northern-asia

This Place Just Keeps Getting Better And Better!

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:40:30 +0100

There are just some things I do not understand in the world and this place is one of those things. Somehow each day in Yangshuo is better than the last. I have really enjoyed myself here and I may stop back here again on my way home. Today I took a tour of Silver Cave. If you have ever been to a cave then it is nothing new to you. Caves are interesting, but the tourist caves all pretty much look the same. That being said though I still enjoyed the tour (even if it was in Chinese). Here is the steps leading into the cave.

The use of different colors in all the caverns and cracks made it easy to see holes and gauge the depth and shape of the cave. Check out this next picture. Notice how there is a bridge and you can see the cave above and below it. It was a really deep area of the cave.

Actually if you look closely the bottom portion is really a reflection off of a pool inside the cave. It took me about 3 minutes to figure that out. The water was so still that the reflection came across perfect to the naked eye. I only realized it was a reflection because I saw a small dark object in the water. It looked like some kind of connector and I thought it was a piece to a net which they put across the opening so no one would fall. After looking for a few minutes from different angles I realized that it was a reflection. It was an amazing sight. Unfortunately I don't think the picture will do it justice. On the way out of the cave we ran into a little bit of local traffic.

In the van some of the other tourists (all locals to China) that were part of my group asked if I would like to join them for lunch. Normally I would have said no out of fear of something wrong going on, but I felt I could trust them because they were on vacation too (obviously) and Yangshuo had a way of getting me to relax. So I accepted and we had a very traditional Chinese lunch with 2 kinds of tofu, greens, corn soup, some kind of beef, beer fish (a local favorite), egg, and of course steamed rice. The meal was delicious. I really enjoyed it and the company. There English was not great, but it was good enough that we could converse. In the back of my mind I was still worried that maybe they will try to stick me with the bill, but no. Everything worked out great. We all split the bill so it was only about $4 each. A couple of interesting things I noticed at lunch. First, we all shared from the same main dishes. The table had a lazy Susan (spinning center piece) and we just spun it around to get what we wanted. You didn't serve food onto your dish and then eat from there. You just grabbed a bite at a time from whatever you wanted. Second, the plates, cups, silverware were all shrinkwrapped when we got there (for sanitary reasons obviously), but what I found interesting was what happened next. One of the guys came around the table and poured tea into my bowl and then my tea cup. I thought he wasn't paying attention when he poured the tea into my soup bowl, but then I noticed he did the same thing for everyone else. The everyone started to rinse their silverware and bowls and cups in the tea. I was told that they do this to clean everything off. Then they dump the tea into a big bowl which is later taken from the table. I had never seen this or even heard about this before. I would have figured that being shrinkwrapped we were good to use the stuff. I guess you see and learn something new everyday when traveling (and probably at home too if you pay attention). These are my friends that I had lunch with and you can see the food on the table.

I was also very nervous during the meal that I was going to look like a fool with the chopsticks or eat something disgusting and need to throw up or something. Luckily everything went smoothly. I actually enjoyed all the dishes and I did okay with the chopsticks. When we got there I told them to order and I would eat whatever they got. They were worried that I would not like Chinese food, but soon they felt better as they saw me eating everything. After that I hung out with one of my friends and had coffee while the others went to the river. I didn't go on the river tour because I had just done that the day before. As we parted we exchanged our hotel info in the hopes that we could meet again for dinner. Unfortunately at the time of this writing I have not seen my friends again and don't think we will be having dinner together. However, it was a wonderful day and I am sad that I am leaving tomorrow. I am looking forward to my next trip back here as it may be a more extended trip. I have really started to get intot the flow of this place. In fact as I got back to my hotel I asked the counter girl how long it would take to get to the airport because I have an early flight tomorrow. SHe then asked if I wanted to go by bicycle (foot powered) or taxi. She then thought about what she said and we laughed. We joked that if I wanted to ride a bike I should leave right now, but if I want a taxi I can leave tomorrow morning. At the same time another one of the counter girls came up and asked what was going on and she got in on the action too. This simple little interaction is something that would not have been possible in any of the other places I have been to. This town has enchanted me and will always hold a special place in my heart. I have some great memories of Yangshuo.

