Aidan & Karen’s Travels

We arrived in Sydney after a tiring flight overnight from Shanghai. I had a total sense of humour failure as we were pushed aside in the race to get on the flight and then found that there was no more room in the overhead baggage containers. Safe to say I went into strop worsened by the fat fella in front of me pushing his chair as far back as it would go. However, the mood was lightened by Karen swopping seats with me and my discovery that there were loads of films on for me to watch. I must have had withdrawal symptoms because I didn’t sleep at all through the flight and I watched 4 (and a half) films.

On arrival in Sydney we made straight to our hostel. The heat was staggering after Russia, Mongolia and China but it was great to see the sun shining. On arrival at our hostel all the staff were all talking about a guy who had to go to hospital because he punched a bus stop when he was drunk and broke some bones in his hands. They then went on to talk about the drunken antics of the previous evening. It was strange to be in a city in which most people were English or English speaking again. It also felt a bit like I was back at University.

Having dumped our bags we went straight to the hospital to get a new plaster for Karen’s arm. We really hit lucky because the hospital that we went to specialised in hands. The doctors and nurses were really kind to us all and the hospital itself was in a great location. The physio that was sorting Karen’s arm out put a fibre glass plaster on it - perks of the job - so that it was lightweight and she could swim with it on. All in all it was a much more pleasurable experience than Mongolia.

Being in sunnier climes we needed to ditch our winter wardrobe and get some summer clothes instead (and of course the sun cream for me). It was nice to wander aroudn Sydney’s shops but we felt that everything was ridiculously expensive after China. Of course it wasn’t but it was hard to adjust. With all our new kit on we packed off our thermals and ski jackets to NZ to pick up later. To be honest we had worn those thermals so much they probably could have got up and walked to Auckland!

In the evening we headed down to Sydney Harbour bridge (as did the rest of Sydney by the looks of things) and enjoyed a drink over looking the harbour. From all the travelling and hospital visits it was nice just to relax.

We had inadvertently timed our visit to Sydney with Mardi gras which is the biggest gay festival that takes place in Austalia. Rather than jump into the all in one cat suit Karen and I retreated to the Botanical gardens and spent most of the day there. It was a strange sensation to be able to sit outside in a t shirt and shorts without feeling cold or needing to move around. Karen was immediately soaking in the sun to build the tan, but when you have my skin type (white to red to white again) it is just nice to sit in the shade. The botanical gardens were beautiful and had some great views of the harbour from them. It was also interesting to see the wildlife of the parks - parrots, bats, spiders (massive spiders).

Taking full advantage of the fact that we are in a country that has some decent wine we had a few drinks in the evening and settled nicely into the swing of things.

On Sunday, when the MArdi gras hangover was kicking in for a lot of Sydney we took a bus to Bondi beach. It was awesome to be swimming in the sea and just to lie on the beach without a care in whe world. Bondi beach is full of surfer dudes and it was pretty busy - but it was just a warmer version of Whitley Bay really. Obviously I immediately blended in with the locals and didn’t stand out liek a sore thumb at all - any whiter and I would have been an albino.

We arrived back in Sydney and walked to teh local pub for a beer. From there we watched the most terrific thunder and lightning storm. It absolutely threw it down with rain and when time came to brave it outside it was as if we had been in a shower. It felt very refreshing though. The next few days were punctuated by spells of rain. It made little difference to us but I was expecting uninterrupted sunshine when we got to Australia.

We made arrangements to travel down to Melbourne on a bus route that allowed us to get on and off when we liked. We decided to spend about 2 and a half weeks to get to Melbourne and to stop off regularly - thus avoiding the long haul bus rides. With our MP3s fully charged it was time to hit the road again.

It had been a while since we had been to a major city and Shanghai hit us like a tidal wave. There seemed to be millions of people and any thought of the holiday season coming to an end showed no signs of happening in this city.

Our hostel was two minutes from the Bund and an excellent location for exploring the city. In all the guides that we have read and all the people we spoke to said that the place to visit in Shanghai was the Bund and so that is exactly what we did. Unfortunately, every other tourist in China had the same idea. The Bund is the river side street that was the centre of Shanghaio commerce in the 30s and 40s. On one side of the river there is a street of magnificent 30s buildings such as the Peace Hotel - where anybody who was anybody stayed in when they visited Shangai, and on the other side of the river is the modern commrecial buildings of Shanghai. Both buildings face each other and it is a neat metaphor for what Shangahi is like as city - old and new facing off each other (you could extend it to the whole of Shanghai).

