Trying strange and wonderful new foods, is an inescapable dimension of any travellers visit to China. So I felt it was about time for me to record some of the culinary delights of the far east. While 'Chinese Restaurants' can be found all over the world, in reality, the majority of these serve mainly hybridised Hong Kong food, and there are many edible things from mainland China which can't really be found in the West. Overall, I feel that Chinese cooking is usually very salty and greasy, compared to European cuisine, so perhaps not too healthy long-term. Additives such as msg, other artificial flavourings and miscellaneous 'tasty oils' have also become common ingredients. However, this is obviously a generalised view and my personal opinion at that. There are certainly traditional Chinese dishes which are both delicious ... read more

It took a while to come but Spring did finally arrive in Beijing. One thing I noticed about spring here is the occasional sand-storm, which coats the entire city in a layer of dusty sand and gives the sky a peculiar orange tint, the likes of which I have never seen. They do say that Beijing's future existence is threatened by the advance of the Gobi desert. In fact, one of the environmental engineering mega-projects which is under-way is to build a 'great green wall' of trees to try to slow the advance of the dunes. I suppose we shall have to watch that space to judge if it is successful. Spring was an incredibly short, though generally pleasant season. The turn-around time between the harsh, bitter winter temperatures and the sweltering heat of high summer ... read more

The over-night train from Nanning to Hanoi, capital of Nam set us back 150 rmb (about 15 quid); not too bad eh? At around midnight we all had to get out to go through the Chinese boarder, then again at around 2 or 3am for the Vietnamese boarder crossing; which severely diminished the sleeping opportunities. We arrived around 5 or 6 am Vietnamese-time, the sky was still dark and we both felt very sleepy indeed. Some differences between China and Vietnam are quite apparent, and though certain cultural and aesthetic commonalities reside throughout these parts of Asia (just as in parts of Europe) Hanoi definitely didn't look of feel like a Chinese city. We based ourselves in the old part of town, with it's bustling narrow streets, lined with chaotically-bundled telephone wires and fruit vendors. In ... read more

During weekends and free time I have been out and about to explore more of Beijing; though the bitter winter has provided little incentive to leave the warmth of inside! While Alice was over, we visited (and in my case revisited) some of 'the sights' in Beijing, including the Temple of Heaven, Forbidden City, 798 art district, the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. We also managed to see some acrobatics, 'Beijing opera' & Kong fu shows. The Summer Palace made a real impression on me, possibly partly because of the fantastic weather that day... but it's definitely a fascinating and beautiful place. The lake was frozen over by that time and we were able to walk right across it; others chose to skate or cycle, and we even saw people swimming in one part that ... read more

After arriving in Beijing, my first task was to find a place to live. Luckily a colleague was able to help me out, my mandarin abilities being far too basic. Since being here I've explored some of the city's sights, 'the things that must be seen', forbidden city, temple of heaven and the like; and lesser known places, around the old parts of town, the old 'hu tong' streets and such. One fact that really strikes you about Beijing is it's sheer size, both in terms of area and also population. Luckily transport is pretty good. Bike is a really viable option and most of the main roads have cycle lanes, and the topography is nice and flat. A standard bike will knock you back about 50 yuan (a fiver), so it's a worthwhile investment; though ... read more