After breakfast, we boarded our flight to Shanghai and then on the bus to Suzhou. We learned about the pollution levels in each city. Apparently Xian was at 150 which would explain why I have been feeling like a cold has been coming on. Really can't believe the problem until you see it with your own eyes. The fact that the country continues to poison it's own people is unbelievable. We would be able to escape for a short time in Suzhou (pronounced Sue-Joe), where the pollution level was 20. It didn't look nor feel like it was at that level. We drove past 4 massive coal stacks, all of them spewing grey smog into the air. I have yet to see any wind turbines, although I have seen solar panels on a few roofs of homes. Not a lick of green energy however to be seen.
Suzhou is an ancient water village line with canals and nicknamed 'Venice of the Orient". It is at the heart of the Yangtze Delta in the south of Jiangsu province. Multiple bridges, most beautiful with architecture, pagodas and classical gardens line the canals that cover 42% of the city. It is a well preserved city.
It was already getting dark upon arrival, so there wasn't much time to wander. I did however have time to find a geocache. I wanted to be able to find a physical cache in China and it was roughly 2 blocks away from the hotel. I was able to go out with cousin Anne and take a look at Ren Min Bridge. The carvings at the underside of the bridge were lit up and it was a nice tourist draw. I only had a photo of the cache location to go by since I did not bring my GPS, so I really did brute force this find. My map on my phone didn't accept coordinates entered. Of course the cache was at the last of the 4 corners of the bridge we attempted to scour. We were fortunate that the night air was mild and dry.
After discovering the cache, roughly searching for an hour or so, headed out to an Italian restaurant for dinner and a couple glasses of wine. It was a nice way to end the evening.
JA
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Terra Cotta Warriors
Time to take on some warriors.
But first we did a visit to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, a well-preserved ancient building and an active holy place for Buddhists. Rated as a National Key Cultural Relic Preserve, it really was a pleasant surprise for me, since I didn't even know we were going there!
The bells and drums in the towers here are over 600 years old, and are still used daily since it is active. While there is one main building to pray to buddha, there are other side buildings housing all the other gods for praying purposes. Some rooms so incredibly ornate, it is mind boggling. We were then taken in for a "lecture" and shown art, painted on rice paper. Everything was very symbolic and almost everything means the same thing: happiness, good fortune and luck.
We visited a terra-cotta warrior making kiln and a furniture making store before finally arriving at the warriors. The pollution seemed to be clearing up slightly throughout the day and the mountains in the background started to become more visible.
The Terra Cotta Warriors were built for the protection of the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, in his afterlife, and various chariots and member of an army were buried with him in 210 BC. The site has also received UNESCO designation, so I'm pretty excited to strike another one off my list.
We had a long walk to the first of the pits where the warriors were discovered by accident in 1974. It is one of the worlds most important recent archaeological finds, Three excavation pits have been opened to the public with a fourth underway. Troops, horses and chariots abound in formation status.
The first pit, and the largest pit housed the most warriors. My memory thinks the number is 8000 and continues to grow as they continue to excavate. All of the warriors within the pits held bronze weapons; crossbows, arrows, spears etc. Pit 1 is a combined battle formation of charioteers and infantrymen. At the eastern end of the pit there are three rows of vanguards. Immediately behind the vanguards is the main body of the battle formation. Around the outer edge, there is one row of soldiers facing south, north, and west respectively as flanks to guard the sides and rear of the army. Each soldier face is different, and there are multiple levels of soldier. Arrow men kneeling, arrow men standing, generals, charioteers...it goes on and on. Any wooden chariots were burnt or rotted, however some remains are still visible as imprints in the soil. Before the pit was discovered, local people in modern times used to build tombs on top of the pit, which were also visible.
Many pottery warriors and horses were stuck together from hundreds of broken pieces, and the restoration techniques used to salvage the artifacts are proudly displayed in the museum. A new bit of information I learned is that they were originally painted. In the 70's, technology hadn't advanced enough to be able to preserve the paint that was on the warriors, therefore they are now rather plain. New ones that are currently being discovered however, are better preserved and the paint remains intact.
We moved on to Pit 3, which was excavated between March and September of 1977. It is the smallest pit found to date. Which is really no small statement, because the space it takes up is still large. This area was essentially set up as a "war room". Warriors were found in tight quarters face to face and in close proximity to the stables, where horses and charioteers were at the ready at a moments notice, facing a sloping road serving as an entrance on the eastern end of the pit.
The last and final pit, Pit 2 was more of the same, however it was to hold all of the warriors and horses at the ready to fight. The size of these pits are huge. Pit 1 is two soccer fields large, and I estimate Pit 2 is about one soccer field large.
Pit 2 had the most exciting discovery IMO. A pair of bronze chariots complete with wagons and drivers in excellent condition, originally buried in a wooden box for 2000 years. The inside of the wagons were decorated inside, and were even found complete with extra supplies should the driver experience a breakdown, like a container to hold water, extra straps for the horses, and pieces to put together a wheel. The amount of detail that went into each warrior, horse or pieces is astonishing.
