Ahem...Raw China

We hadn't been decided what our next destination would be, but the turn in bad weather meant we opted to plump for a flight out of Songpan to Chongqing. The flight itself was an experience as the airport is at 3,500m surrounded by mountains, and is apparently the third highest airport in the world....Getting off in Chongqing it was clearly a lot warmer (breath sigh of relief) and we lucked out by being able to purchase and walk pretty much straight onto a plane to Guiyang, in Guizhou Province in South-East China. The guidebook says people often ask why you would go to Guizhou but we had high hopes for it... although our arrival wasn’t easiest!!! Straight off the plane we joined a taxi queue as we had been aiming to get a bus to take us an hour and a half away to a place called Anshun. No taxis were coming and with people queue jumping, we wondered if we would ever get out of there, so decided to jump on the bus... just as it left. Which meant we lost our place in the taxi queue and now had to wait for an indeterminate time for the bus to leave? Of course this is when loads of taxis turned up and the queue dwindled. Having only 45 minutes left to make the last bus we decided to forego our bus tickets and jump in a taxi. It wasn't until we were on our way on the motorway that I realised the taxi driver was saying he would charge us 100 yuan (the guidebook said it should be 50). When we said no and told him to stop covering up the meter he promptly took a right straight off the motorway into a massive traffic jam. We knew the journey was only 8 km and therefore should take about 20 minutes so we quickly realised we had the bad fortune to get a complete prick of a cab driver who was blatantly just trying to push up the fare by taking us the wrong way. Sadly my basic Chinese does not really extend to explaining we knew what he was up to, I tried my hardest and Adam tired to chip in too (although I couldn’t understand what Adam was saying either. However we both soon realised that swearing in any language is pretty helpful, as is loud sighing! An hour later we reached the bus station, which was after our bus was supposed to leave, but paid less than was on the cabbies meeting so Adam felt this was a small moral victory.

Walking into the bus station I suddenly felt like we were in “real china” almost as if everything previously had been easy. This felt completely impossible! It wasn't really clear who worked there or who was selling tickets, eventually I asked an old man who brought us to a lady... who proceeded to look as though as I was asking for a bus to Timbuktu as opposed to a town 30 miles away, and rattle off lots of incomprehensible things in Chinese.... I got the jist- no buses! But it seemed to me that there was never going to be a bus going from here to the town we wanted... so what next? As we tried to figure out our next move a school girl was summoned from somewhere with much better English than my Chinese, who explained that we should get a bus to the station and then get the train... bearing in mind the guidebook (which I was slowly starting to hate with a passion) had said there were no trains we figured what the hell... managing to somehow get on the right bus, which we actually got for free as the driver gave up trying to explain the payment method and bizarrely wouldn't take our money for (yes- another one back on Guiyang!!) we headed to the station. Guiyang even looked more like the raw china I remembered, fairly ugly buildings all bundled together, people absolutely everywhere, terrible traffic.... no where to be seen where the designer shops of Chengdu or Guangzhou...

Making it to the station it was by now about 8 pm at night. All Chinese stations seem to be incredibly busy and there were loads of people everywhere. One more trait of the Chinese populace is their unnerving ability to queue jump. Even if you are at the counter speaking to the ticket seller you can guarantee someone will stand behind you shouting to get their attention.... this of course happened here, but I somehow managed to ascertain there was a train going to Anshun but it wasn't until 23.55.

At this point, hot, sweaty, completely overwrought, I started to think everything which could go wrong was going wrong. Mainly because I realised if we got this train we'd arrive at 1am- not appealing in rural china! As if by magic I saw over the square of the station a rising tower block with the wonderful word “Hotel” emblazoned across the front, and decided this was the next best thing to Anshun. Chinese mid-range hotels have a wonderful way of making themselves appear very posh with large flashy marble foyers, but when you get to the room it's a little bit dingy and not everything works. This was no exception, but an extremely welcome one as it cost a mere £12!! It was a god send.

