http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/laoshi-Paul/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from laoshi Paul en-us Tue, 22 Dec 2009 13:27:46 +0000 Tue, 22 Dec 2009 13:27:46 +0000 The main reason for me coming back to England was to attend my best friend Tom's wedding. Well after months and months of preparation it finally happened on Saturday.The main reason for me coming back to England was to attend my best friend Tom's wedding. Well after months and months of preparation it finally happened on Saturday.The day started early for us and I went around to my friends house http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/East-Sussex/blog-440517.html Well I was lucky enough to spend my birthday at home for the first time in 6 years.I spent the perfect day playing golf with my friend Tom. We don't get to play much these days but we played on the golf course we used to play on when we first started at the age of 14. Neither of us had played for a while and therefore some of are shots weren't that good I've included a little video of me play http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/East-Sussex/Forest-Row/blog-439408.html Well I have finally recovered from my friends Stag party but it did take until Monday afternoon to do so.And as you may have guessed the sun is out Which has meant that I've been able to get out on my bike once again. Forest Row my home town is perfect for for riding the air is clean and some of the scenery is really quite beautiful. Whenever I'm home I realise how incredibly lucky I was http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/East-Sussex/blog-438879.html Well as I mentioned to you all in one of my English corners it is important that the groom has a 'Stag party'My friend Tom's party was last Friday and I spent a lot of the week organising it. In the old days a stag party was usually held the night before a wedding and the groom best man and his friends would go to the local pub and drink lots of beer and simply walk home. However it has now bec http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/Greater-London/Covent-Garden/blog-438549.html Well it has finally stopped raining in England and I have managed to see a little bit of sunshine believe it or not.It's all very relaxing though.Yesterday I went cycling with Mr and Mrs Smith Senior. We have an old railway line which runs along the back of our house and it has now been turned into a cycle path. It's a beautiful place to ride.It was nice last night to also be able to watch my fo http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/East-Sussex/blog-437327.html For any neutral readers this blog is intended for my Chinese students in XiamenI've now been back in England for 2 days and yes you've guessed it it has rained everyday since I got back.The good news is that I don't seem to be suffering from any jet lag.It's been great to see everyone again and catch up.I spent Sunday with my friends Tom and Charlotte the people who are getting married. They http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/East-Sussex/blog-436679.html For any neutral readers this blog is intended for my Chinese students in XiamenHello everyone at Web.Well I made it to Dubai after a couple of days in Shanghai.It's really nice to be here and see my old friend Grant and his wife Julie and their two lovely children Caelan and Isla.Grant and I have been great friends since the age of 3 but these days we only ever seem to see each other in differen http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/blog-435741.html Well what better place to finish my trip than Beijing. Its some five years since I last came here and I arrived eager at the prospect of visiting some of the places I missed out on last time around. Over the past few years Beijing has undergone a major facelift in preparation for this years Olympic Games. Although I havenrsquot spent a lot of time in Beijing itrsquos a city I love visiting http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Beijing/blog-264628.html My next stop hadn't made it on my initial plan but I'd heard through a couple of other people about an ancient town north of Xian named Pingyao which is covientantly placed therefore allowing me to to break up the trip onto Beijing.Having waxed lyrical about my experiences of travelling on trains in China in my previous blog. My opinion has altered slightly after my journey from Xian to Pingyao. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Shanxi/Pingyao/blog-262787.html My first train journey for a while as I headed from Chengdu into Shaanxi province and the historical city of Xian. Xian was formerly known as Chang'an and originally marked the beginning and end of the silk road. A former great metropolis it came to an end in the 10th century by the rebellions of the Tang Dynasty. Today it's home to more than three million people and retains its metropolitan fee http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Shaanxi/Xi-an/blog-261554.html The buzz of being back in a big city has certainly upped my energy levels and as a result I spent my last day in Chengdu fitting in as many sights as humanly possible.Most people who come to Chengdu I'm sure are drawn by the attraction of the Giant Pandas by far and away China's most cherished of animals. Panda in Chinese is 'xiongmao' or quite literally in English 'Big Bear Cat' and there are n http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Sichuan/Chengdu/blog-261466.html I've just spent the last three days back in Lijiang. To be honest I haven't really done too much whilst back here and have been just taking it easy catching up a bit with this blog uploading some photos and taking in a few more sights. So there really isn't a lot to report.I have been staying at the very nice and friendly 'International Youth Hostel' the one on Jishan Alley and anyone thinkin http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Lijiang/blog-259504.html I now find myself in Sichuan province or as it's often commonly known the land of plenty or Heaven on Earth More specifically I'm in Chengdu which is apparently China's 5th most populous city home of the spiciest of spicy food giant panda's and as most of my Chinese friends have pointed out the most attractive looking women in the whole of ChinaI was thankful I opted to fly from Lijiang as http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Sichuan/Chengdu/blog-260324.html I arrived in the village of Qiaotou which is in effect the beginning of the Tiger Leaping Gorge on Wednesday afternoon. Due to my arriving at this time there was no point in beginning trekking that day and I therefore checked myself into a guest house at the foot of the track which leads up to the gorge.There didn't seem to be many other people about and I killed most of the afternoon reading. I' http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Tiger-Leaping-Gorge/blog-258809.html Day two in Shangrila and having slept soundly not to mention warmly it was time to head out exploring. My first stop was Napa Lake Napa Hai a decent hours ride out of the city. It was without doubt well worth it in fact I would go as far as to say it was my best experience of the trip so far. Having the bike was great as it really gives you the freedom to fully explore the area. I basicall http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Shangri-La/blog-258595.html I'm once again a few days behind as I've been in the Tiger Leaping Gorge for the past three days and they don't have a lot of internet access there So here goes with a little catch up. Monday the 17th.....As I'm not going to Tibet probably a wise choice at the moment I find myself in Shangrila or also known as Zhongdian The five hours to here by bus from Lijiang was made all the easier by t http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Shangri-La/blog-258304.html Day two in Lijiang and the sun was shining once again it's a good day to be meLijiang is famous for it's monumental Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Yulong Xueshan I hadn't seen it yesterday but was told it is easily viewable from all parts of Lijiang. Where was it then I was asking myself A short walk into town and a turn around a corner and there it was it all it's glory very impressiveThe Ir http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Lijiang/blog-257339.html Saturday the 15th and Lijiang almost three weeks into my trip. My 8th place and the places just keep getting better and better. I've already seen so much and met so many interesting people that it's fair to say the trip has so far really exceeded my expectations. Touch woodI've met so many people who have already been to Lijiang therefore it has been built up somewhat I was half expecting as a http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Lijiang/blog-257027.html Dali at last Irsquod been hearing so many things about this particular part of China that I was anxious to get here. There has been a debate amongst travellers as to which is the better Dali or Lijiang. As I have yet to visit the latter I shall have to reserve judgement on this until later. What I can say is I havenrsquot been disappointed with Dali in the least. The first thing that hi http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Dali/blog-255773.html The trip to Kunming was once I'd got the ticket probably the easiest so far. I think this was largely due to the fact that I met an American guy Canadian girl and a Chinese pilot who was on vacation on the train. I believe that they had already been on the train since it set out from Beijing at this point well over twenty four hours into their journey. Boredom had obviously set in with th http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Yunnan/Kunming/blog-255755.html