On to Chongqing City

September 21, 2010

Chongqing City

This time I booked a ‘soft sleeper’ on the night train from Xian to Chongqing. The 12 hour trip cost the equivalent of forty US dollars and I felt safe and comfortable the entire time. One quickly learns the different types of seating available on the trains in China, listed here in order of increasing cost:

1) Hard Seat: the cheapest, but not for the faint of heart. Best way to really meet the locals.

2) Soft Seat: which I found very adequate on my trip from Beijing to Xian.

3) Hard Sleeper: has open bay carriages with 6 bunks, used by many backpackers.

4) Soft Sleeper: the way to go! Four bunks in a closed compartment with a mattress, clean sheets and pillows.

I actually felt refreshed when I arrived in Chongqing early the next morning. It was raining and since it is a very hilly city, I did something I rarely do. I took a taxi. For about $1.50 (and tipping is not expected in China) I got from the train station into town. Needless to say, I took a lot more taxis after that! A very pleasant lady taxi driver read the address written in Chinese characters from the Lonely Planet tour guide and delivered me directly to the hotel that I had picked out ahead of time.

The hotel was dark inside and I was soon told that all the electricity was out and they could not take any new guests. I strapped my backpack back on and headed up the street looking for more hotels, like I’ve done so many times before. But this turned out to be one of those fortuitous situations when what seemed like bad luck actually worked out in my favor. Just down the street I walked into the Hongyadong Hotel and got a first class room for the equivalent of $50.00! This turned out to be the stand-out hotel of my trip, which I will be featuring in a separate entry. I had a room with a balcony overlooking the river, a beautiful marble bathroom, elegant traditional Chinese furniture and a gourmet breakfast in the morning. And best of all, they had a travel agent at the hotel who was able to book me on a Yangtze River cruise the next day!

Chongqing is quite a beautiful city, built on the confluence of the Jialing and Yangtze Rivers. It is famous for its mountainous terrain and a local dish called hotpot, spiced with chilies. The neon-lit night skyline is quite impressive, especially when seen from the river. Historically, Chongqing was the headquarters for General Joseph Stilwell and the Kuomintang during World War II.

After getting settled in, I walked all over town, exploring the shops and small alleys and the promenade along the rivers. I came upon a Hostelling International hostel overlooking the river and went in to check it out. After showing my membership card, they let me use their computer to check email and write home…free! Another reason to join HI (see links)! Shop keeping is king in China and I made an interesting observation in Chongqing, which seemed to be the norm for cities throughout China. It seems that all the independent shops specializing in a specific item were grouped together on one street. The following photo shows what must have been ‘fan street’. Wish I had had more time to explore, but my cruise ship was leaving the next day.

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New Friends in China

September 17, 2010

Here is a gallery of some of the new friends I met in China:

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The Terracotta Warriors of Xian

1 Comment / September 13, 2010

The Terracotta Warriors of Xian

I boarded one of the buses going to the site of the Terracotta Warriors early in the morning. On the short ride out into the countryside, I immediately met two young globetrotters, Grace from England and Tor from Norway, and we spent a pleasant day together exploring the sights (and we’re now all friends on Facebook!). The Army of Terracotta Warriors is one of the must-see sights in China and undoubtedly one of the most impressive things that I have seen in my travels throughout the world. This army of soldiers was built two thousand years ago (210 BC) to guard the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China (shi huang means first emperor).

An Incredible Archeological Find

Considered one of the greatest archeological finds in the world, it was discovered by accident in 1974 by peasants drilling a well. There are thought to be about 8,000 warriors in the three pits opened to the public and it is believed that more will be discovered in the future. Pit 3 is the largest and contains 6,000 soldiers, each individually sculpted and, incredibly, the features of each face are unique. In addition to soldiers, there are also horses and chariots, each beautifully detailed. After visiting the site of the Tomb of Qin Shi Huang we caught the next bus heading back to town. It was a fantastic day and could not have been easier for an independent traveler to do on his own.

