After a couple of nice laid back days in Xiamen, we've just arrived in the madness of Hong Kong. Stunning views from the Kowloon waterfront across to Hong Kong island earlier and we're about to take the Star Ferry across the water. Highlight in Xiamen was Gulang Yu Island which we took the ferry round before having a walk through its mediterranean style streets... very nice. Last couple of days in China now, though Hong Kong feels like we've left China long beh...

We are now in the final stages of the Chinese Extravaganza, and the weather has finally improved which is a relief to be honest. Iwas verging on SAD syndrome from all the dark dismal rainy days - we are now in Xiamen which is a little Island on the coast north of hong kong, and its lovely. We are still getting the stares/giggles/pointing/photo taking and although I understand it and can tolerate it I can safely say I have had enough and cant wait to get to ...

For the first time on this trip i've neglected to include a blog about one of the places we've visited and consequently our map doesn't show our 2 day diversion to the city of Suzhou! Not that Suzhou isn't a pretty place, but we just never saw the best of it for one reason or another... firstly because it rained the whole time and was almost perpetual night from start to finish and secondly because I finally succumbed to our first illness of the trip (Rachel's ha...

Had 3 great days in Shanghai... feels like a great city. Very, very different to Beijing... feels a lot more western and the European influence on the buildings, architecture and layout is everywhere... guess the Opium wars weren't for nothing! Whereas Beijing feels very much like a communist country still, Shanghai has a more relaxed feel to it... I'm not sure Beijing is cut-out to host an Olympics, but Shanghai feels like it could cope. The first day was rainy...

After 3 fab days in Beijing and covering off 2 of China's Big 3 sights, we headed to Xi'an on an overnight train to make it a hat-trick with the Terracotta Warriors! We boarded the night train, confident in the Lonely Planet's description of a "Soft Sleeper" as "pretty luxurious"... i'm not sure i'd go that far, but the beds were ok and but for the fact that one of the chinese blokes in our room of 4 bunks snored like a f*cking hippo, we would...