Travels in China

Throughout China I was reminded so many times of the Lonely Planet book entitled "The Kindness Of Strangers" so read on and spot/highlight instances of this and there could be a prize for those who notice them all ... oops, the teacher's talking!

Kashgar will remain a milestone in my travels as I finally managed to post off 10kg of luggage in different directions and fit the remaining 13kg into a medium sized rucksack, thanks to Lorna and Maggie's suggestion. My HUGE pink, flowery suitcase was wheeled off by the helpful postie and said his son could use it for going to university. Guess there's not a colour code in China, nor does it seem in the rest of Asia, so where did we get such stereotyped ideas for colours in UK, I wonder? And so I bade farewell to my cumbersome companion of 3 months standing/wheeling. However the first time the backpack was lifted when packed a strap gave way - you just can't get the quality these days.  I'd spied a tailor in the market earlier on but when I looked again I couldn't find him but spotted a lady working on a tapestry in a 2nd hand furniture shop and she was only too pleased to fix my bag refusing to take anything for her efforts.

Kashgar itself, despite not being particularly Chinese in its appearance, was an interesting city to explore from a hostel beside food stalls in the old town where there's an on going huge renovation project which will make an even more interesting visit in the future. Opted for AC in the dorm as the temp was beginning to rise.  Was aware of an army presence as it was the anniversary of some trouble 2 years ago but didn't ever feel threatened or anxious.

Explored the famous Sunday animal market where folk bring their animals and show them to interested parties and make their own deal which seems to be standard practice in Asia. Disappointed that it was mainly huge bulls, different breeds of sheep and only a few goats, donkeys and yaks but still a worthwhile experience trying to move between flocks/herds without being trampled but hard to watch the animals being loaded onto different small vehicles involving lots of prodding and sometimes with the animal's leg left stuck between the bars.  Saw so many of the sheep with the big bums bred specially to suit the Asian tastes.  When they walk their overhang behind wobbles so is a weird sight.  Had a fun ride back to town in a cart with a friendly family who shared their fruit pickings with us (apricots and plums).  

Spent another day wandering round a big, undercover market with it's colourful and interesting displays of materials, precious stones, scarves etc in an the area beside the river where a JCB was dredging and gathering quite a crowd of spectators.  With assistance from the hotel receptionists it was possible to track down an ATM machine for Mastercards, memory cards for the camera and a sim card for the phone although I later found out that this becomes more complicated in China with one company operating different rates and sim cards in each province but with a little help from my friends lending me their mobiles and sorting out the muddle I'd got into with 2 sim cards.  Surprisingly most people were happy to pose for a photograph and some asked for their photograph to be taken. Was also able to film various foods being made: doughnut type twists; long noodles; crepes, where they cracked the egg onto the dough as they spread it over a girdle and dumplings and of course had to sample them all. After buying a doughnut twist I enquired from the baker where the nearest toilet was and was told I could use the toilet in her house beside her stall but afterwards had to ask how to flush the toilet...turned out to be a tap half way up the wall but at least it flushed and there was toilet paper.

After lightening my load I headed by train overnight to Urumqi (decided to give Turfan a wide berth as it's temp was 40 degrees) and at the station once through the security checks (found at every station), was immediately greeted by an English speaking Chinese man who offered to help me board the right train.  He proved to be very useful as I was booked on a hard seat and, when it became evident that there were some sleepers available, he was able to organise an upgrade for me and also guide me personally to my hostel in Urumqi although he was cutting it fine for catching his connection to Xian.  In exchange he wanted to practise his English. Another young chap on the train reclaimed my seat for me when I found someone else sitting on it. Was very relieved to get a sleeper as the hard seat was as described or even harder and there was no leg room at the window. Fellow passengers seemed alarmed when I produced my knife for making my lunch and an official quickly appeared and indicated that I should put the knife away in my backpack. Later on the same knife was detected by the screening device at the entrance for visiting a lake and had my Chinese companion not come to the rescue and suggest leaving the knife in a restaurant for me to collect later I would have been refused entry. Enough was enough so I donated the offending knife to the hostel kitchen that evening before it landed me in clink! It had served us well when picnicking around Kyrgyzstan so you'll be pleased to know I got my money's worth.  In Urumqi the hostel was near a beautiful park which had attractive floral displays, interesting sculptures and water lilies on the lake and at night buildings in the area were illuminated and there was music from the dancing held in the square.   We were also close to the night market with yummy food so I didn't actually need to explore downtown for the few days I was there. However 4 young Chinese tourists invited me to accompany them to the Heavenly Lake and even those native speakers found it hard to find the buses to take us there so I was very glad to tag along and even happier to be able to chat with real Chinese young folk. We were herded to the lake in true tourist style but by walking further than most we eventually lost the crowds and found various waterfalls, a wild flower meadow and craggy mountains. The same group introduced me to sheep's (or was it goats?) feet and were disappointed when I couldn't even suck 1 of them clean but at least I tried them and know not to order them again nor chicken's feet which I tried at a later date.

