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  • Trip start
    September 7, 2024
    My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Off to Beijing

    September 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    After a sleepless night (needlessly worrying I wouldn’t wake to the alarm), I got up at 4am super excited for our adventures in China!
    As we were about to walk out the door I remembered I hadn’t packed a hairbrush!! A near disaster was averted; although I imagine they probably s sell them over there.
    The drive in was fabulous using all the new tunnels and motorways. Only about 45 minutes to the airport from Liam’s place. The tolls however are probably the same price as the flight.
    Liam tried his first beer in a lovely tall golden can and I had a coffee which mum would’ve hated as it automatically comes with milk and sugar 😂.
    Flight one is to Schenzhen and then onwards to Beijing.
    Schenzhen airport is the biggest building I have ever been in! Holy moly!!
    We successfully navigated our way through immigration and walked and walked and walked and walked to our gate for the next flight.
    Once we found it we had plenty of time for a meal. So many options! We settled on duck (Liam) and chicken (me). It was delicious, and as an added bonus we figured out how to use Alipay which is super simple.
    The airports are both very modern and clean with water stations and toilets everywhere. Whilst there are at least 10 loos, only one is western 😬. Chinese women obviously have much better thigh strength than me. The western toilets are actually their disabled ones………
    Final leg was a bit squishy but only 3 hours. We have now spoken to a few fellow TripADeal (TAD) travellers who seem quite nice. The average age is “retired” and Liam is by far the youngest, but we’ve found a few in their early 30’s too.
    Our guide is Adam and everything is super well organised. The hotel was about 35mins away so we didn’t actually get to our room until 1am local time….3am back home. We’ve been awake nearly 24 hours.
    Room
    Is massive and there are two beds! Woohoo. We will sleep well tonight.    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Beijing Tiananmen Square & Forbidden Cit

    September 8, 2024 in China ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Day 2
    An eclectic breakfast, from dumplings and fried duck to muesli and popcorn chicken left us amply fueled up for the day.
    First stop Tiananmen Square. Massive, and soooo many people. Thank goodness we are in a tour because there is massive queue after massive queue for tickets and passport checks and security etc if you are travelling independently.
    Our guide is actually quite funny and very tongue-in-cheek when talking about the Communist Party and history. So much so that he was actually “taken away for a cup of tea” by communist officials at one point, and whilst he wouldn’t go into detail, he returned minus a tooth!! (this didn’t happen today fortunately).
    The walk around and through The Forbidden City was spectacular. I can’t describe the enormity of the Temples and grounds. There are 980 surviving buildings!!!
    We walked loads but the weather was friendly so that was ok.
    After a very late lunch we went to see a show that can only be described as a visual extravaganza!! A combination of dance, acrobatics, martial arts, special effects and over 800,000 million tonnes of water - just wow 🤩
    I can’t believe we did all this on day 1.
    Finishing off with a 90 foot massage in my room - blissful.    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    The Great Wall Of China

    September 9, 2024 in China ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Climb The Great Wall of China ✅

    Those steps! Woah.
    But what an experience. Liam was a patient champion as we climbed to Tower 8. The steps were incredibly uneven and really high at times too. I had no idea that the climb was so steep - I knew it was long but the steepness surprised me. My legs were like jelly and my face glowed like a beacon but it was so, so, so worth it, and it worked off our buffet lunch 😂😂
    The climb down was actually easier physically, but scarier.
    Thank God I found a western toilet at the bottom because there was NO WAY I could’ve squatted. I actually pre-warned Liam that he might have had to come to help me up. Luckily he wasn’t required.
    The only disappointment was the fact that this section of The Wall was sponsored by JBL 🙄    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Beijing Old Town

    September 10, 2024 in China ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Our last day in Beijing started off with a visit to a University type of place that practices in traditional Chinese medicine. As a class we sat and listen to the teacher who explained to us how it all works. After that an army of doctors came in to assess each of us and diagnose our issues. We were then given a script to fill downstairs Which most of us did not do because it was hundreds of dollars worth of medicines that last for one month. Some people however did buy the medicine. One couple spent more on medicine than they did on the entire trip. Crazy.

