Hello again everyone! As a quick thought, for some reason Steve and I are unable to view our blog via the Chinese internet and so we are unable to read all of the comments you have left us at the moment! But we can keep on posting, so if anyone needed a response or anything to their comments, then send us an e-mail instead, otherwise we'll have to wait until we're goodness-knows-where before we can access the blog fully again (although should be accessible in thailand - so keep sending us your comments, it'll mean we have something extra to look forward to)!
MONDAY 9th April
Well, after we finished blogging to you all, we had a rather interesting time to say the least! We grabbed a taxi from near the hostel to take us to the West Beijing Railway Station, so we did a lovely job of pointing to the correct place (on no less than 2 different maps on several occasions), but we still ended up at the Central Beijing Railway Station - a half an hour drive away from where we wanted to be!! Luckily we had an absolute tonne of time to spare and so were able to grab a second taxi, which managed to take us to the correct West Railway Station! We had been a bit worried we wouldn't know where to go to catch the train, but we managed to work out where to go all on our own - pretty impressive really! However, we had the unfortunate task of needing the loo whilst waiting to be able to board the train and they were the most disgusting toilets we've ever come across - we won't go into any sorded details! However, things started to look up, one of the attendants came over to look at our tickets, as we think they noticed us looking very sheepish and they signalled for us to go through to the train. It was really good once on board, the compartment was really pleasant, although the beds were as stiff as wooden boards and so I got quite bad back ache - Steve's just weird and found it comfy! But we were soon on our way trundling along to Xi'an.
TUESDAY 10th April
When we woke up in the morning we were just outside Xi'an and soon after were pulling into the station and having to heave our huge back packs back on! We kept our eyes peeled for someone meeting us from the new hostel (Lu Dao) and soon saw a piece of paper being wafted around with our name on. We were able to walk to the hostel from the train station as it wasn't far at all and the person from the hostel was very pleasant and chatty. Well, when we arrived at the hostel our jaws almost hit the floor, as compared to the Feiying youth hostel in Beijing, this was a complete lap of luxury! So despite being pretty tired, we were very happy. Once we were settled in and showered, we decided to pop back to the train station to book our return tickets to Beijing, which we managed to do, although we have standard soft sleeper compartment this time not an executive one, so we'll have to share with 2 other people and use a shared bathroom. Once we got the tickets we went for a wander and finally decided to go to the Eight Immortals Temple, we weren't even half way and had been walking for ages, so decided to get a taxi the rest of the way! The Temple was nice, although I felt a little out of place, as it's an active Temple and there were lots of people there praying etc. It was also quite a small place and so we were soon finished and decided to head towards the main centre of Xi'an to grab some lunch. We're not entirely sure what we had, it was a mixture of different stir-fried meats and vegetables we think and some plain rice - Steve managed to chuck laods of the sauce down himslef while we were trying to find somewhere to sit and eat! After eating we headed off to the Bell Tower and then after that the Drum Tower. They were quite cool, in the Imperial style of the Ming Dynasty and they had dispalys on inside about the history of Ancient Chinese music etc. They weren't the most interesting of attractions we've seen, as they are so similar to everything we've seen in Beijing, but it was nice to get out in Xi'an - even if the heat was stifling and unbearable today! After the Towers we ended up going on an expedition to find some tights (for some reason a commidity very difficult to come across and very expensive when you do), as my walking trousers make my legs very sore and so I can't wear them directly next to my skin - I have been wearing leggings underneath, but it's just murder in this kind of heat! After what felt like many hours of searching, we finally came across some and I managed to purchase a couple and for what they cost, they'd better last me at least for the rest of the trip (but I bet they'll be wrecked in a week or so)!! We needed to cool down after this and grabbed a couple of ice-creams and then grabbed another taxi back to the hostel.
We've been chilling out for a little while, checking our budget and forming a plan of attack so to speak. We've got ourselves booked on a trip which will take us to the Terracotta Warriers, Hua Quing Hot Spring and Banpo Neolithic Village, which is tomorrow. All our transport is organised and we'll have an English speaking guide - yipee no worrying about taxis and public transport on the manic streets of China for us!
