Hong Kong

It's the eve of the 10th Anniversary of Hong Kong SAR's return to China. It is also the beginning of a 2 month long Shopping Festival in the city.

This morning our first task was to have our laundry done - right across from our hostel in a small alley is a laundry service (very convenient). We paid about HKD$35 for 8 or so pounds of clothes for only 2 hours.

Second task was to check for train tickets to Shenzhen. We walked through the Tsim Sha Tsui metro station which connects via a long winding underground subway to the East Tsim Sha Tsui rail station. There we found out that trains going to Lowu, the final station just before Shenzhen, ran every 4 minutes and was only about HKD$35 one way. We needn't have to get a ticket prior to our departure, vending machines are available for that on the day we leave.

Third task was breakfast. Knowing that Hong Kong starts its day late, especially restaurants we found food at the corner of the street, selling pancit and chow fun. Peter got the pancit to go (well, it was a street-type food stall). Then rain began to pour so we ducked into Yoshinoya (again) for my own breakfast.

By the time we finished rain was still pouring but not too hard. We walked a different route towards the HK Cultural Center near the Harbor and ended up back at Harbour City mall where we did some window shopping and eating.

The downpour started to get heavy and we had to make sure we picked up our clothes before the shop clothes for the day and opened up on Monday. We braved the rains armed with our hats and one umbrella. Still got wet.

We decided to stay in the hostel room until later that day. Then left around 5:30 p.m. to walk through the smaller streets (found a nice big bookstore where we browsed interesting books) to look for places to have dinner. For some reason, I wasn't at all hungry, so we went back to Harbour City (went to PageOne bookstore first) then Peter had his Indian dinner set while I looked on. Later we went back to PageOne to browse some more until finally we went back to the hostel.

This computer I am posting on is right outside our hostel room. We just needed to get an internet card to connect. Very convenient. Plus, right next to me is a telephone, hot water heater, a refrigerator and a microwave, all for our use.

Hong Kong

Yesterday we were in Shanghai for an overnight stay prior to our flight back to Hong Kong. We didn't leave the hostel at all that night because it had rained hard in the afternoon but cleared up later that evening. It is really fortunate that the hostel we were staying at had a restaurant and sells big bottles of water - got everything we needed for the day.

We left around 8 a.m. this morning, walked to the Metro station, felt a slight drizzle but got to the station without getting too wet. Took the Line 4 to Shiji Avenue, about 20-30 minutes; transfered to Line 2 to Long Yang Road, about 5-10 minutes. From there we transfered to the Maglev Train for the Airport, only 6.5 minutes (more than an hour by car).

At the Airport we checked in early since we were already there. Thought we could bring our big bottles of water, as we did in Mainland China. Nope. They did not allow us to bring them inside the terminal. We ended up really thirsty (especially Peter) because they only sell the small 10 oz. size bottles, plus they were expensive. Oh well....

We were 2 hours from our departure schedule so we had some early lunch at the one of two restaurants inside the terminal. We both had curry with rice and something to drink. All cost us 153 yuan (really expensive!). Afterwards we went to sit at the section near our gate until about 10 minutes prior to boarding. Good thing we noticed that the flight number on the gate was not our flight. Peter checked at the main departure board and found out our gate was changed to #17 (from #14). No announcements or anything.

Boarding time came and nothing was happening. No one was at the gate counter. So we went down to the gate and saw that there was no one there, we went back up to the gate waiting area. Nothing happened for more than 15 minutes. Then we were told to line up by gate 18. All of us, including those waiting for the flight out to San Francisco, were waiting in the same line, until they started announcing loudly that the flight to San Francisco was already boarding. There were a lot of other passengers from this flight that were confused and some oblivious to what was happening. It looked like they too were assigned a different gate and was directed to the new one. There were so much confusion that some almost missed their flight.

As for us, the passengers going to Hong Kong, we had to wait until about 15-20 minutes past the flight schedule of 12 noon before we got to board the plane. No apologies or explanations at all! Well, I'm just glad we had a safe flight although delayed.

The weather in Hong Kong was a lot less humid than that first day we emerged from the airport shuttle bus. It had been raining here all week and today the weather was kind enough to let things dry out.

We booked at another hostel, the Lee Gardens Guesthouse in Cameron Road, because we just didn't want to go back to that Mirador Mansion place. This guesthouse is in a very busy road line with shops and restaurants. Charlie Chan, the manager, manages both the Lee Gardens and the Star Guesthouses. We took the small elevator up to the 8th floor where Mr. Peter (no last name given) checked us in, with the help of his Filipina employee (who speaks good Cantonese or Mandarin with some Tagalog thrown in - even Mr. Peter was saying some Tagalog words). He took us down to the 2nd floor to our room which looks a whole lot better, cleaner and newly refurbished, room. We are happy with our new hostel (at least it's not at Mirador Mansion!).

Peter and I went out to check the laundry place (1-7 lbs. for HKD$28/finished in 2 hours). We haven't been able to do our laundry since Beijing because we had to do them ourselves (we'd rather have someone do it for us so we won't have to wait by the machines all day, like what happened in Shanghai). Tomorrow we will have our laundry done while we go and see if we will take a day trip to Macau.

We then had our dinner at the nearby Yoshinoya then meandered our way to Canton Road where we found a huge shopping complex that has a food court, 2 supermarkets, and a big bookstore. I take back what I wrote about not easy to find a place to eat, it is actually easy to find them if only you look just around the corner. Now we know where to cool off during the day, and it's just nearby.

Well, it's raining outside now and we are both inside this internet cafe right next to the Harbor. After this we will be having some dessert at Hui Lao Shan (Peter's favorite dessert place).

Peter and I have been talking about this trip and we realized just how wrong our perceptions were of China, especially after beginning our trip in Hong Kong and landing straight smack-dab in Kowloon. We thought that China would be like Kowloon: crowded buildings, narrow roads, hot, noisy and lots of hawking.

We were totally surpised to find out that we were completely wrong. The cities we have visited different.

Shanghai - even though it has lots of high-rises, some hawking in tourist areas, there are lots of wide avenues, wide sidewalks and parks with lots of trees for shade.

Beijing - the same thing goes for this city: lots of wide open spaces, wide roads and sidewalks. Hawking is less compared to Shanghai - most locals have learned to say "Hello!" to get your attention.

Xi'an, Nangjing and Hangzhou - were wonderful surprises, very much like the other two big cities mentioned above.

On our train rides from Nanjing to Hangzhou and Hangzhou to Shanghai, we notice very modern European-style condominiums strewn all over the once-farm land at the outskirts of the city. We have not seen any of the old style homes with courtyards in our travels.

It seems that the housing of choice here is an apartment in one of the new high-rises, completey with amenities and nice shady parks in between the buildings - they are not built side by side but given enough space to put parks or lake/ponds - very aesthetic. But these units are now quickly getting more expensive every year. The real estate is booming here, especially in Shenzhen (we heard on the news). You will not find an detached single-family homes here, we think that it is not allowed here in China.

Back in Shanghai

The West Lake Youth Hostel is definitely the best hostel we have stayed at here in China. We were picked up at the train station by Kim and the driver in an expensive looking car (it was probably the owner's own vehicle). The amenities are great, the food at the restaurant was good (we've eaten there more than in town as it is much cheaper than at regular restaurants). The service was first class. The two staff members, Kim and Susan, took the time to remember our names, so everytime we needed help they would call us by our first names (we never heard them call out the other guest's names while we were there). We highly recommend this place to anyone visiting Hangzhou!

Woke up to a clear blue sky staring at me from the sunroof of our hostel room. The past few days I would awaken at the sounds of the children playing right next door at the kindergarten school. It is such a nice sound that my day would begin right. For the past 3 days the weather has been pretty warm yet remained clear and dry during the daytime. This morning it was the same.

We checked out early and had one of the staff, Kim, to call us a taxi for the train station. It was slightly traffic due to the morning rush hour but the driver got us there in no time.

The main train station is much bigger and more modern than the other train station we came in from (Hangzhoudong). We found our way to the CRH waiting area for our fast train (D698) to Shanghai - only 1:18 travel time with max speed of 140km/h. The train is very modern, clean and fast. This time Peter and I sat next to each other (last time we were both in the aisle seats across from each other), but facing a young Chinese couple - in the train cars half are facing one way and the other half the opposite way.

We arrived in Shanghai at 11:06 a.m. but didn't get to the subway station until 11:30 a.m. There were so many people in the station, most of them crowding the ticket machines, including Peter. Turns out the machines only take coins and Peter was 2 yuan less so he had to go to the main ticket counter to purchase our subway ticket to Caoyanglu.

Fortunately, the Shanghainan Zhan is the first stop for the Line 3 Metro so it wasn't difficult for us to find seats. We had about 8 stops to Caoyanglu.

The weather in Shanghai was very muggy. We quickly walked to our hostel and checked-in, went straight to the room and took cold showers. We were in need of sustenance but decided to cool off first in the room, take a nap then go out later in the day. When we woke up at 3:30 p.m. the sky was dark and rain was pouring hard outside. Thank goodness we didn't go out before that. So we ended up eating here at the hostel's traveller's club restaurant (all hostels that are under the Utels network offer more or less the same food at the same price).

This Shanghai City Central Youth Hostel has a great big common room, decorated in a kind of mediterranean look with colorful cloths draped over rods along the roof, the sofas are huge and plush, the dining tables are the usual Chinese-style chairs and high tables (perfect for Peter). You can also watch DVDs right there in comfort - all Utels or other hostels offer lots of DVD choices for guests to watch.

