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!!!

A Meal to Remember!

As I sit and watch yet another city(Chengdu) disappear beneath me, I cannot wait to get to our new destination(Jiu Zhai Gou), to try some new foods and to enjoy the wonderful mountains and scenery we have been told so much about.

The grey skies that plagued our stay in Chengdu(not in a bad way), have now given way to blue skies and pillow clouds; let's just hope that it stays that way!!!

The dinner we enjoyed last night at 'The Bridge Restaurant', will forever in my mind, remain a highlight. I cannot yet say whether it will be 'THE' highlight, as we still have quite a few more destinations to notch into out well-used Travel Belts!

The food, ahhh, where to begin!   

The Restaurant, takes up the entire bridge(hence its name) and thanks to the wonderful english our waitress, Yan Yan (or should I say Shelly, that being her English name), spoke, we were able to get the best dishes, I think anyone could have chosen: Fried Sichuan Chicken, Spicy Pork Loin, Sauteed Sweet Potato Shoots, Spicy Dofun(Tofu) and last, but not least Roasted Chicken(this one came in it's own edible noodle bowl).

Now, let's talk flavours should we.....Fried Sichuan Chicken; when first you set your eyes on the pile of, apparently nothing but chilies, you do have the thought of "Oh, God, what have I done", but then as soon as you pop the first crispy AND crunchy(they fry the chicken, bones and all), morsel in, again, the Hua Jiao makes your mouth go numb, then comes the smokey, pungent and slightly sweet, pepper flavour, with course, that blast of chili, not far behind.....unbelievable!!! 

To get over that shock, I then had some of the Pork( did I mention the word SPICY), well, those green things you see on the plate, which you may have thought of as green vegetables by some small chance, were nothing less than green chilies, split in half and cooked along side the salty, juicy slivers of meat.....I didn't know which one to take another bite of, chili-bang or pungent chili-pow, neither, I had some Tofu!!!

Now this may I tell you, apart from being pot-hot, was also, as you see, full of chili oil. The broth almost took the breath out of you, as it was pure magic. The full bodied, rich(sounds like a wine), slightly salted broth, complimented the softest but not 'mushy' Tofu perfectly, a taste of heaven, with a kick from Hell!!!

Thank goodness for the Sweet Potato Shoots, as they, bless them, were not spiced at all, which gave your mouth a shock in itself, as it really didn't know how to process the lack of spice!!! However, the lack of spice, was made up for, by the taste, which was similar to.....hmmm, Spinach with Garlic, yet with a Watercress crunch!

Last, as I said, but certainly not least, was the Roasted Chicken, which was the sweetest dish of them all, literally! It too, was the(apart from the Potato Shoots) least spicy dish, having maybe only 2-3 dried Sichuan Chilies cut up into it and the roasted peanuts, gave it a great crunch, as well as the necessary nuttiness, to offset the sugar, or cane juice they used  as their sweetener.

All round, IT(the dinner), as I said, will be a highlight of my trip, but one which, I now have to tell you, has in some way, been out-done by the Hot Pot, we had last night, or the Tibetan Dinner we had tonight.....each, completely different and equally as spicy as the other!!!

Oh, do I have a couple or three good ones for you!!!

Ades

Oh, I do need to explain the addition of us all in the photos you see. The rule in this establishment, was not to allow any photos of the food, but me, being me, just took a couple of shots of the 'Family' enjoying themselves, which of course, they didn't mind. he, he, he!!!

Bon appetite!!!

Oh, OH, need to also mention this wonderful Chinese Wine "Shelly" introduced us to.....1573: Apart from I'm sure being a great year for someone back then, is this most amazing spicy, sake-ish wine that just blows up when it reaches your oesophagus. It comes from Luzhou, Laojiao, which I know is somewhere around where we are right now. It's made from wheat and when your eating spicy foods, clears the palette, mind and of course,  THE SOUL!!!

Numbing of the mouth, not the mind!

My mouth is already watering and so too are my eyes for that matter, as I anticipate the dinner I'm going to enjoy this evening. Szechuan, or the way it is spelled here, Sichuan!!!

As promised, I said that I would give you the name of the numbing spice, well, here it is.....Hua Jiao or the English way, Chinese Prickly Ash. Apparently, when looking for this wonderful spice, one should insist on getting Da Hong Pao, as this is the best, or as we'd say in Hawaii, "Da Kine"!!!

Too good to believe; it is one of the best feelings I have ever had in my mouth; it numbs the tongue and lips in an almost addictive way!!! 

