Wednesday, April 28, 2010
We try to see as much as possible, but in the end there is only time
for two more of Steve's highlights. Once again, we are not
disappointed.
SUMMER PALACE
This is a huge park that was the Royal Family retreat. The
scale of the place is grand and the architecture is remarkable, but once
again I think the people are the stars of the visit. It is popular for
all sorts of Beijing
folks and today seems to be a big day for school field trips. Great
flocks of yellow baseball hats and much youthful excitement. The future
of the New China is everywhere. Posing for class photos, they yell
"Eggplant!" in Chinese and show the v-victory sign.
We see that pose all over China when pictures are taken.
Older visitors stroll the grounds, and rest for the views. The climb up
to the high temple is worth the effort - the crowd thins out a bit and
is a little more subdued.
LAMA TEMPLE
China shows its tolerance for religion by supporting the
large Yonghegong Lamsery. Inside, worshipers of Tibetan Buddhism mingle
with foreign visitors. The street outside is bustling with merchants
hawking incense and religious trinkets. The atmosphere is more subdued
inside the grounds and we wander from one temple structure to the next.
One older worshiper, with incense offering in hand, chats on her cell
phone as she makes her way between temples. I am respectful of the
worshipers, but I do sneak a picture or two so that I remember.
T R A V E L S
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Two Days is not Enough
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Beijing is a spectacularly large city, partly because they have just gotten around to building skyscrapers. Much of the city is mid-height and stretches on forever, but the universal feature that catches my eye is the broad tree lined streets and boulevards. The city has an honest feel, as cities go. We have a tour guide who goes by Steve for his English name. The name was given by his English teacher, and it stuck. Steve says there are seven highlights when visiting Beijing and there is no way we can see them all in the time we have. We choose the ones we think we will enjoy and we are not disappointed.
TEMPLE OF HEAVEN
This is not a temple, but an ongoing party for Beijing residents. It is a huge park complex, once used by the Emperor, but now is popular for family recreation.
We visit during the week and I see crowds of people, mainly older, being active in all manner of ways. A whole area is simple exercise equipment that is well used - everyone has some way to make use of the equipment. Bending, stretching, pulling, pushing. A troop of ethnic dancers keep the crowd smiling.
An old man demonstrates his calligraphy with a damp brush on the dusty stone pavement. Fifty couples do the foxtrot to Chinese music.
Several groups practice something like hacky sack with a feathered ball. Music and karaoke singers are everywhere. Rhythmic dancing with bright colored ribbons. And of course, card playing and gambling. All of this eclipses appreciation the temple structures which are, by the way, magnificent. Lunch is at a large, noisy noodle house but it hits the spot.
FORBIDDEN CITY
The heart of Beijing is former residence of the Emperor and his family originally built in the early 1400's, and the place is only about as big as Central Park. Whoever is in charge of counting, came up with 9,999 rooms - respectfully, one less than heavenly perfection. The primary entry is from the south, under the ever youthful portrait of Chairman Mao. Police and military are nearby, but the atmosphere is upbeat and expectant. The military Honor Guard is impressive - (all members are chosen to be 1.83 meters in height). Families pose for pictures everywhere.
Plazas and courtyards lead into the inner heart of the complex where every structure seems to have a throne room. In one building, ceramics are on display which could have been made today but are thousands of years old. Huge bronze urns once held water to protect against fire and show the scratches where invading foreign troops scraped off the gold plating with their bayonets during the Boxer rebellion. Bronze trim on hundreds of doors show the polish of millions of fingers outlining the dragon motif.
By the end of the day, we are worn out and beg Steve to cut the tour short. It is a rush to the Chinese Acrobat Show for a 1 hour show that is a lot of fun. Dinner is another food highlight with Beijing Duck at a popular restaurant. I think during this whole trip there have been only two meals that missed being exceptional.
Beijing is a spectacularly large city, partly because they have just gotten around to building skyscrapers. Much of the city is mid-height and stretches on forever, but the universal feature that catches my eye is the broad tree lined streets and boulevards. The city has an honest feel, as cities go. We have a tour guide who goes by Steve for his English name. The name was given by his English teacher, and it stuck. Steve says there are seven highlights when visiting Beijing and there is no way we can see them all in the time we have. We choose the ones we think we will enjoy and we are not disappointed.
TEMPLE OF HEAVEN
This is not a temple, but an ongoing party for Beijing residents. It is a huge park complex, once used by the Emperor, but now is popular for family recreation.
