I woke up this morning with those bullfrogs on my mind (opening line of an old Rory Gallagher song) and was feeling a little dusty after a great night out with Alice. A quick back adjustment at the local chiropractor and at last I’m ready to pack the travel gear. Once again it looks like I have too much stuff but the sack doesn’t feel that heavy. Alice got me to the airport just after midday and after a great hug and a farewell kiss I sauntered into departures. The queue for the Thai Air check-in was nowhere to be seen. I wish bus transfers were as seamless as this. Oh, the bag weighed 14.5kg.
James Phillips with whom I’ll be spending the first 5 weeks with was waiting for me. Everything is going so smoothly and even our flight departed spot on time. The aircraft looked a little tired but my aisle seat was excellent. James however looked like he was stuck in sardine can. He did manage to con the purser into giving him a better seat with slightly more leg room. The new release movie list was excellent but after you selected a movie the darned thing would not play. I eventually decided to watch the Mentalist and was rewarded with a movie The Hangover 2. Not much joy in the entertainment stakes.
We touched down in Bangkok at 9.30pm Brisbane time and made a beeline for the Louis Tavern CIP Lounge. A nice hot shower has refreshed us as we prepare for our degustation of the fine port a fair that has been laid out on the table before us. James is more refrained than me as he is sticking to the non-alcoholic beverages. I on the other hand have found my taste for red wine which will hold me in good stead for the final leg into Beijing.
A little tip for frequent travellers is to purchase The Airport Priority Pass. It costs $US249 but gives you 10 entries to over 600 business class lounges and I have to say that the Louis Tavern is a cracker.
Sunday 15th September – Touch Down Beijing
Our flight departed just after midnight and it wasn’t long before I was pushing out some z’s. I was woken up by the sound of the hostess offering more comfort food for the flight ahead. After demolishing the fried rice and prawns I opted for more sleep instead of the inflight movie channel which was working perfectly. James looked a little cramped with his frame wedged into a tight space that was being overrun by the Chinese girl sitting next to him and her assortment of packages.
After landing our aircraft took another 25 minutes to reach the terminal where we would disembark to set foot on Chinese soil. The usual problem confronted us at immigration. What queue should we line up in? Inevitably we chose the wrong one and had to dissuade a queue jumper who thought she could sneak in before us. They need a system like Brisbane which seems to work reasonably well. The terminal train which links the arrival lounge to the baggage area was like travelling between Roma Street and the Valley. Our pickup for the Leo Hostel was waiting for us when we cleared customs. We were glad that we arranged this because our brains were slightly befuddled after a night of limited sleep.
The hostel which is located in one of the hutongs in the old area near Tiananmen Square is down a reasonably quiet cobblestone street. Thankfully our room was ready for us and it wasn’t long before we had settled in to domestic bliss. Just after 8:00 we hit the pavement to locate an ATM as the cash it was going to dispense was going to afford me an English breakfast at the hostel. We hadn’t gone 10 metres and James spent the last of his Yuan on a bag of steaming pork dumplings.
The whole area is being renovated with some very large pedestrian malls with upmarket designer shops. There is no shortage of restaurants both large and small. One that we noticed was cooking up a large quantity of offal which the locals appreciate. Looked a bit too sickly for my taste!One of the biggest hazards is what I have termed the “silent death”. Unlike Vietnam where the Chinese sell millions of noisy motorcycles, the Chinese version is electric and as quiet as a church house mouse. You need to look over your shoulder before turning left or right. Your only warning is a very quiet horn. I want one for when I turn into a grey nomad!
After breakfast we wandered around the area and checked out the supermarkets and other stores. A 500ml cold beer was around 50 cents.
Now that is a bargain. By lunch time fatigue was starting to set in so we decided to have a foot massage at a shop next door to the hostel. The warning bells were triggered when we were ushered upstairs to a secluded room. Once there they started to upsell their services to see if we wanted a full body massage. We declined their kind offers and settled in for a nice foot rub. About half way through the pressure was on again. They were very persistent but we matched them with our consistent no thank you. Eventually, they got the message that we were not interested in that sort of proclivity. As a result and much to our relief our 45 minute foot massage was terminated early.
A little two hour nanna nap and we were ready for dinner. We picked one in our street which had been recommended by the lonely Planet. James could not resist another round of pork dumplings but the double cooked pork came out on top. I wasn’t game to try the fried enema that was listed on the menu. For under $20 we had a couple of beers and a decent meal. That’s Livin’!
