Round the World 2008

We arrived in Osaka, Japan after a 48 hour ferry ride across the Yellow Sea from Shanghai.  Only 3 of us from the China portion of the trip traveled across with our tour leader Mill. We’ll meet up with 12 new passengers for the Japan part of the tour this evening.   We spent most of the 48 hours on the ferry playing ping-pong with the Chinese and Japanese friends we made onboard. We only took breaks for meals and in the evening, karaoke.    The ferry ride was a nice break from the hectic pace of our activities in China.

Shanghai is China’s largest city and it felt that way. Extremely modern, the skyline is filled with unusually designed skyscrapers. At times it felt as if I were in New York and Nanjing Road, the main shopping street was always chaotic.  The highlights of Shanghia were the Chinese Acrobats show that we saw and the trip to Zhujiajiao, the ancient canal town about an hour outside of Shanghai which reminded me of Venice at times.

We’ll spend just a day here in Osaka before traveling by the Bullet Train to Hiroshima, Kyoto and finally Tokyo.

JUNE 21, 2008

Thursday was our last day in Beijing and we had a morning tour of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. My favorite part was waiting in line to see Chairman Mao’s body which you can see in a glass coffin. There were thousands of people and after you see the body there is this huge gift shop filled with Chairman Mao souvenirs. That evening we took an overnight train to Xi’an (12 hours) which was surprisingly comfortable considering that there were 6 bunks in each sleeper car. One of my neighbors was a Chinese guy who had a few years of English study in school and was traveling on business. He was very interested in practicing his English and I learned quite a bit from talking to him.

We arrived in Xi’an yesterday…the center part of the city is surrounded by a 2200 year old wall that is still entirely intact. This afternoon we rented bicycles on the wall and biked the entire 14 kilmeter perimeter. I got a flat about three quarters of the way around but they sent somebody with a replacement bike pretty quickly. This morning we went and saw the Terracotta Warriors which is probably the most amazing thing I’ve seen in China so far. It’s a recent archaeological discovery (1974) of seven thousand lifesize soldiers that were built to protect the body of the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty.

We visited the Muslim Quarter yesterday and there is a huge outdoor market which was fun to walk through and where we got another chance to practice our bargaining skills. Several us went yesterday for massages which are very inexpensive here. I had foot reflexology done which felt incredibly good after all the walking we done.

We continue to experience all sorts of Chinese cuisine. Last night we went to a Manchurian restaurant which we all loved. Tomorrow morning we fly to Shanghai. I’m sorry that my time in China is limited to ten days because there is so much more to see. Also, the people here are among the friendliest I’ve encountered on the trip. I would definitely like to return here some day.

JUNE 18, 2008

On Sunday I spent the day at Factory 798 about a half hour outside of Beijing. It’s an old factory district that used to manufacture electronics that was converted to hundreds of art galleries, shops and restaurants. After a full day I don’t think I managed to see all the art…apparently the art market is extremely hot here right now with pieces selling for huge amounts of money. I saw some really good work – both painting and photography.

Yesterday I spent the day with Mel, a guy who I was on the Mongolian tour with, who is also in Beijing. We saw the Summer Palaces, had tea in a traditional tea house and went to restaurants and coffee shops recommended by other people on the Mongolian tour. We mostly walked around and explored the traditional Chinese neighborhoods called hutongs. At the end of the day we got caught in a rainstorm and finding a taxi in the rain in Beijing is as hard here as it is in New York….but it was a good way to get to know the subway.

This evening I’ll meet the group for the China/Japan tour and tomorrow we’ll begin by a day  trip to the Great Wall.

JUNE 18, 2008

There are 8 people in the new group and we went out for a traditional Chinese dinner last night to get to know each other. I had Peking Duck for the first time and it was as delicious as everyone said.

This morning we left early for the two hour drive to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. It was a raining this morning as it has been since I arrived in Beijing on Saturday. The walk up to the wall was a workout in itself and then we walked along it for several hours, most of it uphill. The wall follows the contours of the land and since we were in a mountainous section it was a very strenuous walk up and down. It’s hard to imagine that the Great Wall is 4000 miles long.

Yesterday Mel and I went to the Silk Market which was an unforgettable experience. It’s a 6 story bargaining market where you can get good deals on fake “brand name” clothing and other consumer products. The vendors actually grab you into their stalls and manhandle you during the bargaining. They start at a high price and the strategy we were told was
to offer 10% of what they start at and then you haggle until you get the item for about 25-30% of the start price. I was looking at a jacket and when we couldn’t agree on the price, the vendors actually body-blocked me from leaving the stall. I was called names like “stingy” and “cheap” when I didn’t come up to a price they found acceptable. I was grabbed and hit many times but I managed to get some good deals.

This afternoon I’ll use the rest of my free time in Beijing to see the Temple of Heaven Park which is supposed to be a peaceful oasis in the city. Tomorrow morning we’ll have a tour of the Forbidden City and then take an overnight train to the city of Xian, famous for the hundreds of life-size terra cotta warriors.

JUNE 15,2008

This morning I said goodbye to the folks from the Mongolia tour at Millie’s, an American Diner in Ulaanbaatar popular with foreigners. It’s always hard to say goodbye at the end of the tours. Last night we went to a show of local Mongolian dancers and contortionists and then had our final dinner at a Mongolian Barbecue restaurant. We ended the night at a UB nightclub.

I flew to Beijing this afternoon and arrived just after a rainstorm. I was immediately impressed at how clean the city is on the taxi ride from the airport to my hotel which is in a very nice neighborhood close to Tiananmen Square. I went out for a walk and it was amazing to walk through Tiananmen Square and then across the moat which surrounds the Forbidden City. I walked towards Wangfujing Dajie, the shopping district and passed one of the “snack streets” where vendors sell such delicacies as scorpion, cicadas and starfish. I settled for grilled shrimp and a spicy cold noodle dish with garlic and cilantro.

I spent a few hour on Wangfujing Dajie going through the brand new modern shopping malls. From what I’ve seen just today, Beijing is a large and exciting city where I’ll spend 4 days exploring before starting the next tour which goes across to Shanghai where we’ll catch a ferry to Japan.