28.01.09
We arrived in on the train from Chengdu to Guiyang early in the morning. The city is surrounded by beautiful hills and the city itself is pretty compact. We visited the Guizhou provincial museum (a fairly new museum that displayed many nice and colourful costumes from the 17 different minority groups that live in the region) and Qianling park with many hills. On one of the hills we climbed we saw a bunch of wild monkeys. We also walked around the city and tasted some "small food" from the street vendors around town. In general we liked the city, but we saw quite alot of beggars compared to other cities we have been in so far. We got a night sleeper bus to Guilin the day we arrived, so we only spent one day in Guiyang, before we went on.
Thursday 29 January 2009
Monday 26 January 2009
Chengdu - Panda City
27.01.09
We have stayed in Chengdu, Sichuan, from January 19th to 27th. It all started with the train ride from Lanzhou, where we had to stand on the train for twenty hours. After a trip like that we figured we should take a longer rest. We haven't regretted it so far, and we take off towards Guiyang in just a few hours.
First we have to mention our hostel; Sim's Cozy Garden Hostel. It's among the best hostels we've ever seen, with an incredible atmosphere and smiling staff. We have changed some of our books with books from their library, we've eaten excellent burgers and in general we felt at home here. I'm now sitting at the hostel's internet bar and smiling when I think back to what we have done.
We have visited a Panda Research Breeding Centre, which was very cool. They really treasure these furry bears down here, and the centre was of good quality. We've also gone to see the world's largest Buddha statue in Leshan and visited and ancient Chinese town in Huanglongxi. Other than that we've just strolled around Chengdu city, visiting parks, temples, museums and tasting Sichuanese food.
The last thing worth mentioning here is the Chinese New Year Celebration. Chinese uses a Lunar Calendar, which means they have a different year count than us in the West. In 2009 the lunar year of the ox starts on the 26th of January. And we have celebrated this, in the streets of Chengdu! Even though the reckless use of fireworks caused some concerns we had a great time with other people from the hostel. What remains now is to say Chun Jie Kuai Le, a Happy Spring Festival to all of you! (We will definitely enjoy it, continuing our travel through China)
We have stayed in Chengdu, Sichuan, from January 19th to 27th. It all started with the train ride from Lanzhou, where we had to stand on the train for twenty hours. After a trip like that we figured we should take a longer rest. We haven't regretted it so far, and we take off towards Guiyang in just a few hours.
First we have to mention our hostel; Sim's Cozy Garden Hostel. It's among the best hostels we've ever seen, with an incredible atmosphere and smiling staff. We have changed some of our books with books from their library, we've eaten excellent burgers and in general we felt at home here. I'm now sitting at the hostel's internet bar and smiling when I think back to what we have done.
We have visited a Panda Research Breeding Centre, which was very cool. They really treasure these furry bears down here, and the centre was of good quality. We've also gone to see the world's largest Buddha statue in Leshan and visited and ancient Chinese town in Huanglongxi. Other than that we've just strolled around Chengdu city, visiting parks, temples, museums and tasting Sichuanese food.
The last thing worth mentioning here is the Chinese New Year Celebration. Chinese uses a Lunar Calendar, which means they have a different year count than us in the West. In 2009 the lunar year of the ox starts on the 26th of January. And we have celebrated this, in the streets of Chengdu! Even though the reckless use of fireworks caused some concerns we had a great time with other people from the hostel. What remains now is to say Chun Jie Kuai Le, a Happy Spring Festival to all of you! (We will definitely enjoy it, continuing our travel through China)
Friday 16 January 2009
Lanzhou - The capitol city of Gansu province
16.01.09
We arrived after having spent the night on the train from Jiayuguan. Lanzhou is situated in the South of Gansu, by the Yellow River (Huang He). It is a fairly big city with around 2,8 million inhabitants. According to the Lonely Planet China book, this city was at one point during the 1990s considered to be the world's most (air) polluted city. But no problem, we have bought these nice "cotton covers" for our mouths.
We quickly noticed that Lanzhou is a city full of sights. There are many things to see here. The Gansu Provincial Museum is really cool. It is loaded with Silk Road history, and with an awesome paleontological department. The last one is very interesting because of the many discoveries in this province.
We also visited an old Taoist temple close to the bank of the Yellow River. White Cloud Temple was beautiful, but it looked kind of lonely and malplaced because of all the skyscrapers surrounding it. Also we saw a beautiful mosque that is situated in the center of the city. Lanzhou has a lot to offer. It is surrounded by hills, and has a lot of parks. We hiked to the top of White Pagoda Hill. It has many nice buildings and a white pagoda on the summit. Unfortunately, the visibility was a bit like Lonely Planet warned us about.
Lanzhou is famous for it's beef noodles (niu rou mian). We decided to go to test them, and we see why. They were delicious. We ate them again a couple of times before we set off towards our next target on this journey: Chengdu in Sichuan Province.