Still feeling homesick I'm afraid, but trying to keep my spirits up - I know I should be looking forward to the rest of the trip! Mum and dad, I'll give you a call tonight or tomorrow (although it will be lunchtime for you) - looking forward to hearing your voices again!
Well, we think that's it - think this is a fairly short one for once - you lucky lot! Missing you all still and hope your all well, we're off to dinner now, bye!
Tuesday, 10 April 2007
Monday, 9 April 2007
Temples and Parks
Right-e-o we're afraid we've got a few days to catch up on again, so it's going to take a while - we hope you have a cuppa to keep you going through this one!
SATURDAY 7th April
Today we weren't up hugely early (we managed to forget to set an alarm), but we were soon out of the hostel and heading off to the Summer Palace. In our usual sense of adventure, we decided to use the public transport system, so we caught the trusty old (packed to the rafters) subway train and then had to try and find the bus stop - which was luckily very easy to find, as it was about 100 yards down the street from the subway station. We only had to wait a few minutes for the bus to arrive and we were pointing away at our guide book again to show where we wanted to go. The journey was quite long, as the traffic was pretty solid, but the attendant got our attention when it was time for us to leave the bus and also pointed us in the direction of the Summer Palace, which was just across the street. The Palace was really lovely, with lots of open space to enjoy, including a vast lake. There was a gorgeous view of the Palace grounds from the top of the hill at the north side of the grounds (unfortunately there were a tonne of stairs to climb to get there - not a surprise and we're not sure how much more of it our legs can take)! The buildings were in the ususal Imperial style with deep red pillars, blue, yellow and green rooves and the most beautiful painings on the rafters and ceilings. We were piggies (and tight wotsits) when it came to lunch and just each had a rather large ice-cream! Unfortunately some of the buildings were again closed off due to rennovation, but luckily not too many. We didn't have it in us to walk around the entire perimeter of the lake and grounds, so once we were out of energy we headed off to find the bus to take us to the hostel again. Once back, we headed out for dinner in the restaraunt we ate in on the first night, but managed to order less food and so didn't waste as much this time!
SUNDAY 8th April
Today we headed off to the Temple of Heaven Park, using the subway to get us to Chongwenmenwai and then walking for about 30 minutes to get to the Park itself. It was really beautiful there, the grounds were expansive, but very dry and arid as though it was the middle of a very hot summer rather than the beginning of spring. It was also very busy (just as yesterday had been) as it was the weekend. But we enjoyed walking around the grounds and even managed to get a nice tourist to take a photograph of us together with the Temple of Heaven in the background. It was a shame though because as usual we were unable to enter most of the buildings and so it is difficult to get a true perspective and awe of some of the most beautiful and impressive ones we have peered into over the past few days. Again some of the buildings in the Park had been closed off and so we ended up finishing quite quickly and so decided to go and buy some lunch. We went to a place called RBT (Real Brewed Tea) on Chongwenmenwai, the food was OK, but not exceptional (especially for the price of it), but the drinks were quite impressive - Steve had a milkshake type thing which was huge!
Once we'd finished lunch we walked along the Ming City Wall ruins Park, getting soggy from all the water jets spraying the grass and plants! At the end of the wall was the Southeast Corner Watchtower, which we went up and had a look around in. Most of it was taken up with a modern art display and the rest was focused around outlining the history of the Ming City Walls and Watchtowers etc. We were both really tired and ended up being back at the hostel really early today - mainly because I've been feeling quite ill over the past few days (I've got a grotty cold which is making me feel very groggy most of the time) and Steve's poor feet are suffering and are now covered in blisters! So we enjoyed sitting around for a little while before deciding to head out to find some food to take back to the hostel for dinner. We were going to go to a little place next to the restaraunt we ate at on Saturday, but there were no English signs and we couldn't tell what anything was, and there were no noodles or rice or anything! So we were complete and utter chavs and got a MacDonalds (yes we are ashamed about doing it, but we were just so tired)!
