Escape from China post COVID: Thailand: Summer 2023

The main goal of this part of the trip was to see Dan. It's been years and as we both live in the same part of the world it's just nuts that we haven't seen each other in so long. 

Our plan is a speedy Northern Thailand highlights tour. We met in Bangkok and with our planes both being a little delayed, landed much later than planned. 

Dan in his infinite wisdom booked a hotel in Chinatown. This cheesed me off a tad given that I have just spent three years locked inside on China but what can you do. I was in charge of the itinerary and he the hotels. In his defense, it was a beautiful hotel but so busy. Chinatown in general is a heaving place and our hotel had a snazzy jazz bar downstairs that seemed to be full all of the time. The hotel was very beautiful and 'instagram friendly' a term that I hate, but in this case it fits. Everything was covered in lanterns, there was a waterfall across one wall, a small bridge over a Koi pond to get into the hotel and everything looked to me to be an antique (or a copy of one I guess) so there were constantly people taking pictures or trying to look like they were staying there. We felt very smug every time we were waved across the bridge into the hotel itself. 

I've been to Bangkok before so I was on tour guide duty. Luckily Dan and JiaXin proved easy going and quite happy to go off on their own if needed. 

We had a lovely mean with one of JiaXin's friends in a lovely restaurant that over looked the river and the biggest temple in the city. It was really quite pretty and the food was excellent. Dan and I had spent the afternoon in the giant market and so had to get a tuktuk across town for dinner. What we hadn't realized was just how far away everything was and we ended up getting bounced about for nearly an hour. 

We spent a very short time in Bangkok, basically enough time for them to get a feel for the place and then we headed out to Kanchanaburi, which is about 3 hours drive from Bangkok and the setting of "The Bridge over the River Kwai" of which I know very little (other than the film of course). 

Escape from China, Post COVID: Ho Chi Minh Summer 2023

From Hoian I jumped a plane to Ho Chi Minh. My all time favourite city! I can't really explain my fascination with this city, most people agree it's nice but don't have the unashamed and unabashed love affair with the city. I just love it!!!!

Anyway, after 3 years, once again I was a little nervous to see what had changed and was thrilled to see almost nothing has changed at all. It is almost exactly the same. Same chaos, same people, same food, same traffic, same shopping just completely same city. I was thrilled. 

I wandered about he old opera house and post office area, which is generally considered the 'center' of the downtown tourist area. Behind the post office, I found Book street which turned out to be a  very quaint and chilled street of tiny shops and cafes. everyone was sat reading a book and enjoying the chilled atmosphere so I joined them and watched the world go by for a while. 

I spent a few glorious days wandering about all my favourite old neighborhoods and eating as much of my favourite foods as I could. 

In my final exciting news update, I found the new street food market. Last time I was here, Mam and Dad loved it and made fools of themselves dancing about while trying to eat. My first day in HCM I went to eat there are discovered that the original location had closed. Luckily the I found it on google maps in a slightly different area but not exactly far away. Now it is opposite the freedom palace. 

I did however discover that the bar street has died a death. What used to be 2 or three neighboring smaller bars or restaurants have become these larger super club type conglomerates complete with fake leather sofas, people dancing outside on tables in their underwear and lasers into the streets. It was awful and very much not what it used to be. 

It reminded me of an old school KaoSan Rd in Bangkok but before they cleaned it up. Never mind, I am a bit too old for bar streets on my own nowadays anyway. 

My next stop in this summer adventure is to meet Dan and his girlfriend in Thailand for ten days. I haven't seen him in nearly 5 years and I had never met his girlfriend. I was a little nervous but had been assured that it would all be fine. 

Escape from China, post COVID: Hoian: Summer 2023

As the title suggests, I finally made it out of China. After three years of tests, lockdowns and so many breakdowns and temper tantrums. this moment has been long awaited. Very long awaited! 

I knew I was going to have a bit of a meltdown at some point in the leaving China journey, the only questions was at what point. 

I booked a trip to Hoian Vietnam, which has long been one of my favourite places. 

Went to the airport, first time using the 'international' side of the terminal and got in line for immigration. I handed the man my passport and after a very long time of him looking at both it and I, he stamped it. I let out a little squeak of both relief and excitement and went through the gate. I know it was going to happen, I got completely overwhelmed at the huge weight lifted off me that I nearly cried in the airport. It was terrifying and so satisfying. 

