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Published: November 7th 2009
TUES 13 OCT 2009
We set off from Luoyang on the 9am train, bound back to Xi'an to then transfer to Chengdu. We are well into the Chinese way off life now, which predominantly consists of being blatantly rude in order to be able to achieve anything. I forgot to mention on my previous mails that there is no such thing as queuing in China, if you want to get on a train or you want to buy a ticket from a stall etc, it is quite the ordeal! This has probably been the hardest thing for me to grasp as I could not bring myself to push and shove my way into anywhere, but as a consequence I couldn't get to the front! Its very funny to watch, when the gate for the train platforms opens there is this almighty rush and a HUGE circle of people pushing and barging their way forward trying to get through one gate. I'm convinced that if they made an orderly queue every one would get through much faster ... and a lot less bruised!!! To add to this, the majority of Chinese pull those air hostess trolley bags behind them so you
Dr Dolittle!
The cat fell asleep whilst reading my blog ... hope its not having the same effect on you - ha ha!are constantly tripping over them whilst thinking there is a gap in the crowd!!! After fighting our way onto the train early so there was plenty of room for our bags, we settled down to the six hour journey, which seemed to fly by - much faster than the train trip over to Luoyang. We arrived in Xi'an at 3.30pm, elbowed our way off the train, shoulder shoved our way to the ticket office and stood our ground refusing to move until someone served us (like I said ... getting into the Chinese way of life!) The four of us managed to get on the next train to Chengdu which left at 5.30pm - only two hours to kill before our next whopping 16hr overnight train.
Only problem was that the four of us did not manage to get in the same four bed sleeper compartment, however, we were next door to each other so planned to try and ask someone if they would mind changing rooms. Derek and Leanne reached their sleeper first and two Chinese men were already asleep inside but when Paul and I got to our cabin, it was empty - we all kept our
fingers crossed until we heard the whistle and the train started to move. Derek and Leanne had the backpacks posed ready to move into our room just as a young Chinese lady, so pretty - dainty as a little doll walked down the train corridor and then, you've guessed it, she entered our cabin. We all greeted her in Chinese and ... shock horror ... she was all smiles and the most lovely and friendly Chinese person we had met. She spoke not one word of English and us not one word of Chinese but between two phrase books, lots of emphatic gesturing, occasion phone calls to someone who spoke about two words of English and 16hrs later, we all had a great laugh and very eventful train journey. She was 24, had a six year old son and her husband drove long distance buses to Tibet (good contact to meet!) but the best part was that she was a primary school teacher, her subject ... Mandarin! So we spent a huge proportion of the journey learning how to pronounce words correctly, learning how to count to one billion (not that we need that high - ha ha!) and learning
useful phrases in order to help avoid scams. Just as the train approached the station, Yuan Xia gave me a gorgeous fountain pen and a mooncake (I then remembered reading or hearing something in the long distance past which said that it was the Chinese custom to exchange gifts when making new friends) so Yuan Xia had given me her gifts - then it was my turn - hhhmmm?! Do you know I hadn't brought one 'English' momento with me (other than a few clothes!) luckily Leanne and Derek came to the rescue with a 50p piece (picture of Queens head on it at least!) and I gave her a trial size Guinot moisturiser (as we had a conversation on facial care and products and she loved moisturiser)!! We have promised to keep in touch through her friend who spoke a few words of English and who also had an e-mail address!
WED 14 OCT 2009
Arrived in Chengdu at 11.30am. The hostel pick up was there and waiting at the exit to the train station and the pick up involved a taxi not a walk - things are looking up!!
'Sims Cosy Garden Hostel' had been set
up by a couple of Japanese backpackers who had settled down to have a family and it was therefore set up by backpackers, for backpackers. From the minute we set foot inside the large authentic wooden Chinese gate, illuminated by a gorgeous Chinese lantern - I knew it was going to be a great hostel!! Not only that but then Paul and Derek discovered a Pool table, table tennis table, small gym and tons of animals roaming round including a rabbit bouncing around the bar (usually out of the bin at unsuspecting travellers), a gorgeous Japanese garden with rock pool, Koy Karp and terrapins, cats, kittens and loads more besides!! It might sound a little odd but it seemed much more homely with the animals freely roaming round!