MONDAY 9th April
We've not really done anything today, as we didn't want to get stuck out in Beijing sightseeing and then not have enough time to pack our bags and check out of the room in time for catching the sleeper train to Xi'an. So we had our first proper lay-in before Steve popped out to buy us some breakfast. We're not sure what it was, but it was just about OK! Late morning we decided to pop out for some fresh air and went to the shopping area of Wenfungji (something like that anyway). We wandered aroud looking at the shops etc - Steve was very tempted by all the camera goodies on display! We found a nice looking restaraunt to eat in, where I managed to chuck sweet and sour pork down myself and all over the table as it slipped out of my chopsticks! After lunch we sauntered back to the subway so that we could get back to the hostel and pack our bags ready to go to the train station.
That's about it really, we're just sitting around with our bags packed, ready to jump in a taxi to get to the train station! We're both feeling a bit homesick at the moment (although I would probably say I'm making up for the both of us)! Missing you all loads and hope you're enjoying the blog!
SATURDAY 7th April
Today we weren't up hugely early (we managed to forget to set an alarm), but we were soon out of the hostel and heading off to the Summer Palace. In our usual sense of adventure, we decided to use the public transport system, so we caught the trusty old (packed to the rafters) subway train and then had to try and find the bus stop - which was luckily very easy to find, as it was about 100 yards down the street from the subway station. We only had to wait a few minutes for the bus to arrive and we were pointing away at our guide book again to show where we wanted to go. The journey was quite long, as the traffic was pretty solid, but the attendant got our attention when it was time for us to leave the bus and also pointed us in the direction of the Summer Palace, which was just across the street. The Palace was really lovely, with lots of open space to enjoy, including a vast lake. There was a gorgeous view of the Palace grounds from the top of the hill at the north side of the grounds (unfortunately there were a tonne of stairs to climb to get there - not a surprise and we're not sure how much more of it our legs can take)! The buildings were in the ususal Imperial style with deep red pillars, blue, yellow and green rooves and the most beautiful painings on the rafters and ceilings. We were piggies (and tight wotsits) when it came to lunch and just each had a rather large ice-cream! Unfortunately some of the buildings were again closed off due to rennovation, but luckily not too many. We didn't have it in us to walk around the entire perimeter of the lake and grounds, so once we were out of energy we headed off to find the bus to take us to the hostel again. Once back, we headed out for dinner in the restaraunt we ate in on the first night, but managed to order less food and so didn't waste as much this time!
SUNDAY 8th April
Today we headed off to the Temple of Heaven Park, using the subway to get us to Chongwenmenwai and then walking for about 30 minutes to get to the Park itself. It was really beautiful there, the grounds were expansive, but very dry and arid as though it was the middle of a very hot summer rather than the beginning of spring. It was also very busy (just as yesterday had been) as it was the weekend. But we enjoyed walking around the grounds and even managed to get a nice tourist to take a photograph of us together with the Temple of Heaven in the background. It was a shame though because as usual we were unable to enter most of the buildings and so it is difficult to get a true perspective and awe of some of the most beautiful and impressive ones we have peered into over the past few days. Again some of the buildings in the Park had been closed off and so we ended up finishing quite quickly and so decided to go and buy some lunch. We went to a place called RBT (Real Brewed Tea) on Chongwenmenwai, the food was OK, but not exceptional (especially for the price of it), but the drinks were quite impressive - Steve had a milkshake type thing which was huge!
Once we'd finished lunch we walked along the Ming City Wall ruins Park, getting soggy from all the water jets spraying the grass and plants! At the end of the wall was the Southeast Corner Watchtower, which we went up and had a look around in. Most of it was taken up with a modern art display and the rest was focused around outlining the history of the Ming City Walls and Watchtowers etc. We were both really tired and ended up being back at the hostel really early today - mainly because I've been feeling quite ill over the past few days (I've got a grotty cold which is making me feel very groggy most of the time) and Steve's poor feet are suffering and are now covered in blisters! So we enjoyed sitting around for a little while before deciding to head out to find some food to take back to the hostel for dinner. We were going to go to a little place next to the restaraunt we ate at on Saturday, but there were no English signs and we couldn't tell what anything was, and there were no noodles or rice or anything! So we were complete and utter chavs and got a MacDonalds (yes we are ashamed about doing it, but we were just so tired)!
