Hong Kong, can we talk.....!!!

Once again I sit watching, in this case, the sea below me, getting further away as we leave yet another wonderful City, Hong Kong this time and the last place for us to leave in our travels through China.

It's with heavy hearts, we leave this land of smiling, happy, rude, helpful, cheery and most of all, kind people. I have to say, that with only a couple of exceptions, China was a great country to visit and a pleasure to view!!!

With all its challenges, what, with so many people, various cultures and being communist(if only on paper), it works, in an uncomplicated way, whether it be the traveling or staying, places were easy to get to and breathtaking to see. My favorite place, mmmmm, I would say, will have to be JiuZhaiGou, the reason for that being the green, open feeling I had whilst there, but what more could you expect when you are literally in one of the highest places to see, with the obvious exception of Tibet. I do hope to see Tibet before I die, as if the people of JiuZhaiGou are representative of the Tibetan culture, what a wonderful world it must be!!!

Anyway, again I digress; I was going to tell you of the time we had in Hong Kong.....Ahhhhh, a place that never seemed to sleep, let alone be without a person, at every turn. This city doesn't just tick, it whizzes, if there is such a thing. Never have I seen SO many people be able to move around, whether it be by ferry or bus, taxi, helicopter or train, there is a way to get to and from anywhere. The other thing I was gob-smaked with, were the amount of stores and the walkways and tunnels that allowed you to get to them. In fact, for us to get to the Victoria Peak Tramway, a good 3/4 of the walk was either under ground or in/on some sort of a walkway; and all of these, had shops on, under or above them. Inside the countless Malls, you'll find the most amazing restaurants and food stands too, selling anything and everything, including the ridiculous and the sublime and when you do get to the actual 'open air', you're again bombarded with people and even more stores!!!

The views from the top of the Tramway are out of this world, as you stand on a platform, above ALL the buildings, that are clustered together like Penguins in the cold(ha, let's just say, the platform is a flat roofed building with an almost unending set of escalators, running down its center) and the Tram itself is great, considering it was built by the Brits, almost as soon as they arrived in Hong Kong. The funniest part of the Tram is that you go up the mountain facing up the hill and come down, facing the same way, ie: backwards, I told you it was built by the Brits!!! It had it's own Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum and at the top, was a figure of Michael Jackson(may he rest in peace), that everyone was getting their picture taken next to. There too, was a 'computer land' where we lost Tayler for a couple of hours whilst Nancy, with me in tow, did some, yep, you guessed it, shopping(and she says she didn't shop), in the many stores that were nestled on either side of the escalators!!!

Speaking of escalators and walk-ways, take our visiting the Big Buddha on Lantau Island for example. We started by walking via a covered bridge-way from the Hotel, to a Mall, where we descended a couple of levels into the belly of the MTR Station. Having bought our tickets, we then descended yet another two floors to the platforms, where we boarded the cleanest underground train that I've ever caught, yes, swine flu did cross our minds a few times, whilst we hopped on and off the various escalators!!! After about a 45 minute ride(going past the Disney Station, complete with a Mickey Mouse Train), we arrived at Tung Chung, where upon exiting the station, walked a bit(about a quarter mile), to yet another escalator, which took us to the ticketing booths of the Crystal Cars(namely glass bottomed cable cars). We climbed aboard our own car and were wonderfully transported to a green valley oasis, 25 minutes away called Ngong Ping. As you can see by the photos, it was drop dead, breathtaking; but because of the reverence of this place to the Buddhist Faith, cameras were not allowed in, so what I'm unable to show you unfortunately, were the Religious Relic, Buddha Statue and Bell that were housed inside the Big Buddha itself!!!

Some other artifacts on display were unbelievably beautiful drawings(done in blood), of varying times in Buddha's life and miniature scrolls and pictures, only visible under a magnifying glass(think Jewelry Loop) and seeing these relics, further cemented in my mind, the unbelievable contrasts that happen everywhere in China, a land of complete Yin and Yang!!!

Take for example when you buy your tickets to the Buddha. At the Crystal Cars, you pay more to 'get' to it and when you get there, find that to 'go' there, need another ticket, oh and not only does this ticket allow you to see the Relics but also gives you a free bottle of water and ice-cream once you've gone 'through' it. The example, if you didn't quite get it, was that you can't take photos because of it being a highly religious place , but can charge 3 times because it's a highly religious place, let alone swill water and eat Ice-cream ; well actually, the water and ice-cream were needed after the stairs and the heat(someone did their marketing homework!!!)