    Afterwards we had a magical time exploring Beijing’s Old Town which is made up of 700 year old laneways (Hutongs). This is such a beautiful place. We were the epitome of “tourists” as we made our way around on the back of a rickshaw. It was actually so much fun. We laughed a LOT as we dodged people, bikes and other rickshaws 🛺.
    The area is just gorgeous, surrounding 3 lakes each of which are lined with gorgeous willow trees.
    Most of the shops were food of all types as well as souvenirs. I’m pretty proud to say I didn’t buy anything apart from an ice cream!
    Afterwards we had an absolutely delicious lunch in the home of a local family. Their lounge room was temporarily converted into a dining room and we couldn’t fault their hospitality. Liam and a couple of others especially enjoyed the local beer and traditional Mongolian liquor 😂
    We are now sitting on a bullet train headed to Xi’an. It will take just over 5 hours and reach speeds of 300+ km/h 😮
    I have loved Beijing and would love to come back and explore some more.    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Terracotta Warriors

    September 11, 2024 in China ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Today was a “pinch myself” kind of day.
    Before we headed off to the main attraction, we stopped at a factory where replicas of the Terracotta Warriors are made. We learned about the firing process and the moulds that are used etc. This was also an opportunity to have a replica made of ourselves as a Terracotta Warrior that would be life-size. I was so tempted to do it because I thought it would be very very funny but I was strong and refrained. I did however buy a chess set which I think was quite a good purchase. We then headed off to see the actual Warriors. According to our guide, today was a pretty quiet day which shocked me because there were so many people and it was very hot. He showed us a video of a crowded day and people waited over two hours just to get through checkpoint one. Thank goodness it was nothing like that today.

    Upon entry we stood overlooking Pit One and I just couldn’t believe I was actually seeing this incredible archeological discovery. There are apparently over 8000 warriors on display and new ones are being uncovered and renovated all the time.
    The story of its discovery and restoration is absolutely incredible. I can’t imagine how the archeologist (who stumbled across a farmer selling “old pottery hands” at the local markets) must’ve felt when he made his way out to the farm to see where the relics were found, and then stumbled across such profound discovery.
    Each face is unique, made in the image of fellow sculptors. There are soldiers, archers and horses in varying levels of restoration. We also saw a pit that is yet to be excavated but technology has shown that additional warriors are indeed buried below.
    It’s amazing to think that if I come back in 10-15 years there will be even more warriors to see!
    What another incredible day.

    We were all marvelling at how lucky we are to experience this. Then, after a banquet lunch with our friends that we have made on this trip, we boarded the bus back to the train station for another high-speed journey out to Zhengzhou.
    My swelling feet are driving me crazy so I definitely need to see the doctor before my next trip.
    Liam ventured out to grab some dinner whilst I sat with my legs up the wall.    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Shaolin Temple

    September 12, 2024 in China ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Shaolin Temple

    A much quieter day today which was also much appreciated. We visited The Shaolin Temple which was built in 495 and is the birthplace of Zen Buddhism and Shaolin Kung Fu.
    It was a gorgeous blue sky day and walking around the forest was just delightful.
    A definite highlight was the Kung Fu show. It isn’t normal to be able to contort yourself in the way these Shaolin Monks do - it was mind bogging! And to think I’m proud of myself if I can stand up without making a groaning sound. These guys are incredible.
    We were shown around the beautiful temple and Pagoda Forest as well.
    The backdrop of the searing mountains just added to the whole day.
    Liam went off on his own adventure today to explore the local area and we met back up for dinner. He had a fabulous day too, exploring downtown Zhengzhou. At one point he met a husband of an English teacher and after a few minutes had scored himself a lift on the back of a motorbike to the shops he was looking for! What a great story!    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Zhengzhou

    September 13, 2024 in China ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Museum, shopping & a super fast train
    Today we visited Henan Museum to learn about some Chinese history and see artefacts dating back 6000 years! A very impressive building with loads of cool stuff and the most expensive coffee we’ve had so far 😂😂
    Afterwards we had a couple of hours to kill so we were taken to a massive shopping centre: think Westfield Parramatta combined with Bondi Junction. We weren’t particularly keen on shopping but we did savour the aircon!
    We found ourselves a “TimeZone” type place where we bought 3 buckets of rings to toss and were successful in winning 2 bottles of red wine and a bottle of water!! We haven’t had much luck in buying wine so it’s hilarious that that is what we won.
    Now to find a corkscrew……🤔
    Currently aboard a bullet train travelling around 1000km’s to our next stop.    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Bugs and boats