MONDAY 9th April
We've not really done anything today, as we didn't want to get stuck out in Beijing sightseeing and then not have enough time to pack our bags and check out of the room in time for catching the sleeper train to Xi'an. So we had our first proper lay-in before Steve popped out to buy us some breakfast. We're not sure what it was, but it was just about OK! Late morning we decided to pop out for some fresh air and went to the shopping area of Wenfungji (something like that anyway). We wandered aroud looking at the shops etc - Steve was very tempted by all the camera goodies on display! We found a nice looking restaraunt to eat in, where I managed to chuck sweet and sour pork down myself and all over the table as it slipped out of my chopsticks! After lunch we sauntered back to the subway so that we could get back to the hostel and pack our bags ready to go to the train station.
That's about it really, we're just sitting around with our bags packed, ready to jump in a taxi to get to the train station! We're both feeling a bit homesick at the moment (although I would probably say I'm making up for the both of us)! Missing you all loads and hope you're enjoying the blog!
Friday, 6 April 2007
Madcap!
Right folks, this one will probably be VERY long, as we are going to be writing about yesterday and today!
THURSDAY 5th April
We didn't have a hugely early start today, which was pretty lazy considering we had ended up going to sleep at 7.00pm last night! But anyway, we finally managed to drag ourselves out of bed at 7.30 this morning and decided to head back towards Tian Anmen square so that we could go to the Forbidden City. We started off at Tian Anmen Gate, which was really nice to look around, but we couldn't understand any of the displays as they were all in Chinese! But it was cool to see a different view of the Square etc. Once finished with the Gate we headed towards the City itself. Whilst I bought our entrance tickets, Steve was changing his film in his camera, but to our horror, it stopped working properly! We were gutted, but decided to continue anyway. So in we went and unfortunately our disappointment continued, as 3 of the main gates were covered in scaffolding and netting, as they were being refurbished for the Olympic games in 2008, and they just happened to be 3 of biggest and best ones we most wanted to see! But there were loads of other things to look at, like all of the exhibits of artifacts etc from the Ming and Qing dynasties. We kept getting lost, as it was so easy to lose your bearings in the smaller courtyards etc, but we wound our way through and eventually came out into the beautiful gardens, although we got the impression these were also being worked on - having new lawns and beds etc planted in for the games! Some good news though, a short while after entering the City Steve had another fiddle with his camera and got it working again - yay!
Once we left the Forbidden City we went to Jinhshan Park, just across the street. We stopped to buy a baked sweet potato on the way in for lunch and had a little sit down. We wandered around, before heading up the hill in the centre of the park to see the 5 pavillions (4 of which had their huge bronze statues stolen by the 8-Allies Forces during the 1900 invasion). The views form each of the pavillions were stunning, but the best were from the central one at the very top. It was from there that Steve noticed the White Pagoda and so we decided to head over to Beihai Park when we were finished. So we sauntered back down the hill and out of the park.
Beihai was really nice, first of all we went onto the Jade Islet so that we could go up the hill to see the White Pagoda. When wandering around after coming down the hill, we noticed a boat and so hopped on and it took us across the lake. We wandered around some more, but were disappointed as some more stunning buildings were covered in scaffolding etc as they too were being refurbished! But there were plenty of other things to see, including the 9 Dragon Screen and the House of Eternal Gratitude. We walked around the lake and then exited the park, with the intention of going to see some Beijing Opera and to have some dinner. After a long walk, we got to Wangfujing Street. We had some dinner in a really nice little restaraunt, although we felt like muppets, as when we said hello in Chinese all the staff giggled at us for pronouncing it wrongly and then we were the only diners in there for some time and so they kept watching us eat - which was quite off-putting when you know your eating etiquette and chop stick handling needs dire improvement! We survived anyway and then started the journey of trying to find the Changan Grand Theatre, which was a task and a half! I was desperate for the loo when we finally stumbled across it. As we assumed the show had already started, I dashed off to find a loo, while Steve enquired about tickets. We managed to get some for that night and managed to walk straight in for the performance, as it started 10 minutes later! It was quite interesting, but we didn't have a clue what it was about - Steve thinks it was something to do with an Emporer, his wife and concubine(s). Unfortunately I have to admit that we both kept temporarily dozing off, as we were still suffering from jetlag! But after about 2 hours the performance finished and we were able to head back to bed at the hostel after a very long day!
