Blogs from Jiangsu, China, Asia - page 117

Well bloggers we have surfaced.Actually we have been on the surface of the Yangzi river since I last wrote. Actually that isn't really right as the yang tzee was the colonial name and not in favour here any more the proper name is now the Chang Jiang,bot I am ahead of myself again.When I last wrote we had been waiting in the hotel in Xi'an.The plane took off at about 7:30 and a short pleasant flight deposited us in the city of Chongqing.Another friendly smiling face attached to a Speak sign greeted us at the airport.A very articulate young woman was there to greet us and along with the driver was certainly serving above and beyond as they had both waited out our flight delay in the airport waiting for our three hour delayed flight.Pangs ... read more

We've had a wrenching stomach ache the last few days and they both started at the same time which leads us to believe it was one of 2 things: The apples that the nice elderly folk gave us on the train that were bought straight off the street and thrown into a dusty bag though they warned us to wash them, we were on the train using recycled water from the communal vanity room where I wouldn't be surprised if the sink shared the same pipe as the toilet. That or the coconut creme cookies purchased from the train station general store where they must have initially stocked all of their grocery items in 1992 and have been waiting patiently to dispel every product off the shelf. It's grabbed hold for the last 3 days and ... read more

Aboard the train a young Chinese guy is watching me with obvious curiosity. He finds the courage to approach me, sits next to me and asks if we can talk. I am his first foreigner. This is what independent travel is all about. Wumin is a student returning to the military college after a weekend at home in Anhui province. He helps me find my way to the hostel near Fuzi Miao. He asks to stay the night with me so he can show me the sights the next day. We stroll around the neighbourhood. The pavement is wet after an evening's downpour, store windows and temple lights reflect in the puddles, barbecued meat with a spicy seasoning lures us to a street vendor. We find a cheap eatery and feast on several dishes, coating each ... read more

Taking advantage that Rene, Jenny's friend was visiting Shanghai, we decided to go to Zhouzhuang, a town only 1.5 hours away from Shanghai and best known as: "Venice of the East". Zhouzhuang is indeed a beautiful old town, full of canals and bridges. Before 1980, tourism was not developed there but thanks to a Chinese artist that sold a painting of one of the bridges in more than US$32,000,000 to the President of the Occidental Petroleum in 1984, became well known to the rest of China. A trip to Zhouzhuang should not exceed 4 hours. Immediately after arriving, we were surrounded by old ladies selling maps, offering hotels, etc. After a few minutes walking into the town, we arrived to one of the main streets, which we recognized because of the hundreds of kiosks and stores ... read more

Yanziji-river bank of Yangzi River (Chang Jiang)... read more