We arrived after having spent the night on the train from Jiayuguan. Lanzhou is situated in the South of Gansu, by the Yellow River (Huang He). It is a fairly big city with around 2,8 million inhabitants. According to the Lonely Planet China book, this city was at one point during the 1990s considered to be the world's most (air) polluted city. But no problem, we have bought these nice "cotton covers" for our mouths.
We quickly noticed that Lanzhou is a city full of sights. There are many things to see here. The Gansu Provincial Museum is really cool. It is loaded with Silk Road history, and with an awesome paleontological department. The last one is very interesting because of the many discoveries in this province.
We also visited an old Taoist temple close to the bank of the Yellow River. White Cloud Temple was beautiful, but it looked kind of lonely and malplaced because of all the skyscrapers surrounding it. Also we saw a beautiful mosque that is situated in the center of the city. Lanzhou has a lot to offer. It is surrounded by hills, and has a lot of parks. We hiked to the top of White Pagoda Hill. It has many nice buildings and a white pagoda on the summit. Unfortunately, the visibility was a bit like Lonely Planet warned us about.
Lanzhou is famous for it's beef noodles (niu rou mian). We decided to go to test them, and we see why. They were delicious. We ate them again a couple of times before we set off towards our next target on this journey: Chengdu in Sichuan Province.
Wednesday 14 January 2009
Jiayuguan - The Westernmost part of The Great Wall
15.01.09
We left Dunhuang the morning the 13th by train, for the city of Jiayuguan. We were here until the evening the 15th when we jumped on the train to Lanzhou in the South of Gansu province. In Jiayuguan there are only 130000 people. But that doesn't mean the city cannot offer a lot.
An ancient fort, restored by the government, now serves as a museum and cultural park for tourists. Jiayuguan Fort is also the Westernmost part of The Great Wall. There were some great photos to be taken there, even though camel owners and shop keepers can be quite pushy at times. In addition we met a delightful young guy, at the age of seven, who had the best English we've heard so far in China. And yes, he was Chinese. He really astonished us and we had some fun, except from the fact that his mom continuosly asked about whether they could guide us somewhere in the district.
We also tried some exciting food here. Jiayuguan Bazaar really showed us that the point-and-taste tactic actually works. At least for most dishes, while others were a little bit too spicy for delicate Norwegian tummies.
That being said, the city also had some unpleasant experiences in store for us. The hotel room we stayed in, no name of hotel mentioned, was not cleaned and rather dirty. And that comes from Norwegians who like youth hostels and are used to sleeping in nature. But the fact that the floor had several used cigarettes and a lot of ashes. We also stayed next door to the common toilet, with screaming pipes and people coughing and spitting day and night. Last drop was spilled when we got a mysterious phonecall when we were going to sleep, someone asking if we wanted something that sounded suspiciously like massage. And with brothels just next door, we could only imagine what else is included in a massage.
But the room was only one part of it. Taxi drivers in the city gave us another surprise. Not only were they more noisy and persistent than in any other Chinese city (so far), but they also refused to use the meter even though we insisted several times. But it's not often as bad as it seems, and that goes for this trip as well. Because hard feelings towards the taxi drivers made us take more buses, and that gave us amazing experiences when it came to meeting people and discovering a cheaper way of sightseeing a city.
Even though we might be a little bit harsh here, we have no hard feelings at all. You have to experience both good and bad to really get a feel of an area, and we are still smiling when travelling through China.
We left Dunhuang the morning the 13th by train, for the city of Jiayuguan. We were here until the evening the 15th when we jumped on the train to Lanzhou in the South of Gansu province. In Jiayuguan there are only 130000 people. But that doesn't mean the city cannot offer a lot.
An ancient fort, restored by the government, now serves as a museum and cultural park for tourists. Jiayuguan Fort is also the Westernmost part of The Great Wall. There were some great photos to be taken there, even though camel owners and shop keepers can be quite pushy at times. In addition we met a delightful young guy, at the age of seven, who had the best English we've heard so far in China. And yes, he was Chinese. He really astonished us and we had some fun, except from the fact that his mom continuosly asked about whether they could guide us somewhere in the district.
We also tried some exciting food here. Jiayuguan Bazaar really showed us that the point-and-taste tactic actually works. At least for most dishes, while others were a little bit too spicy for delicate Norwegian tummies.
That being said, the city also had some unpleasant experiences in store for us. The hotel room we stayed in, no name of hotel mentioned, was not cleaned and rather dirty. And that comes from Norwegians who like youth hostels and are used to sleeping in nature. But the fact that the floor had several used cigarettes and a lot of ashes. We also stayed next door to the common toilet, with screaming pipes and people coughing and spitting day and night. Last drop was spilled when we got a mysterious phonecall when we were going to sleep, someone asking if we wanted something that sounded suspiciously like massage. And with brothels just next door, we could only imagine what else is included in a massage.
But the room was only one part of it. Taxi drivers in the city gave us another surprise. Not only were they more noisy and persistent than in any other Chinese city (so far), but they also refused to use the meter even though we insisted several times. But it's not often as bad as it seems, and that goes for this trip as well. Because hard feelings towards the taxi drivers made us take more buses, and that gave us amazing experiences when it came to meeting people and discovering a cheaper way of sightseeing a city.
