Elfi left Seoul after only 3 days. I stayed longer, I felt like I needed to explore this city a bit more. I had met an American guy at the hostel and went around the old part of Seoul with him. We went to Bukchon Hanok village between Gyeongbok palace and Changdeok palace. There we found a place where they make makgeolli and we learned the fermentation process. Then, we randomly passed a house that was being renovate. Being a bit nosy I tried to look through the half opened entrance door and the woman (owner) saw me. Instead of shutting the door, she opened it and welcomed us inside! This house is fantastic, it is U-shaped and organised around the central garden. The woman spoke a very good English. She actually bought two houses and ... read more

We arrived in Incheon airport by night and took the subway to our hostel. We booked a place in Hongdae district (Seoul) which turned out to be a great idea. It's very close to Seoul University thus the area is young and there is lots of restaurants and pubs with reasonable prices (of course coming from China everything seem expensive, we have to adjust). Jimjilbang. You should not leave Korea without experiencing a Jimjilbang. So we checked that off our list asap. But what is it? Jimjilbang are public bath house. Upon arrival, we were given two towels, a large T-shirt, a short and a key. We had no idea about the procedure so we followed the woman who entered just after us. First you have to leave your shoes in a small locker. Then you ... read more

Geo: 29.6809, 105.721Dazu is famous for its rock carving of Buddhist, Confucian and Taoist influences. Carvings (about 50 000 statues) were done within caves and on cliffs. The oldest statues date back from the Tang Dynasty (about 650 AD) but work was carried on until the Song dynasty (12th century). Some sculptures are very tall, others are vey small, most are painted (and the paints remains) and others are plain but all are very refined. The details are just stunning. Just have a look for yourselves.Dazu est connu pour ses gravures dans la pierre (à même la roche) qui sont d'influence à la fois Bouddhiste, Taoïste et Confucéenne. Les sculptures ont été réalisées dans des caves ou bien à même la falaise. Les plus anciennes datent de la dynastie Tang (environ 650 avant JC) mais des ... read more

Geo: 29.5623, 103.764There is only one thing to see in Leshan and it is the Big Buddha or Dafo. We arrived late from Emei Shan (we had a late morning) so we just walked around town. Beryl finally found the socks she has been looking for for so long. Some facts about Dafo: it was carved in the cliff in order to appease the river that flows below. It dates back from the Tang dynasty (618–907 AD) and is 233-foot tall. Its toes are bigger than a regular person…! Many temples and tombs can be found in the same area, so we spend the all day exploring the site. The giant Buddha is indeed very impressive but it is not very 'beautiful'. And really the most impressive thing is the fact that it was carved within ... read more

Geo: 30.67, 104.07After a long way by bus between Lijiang and Panzihua (Beo can talk better about it ), we finish with the train to Chengdu, all together it took almost 24hours but we got to see some beautiful scenery along the bus route.In Chengdu we only went to see the Panda Breeding Center. Well it was not much more than a zoo. You can only see the pandas in their small enclosures or even lock inside. The only indication about you being in a breeding center is the relatively high number of panda cubs. But you don't really get any infos. It was all a bit disappointing. In the end the best thing was to see the Red Pandas. They are small balls of red fur with funny face paint. In one enclosure, visitors are ... read more