Our lunch was fried rice, stir-fried chicken with mushroom and peppers with rice, drinks and a dessert of pancake with fruit. It was good enough to satisfy our hungry bellies, and to just keep dry from the pouring rain. We'll probably have light pupus later tonight as we have no plans of going out.

Tomorrow we leave for the airport at around 8 a.m. for our 12 noon flight to Hong Kong.

Hangzhou

We leave for Shanghai this morning via the fast train. It will take about an hour and a half or less to get there.

Last night we left the hostel to see the Pagoda nearby then walked to Hefang Street but decided to go eat somewhere neare Jiefang Road. We turned too early and walked straight back to Hefang. Which was not bad because it was a happening place at night. Stalls were set up and at the end of the street was a Song Dynasty style shopping place where we had dinner and windowshop.

We really enjoyed our stay here. The staff at the hostel, especially Kim and Susan, were very hospitable and helpful and friendly. We will definitely return here on our next visit to Hangzhou.

For now, I'll sign off and will post from Shanghai.

Zai jien!

Hangzhou

We walked to the nearby Town God's Temple, about a mile away through the Nanshan Lu and cutting through the Holiday Wuyang Hotel to get to the Hangzhou Finance and Taxation Museum. The walk was not that far but because it was hot it felt like we were walking for miles. Armed with our hats and an umbrella we walked along the sidewalks, where it's most shady - fortunately, Hangzhou city has made most of its roads lined with trees.

Walking up to the Wu Hill where the Town God's Temple (Chenghuang Pagoda) sits didn't take that long. We paid a 30 yuan each to get up there. The view from the 5th floor (took the lift up) was great, the breeze very refreshing. We stayed there to cool off then took the stairs down each floor and went around for more views of the City, the Lake and the Qiantang River.

Hangzhou is a huge city bordered on the East side by the Qiantang River, the rolling mountains on the West and North, and both the Lake and the City proper right in the middle. This is also where the Grand Canal ends or begins, connecting with Beijing in the North. China prides itself with beautiful Hangzhou, claimed by Marco Polo to be the most beautiful city. We believe that this city is so far the best place we have visited next to Xi'an (which is a more ancient city).

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Commentary:
Our thoughts or perceptions of China were proven to be wrong. We somewhat thought that the China today was still like the China being shown in movies, with its hutongs, cramped houses, vendors all over, rickshaws along with the cars. All the cities we have visited on this trip are very modern and very well developed. All of them start to meld and look alike with their high-rises, modern cars/vehicles, high-tech stuff we do not have in the US.

What impressed us most is their use of electric bikes and some vehicles around the cities. They are so efficient and quiet. And their cabs/some cars use some sort of gas that do not pollute the air (it's really the coal mines that contribute to the pollution all over the country).

Also their airports are incredibly civilised - no need to remove shoes or dump your bottled water. We were treated better here than in the US.

As Peter said, it seems that the American ideals have spread to the rest of the world while it has almost but disappeared in the US. People here are living exactly how Americans used to live in its hey-day.

Hangzhou

The weather reports on TV show that it is raining all over China. Here in Hangzhou the rains would come at night (so far). This morning the skies are clear and we could actually see blue sky, after not seeing the sky for almost a month now, it really is a beautiful sight.

This morning we will explore the nearby pagoda and the famous Six Harmonies Pagoda taking bus K4. Then we will check out the nearby street where we can find souvenirs and other things.

Hangzhou

MeiZhi or Rose, my brother's colleague and interpreter in the company he worked for here in Hagnzhou, took the day of from work to take us to some of the places in and around the West Lake. She arrived a little past 8:30 a.m. here at the Hostel. Took her about 45 minutes by bus to get here.

We walked to the nearby causeway that runs south to north through the Lake where we took a pleasure boat to the 2 islets located within the Lake: Mid-Pavilion and the one near the "3 pools mirroring the moon." (Hangzhou's tourist sights or unique places have very poetic names like "Golden Bull emerging from the Lake", something like that.) Then we took the boat to the North pier near the Yue Fei (a famous here, General) Temple.

Before we went there we had lunch at Lou Wai Lou. The place was busy with activity, lots of locals and tourists (Chinese and a few foreigners) having lunch and trying out the delicacies: Dongpo Pork (soft, sweetish/salty pork with bun) and Beggar's Chicken (wrapped in lotus leaf, sealed in clay and steamed - result was very tender meat, bones falling off easily and very tasty). Rose treated us to this lunch (we think she got a local price because when we added up all the dishes we ordered it was about 50 yuan more than what she paid. Well, we also treated her to the admission fees as well as the boat fee.

After such a good lunch we walked to the nearby Yue Fei temple and tomb. Then we took a bus, K7 to get to Lingyin Temple and Scenic Area (about 20 minutes northwest). The latter had lots of stone carvings of different Buddhas like Milefu all around this huge rock formation that is west of the main Temple. We didn't go inside the Temple as it required us to pay an entrance fee. We were simply happy with the surrounding sites which were more interesting.

Right outside the Lingyin Temple the bus terminal was located. Taking the bus here in Hangzhou is much easier than in Beijing or the other cities, well at least these buses that go around the tourist areas (they have english translations to the stops). This was where we said our goodbyes to Rose, who had to go to Zheijiang University for here 2nd day of examinations as a translator - (more written rather than oral).

It was great to have Rose around today. She helped us understand what was being said. It also was a good day for her to practice her English (which she isn't able to do in the new company she works for). She was so surprised that there were a number of people hawking around us. It has never happened to her before so now she has experienced what tourists go through. A lot of the people hawking were simply encouraging us to visit the Longjing Tea Plantation, most likely to sell not the real longjing tea. Well, she had a good experience I think and will always remember our day together.

Peter and I took the K7 bus back into town and stopped near Yan'an Road to go to Carrefour. From there we crossed to get to the Lake and had our dinner at Starbuck's (very nice location and good A/C). Then we walked back to the Hostel.

The whole day it was very steamy and we were sweating on our walks. Thank goodness we didn't get heat stroke after being out in the heat. Overall, it was such a pleasant and interesting day.

Tomorrow we have another full day to ourselves. We hope to check out more of the area around the Lake.

Hangzhou

This city which boasts of its West Lake is very beautiful. The walkways around the lake is very well landscaped and built - lots of willow trees. The weather is quite steamy as it is already Summer, but I would think during Autumn and Spring it would be really lovely here.

Just strolling around the lake will take days. So Peter and I decided that we will spend our two days here meandering around the West Lake. This morning though my brother's friend and interpreter, Rose, will accompany us to the Leifeng Temple. Unfortunately, she's having examinations at school every night from the 25th until the 27th, so she can only meet with us during the day. At least we will get to meet her once or twice depending on her schedule.

Rains poured last night but it seems to have cleared up this morning.

Our hostel is located just 5 minutes from the Lake and right next to a primary school. The room we have is very modern, just like the one we had in Munich. This is the best hostel out of all the others (seems that each city we visited the hostel improved), very much like a regular hotel for cheap.

Hangzhou

Computers at our previous hostel weren't working and we couldn't find an alternative so we had to wait until we got here to post.

The past three days we were in the city of Nanjing. Our hostel was located in the tourist area of Fuzimiao. At night all the lights are lit and the entire area, including the pedestrian mall the goes to the Confucious Temple, is all a bustle with locals and tourists (both foreign and Chinese). There are not that many foreigners around this area and this time because Nanjing is known to be the third hottest city in China. Still, plenty of Chinese tourist visit this city.

Peter and I found our way around town via the only Metro line they have recently opened (a new one is still under construction). The line goes from North (Magaqioau?) to Southwest (Olympic Stadium). The area in the middle, Xinjiekou, is the shopping place lined with huge malls, including WalMart Supercenter. At WalMart, the deli section and grocery section were filled with yummy looking Chinese snacks/food items, etc. Clothes are not that popular in WalMart, mostly just Chinese household goods - clothes are cheaper elsewhere.

For lunch, we found a food hall at the Grand Ocean Mall. We had some sort of Asian cuisine which was not oily. Thank goodness.

We meandered around town accessible by Metro. On our last day we took cabs to the out of the way tourist sights: Yuejiang Tower on top of Lion Hill which has a view of the Yangtze River (the area was very hazy due to the smog) and Olympic Stadium (went up the Sports Science and Technology Center tower). We wanted to visit the Nanjing Massacre Museum unfortunately they were closed on Sundays.

For our food we simply looked for places that offered interesting stuff, like steamed buns and this place where lots of locals stand in line for, a soup dumpling restaurant. I tried the "stinky tofu" - fried fermented tofu (Peter thought it disgusting and very stinky, but I thought it was pretty good). Our last night's dinner was at Chili's (Korean and Western) restaurant.

Nanjing is a city which is very modern, some of the old city wall still remain scattered around the city. It is a very nice place to visit and to stay longer than 3 days. The Zhongshan area should be a good place to sightsee.

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Early this morning we took a cab to the Nanjing Rail Station (north) and boarded the train to Hangzhou (supposedly an express train but had stops at 4-5 stations prior to our destination). We were surprised at how orderly and clean people were (except for some few who still spat in the train car). Seats are reserved so there's no worry about that. Toilet was the usual squat and suprisingly un-smelly. Overall a pretty good 6 hour trip.

Hangzhou's weather is cloudy. Very good for walking along the West Lake. Will post again later.

Nanjing

Ni hao! We left the beautiful Xi'an, the sun was out and everything has dried after days of light rain. The hostel staff got us a taxi to the airport (prepaid) and got us both to there in no time. We had to wait to check-in as they only have a specific counter for a specific flight/time. Our flight to Nanjing was at 3:25 p.m. and we boarded a small leer jet-type of plane (seating was 1 and 2) really small plane.