We eventually had to leave, but what a highlight it was. Upon our return to our hotel, we had a little time to get ready before heading out again for dinner and a show. We went to a Tang Dynasty Dinner and Show. Dinner and dance performance which reflects the rich cultural history and prosperity of thee Tang Dynasty (618-907 BC). Dinner was pretty good and was listed as a 5 star restaurant. The show consisted of a band, and singers and lovely colorful costumes, and loud drum banging, and unfortunately very high pitched flutes mimicking a bird tweet. I think many dogs ran from the theatre that were within a 3 km radius. I had to plug my ears!!
It was a very long day and I finished it up with a hot bath. Ready to conquer another!
JA
But first we did a visit to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, a well-preserved ancient building and an active holy place for Buddhists. Rated as a National Key Cultural Relic Preserve, it really was a pleasant surprise for me, since I didn't even know we were going there!
The bells and drums in the towers here are over 600 years old, and are still used daily since it is active. While there is one main building to pray to buddha, there are other side buildings housing all the other gods for praying purposes. Some rooms so incredibly ornate, it is mind boggling. We were then taken in for a "lecture" and shown art, painted on rice paper. Everything was very symbolic and almost everything means the same thing: happiness, good fortune and luck.
We visited a terra-cotta warrior making kiln and a furniture making store before finally arriving at the warriors. The pollution seemed to be clearing up slightly throughout the day and the mountains in the background started to become more visible.
The Terra Cotta Warriors were built for the protection of the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, in his afterlife, and various chariots and member of an army were buried with him in 210 BC. The site has also received UNESCO designation, so I'm pretty excited to strike another one off my list.
We had a long walk to the first of the pits where the warriors were discovered by accident in 1974. It is one of the worlds most important recent archaeological finds, Three excavation pits have been opened to the public with a fourth underway. Troops, horses and chariots abound in formation status.
The first pit, and the largest pit housed the most warriors. My memory thinks the number is 8000 and continues to grow as they continue to excavate. All of the warriors within the pits held bronze weapons; crossbows, arrows, spears etc. Pit 1 is a combined battle formation of charioteers and infantrymen. At the eastern end of the pit there are three rows of vanguards. Immediately behind the vanguards is the main body of the battle formation. Around the outer edge, there is one row of soldiers facing south, north, and west respectively as flanks to guard the sides and rear of the army. Each soldier face is different, and there are multiple levels of soldier. Arrow men kneeling, arrow men standing, generals, charioteers...it goes on and on. Any wooden chariots were burnt or rotted, however some remains are still visible as imprints in the soil. Before the pit was discovered, local people in modern times used to build tombs on top of the pit, which were also visible.
Many pottery warriors and horses were stuck together from hundreds of broken pieces, and the restoration techniques used to salvage the artifacts are proudly displayed in the museum. A new bit of information I learned is that they were originally painted. In the 70's, technology hadn't advanced enough to be able to preserve the paint that was on the warriors, therefore they are now rather plain. New ones that are currently being discovered however, are better preserved and the paint remains intact.
We moved on to Pit 3, which was excavated between March and September of 1977. It is the smallest pit found to date. Which is really no small statement, because the space it takes up is still large. This area was essentially set up as a "war room". Warriors were found in tight quarters face to face and in close proximity to the stables, where horses and charioteers were at the ready at a moments notice, facing a sloping road serving as an entrance on the eastern end of the pit.
The last and final pit, Pit 2 was more of the same, however it was to hold all of the warriors and horses at the ready to fight. The size of these pits are huge. Pit 1 is two soccer fields large, and I estimate Pit 2 is about one soccer field large.
Pit 2 had the most exciting discovery IMO. A pair of bronze chariots complete with wagons and drivers in excellent condition, originally buried in a wooden box for 2000 years. The inside of the wagons were decorated inside, and were even found complete with extra supplies should the driver experience a breakdown, like a container to hold water, extra straps for the horses, and pieces to put together a wheel. The amount of detail that went into each warrior, horse or pieces is astonishing.
We eventually had to leave, but what a highlight it was. Upon our return to our hotel, we had a little time to get ready before heading out again for dinner and a show. We went to a Tang Dynasty Dinner and Show. Dinner and dance performance which reflects the rich cultural history and prosperity of thee Tang Dynasty (618-907 BC). Dinner was pretty good and was listed as a 5 star restaurant. The show consisted of a band, and singers and lovely colorful costumes, and loud drum banging, and unfortunately very high pitched flutes mimicking a bird tweet. I think many dogs ran from the theatre that were within a 3 km radius. I had to plug my ears!!
It was a very long day and I finished it up with a hot bath. Ready to conquer another!
JA
Sunday, January 5, 2014
New Years Eve Xian Style
We left Beijing behind after breakfast for the airport. Xian, pronounced Shea-an, is one of the oldest cities in China and one of the one of Four Great Ancient Capitals of China with more than 3100 years of history. It is the home of the eastern terminus of the Silk Road and home to the Terra Cotta Warriors, which we are planning to visit.