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Xian, The Muslim Quarter

2 Comments / September 10, 2010

Xian, China

After an overnight train ride, I arrived in Xian on the morning of May 29. A large, diverse metropolis surrounded by ancient walls, Xian turned out to be one of my favorite cities in China. The main hub of Xian seems to be the train station plaza, from which the rest of the city fans out. Just a few blocks from the station I found a nice hotel within minutes of getting off the train and, although it was still early in the morning, they let me check in right away. For the equivalent of about $86 a night (the most I spent for lodging on this trip), which included a fantastic buffet breakfast, I stayed two nights at the Long Hai Hotel. As is my usual habit, I spent the first few hours getting cleaned up and relaxing a bit while I studied the map of the city and oriented myself. Before setting out to explore I like to take care of business, so I reserved my train ticket for the next leg of my trip to Chongqing and then looked into how I would get to the Terracotta Warriors the next day. With a little bit of investigation, I learned that I didn’t have to take one of the tour buses offered by the many hawkers at the train station plaza. Instead, for about a dollar, I could simply take a regular bus, #306, which goes frequently to and from the site of the Terracotta Warriors throughout the day, and then I could be on my own schedule.

The Muslim Quarter in Xian

Chores completed, I headed out into the city and soon found that one of the most interesting parts of Xian is the Muslim Quarter. Its narrow streets are bustling with activity and one could easily get lost wandering amongst the many small shops and food vendors that crowd the area. The Muslim Quarter is home to the Hui Chinese Muslims, dating back to the 7^th century. The men wear the traditional white skull caps and women wear scarves. I ended up making the trip back to this alluring area on each of the three days I was in Xian, each time braving the wide, traffic filled boulevards that I would have to cross to get there.

Busy Streets

The streets in Xian, like in most of the major cities of China, are filled with cars, buses, motorbikes, three-wheeled taxis and pedestrians. Somehow they all seem to coexist as they zip in and around one another, all very politely and seemingly with some order in the chaos. Perhaps it is the constant sound of horns that keeps everyone aware. After a few days in China I began to think there must be a law that requires each driver to honk his horn at least once every 30 seconds, whether they need to or not. I recall an amusing scene when I was walking along a wide street, completely deserted except for a single motorbike at the far other end of the street coming my way. The driver honked his horn continuously all the way down the street even though there wasn’t another vehicle in sight. As he passed I noticed he had a package on the floor by his feet that stuck out the side a bit and I guess he figured it gave him an excuse to honk his horn even through there was no one to hear him…except me.

Note: Xian is pronounced ‘shee-ahn’

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Beijing and Environs

2 Comments / September 3, 2010

Exploring Beijing

My Dad served in the China-Burma-India Theater during World War II and had visited Beijing many years before me. I had seen his black and white photos of the Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City and it was quite a thrill to finally get to see them myself. During the three days I had in Beijing I walked all over the central part of the city where most of the important sites are located, near Tiananmen Square. Of course, I had to see the Mao Memorial Hall, just out of curiosity, and stood in the fast moving line with mostly older locals and other tourists. I was surprised at how up close and personal the encounter was and can report that after 34 years he is looking rather pale. One could spend days exploring the Forbidden City, which is a labyrinth of gardens, halls and ancient buildings. During the 500 years it was home to the Ming and Qing Dynasty Emperors, it was off limits to outsiders, hence its name.

On my second day in Beijing I took a tour which I booked through the hostel to the Ming Tombs and the Great Wall at Badaling (40 miles outside of Beijing). Begun over 2000 years ago, the wall spans nearly 3700 miles. The section at Badaling is the most famous and the one most tourists visit. I walked and climbed the wall for several hours along with crowds of other tourists, often in a slight rain, but it was definitely one of the highlights of my trip.