It may sound as though I am moaning about China and the Chinese here but I am just trying to describe it as best I can, it's with total affection as I actually find all this sort of stuff an exhilarating challenge! Besides, Guizhou has a warm place in my heart now as once we freshened up we ventured out and discovered lots of different street stalls everywhere and a bustling city. As cheesy as it sounds it v much felt like being in real china, where things are a bit confusing and not that easy, but that is part of it's charm in many ways – a charm which is disappearing as completely justly the country modernises and English seeps in.

We sat and ate noodles from a street stall and enjoyed a delicious cold beer and were grateful for the warmth which had escaped us in Songpan... We saw a place selling dog which I have always claimed I would try... but the site of a dog’s backside and tail sticking out is enough to turn even my stomach so there will be no do eating chapter in this blog that is for sure (Wilx, Nick and Bish- I don't know how you did it!).

Horse Trekking in Songpan

Early the next day we boarded a bus headed for Northern Sichuan. It was one of those where the bus leaves late and it takes a lot longer than it should, so what should have been an eight hour journey was more like an 11. The only saving grace was the scenery which was spectacular, Sichuan falling into huge mountain ranges not long out of Chengdu. The saving grace certainly wasn't the toilets at the rest stop. One thing which doesn't seem to have changed much in five years is the absolute grossness of public toilets in many parts of China. They are hard to explain, but picture a line of open cubicles (no doors) with a tiled ditch running through which you are supposed to squat over and do your business- with no running water to wash things away!! Yuck. But hey, when you have to go you have to go.

Arriving in Songpan brought back a fair few memories, the Tibetan faces, the smells of fires, the cold air! It is a nice place, a lot bigger than I thought it would be and nestled in between lots of mountains. After finding a room we gulped down some food at Emma's Kitchen (Emma is probably the most friendly person in China, she has a fantastic little cafe and speaks perfect English- both bonuses for me!)... After my yak burger (yum yum) we arranged our horse trek for the next morning- a three day trek to “Ice Mountain”. I was possibly the most under prepared person that has ever been on this trek. I think spending so much time in the heat of SE Asia must have addled my brain because it didn't occur to me that going up 4,000m might be a little cold, even if it was June. Therefore I managed not to pack any proper long trousers, and take my swimming suit and sunglasses! Of course I never used them.

I found the trek to be many things: spectacular, exciting, beautiful, and hard hard hard!!! I had a bit of a cold which didn't help, but I also found that not having been on a proper horse ride in nearly twenty years meant that riding wasn't as much of a breeze as I thought it would be. To be fair the horses are extremely well trained and responded almost entirely to the Tibetan guides, which is remarkable to witness. Although when they don't behave themselves the guides tend to throw small stones at them which makes them jump into action! When I was on horse back climbing and descending really steep cliffs in rain and mud, I have to say it was more than a little scary...

The first day we went on a 5 hour ride to our base camp which takes you along mountain ledges, through rivers, up and down all over the place. The scenery is fantastic though, huge green mountains with lush valleys, and past lots of Tibetan villages. We were joined by two Israeli's, Shya who was diabetic and Adas who was traditional and therefore was carrying and cooking all of the food she would need on her months trip in china!!! I found this fascinating and quite bewildering really. Being such a foodie I can't help feeling you miss out on so much by not being able to eat whatever you want in foreign lands, but each to their own...

We set up for the night in a green valley and our four guides magicked up a big tent we all hung out in (and they slept in) and smaller ones for us to sleep in. We were also joined by an Aussie lady (who was extremely quiet) and a Chinese lady Xiaojing from Heilongjiang who was on a “business trip” (Xiaojing was extremely pleasant but of course Adam and I have earmarked her for a spy... why would someone who works for Petrol China 800 miles away go on a business trip to Songpan?!). Needless to say my shoddy packing efforts were revealed and I literally ended up putting on all the clothes I had with me, plus borrowing a Tibetan coat (we all had one) as it was ABSOLUTELY freezing! And raining..... beautiful though... Highlight of the evening was teaching Xiaojing how to play shithead...lowlight being to explain the name!

The next morning we were woken up for brekkie (the guides made excellent food the whole time- at one point they even cooked bread on the open fire! The portions were a killer though so I kept having to sneak my leftovers to the horses who are bizarrely fed out of old basketballs which are tied to their heads) and the guides told us they were concerned about riding to Ice Mountain today as the weather had been so bad and it could be slightly dangerous, however they said it was our decision.