We hopped on a plane and arrived to warmer weather than we experienced in Beijing. The trade off was pollution. Lots of it, and unaccustomed to it.
We managed to gather enough of us together to head out to celebrate New Years Eve. We found a bar called O'Henry's, after getting a little off course and calling in the assistance of some pedestrians, but after one beer realized it was too expensive so we went off in search of another. No. 1 Bar was next, and it was completely vacant. After 9 of us piled in, we were pretty sure the owners called everyone they knew exclaiming 9 westerners were there.
We broke out some Uno Jenga and started playing, with the sounds of very bad karaoke in the bar. The room began to fill, and beers were cheap. One lady assisted us in Uno and showed off her mad skills with patience and balance of bricks...."you take a block from the middle and you put it on top, and it teeters and it totters and it just won't stop..." The smoke in the room also began to fill and we ended up leaving before midnight. We walked to the City Wall, where a Drum and Bell Tower were located in the center fully illuminated with lights and stood by to watch and listen to the celebrations. We soon watched floating lanterns rising in celebration. Eventually off went the fireworks and a fountain became illuminated in fire as a band played on. It was quite the spectacle for a city that apparently doesn't celebrate traditional calendar new year.
Made our way back to the hotel for a much needed shower and bed. It sure is handy to have a hotel within walking distance of party and bar central. Time to take on some warriors tomorrow!
We hopped on a plane and arrived to warmer weather than we experienced in Beijing. The trade off was pollution. Lots of it, and unaccustomed to it.
We managed to gather enough of us together to head out to celebrate New Years Eve. We found a bar called O'Henry's, after getting a little off course and calling in the assistance of some pedestrians, but after one beer realized it was too expensive so we went off in search of another. No. 1 Bar was next, and it was completely vacant. After 9 of us piled in, we were pretty sure the owners called everyone they knew exclaiming 9 westerners were there.
We broke out some Uno Jenga and started playing, with the sounds of very bad karaoke in the bar. The room began to fill, and beers were cheap. One lady assisted us in Uno and showed off her mad skills with patience and balance of bricks...."you take a block from the middle and you put it on top, and it teeters and it totters and it just won't stop..." The smoke in the room also began to fill and we ended up leaving before midnight. We walked to the City Wall, where a Drum and Bell Tower were located in the center fully illuminated with lights and stood by to watch and listen to the celebrations. We soon watched floating lanterns rising in celebration. Eventually off went the fireworks and a fountain became illuminated in fire as a band played on. It was quite the spectacle for a city that apparently doesn't celebrate traditional calendar new year.
Made our way back to the hotel for a much needed shower and bed. It sure is handy to have a hotel within walking distance of party and bar central. Time to take on some warriors tomorrow!
The Great Wall of China - “He who doesn’t reach the Great Wall is not a true man.”
Day 7 - Dec 30, 2013
Breakfast buffet again this morning. It feels like these tours are very go go go! We're off again and this time to the Great Wall, but not before we hit Monday morning Beijing rush hour traffic!
So dense were the cars, it delayed our arrival to the Great Wall, so we opted instead to go to the Sacred Way first.
The Sacred Way is a series of stone statues and animals, constructed during the Ming Dynasty (1436-1438). The stones were collected from a stone field in Beijing. There are 36 stone statues and animals, which include:
Lion, Xiezhi (mythical creature), camel, elephant, kylin (mythical creature) horse, military officials, civil officers and honored officers - in that order from south to north.
The tradition of placing stone statues in front of tombs started from the Qin and Han Dynasties (or perhaps earlier). While they are decorations, they are also symbols of status of the dead.
We then headed out to lunch, that was located by a pottery making facility.
We first got a tour of the process of making copper vases (among other items) which then dumped us to the souvenir shop. The process of creating all the vase work was astonishing. All painstakingly hand made.
We then we up a floor for lunch, and headed out to the Great Wall. It is a massive defense structure built to keep intruders from invading the mainland. Like climbing the mountain ranges wouldn't be difficult enough. It stretches 4000 miles across China's north, covering 9 provinces from 200 B.C. to 1640. Here it is on the top of a mountain range as we approached.
It was blustery and cold, but amazing. We visited the Badaling section of the Great Wall - about 60km to the northwest of downtown Beijing, or 116°65’ east longitude and 40°25’ north latitude. It is a mountain pass of wooded Jundu Mountain. As recorded in Changan Kehua of Ming Dynasty, “Roads are separated here to extend in all directions. It is thus known as Badaling, the highest of all passes.”
We decided to take the South route, that was more apparently a more difficult part to traverse but just as rewarding as the more popular North alternative. This also meant less tourist traffic, which provided fantastic opportunities for solo photography. I scaled up to the fourth tower (a watchtower), and a few others in our group ventured that far as well. Took me about an hour, but eventually got there. Charlie made it too!
The 4th tower was way more steep to get to than any other portion and in addition, the tower was home to an incredible vortex of wind rushing in every direction. It wasn't bad enough to be pounded by wind and steeps grades the entire was up, but the "reward" was even a more powerful wind! I will have to look up the altitude of that 4th tower. The view was unmatched.