Another Beautiful Day In Yangshuo

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:59:18 +0100

If there is such thing as nirvana (heaven on Earth) this might be it. For the first time in my travels I actually thought I could live here for awhile. In fact I even looked into jobs teaching English here and they seem to be very easy to get. I guess I have something to think about now. Anyways, I woke up early today and saw the sun rising over the Li River as I had breakfast.

After finishing breakfast I hopped on a scooter (driven by a hotel employee) and went to the bus station. From there I took a 1 hour ride to Yangdi. Here is a picture of what the countryside between Yangshuo and Yangdi looks like.

As you can see there is lots of farm land amongst the Karst Mountains. Once I reached Yangdi (and my bamboo raft for the morning) I was greeted with scenery like this.

Here I am enjoying the ride.

Here are some of the locals I met along the way.

I saw quite a few small herds of water buffalo throughout the trip. Some were grazing on the grassy banks of the river and some (like the two above) were keeping cool in the water. Then as you can see things got very relaxing.

It was warm out, but there was a nice breeze. I could have stay on that boat forever. However, it did come to an end eventually. Upon exiting the boat I ran into a couple of guys from France. They had been interning in Shanghai for about 4 months (they were Frenchmen selling Australian wine in China) and they were now touring the country for the next month before heading back to France. These guys have been living all over the world for the last 5 years. In fact they were hoping to get permanent jobs in Shanghai. I just thought it was interesting how they just went wherever they could find jobs and seemed to enjoy whatever life has to offer them. Anyways, to get back I had to take a small 3 wheeled taxi (like a tuk tuk) down the bumpiest road ever to get to the bus heading towards Yangshuo. The ride was so rough that I had to sit in the middle of the seat because I was afraid I was going to bounce right out the taxi. Once I got back I was starving so I had fried noodles with pork for lunch.

Another delicious meal for less than $2. Later that afternoon I went down to the river and just sat there with my feet in the water. It was very relaxing. Even with the hawkers coming by every 15 minutes or so trying to sell tours or some kind of souvenir. Sitting there I ran into a few locals I had talked to in the previous days and we talked some more. The people are very nice here. Sometimes I feel bad for not trusting anyone, but being a lone traveler you have to be that way to avoid potential problems. I hope I come back again someday with another person so I can let my guard down and just truly experience all that Yangshuo has to offer. One of the locals I talked to was trying to sell me a tour earlier in the day and I thought it was funny how we were able to have a regular conversation now that she was off work. I just always pictured hawkers being on the job 24/7. But I guess if you think about it they are normal people too. When they are working they are just trying to survive and doing whatever it takes to make their money. Another interesting thing I was told today is that the local merchants charge foreigners more than Chinese people from other parts of China because they assume foreigners have more money. This guy I was talking to was saying that when merchants see foreigners all they see is dollar signs. I guess that is just the advantage you have when you can speak the language. However, even paying inflated prices everything is still pretty cheap here. So after having all these conversations it was time for dinner. Tonight I had sweet and sour chicken with steamed rice.

It was pretty good. I must say I have enjoyed every meal I have had so far in Yangshuo. Well that wraps up another wonderful day in paradise. Tomorrow is my last day in China and I am off to see Silver Cave.

Have I said I Love This Place Yet?

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:12:04 +0100

I just can't say it enough. I LOVE YANGSHUO. This is the kind of place I could just stay at for a very long time. It looks sort of tropical. It is very relaxed and laid back. The weather is nice (at least this time of the year). The scenery is too die for. I am finally being able to relax in China. Shanghai was just stressful and boring. Beijing was better, but still very busy. Xi'an and Chengdu were just not very friendly and accessible for westerners. Yangshuo is just perfect. Just about everyone can speak some English. The town is small so you can't get lost or stranded. I just don't know what else to say about this place. I know I will be back one day. I will come back to China just to come here. There are a few other places I would like to see in China, but this would be the only place I would come back too. Maybe Beijing because there is a lot to see there and I did not see it all. But Yangshuo for sure. No questions asked. Tomight I had a local Yangshuo style noodle dish for dinner with a local Guilin Beer.