From the air we could see the same thing that covered Beijing, thick smog. The weather is warmer here as we are about 1,000 miles south of Xi'an. There wasn't that many people in the airport, only a couple or so planes, and the baggage claim area was almost bare save for the few passengers and some people waiting at the outside area.

Peter bought a map of Nanjing from the bookstore located at the waiting area. We proceeded outside to the Airport bus ticket counter. Bought two tickets to the bus going straight to the city center, near Golou.

The ride took about 45 minutes, passing through places that have been developed into suburbs full of big condo buildings. Reminds us of places in the US. Even their roads are very impressive.

The airport bus stopped at several places before ending at Shanghai road where a representative from our hostel was waiting for us. We had no idea that the bus would stop there, thought it would stop at the main Gulou square but we were a bit far from there. It is really fortunate that he was there to meet us. To get to the hostel we needed to flag a cab which was difficult due to the fact it was Friday and during rush hour. Right there I said quietly that someone will come, immediately a man in a minivan (private) stopped we thought he knew our hostel guide but it turns out he was offering to take us to where we were for only 20 yuan (for the 3 of us). I was so amazed at the power of prayer/manifestation and thankful that the guy was nice enough to take us. The ride to the hostel took 30 minutes.

We were quite happy that things have turned out this way for us. As I prayed before we left for Shanghai from Hong Kong that the way be made smooth before us, I am truly grateful for this truth as evidenced by the experiences we have had so far.

Our hostel is part of the Hostel International network and is located in the Fuzimiao district which turns out to be really a happening place with lots of lights at night and river cruises right next door to us. We will be here for two full days then take the train to Hangzhou. We will try to check out the first Yangtze River bridge here in Nanjing while we're here (I have a picture take with our UP Cherubim and Seraphim right next to the bridge in 1982).

Thank God for our safe trip here to Nanjing. Till next post....

Travelling for more than a month now the days of the week and the time seem to slip away. We have to keep on reminding ourselves this so that we won't miss our flights or trains. Same goes with whatever special days in the calendar, we forget. Like the recent Father's Day, Peter and I totally forgot about this. BUT we do not forget our own father's, no matter what the day of the week it is, or the time, we always remember them in our thoughts and prayers. So, even if we have failed to contact them through email or phone, we still hold them dear to our hearts wherever we may be. To our fathers, a belated Happy Father's Day to you! We love you...always!

Xi'an, Shaanxi Province

Weather outside cleared up. Peter and I got good advice from the haole Manager here at Shuyuan Hostel (really speaks good Mandarin, been here for a year), to walk along the outside of the wall which has been turned into a park (sandwiched between the wall and the moat).

From the hostel we turned right to exit the South wall and right again for the park. It's a very nice park surrounding the entire Xi'an Wall, lots of trees including pomegranate trees. As I mentioned before the parks in China are very much utilised by the people for their playtime, relaxation time, sleeping time, social time, singing time, etc. Walking through the park we see a lot of the local folk doing their own or group thing. There's the practitioners of different tai chi methods. There's the singing groups accompanied by different instruments like the erhu (2-stringed bowed instrument), violin or the chinese flute. Grandpas or Grandmas playing with their grandkids - I've seen a lot of the grandpas babysitting their granddaughters/sons. Lots of them exercising: martial arts, ping pong, badminton, etc.

What I like about Xi'an (which I hope the US or even just Maui county could do) is they have provided a whole stretch of the park full of exercise tools free for all the park goers. They have man-powered machine versions of the treadmill, leg squat, stationary bike, spinning disk, tricep/bicep pulls, ab benches, leg massager, push up bars, and so on. There were so many of these things along the park where the local people use. No need to pay gym fees, wear spandex pants, etc. They even provide a number of ping pong tables with a metal net, all you need to bring are your paddle and ball.

We realized, even before from reading about China, that they emphasize preserving health more than the treating of disease. Most of them believe that if one's health is maintained then there will be no disease. Hence, all these exercise activities provided for all its citizens.

If Maui county provided these machines in all the parks, a whole lot of our obese Mauians or Hawaiians will gain back their health.

Watching these people exercise in the park makes me feel that they love to do this together because it brings them much closer to each other. It gives you such a good feeling to see them, family, friends, acquaintances, have fun together in an active way.

We didn't realize how far we have walked from the South Gate to the West Gate until we saw the gate. We entered the city from here and walked towards the middle of the city.

Xi'an city has wide sidewalks, very clean, tree-lined and well maintained. Even the main avenues are full of trees. Their traffic signal lights lets you know how many seconds before it changes. The walk signal even does the walk motion. :-D There are some areas where they do not have cross walk signals so you will need to do the "chicken crossing the street" thing - you know, try to avoid the vehicles and not get run over. He, he... (They really speed here but if you can't get out of their way they will try to avoid you.)

Along the West street walking towards the center, Bell Tower, we found an interesting gate which we thought led to the Great Mosque, which turned out to be a shopping area still not fully constructed. There was nothing to see there and we both realized how far we have walked without even having breakfast. As Peter said, "we should find something to tide us over," we turned into the main West street and right at the corner was a restaurant selling steaming buns. What timing! He bought just one each of their 2 different buns. We ate half of each to try - one turned out to be really spicy and one just right. I ate half of the not spicy and not much of the spicy. The bun was good though.

Peter and I learned that "life is just like a basket of steaming buns, you'll never know what you get until you bite into it," after eating a number of buns without knowing what's inside.

After getting something into our stomachs we continued our walk and found the Drum Tower, a few meters across from the Bell Tower. Paid to get in and up the Towers (went to the Bell Tower after lunch) as it afforded us great views of the city.

Behind the Drum Tower is the Beiyuan Muslim Street where you can find lots of stalls selling dried fruit and nuts, and other assorted food stuffs (bought assorted snacks enroute), and restaurants (all of them didn't have electricity when we went by but were still open for business).

We walked and meandered through the streets. So many interesting food along the way. Then we saw a small alley full of souvenirs we decided to turn into. Finally found their version of the Tiger Balm for sale there, at first the cost was 35 yuan ($5) but Peter haggled and got 12 yuan ($1+). We could probably get even less but we gave in. Anyway, it costs about $7 in Maui so getting it for less than $2 is pretty good deal.

We followed this alley and ended up in the Great Mosque (which we decided not to go in, it would have been 35 yuan to enter) - after a while you get tired of visiting places that almost look the same. Continued through until we exited right behind the Drum Tower.

From there we went via the underground passageway to the Kai Yuan Mall for our lunch. This time we had a simple fare of sprouts, kau yuk (bun), and a fried pancake-type full of chives. Ate some of the snacks we bought at the Muslim Food street.

Just before heading back we visited the Bell Tower (since we already paid for the two Towers' combo tickets). Rain was pouring by the time we left the Mall to get to the Tower (luckily it is connected by the underground passageway). It had great views of all the 4 main streets of the city. We took a short detour to the Post Office to mail my postcard, then returned back to the hostel. We might go out later this afternoon, if the weather permits.

Tomorrow noon we leave for Nanjing.

Xi'an, Shaanxi Province

Peter and I woke up late this morning, around 9 a.m. Had breakfast first before heading out to the South Gate (about 50 meters away). The weather cleared up a bit but still overcast.

From the Hostel we walked to the gate, crossed the busy rotunda to get to the gate right in the middle of the rotunda (wished they had an underground passageway). Paid 40 yuan per person to enter the Xi'an City Gate Wall.

Up at the Wall, which is about 30 feet wide and flat, we could see the inner central city of Xi'an - the best view of any city we have visited so far. We rented a tandem bike (40 yuan for 100 minutes with 200 yuan deposit) so we can go around the perimeter of the city on the Wall. This is one of the ways you can go around, you can also pay to ride the electric car (seats about 6) or the rickshaw bike or walk (which will probably take you half or the whole day).

The weather was quite cool which made our bike ride very enjoyable. We took our time, stopping at certain areas like the smaller gates and the main North, East, West gates, to see the scenery from these points. It began to drizzle when we reached about 2/3 of the Wall. And in an hour and 35 minutes we finished the ride around it - just 5 minutes shy of getting charged extra fee. It was a great bike ride - no crowds, lots of room, and very few bumps - a perfect place to ride.

Just as we returned the bikes back and got our deposit, the rain began to pour. We had our umbrella, hats and jackets so we didn't rush to leave the South Gate. We walked down the wall to the Draw Bridge gate (which has been repaired and is still in use) the tower of the Bridge gate is now a souvenir shop. We were able to go to the 2nd floor to get a picture from the tower to the South side of the city. A chinese man was kind enough to lead us up there and spent time talking story with Peter and myself, then, of course, showed us some of the items they had on sale. The only thing we bought are a couple of souvenirs to bring home - cost me 70 yuan for both - they should be happy.

From the South Gate we walked north up to the Bell Tower located in the middle of the city. It was raining moderately so we went inside the Kaiyuan Mall to look for a food court. We went to the basement and found nothing. Went outside and saw Starbuck's and McDonald's. As we turned to go back was saw a sign for the food court located on the 7th floor (not a place we would expect). There we found a roomy version of the Megabite with lots of stalls selling local food. We both had noodles in soup - one not spicy and the other very spicy - for 5 yuan a piece, and a piece of Chicken thigh in mild curry sauce - for 25 yuan (meats are quite expensive here).

After our late lunch (around 2:15 p.m.) we decided to return to the hostel to get some rest. We realized that the bike ride we took around the city, 13.9 km., was exhausting. This is already equivalent to one full day's sightseeing.

So we will probably get some rest after this posting and later go out to check out the nearby places and grocery for some stuff.

