Final months in China - Sichuan Province

Chengdu is one of my favourite places that I’ve visited in China.  It’s hard to explain why as it’s primarily a big city but it’s somewhere I could see myself living if I ever returned to live in China (and not only due to the pandas!).

colourful lake

The main reason I returned to Chengdu (having been there last November) was to travel to the Juizhaiguo national park.  This is also known as the park of colourful lakes as due to the various minerals in the ground the water changes colour.  This is best seen in the autumn, along with the changing colours of the leaves on the trees, but I wanted to visit it anyway, even if it was in summer.  

I wasn't the only one there....

too many people sat down?

we followed this river most of the way up

The journey there was 10 hours on a bus through rural mountain paths.  This is the area that had been hit by a large earthquake a few years ago (2008) and you can still see some signs of this (like a ‘Broken Bridge’ crossing the river).

stunning scenery

In Juizhaiguo I actually stayed in a neighbouring village.  This had a strong Tibetan influence, as can be see from the pictures.

Tibetan house

local boys

Tibetan decor on the doors, and prayer wheels inside.

Chengdu market the end of my time in Southwest China and from there I flew east to Shanghai and modern China.

Final month in China - Yunnan Province

Once I finished my work at EF in Nanning I packed up my bags and got on a train.  2 days later I was in Lijiang, in Yunan province in Western China.  My destination was actually Shuhe, just outside Lijiang.  Both of these places are very touristy, with cobbled streets and horse-drawn karts.

Lijiang

Liiang is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and, if you can look beyond the hordes of tourists (Chinese), it is quite pretty.  I spent the day there, but most of my time in Shuhe which is similar but smaller.

Shuhe

souvenirs

When I arrived at my hostel I was met by one of the owners, who was Dutch.  I always meet Dutch people when I travel!!  He and his Chinese partner run the guest house I stayed in.  She is a great cook and residents and non-residents alike enjoy the meals here, and especially the cakes.

ladies in traditional Naxi dress dancing in Lijiang

I also met an Israeli man who lives in Amsterdam, more Dutch travellers, a British-Iranian girl and a Malaysian man.  I love this part of travelling!

playing zheng instrument in Shuhe

My next stop was Shangrila.  James Hilton wrote a book called Lost Horizons and this is allegedly set in Shangrila.  Certainly this is what the Chinese government is promoting and there is a heavy tourism push along those lines.  In fact, when I was there they were still working on building the ‘old’ town. 

Shangrila

Local ladies

That aside, Shangrila was very relaxing and reminded me a little of a ski resort in summer.  There were plenty of yaks there a (and I drank yak milk and ate a yak burger).

yak

There’s a monastery there, which is similar to the big one in Lhasa, Tibet.  I had wanted to visit Lhasa but about a month ago the Chinese changed the rules to get the permit to enter Tibet and so I was no longer able to do so.

Songanlin Monastery

The area around Shangrila is inhabited by a variety of ethnic groups, of which the Tibetans form a large part.  The décor and items sold were heavily influenced by Tibet.

After a few days there, and a visit to the monastery in the rain, I returned to Shuhe and from there onto Chengdu.  

Chinese tour group climbing up to the monastery in the rain

southern islands

South of China is the island of Hainan.  I visited Sanya, which is a popular holiday destination, both for Chinese tourists, and it seemed Russians (given all the Russian writing I saw).  I was lucky enough to be there outside of peak holiday periods so it was very peaceful.  The beaches were lovely and it was a relaxing few days away.

Sanya Bay beach

sunset on beach

rising moon over Sanya

Sanya is the southern most city in the People's Republic of China.  Due to its remoteness it was sometimes called 'the end of the sky and ocean' (Tianya Haijiao).  Apparently it was a place used to exile people who were out of favour during various periods of Chinese history.  In 2008 Sanya was the first station for the Beijing olympic torch relay.

The 'main' tourist area is Yalong Bay, where most of the 5 star hotels are.

Yalong Bay hotel

Yalong Bay

towers and views - Malaysia

Last month I took a break from China and went to Malaysia.

I spent a few days in Kuala Lumpur, mostly visiting with my friends.  We did go to the skybar, which has a fantastic view of the Petronas Towers (I kept thinking of Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones dangling off the bridge!).  

I also attended a cooking course to learn about typical Malaysian village cooking.  This was very well organised, and attended by both tourists (from Australia, Hong Kong and me) and local people.  My favourite dish was Masak Lemak Udang Dengang Menas (shrimp and pineapple in coconut milk).

I travelled down to Melaka (on the straights of Malacca) which is south of KL, on the way to Singapore.  This was originally a Portuguese colony, then Dutch and finally British before becoming independent with the rest of Malaysia.  It has retained a lot of its traditional buildings and most of the centre of the town, around the river, is a UN Heritage site.  Inevitably this is now very touristy but it was nice to wander around.

I stayed near Jonker's Walk, where at the weekend they have a night market. The population of Malaysia has many Chinese (and Indian) people, so the markets were similar to the ones I see in China.  

Melaka is a hub for many artists so there were plenty of galleries to visit, and artists to watch.

The river is pretty to walk along, or you can take a boat cruise.  I went at night, though the boats run all day.

  

The tallest building in Melaka is the Menara Taming Sari tower.  You sit in a glass elevator which goes up 110 metres and then rotates at the top to give great panoramic views of Melaka.  

As always, I enjoyed the food whilst I was there.  I ate plenty of Satays, Indian food and also the Nyonya Laksa (chicken rice balls) which Melaka is known for.  