Going by my previous experience of being able to upgrade to a sleeper on the train I took a chance and booked another hard seat this time for a trip of 2 nights and 3 days heading for Xian and the Terracotta Warriors but horrors, no upgrade was available at any point on the journey although  I kept pestering them often enough for one. The only consolation was that I had slightly more room with a corridor seat but boy, was it hard! Tried sitting on a jumper and using my towel as a pillow and got a few hours sleep the 1st night but by the 2nd night I was ready to jump off the train but managed to contain myself and took my mind off it for a while by helping to amuse an 8 year old with some card/drawing games. But I'd learned my lesson "the hard" way and vowed to fly if there was no sleeper available on  future trips.  Through amusing the 8 year old folk round about started taking more interest in me and some let on that they could speak some English.  One of the students was also disembarking at Xian and offered to take me to my hostel which was in a back lane and hard to find so was grateful for his assistance.

Xian was an interesting city with lots of history and plenty evidence of being in China. Actually could have spent another day there exploring more of the old city with its artists' quarter surrounded by walls and forts although I did manage to explore a little of this area on foot and then by tuk tuk as the driver drove round different areas trying to find the hostel.  The hostel was in a residential area enabling me to to enjoy eating pancakes and dumplings with the locals for breakfast and sample delicacies from the food stalls in the night bazaar.  Also managed to fit in a show featuring Chinese music, dance and drama all performed in colourful Chinese costumes.  Thoroughly enjoyed the show despite 2 Chinese Mums and their sons chatting all the way through it. Does this sound familiar to some of you?

A young worker from Beijing, from my dorm, showed me round the illuminated Drum and Bell Towers and the night bazaar in full swing.  I returned to view the interiors of these towers by day and hit the jackpot by arriving at each tower when there was free musical entertainment: drumming in the Drum Tower and various Chinese instruments being played in the Bell Tower not just bells. I was also able to take a German and a Chinese tourist to one of these performances as they hadn't realised there were on.  Could being a tour guide be my next calling?

My Chinese dorm mate also took me by bus to the Terracotta Warriors en  route stopping off at an intricate Chinese palace complex which was photogenic with it's waterlily covered ponds under curved bridges and travelling to a nearby viewpoint by cable car.  Kept meeting folk we'd seen earlier on the buses and also the 2 Dutch guys from the Torugart  crossing just after I'd been told how many millions live in China.  Was surprised that in China I never found myself in such a huge crowd as I'd experienced in the London underground when one of the lines was down and you had to wait for the person beside you to move but I suppose China is vast enough to contain its millions.   In Britain if you travelled for 3 days by train you might land in the sea  and most of the Chinese provinces are bigger than Scotland.  I just hadn't appreciated the vastness of the country before.  The Terracotta Warriors were amazing although it was very hot and difficult to keep focussed.

Before I left Xian I tried a hairdresser across from the hostel in a deluge-saved washing my hair.  The guy gave my hair a good crop for £2, so I will be expecting to pay £1 in Thailand as the prices seem to be decreasing as I travel south but still not worth the flight over for a cheap hairdo. Guess things will change once I reach Japan and Australia so better make the most of shopping while the going is good which may mean more trips to the post office with parcels.

With no sleepers available from Xian to Shanghai it was back to flying.  No hitches this time with the flight except for being slightly late.  For the 1st few nights my Chinese friends, May and family,  had booked me into a posh hotel for me to rest before going to stay with them and even once with them I was thoroughly spoiled.  Had my 1st tummy bug (amazing that my stomach had coped for so long when trying so many different foods mostly from street stalls) so sadly was unable to make the most of the HUGE buffet breakfast the 2nd morning and had to stick to tea and toast. However at breakfast I met a young Chinese student, soon to start university in the area, and was able to take her with me to her first orchestra, a Chinese one with very pleasant music played on mainly special Chinese instruments at the reasonable price of £5. The conductor was apparently famous in China.

 Had a great 2 weeks with my friends getting to know and play with 1 year old Steven, meeting my friend's Mum and various other relatives and seeing a Chinese family in action.  We tried so many different Chinese meals, mostly yummy and nothing like British Chinese food, that it was great to find an exercise/dance class outside the flats in the evenings (also on in the mornings at 0630 but guess what, I wasn't up then) to help combat the food intake and inactivity when the temp hit the late 30s.  Also was invited to Steven's 1st birthday party, a huge banquet for 20 family members and to a photo shoot in a studio for the birthday boy and on the last evening a school friend of May's treated us to another banquet in a private room in a posh restaurant which often seems to be the norm when going out for a special dinner.

In the heat of the summer the Chinese often resort to online shopping for survival. Despite the heat, with the help of AC in the car, we managed to explore some old villages beside canals crossed by humped backed stone bridges, not scenes I'd associated with China but with Holland; travel across the longest sea bridge in the world (35km) to visit the biggest market in the world (and I thought the Metro Centre was too much); visit a park beside a lake with huge lilies covering most of it; art gallery exhibiting fans, calligraphy, Chinese brush work and local history; a museum on the history of communism in China; witness special huge waves rolling into a coastal resort and visit May's home town.  

I was sad to leave my friends as I flew out from Shanghai  to North Thailand and miss my new small friend but more adventures were about to begin...