Anyway, a good time was had by all and the journey home was one filled with Australian Ladies, out for a good old.....you guessed it, SHOP!!!

Ades

Sanghai Neighbours!!!

As I've said, China is a land of contrasts and no more so than the neighbours that each and every person shares. Whilst walking through the streets of Shanghai, we took a turn and to my surprise, stumbled on an 'old' section of town. As you can see, the houses are small and for the most part really well maintained, with outside sinks and communal toilets, yes, I said it, communal toilets. Unlike the Hutong section of Beijing, in which each household shares one toilet, this section had a few homes, sharing one toilet, well, more like an ablution block, consisting of a mens and a women's, separated by of all things, the garbage cans(which I hasten to add, were neatly hidden behind doors with flaps).

Now this is were the contrast part comes in!!!

After a few more turns and a few more sights, we came to the main road, where as expected there were hundreds of cars, scooters and people, but also, there were these amazing brand new high rise apartment buildings, standing one after the other, almost like soldiers at attention!!! The intersections, modern day masterpieces of concrete, steel and glass, specifically designed for the mass transit of pedestrians needing to get across, in any given direction.

Back to the 'old'.....Here you find dumpling factories, as I did, which consisted of a young man in this case, rolling the dough into a sausage, swinging it like a skipping rope in front of him, allowing it to twist on itself, then repeating the proces, before ultimately pinching off quarter size pieces, to press into discs, ready for filling!

In another doorway, there was on old lady and man, eating soup and noodles, with the 'smallest of restaurants'(1 table & 4 chair), I guess, to sell whatever food they had left after they had eaten their fill, one way to pay for your 'daily bread'!!!

After roaming the streets for a few more hours, we stumbled once again on YaYuan(OooWan, phonetically), to indulge our newly found palate for XioLongBao!!!

Ades

1st OR 2nd!!!

Sitting here in the 4 Berth Sleeping car of a Chinese Train, I wonder how 'they'(the Concierge) got it wrong, or did they, read on.....

How is it that after saying I wanted a 1st Class 'soft sleeper', did I manage to get a Second Class, not-so-soft Sleeper???

Ahhhh, well if nothing else, the sheets are clean, there are no weird smells and the family is all in the same cabin; it would have been Nancy and myself in one compartment and Tayler and the now '6' bags in another(yes, the bags have been steadily multiplying).

Laying back on the bottom bunk, reminds me of those 'good old days', when I used to have to suffer the voyage between Gwelo and Salisbury on Rhodesia Railways, at the beginning and end of each school term; this however, is luxury in comparison, as in those days, we never got to enjoy the bunks, let alone the compartments!!!. However, there really is something romantic or perhaps soul calming about traveling by train, maybe it's a mental throwback, to when things were slower in pace, or could it just be that familiar rocking to and fro(think being a baby), which lulls one into that certain Zen state, I feel right now(go on, if you think about it for a second or two, you know exactly what I mean), provided you've travelled on a train that is!!!

Sitting in the compartment earlier, enjoying 'Ramen Noodles'(mine; Shrimp and Veggies, Tayler's; Beef, which tasted more like Chicken and Nancy's a Spicy Sichuan Beef), shall be a memory for me to cherish for a long time, as it was so simple and uncomplicated and such a joy. There was no thinking of what, where or how, just plain old smiles and happiness(Holy crap, the train just bumped and scared the bejessus out of me, awoke the Family too, forgot about that part of train travel!!!). Now, where was I, oh yes.....it's the small little uncomplicated things, that make life so worth living and traveling by train, allows you to feel that way, if only for a few hours!!!

Just thought I'd share!!!

Ades

Say Cheese-y!!!

With a river running through the City, one has to either go over or under it, when traveling from one side to the other and this is where the cheese factor comes in!!!

As seen in the accompanying pictures, the two ways, apart from the cost factor, couldn't be further from each other than the Poles.

50RMB entitles you to a return 'trip' on what I like to call 'The Fantasy Train' or what it is actually called, 'The Sightseeing Tunnel'.....now tell me, how much sightseeing can one really do in a tunnel? This tunnel though, really is something out of this world and does allow you to take a trip, more of an Acid Trip, but a trip none the less!!!

After weaving your way down flights of escalators, you reach the little platform, where your 'Pod' arrives on a conveyor belt, to whisk you, slowly to the other side. Once in 'the pod' you have nothing more to do, then stand and wonder or stare in amazement, at the light show that you find yourself in. Think Willie Wonker's Chocolate Factory, when he takes the kids on their tour, as this has swirling lights, air sock people. 'molten magma fields' and an asteroid belt, to mention a few of the delights. Cheesy it might be, but does it do it's job, you bet it does, as it has to be one of the easiest, though expensive, ways of getting to the 'other side'!!!