Monday 16th September – Beijing by Bicycle
Yesterday James organised an all-day bicycle tour that would take in Beijing’s highlights. The tour was 750cny ($135) but given our tight time schedule we thought it was well worth the expense. We kicked off at 9:00am. Beijing is remarkably flat and has lots of bike lanes which makes cycling reasonably easy. In no time at all we had ridden through old hutongs, parks before arriving at the Bell Tower and Drum Tower in the Xicheng district. A couple of quick pictures and we were off to the Forbidden City.
Back on the bikes and we were soon pedaling past Tiananmen Square and the Qianmen Gate on our way towards a well-deserved lunch break.
Next site on our tour was the Temple of Heaven which is situated in a large park in the Chongwen District. The main attractions are Qinian Hall, the Echo Wall, Circular Mound Altar and the Emperor’s Walk. After this we rode around a lake which may have been named Qianhai. Heaps of activity in this area with lots of bars, paddle boats and market stalls to tempt you out of a few Yuan. We finished up with a walk through another market where we managed to purchase a few postcards.
After departing the tour we had a bit of trouble engaging a taxi. Eventually one took pity on us and we arrived back at the hostel around 6:00pm. It was a great way to see the sites and one that left both of us completely knackered. We were both too tired to go out for dinner and settled for pizza at the hostel. The chef must have been tired as well because he left the paper on James’ pepperoni.
Tuesday 17th September – The Great Wall
At 9:30 we were picked up by The Great Wall Adventure Company for our two day hike on various sections of the wall. Our vehicle is upmarket as this is a private tour for the two of us. After clearing the Beijing traffic we travelled through the countryside on a modern tollway system. The last section was through the mountains where there were numerous hotels offering fishing and horse riding. It appears that this is an area where the Chinese like to holiday.
The Great Wall at Jiankou is located in the district of Huairou, about 80km/50 northeast of Beijing and finally to a village called Xizaizhi at the bottom of Jiankou Great Wall. In order to hike on Jiankou we had to climb up a path for about 60 minutes to reach the Great Wall. On the way up James regurgitated the pancake he had for lunch.
This part of the wall is often empty but we did see four other intrepid hikers. Another highlight of Jiankou is the enemy observation tower known as, "Ying Fei Dao Yang", so named because this watchtower was erected on the highest peak in the area, and eagles and hawks often perch on it. This part of the wall is slowly being conquered by small trees and brambles, but although the hiking can be difficult the view from the top is still stunning!
Our hike today took about 4 hours and covered about 10km. Back in the car for a two hour drive to The Great Wall where we were able to take a shower and have a meal before heading off to sleep overnight in a watchtower. It was dark when we arrived at the base of the mountain so we could not tell how steep the walk was going to be. After about 30 minutes we could see the silhouette of the watch tower. After setting up our tents we sat on the edge of the wall which by this time was bathed in moonlight. The beer that Aaron had carried up for me tasted so sweet in this perfect setting. The only noise that we heard that night was the sound of each other snoring.
Wednesday 18th September – Walking In the Rain
We were up at 6:00 for an egg sandwich that the porter has just delivered. Our tents were soon packed away and we hit the trail dressed in blue ponchos that made us look like smurfs. The rain is not heavy but fairly consistent. After walking along the wall for about 30 minutes we left it to take a trail that skirted a military camp. We tramped through fairly thick undergrowth, corn fields and up and down reasonably high ridges. The scenery was spectacular but by the time we reached the restored section of the wall at Jinshanling our boots had taken on enough water to float a couple of boats.
At around 10:00 we had reached the end of this section of the wall. As it was still raining we declined the offer of another hour of hiking and headed back to the car for our return to Beijing. The trip back was uneventful but the traffic was not. Once back in the capital the traffic slowed down to a snail’s pace. Our driver managed to find a few shortcutsand had us to our lunch destination by 1:00. We had to limit our luncheon intake to save room for tonight’s dinner.
After a good afternoon rest we headed down the alley at 6:00 in search of a taxi that would deliver us to the Black Sesame Kitchen that James has booked for tonight’s culinary adventure. After a bit of haggling we boarded a 3 wheeler who drove kamikaze style down the various bike lanes. It was quite comical watching pedestrians and bike riders scatter as he ploughed his way to our destination.
The kitchen is located in a courtyard off an alleyway. When you see a red door you know that you have found the right place. Tonight it is a ten-course meal with unlimited pours of Australian wines prepared in front of you and served at two communal tables that seat a total of 23 people. We enjoyed the buzz of the open kitchen and watched the chefs in action as they prepared one delicious meal after the other. The food was absolutely fantastic and the company of the other diners from different countries made for a great convivial atmosphere. I left with a slight glow and feeling completely sated.