So anyway, a few hours later, I land in Danang and jump in a taxi to the hotel. The same place I stayed just before getting stuck in China for extra catharsis. I know the hotel and the area so I know I love it. 

I got to my hotel and crashed for the night after a very long journey and all the emotions. 

I got up nice and early and wandered into town to see what had changed post COVID. It had been over three years after all. I found the town mostly unchanged, not unsurprisingly for an ancient town. However I did notice a bit of a change in the types of shops and restaurants. Where there used to be millions of Vietnamese restaurants of various poshness levels, many had been replaced with western or other Asian places. Makes sense, for a long time only tourists were domestic and that's what they would have wanted in the intervening years. Took me a while to figure it out though. 

Otherwise, I am very happy to report that little has changed and Hoian is still the beautiful place it has always been. I spent four days wandering about, sitting in the pool or finding small quiet little bars to just watch the world go by. Very happy, Very chilled, Very relaxed. Almost completely cured from recent events. 

Xiamen: Tulou Earth Buildings: Spring Festival 2023

The buildings are in three main areas, each about 20 minutes from the other. By far the most famous is the 'four dish one soup' buildings and so we finished up the day there. 

From Xiamen, the Tulou Earth Buildings are about a 2 hour drive and so a nice easy day trip. I found and hired a driver for the day as the bus and train schedule looked complicated and truly not fun. He picked me up from my hotel and off we went. 

The first area was actually the most authentic of the three as fewer people seemed to visit it. From buying a ticket, I was pointed down a path next to a river, which proved to very very quiet and picturesque and eventually brought me out by a small town like street. In the river itself, was the town butcher who was just happily standing in water to wash away the blood of whatever animal he was cutting up at the time. I think a pig. All in all, I think the whole area was about a 3km walk along either side of the river and through the woods and a market. After sitting in the car for a few hours, it was a welcome break. 

The buildings themselves were smaller and looked a little less picture perfect and manicured as some of the others so it was a nice authentic feeling place. The families who lived in the buildings were very friendly and particularly curious of me, the random lone foreigner wandering about. From here, my driver took me to a second area which housed the largest buildings of the day. 

The second area, "BaGua House" is over 100 years old and just huge. Within each of the buildings are multiple families. Imagine a slice of cake as one family's home, often extending up 4 or 5 floors, and that's close to the layout of the building. There have been be up to 22 families in the past in just one building. All the houses face onto the central courtyard in which everyone cooks, cleans, socializes and so on. It's a proper self contained colony. Entrance to this building was included in the ticket price for the first location but access was limited to the ground floor. Very quickly some enterprising child approached me and said that for the huge sum of 10y, they would let me go upstairs and get a better look at the place from higher up. This turned out to be a fantastic decision as I took my favourite pictures from up on the top floor. 

This building is often called "the wonky building" as the higher floors do all seem to be at strange angles. I was told many stories but none really rang true. My favourite was that whoever was funding the build stopped paying for the builder's lunch time alcohol and so they deliberately built it a bit wonky. Doubt it's true, but I liked the image. 

This building's other claim to fame was its recent appliance in the Mulan movie (which I did not see) and so prompted a small Mulan trade craze in the small shops. 

The final area is the most photo famous area as it can been seen from the top of a small cliff behind the town. First you walk though the middle area and past a few shops then head up a very long flight of stairs to a viewing platform. The town itself was less impressive but the view from the top was very much so. The platform itself was busy and full of people fighting to get the perfect picture so I didn't stay long. Then I got picked up and we made our way back to Xiamen for my last few nights. 

Xiamen: GuLangYu Island: spring Festival 2023

GuLangYu Island is a small Island of the coast of Xiamen. It's completely packed with beautiful old colonial buildings and interesting small alleyways. As a result, it is always busy with tourists during the day but the last ferry back to the mainland leaves at 6pm, so after then, it's all people staying on the island like I was. 

Unfortunately the hotel I had booked looked nothing like the pictures and so I had a bit of a miserable time. My room was off the main road, up 2 flights of stairs, past a filthy pool and a broken down garden, into another building, along a corridor, down two flights or stairs, through a restaurant kitchen and then down a final corridor. From the front desk it was a pretty hefty walk so when the door card stopped working, every time and I had to go back to the front desk it was a pain. One time it took three goes before I got angry and made her send someone with me. Just unlucky and some bad advertising. I suspect photoshop had been heavily employed in the pictures. 

