paintings and calligraphy.
We met Dave and family and went to the Bund, the old British Concession along the waterfront. We had another lovely dinner before heading to the station to get our overnight train to Huang Shan.
We met Dave and family and went to the Bund, the old British Concession along the waterfront. We had another lovely dinner before heading to the station to get our overnight train to Huang Shan.
Saturday, 7 March 2009
Tongli
The next day we went to a traditional water village, Tongli. Unfortunaelt the information we had was out of date and we missed the only bus there so John the driver had to take us all the way. We got dropped off in the car park and got an awesome electric car ride into the village. We zoomed down the street nearly crashing into several bikes, cars and rickshaws. Obviously there were no seatbelts!
In the village we had a ticket to see about 10 attractions, but the signposts only led us to 5, we have no idea where the others were. The village was facinating and had some beautiful gardens and old houses. Each street backed onto a canal and there were many lovely bridges. We tried some more Chinese food- little pancake things for just 5p :)
In the evening we went to see the acrobats. The theatre was on Nanjing road, in a very swanky area full of designer shops. we enjoyed seeing the city all lit up. The acrobatic show was amazing. I (Amy) particularly enjoyed the ribbon dancing, and George was impressed by the display of a boy who can't have been more than 12 and who was insanely flexible.
In the village we had a ticket to see about 10 attractions, but the signposts only led us to 5, we have no idea where the others were. The village was facinating and had some beautiful gardens and old houses. Each street backed onto a canal and there were many lovely bridges. We tried some more Chinese food- little pancake things for just 5p :)
In the evening we went to see the acrobats. The theatre was on Nanjing road, in a very swanky area full of designer shops. we enjoyed seeing the city all lit up. The acrobatic show was amazing. I (Amy) particularly enjoyed the ribbon dancing, and George was impressed by the display of a boy who can't have been more than 12 and who was insanely flexible.
Shanghai
We arrived safely in China on Wednesday after a 10 hour flight from Sydney, during which we both had a marathon DVD sesh, Amy managing an impressive total of 5 films! She was very happy as Slumdog Millionaire was showing. Dave met us at the airport and we took a very fast train into Shanghai which went up to 200 km/h at night and 430 km/h during the day!! It was a bit of a shock when we came out of the station- it was freezing!!
On Thursday, first stop was the sports megastore to find a coat- v cheap! Then we went to the supermarket where we had a rather traumatic experience watching a fish being cut open whilst still alive, still flapping and gasping for breath for a long time after its head had been severed from its body! We had to try very hard to resist buying a live toad for dinner... Onto the fabric market, which was huge and sold all sorts of wonderful fabric. You could get clothes tailor-made for you and come back to pick them up the next day. The silk section was particularly interesting.
We then walked through the Old City to experience the "real" side of China which was fascinating. We attracted some strange looks from the locals though... We reached Yu Yuan Gardens where we sampled our first proper Chinese food. This was really rather scary as we hadn't a clue what anything was and there was no English anywhere. The dumplings were very yummy!
We continued to the famous People's Square where we ventured into the Urban Planning Museum..mm this was not the most thrilling place because there was no English translation and unfortunately we are not quite yet fluent in Mandarin. However the tennis court- sized model of Shanghai was pretty impressive.
We then had the daunting task of catching the metro back to Pudong and were practically lifted off our feet in the crowd of people and were once again the object of much sniggering! We had a quick look around the copy market- it is amazing what people bother copying!
Then it was time for our foot massage...mmm lovely. We had a delicious dinner out, though we have to admit that I had a lasagne and Amy had fajitas.
On Thursday, first stop was the sports megastore to find a coat- v cheap! Then we went to the supermarket where we had a rather traumatic experience watching a fish being cut open whilst still alive, still flapping and gasping for breath for a long time after its head had been severed from its body! We had to try very hard to resist buying a live toad for dinner... Onto the fabric market, which was huge and sold all sorts of wonderful fabric. You could get clothes tailor-made for you and come back to pick them up the next day. The silk section was particularly interesting.
We then walked through the Old City to experience the "real" side of China which was fascinating. We attracted some strange looks from the locals though... We reached Yu Yuan Gardens where we sampled our first proper Chinese food. This was really rather scary as we hadn't a clue what anything was and there was no English anywhere. The dumplings were very yummy!
We continued to the famous People's Square where we ventured into the Urban Planning Museum..mm this was not the most thrilling place because there was no English translation and unfortunately we are not quite yet fluent in Mandarin. However the tennis court- sized model of Shanghai was pretty impressive.
We then had the daunting task of catching the metro back to Pudong and were practically lifted off our feet in the crowd of people and were once again the object of much sniggering! We had a quick look around the copy market- it is amazing what people bother copying!
Then it was time for our foot massage...mmm lovely. We had a delicious dinner out, though we have to admit that I had a lasagne and Amy had fajitas.
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
Bondi Beach
We have survived the sharks at Bondi Beach! We went on a nice coastal walk today and beach hopped until we reached Bondi. We made the most of our last day in the sun and ate ice-creams. The waves were pretty big and we saw some amazing surfers, but decided not to join in! 12 68 77888888888888888888888777777788888888888888888888888888 7 8888888889 9990 000-0
We are staying with three boys at the moment as you can see and they have sabotaged our blog account!!
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I leave Amy alone for 1 minute.....
Oh and Amy forgot to mention that she has found her future husband in the form of a hot surfer on Bondi Beach.
Sunday, 1 March 2009
Blue Mountains
We are both absolutely knackered after our trip to the Blue Mountains but really glad we went as they were spectacular. We decided to do it all ourselves rather than doing an organised trip which turned out to be a very good decision as it gave us more flexibility and also saved us a lot of money (always a bonus!). Our plans were scuppered slightly when we discovered the trains were not running to the Blue Mountains on the day we had chosen, however we took the rail replacement bus which was very efficient! We arrived by lunchtime and set out to the National Park almost straight away, not wanting to waste any precious time. We took the Scenic Railway down which is supposed to be the steepest railway in the world. This was more like a theme park ride and was really rather frightening! In terms of safety, it was typically Australian and we decided it is not for the faint-hearted! When we reached the bottom, we did a lovely walk and then went back up to the top by Cable Car, which gave some stunning views over the Blue Mountains. The YHA where we were staying the night was undoubtedly the best hostel we had stayed in, though unfortunately situated at the top of an enormous hill! We spent the evening watching our new favourite tv show- "So you can think you can dance?"- great!
Today, we had the morning to explore a bit further so went down to a great look-out point, from where you could see the famous 3 sisters. We took some more postcard pictures and then did a short walk before heading back to town for some lunch. Our legs were aching terribly and we felt it necessary to indulge ourselves with a toasted sandwich and a slice of banana cake/custard tart!! Mmmm! We then jumped on the train back to Sydney and we are now staying with some friends of Amy's uncle for our last 2 nights in Oz! We both can't believe where the time has gone!
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