Thursday 19th September – Last Day in Beijing - We Hope
A light drizzle again this morning so with nothing planned it has been a restful morning. I am feeling a little stressed as our train tickets for our trip to Tibet which leaves tonight have still not arrived. The only positive note is that we have a print out of our travel permit for Tibet.
Lunch time had arrived and still no train tickets. You can imagine my chagrin when the receptionist informed me that she did not think they would arrive as today was the start of a three day holiday period. Immediately I started to formulate various strategies if this did eventuate. To take our minds off the ticket debacle James and I headed off for a good look around Tiananmen Square. It is a huge open space surrounded by museums and The Chairman’s mausoleum. During summer this place would be unbearable due to the heat radiating off the paving stones. It would be the equivalent to a 1000 King George Squares. I could not help but feel sorry for the soldiers who were in dress uniform standing rigidly at attention, surrounded by perspex with only an umbrella for protection.At present they were decorating the square with fresh and fake flowers in readiness for the upcoming October
Back at the hotel and still no tickets! The Leo Hostel has a sister called The Leo Courtyard so we walked off in search of this establishment on the off chance that the tickets had been sent there by mistake. Found the hostel without too much trouble and after a couple of attempts at explaining what we wanted we were able to discern that the tickets were not there. Cross the idea off the list! It was now 4:15pm and our train for Tibet is due to depart Beijing West Railway Station at 8:00pm. I decided to ring Tibet Travel again on Skype and managed to speak to the lone girl who was working on the holiday. She explained that she had been unable to contact Tony who was our liaison for the tour. She said that she would try again and asked me to ring back in 30 minutes. To kill the time and take my mind off our ever expanding predicament I turned my attention to my old faithful Sudoku book. I promptly rang back at 4:45pm and to my relief she said the tickets should now be at reception. James immediately leapt off the bed and made a bee-line for the front desk. He was soon back clutching the source of all my angst. We rang back and thanked the nameless girl for all of her help. In the end it all worked out but they did cut it a little fine considering that the tickets were supposed to arrive the day before.
To celebrate we headed off to the dining room and ordered two beers and a pepperoni pizza with the skin on of course. A beer never tasted so good as this one. After relaxing for an hour it was back to the room for a hot shower and pack the bags. Our stay at the Leo Hostel was excellent. The price of the room which was about $36 a night on Agoda and the location to main attractions makes it a place that I would recommend. It even has a dormitory for those (Jemma) on a tight budget.
The taxis were a bit scarce so we took an illegal taxi for 100cny ($19) to the railway station as the last thing we wanted was to miss the train. The station is huge as was the number of passengers waiting for various trains. James and I are in a first class, 4 berth sleeper in carriage 5, room 3. The beds and layout are very clean and comfortable. We are sharing the cabin with two young Chinese nationals who are on the way to Nepal for what looks like their first out of country holiday. The young girl has a fantastic English name “Alice” which makes it very easy for me to remember. Her travelling partner is a very gay young man named “Join”. Alice is very quick to point out that he is not her boyfriend. The train departed dead on time at 8:00pm. It is an electric train and as a result the ride is very smooth. Around 9:30pm I said goodnight and was soon asleep.
Friday 20th September – Train to Tibet
I woke up this morning at around 6:30am and felt very refreshed after a good night sleep. The train windows are large which gives you are good view of the countryside. We have been travelling through a semi-arid region with a few farms growing corn and an occasional heavy industry plant. The journey to Lhasa is about 4800 km and is expected to take 45 hours. Hopefully we will see some dramatic changes in the landscape.
James and I ventured down to the dining car and were able to order some fried eggs and Devon sausage (skin on), sweet bread with marmalade and Nescafe. The dining area was cleared at 9:00am so It was back to the cabin for a course of drugs. James is dispensing a half tablet of Diamox which should reduce the impact of altitude sickness on us. This is a very real concern as the train will be as high as 4500 metres when it reaches the Tibetan plateau and due to our travel speed there is only a limited amount of time for acclimatization.
Nearly midday and we have been travelling through an area surrounded by mountains. This has meant travelling through a few long dark tunnels. Corn still seems to be the staple crop that is being grown but I did manage to see some sheep that were being attended by their shepherds. Around 12:30 we ventured back into the dining car and were confronted by a chinese menu. A Chinese American translated for us and we ended up with a delicious stir fried pork with rice and tomato soup. Washed it all down with an iced cold beer as we watched the landscape roll by.
Back at our sleeping berth I had a little nanna nap and was woken from a deep sleep by some excited Chinese. It turned out that we had just passed a lake. The landscape is now mostly open plins dotted with the tents of nomadic shepherds. It isn’t to often you see a tent with a chiminey. A late dinner of chilli chicken and beer and we were ready for bed
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