Eek!

I knew Adam's vote straight away, and the Male Israeli, Shya, obv wanted to go... Adas and I were both a bit more sceptical but when the Aussie and 'The Spy' said they would be up for it I felt I would be a spoil sport if I said no... so we got ready!

My Pappa (the name Adam and I gave to the older guide who looked out for me on the trip as if I was a delicate flower) wrapped me up in a tight bundle and put me on my horse, who I named Bob. I think in retrospect I was given Bob because he was a pair of safe hands and they obviously felt I needed all the help I could get in my strange outfit which surely must demonstrate a complete lack of sense, and I think they had a point! So Bob and I and all the rest set off, in the rain, to Ice Mountain. Adam on the other hand had a horse with an attitude problem who insisted on running in second and got upset if any horse tried to over take. Added to that he had a wooden saddle and his stirrups where too high...how he copped I'll never know!* Influenced by Alan Partridge Adam named his horse Rommal, which didn't go down too well with the Israeli's who thought he'd been influenced by the German SS officer Rommel!!! Cultural fauxpas.

To start with we went through several stoney rivers (que- scary!) when ten minutes later I realised Adas was asking if she could return to camp. An Israeli backing out!!! Ah what have I got myself into! I say this because by my reckoning the Israeli's are the hardest bastards you ever meet travelling, no doubt induced by their compulsory time in the army.

So... minus Adas we headed on. To be fair like many things it is one of those experiences I will no doubt gloss over in years to come as one of those amazing things I have done that was both exciting and showed wonderful scenery.... all of which is true! But I was also bricking it for most of the time. On the occasional flat plains it was pretty pleasant, and I'd enjoy it when Bob would every now and then decide to trot... simply a delight! But when it came to going up and down 65 degree mountain ledges, whilst all the horses are fighting to get in front of each other and shyas horse is kicking mine... it was all a bit tense! I did feel like I was in my own weird version of City Slickers at points.

When we reached the top of Ice Mountain it was non surprisingly spectacular. We were surrounded by snow covered peaks and mist, it was invigorating.... But I have to confess I did not really relax until I was back at the camp!

That night there was a cheery feeling in the camp, perhaps as we (well, most of us) had braved Ice Mountain and survived. There was a Tibet vs. Israel game of Chinese Chequers (Shya actually won!) and Adam and I even brought out some Bai Jiu (white spirit) which we shared whilst listening to the likes of U2 and Jack Johnson (Gaz would have loved it). The next morning I woke up with my face streaming from my cold and the realisation that although I hadn't thought it possible- it was even more freezing! The guides ordered us out of bed at half six so they could start taking the camp apart, and as the rest of us huddled together over cups of tea and another mammoth sized breakfast, it began to snow!! We all sprang about in delight at the winter wonderland appearing in front of our eyes, in the way only the English and (I imagine) Israelis can do.... until the serious task of getting on horseback came round.... Adam loved the journey home, I have to admit I found it was about as much as I could take! Bob was slipping and sliding around all over the place whilst managing to go at a snails pace which prompted constant shouts and hits from Pappa, causing Bob to break into a slightly alarming canter every now and then. Two of the Mountains we passed on the route were so muddy and slippy that we had to walk down on our own, this was of course preferable to me than running the risk of getting squashed if Bob fell over, although I did manage to fall over myself a couple times in the mud. We had one stop at a Tibetan Monastery which was very welcome and interesting, we set off to turn the prayer wheels which extend all around the monastery, and halfway round managed to get told by an old Tibetan lady that we were going the wrong way. We righted this spiritual faux pas by turning them all back again in the hope this meant we had a clean slate with Tibetan Buddha...
Riding into Songpan I definitely had one of those City Slickers moments.., we were no longer the lily livered pansies we had been three days ago – we were hardened Tibetan Horse Riders! Yeah right. Still, it was all a fascinating experience, definitely an “adventure” and even though it meant I couldn't walk properly for a day or so, I am very much glad I did it... and survived!

