Hello all!

Here is my blog about the Peoples Republic of China - only really saw Beijing, so that's all I can really talk about. I have to say that despite having a fairly decent time in Beijing and meeting some good folk, I really didn't like the place at all. I don't know what it was - maybe people persistently trying to scam you, being harassed by security in Tiananmen Square or just all the temples and other touristy things looking like they had been built yesterday - not sure but I was glad to leave and have to say that I will be leaving it a while before going back.

Below are some of my adventures, roughly in the order in which they happened:

Swine Flu:

The journey to China didn't start the best - got on the plane and soon after take off we were informed the entertainment system for about 10 rows of seats was completely bust - bit of an issue if you're on a 13 hour day flight. There was a random act of fate though - somehow I had been sat next to a guy that I had met on Lake Malawi and we ended up just having some beers and catching up on our adventures since then, so not all was bad.

Arriving in Beijing was very strange. Because of the recent outbreak of swine flu, the Chinese government has gone into overdrive to make sure they don't balls things up again like they did with Bird Flue and SARS. Upon arrival we had to wait on the plane until each and every person had their temperature taken by a health official and we also had to fill out a form stating where we'd been, where we were going, had we had any of the symptoms associated with almost any illness. After sitting on the aircraft for an hour we then proceeded into the airport where we were screened another 2 times and handed over our health forms before reaching immigration. I thought I'd never make it out of the airport!

Hostel from Hell:

The journey to my hostel was an adventure - I very quickly realized how few people spoke English but I managed to reach the hostel via public bus, then a very exhilarating rickshaw ride - was awesome fun on the crazy streets of Beijing. The hostel had some massive poetic name (as do most Chinese hostels) and was recommended by the Lonely Planet website. I arrived and found my room to be 4 floors underground and not only that - the lift broke on my way down and I was trapped for half an hour 2 floors below ground in a very, very hot lift with lots of loud Chinese people-none of whom spoke English - Not a pleasant experience but all part of the adventure. The hostel was probably the worst I have stayed in and the fact that there were no other backpackers or English speakers made the whole experience a bit lonely and tough for the first few days, especially after leaving Mel in Nairobi.

The situation picked up when I met some Americans just outside Tiananmen Square and they told me about where they were staying and rescued my Beijing experience - their hostel was the best I had ever stayed in and full of fellow back-packers and it was just all round amazing!

The Pub that never closes:

The day after I arrived I searched for a pub to watch the Champions League final, which kicked off at 3am in China. I managed to find a pub which never closes - no word of a lie…it's open 24 hours a day for every day of the year. I managed to find a space in the mayhem by sitting on a reserved seat, which was reserved for the owner of the bar - a Scottish guy from Shawlands. Should of known it'd be a Scot that'd have a bar that never closed ;-). I ended up watching the game with him and we saw Man Utd get taken apart by the mighty Barca and it the bar was mayhem.

Being Ripped Off:

The next couple of days I spent wondering round Beijing visiting all the hundreds of temples dotted about the city, while trying to avoid being hit by traffic - the roads are crazy! Green man doesn't mean it's safe to cross the road - trust me!

Unfortunately the only English speakers I bumped into these first few days were people trying to con me into buying art or the other kind - students wanting to practice English…

2 girls and 1 lad approached me and did the usual - asked where I was from, told me they were students practicing English etc. The chat flowed and it was pleasant actually speaking to fellow English speakers for a change - especially Chinese people who were supposedly learning English. I got asked if I wanted to have some Chinese tea and I accepted and went off to a tea house and sat down and they asked if they could order - I said yes and then we had a mundane pot of tea and some pistachio nuts. I then asked for the bill and got hit with the surprise of having to pay 50 quid for a pot of tea! I refused to pay and next thing there is a security guard there and because it's on the menu - I have to pay.

They tried to get me to pay with one of my credit cards but I manage to scrape enough cash together to pay for the bill. I left pretty enraged and embarrassed at being duped - I like to think I am a fairly seasoned traveler and in the past I have managed to avoid being done but I totally let my guard down and I was taken advantage of. It was a real shame because it really did affect the rest of my stay in Beijing - if any local acted friendly I just put my guard up and played the rude tourist.