The town has retained some of its Dutch heritage with the red houses of the Stadhuys, Clock Tower and Christ Church.  I also found a guest-house named Heeren House (Men's House).

Like many touristy places, Melaka has tuk tuks to take you around.  They are very garishly coloured and reminded me of India - no doubt due to the Malay-Indian influence - and of course I went on one, even though everything is within walking distance.

It was very hot so I tended to get out early (8ish) though things didn't really open until 10.  I did find a bakery that was open by 830 and did nice croissants (something I definitely don't get in China!).  

It tended to rain in the afternoon for a bit (siesta time!) but then the evenings were nice to wander around.

One place I didn't go to was the Sultan's palace.  Apparently this is a replica and quite impressive, from the time before the Portuguese came and there was a Sultan of Malacca.

Qingxiushan Peach Blossom

Each year, when the peach blossom trees bloom, the people of Nanning go up to Mount Qingxiu to hang prayers on the trees for good luck and fortune. I went there with some colleagues to get a taste of it. It's been unusually cold in Nanning this year so the trees haven't bloomed much yet but it did look pretty amazing anyway.

peach blossom forest

blossom

Jessica hanging her prayer on the tree

blossom and prayer slips

prayer slips

Spring Festival/Lunar New Year

The most important festival in China is Spring Festival/Chinese New Year.  This is when all businesses close, people travel home to visit their family (it's the largest human migration in the world with an estimated 1bn people traveling) and people go crazy for fireworks!

As with most festivals, people love to eat.  In the north they eat special dumplings shaped like the moon crescent, symbolizing new beginnings.  Some Jiao Zi are stuffed with sugar to wish for a sweet life and others have coins hidden inside.  If you find the coin it means you will enjoy good luck and make a lot of money in the coming year.

In the south I've been told they eat 'hot pot' (chinese fondue) or sweet, sticky rice cakes called Nian Gao.  This means 'New Year Cake'.  This can also mean higher each year, symbolizing progress and promotion in work and daily life: general improvement in life.

I had hoped for lots of festivities in town but other than some private fireworks and the odd dragon parade to welcome the year of the dragon, I saw nothing special.  I'm sure the story would be different in the larger cities of China.

At my work, we got oranges.  The Chinese word for oranges sounds like Ji which means good luck.  By giving the oranges, people are wishing you good luck for the new year.

In preparation for the festival, people do a spring clean of their house (sweeping away the bad luck) and at our school we 'sealed the windows'.  I'm not sure what this was for, I think this was to show if someone had tried to break in, having said that, we would have seen this by the broken windows.  People give each other gifts, and this is money in a red envelope.  Because everyone is looking for money at this time of year, you have to be more vigilant with your stuff as there is more pickpocketing going on.  A number of our students had their phones stolen by people driving by on motorbikes.  We heard that there were gangs in Nanning who'd come from Guangzhou as the police control was very strict there.

After the first week of celebrations, shops began to open again and people returned to the city.  Then the sales started and people bought new clothes for the new year.

Finally, the Spring Festival finished with the 'Lantern Festival' on the last day of the lunar month.  On this night, lanterns are lit and some are left to float in the sky.  I had witnessed this last year, and it is a real indication of the fact that I've almost been here one year already!

xīn nián kuài lè

thing I love (and hate) about China...

I'm sure this will get added to over the next few months...

Asking for directions:
I was in town looking for a specific area (where beauty treatments are done on the street).  I couldn't remember where exactly it was so I called my Chinese friend and stopped at a newspaper kiosk to ask for directions.  My friend spoke to the shop lady on the phone and then the lady locked up her kiosk and took me to the place, realizing I couldn't understand the directions she was giving me.

Eating in public:
Growing up we were often told to 'close your mouth whilst you are eating;.  I don't think the Chinese are told this.  It's quite disconcerting to sit in a restaurant (or with local colleagues at work) and to hear lips smacking all around you.

Smoking in restaurants:
The smoking in public places ban which seems to be in effect in most of the western world definitely has not hit China.  Every time I come home from a night out with smokey hair and clothes I'm reminded of how much I appreciate this law.

Tuk Tuk drivers:
One of the easiest way to get around is to use the '3-wheeled vehicles' (tuk tuks).  One of the things I like about them is that the drivers, who are often slightly disabled, are kept in employment and don't have to live off handouts.  I came home from the supermarket in one recently and when I got out and unloaded all my bags at the side of the road, the driver stayed around until I'd moved all my bags inside the secure compound where I live.  Then she drove off.  I thought it was nice that she was ensuring none of my stuff would get robbed.

Locals' intrigue of foreigners:
Nanning is not proficient in English speakers.  The people that do speak English are generally high school or university students, or young kids who obviously attend schools like mine.  Parents are often trying to get these kids to 'say hello to the foreigner' (this is said in Chinese, which by now I understand).  The older generation generally doesn't know any English, but this doesn't stop them from wanting to talk to us.  I've sat at a bus stop before and a lady came to sit next to me.  After a few minutes (of looking at me but not saying anything) she got up to leave.  I think she just wanted to sit with a foreigner!  There's also a man who runs a food shop near my house and whenever I pass it on the way to the bus he shouts out "I love you".  I think that's the only English he knows and he's not partial to women or men as I've heard him do it to my male friends too.

Toilet training the kids:
The 'asian' toilets involve you squatting down.  Little kids are taught this from a young age and their clothes accommodate this.  They have trousers which have a slit in the bum and whenever they need to 'go' they squat down and the trousers open up.  This is done anywhere, so it's not unusual to see a kid on the side of the road, with the parent hovering nearby.