I'm back home in Canada now
I'm back home in Canada now but to finish off the details of my travels - despite HUGE jetlag...
Ocean Park is a eco-friendly theme park on Hong Kong Island near Aberdeen Bay. They have a huge panda exhibit, amusement park rides and aquarium. The park is divided into two sections - a "lowland" and "highland". The sections are separated by a mountain and you need to take a cable car ride to go between them. The weather was great and and it was a relaxing day.
We took a ferry to Shengzhen, China the next day. It is a lot cheaper to fly to Beijing from mainland China rather than Hong Kong Airport. We were unlucky and our flight to Beijing was delayed by four hours because of a Beijing snowstorm.
Daryl and I stayed at a restored ancient Chinese courtyard house a few minutes walk away from the Forbidden City. After entering the main walls of the house you enter a second gate into the courtyard. The open courtyard roof was covered with plastic to keep the heat in and the elements out. Ringed around the courtyard were six guestrooms.
To find the house we had to travel through a series of unmarked maze-like alleyways. Some of the homes are so old they still don't have indoor plumbing. When you smelt urine it meant you were getting close to a public toilet.
We explored the ground of the Forbidden Palace the next morning. This was the home of the Chinese Emperor and government for almost 500 years. I had watched a few history channel specials so I thought I was prepared - but I wasn't. The place is spectacular. We rented GPS audioguides which automatically started up when we walked close to a point of interest.
Tienanmen Square was an interesting experience. There were many security checkpoints and military patrols to keep the crowds under control. The soviet-inspired architecture/statues was a sharp contrast to our earlier viewing of the Forbidden City.
We waited in a massive line to see dead Chairman Mao. The rules were quite strict and you had to pay to check any purses/bags in a small building across from the mausoleum. I bought a yellow flower and laid it at the feet of his statue (many Chinese do this). Viewing dead Mao was quite similar to viewing dead Ho Chi Minh - very rushed, quiet and the body look suspiciously waxy (hmmm???). One day I will go to Russia to visit the last great dead communist leader in the trio, Lenin.
For lunch we ate the authentic Peking Duck. It was invented centuries ago by Quanjude restaurant in the centre of Beijing. Many famous world leaders and celebrities (including Chairman Mao) have dined at this location. I'm not a huge duck fan - but this was AMAZING! It was crispy yet melted away in your mouth. We had half a duck served with pancakes, spring onion and hoisin sauce. You use the pancake to make a "duck fajita". Yum!
In tha afternoon we went to the Temple of Heaven Park. It houses a collection of Taoist buildings used by the emperor to worship heaven and earth. Twice a year the emperor would leave the Forbidden Palace to before ceremonies to ensure a good harvest. These ceremonies were complicated and done in secret. If the Emperar made any mistake it would bring bad luck to the harvest. The "Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest" building is a marvel. It is a huge circular wooden building which was built without using nails.
For dinner we tried out a hotpot restaurant. Each person gets a little pot of boiling water heated by a small flame. You order a variety of dishes like thin lamb slices, noodles, vegetables, dumplings, sliced potatoes and drop them into the hot water to cook. Obviously potato takes longer to cook than spinach so you have to keep track of what you've dropped into pot. It is really fun and the waitstaff snuck us some extra dishes for free. :)
For our final day we went to visit The Great Wall of China. We took a city bus to the main bus staition. The bus was jammed packed full of people. I wasn't standing on the floor. I had my toes lodged onto a small platform beside a seat and was using my arm strength not to fall over onto people. Just when I thought no one else could possibly fit - we'd arrive at the next stop and a dozen more people would squeeze on. There is a conductor whose job is ensure everyone pays and to yell at everyone. She had a megaphone and I can only assume she was saying in Chinese: "Move back! More people getting on! You have to move back!".
Well, I've done other "new wonder of the world" - the Great Wall. Since it was winter and freezing cold the place was not very crowded. Walking on the wall is surprisingly steep. It was tiring climbing between the guard towers. We saw a sign for a "Bear Train" and discovered there was a sled/train/roller coaster ride -thingy down the wall. Daryl had just sprained his ankle so we took that very strange contraction down. We ended up in the "Bear Park" which a disgusting collection of Black Bear enclosures with Chinese people thowing apple pieces at sad bears. I got out of there in a hurry.
That evening we went to the food night market. I tried lots of yummy new foods like savoury lamb kebabs, spicy beef buns and yummy mincemeat steamed dumplings. I drew the line at eating some of the more exotic items like crunchy scorpions on a stick. Bleh! Dessert was strawberries on a stick dipped in a candyapple-esque coating.
I really enjoyed my time in Beijing. I was glad we arrived after the Olympics because it made travelling around the city easier (eg. subway stops are in chinese and english). There are still many shops open selling 2008 Olympics gear. The people were warm and friendly to foreigners. Many Chinese people asked to take photos with Daryl and I at the tourist sights. Some people took my photo without my permission. I would pose for Daryl to take a photo of me and then other people would lean in and take the same shot! I know I am on a few Chinese home videos also!