Hopefully, the forecast tomorrow will be much better.

Recap on Impressions of the cities we visited so far in China:

Hong Kong

1. Overly populated, especially in Kowloon
2. Great Metro system - Octopus card is wonderful
3. Dim Sum - not what we expected, still better tasting in Honolulu's China town
4. Pace is very fast - people love to rush, even the escalator seems to go faster
5. Lots of construction going on - trying to keep up with the Mainland
6. Victoria Peak was great. Have a cuppa at Pacific Coffee Company for a free internet.
7. Lightshow every night at 8 p.m. was good. (MWF is in English).
8. Ferry is very cheap to and from Hong Kong island.
9. Make sure to visit Lamma Island and try the Tofu Fa (cold taho).

Shanghai

1. Not as populated, just seems crowded because of the tourists
2. Metro system can still be improved, crowded during rush hour, closes early at night (cannot go club hopping, not unless you take a cab)
3. Lots of good places to buy local food for cheap
4. Jin Mao tower is a good place to see a bird's eye view of the city.
5. Yu Yuan Gardens is good to visit but not to eat - low quality food.
6. Isetan's Megabite and Jin Mao's basement are pretty good food courts - just crowded during lunch time.
7. Construction everywhere, all over the city. We felt some tremors one time and heard an explosion - we think it is from the construction of new Metro lines.
8. People selling shoes, watches, bags are so irritating.
9. Young people who seem to be friendly but are just trying to scam tourists make us sad, they could practice their English doing something else.

Beijing

1. Huge city - not too easy to visit tourist sights, blocks are long and wide.
2. Metro - still being improved, hopefully will be a lot easier for tourist to access tourist sights.
3. Taxi drivers will take you for a ride - you end up paying more than you bargained for, just be tough and ready with your Chinese phrases.
4. Beware of the people spitting all over the place - the government is trying to educate them to use the trash bins but there are still lots of people that do it everywhere and anywhere. At least you will be warned before they spit when you here the scratching sound (don't know how to describe it).
5. Very polluted, probably due to the coal not from the vehicles. Bring a mask to use for protection.
6. Lots of tourists at the main sights so just be ready.
7. Have lunch after the regular lunch hours, the food courts and restaurants are too crowded and noisy that time.
8. Everywhere in the city there are constructions going on. Within the next 5-10 years you will see a new Beijing.

Hostels:

Hong Kong - Traveller's Friendship Hostel

Never ever go here. They go under a number of names and list themselves in Hostelworld. You sign up for a room. When you get there they will show you "supposedly" the room you booked - the ugliest room, most likely just for show, then tell you for a few HKdollars more you get this other room, and show you the "nice" one with airconditioning. It's a bait and switch tactic we fell into. The room was tiny, the bathroom/toilet miniscule, the A/C fluctuates between warm and cool, the walls moldy. Plus, it is located in the Mirador Mansion - the oldest, rattiest building in the block!!! Not recommended at all!!!

Shanghai - Shanghai City Central Youth Hostel (belongs to the Utels group)

Very nice, hotel-like accommodations. Friendly and helpful staff. A few hundred meters from the Metro (which closes at 9:40 p.m. every night). Internet - for 10 yuan/hour. Towels and toiletries provided. Bar and restaurant - soso food but very convenient. Laundry - can wash clothes but dryer is just not too hot, need to use the clothe's line. Not near a supermarket but at the Zhongshan metro stop you can get off to buy groceries at the Carrefour - convenient. Although you can buy water and snacks at the Info. counter. Has airport/train station pick-up and drop-off service. Would return to this place again. Highly recommended!

Beijing - Leo Hostel

Located in a hutong, Da Zha Lan xi jie. Very good area, near the Tian An Men area. Metro not too far. Lots of bus stops along the Meishi jie. Bar and restaurant - good, reasonable food. Friendly and helpful staff. Internet - for 8 yuan/hour. Tours given are pretty good and reasonable. Grocery store is right next door and smaller stores across selling cheaper ice cold water and drinks. Has pick-up and drop-off services, bike rentals. Highly recommended!!!

Xi'an - Shuyuan Hostel (part of Utels)

Located within the South gate city wall. A very nice Chinese courtyard home-turned hostel. Rooms are nice and very clean and modern. Bar and restaurant - good food, reasonable price. Lots of activities for hostellers - BBQ nights, Dumpling Fridays, etc. Internet is FREE! Tours are reasonable and good. Friendly and helpful staff. The best hostel so far. Highly recommended!!!

Xi'an, Shaanxi Province

Before anything else, Mom and Dad, Happy Anniversary to you. I love you lots!!!

Our tour began slightly late due to some of the members of our group just arrived from a different hostel and had a late "free" breakfast. There were 11 people in our group: 2 Swiss, 7 English and the two of us.

The drive East was about an hour or so. The rain cleared this morning so it was a pretty nice day for our sightseeing. We went to the factory that officially makes reproductions of the Terracotta Warriors. For about 35 minutes a guide led us through the process of making these replicas (small), to the area where they make lacquer furniture - learned that lacquer was a sealant made from sap which they use to paint layers on the wood which gives it its sheen. Then to the main area where they sell all these things. (Peter was close to getting this small replica for 50 yuan, which was cheap, but he decided to think it through until it was already time for us to leave.)

Next stop was the visit to the Terracotta Warriors museum. For 90 yuan per person you get to go inside the 3 main excavation pits, the museum and the place where they show a film of how it was during the Qin era.

The first pit was enormous. The farmer who accidentally dug out broken pieces of pottery which looked like it belonged to the Qin emperor was the one who told the government about it in the 1940s. It took them about 30+ years excavating the area only to discover this whole area in 1974. There are more than 1,000 terracotta warriors in this pit, mostly infrantry and some chariots. All of the men faced east, in the direction of the Qin emperor's tomb. Not all have been dug up. Some have been reburied because the color (yes, they were in fact painted in different colors) once exposed to the air have oxidized. Until the time when there is technology available to protect the color, all these other warriors will remain buried.

The second and third pits were smaller. Not too many dug up. It was actually just by accident that they discovered this next 2 pits when they were erecting the building to house the first pit. Here there are a few warriors that were dug up but mostly it is just dirt. All you see are the schematics of how it looks underneath.

The museum housed some of the brass sculptures of 2 kinds of chariots and some other artifacts. And the film was not too interesting, just showed how things were in those days during the Qin era.

Next stop was the Qin emperor's tomb. There is really nothing to see here except for the artificial hill that was made on top of his tomb where people can climb the stairs up to the terrace. Around this hill you can see some of the entrances to the tomb but you would need to hire a car (small electric car) to go around because it is just so huge. Our group just went around near the entrance and checked out some of the pictures which shows the other excavated pits looked like.

It is said that there are about 618 pits and only about 4-6 have been dug up and discovered.

Lunch was included in the tour. We went to a nearby restaurant and our group was led to room 203 for a 14 viand lunch. Really good, not too oily except for the hard, tasteless cake. We were pretty much full by the time we left for the next stop.

Lintang Museum was the next stop. This used to be a Buddhist temple now turned museum that houses local cultural relics from most of the early dynasties.

Final stop was the Huaqing Hot Springs. This is a big place where you can find different bath houses once used by the Emperor, his empress and the prince. Most of the emperors who ruled in Xi'an (once called Chang'an) loved this place so much that they all built their own rest houses here where they spent their winters there. The hot springs came out from 3 sources and the water has been diverted to the fountains (where you can pay 20 yuan for legs and body indoors and .50 yuan to wash yourself outdoors - belief is this water brought healing properties).

Driving back to the Hostel, the rain began to fall lightly. It was really perfect timing.

History fact: Xi'an was the first capital of China and remained to be so for about 400 years or maybe 1,000(?). It's popularity had waned after the capital was moved and only due to the Terracotta Warriors that it has become a bustling tourist city once again.

The main city of Xi'an is enclosed in a large wall, used to have just 4 gates but now has 16 gates. Right in the middle of the city is the Bell and Drum towers. A huge number of Muslim live here because right in the outskirts of this city is where the silk road began.

Tomorrow we explore the city wall and the city itself.

Xi'an, Shaanxi Province

Arrived in the rainy city of Xi'an yesterday early morning. We left Beijing at 4:30 a.m. and drove through the middle of the city, almost witnessed the flag raising ceremony at Tian an men, missed by minutes.

Anyway, the flight was pretty uneventful. The hostel driver picked us up and brought us to the hostel which is located right within the city wall. An interesting, huge city, Xi'an is - we realized.

This morning we will be off to a tour of the famous Terracotta Warriors and other sites. Will post later when we get back.

Weather still still wet but lighter than yesterday.

June 17, 2007 - Beijing

Last day in Beijing. Mailed some more stuff at the China Post this morning. Walked through the hutongs in the area to Luilichang huton, an art street, which is considered a historic hutong. The post office was located here. We brought our souvenirs and some clothes we need to return to Japan. The lady at the counter took a box, got our stuff and put them in, then taped the box for us (we didn't even have to bring our own tape). It cost us about 230+ yuan. Hopefully, it gets to Japan within the next week or so.

We took our time meandering through Luilichang after mailing. Interesting things to see along the hutong. Very clean, orderly, and much preserved. We can say that even though the hutongs are narrow and crowded, it is clean, not smelly, and orderly.

Our map is really not much of use because what's in them are now obsolete. Hutongs, small roads now converted to big roads and big buildings.

We came out at a main road where the Sogo Mall is located. Huge and classy, still being renovated. Had our light breakfast here at Tous Le Jours bakery. Walked along the main road (which becomes Tian An Me jie) to check out the new National Theater, an oval shaped building right behind the Hall of the People.