Once I was able to catch my breath and take in the landscape, it was shocking to see how the wall just meandered through the hillside, without seemingly, any purpose to the direction. For the most part, the wall remained on the tallest portion of the mountain ranges, but squiggled this way and that. Clearly cut and machined "brick", it was difficult for me to imagine the process of building this wall in 200 B.C. Stories are that the brick was prepared nearby and then brought in.
Chilled to the bone, but incredibly fortunate for the clear weather, what goes up must come down, and come down carefully. So glad they thought of handrails back then too ;) and I cannot imagine what this would be like to scale in inclement weather. We were told access to the wall (road wise) does get closed and there are gates placed along the wall to prevent pedestrian access when it is required. While waiting for the group to get back some of us noticed a man walking a camel and horse down the road. Both animals were beautiful and big. The camel was a 2 hump massive animal, and the horse looked like a very beefy Mongolian variety in white with brown and black spots. Just beautiful. I didn't have a chance to snap a pic so you'll have to take my word for it.
Because walking around for nearly 3 hours on a wall on the top of a mountain in cold and wind wasn't enough, the last stop of the day was to the Olympic Facilities and Village that was host to the Olympics in 2008. We did not have access to the venues, but were able to snap some pictures from outside. The Olympic National Stadium (Bird's Nest) and Olympic National Aquatics Centre (Watercube) were across from eachother and were ridiculously huge. As we were leaving, it was just getting dark enough to light up the venues, but we did not stay and proceeded to the hotel. I'm now convinced that everything built here is to take up as much space as possible. The grounds we were on were HUGE!
On the way back, not only did we get stuck in traffic, we were the cause of it! Imagine 3 buses all converging on one corner. It took the police to come by to help sort it out. No accidents, but an incredible mix of tetris to try to navigate one corner! I love to watch traffic weave it's way on the road, but this was a little too much. We debated calling McDonalds for delivery (yes, they deliver) while we would finish watching the live and unfolding entertainment. I cannot tell you how close all of our buses and cars were, but it was an incredible mix of vehicles!
Once at the hotel, it was time to warm up, have a meal and go to bed. I bumped up the thermostat, ordered in (wok fried rice noodle with sliced beef and vegetables) and a Tsingtao beer (China's Well Known Trademark Since 1903 says the label). It did indeed hit the spot.
Tomorrow we are flying to Xian and hopefully find some New Year's Eve events to attend to.
Good night!
JA
Breakfast buffet again this morning. It feels like these tours are very go go go! We're off again and this time to the Great Wall, but not before we hit Monday morning Beijing rush hour traffic!
So dense were the cars, it delayed our arrival to the Great Wall, so we opted instead to go to the Sacred Way first.
The Sacred Way is a series of stone statues and animals, constructed during the Ming Dynasty (1436-1438). The stones were collected from a stone field in Beijing. There are 36 stone statues and animals, which include:
Lion, Xiezhi (mythical creature), camel, elephant, kylin (mythical creature) horse, military officials, civil officers and honored officers - in that order from south to north.
The tradition of placing stone statues in front of tombs started from the Qin and Han Dynasties (or perhaps earlier). While they are decorations, they are also symbols of status of the dead.
We then headed out to lunch, that was located by a pottery making facility.
We first got a tour of the process of making copper vases (among other items) which then dumped us to the souvenir shop. The process of creating all the vase work was astonishing. All painstakingly hand made. We then we up a floor for lunch, and headed out to the Great Wall. It is a massive defense structure built to keep intruders from invading the mainland. Like climbing the mountain ranges wouldn't be difficult enough. It stretches 4000 miles across China's north, covering 9 provinces from 200 B.C. to 1640. Here it is on the top of a mountain range as we approached.
It was blustery and cold, but amazing. We visited the Badaling section of the Great Wall - about 60km to the northwest of downtown Beijing, or 116°65’ east longitude and 40°25’ north latitude. It is a mountain pass of wooded Jundu Mountain. As recorded in Changan Kehua of Ming Dynasty, “Roads are separated here to extend in all directions. It is thus known as Badaling, the highest of all passes.”
We decided to take the South route, that was more apparently a more difficult part to traverse but just as rewarding as the more popular North alternative. This also meant less tourist traffic, which provided fantastic opportunities for solo photography. I scaled up to the fourth tower (a watchtower), and a few others in our group ventured that far as well. Took me about an hour, but eventually got there. Charlie made it too!
The 4th tower was way more steep to get to than any other portion and in addition, the tower was home to an incredible vortex of wind rushing in every direction. It wasn't bad enough to be pounded by wind and steeps grades the entire was up, but the "reward" was even a more powerful wind! I will have to look up the altitude of that 4th tower. The view was unmatched.
Once I was able to catch my breath and take in the landscape, it was shocking to see how the wall just meandered through the hillside, without seemingly, any purpose to the direction. For the most part, the wall remained on the tallest portion of the mountain ranges, but squiggled this way and that. Clearly cut and machined "brick", it was difficult for me to imagine the process of building this wall in 200 B.C. Stories are that the brick was prepared nearby and then brought in.