We visit during the week and I see crowds of people, mainly older, being active in all manner of ways. A whole area is simple exercise equipment that is well used - everyone has some way to make use of the equipment. Bending, stretching, pulling, pushing. A troop of ethnic dancers keep the crowd smiling.
An old man demonstrates his calligraphy with a damp brush on the dusty stone pavement. Fifty couples do the foxtrot to Chinese music.
Several groups practice something like hacky sack with a feathered ball. Music and karaoke singers are everywhere. Rhythmic dancing with bright colored ribbons. And of course, card playing and gambling. All of this eclipses appreciation the temple structures which are, by the way, magnificent. Lunch is at a large, noisy noodle house but it hits the spot.
FORBIDDEN CITY
The heart of Beijing is former residence of the Emperor and his family originally built in the early 1400's, and the place is only about as big as Central Park. Whoever is in charge of counting, came up with 9,999 rooms - respectfully, one less than heavenly perfection. The primary entry is from the south, under the ever youthful portrait of Chairman Mao. Police and military are nearby, but the atmosphere is upbeat and expectant. The military Honor Guard is impressive - (all members are chosen to be 1.83 meters in height). Families pose for pictures everywhere.
Plazas and courtyards lead into the inner heart of the complex where every structure seems to have a throne room. In one building, ceramics are on display which could have been made today but are thousands of years old. Huge bronze urns once held water to protect against fire and show the scratches where invading foreign troops scraped off the gold plating with their bayonets during the Boxer rebellion. Bronze trim on hundreds of doors show the polish of millions of fingers outlining the dragon motif.
By the end of the day, we are worn out and beg Steve to cut the tour short. It is a rush to the Chinese Acrobat Show for a 1 hour show that is a lot of fun. Dinner is another food highlight with Beijing Duck at a popular restaurant. I think during this whole trip there have been only two meals that missed being exceptional.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Train to Beijing
Monday, April 26, 2010
Taxi to Hung Hom Railway Station, which is a hub for regional commute trains, as well as the through trains into Mainland China. The station is busy, but finding the immigration area and train departure lounge is not too difficult.
A “Deluxe Soft Sleeper” means bunks that are actually quite
hard, but private toilet and table make a comfortable setting for the 24
hour trip to Beijing.
After about an hour, we stop at Guangzhou, I think to change engines,
and there is a knock at the door. People with uniforms enter and there
is a moment of confusion until the Conductor introduces herself and want
to get into the toilet because it is “bad” workmen enter and after a
bit of banging and commotion below the train car, all is fixed.
It's now the next morning and the countryside rolls by as I
listen to Mark Knoffler and Emmylou Harris on my headset. I realize
that, at least along this train route, there is not an acre of unused
land. All is crops or towns, farmhouses or apartment blocks. I see
buildings going up, or falling down, trucks & bicycles, isolated
farmers in endless fields or trackside railway workers, Small backyard
plots and new broad highways with no traffic. Much of what goes by is
old and decrepit, but there is activity everywhere. The continuous
rhythm of towns, fields, and cities is relaxing and gives some time to
prepare for bustling Beijing.
Taxi to Hung Hom Railway Station, which is a hub for regional commute trains, as well as the through trains into Mainland China. The station is busy, but finding the immigration area and train departure lounge is not too difficult.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Ferry to Macao
Friday, April 23, 2010
The ferry to Macao is a high speed catamaran – quite impressive, leaving every 15 minutes to the
former Portuguese colony. There is a lot of traffic, mostly due to the many new casinos that have been established there. The paper has an article claiming the Steve Winn is considering moving his headquarters from Las Vegas to Macao. I have some trouble getting my head around Macao. I think I had heard it described as Hong Kong's poor stepsister, and I guess that says a lot. Now is is a mix of one third old Chinese neighborhoods, one third Portuguese colonial, and one third overdone casinos. I don't think they get along well with each other, and the contrasts are there to see every time you look at the skyline. There is a small Taoist temple not far from a pretty Catholic church. Getting lost in back alleyways is easy, but there is a crazy highrise casino that dominates the skyline and promises to have a taxi stand. The ferry back to Hong Kong is packed – two levels of airline style seating, 16 across. Hong Kong harbor is spectacular at night when we return.
