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The flight attendants were very helpful on the way over. They gave me the names of the shops where they buy pearls and tips on how to get a good deal. I’m finally looking forward to the pearl shopping with anticipation instead of dreading having to bargain for everything.
We had a fast and uneventful trip through immigration, customs and quarantine (for swine flu) checkpoints and the luggage came off fast. We were probably out of the secured areas within about 45 minutes or less of arriving at the gate. It seemed like there were dozens of guides outside the doors holding signs with the names of people they were picking up. Even so, we had no trouble finding our Beijing guide, Grace. Tour guides receive an English name, to make it easier on English speakers. Some choose, some get names assigned, and some are drawn out of a hat.
We have a private tour, just us with a local guide and driver in each place we will visit. And as it turns out, this is a great way to travel in a place like China. The guides were flexible, and accommodated us when we wanted slight changes to the itinerary.
We are staying at the Novatel in Beijing. The rooms have a very European feel to them…sleek, light woods, and duvet bedding. The bed is only slightly softer than a rock. We are both very tired … hope the rock is comfortable enough for a good night’s sleep.
Today we are going to the Great Wall. The Great Wall was quite a climb and there were a lot of tourists out… both Chinese and Westerners. Paul went all the way to the top of the section we were at (~3200 stairs, round trip). Paul’s calves were sore for two days. Little did we know that this was just a warm up for stair climbing. I went about 2/3rds of the way…partially because of concerns about the knee while coming down. I didn’t want to blow out the knee on the first day of a 30 day vacation. The views were spectacular…we could see across the valley with a bird’s eye view of another section of the wall. The sky was overcast and gray, as it was for most of the trip.
The next stop was the Summer Palace which included a huge man made lake (and a mountain made from the materials excavated to make the lake). There was a large “boat” pavilion in the lake made entirely of marble and a 728 meter long covered walkway that ran along the lake.
Getting back to the hotel was a major challenge. Many of the roads were blocked due to rehearsals for the upcoming 60th anniversary celebration of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. At one point the intersection was blocked for an extended period of time while hundreds (or maybe it was thousands) of ceremony participants in pastel colored rain slickers and pulling brightly covered suitcases crossed the intersection heading somewhere. We finally got to within a block of the hotel, unloaded in the middle of the intersection and walked the rest of the way…a little adventure.
Today we are on our own, starting at the Silk Market (to a shop recommended by the flight attendants) where I bought lots of pearls while Paul sat round looking bored. The prices were right on target with what the flight attendants had told me…about 30% of the tag prices (70% off). No bargaining required. Besides Christmas presents and a triple stand of fresh water pearls for Mom, I also got a lovely strand of sea water pearls for Chloe for when she gets married (in 20 or so years) and another strand for Josh’s first daughter’s wedding day (assuming he has a daughter). I was going to get me some but decided I’d wear the granddaughter’s pearls until they were ready for them.
Our first sightseeing stop was the Lama Monastery where we spent about an hour wandering the grounds and going through the buildings. The Buddha was about 80 feet high, carved out of one piece of sandalwood. It would have all made more sense if we were Buddhists but it was still interesting. There were a fair number of tourists and a lot of worshipers burning a lot of incense.
Then we were off to a drum tower and bell tower. There were some interesting exhibits about time pieces (the drums were used to toll out various times) including a water clock. We got so see a short drumming demonstration by five drummers…it was a highlight of the day (after pearl shopping).
Next we headed to the bell tower. The views were great from both towers. Beijing has some very interesting modern architecture mixed in among the old style buildings.
An area of hutongs was immediately adjacent to the two towers so a walk through there was the next part of our outing. The hutongs are very old neighborhoods that consists of narrow, winding lanes that were once the city’s dominant passageways. These were in danger of being torn down to make way for modern high rise buildings until it was discovered that they are a perfect tourist destination. Many of the buildings have no central heating and no running water, so each neighborhood has a well/water tap and local bathrooms. The area was adjacent to a large, picturesque lake with dozens of Pedi cabs touring the area. Actually getting to walk the area was difficult as every three feet or so we had a Pedi cab driver trying to talk us into letting him take us around.
Being totally foot sore after all the walking we gave the hotel card to the taxi driver with plans for a nice rest in the hotel. Instead of ending up at the hotel we ended up back at the Silk Market…Paul had given the driver the wrong card. So, we went back in and I bought more Christmas presents and a ring for me (a girl can never have too many pearls).