They were both good, especially the noodles. In fact I need to make sure I eat lots of local food here in Yangshuo because both of my meals here so far have been delicious. I actually had 2 of the local beers. I just sat at a table overlooking the river and relaxed with a nice cold drink. Relax. This is something I haven't really been able to do in China so far. That is until now. I was so relaxed (not drunk) that I almost fell asleep at the table. I had a nice breeze blowing on me and I could hear the sounds of the river. It was very soothing and relaxing. Did I mentioned that the local beer only cost about $1 and was big (about 2.5 regular beers). The noodles were less than $2. They had eggs, ham, peanuts, onions, green onions, and of course noodles. Well eventually I forced myself to get up and walk around West Street at night. I have to admit the same street looks different depending on the time of day. It looked different in the morning compared to the afternoon, dusk, or evening. I think it was the way the colors of the street showed themselves in the different amounts of light that just made a huge difference in how the eye percieved the street. I don't know how well it will translate to film, but here it is at night.

It might just be one of those things you have to see in person to understand what I am saying. Also it wasn't that crowded so either I was too early or this is not the busy season. However, it was more crowded than during the daytime probably because it was not as hot. The weather here has been very nice. I hace actually seen the sun for the first time in China. Usually it is too smoggy in the cities to see the sky. It is hot during the daytime, but like a warm summer day hot. It is not too hot or humid at all. The evenings are nice and warm. It is perfect. Well I am off to bed so I can get up and go on my bamboo raft river cruise down the Li River. This is the kind of boat I will be on tomorrow.

The day after that I will go explore Silver Cave and then the next day I leave for Cambodia. I wish I could stay here a lot longer, but at the same time I want to leave things to do here so the next time I come I will still have things to do here that I have never done. It will give me more of a reason to come back here.

This Place Is Unbelieveable!!!

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:30:07 +0100

My thoughts last night about Yangshuo being a great place were right. In fact it is soooooooooooo much better than I thought. I absolutely love this place. The river is beautiful. The mountains are gorgeous. The town is so cool. It is a total tourist trap of a town, but I don't care I love it. I am a tourist and I do feel trapped here by the beauty and uniqueness of the landscape. So I guess they are doing their jobs around here. I even enjoy being ripped off by the vendors who pretend to be hurt when you haggle with them over prices. It is all part of the experience and beauty that is Yangshuo. Today I have spent the day so far just walking around the town and shopping for a few souvenirs. There are so many cool things to buy I need to be careful. Which is why I am taking a break right now from shopping. So I don't go broke trying to buy the town. I would buy it too if I could fit it into my bag. This place definitely makes China worth coming to and should be on everyone's itinerary when traveling to China. I would come back here in a heartbeat. Anyways, enough talk let's see some pictures already. This is a picture of the town and in the background you can see some of the Karst Mountains.

Here we have the Li River with the Karst Mountains again. Tomorrow I will be going on a bamboo raft down the Li River.

While I was eating breakfast on the patio at the hotel I spotted this water buffalo herd grazing on the grassy bank of the Li River.

After walking along the river for a while I went into town and came across West Street. West Street is a very touristy street and it is where all the action is around here. The street is lined with vendors selling all kinds of goods. There are also restaurants and coffee shops. There is even a KFC and McDonald's. This is a daytime look at West Street.

While walking down West Street I came across this lady who was hand painting little glass jars from the inside. I was told this is an ancient Chinese art form. The painted jars were absolutely beautiful as you can see.

And finally a picture of me as I have heard rumors that some of you think I never even left and I am just making all of this up. I got this picture in front of a stone lion as a special request to my nephew Ben who wanted me to take a picture with one.