We rode the Metro line 1 (red) this time. The places we wanted to see were connected on this line: The silk market street (which is now actually a big mall like in Greenhills), the Friendship store, Wang Fu Jing (Oriental Mall).

Lunch was at Yoshinoya, a japanese fast food restaurant, for a meal that is not oily. Followed by dessert at Yogen Fruz (again!)

Then we took the Metro line 1 to connect with the line 2 at Jianguomen to go north to the Lama Temple. Unfortunately the metro that stops right near the temple is closed due to the new metro line the goes from north to south which passes through this stop. We had to get off the stop after then walked the 2nd ring road to the Temple.

This Yonghe Lama Temple boasts of a huge 18 meter (plus about 8 more underneath) Buddha made of a single sandalwood tree. Really enormous. It is supposedly the Buddha of the Future.

We didn't stay long there as we both had enough of Temples and museums, and soon, Chinese food.

Well, back here at the hostel, we are trying hard to get a reservation for a hotel stay in Hong Kong for June 29 to July 2. We decided to cancel the Guangzhou trip due to the flooding and rains, and stay in Hong Kong for its 10th year anniversary of their return to China - which we believe is much more important. Hopefully, we can get a reservation without having to pay with our cc yet. We'll see.

This will be my last post from Beijing. Hopefully, we will be able to return here in 5 years or so to see the developments this city has begun.

For now, Tzai jien!

June 16, 2007 - Beijing

Our hostel room is situated in the back of a courtyard and the first room in a corridor, with a small window facing the courtyard. The light the filters through the window isn't much, kind of hard to tell whether it is already daybreak or still night time. The only way we can tell if it's already morning is when we hear the Leo Hostel staff or some of the hostel guests out and about.

This morning Peter woke up feeling much much better. He had a bad reaction to the oily food we ate yesterday lunch. His headache got worse last night so I had to give him a massage and he tried to induce vomit - he had to do it three times until what was in his stomach has been removed. (I had dinner on my own here at the hostel's restaurant/bar)

We walked north to Jing shan park, just right above the Forbidden city (when you exit on the North gate you will immediately be greeted by the sight of the temple sitting on a hill in Jing Shan park). The artificial hill was made from the dirt unearthed when they built the moat around the Forbidden city, and this park was once connected to the city itself for use by the Emperor and his officials. I have a picture, which I took in 1982, of the same view of the Temple showing that it was connected. Now a big road bisects the two.

To enter Jing shan park you will have to pay a mere 2 yuan per person. As always, the park is filled with local people sitting around, walking, exercising, singing, playing, etc. It's a surprise that we even got to sit on a nice and shady bench.

We took our time here at the park, resting to have some morning snack/fruit before climbing the stairs up to the Temple. The climb wasn't that long and the steps' distance from each other were just right. At the top there sits a Temple with a huge Buddha inside (no photos allowed - but I managed to steal a shot from the outside). The views around the Temple provided us with a bird's eye view of the whole city of Beijing. It was hazy so the pictures didn't come out clear.

There at the Temple we sat to enjoy the view, despite the milling crowds around us. The breeze provided us with such a refreshing feeling after walking up the steps. To the South, we saw the enormity of the Forbidden city complex which contains so many houses of different sizes - which you do not see when you walk through the city. We saw the Drum and Bell Towers in the background to the north. To the East, we saw Bei Hai park, another artificialy made lake with a small island hill where a stupa sits on, called the White Dagoba (we wonder where George Lucas got the names in Star Wars). To the West, just more and more buildings.

We took a different path going down from the Temple going towards the west gate. At the bottom of the steps we saw a sign saying, "this was where Emperor Zhongle hanged himself." Tour groups were there clicking away in their cameras taking pictures of the supposed tree where Zhongle did the job. I too clicked away.

After having enough of the park we left through the west gate and followed the map we bought in Shanghai. Note: Maps in Beijing cannot keep up with all the changes and developments of the city, one will have this street but in another it's no longer there or it has been transformed into a park. We walked west and found the street right next to a park (which used to be rows of hutongs and roads) giving us a much shorter distance to Sun Dong An mall (north of Oriental Plaza in Wang Fu Jing jie).

Wang Fu Jing will most likely be the Nanjing Dong Lu of Beijing. Big malls and brand name shops line this street. With all the construction and renovations happening all over the dust just adds to the pollution. Sun Dong An and Oriental Plaza malls are in the middle of some renovations, as are the side walks, streets, and everywhere you look, here in Beijing.

We found a good place to have lunch at Sun Dong An; serves an assortment of cuisines - so we were able to choose something not oily. I had the beef brisket and Peter had the chicken curry - both for 65 yuan includes drinks.

Right across from this mall is a huge bookstore, Foreign Languages Bookstore. We wanted to buy a map for Xi'an and the other cities we will be visiting after Beijing but there wasn't any. We spent some time browsing through there collection of Chinese books on culture, language, history, etc. Also, to cool off from the warm air outside. I got some postcards and a Chinese script learning material - they have so many to choose from.

After an hour or so at the bookstore we went out, walked along Wang Fu Jing jie, trying to follow the path of the shade, and took a detour to where the Food stalls are. This area comes alive at night when all the food stalls are bustling with activity. Tables and chairs are laid out and stalls are permanently stationed there with an assortment of local food. During the day the tables are covered with umbrellas and food are still served. It's just too hot to hang out there at that time.

Connected to the food stalls are souvenir vendors. Peter managed to haggle a souvenir of Chinese Opera masks from 35 yuan to 15 yuan. I think the vendor still made out well from the deal, but at least we feel that we, too, made out from the deal. (They say we should actually ask for 1/10 of the price. Well, we both feel that we do not want to waste our time and effort to really get a very low price, not unless it's really something we want.)

Our next stop after this walk through Wang Fu Jing was the Oriental Mall (again) to cool off. With this weather, you will definitely need to find a mall or a place to cool off after walking in the hot afternoon to avoid heat stroke. We went to Yogurt Fruz and got a regular size yoghurt: mine with Figs; Peter, with mango. It really helped cool us off. Afterwhich we went to get some groceries and food from Bread talk for our light dinner.

We have one more full day here in Beijing before we leave early in the morning (4:30 a.m.) for the airport - destination: Xi'an.

~~~
There are so many places here in Beijing which we haven't visited yet. At this time, Beijing is not yet tourist-friendly but they are working hard to improve the infrastructure in the city. I was telling Peter that what they need in this huge city which would help the tourists would be a "hop-on, hop-off" bus. It would really be very convenient to see the sights. But, once the other subway lines are online, I am sure that it will be easier for everyone to go around this big city.

~~~
1. Toilet facilities here have improved. There are lots of paid toilet areas that are pretty clean and offer the western style toilet.
2. Toilet facilities have a centralized toilet paper dispenser for everyone's use.
3. Toilet facilities in Sun Dong An are high class and very clean - all Western-style.
4. Toilet facilities going to the Great Wall in Mutianyu are disgusting - squat style, no flush and leftovers are seen with flies all over the place. Just wait until you get to the place and go to the restaurant toilet.

June 15, 2007 - Beijing

Yesterday I wasn't able to post due to a sinus congestion that gave me the headache from the afternoon till the evening. It went away later that night after I did some visualizations and, of course, rested.

We went to the Forbidden City yesterday. Left a little bit late so we were with a huge crowd of visitors both local and foreign. There were just so many people in the city that even the vast expanse looked smaller with the sea of people walking all over.

We entered through Tian'anmen gate and walked the wide expanse to the first gate to the city. The ticket cost about 60 yuan per person.

The entire city is enormous and walking from the south gate to the north, with some detours along the way, took the entire morning. We didn't realize how huge the place was until after.

The main building, the Hall of Preserving Harmony (I think) and another one, were both under construction. We think that this renovation is for next year's olympic event. The buildings were somewhat identical in architecture and design except for their functions. There is an outer court where the emperor receives his guests and military personnel and others. The inner court is where he receives the few important leaders and does official business. The empress has her own palace and hall where to receive her visitors and to change her dress.

As we exited the north gate, we can see the temple sitting on top a hill on Jing shan or Bei Hai park. Instead of going straight to the park we decided to go back south to the nearest mall, The Oriental Plaza, for some chow.

Walking parallel to the Forbidden city, the tree covered road gave us the much needed shade to walk back south. We saw some interesting streets and courtyards rebuilt for special officials and also a few hutongs (alleyways).

To sightsee here in Beijing you will need to have strong legs and lots of energy. The blocks are long and far. Not quite easy to get to especially without any subway connection, although buses run along these streets it's just too difficult to understand because there are no route maps nor pinyin translations for the chinese scripts. So we walked about more than 3 miles down to the mall. (Before that we walked from our hostel to the Forbidden City which was about 4 miles).

