China

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After a week in China there is already so much to tell! It's not quite as straightforward to travel round as Japan and NZ, but we expected that. However, the people running the Beijing guesthouse and the one we stayed at in Pingyao are very friendly and helpful, so we've had trains booked for us as far as Xi'An and then hoping to fly to Jiuzhaigou National Park - didn't fancy the 18-24 hour trains!! It's unfortunate that the same can't be said for some of the other Chinese people we have met. Whether it is the endless stream of people (of all ages) asking for our photo, or those taking one anyway, or the man sitting six inches away in the train station staring straight at us and not budging regardless of what we say or do. There's the same sales pushing as in most of the rest of Asia we've seen too. But we're hopeful it won't be the same everywhere - and just today someone said hello to us just because - no sales pitch or photo request. I think to some people we're just funny looking white folk!

Beijing was an interesting city. So much to see! Glad we had 6 days to explore. It took us a day to do one of the parks, with its massive lake in the middle - you needed a ferry to get across! Gives Hyde Park a run for its money. There are also millions of people everywhere, so everytime we got into a nice quiet spot in the parks or at a temple, we couldn't resist stopping to appreciate it!! It also seemed like everything is on a big scale. The temples we visited were huge with endless courtyards and (very) "long corridors" through the grounds. And I've already mentioned the lakes! Tian An Men Square is pretty crazy too - nothing really there but open space (for a long way!), but from the pictures we saw it looks like it would be spectacular when a festival is on.

We stayed in a beautiful little courtyard hotel along the Hutong streets, with a fish tank and lots of plants in the covered courtyard. Unfortunately, like us, the fish started to suffer after a couple of days of us being there due to lack of oxygen! I was very worried about them, and I'm not sure if they recovered. The city is covered in a blanket of smog all of the time. You can't see the sun most of the time, so it looks like it could rain any minute, and you can't see views for more than about 300m anywhere! It's hot too, so it doesn't make breathing easy, but I hate to say I think we adjusted after a few days.

We did a day trip to The Great Wall, which was absolutely awesome. Couldn't believe we were really there. There were a lot of steps and steep rough bits to climb, but as we started at Jinshanling, an area where less tourists go, it was a lot quieter and more authentic than other areas, so was well worth the scrambling! Unfortunately the smog was here too, so I'm sure the views would be amazing on a clear day but we got plenty of pretty good photos. It felt amazing to be there, and to walk along some 500yr old parts of the wall.

We saw part of the solar eclipse early in the morning too - which we have the smog to thank for as it was easier to see and not be blinded! Missed the ring of fire appearance, but was still great to watch the end.

After Beijing we got the train to DaTong where we stayed in a hotel and got up at 6:30 for a trip to the Yungang Grottoes and the Hanging Monastery. The grottoes were amazing. We were both surprised by how good they were, despite reading rave reviews. They all look like holes or small caves in the side of the cliffs but once you get close you can see faces of statues through the higher holes. You can go inside about 35 of the grottoes, some of which are massive tall carvings inside the cliff containing 10m Buddha statues and pagodas - a couple of them had ears the height of Eoin! The carvings were incredibly ornate and almost lined the walls inside the grottoes. It must represent years of work! There were also some 10,000 small buddha carvings inside one! The hanging monastery was also well worth the visit - propped against the mountain on what looked to me like wobbly wooden stilts. We went inside and walked through the monastery halls, but looking back at it from the bottom of the cliff, I don't know how! It did not look like it would hold a person nevermind a crowd!

We got the overnight train to Pingyao, where we are now, and getting another tomorrow night to Xi'An. Slept quite well considering the bumps - although not nearly as bad as our experience in Vietnam. The train was only 8 hours, so we actually wanted to stay on longer when the guard woke us up! Staying in a lovely little courtyard guesthouse in Pingyao too, though sadly just for one night. Spent the day walking around the walled city today and visiting the many little merchant houses, the Confucian Temple and the city walls. Loads of photos to sort through from today alone! So hopefully get on here soon.

China doesn't seem to be letting us on the phone network, so no texts for a while - also no Facebook! So email or message on here is good. Hoping to have internet access maybe once a week, but we'll see. Will write again when I can. Take care x

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