Check back in a few hours as I plan to post some pictures of West Street at night. It is suppose to be quite a sight.

WOW!

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 17:17:05 +0100

It is about 1am Monday August 30th over here. I just got into my hotel in Yangshuo, a little town outside of Guilin. I couldn't see much on the 1.5 hour drive from the airport in Guilin to the hotel in Yangshuo because it was nighttime. However, I could make out the shape and size of the Karst Mountains and all I can say is WOW! This may be the most beautiful place I have ever been and I haven't even seen it in the daylight yet. Also keep in mind that I used to live in Maui, Hawaii. That should say a lot about how beautiful this place is. I can't wait to see it in the light. I almost want to set my alarm for 5am just so I can see the place at first possible light. Almost. Let's not get too crazy. But I am very excited for tomorrow to come. My hotel is right across the street from the Li River in the middle of the Karst Mountains. From the little I could see this is the China I came to see. This is the China that I wanted to see. I hope that turns out to be true when I see the place under the light of the sun. Check back later and I will definitely be posting some pictures of this place.

Goodbye Big Cities, Hello Nature

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 01:40:36 +0100

I finally get to say goodbye to the big cities of China and not too soon. I am leaving for Yangshuo today. Yangshuo is a small town about 1.5 hours outside of Guilin. It is known for it beautiful landscape and outdoor activities. In fact it is one of the most popular spots among tourists because of its beauty. Yangshuo is situated along the Li River among the Karst Mountains. It is suppose to be so beautiful there that the 20 Yuan bill here in China has a picture of the mountains on the back. So later today I will catch a flight out of Chengdu and head to my last stop in China.

Pandas, Pandas, Pandas!!!

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 06:56:18 +0100

I just got back from the Chengdu Panda Research Breeding Center and it was amazing. I saw tons of pandas, giant and lesser. I woke up about 6:30am to make sure I got there early because that is when they feed the pandas and it is also when they are the most active. Getting there was difficult at first. I stopped like 3 taxis, but none of them spoke English at all. They didn't even know what a "panda" was. So I went back to the hotel to get them to write down where I wanted to go in Chinese, but even they didn't fully understand me (they thought I wanted Wolong Nature Reserve which is many hours away from here). So when I was starting to think all was lost (after all this is the only reason I came to Chengdu) a man started speaking in Chinese to the hotel people. Then by some miracle I ended up with the hotel driver for the morning. He agreed to take me to the panda center and back to the hotel. He even agreed to wait for me for 3 hours and it was cheap. During the ride there I was still worried that I was going to the right place. I was afraid that he was taking me to the Chengdu Zoo (which is suppose to not be that good). But I figured I was along for the ride now. Well my fears were eased when I saw a street sign that said Chengdu Panda Reserch Breeding Center. Then a few minutes later I finally made it and let me tell you it was worth the trip to Chengdu just for this. There were so many giant pandas and lesser pandas to be seen. I even got to see the little baby giant pandas. You weren't suppose to take photos of the babies, but I was sneaky and got a few for you anyways even with a security guard sitting right there.

I also got there at just the right time. the place was not crowded at all and I got to see the pandas get fed which led to a lot of good photos and videos. The juvenile giant pandas were also super active after eating and started playing with each other. It was so cute. Unfortunately I was not able to get to hold a lesser panda, but that is okay because I got to see them up close and active too. This has been one of my favorite moments so far on this trip along with the Great Wall of China and the Terracotta Warriors. Seeing the pandas interacting with the keepers made me think that maybe I should pursue my dream of being a zoo keeper when I get back. I just thought that was the coolest thing and the coolest job. Well here are a few of the pictures I got of the giant pandas. This juvenile giant panda was climbing a tree.

This juvenile giant panda had just finished eating and was sucking his paw trying to sleep.

This adult giant panda was sleeping in a tree.

Here are 3 juveniles giant pandas. The one in front is standing up to reach the leaves of the tree so he could eat them.