FRIDAY 6th April
Well, today we were (well, I was) up at 6.00am, so that we could get going to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. We started out on the subway and then had to walk to the bus station, we thought we were going the wrong way, as the scale of the map in our book is very deceptive, but we managed to find it in the end and walk straight onto the bus we needed. After some pointing at our book and crossed fingers we were going in the right direction we managed to pay for our tickets and were on our way. We were both really tired and soon after starting off I was falling asleep (I know you won't be at all surprised mum). The attendant on the bus let us know when we needed to get off the bus and she even called over a taxi driver to help us get the rest of the way to the Wall! After some more pointing and gesturing, we managed to agree with the driver that he would take us to Mutianyu and back to the bus stop for 100Yuan. So we were speeding along the roads again. When we arrived we had a lot more hand gesturing and pointing to agree that the driver would meet us again at 3.30 to take us back and we were then able to get to see the Wall at last after 2 hours or so of travelling. However, I'm afraid to say, we were lazy and got the cable car up to the wall, as it was such a steep section of mountain to climb up otherwise! But once on the wall (after having been harrassed by what felt like hundreds of street vendors) we were scrambling around getting very hot and puffed out, as it was so steep! But it was well worth the effort, as the views of the mountain scapes were beautiful and the wall looked stunning perched on top. Everything just went on for miles and miles around us - it was brilliant! Steve also became a tourist attraction at one point - being asked to pose for photos with a Chinese boy! I managed to stay out of the way! After 3 or 4 hours of trekking we hadto head back down the cable car so we could meet our driver again. Before meeting our driver we stopped off for the loos and I had my first experience of a squat toilet! Once we were back at the bus stop a bus turned up straight away, but it wasn't a proper one, it was more of a make-shift bus that seemed to just exploit the same route as the bigger bus companies, while stealing as many of their customers on their way as they could! We got on before we realised what we let ourselves in for! The bus driver was interesting, I mean we know that there are absolutely no rules when it comes to driving in China, but this guy took the biscuit! He was cutting across lanes here there and everywher, jumping red lights, driving in the pedestrian/cycle lane and goodness knows what else! But you'll never guess what?! I managed to fall asleep for most of the way again! We finally got back to Beijing and were dropped off just up the street from the main bus station. We grabbed a bite to eat on our way back to the subway and were soon heading back to the hostel, although we did manage to miss our stop on the subway and come back on ourselves (not a good thing to do when you're desperate for the loo)! Once finally back and refreshed we grabbed some 'Chinese pot noodles' for dinner from the hostel lobby and also had a very helpful member of staff book a hostel for us in Xi'an! So it's been a pretty good day all told. Not quite as tiring as yesterday though and we think we're going to treat ourselves to an easy-ish day tomorrow so that we're not completely tired all of the time, also our poor throbbing feet need a rest!
Well, we think that's about it for now, we hope you're all well. Missing you all.
