Back from China

Ni Hao! Its been an exciting trip and i've enjoyed it a lot. Seeing China is a different experience from other countries that i've been to. It is rich in culture and history. Some are preserved and some are still buried waiting to be discovered...



One thing about visiting China is the BIG language barrier. If you just arrived, a hand language is useful. But you can get along as you stay longer and enjoy it. Really!

Never leave your home or hostel without your phrasebook and the address of your home written in Pinyin or in Chinese characters.

The first week I visited my Swedish friend Robert and his family in Shanghai. I've spent few days on their beautiful golf villa house and seeing Shanghai. Since it was a weekend, we got time to to visit Century Park and the Shanghai Circus.




After a few days, i'm on my own to discover China. I have bought a train ticket "soft-sleeper" from Shanghai to Beijing. It's comfortable and quite expensive. Well, I guess sometimes you have to have a taste of the different thing even if cost you few bucks. And to think its just the start of my trip and i still have a lot of budget that's why i decided to take the ride. :) It's a 12hr train ride to the capital. I left Shanghai in the evening and arrived Beijing in the morning. Travelling alone, in the train station, nowhere to go but to seek adventure I started to look for a place to stay...



Although there are few accomodations for foreigners travelling in China, it is quite high standard than those hostels in Southeast-Asia. I arrived in Far East Hotel and got a dorm bed for RMB40, that's about Php270 per night, not bad. :) I've got lot's of memories in Beijing. One time my roommate invited me to join them on a Karaoke bar to have dinner, few drinks, sing and have fun! It turned out to be a multinational karaoke singing night. Hehehe. We were 15 all in all from 7 different countries singing songs from the Backsteet Boys (the crowds favorite) to ABBA. We got a free buffet dinner that's why we lasted 5 hours singing our lungs out...


The next day I went out to visit the Forbidden City and Summer Palace. It's 2 hours away from the city proper via the public bus. In the old days, when it is too hot in the Forbidden City the King lives here. It's breezy and bautiful. The weather is fair no clouds for picture perfect sceneries but still i enjoyed strolling around the palace.



One thing about backpacking on a limited time is that you try to see everything but you have to do it cheaply. Although sometimes you don't have a choice on those expensive way to go to a tourist spot.

The day has come to trek at The Great Wall of China... we were 6 people from the same hostel who decided to go. It was a 10 kilometer trek traversing Jinshanling to Simatai section of the wall. I guess the picture will tell more of the story...

Next stop Xian!

Another long hours of train ride. This time on a hard-seat with Eva, an Italian girl that I met when I visited the Forbidden City. We were the only foreigners on that part of the train. We've met Chinese students on a vacation to Xian. This is the time when I had actually conversed in Mandarin. The student ask us in English (they have quite good english) and we answer in Mandarin with the help of my phrasebook (i am trying to learn to speak chinese) .

The city of Xian is once the capital of China back in dynastic periods and famous for the recent archeological discovery of the century, The Terracotta Warriors.

It also surrounded by natural landscapes and also well known for Mt.Huashan which is famous for its breath-taking cliffs and its unique characteristics and its 5 peaks.I climbed Mt Huashan with Omesh and the very kind Chinese couple that we met.


Finally, my last destination before I get back home is the Hangzhou (The West Lake). It's an hour and a half away from Shanghai.