Hello!!!

Well I have finally found some time to update this blog!!! We are currently in Cambodia in Phnom Penh (3rd Jan) and the boys are spending the morning at the killing fields and genicide museum.....i opeted out of that in favour of recalling my past month and a halfs actions!!!!!

So.....CHINA!

Since last writing we spent a couple more days in Beijing before joining the tour. We ended up having a chilling day and stayed in the hostel where we watched I think about 3 films!!! Then the next day we went on a bike ride taking in the sights of Beijing including 2 parks to the north of the forbidden city with amazing views over the city from the top of the hills. We also saw the performing arts centre (dome building) and the entrance gate to the forbidden city at night which was magnificent lit up. Other than that I can't really remember what we did before the tour other than the usual looking around, souvenir shopping!!!!

TOUR - BEIJING

We joined the tour on 23 Nov (sun) - just checked into the hotel and met up with the group in the evening before having a group meeting and dinner. Our group consisted of us 3, 2 Australian sisters (Madonna and Caitlin), A Norwegian couple (Cathrine and Jakob), A British guy (Ivor), An Irish couple (Eamonn and Aoife) and a couple of girls from America and Ireland (Justine and Tara). Our tour guide was a Chinese girl from Yangshuo called Lucy. We all got given free chopsticks as apparently in their aim to save the environment Intrepid (the tour group) encourage their travellers not to use the wooden disposable chop sticks given in most restaurants. That said everytime we were given these no one thought to use their own chopsticks not even our guide!!!! The first full day of the tour was spent at the Great Wall. It was truely an amazing experience and we walked a massive distance, covering 30 of the watch towers. It took about 6 hours and was extremely tiring!!! We stopped halfway for lunch and we started wrapped up warm with gloves, fleece, coat etc and ended in just t-shirts!!! Those of you who have done the Great Wall will know there are traders that join you at the beginning and follow your every move until they peel off when their home village appears as a small settlement below. We were a group of 12 and we were each 'tagged' by a trader hoping to sell either postcards, books or t-shirts. Generally though no one wanted anything, but they would try their hardest to make you! One of the traders pulled me up a very steep section and then told me in return I would have to buy some of her souvenirs! I was, however, having none of it and she left not best pleased!!!!! In the evening we went out for a few drinks by a lake in Bejing - haggling for the best beer prices for the boys! We were all pretty shattered after the walk so we didn't stay out for long.

The next day in Beijing wasa free day so we (Karl, Sam and I) went to the Art District on the outskirts of the city. It was amazing - a group of old warehouses transformed into art galleries and dotted in between were cafes and restaurants (charging astronomical prices of course!). In the evening we went to the acrobatics show with the rest of the group which was eventful! The show itself was good but the organisation of getting there was strange! A local guide to Bejing had been hired to put us in taxis and pay for them (although it was rather hit or miss whether she did or not) and take us to our seats. We were all sat in one row apart from one seat behind which didn't make much sense to any of us so we did a bit of swapping with a group behind. Afterwards we were met by our guide who again hailed taxis for us and sent us back to the hotel but this time not paying for our fares. We worked out we had paid 50 yuan extra (about 5 pounds) on top of taxi fares for this priveledge so we complained to our main tour guide Lucy who apologised perfusely and gave us all the 50 yuan back!

The following day we went to the Forbidden City and Tianamen Square. It was absolutely freezing so it was a rushed tour through and the general consensus was that we didn't get to see everything we would have liked. Afterwards we went to to the Hutongs (small alleys where there are usually some restaurants, hotels etc - we stayed in some in our first phase of Beijing). We went to a charity where we had lunch, did some calligraphy and then joined in with some performances. The charity helped disabled children in Bejing so everyone there (mostly teenagers) had some learning difficulties. They did some christmas songs for us and following traditions had an emporer. The group nominated Sam as he had a beard and traditionally (much like Father Christmas) the emporer has a long beard! So for a few songs Sam was standing looking rather embarassed bouncing to the music while all the teenagers sang around him!!!! Then we all got a chance to join in - dancing to the music and then walking round in a circle in costumes! It was really fun and so rewarding to see all these teenagers so proud to be performing for us. We then caught the bus back to the hotel.