THURSDAY 5th April
We didn't have a hugely early start today, which was pretty lazy considering we had ended up going to sleep at 7.00pm last night! But anyway, we finally managed to drag ourselves out of bed at 7.30 this morning and decided to head back towards Tian Anmen square so that we could go to the Forbidden City. We started off at Tian Anmen Gate, which was really nice to look around, but we couldn't understand any of the displays as they were all in Chinese! But it was cool to see a different view of the Square etc. Once finished with the Gate we headed towards the City itself. Whilst I bought our entrance tickets, Steve was changing his film in his camera, but to our horror, it stopped working properly! We were gutted, but decided to continue anyway. So in we went and unfortunately our disappointment continued, as 3 of the main gates were covered in scaffolding and netting, as they were being refurbished for the Olympic games in 2008, and they just happened to be 3 of biggest and best ones we most wanted to see! But there were loads of other things to look at, like all of the exhibits of artifacts etc from the Ming and Qing dynasties. We kept getting lost, as it was so easy to lose your bearings in the smaller courtyards etc, but we wound our way through and eventually came out into the beautiful gardens, although we got the impression these were also being worked on - having new lawns and beds etc planted in for the games! Some good news though, a short while after entering the City Steve had another fiddle with his camera and got it working again - yay!
Once we left the Forbidden City we went to Jinhshan Park, just across the street. We stopped to buy a baked sweet potato on the way in for lunch and had a little sit down. We wandered around, before heading up the hill in the centre of the park to see the 5 pavillions (4 of which had their huge bronze statues stolen by the 8-Allies Forces during the 1900 invasion). The views form each of the pavillions were stunning, but the best were from the central one at the very top. It was from there that Steve noticed the White Pagoda and so we decided to head over to Beihai Park when we were finished. So we sauntered back down the hill and out of the park.
Beihai was really nice, first of all we went onto the Jade Islet so that we could go up the hill to see the White Pagoda. When wandering around after coming down the hill, we noticed a boat and so hopped on and it took us across the lake. We wandered around some more, but were disappointed as some more stunning buildings were covered in scaffolding etc as they too were being refurbished! But there were plenty of other things to see, including the 9 Dragon Screen and the House of Eternal Gratitude. We walked around the lake and then exited the park, with the intention of going to see some Beijing Opera and to have some dinner. After a long walk, we got to Wangfujing Street. We had some dinner in a really nice little restaraunt, although we felt like muppets, as when we said hello in Chinese all the staff giggled at us for pronouncing it wrongly and then we were the only diners in there for some time and so they kept watching us eat - which was quite off-putting when you know your eating etiquette and chop stick handling needs dire improvement! We survived anyway and then started the journey of trying to find the Changan Grand Theatre, which was a task and a half! I was desperate for the loo when we finally stumbled across it. As we assumed the show had already started, I dashed off to find a loo, while Steve enquired about tickets. We managed to get some for that night and managed to walk straight in for the performance, as it started 10 minutes later! It was quite interesting, but we didn't have a clue what it was about - Steve thinks it was something to do with an Emporer, his wife and concubine(s). Unfortunately I have to admit that we both kept temporarily dozing off, as we were still suffering from jetlag! But after about 2 hours the performance finished and we were able to head back to bed at the hostel after a very long day!
FRIDAY 6th April
Well, today we were (well, I was) up at 6.00am, so that we could get going to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. We started out on the subway and then had to walk to the bus station, we thought we were going the wrong way, as the scale of the map in our book is very deceptive, but we managed to find it in the end and walk straight onto the bus we needed. After some pointing at our book and crossed fingers we were going in the right direction we managed to pay for our tickets and were on our way. We were both really tired and soon after starting off I was falling asleep (I know you won't be at all surprised mum). The attendant on the bus let us know when we needed to get off the bus and she even called over a taxi driver to help us get the rest of the way to the Wall! After some more pointing and gesturing, we managed to agree with the driver that he would take us to Mutianyu and back to the bus stop for 100Yuan. So we were speeding along the roads again. When we arrived we had a lot more hand gesturing and pointing to agree that the driver would meet us again at 3.30 to take us back and we were then able to get to see the Wall at last after 2 hours or so of travelling. However, I'm afraid to say, we were lazy and got the cable