Back with our guide we started the day at Tiananmen Square…”huge” doesn’t begin to describe the square. There was a line to get into Mao Tse Tung’s mausoleum. People must have been lined up five or six abreast and the line ran from one end of the building, half way around the end, and then doubled back to the other end of the building. The line must have been at least a mile long and was estimated to be a four or five hour wait. So how many people does that make – hundreds or maybe a couple thousand? Many Chinese are on national holiday for the 60th anniversary and I think most of them were in Beijing to see the tomb.
From the square we walked over to the Forbidden City…home of the Chinese emperors. The city has 9,999 rooms – a lucky number for the Chinese and one less room than reported to be in the Celestial Palace of the God(s) in heaven. The earthly emperor is not to overshadow the gods. One could take forever walking through the city (it covers 178 acres). Some of the paintings, gold detailing and statues on the roofs were very detailed and interesting although to the untrained eye it all begins to look the same after a while.
Lunch was at an unbelievable restaurant…gold everywhere – table cloths, napkins, walls. Plus, there was a chorus of about six greeters whose only apparent duty was to greet guests as they come in…they made Wal-Mart greeters look like rank amateurs. The food was very good but was overshadowed by the opulence of the rooms.
Today our guided tour included a pedicab ride in the hutongs near where we had walked the day before but this area was a bit more polished than where we had walked. As part of the tour we got to actually tour one of the courtyard homes. The “House” was a series of fairly small rooms, all opening onto the central courtyard. The north building was for the elders (letting them get the sun), the south for servants, east for the boy, west for the girl. One of the rooms was converted to a guest room that was run as a bed and breakfast. Since running water and bathrooms are down the street I think I’ll pass on that experience.
We then toured Prince Gong’s Garden, with a labyrinthine combination of rockeries and pavilions. Only the garden is open to the public - the lavish imperial residence is not.
I headed back to the hotel (bit of traveler upset) and Paul and the guide proceeded to the Temple of Heaven, and Paul got to stand in the Center of the Universe on the Circular Alter, where the emperor alone could stand.
After a good meal we went to see the Peking Opera (I was doing better). It was very interesting with lots of juggling and acrobatics…not too much singing.
Hyatt Regency
We were up at 5am to catch the flight to Xian. We unloaded everything at the hotel (Hyatt Regency) and then went to lunch at a buffet. The restaurant’s electricity was out so they had candles on the stairs up to the dining room and in the bathrooms. The large dining room had lots of windows so no candles there.
The weather is much smoggier here than in Beijing. The sky doesn’t look brown/dirty but it is definitely very hazy and a bit difficult to breathe.
First stop was the Shaanxi History Museum…tons of artifacts all the way back to Neolithic times. Xian was the capital of China at various times so there is lots of history. Xian was also the end (or beginning) of the Silk Road to Arabia and Turkey. Going through an Asian museum with a guide is a lot more informative than on our own. Bryan pointed out various key displays and had lots of stories (some of which I assume were actually true).
The next stop was the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and surrounding Buddhist Monastery. We opted not to climb to the top of the pagoda.
Dinner was dumplings (Dim Sum) and all was excellent (and too much to eat). This was followed by the Tang Dynasty Show, which was outstanding. There were various performances by instrumentalists as well as dancers. The scenery and costumes were beautiful.
The first sight seeing stop was the city gate and wall. There is still an intact wall around old Xian, 46 feet high and 49 feet wide. There was a display of old siege and field equipment on the wall…very interesting and some rather gruesome.
Then it was off to the terra cotta factory to see how terra cotta and lacquer ware were made, and of course, there was the usual display of items for sale. It is possible to custom order a terra cotta warrior with your own face on it. We passed.
Next it was off to the real thing…the terra cotta warriors. Pit 1 was gigantic. All the excavated figures were originally found in pieces. The figures had been smashed by looters and a collapsed ceiling.
The best preserved was missing only a hand. A section at the end of the building was the “hospital” where they were assembling warriors and horses. I think they were doing a lot of the piecing together using computers to help find the fit for a piece. Apparently the warriors had all originally been painted down to the last detail but most of the paint was now gone.
It was then lunch and a visit to the Great Mosque. Xian is home to a large population of Chinese speaking Muslims who moved to Xian when the Silk Road was in operation. The mosque looked like a typical Chinese Buddhist temple, but non-Muslims weren’t allowed inside the buildings. More interesting was the street market in the area. There were several streets with cheap tourist fare and lots of stalls with produce, nuts and cooked foods. Grilled or roasted pigs feet seemed to be a common item. There were also kabobs and roasted, salted nuts in the shell. The street market was definitely a colorful feast for the eyes. We didn’t eat anything, just to be on the safe side.