It turns out that loads of people get caught out with this con and even a young American lad I met in the hostel got done and he got hit twice as hard as me - 100 quid or thereabouts. It also turns out that if you pay with your card they generally defraud for more - by switching receipts and all sorts of other tricks.

Eating strange things:

After moving into my new hostel and meeting some English speaking folk a group of us made our way to the night market, which is kind of like the China Town of Beijing where all sorts of junk is sold to tourists and crazy creatures are served up on skewers as food! The place is a real bombardment on the sense and a brilliant night out. I braved eating Scorpion, which actually tasted really good - kind of like chicken (what a surprise!). Some of the others in the group braved Sea Horse and Silk Worm - I think. Neither of which took my fancy. Other things served up included: Star Fish, Lizard, Eel, Grasshopper, Caterpillar and all sorts of other things that I couldn't recognize.

Hit by a Bike:

A funny moment… it all happened when I was crossing a main road with the masses of other people. I was plugged into my i-pod when I noticed out of the corner of my eye the crowd parting and an electric bike hurtling towards me. Before I knew it I jumped back and raised my right arm in defence and I got hit in the side of my ribs and elbowed some little Chinese guy in the face and he spilled off his bike. I was OK just a bit shocked by the whole thing and before I could check myself or him, he had pounced back up and started barking Mandarin insults at me. What really made the moment was all the Chinese who started barking and pushing him about and before I knew it the whole thing was over and I was swept up in the crowd and bumbling along again. Don't worry mum - I am OK! ;-)

The Great Wall:

Was spectacular! I had very high expectations of it and it surpassed them easily. I had decided to do the trek option along the wall and got on a bus full of tourists to some place about 4 hours outside of Beijing. Met some awesome Kiwis on the way and tagged along with them on our epic trek. It was only a 10K trek but it was 32 degrees, not a cloud in the sky, the wall was very up and down and steep and for some reason all tiny guys who built it hundreds of years ago decided to make the steps HUGE!

Made it to the end of the trek no problems and the only down side to the whole thing was the odd person following you and harassing you to buy T-shirts and all sorts off them. At the end of the wall I took the option to do the flying fox down to the restaurant - wasn't vic falls gorge swing but was still good fun ;-)

Tiananmen Square:

I had the pleasure of visiting the square on a normal day and then on the 20th anniversary of the massacre that killed hundreds if not thousands of students. There couldn't have been a bigger contrast in the two experiences.

On any normal day it is easy to get into the square and if you have a bag with you it is checked by security and then you wonder around looking at the impressive monuments and everything else on display.

On the anniversary I had my passport and visa checked by security personnel 3 times before setting foot in the square, as well as questions like - "where are you going?", "why are you going there?" etc. It really got my back up and I was probably more cheeky than I should have been - ignoring the second check and walking by it before being grabbed by security. I said that my passport had been checked and played the clueless tourist asking why all this security when I had been a few days previously and there wasn't any issue. The standard reply was a "move along".

On entering the square I was followed by some "undercover" officials - plain clothes but a massive walkie talkie clipped to their jeans. I turned and took a photo of them and I was approached and asked to show them the photo and delete it. The number of security personnel in the square was astounding. Both uniformed and non-uniformed police must have out-numbered any visitor by ten to one. The whole square was ringed with buses and pro-government supporters were out in force too - all wearing badges and other paraphernalia. I then took a picture of some police getting off a bus in the square next to the Mao monument (cracking opportunity which I'd love to have sent to the BBC or someone) and yet again I was approached and told to delete it and then told to stop taking so many photos. I thought I better leave before I got into any real trouble - so I did.

While all this was happening in the square - the government had also blocked access to Hotmail and many blog sites, including this one. A real police state!

Vietnam:

I am now in Vietnam and on my journey to Jakarta in Indonesia. I have had a blast in my first few days here already and have plenty of stories for my next blog entry which I will be adding soon!

Cheers for now,

Pete ;-)