XI'AN

We then moved onto Xi'an catching an overnight train. This was a much nicer train compared to the one we had caught from Beijing to Datong and back again but unfortunately Aoife (an Irish girl on our tour) woke up to find someone riffling through her bags (she was on the top of 3 bunks!) Luckily she sat up which scared them off and nothing was taken but shocked us all into keeping our bags next to our heads!

We spent 2 nights in Xián and whilst we were there we saw the Terracotta Warriors, cycled the historic city walls and visited a market where I managed to haggle down to 9 pounds for 2 (fake) Ralf Lauren sweaters! I was rather pleased with myself following my experience in Bejing where I think I was done paying 20 pounds for some jeans which were probably worth at most 10! We also tried a traditional hot pot that was so spicey when we got a mouthful our faces turned red!!! I also somehow managed to get some in my eye and was in agony so I steered clear from that point on!!! Also, we spent our evenings in a great youth hostel not to far from our hotel where we ate aswell as drank. On the first morning we also got breakfast there, and I had the most amazing french toast with jam!!! As we were starting to think about leaving they put 'The Holiday' on a massive screen and it was hard to tear us (especially the girls!) away!

CHENGDU

Again we moved on via sleeper train (this time the train was the same standard as the Beijing-Datong train). We whiled away the time drinking this time! In Chengdu we went to the Giant Panda Breeding Reserve. It was amazing being able to see Pandas up close in the flesh! We also got to see some baby pandas in the plastic trays. There were red pandas there also, but they didn't look anything like I expected and in fact not like pandas in the slightest! More like large cats! There was a museum there too with unpleasant sights such as stuffed (real) pandas of varying sizes from baby to adult and pickled baby pandas and skeletons. When we were in the reserve Madonna (one of the Australian girls on our tour) was more popular than the pandas! With her blonde hair, she became an instant magnet for about 15 school children who crowded around whilst their parents were eagerly snapped away on their cameras! Was very amusing!

We also visited the giant Buddha at Leshan which is 71 metres tall and had fun taking photos tryin to get the whole height (from the bottom) with 12 of us in! Madonna ended up lying down on the floor much to the amusement of Chinese tourists!

MONASTARIES

The next 3 nights were spent in 2 different monasteries. The first was beautiful in its setting and I shared a room with our tour guide Lucy. The toilet and shower facilities on the other hand were awful so I avoided them! The first night in the first monastery was good - although we slept with the light on as my room-mate was scared!! The next day we went to Mount Emei via a coach and then cable car. In order to get to the Cable car however we had to walk through an area where monkeys were! We were told to put all food and drink away and bang our sticks (walking sticks we had been given expecially for this purpose!) in their faces. On the way up there were none - we were told it was because it was too early - but on the way down there were loads who got rather agressive if you weren't firm in your stick banging!!!!! Up at the top of Mount Emei there is a massive gold statue, other than that not much else! But beautiful views (if there is no cloud cover as it is above the clouds!). At the top though I started feeling really faint and sick so I had to sit down. Lucy then took it upon herself to give me a head massage with Tiger Balm (a strong selling balm sold here used for headaches etc etc) as well as feeding me up! After a while I felt fine but it was thought I had altitude sickness. Once we got back to the bottom we walked to the 2nd monastary. This walk was so scenic (I have put some pictures on facebook already) but very tiring especially near the end where there were 1500 steps!! I was lagging behind and it took me a bit longer (along with Aoife and Lucy) to get to the top where the Monastary was located). This monastary had electric blankets (!) and loos with some extreme views over the landscape (completely open!). We ate at a little cafe located about 200m down the steps called the Hard Wok Cafe! Again, we slept with the lights on! The next day we walked back to the first monastary. Sam, Lucy and I took the easy shorter route whilst the others took a harder 3 hour trek. We got back earlier so had some lunch and did some internet until the others got back. Then I joined Madonna and Caitlin in a trip to the hot springs at a nearby 5* hotel. It was amazing! Most of the pools were around 35 deg so I couldn't stay in them for too long. Some were inside and some were outside - there was even a yellow pool that we named egg fart pool as it stunk!!!! Afterwards we messed around in the large pool for a while before relaxing in the sauna. The most amazing part however was having a shower!!! It was fantastic having not showered for 2 days - and they were great showers with free shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, hairdryers etc etc!!!!!