Here are some pictures of the lesser pandas or red pandas.

These things are about the size of a medium dog and cute as can be.

I also took some random pictures while in the taxi this morning. I thought it would be cool to just show you some of the random, everday places in Chengdu.

A Couple More Observations About China

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 05:15:26 +0100

Here are a couple things I have noticed and thought abour while here in China.

1) The cities are all huge. They have tons of high rise buildings (apartment and business). There are no single family homes from what I have seen. Smallest I have seen is a 3 story condo type building. I guess to accomodate everyone you can only go up. Therefore the cities have tall buildings all throughout them. Not just in one little area like we are used to in San Diego ro most other American cities.

2) Despite the large cities with tons of tall buildings, there are just as many trees and bushes around in the cities. Every street is practically lined with trees on both sides and in the middle if possible. I had a crazy thought today that what if they purposely planted all the greenery to provide oxygen and get rid of all the carbon dioxide. Think about it. You have 1.3 billion people all crowded together in the cities. What if they are using up all the oxygen in the area so the plants are necessary to provide enough oxygen for them to survive? Also with that many people breathing out carbon dioxide and all the vehicles releasing carbon dioxide maybe the plants are also necessary to reduce the carbon dioxide in the air? Whether all the plants are necessary or not I don't know, but I couldn't imagine how bad it would be here without the services they provide. It would probably be hard to breath, like being at high altitudes, and the cities would probably be smoggier than they already are. Just one of the many crazy thoughts that has passed through my head as I have gone around China.

3) Finally, the traffic flow here is just absolutely crazy. In the US traffic is very regulated. In TJ the traffic is more chaotic, but still regulated somewhat. Here the traffic is barely regulated and I struggle to even say barely. The basic rule is don't stop and the bigger you are the more rights you have on the road. There are basically 4 levels of traffic here: big vehicles (buses, etc.), small vehicles (cars, etc.), bikes (motorized scooters, bicycles, etc.), and pedestrians (people). I listed the levels of traffic in a king of the road order with big vehicles being king and people being the lowest. The only advantage the bikes and pedestrians have is that since they are small they can use sidewalks (yes all types of bikes go on the sidewalk) and they can cheat and cross through traffic (jaywalk). So the bikes and people are always moving. You'll being driving down the street and you will have people crossing right through the middle of a busy street dodging cars left and right. Being a pedestrian you are the lowest level of traffic so you have to remember that no one will stop for you EVER. The big vehicles basically run the road and do whatever they want. Today I saw a bus run a red light and cross all lanes of traffic to get to another road. So the rest of the traffic, including my taxi, had to wait for the bus even though we had the green light. Also everyone here that has a horn drives with there hands on the horn at all times. I swear they use the horn more than the gas peddle or brake peddle. I was watching my taxi driver drive today and he would honk anytime someone would make him slow down. Even if he though he was going to have to slow down because of someone else he would honk. If someone was making a right turn at the next street and they put on their blinker he would honk. Traffic here just does not want to stop or even slow down for a second and amazingly I have not seen one accident and the cars here are not all dented up either. So somehow they just make it work.

Oh and I finally saw my first female smoker here in China. So there is 1 out of over half a billion females here in China.

Playing Catch-Up

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 13:32:00 +0100

Having just spent the last day traveling by miserable train I decided to take it easy today. I needed to catch up on my sleep so I slept in and missed the cheap breakfast buffet. So instead I had beef noodle soup for lunch. It was okay. It was noodles, beef, bok choi (I think), some other kind of vegetable I have never seen before, and a spicy broth.

I then headed back to my room and caught up on my hygiene (shaving and all that stuff). I even got a workout in as I haven't been able to workout for a few days. Today was all about catching up. I walked around the hotel a little bit too. For dinner I had double cooked pork (although it should have been called double cooked fat as the pork was like 90% fat). It still tasted delicious though. It was pork with green things (I think they were bamboo shoots or some kind of green onion) and it came with steamed rice, egg flower soup, and some kind of spicy/pickled salad stuff.