At the mall we found a nice Thai restaurant where we could relax and eat some much deserved lunch. (We tried the food court but it was just to crowded, noisy, and hot from the steam coming from the stoves all over the place). I was already feeling the congestion right before our lunch so after we just decided to return back to the hostel to rest.

~~~
We woke up early this morning to walk to Tian Tan (The Temple of Heaven complex). It is just south of our hostel and was quite a walk but not as long as going to the Forbidden city. We entered via the north gate, paid 35 yuan per person for the temples and the park.

As you enter the gate you will be greeted with an enormous park full of trees and local folk doing their exercises, playing and singing. The chinese (young and old) like to play here, sit down and talk story or play cards, for groups and sing songs, and others. Their parks are very much utilised in every way.

Peter and I went to see the Temple of Heaven complex with is temples and altar. The architecture is very interesting and the altar just amazing. We had to beat the crowds to see these places or else all we'd remember are the crowds shoving to see the interiors of the temples.

We lingered a bit in the long corridor in the park outside the complex where we could people watch. The chinese love to just sit there and stay for long hours - it was not easy to find places to sit because there's usually one chinese there.

There were a few times we witnessed a person fall to the ground or got hit by a vehicle or something. The injured person lays there on the ground while the local people (and some foreigners like us) would just surround the person and look. No one seems to be calling or doing something to help. At this park, an elderly man fell from the bench he was sitting on and was lying there on the ground in the hot sun while the people looked on. Someone called for the gate check person and it seemed like no one was doing anything to help. It took about 10-15 minutes before the security guards came in their small vehicle to check the man. Then another 20-30 minutes before the man was taken by ambulance. We realized that they do not have staff trained for contingencies and emergencies like this. It would really be helpful if they did especially in time for next year's olympic event when so many visitors will be coming to visit the city.

Anyway, after sitting there (watching what was happening to the old man) and resting we left the Tian Tan park through the East gate. We walked north from there. Took us about an hour to walk - crossing 3 main intersections - to get to the Oriental Plaza mall next to Wangfujing jie.

At Wangfujing jie, we looked for the famous Quanjude Restaurant that served peking duck. We were fortunate that a Chinese-American guy with his girlfriend were ahead of us. We were told to go up to the 4th floor and they were told to go to the 3rd. The difference in the floors is the higher the floor the higher the surcharge fee. The Chinese-American guy said to check the 2nd floor, and Peter asked if we could go with them. It was a good thing that the guy could speak Chinese so he managed to explain to the lady that we wanted to eat there (only 10% surcharge compared to 40% on the 4th floor). We were led to a separate table which was pretty good.

We ordered a half peking duck, a vegetable dish and a pot of chrysanthemum tea (all for 193 yuan, about $25). The chef came out and carved the duck right in front of us. There were condiments set on the table: hoisin sauce, scallions, flat pancakes, cucumber, and others more. The lade showed us how to prepare and eat the duck. It was pretty good, but we thought Hawaii still serves a more tasty and crispy peking duck with kau yuk (thicker and slightly sweet steamed bread). We left sated after the long walk we had.

Just before we returned to the hostel we got some cold dessert at the mall. It was slightly hot outside and Peter wasn't feeling too good with the colds he caught (he thinks from the trip to Mutianyu, one person in our van was sneezing). After our dessert we caught the subway back to Qian Men and walked back to the hostel.

As I mentioned above, if you plan to visit Beijing, it would be wise to do it after they have already constructed the other subway lines which will connect most of the sights allowing for ease in the sightseeing. Right now these lines are in construction so to get to most of the sights one would have to brave the bus system and crowds or to walk the entire way - which is actually not too bad because it is flat all the way.

Well, I better sign off now and get some rest too. Will post again tomorrow.

June 13, 2007 - Beijing

On our first day here in Beijing we experienced something which does not happen regularly, our experience in Tian An Men square. It was really out of the ordinary and even the locals were somewhat surprised that we were all herded like sheep.

We asked the receptionist here at Leo Hostel what it was all about and she just didn't know, all she knows is that it rarely occurs.

Anyway, we walked along Dazhalan jie to check out our own hutong area and we found out that at night all the lights come up and the food stall vendors begin preparing their specialties. It was an interesting sight.

This morning we signed up for a trip to the Great Wall at Mutianyu, about 65 kms from the city. This area of the Great Wall is less crowded compared to the one in Badaling, and the vendors selling souvenirs aren't that many. Our hostel has a van able to take up to 10 passengers (minimum of 6) to Mutianyu and back. It cost us 160 yuan per person (inclusive of entrance ticket).

The weather was just perfect for a walk up the wall, it was overcast and cool with gusty winds up on top. The drive took about 2 hours along busy roads full of vehicles early in the morning. It was interesting for us to see how the local people drive here, very much like in the Philippines. Along the way we saw about 3 minor bumper accidents, a few cars driving the wrong way, and traffic jams in smaller roads. There were so many constructions along the way too, new subdivisions popping up and a lot of commercial buildings ready to be occupied. For most of the drive the land was flat, no mountains in sight, but as soon as we turned into the smaller country road the mountain ranges seemed to just pop out from the ground in an instant.

At the entrance to the Great Wall at Mutianyu are lots of vendors waiting to sell you their stuff. They will tell you to come back after your trip up the Wall. Our driver took the 8 of us to the place we were to meet up at 1:30 p.m. then led us to the gate where we needed to pay an extra fee for the cable car ride up the mountain. Yes, they have installed cable cars and a toboggan shute for those who do not want to walk from the bottom to the Wall.

We took the cable car ride up and from there went right where the wall was shorter in length (the plan was to walk the left side up to the part where another cable car will bring us back down). It seemed like a good idea but what we didn't know was that this part was much steeper and harder to climb up and down. We walked to almost the top of this side then decided to try the other side, which turned out to be much easier because the steps were low about 3-4 inches from each other, and there were parts where it was just a flat and sloping pavement. It had a much better vantage point and the wind gusts were just wonderful.

An hour before we were to meet we took the cable car (instead of the toboggan) back down. Saw a crazy young tourist go fast down the chute, while the rest were holding on to the brakes really tight.

Back down from the Wall we had a snack at the place we were to meet our driver, ordered a 10 yuan can of coke (which was expensive!). The weather got colder and a slight drizzle began to fall. Our driver came so we got ready to leave. He spoke only chinese so this one man came with us leading us somewhere else, not to the van. We thought it was another tourist scam so we waited next to the van when the driver motioned to us to go and follow the guy. Turned out we needed to walk to the exit away from the eyes of the policemen because our driver is only licensed to have 6 tourists in his van. It really was funny that we had to catch the van nearest the exit.

The drive back didn't feel as long as going there. Rain started pelting the windshield and I just felt fortunate, once more, that the weather cooperated when we were up on the Wall, otherwise, we would have had a hard time climbing up and down the slippery steps.

Now back at the hostel we freshened up, got some late lunch (at 4 p.m., as soon as their kitchen opened), and plan to go walk along Dazhalan jie (on the other side) before retiring for the night

I should mention that in the van going to the Wall we were with an Israeli retired couple, 2 couples from Sweden and us. I sat next to the Israeli man, who taught Mathematics in Ann Arbor and Yale. We had a very nice conversation on the drive to the Wall. They have been in China for more than 2 months, staying in hostels, traveling by train and just following the footsteps of their daughters who have done this while they were in college. I admire their courage and determination and strength to be traveling here. It just shows me that traveling or backpacking isn't just reserved for the young.

Copied from gmail sent, Tuesday, June 12 - Beijing

I have to email you my travel blog because I couldn't get through to Blogger.

Our last night in Shanghai was spent around the Pudong district where the Oriental Pearl TV tower and the Jin Mao tower are located. We went up the 88th floor for a 360 degree view of the city. Awesome!

We walked along the park to the riverside promenade and just lingered there until it was time to get back to our hostel.

I forgot to mention that the entire morning was spent doing our laundry. Their dryer wasn't hot enough, in fact the air was cold so our clothes didn't even dry. We had to use the clothesline and let it dry until the evening when we returned (which most of the light clothes did except for the jeans and other pants which we ran through the dryer twice).

That evening we turned in early because we needed to wake up early the next day. For the second night in a row our next door neighbor began their shouting match at past 10 p.m. on through our wake up time which was 5:30 a.m. (It's too bad that guests like these had to be placed next to our room, we had to endure it for 2 days!)

~~~
We left Shanghai from Hongquiao Airport (their domestic airport). It was just like JFK but much more orderly and efficient. Peter was even able to bring in his big bottle of water, to his great surprise! All the clerk did was open the bottle and smell the liquid for any flammable fumes. That's it. They were much more civilized here, it turns out.

The flight to Beijing took about 2 hours. We landed amid the thick smog that covered the entire city. We didn't see a thing until we were already landing. The weather was not too hot, slightly humid, but bearable.

We found our way out of the airport via the airport shuttle bus that took us to the Beijing railway station. There we caught the subway to Qian Men and walked towards Dhazhalan jie. We lucked out to have met these two haole ladies along the underground walkway. Peter asked them if they knew where Leo Hostel was, it turns out this hostel is pretty popular among the young backpackers. They gave us a map which really helped, otherwise we would have been lost (or looking for it for a long time).
\n\u003cdiv\> \u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>The hostel is not too far from the Tian An Men Square. We went there after having a good hot lunch at the hostel (located along a hutong). There were lots of people there checking out the buildings, the mausoleum, the gates, etc. When we went to where the flags were flying, there were guards all over the place. A few minutes later these guards formed into a line and slowly herded us all out of the square to Qian Men avenue. no explanations given except that we all had to leave the area immediately. The whole area was blocked off and it seemed like something of importance was going to take place in the Hall of the People (?). It was really interesting how efficient and fast this method made us all leave the area quickly. Like sheep into a pen.\n\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\> \u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Tonight we walked along our hutong and found places to buy interesting snacks: beijing thin pancakes and steamed buns. \u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\> \u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Tomorrow we will begin our Beijing visit by going to the Forbidden city.\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\> \u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>BTW, this visit to Beijing is like coming full circle. I was here 25 years ago (one month less). It all looks different with all the huge buildings, vehicles, traffic and the smog. I have brought some of my old pictures with the hopes of matching it with the places we will visit this next few days.\n\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\> \u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>For now, zai jien!\u003cbr clear\u003d\"all\"\>\u003cbr\>-- \u003cbr\>Aloha from Mimi \u003c/div\>\n",0]
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The hostel is not too far from the Tian An Men Square. We went there after having a good hot lunch at the hostel (located along a hutong). There were lots of people there checking out the buildings, the mausoleum, the gates, etc. When we went to where the flags were flying, there were guards all over the place. A few minutes later these guards formed into a line and slowly herded us all out of the square to Qian Men avenue. no explanations given except that we all had to leave the area immediately. The whole area was blocked off and it seemed like something of importance was going to take place in the Hall of the People (?). It was really interesting how efficient and fast this method made us all leave the area quickly. Like sheep into a pen.