car up to the wall, as it was such a steep section of mountain to climb up otherwise! But once on the wall (after having been harrassed by what felt like hundreds of street vendors) we were scrambling around getting very hot and puffed out, as it was so steep! But it was well worth the effort, as the views of the mountain scapes were beautiful and the wall looked stunning perched on top. Everything just went on for miles and miles around us - it was brilliant! Steve also became a tourist attraction at one point - being asked to pose for photos with a Chinese boy! I managed to stay out of the way! After 3 or 4 hours of trekking we hadto head back down the cable car so we could meet our driver again. Before meeting our driver we stopped off for the loos and I had my first experience of a squat toilet! Once we were back at the bus stop a bus turned up straight away, but it wasn't a proper one, it was more of a make-shift bus that seemed to just exploit the same route as the bigger bus companies, while stealing as many of their customers on their way as they could! We got on before we realised what we let ourselves in for! The bus driver was interesting, I mean we know that there are absolutely no rules when it comes to driving in China, but this guy took the biscuit! He was cutting across lanes here there and everywher, jumping red lights, driving in the pedestrian/cycle lane and goodness knows what else! But you'll never guess what?! I managed to fall asleep for most of the way again! We finally got back to Beijing and were dropped off just up the street from the main bus station. We grabbed a bite to eat on our way back to the subway and were soon heading back to the hostel, although we did manage to miss our stop on the subway and come back on ourselves (not a good thing to do when you're desperate for the loo)! Once finally back and refreshed we grabbed some 'Chinese pot noodles' for dinner from the hostel lobby and also had a very helpful member of staff book a hostel for us in Xi'an! So it's been a pretty good day all told. Not quite as tiring as yesterday though and we think we're going to treat ourselves to an easy-ish day tomorrow so that we're not completely tired all of the time, also our poor throbbing feet need a rest!
Well, we think that's about it for now, we hope you're all well. Missing you all.
Wednesday, 4 April 2007
First day?!
What a couple of days it has been for us!! It all started at 6.45am on Tuesday morning, when we were rudely awoken by our alarm clock after a rather naff sleep! We managed to drag ourselves out of bed and get our last few bits together before we left at about 8.30. The traffic got a bit congested at times, but before we knew it Steve and I were jumping out of the car outside terminal 4 and being hugged and kissed by mum, Liz and Andie (with surprisingly few tears I must add). After that it all turned into a rather frustrating waiting game. We got checked in quickly enough, but the had to wait for over 2 hours before we knew which gate we would be boarding at and then almost another hour before we were on the plane and ready for take-off. By this point I was absolutely terrified! Steve was cool as a cucumber as usual, but things went smoothly, despite the fact I almost crushed all the bones in Steve's hand during the take-off as I was so scared! More waiting then ensued, as we had a 9 and a half hour flight ahead of us.
We watched some inflight entertainment and 'enjoyed' the food (I think I had a little bit of bacon with the fat they served me for breakfast)! But neither of us managed to sleep much, try as we might! So when we landed in Beijing, we were wishing that we were curled up in bed as to us it should have been approaching midnight - not 5.45am! But we got through customs and what not, with a quick text home to say we were safe and well we soon got stuck into life in Beijing - which started with a scrum to buy tickets for the airport shuttle bus into the inner city. Once we arrived in the main city we decided to save a few pennies (well, Yuan) and walk the rest of the way to the hostel. This was an interesting task, as the roads are just manic!!! People just walk out into the road and expect people to just avoid them or stop! We tried to be vaguely caustious and wait for the green man at traffic lights, but even when he was on green cars were driving at you! We managed to make it in one piece, just (as our bags are so heavy)! We got booked in and were able to get into our room straight away.
The hostel is quite good, we have our own bathroom and the staff are friendly and helpful. We freshened up a bit and made a bid for the big city (mainly to try and keep ourselves awake for the rest of the day)! So we got the subway to get to West Beijing Railway station, but had to walk some of the way (so much easier when you're not carrying 2 and a half stone on your back)! We managed to buy a sleeper train ticket to Xi'an, we have a luxury cabin to ourselves, as there were no other classes available, but we shall try to cope as best we can! After buying our tickets we got some lunch, this was interesting, as the staff spoke no English, so there were lots of random words and hand gestures made before we got some really nice dumplings, green tea and a bottle of beer (which must have had 2 pints in it - Steve was feeling a little wayward afterwards anyway)!