YANGZEE RIVER

The next day we got the coach to Chongqing where we stayed for the night before getting a transfer onto the boat on the Yangzee. Chongching is the biggest city in China just because it is a district city - it stretches for miles and we were told the population was something ridiculous like 30 million. Suprisingly considering this there was nothing to do!!! I managed to top up by Starbucks addiction as well as food shopping for the boat in the Carrefour. We ate in Pizza Hut and one of those restaurants where they cook the food in front of you (the name escapes me!). The food was amazing but the service was not! The bill was bought to us when we were halfway through our meal and they demanded we pay there and then!

The next 2 nights were spent on the river boat. I can categorically say these were the worst 2 nights/ 2 days of the tour! The food served to us was cold - Caitlin went down to get some hot water at one point and saw our food ready on the table 2 hours before our meal time! Also the whole chicken was served up.....even the head which Jakob pointed out! This put me off eating the meat straightaway! Madonna thought she would try it until she picked up the foot!!! The first night we spent the evening in Sam and Karl's room (I was again sharing with Lucy) drinking. I was slightly tipsy by the time I went to bed and slept like a log not even stirring for the 6am wakeup to see the gorges. I missed breakfast and begrudgingly got up to get another smaller day boat along the river taking in the gorges. The scenery was ok - nothing special and it was all the same thing. So I wasn't too impressed expecially as I was mildly hungover! One sight that was shown to us however was where a new village is located following the flooding and also the point at which the river will be flooded to in the future. It was amazing - the village looked really hap-hazard and apparently it was only the younger generations that were ok about moving - the older generations committed suicide. It was shocking to hear that these people were forced to take (a pitiful) compensation whether they wanted to move or not. The second night was awful. This time I didn't have alcohol to numb me into falling asleep and the scratching and rustling in the room really freaked me out. It was obvious to me that this was rats - as I am petrified of them! So I couldn't sleep! Lucy was oblivious to the sounds and didn't seem at all bothered! In the morning we had lunch at 11am(!!) and Aoife mentioned to me that the night before Sam and Karl had told her they were playing Chinese Chess in our local guide Harry's room when a rat just crawled across the floor! Thank god I didn't know that the night before! In my complete distain I turned round and questioned Harry about this. His response was astonishing!!! In China a boat is considered good if it has rats on - in fact engine room workers get worried if they aren't on there. I stated that in England if a boat doesn't have rats on it is considered clean!!!! As I am absolutely petrified of rats I wouldn't let it go and proceeded to say how rats carry disease etc etc.....Harry's response....hahah yes I have heard of that in other parts of the world.......but not China...no not China! HA! That was the icing on the cake for me! I couldn't wait to get off the boat!!! I think though that the whole rat experience rather tainted my view of the boat trip as a whole but I think the general consensus from people was that it was shocking and definately not worth the 3* we saw it was apparently rated! Apparently for the next tour the river boat has been taken off as it is low season and the tourist boats aren't running (which is why we caught a local boat). The 3 gorges dam was also a bit disappointing as we didn't get to cross it at all and were whisked round.

YANGSHUO

The next stage of our trip though was possibly the best of the whole 3 week tour. We stayed in Yangshuo, the home town of our guide Lucy. It was so picturesque and so much to do compared to some of the other places we had visited. We took a bike ride around the country, took a boatride at sunset and I even got a massage! There was also enough time on the last day to do a bit of retail therapy in the markets with Caitlin and Madonna where I managed to find a really nice pair of jeans for 4.50 pounds! We ate everyday in Lucy's own restaurant. The western food was amazing - I had Shepherds Pie which was nicer than some I have had at home! It was also nice to have porridge for breakfast and her Apple Crumble was amazing!!!!! One of the nights we also got the opportunity to make dumplings in Lucy's restaurant which we then ate!!!