FRI 16 OCT 2009
The tour left Sims at 7.45am bound for the 'Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base'. The naturalistic, spacious bamboo forest is home to both giant and arboreal red pandas. After entering, we followed a winding, paved pathway through the complex till a huge forest space opened out before us and lounging backwards with elbow casually propped on a nearby branch we got our first sighting
of a giant panda - its pose was hilarious - if only we could understand what animals were thinking, it was just sat back watching all the strange humans (the old who is watching who scenario)! Then a raucous below, we switched our attention to see two slightly smaller pandas in the scrub, just under the lounging Panda, play fighting. They were so beautiful to see up close and with no cages or metal penning them in! Just gorgeous!
After a short stroll through another part of the forest, we arrived at the home of the red pandas. These were funny looking creatures, much smaller than a giant panda and more like a cross between a cat, a raccoon and a fox. They were much more lively and playful. They also seemed to have quite a mischievous streak ... no wonder Paul liked them best!
From here we entered the breeding area with incubators and what appeared to be small children's cradles/playpens, housed behind a glass walkway which we were ushered through silently and in single file. In order to ensure the numbers of Pandas in captivity increase, the minute a new panda is born, it is immediately
taken from its mother and placed in an incubator. On hearing this, I first thought it was a little cruel and unfair, although, after they showed us a video of a Panda birth I understood a little better. The video showed a mother who seemed so shocked about the small projectile she had just shot across the cage (just given birth to), she then chased after it clubbing it with her paw so it slid viciously across the cage and whacked into the wall opposite. The new mother continued this abuse until a worker braved the confrontation and dashed in to rescue the baby - it was horrific and apparently very common and due to the massive difference in size and power between the mother and young cub usually results in the cubs death! Subsequently, now all the babies are taken into the incubator and reared until they are old and big enough to released back into the forest grounds. A tiny, tiny baby panda just a few weeks old was being fed in an incubator and weighed just a few lbs! In a play pen area the next room along, two twin pandas just a few months old lay
next to each other in identical positions - so cute, were just like little teddy bears!
A circular walk allowed us to view fully grow and adolescent pandas in there habitat, munching on bamboo! Got some great photos, although, the one thing which did annoy me was the fact that if you wanted to have your photo taken with a panda the price started at a whooping £110 and seemed a little distressing for the poor young panda who was being lifted from one person to the next faster than it took for the flash to go off (Maximise the money opportunity - eh?). I do not begrudge paying that if the money was destined to be reinvested in the good of the pandas but somehow over here I doubt ALL of the 'donations' in their entirely would be reinvested in panda welfare and the whole spectacle seemed a little voyeuristic if you ask me.
The panda tour returned quite early, 11.30am as once the pandas have munched their way through their body weight or more in bamboo at 11am they slump into a stupor and just sleep for the rest of the day (Paul said sounded like
a good life!) We hopped on a bus a went to Remin Park to a traditional Chinese tea house. Leanne had been dying to try one of these tea shops since Beijing, so we left the choice to her discretion. Leanne ordered Chrysanthemum tea, Paul and Derek ordered a tea which was half way between black and Green tea and I ordered Jasmine ... they were all disgusting!!!!!!
A short walk from the park a Tibetan Street was indicated on the map. We walked the mile or so there to discover a line of two or three tacky replica Tibetan clothing and ornament shops - very disappointing!!!
Despite the previous failure of Leanne's first choice, we all agreed to go to her next choice of the day and that was going out that night for Mongolian Hotpot!
Oh my god!!!!!