We hopped back onto the subway after lunch and went to Tian Anmen Square, it's pretty impressive, but it was a shame as the Mausoleum and National Museum are both closed until September due to refurbishments in preparation for the Beijing Olympics. But we enjoyed our wander nonetheless (despite being harrassed by 'students' and street sellers)! It is quite strange being stared at a lot though and it's quite bizarre as the city is kind of cross between London and Rome - it's historic and beautiful in places, like London, but then like Rome, it's completely manic - with tonnes of moped and bicycle riders who tend to drive at, rather than around things! Steve then almost got us lost trying to find the subway, but we managed to have a nice wander around the old city gates, which were very beautiful. I managed a masterful act - I fell asleep standing upright on the Beijing subway! Steve found this very amusing (as you can probably imagine) - but in my defence I have been up for at least a day and a half without having had any proper sleep!
We're back at the hostel now and will be going out for dinner shortly, will hopefully stay awake until later on tonight! And despite all these activities we have only spent 3 pounds 30p each (except on accommodation and the sleeper train)!!!
Tomorrow we're going to go and see the Forbidden City and surrounding attractions and on Friday we'll be going to a relatively remote stretch of the Great Wall (hopefully). Well, we'll let you get going now, as we've rambled on long enough! Hope you're all well!
We watched some inflight entertainment and 'enjoyed' the food (I think I had a little bit of bacon with the fat they served me for breakfast)! But neither of us managed to sleep much, try as we might! So when we landed in Beijing, we were wishing that we were curled up in bed as to us it should have been approaching midnight - not 5.45am! But we got through customs and what not, with a quick text home to say we were safe and well we soon got stuck into life in Beijing - which started with a scrum to buy tickets for the airport shuttle bus into the inner city. Once we arrived in the main city we decided to save a few pennies (well, Yuan) and walk the rest of the way to the hostel. This was an interesting task, as the roads are just manic!!! People just walk out into the road and expect people to just avoid them or stop! We tried to be vaguely caustious and wait for the green man at traffic lights, but even when he was on green cars were driving at you! We managed to make it in one piece, just (as our bags are so heavy)! We got booked in and were able to get into our room straight away.
The hostel is quite good, we have our own bathroom and the staff are friendly and helpful. We freshened up a bit and made a bid for the big city (mainly to try and keep ourselves awake for the rest of the day)! So we got the subway to get to West Beijing Railway station, but had to walk some of the way (so much easier when you're not carrying 2 and a half stone on your back)! We managed to buy a sleeper train ticket to Xi'an, we have a luxury cabin to ourselves, as there were no other classes available, but we shall try to cope as best we can! After buying our tickets we got some lunch, this was interesting, as the staff spoke no English, so there were lots of random words and hand gestures made before we got some really nice dumplings, green tea and a bottle of beer (which must have had 2 pints in it - Steve was feeling a little wayward afterwards anyway)!
We hopped back onto the subway after lunch and went to Tian Anmen Square, it's pretty impressive, but it was a shame as the Mausoleum and National Museum are both closed until September due to refurbishments in preparation for the Beijing Olympics. But we enjoyed our wander nonetheless (despite being harrassed by 'students' and street sellers)! It is quite strange being stared at a lot though and it's quite bizarre as the city is kind of cross between London and Rome - it's historic and beautiful in places, like London, but then like Rome, it's completely manic - with tonnes of moped and bicycle riders who tend to drive at, rather than around things! Steve then almost got us lost trying to find the subway, but we managed to have a nice wander around the old city gates, which were very beautiful. I managed a masterful act - I fell asleep standing upright on the Beijing subway! Steve found this very amusing (as you can probably imagine) - but in my defence I have been up for at least a day and a half without having had any proper sleep!
We're back at the hostel now and will be going out for dinner shortly, will hopefully stay awake until later on tonight! And despite all these activities we have only spent 3 pounds 30p each (except on accommodation and the sleeper train)!!!
Tomorrow we're going to go and see the Forbidden City and surrounding attractions and on Friday we'll be going to a relatively remote stretch of the Great Wall (hopefully). Well, we'll let you get going now, as we've rambled on long enough! Hope you're all well!
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