Ocean Park is a eco-friendly theme park on Hong Kong Island near Aberdeen Bay. They have a huge panda exhibit, amusement park rides and aquarium. The park is divided into two sections - a "lowland" and "highland". The sections are separated by a mountain and you need to take a cable car ride to go between them. The weather was great and and it was a relaxing day.
We took a ferry to Shengzhen, China the next day. It is a lot cheaper to fly to Beijing from mainland China rather than Hong Kong Airport. We were unlucky and our flight to Beijing was delayed by four hours because of a Beijing snowstorm.
Daryl and I stayed at a restored ancient Chinese courtyard house a few minutes walk away from the Forbidden City. After entering the main walls of the house you enter a second gate into the courtyard. The open courtyard roof was covered with plastic to keep the heat in and the elements out. Ringed around the courtyard were six guestrooms.
To find the house we had to travel through a series of unmarked maze-like alleyways. Some of the homes are so old they still don't have indoor plumbing. When you smelt urine it meant you were getting close to a public toilet.
We explored the ground of the Forbidden Palace the next morning. This was the home of the Chinese Emperor and government for almost 500 years. I had watched a few history channel specials so I thought I was prepared - but I wasn't. The place is spectacular. We rented GPS audioguides which automatically started up when we walked close to a point of interest.
Tienanmen Square was an interesting experience. There were many security checkpoints and military patrols to keep the crowds under control. The soviet-inspired architecture/statues was a sharp contrast to our earlier viewing of the Forbidden City.
We waited in a massive line to see dead Chairman Mao. The rules were quite strict and you had to pay to check any purses/bags in a small building across from the mausoleum. I bought a yellow flower and laid it at the feet of his statue (many Chinese do this). Viewing dead Mao was quite similar to viewing dead Ho Chi Minh - very rushed, quiet and the body look suspiciously waxy (hmmm???). One day I will go to Russia to visit the last great dead communist leader in the trio, Lenin.
For lunch we ate the authentic Peking Duck. It was invented centuries ago by Quanjude restaurant in the centre of Beijing. Many famous world leaders and celebrities (including Chairman Mao) have dined at this location. I'm not a huge duck fan - but this was AMAZING! It was crispy yet melted away in your mouth. We had half a duck served with pancakes, spring onion and hoisin sauce. You use the pancake to make a "duck fajita". Yum!
In tha afternoon we went to the Temple of Heaven Park. It houses a collection of Taoist buildings used by the emperor to worship heaven and earth. Twice a year the emperor would leave the Forbidden Palace to before ceremonies to ensure a good harvest. These ceremonies were complicated and done in secret. If the Emperar made any mistake it would bring bad luck to the harvest. The "Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest" building is a marvel. It is a huge circular wooden building which was built without using nails.
For dinner we tried out a hotpot restaurant. Each person gets a little pot of boiling water heated by a small flame. You order a variety of dishes like thin lamb slices, noodles, vegetables, dumplings, sliced potatoes and drop them into the hot water to cook. Obviously potato takes longer to cook than spinach so you have to keep track of what you've dropped into pot. It is really fun and the waitstaff snuck us some extra dishes for free. :)
For our final day we went to visit The Great Wall of China. We took a city bus to the main bus staition. The bus was jammed packed full of people. I wasn't standing on the floor. I had my toes lodged onto a small platform beside a seat and was using my arm strength not to fall over onto people. Just when I thought no one else could possibly fit - we'd arrive at the next stop and a dozen more people would squeeze on. There is a conductor whose job is ensure everyone pays and to yell at everyone. She had a megaphone and I can only assume she was saying in Chinese: "Move back! More people getting on! You have to move back!".
Well, I've done other "new wonder of the world" - the Great Wall. Since it was winter and freezing cold the place was not very crowded. Walking on the wall is surprisingly steep. It was tiring climbing between the guard towers. We saw a sign for a "Bear Train" and discovered there was a sled/train/roller coaster ride -thingy down the wall. Daryl had just sprained his ankle so we took that very strange contraction down. We ended up in the "Bear Park" which a disgusting collection of Black Bear enclosures with Chinese people thowing apple pieces at sad bears. I got out of there in a hurry.
That evening we went to the food night market. I tried lots of yummy new foods like savoury lamb kebabs, spicy beef buns and yummy mincemeat steamed dumplings. I drew the line at eating some of the more exotic items like crunchy scorpions on a stick. Bleh! Dessert was strawberries on a stick dipped in a candyapple-esque coating.
I really enjoyed my time in Beijing. I was glad we arrived after the Olympics because it made travelling around the city easier (eg. subway stops are in chinese and english). There are still many shops open selling 2008 Olympics gear. The people were warm and friendly to foreigners. Many Chinese people asked to take photos with Daryl and I at the tourist sights. Some people took my photo without my permission. I would pose for Daryl to take a photo of me and then other people would lean in and take the same shot! I know I am on a few Chinese home videos also!