Remember my telling you of the translucent noodles found in Xian, well, they're served cold(chilled actually). Try to imagine the feeling of cold noodles, followed by burn of spices that instantly make you break into a sweat or hiccups, then, closely followed by an unbelievable numbness that starts with your tongue, to be soon followed by your lips. 

I have included a few photos of the spices, just so you can see what they look like, should you be fortunate enough to be in a place that sells them.

I am actually finishing this blog, post my meal and will start another, to tell you of that fine fare!!!

I do apologize for the shoddy picture of the 'Naked Spice', however, Geraldine, a lady Nancy and I met in the elevator on the way up to our room, just happened to be carrying a bag with the spices you see(of course I had to ask her, if they were Hua Jiao and thankfully they were) was holding them, so between her shake and mine, it ended up outta focus!!!

She also just happened to work in Hong Kong at the Shangri-la, so guess who we'll be hitting up, to show us places to eat when we reach Kowloon.....but I guess, that will be yet ANOTHER story!!!

Read on and hopefully I'll have you drooling, as I was, with the food in Chengdu.

Ades

Mid-air bumping or dumplings?

Here I sit on the plane to Chengdu, seat belt fastened tight, as the air up here has it's mind set on shaking the plane!!!  Below, nothing but the newly harvested fields of wheat, hence the local populations love affair with noodles, dumplings and anything flour based. Seeing Xian a few miles behind, amid thousands of fields, makes me realize not just how vast this country is, but too, the amount of food needed to feed its now more than 1billion mouths!!! 

Speaking of mouths, makes me think of dumplings(I should just say food), which gives me a pleasure that I can't really explain! Why is it that for someone, who apparently didn't eat that much as a kid and was picky to boot(Thanks Mom, for that enlightening piece of information), would I now want to regale you with yet another tasty tale? Who knows, but here I go.....

Tucked away in the Muslim section of Xian sits an old restaurant with 5 floors of kitchens, all of which, emitting different smells. The entry level is a bustling stainless steel top tabled maze, with a food bar displaying an array of dishes the likes of which I have never seen before and for some of them, rather not know!!! 

One platter that I could recognize, was the tiniest pigs feet, neatly stacked and roasted to perfection. Another, filled with translucent noodles with mouth numbing spice(I will get you the name, but until then, enjoy the picture!).

We as tourists or 'Round Eyes'(as we're affectionately known), were ushered to the 3rd floor, whose tables were covered with paper cloths, topped with plastic(think cling film draped table tops), where we, after clumsily flipping through the menu(thankfully filled with pictures), ordered an array of soup filled dumplings. I know I've spoken of these before, however, as we're in the Szechaun Province, the taste is completely different. The Beijing ones were, should we say the City variety, whereas these, were their country cousins!!!

 (Oops, must stop, plane starting it's descent)

O.M.G. This is beautiful, the difference in terrain between the two cities is unbelievable, Xian was dry and brown(well actually straw coloured as that's what I was looking at) and Chengdu is amazingly green. Water everywhere and paddy fields, I can actually see people working the fields and the terraced hills are like patchwork quilts to the eye.....wil continue on terra-firma!

Sitting here at the Shangri-la Hotel, Chengdu.....ahhh, modern, clean and with the most amazing food on the Concierge floor, tonight's selection, Middle Eastern, funny as I'm about to continue with the food from Muslim Street. 

I digress.....

The dumplings, a beef and onion, a pepper beef(again, with the mind, oops, mouth numbing spice), a vegetable and shrimp and a full flavoured mutton(for those of you who have never eaten mutton, think mama, NOT baba sheep), were all filled with piping 'HOT' broth, which at first made them almost impossible to eat, but tuck in we did.....delish! I must apologize for the somewhat lack-luster photos of them, but unfortunately, I realized a tad too late that I hadn't taken any, at least I got one; there you go.

We then strolled through the street, with bellies full and made a few purchases. As you can see, the streets are REALLY small, reminding me of markets you might find in of all places, the Middle East, maybe that's why it's called Muslim Street!!!

Tomorrow we're off to the panda Preserve, where hopefully we'll be able to interact with the National Treasure of this beautiful Land! Until then, I hope you enjoy reading about the food, at least half as much, as I enjoy both the eating and telling you about it.

Ades

Oh, tomorrow, we're also going for some spicy food at a HUGE restaurant, that sits on a bridge, right outside our window, 20 stories down!!!

Catch up!

Sitting here, overlooking the city of Xian, I suddenly realized I hadn't mentioned the Terra cotta armies. Looking at the photos does not allow you to feel the awe that you do, when first seeing the enormous pit, filled with these life size statues. What sort of power did the Emperors of Old have over their subjects is all I could think? Millions of people were put to work on digging the channels that house these beauties!!!