The ferry to Macao is a high speed catamaran – quite impressive, leaving every 15 minutes to the
former Portuguese colony. There is a lot of traffic, mostly due to the many new casinos that have been established there. The paper has an article claiming the Steve Winn is considering moving his headquarters from Las Vegas to Macao. I have some trouble getting my head around Macao. I think I had heard it described as Hong Kong's poor stepsister, and I guess that says a lot. Now is is a mix of one third old Chinese neighborhoods, one third Portuguese colonial, and one third overdone casinos. I don't think they get along well with each other, and the contrasts are there to see every time you look at the skyline. There is a small Taoist temple not far from a pretty Catholic church. Getting lost in back alleyways is easy, but there is a crazy highrise casino that dominates the skyline and promises to have a taxi stand. The ferry back to Hong Kong is packed – two levels of airline style seating, 16 across. Hong Kong harbor is spectacular at night when we return.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Hong Kong
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Hong Kong
The city is the definition for contrast between old and new. Very tightly packed matrix of small streets lined with shops or street vendors next to highrise bank buildings or shopping malls. We are staying in the Central District on Hong Kong Island which is hilly and has a roadway system that is full of corkscrews to get up to the next levels. Mr Toad's Wild Ride. Out for a walk when a rain downpour sends everyone running for cover, so we head for the covered escalator system that descends for hundreds of feet and over a mile through town down to the waterfront.
Packed with lunch hour crowds, the pedestrian streams branch off to other overhead covered walkways and into office buildings and shopping malls. Later to Man Mo Temple, an older building with a beautiful nest of incense coils overhead. Then shopping for dodads along a street of antique shops. I am surprised that Hong Kong is still very separate from Mainland China, even more than 10 years after “The Handover”. Customs controls at the border, the Hong Kong dollar is still a separate currency (very handsome with a tendency to display buildings and bridges), English is pretty universally spoken, and internet sites that are blocked on the Mainland are open here.Sun is out this morning and it looks like a good day for the ferry to Kowloon (wonderful name).
Hong Kong
The city is the definition for contrast between old and new. Very tightly packed matrix of small streets lined with shops or street vendors next to highrise bank buildings or shopping malls. We are staying in the Central District on Hong Kong Island which is hilly and has a roadway system that is full of corkscrews to get up to the next levels. Mr Toad's Wild Ride. Out for a walk when a rain downpour sends everyone running for cover, so we head for the covered escalator system that descends for hundreds of feet and over a mile through town down to the waterfront.
Packed with lunch hour crowds, the pedestrian streams branch off to other overhead covered walkways and into office buildings and shopping malls. Later to Man Mo Temple, an older building with a beautiful nest of incense coils overhead. Then shopping for dodads along a street of antique shops. I am surprised that Hong Kong is still very separate from Mainland China, even more than 10 years after “The Handover”. Customs controls at the border, the Hong Kong dollar is still a separate currency (very handsome with a tendency to display buildings and bridges), English is pretty universally spoken, and internet sites that are blocked on the Mainland are open here.Sun is out this morning and it looks like a good day for the ferry to Kowloon (wonderful name).
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Yangshuo and Water
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Yangshuo County is all about water. We travel from Guilin on the scenic river cruse. The landscape is made up of fantastic shapes eroded from the limestone bedrock by thousands of years of rain erosion. When the river level is lower during dry periods, the boat cruse starts further along the river, but we are lucky because it has been raining for many days now and the water is high. We power down the river with hardly enough time to appreciate the scenery. The hills are all the ones you see on ancient Chinese landscapes.
Our guide, Joy, (or Mr. Hu – Who? - his joke not mine)
points them out - “See that hill that looks like a big apple? We call
that Big Apple Hill. And over there, the spire that looks like a
writer's brush? That is Writer's Brush Spire.” In Yangshuo,
the /humidity is extreme, and condensation is on eyeglasses, camera
lenses, tile floors – everywhere. Walking leads to sweating. I soon
realize that wearing a rain jacket is two muggy and that an umbrella is
all you need. The river has heavy morning fog that I swear is coco
brown, like the river. Traditional cormorant fishermen float by on
bamboo rafts.
They fish with trained cormorant birds who dive for the fish and return them to the raft. Neck collars keep the birds from getting greedy and swallowing the catch. The river is nearby and is so high that they have canceled the boat cruses. Ours was the last for a little while, and we are fortunate to get here in the brief window between dry period and the too much rain period.