Chilled to the bone, but incredibly fortunate for the clear weather, what goes up must come down, and come down carefully. So glad they thought of handrails back then too ;) and I cannot imagine what this would be like to scale in inclement weather. We were told access to the wall (road wise) does get closed and there are gates placed along the wall to prevent pedestrian access when it is required. While waiting for the group to get back some of us noticed a man walking a camel and horse down the road. Both animals were beautiful and big. The camel was a 2 hump massive animal, and the horse looked like a very beefy Mongolian variety in white with brown and black spots. Just beautiful. I didn't have a chance to snap a pic so you'll have to take my word for it.
Because walking around for nearly 3 hours on a wall on the top of a mountain in cold and wind wasn't enough, the last stop of the day was to the Olympic Facilities and Village that was host to the Olympics in 2008. We did not have access to the venues, but were able to snap some pictures from outside. The Olympic National Stadium (Bird's Nest) and Olympic National Aquatics Centre (Watercube) were across from eachother and were ridiculously huge. As we were leaving, it was just getting dark enough to light up the venues, but we did not stay and proceeded to the hotel. I'm now convinced that everything built here is to take up as much space as possible. The grounds we were on were HUGE!
On the way back, not only did we get stuck in traffic, we were the cause of it! Imagine 3 buses all converging on one corner. It took the police to come by to help sort it out. No accidents, but an incredible mix of tetris to try to navigate one corner! I love to watch traffic weave it's way on the road, but this was a little too much. We debated calling McDonalds for delivery (yes, they deliver) while we would finish watching the live and unfolding entertainment. I cannot tell you how close all of our buses and cars were, but it was an incredible mix of vehicles!
Once at the hotel, it was time to warm up, have a meal and go to bed. I bumped up the thermostat, ordered in (wok fried rice noodle with sliced beef and vegetables) and a Tsingtao beer (China's Well Known Trademark Since 1903 says the label). It did indeed hit the spot.
Tomorrow we are flying to Xian and hopefully find some New Year's Eve events to attend to.
Good night!
JA
Beijing - Full Day Tour
Day 6 - Dec 29, 2013
What a whirlwind. Losing a day in travel is tough on the body, but we always prevail when excitement is around the corner don't we? Found Shelley and Anne!! We claimed the back of the bus for the duration of our touring days.
This was the first time I'd be able to see the city during the day! We had a lovely buffet breakfast at the hotel, and rushed onto the bus for our day on the town.
We started off with a stop at Qianmen Street, a commercial and entertainment hub that connects the Imperial Palace with other communities in Beijing.
It was simply a long "corridor" with shops lining either side - few open for business since it was early in the morning. This is also home to a Starbucks location which has made me officially give up ever buying coffee from this franchise ever again. Nothing to do with service, all to do with quality. I've always felt not quite right after drinking something from here, and today was no different. The hot chocolate I had, actually half of, started churning and tightening my stomach. This is not a particular feeling I appreciate when travelling, let alone whenever I seem to order something. There we have it, Officially Off Any Starbucks Wagon I may have ever been on before.
We got back on the bus and made our way to Tiananmen Square, first passing multiple buildings.
We were given ear buds to listen to our guide more effectively, however after giving this some thought, the "whisper" radios were more of a nuisance than anything else - due to lack of sound quality/range, etc. We passed such buildings as the Great Hall of the People before entering Tiananmen.
The scale of the square itself is really lost on TV. It is an expansive area. Also called the "Gate of Heavenly Peace', it was once the main gate to the Imperial Palace during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It is also home to the Monument to the People's Heroes (our first geocache of China - whooooo hooooo) Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, National Museum of China etc. Guards walked in unison in packs throughout the square and it was a sight to behold.
After soaking in the senses of the square, we proceeded into the Forbidden City, which was not as impressive to me as I had anticipated. This building looked like that one, and this one looked like that one, it seemed uninviting and primitive. We dove farther into the City and came across the Imperial Garden (lots of rockery) but more astounding were the locations of some pagoda's on top of the rocks.
We stopped for lunch, and then hit the road again for the optional last minute tour of the Summer Palace.
This was by far more inviting and breathtaking than the previous two sites we visited. For starters, we proceeded through a long long long walkway, and when eyed from above supposedly formed into the shape of a bat, with intricate paintings adorning the inside spaces. This was built for and enjoyed by, primarily 2 people. Again, the size and space the area takes up is incredible. This was built for the Emperor and his wife and concubines to spend their Summer days living here. The man made lake was astonishingly beautiful and while shallow, provided a perfect opportunity to freeze over and be skated on, and people were out doing that too. A bridge was also off in the distance, consisting of 17 pillars and referred to as the Marco Polo bridge. We walked up to a marble boat, and a few other dragon boats. The significance is that although a marble boat cannot float, the Emperor can make it so and escape if he so chooses. My pictures did not give this place any justice in the bleak December weather. Below is a far better representation:
We returned back to the hotel shortly after. Another bonus tour was offered to go through a local market and savour the fare, etc. but I opted out. Had a quick dinner with 2 other group members, and then called it a night.