Buried 10 feet below earths surface, the channels were filled with statues, each one really is individual, in both body and face(which by the way are separate pieces). On top of the walls, beams were placed to create a roof, then bamboo matting was placed on those and then the soil was piled back, making the whole thing disappear to allow farming to continue. Hence, the surprise, when they were discovered by a farmer digging for a well. 

Generations had farmed the land, atop their heads, always believing the soil was less fertile here, than in other regions, never really knowing the infertility was caused by there being a natural(well man made) drainage field!!!

The actual Emperors tomb is the little hill you see, to this day untouched(one hopes).

Enjoy as we're off to catch a flight to Chendu, will post you later!!!

Ades

Zippin' 'round 'The Wall'

Evening all, it's 10pm Wednesday here and do I have a story to tell, so sit back and buckle up.

Ever felt you were being rushed.....no, well let me tell you about being rushed, if you don''t know what I mean!!!

As you can see from the delightful pictures taken, we visited the wall in Xian. If you are able, you can read how and when it was built.....no, really, it is an amazing site, one that's meant to be done on foot or on one of the many bikes that are available to rent, at the East Gate.

We, on the other hand, opted to take the mini bus(let's just call it that), price, 50RMB per person(a steal, seeing as though The Wall's a rectangle, nearly 14 kilometers around). The 'bus' holds 6 people and in order for it 'to move', apparently had to have 6 people.....hmmm, there were only 3 of us, so quick thinking me, offered 100RMB per person, lighter load(see where I'm going with this?), but at least the money weight was there!!!

Before leaving, our driver told us we would be given about 5 minutes at each gate(North, South, West and well, we were already at the East gate so!!!), to look around and take photos etc.

C-H-A-R-G-E and we're off, tearing down the first straight at about 30 km/ph, okay, maybe not that fast, but the wall sure was whipping by!!! 

Wait, I see a toilet, please oh please, can we stop before Nancy wets herself? Sure, brakes on, cushion slides forward, off the bench, launching me to the floor. Stop, Reverse, Stop, move it, move it, move it, we gotta go!  (Now, I need to slow down here and tell you that whilst Nancy was doing her business, the Driver set forth doing his, lowering the tire pressure, for a smoother ride!!!)

C-H-A-R-G-E again we're off, hark, I see the first corner, can we stop.....hmmm, yes, somewhat disgruntled, but stop we did, quick, snap a few pics and yep.....

C-H-A-R-G-E we were off again, STOP, phew, we made it to the South Gate. 4 minutes we're told, that must have been a quick pee, we only had 1 minute taken off, AND we managed to stop at a corner!!!

.....but wait a minute, I've lost Nancy, oh, there's a shop, go figure!!!  3 T-shirts and a bargain Silk Blouse(600RMB, asking-100RMB paid), nearly didn't seal the deal though, scared the driver would leave. Nancy literally left the store and had the manager running after her, but seal she did and.....

C-H-A-R-G-E we're off, bouncing down the grey, brick wall road, where's Dorothy when you need her? STOP, wait, we're no where, not at a gate, not at a loo, so why have we stopped.....hmmm, there's a table with 4 men sitting, driver gets out and signs a book; maybe he's being timed me thinks, no, can't be. Yep, you guessed it.....

C-H-A-R-G-E we're off again, never did find out what he signed, but as you can see, we were now rolling around the place, laughing our heads off, must have looked like a bunch of cackling Hyenas, but a good time was being had by all.

S-T-O-P we're at the West Gate, 5 minutes we're told, didn't need it though, no loo, no shops, just a Gate for goodness sakes!!!

C-H-A-R-G-E and once again, were off, screaming down the straight, around the corner, buildings flying by, architecture on the outside of the wall, sky risers and on the inside of the wall, low risers!!!

S-T-O-P now we're at the North Gate, got to get a few more pics, just for the hell of it. Whilst I was snapping, Nancy and Tayler were fending off 2 Chinese gals wanting to catch a ride, "Give me 50 and you've got a deal" I say, "No deal" they say, sooo, you guessed it.

C-H-A-R-G-E, we're off again, nearly hitting the home stretch now, only one more 90' corner left to go. On the inside of the wall, all the buildings are rubble, as you can see(sorry for the picture quality but as I said, they were flying by), Gov's making way for some new ones we've been told.

S-T-O-P we're here, the East Gate, tours over and all that, in just under an hour!!!-----SIGH-----

Now, if ever you think you're being rushed, think again and remember, you're only rushed, when you feel the wind, slapping at your cheeks.

Oh Happy Day!!!

Ades

F.Y.I.  The Wall was built in 582, yes, that's the year 582!!!

Moi