On my last day in Beijing I took the metro to the Summer Palace on the outskirts of the city. By that time I was getting pretty good at using public transportation. Again, one could spend days walking through the Summer Palace grounds, perched above Kunming Lake. It is replete with gardens, temples and pavilions and was a refreshing respite from the hustle-bustle of the city. On the way back I stopped at the Beijing Zoo and must admit I was somewhat disappointed in the Panda Exhibit, which only had a few pandas which could be seen sleeping off in the distance. That night I boarded the train for the trip to Xian to see the Terra Cotta Warriors. My ticket for a nice sleeper seat cost about $35.00, for a ride the equivalent of going from California to Texas!

Travel Tip:

While in China take time to get to know the people. Everywhere I went in Beijing and throughout China people came up to me wanting to talk and ask where I was from and what I had seen and liked about their country. Beijing, in particular, has many students who are curious about the United States and many who just want to practice their English. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting these friendly people. I could not count the number of times throughout my trip to China that locals asked me if they could have their picture taken with me, almost making one feel like a celebrity!

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First Day In Beijing

2 Comments / August 26, 2010

First Day in Beijing

It was with some trepidation that I arrived at the Beijing Airport around 8 PM on the evening of May 25, 2010. After all, it was a new country for me and I didn’t speak any Chinese and finding my hostel tucked away in a hutong (narrow alleyway) in the middle of one of the biggest cities in the world would be like finding a needle in a haystack. All I knew was that it was near the Temple of Heaven. After buying enough yuan (basic unit of the ‘peoples money’) at the airport to get a bus ticket, I soon found myself heading into the city.

Right from the get-go my fears were allayed by the helpful, friendly people I met everywhere I went. The bus was full of locals, but I spotted someone in a seat towards the front of the bus, who looked like he might also be a visitor.

“Do you know which bus stop would be the closest to the Temple of Heaven?”, I ventured to the elegant looking black gentlemen wearing a tailored suit. He replied in beautiful English, explaining that he was a businessman from Africa and that he was in the same boat as I was. As we poured over a huge map of the city together in the dim light of the bus, a young Chinese lady sitting across the aisle came to our aid.

She had overheard our conversation and said, “I live near the Temple of Heaven. Get off with me and we can share a taxi”. I was in business! After helping the other gentleman find his bus stop, she and I got off in the middle of a huge boulevard. She hailed a taxi and once again we were whisking our way through the streets of Beijing. She introduced herself as Liang and explained that she was an attorney, returning from a business trip abroad. I gave her the address of my hostel and it seemed like she spoke for the longest time to the driver. She then directed him through the maze, pointing first down this street, then down another. The streets became narrower and narrower, although still filled with pedestrians at this late hour, until suddenly there it was, looming over the little shops surrounding it, The Far East International Hotel. Even after directing the driver to go far out of her way, Liang would not let me pay for my share of the taxi. She gave me her card with her phone number in case I needed any assistance during my trip. I had met my first friend in China.

The staff at the hostel greeted me as though they were waiting just for me and soon had me safely ensconced in my room. After the long flight, I certainly didn’t need any rocking that night. This was just the beginning of a nearly three week encounter with some of the most friendly people I have ever met. I was off to a great start. Tomorrow I would conquer Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.

Travel Tips

The Far East International Hotel is both a hotel and a hostel. It is part of the vast network of hostels that are part of Hostelling International. I highly recommend that every value-minded traveler join Hostelling International. The annual membership fee is free for youth under 18, $28.00 for adults from age 18-54 and $18.00 for seniors age 55 and above. I booked my first three nights in Beijing in advance using their website (see links) and had a private room with bath for a total cost of about $86.00 for all three nights! The hostel is located in the heart of the city in one of the quaint hutongs that Beijing is famous for. It is within walking distance of Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven and many of the other must-see sights in Beijing. I felt safe and comfortable in this area and enjoyed the experience of living in close proximity to the citizens of this great city.

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