HONG KONG

Hong Kong was amazing! We got there via sleeper train again (well to Shenzen) before crossing the border and getting the tube into Kowloon. We were staying in Kowloon but I prefered Hong Kong Island for restaurants/bars/sights etc. The first day we were there we wandered down to the waterfront and the point where you catch the Star Ferry over to HK Island. On our way back to the hotel, we picked up provisions for our 'party' in Caitlin and Madonna's room that evening before going out for a group meal. At first Sam and Karl didn't believe it was really fancy dress - thinking they were being stiched up! But when they were finally convinced we got creative and managed to blag some cardboard boxes and bought tinsel, wrapping paper and other xmas decorations. We ended up dressing up as Christmas presents!!!! It was really fun, especially all trying to fit into the lift!!!! After the drinks we went for our last meal (Chinese) on the tour with Lucy and then to an Irish Bar for a few drinks. After visiting another bar we called it a night and went back to the hotel (although I think Sam, Karl, Eamonn, Aoife and Caitlin carried on drinking for a while in the hotel room!).

The next morning we checked out and the 3 of us moved to Lee's apartment. Lee was in Karl and Sam's studio at uni and now lives and works in HK. He very kindly agreed to put us up but what we didn't know was that he was moving out for 2 nights to allow us to stay as his place is tiny! The boys got the tiled floor whilst I definately got the long straw and got Lee's double bed!!!! He also let us use his internet for free which was really kind. During the day I went to meet up with Madonna and Caitlin whilst the boys went PSP shopping with Lee. We ate in a Vietnamese restaurant for lunch before heading over to Hong Kong Island. We spent the afternoon getting the Peak Tram to the top to get amazing views over the island and Kowloon. The skyline is magnificent! We waited until it got dark and I found my fluorescent setting on my camera, so took loads of pictures! We then met up with the rest of the group (minus Lucy) for an amazing meal at a Lebonese restaurant which Madonna had been recommended. Afterwards we all got a Ben & Jerry's ice cream before saying our goodbyes. It was really sad to go our seperate ways as the group had got on really well and it was nice to be with other people.

The next day in Hong Kong I spent the morning with Caitlin and Madonna....shopping! We went to HK Island again where we found a Zara and Mango in a shopping mall! We did the escalators where we bumped into Sam and Karl and then got the bus over to Stanley where the famous market is. It was really disappointing though with hardly anything there and what was there was really overpriced. The boys then left us to go to the peak while we went to Causeway Bay and had a look around before getting the tram (which was jam packed!!) back to the main area. I found a M&S and was in my element in their food department!!! I bought some mince pies for Christmas Day at about triple the price but it was really exciting!!!!! The 3 of us then went for a Gourmet Burger before heading back to Kowloon to meet the boys. They had randomly bumped into Cathrine and Eric who were on our tour in Mongolia!!!! Very small world!!!! We walked through the Temple Street Night Market on the way back and then said goodbye to Caitlin and Madonna.

The next day we spent the morning in the post office sending our cold weather gear home! It was much like the British post system where you have to fill in a ridiculous amount of forms and queue in different places for different items so took a lot longer than we first anticipated! I have been told that postcards and a parcel I sent Billy arrived before Christmas so at least it's efficient!!!!! In the evening we got an over-night bus to Nanning in China in our aim to get to Vietnam overland. We couldn't have asked it to run any smoother - as soon as we got to Nanning we were put on a bus straight to Hanoi and even got water and lunch included! This was not expected having read reviews online saying the journey took 3 days! We got there in under 24 hours!!!!

So that is China.......not much else to say! Other than Hong Kong still had a distinct British air to it - British road signs, road markings, registration plates on vehicles etc. It was also so nice to get away from the spitting and squat toilets!!!!! I shall now embark on the Vietnam blog!!!!