Tonight we walked along our hutong and found places to buy interesting snacks: beijing thin pancakes and steamed buns.

Tomorrow we will begin our Beijing visit by going to the Forbidden city.

BTW, this visit to Beijing is like coming full circle. I was here 25 years ago (one month less). It all looks different with all the huge buildings, vehicles, traffic and the smog. I have brought some of my old pictures with the hopes of matching it with the places we will visit this next few days.

For now, zai jien!

Traffic rules here in Shanghai are very flexible. In major intersections you would see people crossing the street even if they don't walk sigh is on. They would cross anywhere and anytime. Same goes for the bikes and mopeds. It seems that these people riding these small vehicles just go for it and sometimes drive as if they were the only ones on the road.

When the walk sign is on, you still have to be careful because vehicles who are turning left or right into the street will go for it, given the space in between pedestrians. You really have to watch out for them.

There are intersections now where traffic police monitor and shout at those who run the light or shoo the pedestrians who begin to cross or even go down from the sidewalk. Slowly traffic order will be established when the local people start obeying the rules.

Just recently in the news one biker just crossed the street as the bus came and struck him. He was dragged underneath when the bus skidded and turned on the street. Fortunately for the biker it was a wet and rainy day that the bus skidded instead of ran him over. The biker escaped death and was seen walking out from underneath the bus. All this was captured on traffic camera.

Line queueing is followed but there will still be a few who will manage to slip into line when you are not looking or aware. This happened to Peter twice: one, at yu yuan gardens while he was lining up to buy some dumplings; and the other, at the grocery store cashier, when these two old chinese couple (or so he thought) just cut in front of him, turned out they weren't even together. Just be aware of your surrounding to make sure no one will cut in line.

Monday, June 11 - Shanghai

Yesterday after posting Peter and I went to see the Jade Buddha Temple. To get there we had to take the Metro north of here and change to another Metro line going south. Since it was a Sunday there were not too many people out and about yet, or maybe, it's just because we were not where the action was.

From the Metro station (forgot the name) we walked about a mile or so to get to the Temple. It was a nice long walk. The weather was cool and slightly breezy and the sidewalks were not as crowded, some areas were pretty much empty. We had to walk some small streets, cross huge roads, and walk along a bridge to get to our destination.

It cost us 20 yuan per person to get into the Temple. There are 3 halls lined up which houses several buddhas. The two main attractions were the Jade Buddhas: one reclining and tiny, the other seated, big and very finely carved using a single piece of jade. For the latter we had to pay an extra 10 yuan to see it, and it was worth it. The carving was exquisite and the facial expression of the buddha was just beautiful.

Also located in the Temple is a Vegetarian Restaurant where we had our lunch. There are two places to have it: the one where they only serve noodles, and the other where they serve a wider variety of vegetarian dishes. We were directed to the latter since Peter wanted some rice. The menu had English translations and some pictures with them making it somewhat easier for us to order our food. Peter and I ordered two different mushroom dishes: his, with herbs, while mine was with ramen. He thought his dish was a regular sauteed dish but it turned out to be a soup dish. The food was much improved from yesterday's fiasco, definitely.

After the Temple, we walked another mile or so south to go to Jing'an Temple (one of the wealthiest temples in Shanghai, was owned by an Abbot who had his own harem and was a ganster with Russian bodyguards). There are lots of shops, restaurants and a huge park surrounding this Temple - looks like one of the Japanese temples we visited in Kyoto, so we decided not to go in as it needed an entrance fee.

We crossed the street to Jing'an park where it is nice and cool and shade. The park also boasts of a huge underground (under the park) shopping complex. Peter and I couldn't find an empty bench to sit on but found a nice flat rock instead. The place was relaxing, far away from the crowds. Peter very much wanted to lay on the grass as it was thick and very tempting - unfortunately we didn't find a single Chinese lying on the ground so I persuaded him to just sit on the rock.

Since the park was located along the Nanjing Xi Lu we decided to walk the street, passing through the shanghai exhibition center, which, according to our guidebook, was an old Russian building used to exhibit the advances of the Chinese in agriculture and techonology but now was transformed into a shopping mall. So we went. Got through the gate only to find out that the area is full of trucks and looked like they were renovating or just had a huge exhibition and were already dismantling stuff. We entered the building and it looked dilapidated. Coming out on the other side (the front) it really looked like it wasn't even transformed into a mall. This building might soon be demolished to bring in the new and more modern style.

It was approaching 6 p.m. when we got to the Nanjing Xi Lu station. We went back to this place that sells a lot of local snacks and food. On the second and third floors are the restaurant. We tried to ask for an English menu which they didn't have. Went back down to decide if we should just buy there and eat it somewhere. But after some discussion we went back up to the 2nd floor and just order what they had pictured in the placemat menu: roast duck (18 yuan), 4 pcs. spring rolls (8 yuan), 4 pcs. crab dumpling (18yuan). We wanted some kind of rice to accompany it and I blurted out "fan". She understood me and pointed to the one written in Chinese script for 38 yuan. Peter was a bit surprised why it cost 38 yuan, so he told me "are you sure it was rice you ordered, or was it noodles, and why is it so expensive?" I simply replied, "well, it will be an expensive surprise." (while thinking, I hope I'm right.)

The spring rolls arrived first, followed by the duck and then the dumplings. When the "fan" arrived it turned out to be fried rice with corn, peas and shredded meat (fish, I think). Whew! I was so relieved that our choices, despite the language barrier, were much much better than yesterday's.

NOTE: To eat out here in China, one must know how to say the dish in Mandarin and/or read Chinese script. Only a few restaurants, which cater to tourists, have English translations.

We returned early last night and wanted to post but the internet connection was too slow.

~~~
Last night I was kept awake by this shouting match going on next door, at first it was a bit muffled so I managed to get some sleep, but later towards the early morning hours the shouting got louder and louder. Fortunately I had my ear plugs on and I got some sleep. Peter almost had to call the front desk to complain but we just weren't sure if they were indeed next door to us.

I hope they left already.

~~~
This morning we are washing clothes while posting. Our plan for today is to go to Pudong, check out the Orient Pearl TV building and the Jinmao tower (70 yuan/person to climb up to the observatory). After that we will just relax and pack up for our morning flight to Beijing.

I'll post again later tonight (if the connection is fast).

Sunday, June 10, 2007- Shanghai

Yesterday's sightseeing was great although the walk was too long, I think we walked about 6 miles or so.

We began our day late because we wanted to check out the Bund and Nanjing Dong lu at night when all the neon signs are all illuminated. Since it was around noon when we got to town we went back to Yu Yuan Gardens to eat at their food court. Remember, I mentioned this food court had lots of local food portioned out in plates ready for the taking. All you need to do is browse through the selection and pick a plate, put it on your tray then continue the process until you feel it's enough for your meal, then you pay at the cashier.

We grabbed the recommended soup dumpling (which you drink the soup with a straw through the huge dumpling the size of a manapua), a plate of fried chicken, a bowl of bird's nest soup, a plate of fried bread rolled up (looked interesting), a plate of a fried bean curd look alike, and a plate of green vegetables. The food looked so good, but it tasted weird and not so good!

Peter went back hoping to get better tasting food. He grabbed a plate of pork barbecue sticks and a plate of sweet lotus root with sticky rice. They were both so-so.

Fortunately, there was this old chinese lady going from table to table asking for leftover food, we gladly gave her our food since they were still good to eat. At least we didn't feel like we've wasted the food.

We realized that the food here was mass produced and because of that the taste and quality was sacrificed. This mistake cost us about $18.

To rectify this, we went to Honeymoon Dessert. We both were pretty happy that at least our dessert was delicious and good.

The walk from Yu Yuan Gardens to Huaihai Lu was long. Thank goodness the weather was not too humid. Our destination was the place of the First Congress for the CPC. It is located in Xintiandi. This area is reminiscent of French streets, wide sidewalks, tree lined streets, and beautiful parks and gardens. We were able to get in the museum for free. It wasn't much, mostly old documents and pictures and a wax replica of the group in a meeting.

What's ironic about this is that the museum is in a corner of an two block area which is now full of shops and restaurants. Very interesting.

Our next long walk took us to Fuxing park, once called the French park. It really is a nice park. Lots of local chinese were there, exercising (this one old man in his 70s, I think, was doing dips for his triceps, very strong guy), dancing, and other things. There are nice thick trees and lots of benches to sit on.

Next we went to Maoming Lu located in the French concession area to find the cafes and restaurants only to find them enclosed and not as crowded as in Xintiandi. So we went back to Huaihai lu and found a small restaurant inside this mall near the subway station - it was japanese cuisine menu and the food was so-so.

As Peter said, when we make a mistake (usually in our food choices) we make it big.

By nightfall we went back to the Bund, had to walk far from the subway station at People's Square through Nanjing Dong Lu then the Bund. There were so many people. I mean, a sea of people, all hanging out at the promenade. It was making us feel a bit claustrophobic being near so many people in the sidewalks and the streets. We had to keep walking fast to find spaces just for ourselves but it was difficult especially in this area. We didn't stay that long at the Bund. Took pictures and stayed a few minutes before going back to catch the subway for Zhongshanlu.