    September 14, 2024 in China ⋅ ☁️ 34 °C

    Suzhou
    We are big fans of this small city (only 15 million). The hotel is gorgeous with stunning gardens and a brilliant breakfast too.
    We visited a silk making factory which was awesome. The process for making the silk was very interesting, even for Liam. Their authenticity cover was blown though when we spotted a Chsirtiah Disr scarf which was promptly removed when they saw us having a little giggle. Whilst the deals sounded good, I refrained from buying anything!
    This area is known as The Oriental Venice and it’s easy to see why. So many canals but about 150° hotter than Venice…..🥵Our boat ride was great and we got off at the Old Town which was super pretty. This was where Liam and I bravely tasted scorpions on a stick!! It was very crunchy in an insect type of way. Whilst it wasn’t offensive, neither of us went back for seconds.
    Later we visited the Lingering Gardens which were lovely but the humidity is at 98% making it difficult to fully appreciate.
    As a last minute detour from our itinerary we did a lake cruise which was stunning but absolutely packed. We did the cruise today because the threat of Typhoon Beninca makes it likely it won’t be operational tomorrow. To be honest, I was glad we did it today because we got to witness a stunning sunset!!
    Another fabulous day.    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    Tea and Shanghai

    September 15, 2024 in China ⋅ 🌬 27 °C

    Due to the imminent arrival of typhoon Beninca, our itinerary has been adjusted as the Chinese government has ordered all outdoor activities to cease. This is sad as it is the Moon Festival right now and a National Holiday. Several of our group are very disappointed as they were planning on going to Shanghai Disneyland, but that has also been ordered to close. All flights for today and tomorrow have been cancelled. Fingers crossed that things settle for our flight on Tuesday.
    So last night we did a boat cruise at Hangzhou which was scheduled for today. None of us had any idea there was a typhoon on its way, however I should not be surprised I guess.
    Today we started at a tea plantation which has been one of the things I’ve been really looking forward to.
    We did a tea ceremony and I wasn’t surprised to find myself stocking up on a couple of tins of green tea 😂 (well it’s very good for you so it would’ve been foolish not to take advantage of the very good prices).
    The trip to Shanghai afterwards was long but visually fascinating. The endless rows of high rise apartments, as far as the eye can see is unbelievable.
    The sky darkened as the day went on but Liam & I were fortunate enough to explore Downtown Shanghai this evening before the real rain started. We skipped the option of an acrobatics show and had a fabulous adventure with one or two locals (the word “million” should be in that statement).
    Sadly the scheduled light show was cancelled but holy moly it was still an impressive sight. We couldn’t see the top of Shanghai Tower as it was up in the clouds and the iconic Pearl Tower was majestic. The city was absolutely bustling with such a positive vibe. I absolutely loved it!! We were also lucky enough to find a fabulous little restaurant and had the best meal of the trip so far. Liam had the duck and I had “company residue” - a weird translation of chicken and brisket with rice 😂😂. Liam somehow also accidentally ordered some massive pizza sized fried oyster dish, but we were so full that we had to take it back to the hotel. Today was my favourite “non-historically significant” day by far!!    Read more

  • My Travel AdventuresChinaTraveler

    What typhoon?

    September 16, 2024 in China ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    Typhoon Bebinca arrived in full force at about 8.30am. The howling winds were insane and there was no way in the world we would’ve even been able to walk out to the bus without being whacked by a tree branch or worse. It was the strongest typhoon to hit China since 1975!!
    Consequently our departure time for today changed to 2pm which gave us the majority of the day to relax, nap and get our bags sorted. It was all over pretty quickly really.
    On our eventual drive to the “fake markets” we saw an incredible amount of debris, fallen trees and bikes/scooters all toppled over. Impressively, we never lost power though.

    Liam was a legend at the bargaining which was just as well because I’m so bad; I’m too soft. We didn’t buy much which is also impressive!!
    Our last dinner was downtown at the French Quarter. Whilst it was an absolutely stunning place and the meal was awesome, it seemed a little ironic not to finish with a Chinese meal 😂
    We have had an amazing time and I’ve loved China. I didn’t really have any idea what to expect but it has been brilliant; amazing people, great food and all made extra special by the fact I got to do it with Liam 🥰    Read more

    Trip end
    September 18, 2024
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