Blogs from China, Asia - page 2215

So, finally here! Just discovered it's not as censored as I imagined.... able to log onto my hotmail and even use my mobile phone! After my journey here.. (got sitting next to lovely old Spanish lady who was trying unsuccessfully to strike up Spanish conversations and give me all her food!) found the hostel where I'm staying. Despite my ideas of China being a tropical paradise and not packing any waterproof clothesI in the past 36 hours I've managed to become soaked to the bone on 2 occasions and have trekked through mini rivers in the area I'm staying in my poor trainers, which I'm now going to have to bin! On the upside, I've seen a lot of amazing places in my short space of time. Spent today in Tianenman square and the Forbidden City. ... read more

Hello, hello from the most beautiful place on earth! Two days at the Jiuzhaigou Nature Reserve, and I don't want to leave. I had never imagined a place so amazing its untrue... travellers raved about it, but I had to see it to believe it. I headed up to Northern Sichuan from Chengdu on a 10 hour bus ride, and the journey was worth it. Saw the worst toilets EVER, (You just squat in a shared cubical gutter thing, so you see everything flowing past!!).... BUT also saw some a m a z i n g views-- ice mountain peaks, alphine valleys and tibetan villages along the way. Jiu Zhai Gou is located in the North of Schiuan province, which was once part of Tibet. It was my first glimpse into Tibetan culture, food and its ... read more

The photos are from some of my daily activities in the city of Taizhou, Jiangsu Province of China, these past 2 days. There has not been a dull moment, and every day leaves much to ponder. I hope you enjoy them, and thank you for thinking of me on the other side of the world. Perhaps these photos will convey some of the culture shock awaiting any visitor to China:... read more

Harbin, normally best known for its Ice & Snow Sculpture Festival which takes place in January, appeared on television sets around the world last November as the water supply of the city's 3.8 million inhabitants was cut off for several days. An accident at a chemical plant in a city upstream from Harbin had polluted the city's main water source, the Songhua river, with a 80-km long benzene slick. Since then, with the water supply back to normal, the city has once again retreated from the world stage, and it will probably remain largely forgotten in Europe until the next Ice Festival... We arrived in Harbin on Friday morning from Beijing. Perhaps it was not one of the most logical places to visit. Except for the winter months, the city's sights are largely restricted to some ... read more

My new colleague Hans (Schneider) has arrived a couple of months early in order to settle in before the start of the new school year in September. We hit it off immediately and have had a number of stimulating conversations about life, the universe and everything. In his first couple of weeks here he has made a big impression on the locals, especially due to his penchant for taking a myriad of photos of what many people here would probably consider mundane and of little interest. An added bonus is Hans brought his camera printer dock with him and so he is able to take photos one day, then give his subjects a copy the very next day. As you can imagine, they absolutely love this. Hans was here last summer to “scope” the place out ... read more