Hope I sleep well! I have been for the most part, hotel accommodations and great and the food is pretty decent too!
What a whirlwind. Losing a day in travel is tough on the body, but we always prevail when excitement is around the corner don't we? Found Shelley and Anne!! We claimed the back of the bus for the duration of our touring days.
This was the first time I'd be able to see the city during the day! We had a lovely buffet breakfast at the hotel, and rushed onto the bus for our day on the town.
We started off with a stop at Qianmen Street, a commercial and entertainment hub that connects the Imperial Palace with other communities in Beijing.
It was simply a long "corridor" with shops lining either side - few open for business since it was early in the morning. This is also home to a Starbucks location which has made me officially give up ever buying coffee from this franchise ever again. Nothing to do with service, all to do with quality. I've always felt not quite right after drinking something from here, and today was no different. The hot chocolate I had, actually half of, started churning and tightening my stomach. This is not a particular feeling I appreciate when travelling, let alone whenever I seem to order something. There we have it, Officially Off Any Starbucks Wagon I may have ever been on before.
We got back on the bus and made our way to Tiananmen Square, first passing multiple buildings.
We were given ear buds to listen to our guide more effectively, however after giving this some thought, the "whisper" radios were more of a nuisance than anything else - due to lack of sound quality/range, etc. We passed such buildings as the Great Hall of the People before entering Tiananmen.
The scale of the square itself is really lost on TV. It is an expansive area. Also called the "Gate of Heavenly Peace', it was once the main gate to the Imperial Palace during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It is also home to the Monument to the People's Heroes (our first geocache of China - whooooo hooooo) Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, National Museum of China etc. Guards walked in unison in packs throughout the square and it was a sight to behold.
After soaking in the senses of the square, we proceeded into the Forbidden City, which was not as impressive to me as I had anticipated. This building looked like that one, and this one looked like that one, it seemed uninviting and primitive. We dove farther into the City and came across the Imperial Garden (lots of rockery) but more astounding were the locations of some pagoda's on top of the rocks.
We stopped for lunch, and then hit the road again for the optional last minute tour of the Summer Palace.
This was by far more inviting and breathtaking than the previous two sites we visited. For starters, we proceeded through a long long long walkway, and when eyed from above supposedly formed into the shape of a bat, with intricate paintings adorning the inside spaces. This was built for and enjoyed by, primarily 2 people. Again, the size and space the area takes up is incredible. This was built for the Emperor and his wife and concubines to spend their Summer days living here. The man made lake was astonishingly beautiful and while shallow, provided a perfect opportunity to freeze over and be skated on, and people were out doing that too. A bridge was also off in the distance, consisting of 17 pillars and referred to as the Marco Polo bridge. We walked up to a marble boat, and a few other dragon boats. The significance is that although a marble boat cannot float, the Emperor can make it so and escape if he so chooses. My pictures did not give this place any justice in the bleak December weather. Below is a far better representation:
We returned back to the hotel shortly after. Another bonus tour was offered to go through a local market and savour the fare, etc. but I opted out. Had a quick dinner with 2 other group members, and then called it a night.
Hope I sleep well! I have been for the most part, hotel accommodations and great and the food is pretty decent too!
China Bound
Update Today - Jan 5, 2014
Well, I half expected to not get onto alot of websites when in China, but I didn't think Blogger would be blocked. I'll pick up where I left off, now that I have wi-fi and am back at SFO airport. Enjoy!
Day 5 - Dec 27/28
My day started with a wonderful breakfast and a scary shuttle ride to the airport.
There was a long queue to check in so I'm pretty happy I left ample time to check in. Wi-fi was pretty spotty at the airport. The weather I was leaving was mostly clear aside from the haze and 15 degrees. California and San Francisco was nice but I was ready to move on.
I boarded a 747-400 for a 12 hour flight to Beijing. For a big plane, the ride was not as stable as I thought. 2 meals, free drinks. I slept alot surprisingly. When we arrived at Beijing, we were delayed while waiting at the airport for a group that did not shown up. Our tour guide said it was a family of Asians, and went in to find them.....hint....mostly all in China are Asians! Finally we departed without the family after waiting an hour and the hotel was an hour drive away.
Upon arrival, we were greeted with fresh out of the oven cookies. I was the first to get my room (pays to have a last name starting with "A") and off I went. Having trouble locating Shelley and Anne though. I'm sure they didn't want to wait around for me, since I arrived considerably later than they did, but I'll see them in the morning anyway. ;) The hotel room was nice, and i had a single king all to myself. Don't drink the water unless it's bottled!!
I've landed, am safe and sound and will be off to bed shortly. Early day tomorrow as we head back into the heart of Beijing.
JA
Well, I half expected to not get onto alot of websites when in China, but I didn't think Blogger would be blocked. I'll pick up where I left off, now that I have wi-fi and am back at SFO airport. Enjoy!
Day 5 - Dec 27/28
My day started with a wonderful breakfast and a scary shuttle ride to the airport.