We did some grocery shopping first before heading back to the hostel and getting us some delicious dessert to make up for our not-so-good choices in food this day. At least, we can say that the desserts we had were pretty good.

~~~
Today we will visit the Jade Buddha then to Pudong. Will post later...

Friday, June 8, 2007 - Shanghai

Today our focus was Nanjing Xi (West) Lu (Road) and the People's Park/Square.

The People's Park is at the heart of Shanghai, contains about 4 museums, one of which is the Urban Planning museum (the only museum we decided we want to check out). A beautifully landscaped garden is right at the center of this huge park, a few ponds and lots of places to sit and relax.

From the Nanjing Xi Lu station we turned left towards the park and along the way we found stores that sold local snacks and food for take away -like buns, dumplings, poached chicken, duck, etc. We bought a few items to try for our breakfast at the park: sticky rice with pork in the middle wrapped in lotus leaf, flaky crust pastry with chicken, flaky crust pastry with red bean, and a huge bun-like sticky rice full of fruit and nuts and red bean paste. They were all good and cheap, although I have had my fill of red bean so Peter is pretty happy he didn't have to share with me.

As we were having our breakfast in the park we were approached by 2 young people who wants to practice their english and at the same time take advantage of you. We started speaking in Spanish and Tagalog so they would stop. It just makes us feel sad that instead of putting their knowledge of English to good use they do it to scam tourists. Now we were a bit leary of young people speaking English. We so much want to communicate with them and talk story with them but it might just be a bit complicated.

From where we were on the park we could hear singing. After we finished eating we walked to where the music was coming from and saw a group of middle-aged people singing in the pavilion right across the pond. It was really beautiful, accompanied by an accordion and a chinese fiddle. Then as we got closer the music was finished. We sat there a bit to wait and see if they'd sing again but by then they were just singing solo. (I video taped a short portion of a woman singing.)

We walked to the Urban Planning museum and paid 40 yuan/person to get in. Right in the center of the lobby is a scale model of what they plan for Shanghai in the near future. On the second floor us a much larger model complete with light effects and colors. There were 4 floors dedicated to Shanghai's development and improvements with housing, transportation, maritime, etc. What interested Peter the most was the ecological island they are planning at Chongming (?). They have begun planning and development of this place in 2004. There will be several zones: forestry, farming, tourism, etc. A controlled population of about 650 thousand will be allowed to live and work there. They hope to finish this project in the next few years. I believe they will be host to the 2010 World's fair. The museum could actually be improved and more features can be added to make the admission fee worth it.

For lunch we ventured along Nanjing Xi Lu, the shopping street for Shanghai even from the early1900s. There are a number of shopping malls there but only in the basement of Isetan we found a food court, called Megabite. Here you purchase a Megabite card ($30, 50, 100) which you use to pay for the food you order. Just go to the stall you want to order food and give the card which they debit the transaction. You can refill the card again for future use. Note: the card will have a fee of $5, so subtract than from the store added value before you purchase your food so you know how much your balance will be.

We returned to the hostel later that afternoon and took a much needed nap. Our sightseeing trip here in Shanghai is very relaxed and spread out because we are here for about a week and this city is not the huge compared to Beijing or Seoul. We wanted to check out the Bund and Nanjing Dong (east) Lu at night but when I checked to see the last train to Caoyanglu was 9:48 or 10:48 p.m. (I wasn't too sure) we decided to just go to Zhongshanlu where there's this huge mall called Cloud Nine.

Cloud Nine is a big mall full of activity and people. They have a Carrefour in the basement and 1st floor and a number of restaurants in the building, so most of the people come here to have dinner and at the same time do their grocery shopping. It is a very convenient stop for most as it connects with the subway line 2, 3 and 4.

Because we didn't know what time the station here in Caoyanglu would close, we had to find a fast food place for our dinner - KFC! Yep, you read right! We ate at an American fast food store (that's 3 now: Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and now this.) Well, we really weren't that hungry after having a late lunch and a dessert around 2 or 3 p.m. It was a good thing we ordered the spicy chicken wings (we didn't know what it was because it was in Chinese and it looked huge in the picture).

Now that we're back here at the hostel, we learned that the subway closes at 11 p.m. I guess tomorrow we will try checking out the Bund at night.

~~~
It's just difficult to end up late outside and not know how to get back to the hostel as the buses here only have chinese characters and the taxi drivers do not speak english. Make sure to have your hotel/hostel's name written in Chinese script with you at all times so that you can take a cab when you end up staying our late.

Carrefour is the best place to buy your necessities, like toilet paper and water.

Definitely try out the local snack stores, there's really no need to try street food as they are available in stores also for slightly more in price - unless you really want to try the street food and your stomach is pretty strong.

Spend time lingering around the People's park. It's a nice place to just relax.

When crossing the street, make sure to watch out for motorbikes and bicycles that also criss-cross along the pedestrian walkways and crosswalks. Sometimes cars, along with the bikes, would run the red light or turn right very quickly. Always cross with the local people to help shield you from these oncoming vehicles.

The streets here is not too polluted compared to Manila. Yet it is still better to have a handkerchief or a mask to protect you from it.

Thursday, June 7, 2007 - Shanghai

Before I post I just want to greet my Dad a very Happy Birthday! Love you, Dad!

We began the day a little late, around 9:30 a.m. I had a difficult time sleeping last night because the bed was hard, it turns out we were sleeping on top of a tatami-like mat. Peter, as it turned out, couldn't sleep either.

Since we started late we decided to just have breakfast here at the hostel. I ordered the Swiss breakfast (muesli with fruit, toast with cheese, scrambled eggs); Peter ordered the pancakes with fruit. More people came into the dining area and ordered their breakfast. What's funny was that my order arrived first (which should be because we were there first) and Peter's order came last (the other people got their orders before he did). Peter thought that it was an easy order since they were just pancakes, I told him they probably had to make the batter first and do some kind of trial and error thing because they are really not experts in making american-style pancakes.

For today we explored the Bund area alongside the Huangpu river. From the Metro Line 2 stop at Nanjing (Dong) Lu - a pedestrian mall that begins from the People's Square to a block before the main road parallel to the river. We were awed by the buildings we saw and the amount of space given for the pedestrians. Even with the amount of people walking along the street it doesn't feel too crowded like when we were in Hong Kong. The weather is also very pleasant, no humidity.

We walked along the promenade and looked out across the river to the Pudong district with their huge skyscrapers. Behind us are the transformed buildings of the past, like the Peace Hotel, the Customs building, the HSBC building, etc. It was a good long walk from where we began (around the middle) to the southern end of the promenade.

It was around noon or later when we got to the end. Peter wanted to find a place for us to eat. Since we were near the Yu Yuan Gardens (a walled area with renovated old Chinese-style buildings with the gardens in the middle) we walked there. The walk was quite long and along the sidewalks are street vendors selling their wares and some food. Most of the time we were walking along the streets avoiding the bikes and the mopeds. We found a nice park right near the area where they grow bamboo trees and right in the middle is an old Tea house.

Walking to the YuYuan Garden you would think that the place would be filled with hawkers and street vendors. What you would see first as you entered the area are shops filled with Chinese crafts, souvenirs, etc. Looked like a tourist trap place full of (expensive looking) stores. There were so many people there. We just walked around the place which felt like a maze, the buildings kind of look alike. Then we fell into this area where a lot of Chinese were lining up to by this dumpling. Well, we decided to try it. As we lined up we were right behind a Chinese-Canadian woman who heard us speak English and helped us understand what we were buying. She said that it was a popular place and for 10 yuan we get 16 pieces (or 20 yuan for 32). The line was pretty long but the service was quick. You pay first, get a reciept and then they will serve you the dumplings on a rectangular paper bowl - you can put a soy sauce/vinegar sauce on it. We got the 16 pieces and divided it between the two of us. They were simple yet tasted good!

Next, we wanted to look for a place to have dessert, we walked around and found a bigger food court which sells a huge variety of local Chinese delicacies for cheap! (Who says tourist trap areas are expensive, not so here in Shanghai!) We got 2 kinds of desserts served on steamer baskets and one tofu-looking food which was salty. It wasn't the best but at least now we know where we can eat local food.

We left the place via a different exit and found the Honeymoon Dessert place Peter actually was hoping they'd have. Too late for dessert today but at least we can come back again tomorrow or the next day.

After walking for hours we decided to catch the train back to the hostel and take a nap. By 7 .m. we went out in search of a dinner meal and a supermarket. We were directed to the nearby Carrefour. It had some restaurants we could choose from - decided to have some japanese-style dinner before buying some toilet paper (for use in public toilets - a must have when you're out of doors) and water.

Here in Wuning Road in the Putuo District the buildings look a bit exclusive in some areas which are gated and fully landscaped. Some areas look old but not run down like our previous hostel. In the late afternoons onwards vendors lay down their mats and spread out their wares and items for sale. They occupy most of the sidewalk which makes it hard for people to walk through. (We learned that we can walk, just be on guard, on the bike/moped dedicated lane - about 1 1/3 the size of an american car lane).

~~~
Today we were approached by so many locals trying to sell shoes, watches, bags, etc. They knew we were tourists from a mile away. Another one tried to strike a conversation with us in English, but we learned to be wary of them because they will lure you to a bar or restaurant and get you to pay an enormous amount.

The Subways aren't as full when you avoid the rush hour.

All public toilets are using the squat method and no toilet paper is given unless it is a paid public toilet (they only give you a 2-ply napkin tissue).