If on the other hand you wish to really experience life in Shanghai, take the Ferry to the other side. These diesel fume spouting barges are fantastic, albeit in a utilitarian way and costing absolutely nothing and I mean absolutely nothing(got 4,05RMB change from a 5 for three of us), to get across. You stand alongside the scooters, bikes and fellow passengers in a holding pen and when the gates open, join in the push, to get on board. Once all are aboard, the vessel is quite skillfully weaved through the other traffic on the river, sometimes speeding up and at other times almost stopping for HUGE ship. When the crossing is done, its doors once again open, to allow yet another surge, of people and machinery out of its belly.

There is a third way across, that being in a taxi, which will cost about 25-30RMB, depending on where you begin of course, however the time factor involved, doesn't make it worthwhile. It took about 45 minutes for us to get from Ya Yuan(the Old City) to our Hotel, the same amount of time it took us a few days later to walk from there, to the ferry and have a ride to remember!!!

Ohhhh, forgot to mention, the other thing about taking a cab is that you sit in the traffic, UNDER the river!!!

Happy crossings and remember to say.....'Cheese',

Ades

Shanghai

So, here I sit at the desk in front of the window, with this magnificent view.....far better than the bathtub, with an equally magnificent view I guess. It's pouring rain, as I write and being here, right at the window, allows me to see the lightning bolts as they strike the buildings just across the river and a few right next to me, so close, that you don't have time to do the 1-1000, 2-1000 count before the thunder clap and when I say clap, I mean C-L-A-P!!!

Shanghai, has shown us even more contrasts than the ones we've seen during our travels, these past few weeks. A city of two sides, literally, the Pudong side being the 'new' skyscraper side and the Bund side, being the 'old' Shanghai, which includes Ya Yuang and its gardens, where 'Mission Impossible 3' was filmed.

I've rattled on about the steamed dumplings, well this is where you can find 'THE BEST' XiaolongBao(Shiowlongbaow, phonetically!!!) anywhere. We've visited a few restaurants whilst here and the one best we found, was with the longest line outside(go figure) and it consisted of three floors, each having its own kitchen, complete with chefs, doing nothing more then producing a myriad of these delectable delights. Here are a few, truly different ones that we had:- Sweet Cashew w/Black Sesame Seed, Sweet Rice w/Salt Pork, Spicy Soup w/Crabmeat, Sweet Pea and a Curried Beef. The Curried Beef were amazing, like the Sweet Cashew, were baked, not steamed and the dough, was the lightest, flakiest pastry dough I have ever had in my entire life(My Granny Waddy, used to make unbelievably flaky pie pastry, but this took the cake!!!).

The Sweet Rice and Salt Pork, were these little thread bound, leaf wrapped 'bundles of joy', the rice, so sweet and sticky that it didn't want to leave the leaf; and the Spicy Soup w/Crabmeat ones, had no fish flavour whatsoever, to where my Family never realized there was any fish at all!

Anyhooo, we're off to Hong Kong tomorrow evening, on the train would you believe; a 20 hour trip from here to Kowloon, mostly overnight alas, as I would have liked to have seen a little more of the Chinese Countryside! I will have time on my hands though, to write in a lot more depth, about the things we've done and seen during our stay in another beautiful City, of many millions!!!

Until then, Ciao,

Ades

Yak, Yak, Yak!!!

Yes, you got it, I'm about to tell you about the Yak.....apart from almost hitting one, to get here, I've had the pleasure of being able to eat one too. Think beef, but not as strong, maybe more Veal in taste. I'm sure others might beg to differ but that's my take!!!

I've eaten it two ways so far, the first in a Sichuan Hot Pot: A pot of bubbling broth, filled with Dried Chilies, Sichuan Peppers(Hua Jiao), Chili and Sesame oils. Add to this, your meat(in our case Black Chicken and Yak), noodles(one order of 'Glass', another of 'Flour') and vegetables(local, think robust Romaine!) oh, and an order of Tofu for good measure, let it boil away for a while, then using the slotted ladle and regular ladle provided, fish out and enjoy!!!

The flavour is that intense, mouth numbing, mind blowing, slightly sweet pungent,  fire hot taste, that I now know is only to be found here in the Sichuan Province. 