I loved the 30s’ architecture of the bund and it was easy to imagine what the city would have been like in it’s 30’s peak. However, the Bund at night was spectacular simply for the views across the river to the modern skyscrapers and neon lit buildings. It looked all the world like something out of ‘Blade Runner’ and we were mesmerised by it. The neon light show continued as we headed into the shopping district of Shanghai. The Nanjing Road is where everybody goes to shop and by the time we had got to the end of the shopper’s paradise we had been offered fake anything you could name - as long as it was Rolex, North Face, Dolce & Gabanna… We did go to a market in Shanghai for a bit of retail therapy but it proved to be much harder work than Beijing. The difference in Shanghai was that the sellers were much more aggressive and actually followed you around the amrket. They literally would not let you out of their sight. It was all a bit too much for us and we left (although I bought a pair of Puma trainers for 7 quid - they have since fallen apart).

The highlight of Shanghai was the noodle bar at the end of our road. It only had about 8 tables, the restaurant was tiny, there was nothing to shout about in terms of decor and the stafff found it hilarious that we were eating Chinese food - with chopsticks, but it cost about 3 pound for both of us to eat like kings and the crab steamed dumplings were the nicest thing I have ever tasted. We kept going back as often as we could - just writing about it now makes me feel hungry!

The other nice thing about Shanghai - as with almost all of teh Chinese cities that we have visited was that thre were so many gardens to wander around. We went wild and paid to get in to a garden (it was recomended) and we were really glad that we did. It was in the centre of the city and it was one of the smallest gardens that we have visited but it was designed to block out the noise aroudn it and also to appear to be much larger than it did. It was stunning and well worth the entry fee.

And so our trip around China came to an end. Of course the ionly way to get to the airport was by train. Not any train though - the quickest train on the planet (imagine how excited Karen aka the train spotter was about that).

China was great and the real surprise so far on the trip. We had no idea what to expect and we really enjoyed it. There was so much to see and do and we would both love to return one day. The staring by the Chinese at us got a little waring, but as I explained to Karen life in the public eye is not easy and sometimes you just have to roll with it - just like Brad and Angelina.

Hangzhou is a city that is on the West lake, south west of Shanghai. It is a big tourist destination for the Chinese and sure enough when we arrived there was millions of people walking around the lake and of course seeing two westerners (one in plaster!) was as big a tourist attraction as anything Hangzhou had to offer.

Our hostel was literally on the shore of the lake and it was possible to walk all around the lakes. However, with it being the holiday week that meant there were loads of other people and it was a bit overcrowded. However, the trickiest part of the walks were avoiding the electric buses that drove tourists around the lake. They basically saw pedestrians as mocvng targets and the only warning sign you had that they were coming was an incredibly annoying tune they continually played over their loud speakers - it was the death song!

The West Lake was beautiful and there were Chinese gardens constructed all around the shore that we explored. We were there for 3 nights and most of our time was spent wandering around the gardens. The gardens were intricately designed and many had temples or pagodas situated in them. The weather was really good so we took the opportuntiy of relaxing around the gardens and people watching - getting our own back and generally enjoying the break from city life that we had experienced in Shanghai and Xi’an.

We did venture further out and visited a tea plantation. Tea making is taken very seriously in China - it is known as tea art. The tea plantation had a museum for us to look round and it was interesting to see how all the different teas are made. The only problem was that buying tea is exorbatant. We thought that it would be as cheap as chips but no such luck. Of course being on a budget (or rather saving our money to buy Chairman Mao watches) we didn’t have any tea in China. One person in the hostel was telling us that you shoudn’t buy tea from the licensed tea sellers and buy it from the black market as it is loads cheaper - unfortunately we never found those illusive black market tea sellers.

Once again in Hangzhou we failed miserably to find anywhere decent to eat. The first night we were there we went to a restaurant in which the waitress wouldn’t let us order anything that we wanted and we ended up with what I can only describe as pork scratchings and pig bones in a sweet and sour sauce and a beautifully cooked fish. The only problem was eating the fish with chopsticks was a Herculean task that neither Karen or myself were up to. On the final night we found a restaurant with pictures on the menu and this was heaven - we could finally see what we were ordering and as a result we ate like kings!

From Hangzhou we headed for Shanghai. We went on the bullet train from Hangzhou. It didn’t go as fast as we thought it would but it was more like an aeroplane than a train and now that Karen is officially a train spotter many photos were taken!