The driving situation in China definitely defies description. There is a definite hierarchy when it comes to right of way. Trucks and buses rule. Then come cars, then scooters and bicycles, with pedestrians at the bottom of the barrel. Even on a green light, cars turning have the right of way over pedestrians.
Pedestrians would step off the corner into the street, and cars turning will pass within inches in front orinback of them. Jay walking is legal. Pedestrians would go part way across a street and stand on the lane lines as cars zipped passed on either side.
Watching the traffic is like watching a session of bumper cars without the bumping. I’m amazed there aren’t more bodies and vehicles strewn about the streets. On the way somewhere our driver pulled into a round-about and then did a quick u-turn instead of going all the way around…apparently quite legal but very hair raising. I may start riding with my eyes closed.
We’ve seen just about everything on the road except donkey or horse drawn vehicles. There are all types of two and three wheeled motorized vehicles. One was pulling a wagon with a double mattress on it and one was stacked high with bags. We saw several three wheel scooters with cabs in the back for cargo or people.
More Commentary on Driving
Today we ran into total gridlock on the way out of town on the way to the airport. We were at an intersection that was totally blocked and couldn’t move forward or backward. Apparently there was an accident at the gate on the road we were trying to get on, backing up traffic. Since there is no concept of ensuring one can clear the intersection before entering, gridlock occurs. Eventually a bus was able to back up enough that we squeezed through and went through another gate out of town. Comments on Flying in China:
Flying is interesting in China. People often keep trying to get through the boarding gate even when it was obvious that they aren’t boarding. In Xian there was a mob once boarding started with everyone rushing to the gate. Upon landing, as soon as the plane came to a stop on the active runway you could hear half the seatbelts click open and people started standing to get luggage from the overhead storage. The flight attendants then came through and made everyone take their seats. Same thing happened when we landed in Xian a few days earlier and this happened a couple of other times as well.
Chengdu
Our first stop was the Dujiangyan Irrigation system, constructed 2300 years ago during the reign of the first emperor. They dug a new canal near the river to divert flood water. It was a pretty stretch of river although, again, hazy. The surrounding area was badly damaged by the 2008 earthquake and some overlooks were closed.
The dinner meal was the most interesting yet. One dish was sweet potatoes shaped in ball with rice in the middle and drizzled with some sort of sauce. There were also corn cakes with no discernable “stuff” to hold the corn kernels together but they were certainly stuck together. The bamboo shoots were stuffed with something but were very tough. Presentation of the entire meal was extraordinary. We are sure to gain weight, as the food is delicious, and there is always 3 or 4 times the amount that we can eat.
Today was Panda Day. The Chengdu Panda Breeding Center was only about a half hour from our hotel. The center is on park-like grounds but it wasn’t at all rural as one would expect. The weather was cool and a bit misty (grey skies again), which is ideal panda watching weather. Many were out feeding (it was breakfast time) with about three or four in each enclosure, grouped by age. We also saw two babies (born July 19th). They were in baby incubators in the panda nursery (no pictures allowed)…pretty helpless.
For a donation of $150 you can hold a one year old panda for one minute…an opportunity of a lifetime that we took. We gowned up in booties, smocks and gloves. They sat the panda on my lap and gave him (her?) a piece of dried apple to keep him distracted. He was heavy and had pretty wiry hair…they are very fluffy but aren’t as soft as they look. He was totally indifferent to what was going on. When Paul sat down beside me the panda actually put his arm around Paul (absolutely the truth). This will likely be one of the best highlights of the trip.
Later we saw red pandas (look sort of like a fox but with a panda head)...really cute.
Next stop was the Sanxingdui Museum. The drive there was quite an adventure, John (the driver) had to drive in the left lane a lot because the road conditions were pretty bad…pot holes that could eat a small car and long stretches where whatever smooth surface there might have once been was long gone and the road seemed to be constructed of bumpy rocks. We actually got to see a bit of rural China and smaller communities this way. Many of the buildings were in fairly poor repair and/or looked like they were abandoned but I’m not sure they were. We saw lots of bikes and scooters and one man carrying two large baskets suspended on the ends of a long pole carried across his shoulders…a scene out of an old National Geographic magazine.