My impression of Chengdu is that this is just another busy, crowded city in China. I don't know how people can live here. It is just constant chaos everywhere. How do they relax or have fun without having to fight the world to do it? Then I saw my answer. I was checking my emails when out of my window I spotted a game of soccer going on (which reminded me of my nephew Ben). The kids were probably like 12 years old. I just sat and watched them and thought maybe, just maybe, the locals have found a way to not only survive here, but enjoy their lives here. They definitely have their own unique rhythm to life. I haven't been able to obtain that rhythm myself yet and I don't think I will here in China. I think the language barrier is just too great. This is not an easy place to get a handle on. Not as many people speak English as I thought (or at least they don't want to). Everybody has been nice for the most part, but it can be difficult at times to get around. Epsecially if you get lost and you're not in a touristy area. I have found that Shanghai and Beijing were more accessible to westerners where as the more local cities of Xi'an and Chengdu have been a lot more difficult to get around. I am sure it is like living in New York. I don't know how people can live there either, but at least I speak the language. I guess I am just more of a small town type of guy. I prefer peace and quiet. I love nature and being outdoors. I absolutely hate crowds. Speaking of nature I am very excited for tomorrow because I am going to the Chengdu Giant Panda Research Base. I will get to see lots of giant pandas, even little baby giant pandas, and the lesser or red panda. I am hoping to get to hold one of the lesser pandas and get a picture with it. I could get a picture with a giant panda, but it is expensive and I have already spent a lot of time with giant pandas as I was part of a research project with the giant pandas at the San Diego Zoo when I was in college. I was able to get very close to them back then so I don't need to pay lots of money to get close to them again. Anyways, this is the whole reason I came to Chengdu. Then I leave for Guilin the next day. Guilin is a much smaller town known for its beautiful natural surroundings. There are lots of outdoor activites to do there. So it will be a great way to spend my last few days in China before heading off to Cambodia.

Goodnight everyone. Or maybe I should say Good Morning. :)

Chengdu At Last!

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:33:24 +0100

Chinese trains SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just like the country, they are super crowded. In fact they can overcrowded to the point where you have people standing up in every piece of free space including the right in front of your face. This was my 3rd train trip in China so far and they all SUCKED. I like traveling by train, but the crowds just make it uncomfortable. I can't say each ride was worst than the last one, but they have all sucked for different reasons. The first ride I had to stand for 8 hours and avoid pee the was rolling around on the floor. The second ride I had got to sit for the 13 hours, but since I was sick I was busy coughing all night and it didn't help that the AC was right on me and the smokers were smoking right next to me. This ride was 15 hours and sucked because it was way too crowded, the smokers were right next to me again, and I was sitting in the middle of a family with 18 kids all running around and playing the whole time. My last train ride is over 24 hours long, but after today I am taking a plane instead. I just can't handle the crowds in China anymore. I am glad I am almost out of China. Only 6 more days until I go to a country with a normal sized population. Now you might be thinking "well what did you expect it is the most populated country in the world?" You're right what was I thinking? Well I can tell you that it definitely feels like 1.3 billion people live here. As I said before everything is crowded. I even had a line to go to the bathroom this morning in my own hotel room. Okay, maybe I exaggerated that one. But it feels that way. I am glad I came to China to see the things I wanted, but now I am ready to leave. As for others thinking of coming to China I offer this advice only come if you really want to see something particular here, like the Great Wall, otherwise go elsewhere in Asia. If you do come, I recommend getting in and getting out to avoid going crazy by the crowds. Plan ahead for anything you want to do. Finally, I haven't found China to be all that interesting as compared to like Malaysia or Thailand. I thought it was going to be a lot more interesting than it was, but I wouldn't change a thing because now I know and I really wanted to see the Great Wall and the Terracotta Warriors. If I had to do it all over again I would shorten my time here in China and spend more time in other Asian countries.