How can you taste the Yak you might ask with all those other things in there? Funnily enough, each ones own distinctive flavour shone through, even from under all that spice, I mean, the Chicken still tasted like chicken, the Vegetable, like.....mmmm, let's say mustard greens and the Yak, as I said, like Veal!!! The Noodles reminded me of slivered, Wonton skins and the glass noodles, well, they just absorbed the flavour of the broth, so those were hard to tell!!!

The other preparation I've had, was a Tibetan way. This dish was not spicy at all, the Yak being sauteed with an Aspargus-Broccoli shoot vegetable(forgot the name, hence the terrible description), Garlic, Onion and Red Peppers, thus allowing me to make up my mind, that it had more of a veal, rather than a beef or lamb taste, for that matter. Even in it's raw state, it had a much brighter, strawberry red, as opposed to your normal beef colour!

That same night, a couple of other Tibetan delights that I had the pleasure of tasting were Fried Chili Lamb Loin and Shredded Dry Beef with Peppers. The Lamb was prepared in much the same way as the Fried Sichuan Chicken, except there were NO bones. I gather it had been dusted with either corn or potato starch, as it was crispy on the outside, yet deliciously moist and tender inside. It had that same chili bang that I've mentioned previously and the 'old familiar' numbing, that Hua Jiao, can only offer. 

The Shredded Dry Beef and Peppers was a delicious dish of just that, shredded dried beef and shredded chillies(both red and green), sauteed together, to give you a wonderful full flavoured beef(for those Africans among us, think moist biltong and chilies with out the chew and for those non-Africans, think Southern dried beef, Hormel makes it and it comes in a can!!!)) and chili. The robust taste of the beef, allowed it to shine thorough the bite of the peppers, will have to try this one when I get home as I've started collecting the peppers necessary to make some of the dishes I've tried.

BTW, I am now sitting in the InterCon' in Chongqing and hopefully we'll get to 'Food Street' tonight, where I'll definitely be trying some new dishes and hopefully will be able to publish the photos that go with them. 

Until then, happy eating and reading too,

Ades

Jiu Zhai Gou

It's barely 4 in the morning, yet here I sit wanting to tell you of this magical place I find myself in!!!

Jiu Zhai Gou has to be one of those places pulled straight from the playgrounds of the Gods. Apart from being high enough up, to make you feel that way(oxygen is sold in 'to go' cans!) the scenery, sounds, people and their food, are just mind blowing!!! 

Apart from having the highest airport in China(it literally is the top of a mountain that's been shaved flat), this place has some of the most colourful water known to man. Legend has it that a Princess had her mirror broken by a Devil, shattering into 108 pieces, which today are the lakes that fill the region. The clarity of the water is eerie, as it allows you to see fallen trees coming from below, which, given my imagination, made me feel that I had been given the pleasure, of being able to see a land lying far below!!!

The blues, greens and smattering of yellows, all blended perfectly; a couple of the lakes filled with Papyrus and/or what to me, looked like overgrown Rice, but with channels running through, that were icy blue and in some places turquoise. These lakes or 'lakelets', gave way to gushing waterfalls and in other places mini falls, that ran through the vegetation(think miniature Niagara or Victoria Falls, that sprung up from under the trees and grasses). I know it's hard to imagine but hopefully the photos will aid you in understanding what I'm saying!! The mountains are bare and rugged, yet soft and filled with trees, so you never know what's around the next bend or lying just over the horizon. Each morning, the birds wake you with their different chirps and shrieks, one of which I could swear is an Eagle, to calm into a silence that only a mountain top can offer.

The people are mainly Tibetan, with rosy cheeks, smiling eyes and happy faces, who, despite the language barrier, seem to 'get' what you need and take care of it without any of the attitude that can only be classed as Chinese. When I say that, don't get me wrong, the people in China have been great, but in cities of 18 million people, there definitely is an abruptness, that's not found here(why would there be, there's room to move and air to breath, albeit thin!!!).

The food is different form your normal Chinese fare, with Rabbit, Yak and Lamb being offered, instead of Chicken, Beef and Pork and there too are a lot more vegetables(local that is), offered which makes a pleasant change.

On that note I finish this blog, to get myself going and out of here. We have a high altitude hike today, only about 4500 meters up, now you know why there's oxygen on tap!!!

Ades

Well, there seems to be a problem with the Photo load right now, so check out www.juizhai.com to see EXACTLY what I mean. Sorry for this inconvenience, maybe someone's "watching" if you know what I mean!!!