Guangzhou- Chengdu

It may sound utter madness but the train we were so excited about getting the tickets for was actually a 30 hour journey. We had decided to plump for soft sleeper though which meant we each had a bunk bed in a 4-person carriage. We got to the station bright and early as we rightly figured it would take some time to find the right train etc., it was completely frenetic and a delicious way of inserting ourselves into China... Finding the right train we settled into our cabin which we shared with a young man, nameless sadly! Not much more to report other than the train journey was actually quite fun! There was a dining carriage next door to us where we went and sat down for lunch and dinner, both of which were really tasty, British rail could learn a thing or two from the Chinese I reckon. We managed to pass the time with games of shit head (in a mammoth battle Adam came from behind to win 12 games to 11*), sleeping, reading, eating.... and before we knew it we were in Chengdu.

We managed to get a taxi straight to a very cool hostel called the Loft. Even though I had been there only a day or so it was already interesting to note the changes which had occurred in China since the five years I had been there last. Chengdu for starters seemed much more modern. Lots of incredibly smartly dressed attractive women wandering about and designer shops, and swanky tourist joints... We began our evening walking to the Peoples Park where we rented a little boat on a lake in a highly kamp fashion, and wandered about taking it all in. Old ladies were doing tai chi, groups of people were sitting together playing musical instruments and singing, and many people milled about all over the place. The Chinese clearly enjoy spending time outside just hanging out, no doubt aided by lovely warm weather which we had. We then spent a couple of hours wandering through the city centre and the main square before getting a bit lost and heading back to the Loft. After sorting out our travel arrangements for the following day we decided to go for dinner.... Initially we were looking for a restaurant we had seen earlier, but we couldn't find it and were pretty disorientated, which was a good thing as we ended up finding an outdoor Sichuan hot pot restaurant. Yum yum yum! You basically have a giant wok filled with spicy oil and you order various things to put into it. Much humour evolved with me attempting to order and fortunately I managed to stop the Mama in charge giving us offal and instead we had squid, pork and a selection of veggies.... it was delicious.

The Real Deal

The next day, with slightly sore heads, we headed by train to Guangzhou. Only slip up was me listening to Adam that we could walk to the station, the reality being an hour long walk with rucksack in blazing heat through parts of the docks where I can assume several triads burial sites lie! Not great on a hangover but we got there in the end! I felt excited about going to China “for real” but also really nervous. I have sporadically studied Chinese for an embarrassing amount of years but spent little time on it in the last couple, and yet here I was, about to be the main communicator in a country I remembered being difficult to navigate last time round. Could I man up to the task I wondered?

First task when we arrived in Guangzhou was to try and buy some overnight train tickets to Chengdu for the next day. Bizarrely both the guidebook and my friend Wendy (who is from Guangzhou) said to purchase tickets from the Guangzhou East station we were arriving in, even though we would be travelling from a different station, because this was apparently easier.

Getting off the train I think we were both excited, but I was also bricking it to be honest. Upon entering China officially we were temperature tested via a laser gun which was a bizarre experience, or as Adam said “this is when they start controlling your thoughts”... oh the communist humour you can come up with...!

Anyway, I digress. So... I managed to tackle the ticket booth which was exactly as imagined, fairly incomprehensible. However I did manage to pull the language out of the bag and get us two tickets. It wasn't until I got back to Adam that we realised it wasn't the train we wanted, it instead went from Guangzhou East and took a further 16 hours!! As tempted as I was to just assume this was our fate and leave then and there, Adam persuaded me to have faith in my abilities and go back. Sweating buckets and slightly shaking I did manage to get through and achieve my mission! So we ended up with two soft-sleeper tickets for the next morning on the train we wanted. I was very glad I had gone back as it bolstered my confidence which no doubt helped going forward.