There was a long queue to check in so I'm pretty happy I left ample time to check in. Wi-fi was pretty spotty at the airport. The weather I was leaving was mostly clear aside from the haze and 15 degrees. California and San Francisco was nice but I was ready to move on.
I boarded a 747-400 for a 12 hour flight to Beijing. For a big plane, the ride was not as stable as I thought. 2 meals, free drinks. I slept alot surprisingly. When we arrived at Beijing, we were delayed while waiting at the airport for a group that did not shown up. Our tour guide said it was a family of Asians, and went in to find them.....hint....mostly all in China are Asians! Finally we departed without the family after waiting an hour and the hotel was an hour drive away.
Upon arrival, we were greeted with fresh out of the oven cookies. I was the first to get my room (pays to have a last name starting with "A") and off I went. Having trouble locating Shelley and Anne though. I'm sure they didn't want to wait around for me, since I arrived considerably later than they did, but I'll see them in the morning anyway. ;) The hotel room was nice, and i had a single king all to myself. Don't drink the water unless it's bottled!!
I've landed, am safe and sound and will be off to bed shortly. Early day tomorrow as we head back into the heart of Beijing.
JA
Friday, December 27, 2013
California Academy of Sciences and Golden Gate Park
Day 4 - Dec 26, 2013
Today was the day to visit the California Academy of Sciences building in Golden Gate Park. After breakfast, I jumped on the number 5 streetcar to take me on a half hour journey to the park. What a talkative bus driver. Maybe they just don't have enough friendly folk to talk to, or maybe it's just me, but sheesh.
Golden Gate Park is three miles long and a half mile wide and because it is so vast I got the idea of renting a bicycle into my head. I guess it would be better than a segway?!?! So it begins, I got on the bike. I can't remember the last time I was on one, early teens maybe? Well good news, I didn't bail off it! I did ride it from one end of the park to the other, right out to the ocean too. And up more stupid hills.....rental guy said they were "gradual inclines". I rode from 8th Avenue to the ocean and back in 2 hours. I did see quite a bit, however the bike wasn't allowed in any of the park which required admission, so there goes the idea of visiting the botanical garden.
I (and Charlie) passed some sleepy bison, took photos of two old Dutch style windmills, saw surfers take on some Pacific Ocean waves, and said hi to three police on horseback - no they weren't looking for me. If I didn't have my ipod in however, I may have had more of a warning of their approach and could have snapped a pic. That was just about all that was notable for me, although I could see how it would take hours to meander through all the trails.
The return for the bike rental was right by the California Academy of Sciences building. Upon entry, I must have looked like a pretty important person. Must have been all the wind swept hair from being on the bike. There seemed to be a problem with my tour booking, but they offered me another tour time, and gave me a second as a discount. These tours come with some advantages.. Mostly a pretty cool badge you can wave at people, but more importantly, all lines are bypassed, discounts on everything, and I was first into any rooms or areas to pick seating, etc.
I started by taking a look at 15 members of an African penguin colony and then took a Planetarium visit, sort of like an IMAX theatre, but more rounded screen. Of course there were plenty of fish to see, and a Ray Feeding Schedule to attend to.
I had to stop for lunch and a drink since that bike ride took everything out of me, but the lines were packed. I snuck into an abandoned area of the cafe and was served immediately. Finding a table to eat at was more of a challenge, but I located one outside...but it lacked chairs. I tracked one down eventually.
After lunch my Behind the Scenes tour of the Academy was to commence.
Me and a family of four ventured out onto the living roof. Incredibly cool, eco friendly, LEED certified and self sustaining. The roof is 2.5 acres and is all native California plants.
We then proceeded into the specimen room. Neato and gross at the same time. Jars of fish in alcohol, sitting there waiting for examination. The oldest one I found in the particular section we were in was collected in 1944. We then ventured into the "Gem Room" that had all sorts of precious gems, including diamond, amethyst, jade, silver, copper, gold, etc. Finally into the project lab where we were introduced to two girls working there. One just completed her Masters, in some kind of fishy degree, and was discovering some species not yet identified. She claims she has discovered 50 new species of some sea slug. I'll take her word for it. The other girl was still working on completing a bachelors, she focused mainly on mammals and at the time was gluing teeth into the skeleton of a seal that would be going on display. It really is a working sciences building, employing 400 people currently.
Upon conclusion of the Academy tour, I proceeded to the Aquarium tour, where it was just me joining the head tourmaster. How privileged! First we visited the "swamp" where I was introduced to Claude, an 18 year old albino alligator. He didn't say much. I was then taken down to the Aquarium which was way cool, and I got to touch some coral and learn how it grows. I was then led to the back, closed door secret stuff. The engineers at HGC would love this part of the tour! I learned all about the filtration of the reef tanks, the recipe of making proper salt water, and the pumps required to keep it all running smoothly. Also visited the areas of how they care of each of the animals living under the roof, with the exception of the humans. I've now discovered my newest favorite animal, the Sea Dragon....it's a Sea Horse, but it's a Dragon.