Anyway, it was fantastic getting the island with far fewer people  in the evenings. By far my favourite time of the trip. Everyone left and the shops and restaurants stayed open for us. Nothing late but still nice, chilled, quiet and the staff in these places were more relaxed and welcoming.  

The only thing really to do is to wander about the island and get lost in the streets. You can't really go that far wrong, it is a small island after all. There is a small coastal path that circles the island with most of the hotels and restaurants being towards the middle. 

On one of the days I went to the small aquarium by the ferry port. It was small and very poorly funded which lead to some hilarious exhibits. My absolute favourite was the piranha tank, in which there were 5 dead, stuffed fish hanging on fishing wire. Given how rubbish it is, it's hideously overpriced and the animals did not all look particularly well looked after. A Japanese Giant Salamander in a tank the same size as him was a bit of a tough one to see. 

After wandering my fill and trying all of the local foods, I checked out of the most disappointing hotel and got the ferry back to the mainland. Big trip tomorrow to the TuLou Earth Buildings. Another one of my bucket list items. 

Xiamen and some time in the sun: Spring Festival 2023

After Yangshuo I took 2 short 4 hour high speed trains to Kunming for a few days to visit the old Kunming family and then
took a short break in the break to XiShunag Banna. Again, I have been there before but never on the train. I know that I hate the city but LOVE the food. Dai minority food is just the best in China and I actively crave it. It's all sour and spicy mixed with just the nicest meat and BBQ. Anyway, now I am hungry again so time for some food pictures. 

After a few days in Banna, I jumped on a flight to Xiamen, the goal of this trip was to explore another potential move to destination. 

Xiamen is another seaside city that has a reputation for being a very easy and comfortable place to live so time to investigate. 

I booked into a beautiful old building homestay thing in one of the commercial districts, everything was antique and unique so it looked beautiful but wow the noise. Even the cat wandering about in the lobby could be heard in all the rooms. 

On my first day, I wandered off in a vague direction of one of those factory art district areas. A lot of old factory areas in China are being repurposed as art and restaurant areas. They're usually small but well located and have all sorts of boutique shops, cafes and market stalls. This one was small but right on a small harbour so I found a coffee shop overlooking the water and sat with my book perfectly content. 

After the art district I found the most amazing over sea walkways under the highway. I had a wonderful time sitting and watching the world go by. People watching

really is the best way to get to know the feel of a place. Xiamen so far, pretty chilled but packed with tourists! Just packed! 

After the bridge walk I found one of the many beaches and sat the watch the

sunset. 

All in all, my first day in Xiamen was a very chilled exploration of a very pretty city. 

After a few days wandering about the city, I got a ferry to a small nearby island GuLangYu Island, which is a small tourist island with no cars and a lot of history. 

I had tried to be organised and get a get a ticket online but naturally that didn't work. I spent a few hours lost and confused in a ferry terminal but it all worked out in the end! 

Next stop, GuLangYu Island! 

Yangshuo in a COVID wave: Spring Festival 2023

First, some context. Its November/December 2022 and the whole country is getting very tired of endless daily (sometimes twice daily) COVID tests, QR scanning, lockdowns popping up at a moments notice, forced quarantines, online classes and a serious lack of reliable information. In these months, there were several high profile tragedies/disasters that were caused by the COVID prevention measures. People were getting tired and angry. 

All of a sudden, all testing was suspended, restrictions lifted and we were told everything was back to normal and that COVID had basically been cancelled. People went from angry to scared, they panic bought everything in sight and every single person got sick all at once. Cities were silent and deserted, no shops or restaurants were open, no deliveries and no hospital beds. All of this happened in the space of about 5 weeks and then everyone started to emerge and try to get back to some semblance of normality. 

Our last two months of the school semester was online; but the end was in sight. The Xmas party was cancelled and so the holidays just started early. I jumped at the opportunity to get out of my tiny flat and get somewhere, anywhere that wasn't Qingdao. International borders remained shut and so that particular  route was denied to me, but the warm and toasty south still had some appeal. 

I started off in Guangzhou for a night before getting on a train to YangShuo. Guangzhou itself seemed fine and back to a busy state as they were a few weeks ahead of the north in their recovery, and so the trip started off smoothly and calm. YangShuo is somewhere that I have traveled to before and so the need for tourist sightseeing wasn't really a priority. 