Yangshuo County is all about water. We travel from Guilin on the scenic river cruse. The landscape is made up of fantastic shapes eroded from the limestone bedrock by thousands of years of rain erosion. When the river level is lower during dry periods, the boat cruse starts further along the river, but we are lucky because it has been raining for many days now and the water is high. We power down the river with hardly enough time to appreciate the scenery. The hills are all the ones you see on ancient Chinese landscapes.
They fish with trained cormorant birds who dive for the fish and return them to the raft. Neck collars keep the birds from getting greedy and swallowing the catch. The river is nearby and is so high that they have canceled the boat cruses. Ours was the last for a little while, and we are fortunate to get here in the brief window between dry period and the too much rain period.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Getting Around in Shanghai
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Shanghai has grown into an uber-city, and there is too much to comprehend. There is a mix of old overlayed by new. In may cases old obliterated by new. New York comes to mind. Our hosts spend a lot of time in the French Concession neighborhood which is older, European influenced, and busy with shops, clubs and restaurants.
Cab fairs are cheep and are the best way to get around. No English is spoken, but pointing at maps, or blackberry emails with instructions in Chinese seems to work. One night the return home is entertaining in the extreme, with our driver proving to be a western jazz nut, listening to his jazz radio station and playing ''air saxophone” to Stan Getz. Traffic is universally insane, but we only saw one accident. If everyone is insane together, it seems to work. Leaving the city for the airport, we travel first on congested surface streets, then on the new overhead freeway system that wasn't there a couple of years ago, and finally we transfer to the Maglev train for the last 10 minutes at 260 mph. It is a short prototype system to test the technology, and it is well traveled with tour groups as well as airport passengers.
Shanghai has grown into an uber-city, and there is too much to comprehend. There is a mix of old overlayed by new. In may cases old obliterated by new. New York comes to mind. Our hosts spend a lot of time in the French Concession neighborhood which is older, European influenced, and busy with shops, clubs and restaurants.
Cab fairs are cheep and are the best way to get around. No English is spoken, but pointing at maps, or blackberry emails with instructions in Chinese seems to work. One night the return home is entertaining in the extreme, with our driver proving to be a western jazz nut, listening to his jazz radio station and playing ''air saxophone” to Stan Getz. Traffic is universally insane, but we only saw one accident. If everyone is insane together, it seems to work. Leaving the city for the airport, we travel first on congested surface streets, then on the new overhead freeway system that wasn't there a couple of years ago, and finally we transfer to the Maglev train for the last 10 minutes at 260 mph. It is a short prototype system to test the technology, and it is well traveled with tour groups as well as airport passengers.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Arriving Shanghai
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Thursday – Shanghai The first full day in Shanghai. I can't sleep past 6:00 and start the day with Pete's coffee. It seems like a good idea to make a foray into the city on the Metro to get comfortable with the concept of being here. The French Concession is an older neighborhood that looks like a good target and has the additional enticement of Julian's favorite massage place. A possible two hour jet-lag cure is our target. Experiencing the Metro, I an struck with a couple of thoughts, but they are not the ones that I was expecting. My preconception was that Shanghai is an international cosmopolitan center and I expected to see more western faces once we were out and about. However, the Metro experience and the walk to the area of the old French Concession was a 100 percent Asian one. The city is getting ready to welcome the world to the Expo 2010 fair on May 1st, but the world is not here yet.
Thursday – Shanghai The first full day in Shanghai. I can't sleep past 6:00 and start the day with Pete's coffee. It seems like a good idea to make a foray into the city on the Metro to get comfortable with the concept of being here. The French Concession is an older neighborhood that looks like a good target and has the additional enticement of Julian's favorite massage place. A possible two hour jet-lag cure is our target. Experiencing the Metro, I an struck with a couple of thoughts, but they are not the ones that I was expecting. My preconception was that Shanghai is an international cosmopolitan center and I expected to see more western faces once we were out and about. However, the Metro experience and the walk to the area of the old French Concession was a 100 percent Asian one. The city is getting ready to welcome the world to the Expo 2010 fair on May 1st, but the world is not here yet.
The other surprise was to only encounter one person who
spoke decent English – a gentleman who helped us decipher the Metro
ticket machine. That sounds like the American's typical exception that
everyone should speak my language and I guess it was, but it was still a
surprise. Everyone was helpful, but communication was entertaining. My
point of reference was a visit to Beijing
two years ago, where I remember more shopkeepers or people on the
street who had English skills. Dinners at Anja and Julian's place have
been wonderful. First night prepared by their housekeeper, and last
night was Hunan take-out. Much wine and interesting conversation.
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