We walked into the restaurant and everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY stopped eating to turn and look at us, then not just that but everybody continued to stare as we walked to the table and sat down. Only a good few minutes after we had been seated did people continue to eat (still obviously staring) We
were seated around a circular table with a huge oval hole in the middle which had a bunsen burner type flame rising from the hollow. Almost instantaneously a crowd of young, unfriendly Chinese waiters and waitresses surrounded us, shouting stuff in Mandarin and frantically flicking menu pages - we determined that they wanted us to select items (lots of little things like Tapas) which were to be brought to the table and then we would cook them ourselves by dunking into a large pot. As it was Leanne's choice, we rather chivalrously (no actually, quite cruelly) left her to the selection whilst we sat back laughing at the chaos which ensued. Before Leanne had even made a second selection a huge, bubbling cauldron appeared, from seemingly nowhere, and was sunken into the middle of the oval depression in our table, a flame was ignited below it and we all just sat their staring! Staring at the liquid which filled the frothy, stained but originally steel bowl! Staring at the contents, the colour of dirty dish water and staring as unidentifiable pieces of food appearing and disappearing as the heat and bubbles churned the liquid contents! Amazingly, still calm (Derek, Paul
and I would have SO lost it at the myriad of servers and the obvious abuse they were giving us - even though we couldn't understand Mandarin) Leanne did a great job, just ordered a few things even though they were trying to force more on her and then told them that would be sufficient.
Within minutes a plate arrived (I think it was supposed to be slices of fish) however, their slices of fish consisted of a slice with everything still on it, scales, fins, bones etc. It was like they had just taken a fish straight out of water and just cut it from the head to the tail into cross sectioned slices. We had to try and slice the ends to open up the piece of fish, then their were SO many bones it struck us as inedible anyway! The next plate arrived. Piled high with thin stripes of pale coloured rubbery stripes which resembled ... well actually I can't think of anything I have ever seen which quite resembled that!!
Next plate arrived!
“What the hell did you order, Leanne?” Seemed to be the generally voiced question. Thinly sliced, still frozen meat of some description,
stacked to resemble the vaulting horse you used to do gymnastics over when at junior school sat unappetizingly before us. Leanne attempted to grab the only Chinese waiter who had seemed a little friendly (his English name was Bruce much to Paul's amusement) and asked him what we do now, how do we cook it, how long for etc, but he was busy and rushed on by. The next plate arrived .... indistinguishable as either meat, fish, vegetable or mineral to be honest!! Leanne, impressively again, strode over to ask another table who we noted were staying at our hostel and we had passed on the way in and asked for further direction on cooking the so called 'food'.
We were supposed to pick up the slice of meat or fish with chopsticks, dunk it under the bubbling cauldron of liquid for a minute or so or until it changed colour then lift it out and eat it.
We decided best bet was to have a go with the stripes first as we presumed they were pasta and would probably give us less of a dose of food poisoning than meat of fish. Yuk! The pasta looked like miniature strips
of wall paper and tasted probably similar to wall paper after the paste had been slopped on the back of it!
By this stage Paul and Derek had just about had enough so Paul just dumped the entire stack of thinly sliced red meat into the cauldron at once and when we fished a piece out, after what seemed like an appropriate time - it was grey ... no joke!!! Grey sliced steak! We left without having anything to eat and returned to the hostel where the food served was the best we had tasted throughout China ... but hey ... you got to try out these other traditions - haven't you ???????
SAT 17 OCT 2009
The penultimate train journey in China - a whooping 31hrs on a train to Guilin followed by 3hrs on a bus to Yangshuo our final stop before heading to Hong Kong!! We shared a four bed soft sleeper cabin with Derek and Leanne so at least the journey should pass quickly and without having to keep swapping between cabins to play cards or talk!!
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Barbara
non-member comment
Chrysanthenam Tea is good for upset tummy!
Hi! Chrysanthenam Tea is supposed to be good for an upset tummy - that is what I was told when in Hong Kong many years ago! The waiter brought a teapot and when I opened it there was a huge Chrysanthenam floating in the pot! We were guests of a Hong Kong couple and when we went to a restaurant told them to order whatever they liked. Well George was busy talking (yes he was talking - not moi!) and about to put something in his mouth when he looked and there on his fork (no chopsticks for us spoil sports - I would starve if I had to use chopsticks!) was a perfectly cleavered head of a pigeon!!! He looked horrified and shut his mouth instantly! We were told that the head was a speciality! He immediately put it back on the plate. I think we both felt sick at the sight of the bird's head! This is the best way to lose weight! - every cloud has a silver lining! Love the Panda's! Enjoy! Looking forward to the next instalment! Sending lots of love, light and hugs, Barbara (and George!) xxx