I wanted to chill, recover from being sick and just generally be somewhere else with a book and no-one making demands on me. I did manage to get in a lot of wandering about and people watching and even
climbed one mountain. 

The 'mountain' in question is actually a bridge between two peaks with a cable car to the top. It's completely man made and totally for the tourists but that doesn't stop it from being a beautiful view. 

YangShuo as a town has changed a little bit from the first time I was here back in 2010 but the scenery remains some of the most beautiful in China. It is a fantastic and awe inspiring sight to see their crazy little
karst peaks for miles and miles. I love it! 

ChongQing and the passport paperwork: December 2021

From my hotel room. 

With all the travel chaos being caused in the wake of COVID with things like the borders still being closed, it was time to work out how to get a new passport while still in China. From Kunming, the closest consulate used to be ChongQing (but closed now) which is luckily a very easy hour long flight  and a pretty cheap journey. 

Flying into ChingQing

The form is truly intimidating and took me (and a few other people) several attempts before we got it close to right, plus you have to have a full color copy of every single page of your passport as you can't send the original back to the UK to get a new one. 

From my hotel room. Opposite view of Picture 2

I finally figured it, with a few other bits of paper for backup and jumped on a plane. Now this is where I really show how stupid I am. I was not aware, or rather had not considered, that there is a difference between a consulate and an embassy. Naturally I picked the wrong one and decided to stay in the main shopping street on the central island. My hotel room was an eye watering 89 floors up but gave some truly amazing views of the river and city. 

ChongQing is a mountain city, which means that it

Pic 2. My hotel is the tallest building to the left of the clock tower

is mess of elevated roads, complicated one way systems, dead ends and just so many stairs. Many times I could see where I wanted to be but just not how to get there. Maps are basically useless as they work in a 2D world but ChongQing defies this at every turn. Frustration often made me walk down the side of a very not pedestrian road just to get to the stairs that I could see, but not how to get to them. 

After I got over the shock of the scale of the city, it was time to sort out the passport. Paperwork really is my least favourite thing to deal with, its always so confusing and time consuming. Once I had found the right place, and then the right office, it took about 90 minutes of which almost all way me just sitting there as the poor girl stamped, signed and photocopied the million pages of the form and passport. 

Once that was sorted though I was free to explore the mega city for a long weekend. ChingQing is huge, and even that doesn't really do it justice. Reports vary on Google, but a population north of 25 million people. 

Everywhere you look there are masses of skyscrapers, crazy architecture and lights. It really feels like the 'city of the future' with an insane cyberpunk vibe. I actually enjoyed it, but only as a break from the comparatively small town of Kunming. 

This is a google image, but I love it. 

LuGu Lake: May Day 2021

As I have now decided to leave Kunming and try somewhere else in China, it is time to tick off the travel bucket list for Yunnan.  

LuGu Lake is on the border between Yunnan and SiChuan. The whole area is a protected national park and so has been closed for ages because of COVID. I flew to the new airport and got a sightseeing bus to the lake. The bus took about an hour and a half as the airport is miles away on the other side of some mountains. At one point we all had to get off the bus, buy tickets and then walk through a ticket gate back to the bus. 

I got dropped off at the first and closest of the towns around the lake and walked to my hotel. I had this place recommended to me by someone from work and wow were they right. My room had a balcony that looked right onto the lake. 

It was the most luxurious and comfortable place, so swanky. I had a giant circular bath that was just lovely, the only problem being that it was so huge it took ages to fill, but it was very worth it. 

The lake has pathways for miles although I don't think they all connect up completely, so I wandered off just keeping the lake on my right and enjoyed the scenery. For the most part everywhere I went was nice and quiet with only a handful of people, but as I went towards the ferry terminal things got busier, especially around sunrise and sunset. 

There's very little to do other than wander about and look at the lake so a few days is more than enough. I spent quite a lot of time either on the balcony or in the bath with my book, a real chill out time. 

I had decided to get the bus back to Lijiang which should have taken about 3 hours. Mine was closer to 4 but with views over the crazy blue/green river like these, I wasn't so fussed. 

Ben explained why the water is this colour but to be honest I can't remember and can't find out, its something to do with the chalk in the water (or something similar), sorry, never was much good at science. 

Even though I was only there for a very short time, I can completely understand how this place has become a bit of an unknown gem. Yes people know about it, but hardly anyone makes the trek through the mountains to go and see it. Hopefully the new airport won't ruin it too quickly.