Even though we might be a little bit harsh here, we have no hard feelings at all. You have to experience both good and bad to really get a feel of an area, and we are still smiling when travelling through China.
Dunhuang - an oasis far away
11.01.09
Arrived this morning in Dunhuang, in Gansu province. A famous laid back oasis, with surrounding desert and many historical buddhist caves and grottoes. Dunhuang is a nice little city, and we will stay here for two nights, heading for Jiayuguan on the 13th.
Walking in the desert, riding camels, and looking at the oasis from afar was a really nice experience. The fact that we are doing this in an area that was a part of the old Silk Road makes it even more exciting. There was a bit of snow in the desert when we visited it, which made it look different from anything we have ever seen before.
We also visited The Thousand Western Buddhist Grottoes, which was situated alongside a beautiful river canyon just outside Dunhuang. The grottoes were closed when we came there, but the sights were amazing.
Arrived this morning in Dunhuang, in Gansu province. A famous laid back oasis, with surrounding desert and many historical buddhist caves and grottoes. Dunhuang is a nice little city, and we will stay here for two nights, heading for Jiayuguan on the 13th.
Walking in the desert, riding camels, and looking at the oasis from afar was a really nice experience. The fact that we are doing this in an area that was a part of the old Silk Road makes it even more exciting. There was a bit of snow in the desert when we visited it, which made it look different from anything we have ever seen before.
We also visited The Thousand Western Buddhist Grottoes, which was situated alongside a beautiful river canyon just outside Dunhuang. The grottoes were closed when we came there, but the sights were amazing.
Friday 9 January 2009
Urumqi - The city that is furthest away from any ocean in the world
10.01.09
We are in Urumqi, Xinjiang. Trying to get a drift of the Uighur way of life. Went to Turpan yesterday. Nice little town with a great mosque and bazaar. Stayed in Silver Birches Youth Hostel, cozy and cheap. Leaving for Dunhuang tonight.
Urumqi is the capital city of Xinjiang province, and is situated in the North Western corner of China. The city has a population of approximately 1,5 million inhabitants (The whole region has approximately 20 mill. inhabitants). Urumqi is about 100 meters under sea level and is 2250km away from the nearest ocean.
Of things to see in Urumqi is the Xinjiang Autonomous Region Museum and the Erdaoqiao market.
The city of Turpan that we visited had an old beautiful mosque and minaret. Visiting the bazaar in Turpan was also a cool experience. The bread in this region is very tasty. We have tried out some of the different types of food like samsas (baked mutton dumplings), girde nan (nan tasting bagel), polo (a rice dish with fried meat rice and pumpkin) to mention some. Travelling here offers great views (mountains, plains, desert).
As long as one brings enough clothes, travelling here in January is no problem weatherwise.
We are in Urumqi, Xinjiang. Trying to get a drift of the Uighur way of life. Went to Turpan yesterday. Nice little town with a great mosque and bazaar. Stayed in Silver Birches Youth Hostel, cozy and cheap. Leaving for Dunhuang tonight.
Urumqi is the capital city of Xinjiang province, and is situated in the North Western corner of China. The city has a population of approximately 1,5 million inhabitants (The whole region has approximately 20 mill. inhabitants). Urumqi is about 100 meters under sea level and is 2250km away from the nearest ocean.
Of things to see in Urumqi is the Xinjiang Autonomous Region Museum and the Erdaoqiao market.
The city of Turpan that we visited had an old beautiful mosque and minaret. Visiting the bazaar in Turpan was also a cool experience. The bread in this region is very tasty. We have tried out some of the different types of food like samsas (baked mutton dumplings), girde nan (nan tasting bagel), polo (a rice dish with fried meat rice and pumpkin) to mention some. Travelling here offers great views (mountains, plains, desert).
As long as one brings enough clothes, travelling here in January is no problem weatherwise.
Sunday 4 January 2009
Happy New Year
We, Christian and Tom, have had a wonderful semester in Yinchuan. We have seen a lot and experienced even more. Now we look forward to the next semester, which will bring us even more joy and happiness. But first we will have a vacation. Chinese people celebrate the new year when the lunar calendar says it's time. So we also look forward to the 25th of January, when there will be celebrations all over China. That's what they call Spring Festival, which is a holiday spent with family. But since we don't have that much family in China, we decided to travel instead. So here comes our current travel schedule; Yinchuan - Ürümqi - Dunhuang - Jiayuguan - Lanzhou - Chengdu - ?. The question mark means that we haven't decided where to go after Chengdu. But every decision, every experience will be noted down here on the blog. Maybe just in short words, and definitely without pictures. All the most interesting pictures will be posted when we come back from our one month journey through parts of China. So all that remains is to say; happy western new year!
But for your pleasure, here are some pictures so you wont forget us while we are gone;
But for your pleasure, here are some pictures so you wont forget us while we are gone;
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