We then headed into Guangzhou proper and found a hotel near the station we were leaving from. I mentioned my friend Wendy earlier, who is from Guangzhou... we had chatted and I had arranged to meet up with her Brother and his wife for dinner, Kevin and Nicole (I am afraid I am not able to write their Chinese names- rubbish I know!!). K and H very kindly came to collect us from our hotel and took us to one of their favourite Cantonese restaurants. It was extremely interesting to say the least! We started off with four different soups, one was snake! N explained that the focus of Cantonese cooking is on healing, and therefore medicinal ingredients are often included and they eat a lot of vegetables. N also explained that noodles are generally eaten in the north, and rice in the south of China. After the soups we had dishes of pigeons (heads still on and everything!) tofu, and lots of vegetables. It was fascinating because we would never have been able to walk into that restaurant on our own and order those foods... not in a million years! We were also in a private room (I think this is a popular way to eat in china) which was a definite novelty for Adam and I.

Sadly the battery on my camera had died so I did not manage to get any photos of K and H- a definite regret! After dinner they drove us around Guangzhou to various sites so that Adam could get an idea of what it is like, they were extremely welcoming and generous so thanks v much for putting us in touch Wendy!!

Hong Kong Part Deux

Right, now where was I?!

Ah... Hong Kong... Wondrous HK!

We spent a total of five days in HK, doing the usual tourist thing... We got a boat to Lantau (nearby island) and went on a hike, it was a bit rubbish if I confess and I take full responsibility for choosing one which seemed to set us off in an expat holiday resort, but it was ok... nice to see a different side.

We also went for drinks in one of HK's highest bars, mixing with the HK elite ha ha! This was a welcome enjoyment after rather annoyingly not been allowed into high tea at the peninsula for wearing flip flops! They obviously didn't recognise the newly bought Khmer designer dress but hey ho what could I do...

On our last night we went to Happy Valley racing which had been the whole reason we had stayed so long in HK... It was so much fun!!! Having been to Sha-tin previously and winning I had convinced myself that I would not win anything but this was fortunately not the case! The whole experience asides from winning was brilliant, the stadium itself is bang in the middle of Hong Kong so surrounded by skyscrapers, and it looks amazing. It is also unbelievably cheap, less than a pound to get in! And for once we were able to get cheap beers which we of course utilised to the full. Out of 8 races I won three and placed in two....Adam won one and placed in five so between the two of us we did well and definitely came out well up on what we had had... an extremely fun night all in all, finished with cocktails in a couple of Hong Kongs supposed hottest bars....Horse racing is my new favourite sport! Next stop Grand National....

I wanna go Kowloon side...

What can I say...I LOVE THIS PLACE!!!! Hong Kong is my absolute favourite city in the world, and it was made doubly exciting by the fact that I was meeting Adam at the Airport, having flown in from London.

We are staying on the edge of Kowloon, next to the Peninsula tee hee, and the city is every bit as spectacular as I remember...

Highlights so far:

- Dim sum every day... especially good at a teahouse where everyone was Chinese and it was served by ladies with a trolley!

- Accidentally walking into the 8,000 people demonstration against the Chinese Communist Party! That's right folks, we've managed to come on the eve of the 20 year anniversary of Tiananmen Square disaster!

Bus ride to Stanley with views all over the Island

View from the Peak at night

Wandering through a park where people bring their birds out for the day

Swimming in Kowloon park

Going to a Peking restaurant and sharing a whole duck. yum yum fatty fatty - but it was the only option!

and just wandering about soaking it all up. It's like bitesize China, everything is manageable and there is always some helpful person around who speaks English...nice prep for the real thing in a few days!

Bangkok bound...

I feel I would be cheating to say I went to Bangkok or even Thailand...truth be told we left Phnom Penh and flew to Bangkok only to inhabit the Khao San Road for two days...

Most of the few people I know who will be reading this blog may also be glad to know that the do-gooding (slightly ott!) charitable chapter has come to a close... for now at any rate!

Leaving Cambodia I did feel a bit sad having spent quite a bit of time there... but this was immediately remedied at the prospect of meeting Faye! One of our best friends who has been living down under for the last few years... Needless to say the two days in Khao San was all about recharging the batteries, girly catch ups, cocktails, beauty treatments, and shopping for tat. Fun!

Khao San road is a weird place, it is like being at Glastonbury Festival except with slightly more Thai people. I can't decide whether I like it or hate it. Perhaps both. One day I will have to return to Bangkok and see something more of the city... for now though it was just nice to spend time with my two girlies before heading to Hong Kong. yay!