They have a Leafy and Weedy version. So delicate and oh so pretty. They haven't yet figured out how to get them to procreate in captivity and they come at a hefty price of roughly $7,000 per individual. Not cheap!
After the tour I was on my own to explore the rainforest - lots of butterflies, the remaining fish tanks (over 100 of them), and collections of animals in stuffed form. The reindeer exhibit was real though, and they made a big fuss about having the two reindeer for viewing. There was even fake snow falling...which people went crazy over. I hear the real stuff is falling in Ontario, Canada.
After seeing everything that was to be seen (no kidding, the staff had learned my name) I jumped on a bus back for the hotel. I had a nice last meal before I depart for Beijing tomorrow. This week has wrapped up SO quickly.
I plan to make one more blog before signing off until who knows when so all the best to everyone and talk to you all soon!
JA
Today was the day to visit the California Academy of Sciences building in Golden Gate Park. After breakfast, I jumped on the number 5 streetcar to take me on a half hour journey to the park. What a talkative bus driver. Maybe they just don't have enough friendly folk to talk to, or maybe it's just me, but sheesh.
Golden Gate Park is three miles long and a half mile wide and because it is so vast I got the idea of renting a bicycle into my head. I guess it would be better than a segway?!?! So it begins, I got on the bike. I can't remember the last time I was on one, early teens maybe? Well good news, I didn't bail off it! I did ride it from one end of the park to the other, right out to the ocean too. And up more stupid hills.....rental guy said they were "gradual inclines". I rode from 8th Avenue to the ocean and back in 2 hours. I did see quite a bit, however the bike wasn't allowed in any of the park which required admission, so there goes the idea of visiting the botanical garden.
I (and Charlie) passed some sleepy bison, took photos of two old Dutch style windmills, saw surfers take on some Pacific Ocean waves, and said hi to three police on horseback - no they weren't looking for me. If I didn't have my ipod in however, I may have had more of a warning of their approach and could have snapped a pic. That was just about all that was notable for me, although I could see how it would take hours to meander through all the trails.
The return for the bike rental was right by the California Academy of Sciences building. Upon entry, I must have looked like a pretty important person. Must have been all the wind swept hair from being on the bike. There seemed to be a problem with my tour booking, but they offered me another tour time, and gave me a second as a discount. These tours come with some advantages.. Mostly a pretty cool badge you can wave at people, but more importantly, all lines are bypassed, discounts on everything, and I was first into any rooms or areas to pick seating, etc.
I started by taking a look at 15 members of an African penguin colony and then took a Planetarium visit, sort of like an IMAX theatre, but more rounded screen. Of course there were plenty of fish to see, and a Ray Feeding Schedule to attend to.
After lunch my Behind the Scenes tour of the Academy was to commence.
Me and a family of four ventured out onto the living roof. Incredibly cool, eco friendly, LEED certified and self sustaining. The roof is 2.5 acres and is all native California plants.
We then proceeded into the specimen room. Neato and gross at the same time. Jars of fish in alcohol, sitting there waiting for examination. The oldest one I found in the particular section we were in was collected in 1944. We then ventured into the "Gem Room" that had all sorts of precious gems, including diamond, amethyst, jade, silver, copper, gold, etc. Finally into the project lab where we were introduced to two girls working there. One just completed her Masters, in some kind of fishy degree, and was discovering some species not yet identified. She claims she has discovered 50 new species of some sea slug. I'll take her word for it. The other girl was still working on completing a bachelors, she focused mainly on mammals and at the time was gluing teeth into the skeleton of a seal that would be going on display. It really is a working sciences building, employing 400 people currently.
Upon conclusion of the Academy tour, I proceeded to the Aquarium tour, where it was just me joining the head tourmaster. How privileged! First we visited the "swamp" where I was introduced to Claude, an 18 year old albino alligator. He didn't say much. I was then taken down to the Aquarium which was way cool, and I got to touch some coral and learn how it grows. I was then led to the back, closed door secret stuff. The engineers at HGC would love this part of the tour! I learned all about the filtration of the reef tanks, the recipe of making proper salt water, and the pumps required to keep it all running smoothly. Also visited the areas of how they care of each of the animals living under the roof, with the exception of the humans. I've now discovered my newest favorite animal, the Sea Dragon....it's a Sea Horse, but it's a Dragon.
They have a Leafy and Weedy version. So delicate and oh so pretty. They haven't yet figured out how to get them to procreate in captivity and they come at a hefty price of roughly $7,000 per individual. Not cheap!
After the tour I was on my own to explore the rainforest - lots of butterflies, the remaining fish tanks (over 100 of them), and collections of animals in stuffed form. The reindeer exhibit was real though, and they made a big fuss about having the two reindeer for viewing. There was even fake snow falling...which people went crazy over. I hear the real stuff is falling in Ontario, Canada.
After seeing everything that was to be seen (no kidding, the staff had learned my name) I jumped on a bus back for the hotel. I had a nice last meal before I depart for Beijing tomorrow. This week has wrapped up SO quickly.
I plan to make one more blog before signing off until who knows when so all the best to everyone and talk to you all soon!
JA
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