Xi’an is the old capital of China and according to our fellow passenger on the train - the most important city in China (he would say that though). Basically we came to Xi’an so that we could visit the Terracotta Army, although there is lots to see in Xi’an too. Our hostel was a real result - it was set out like an old Chinese pagoda and our room was in the middle courtyard. It was better than some of the hotels that we stayed in on the way.

The first thing that we were told to do was sort the train from Xi’an out because it was New Year and everybody would be travelling. Unfortunately for us that was the case and all the trains we wanted to get on were booked up - flying to Hangzhou was the next best option (Trains, planes and automobiles or what - not sure who is John Candy and who is Steve Martin yet). Anyway, with that sorted we got down to the more serious business of sight seeing.

We took a public bus to the Terracotta Army site rather than a tour - basically being cheap skates and not wanting to get up to leave at 7am. When we arrived we had to walk miles through a shopping arcade that was built around the complex. This was an immediate put off as it was all fake terracotta warriors or animal furs (don’t know why). By the time we got through to the actual site I was quite tempted to buy a full size warrior - a nice gift for my brother’s new house or an even better companion for the cardboard cut out of Elvis.

Anyway, by the time we got through to the actual complex it was well worth the walk. The soldiers are really well preserved and there are three pits. The main pit is huge about the size of three football pitches and the detail of the statues is so intricate. There are archers, spearman, cavalry, generals - basically a whole army. I felt a bit like Indiana Jones and could only imagine how exciting it must have been to uncover the army.

Back in Xi’an we spent the rest of our time exploring the city. It was so busy with it being New Year and that meant the roads were even more treacherous than ever. Basically in China pedestrains are fair game and it is kill or be killed when crossing a road - pedestrian crossings mean nothing. It is all a leap of faith.

From Xi’an we decided to head to Hangzhou which is built around a lake and is a holiday resort for the Chinese. Hangzhou is known around China as one of the most picturesque places to visit - we’lll have a bit of that, we thought.

Apologies for the lack of entry to the website recently but we’ve been to busy to find the time and when we have the time it seems the computer or the internet access hasn’t been up to scratch. Anyway enough excuses.

We arrived in Beijing and immediately realised that it was Chinese New Year. Essentially the celebrations consist of setting off as many firecrackers or fireworks as you can as often as you can (even in day time) and as dangerously as you can. It was absolutely ridiculous! Anyway, our hostel was immediately opposite the railway station so we dropped our bags off and then headed into Beijing.

We learnt another immediate lesson - there is no queing system in China and the administration goes beyond ‘red tape’. It took us an hour to change some money at the bank. Another lesson learnt but by this point we were so tired we got something to eat and then rested up for the next day.

Beijing has totally cleaned itself up for the coming Olympics and it is a really beautiful city. We immediately headed to Tianemen square (albeit in the wrong direction because I read the map wrong). The square is massive and people tend to just hang around, flying kites or trying to sell Chairman Mao watches - naturally we purchased one of these complete with waving arm. We then went into the Forbidden City which was very impressive but left both Karen and I cold. It is hard to say why really but it might be because it is in such pristine condition and almost appears unreal. Having said that the gardens at the back of the city are worth seeing and exploring.

We spent the rest of our time in Beijing exploring the public parks which are huge and very tranquil. It was here that we got our first tase of being celebrities. People would stop and stare, point at us, and laugh at us. At first I thought that my flies were open or I had something on my face. But no it was because we were Westerners and that is tsill something of a novelty. Fame at last! As our trip around China continued we became used to it and even the request to be photographed didn’t seem too weird by the time we got to Shanghai.

The other highlight of Beijing was the silk market. It was here that you could buy anything - and mostly fake. We spent a great afternoon trawling through the many shops fending off the eager sellers and then bartering our way through our purchases. Two pairs of fake diesel jeans, two ralph lauren polo shirts and a cashmere ralph lauren jumper and 20 quid later we were ready for something to eat. The night market in Beijing is a street of food stalls selling all kinds of exotic food. Stuart, who we met on the Trans Sib, persuaded me to try some snake on a stick - I managed one bite (he finished the lot) and gave up. It didn’t taste of anything and the texture was like rubber. Following that though we had some great eats - Peking duck was a particular treat and so cheap.

It was time to say goodbye to Beijing and travel to Xi’an. Of course we were back on the train for this. This time it was on the hard sleeper overnight - hard sleeper rather than soft sleeper means that there is six rather than four beds in a compartment and no door to the compartment. The Chinese train was much more regimented than the trans sib - lights off on the dot at 10pm and back on at 7am. However, it was clean and on time and it got us to where we were going no problem.