The museum was focused on an early (4000 years ago) Bronze Age civilization in the area. The area’s first discoveries were made in 1929 but most of the major discoveries were from the 1960’s through the 80’s. The museum contained a lot of pottery, jade and bronze artifacts. They had sacrificial pits for most of the items and the pits had many similar items. It was interesting but there was a lot of similarity/repetition. This mask had big eyes to see far, and big ears to hear from a distance. It is not a representation of an alien :-).
Before dinner we walked through Jinli Street…full of interesting shops, old (looking) architecture and interesting looking local street food (plus a Dairy Queen, a TCBY and a Starbucks). One Chinese gentleman wanted to get his picture taken with us. A Chinese woman had her eight year old daughter talk to us to practice her English. Of the hundreds of people strolling the street we were the only Caucasians…guess we were a novelty to them.
We then went to the Shue Feng Ya Yun Tea House for a variety show. The show included music, a puppet (manipulated with hands and sticks) that did some simple magic, and hand shadow puppets (owl, birds, rabbits and many others…really intricate). There was a quick change demonstration where the actors almost instantly changed the colors of their masks and their robes. The mask changes you could sort of figure out (pulling a string with the mask being pulled up into the large headdress). The full color changes to the full flowing robes must have been done by real magic because there was absolutely nothing to give a clue as to how they did it.
The entire sky of China seems to be a sea of clouds broken only occasionally by a mountain top. Our arrival airport today is at 11,500 feet so we actually landed above the clouds and got to see some real sun for a change. By the time we arrived at the Intercontinental hotel we were back in the clouds.
The hotel is an architectural marvel. The exterior appears to be of stacked stone like those on some of the older looking buildings we saw on the way in. However, the entrance was a massive glass atrium with waterfalls, fountains, trees, streams and lush landscaping. It’s one of the most beautiful hotels I’ve ever seen, let alone stayed in.
Our room was the largest we’ve had so far with a sitting area and a balcony. The furniture had a Tibetan feel (we are in an area of Tibetan Buddhists influence) but there were absolutely no drawers in any of the furniture…sort of inconvenient.
We were met at 9:00am by our guide, Alex, and the Driver (Mr. Yuang) for our drive to Juizhaigou Valley. Once there we transferred to the eco-bus that took us all the way to the end of the longest valley (Rizes). We then got off at various stops on the way back, walking between some of stops. Paul was offered a seat by a Chinese woman – I guess he looks like he’s getting old. The weather was overcast and chilly and we got a few misty moments but no real rain.
The lakes were incredible deep blue and turquoise colors, really gorgeous. There were waterfalls, cascades, rills and streams everywhere. The first valley especially was a fairyland of waterfalls and the
falls just got more impressive the further down the valley we went. None of the waterfalls were more than about 60 – 80 feet high but what they lacked in height they more than made up for in width. Some seemed to go on forever with the ends lost in the trees.
I think my favorite falls was Pearl Shoals Falls. It is 535 feet wide and 70 feet high. Water spilled over a wide shallow bed before dropping into a very wide spread of falls. Probably my next favorite falls was Nuorilang (“Grand and Magnificent” in the Tibetan language). It was 1050 feet wide and 83 feet high. Again, it was fairly straight across the top and was a wide series of falls…one after another.
My favorite non-falls attraction was Peacock Lake…an incredible shade of peacock turquoise blue, dark green and sapphire. It was really breathtaking. There was a Chinese bridal couple there in full western wedding finery getting their pictures taken.
There are 108 lakes in the valley and countless falls. It is really hard to imagine…has to be seen to be believed. We saw exactly two other Caucasians the entire day. We enjoy getting off the (at least Caucasian) beaten path.
After dinner we went to see a musical of a young woman’s pilgrimage from Juizhaigou to Lhasa (in Tibet). The lute players were particularly memorable. They had a special type of lute and the performing style included a lot of singing, stomping and kicking. There must have been 40 or 50 men playing the lutes and kicking like the Radio City Rockettes.
There was also a “long sleeve” dance with about the same number of women, later joined by a similar number of men…also in long sleeved costumes. The sleeves were three or four feet longer than the person’s arms. The long sleeves are considered very graceful and they certainly made for a visually interesting display. And there were other interesting costumes and performances.
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There was also a “long sleeve” dance with about the same number of women, later joined by a similar number of men…also in long sleeved costumes. The sleeves were three or four feet longer than the person’s arms. The long sleeves are considered very graceful and they certainly made for a visually interesting display. And there were other interesting costumes and performances.
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