Winter in Nanjing

Even the light in the subway in Nanjing attracts me. The yellow light makes feel warm. In Beijing, the capital of China, everything is white, from lights to people’s hearts.

Day 1

The 1912 Bar Street is the first attraction for my trip. It is near the former presidential palace of the Republic of China. It is now winter holiday, so the street is not so crowded as usual, but it is a very good time for photographers. The yellow light makes the wall of the buildings look like medieval castles.

Day 2

Qinhuai River has been a well-known river since ancient times. Countless opera boats are waiting for customers on the river, and countless love stories are happening in the boats. It is the mother river of Nanjing.

Day 3

I have heard of the Bridge on Yangtze River of Nanjing for a long time. It was the longest road and railway bridge when it was built in 1968. It looks really long.

West Sea Canyon Hiking

Almost every tourist attraction in Mount Huang is full of travelers during high tourist seasons, except the West Sea Canyon. It is because hiking is the only way to travel to the canyon. Most tourists will be scared by the steep and long steps in the canyon

I nearly became one of them. I did not know there is a West Sea Canyon when I traveled to the Mount Huang. I went to the mount just because I was too tired to continue my work. I needed to relax.

I still remember how I discover the canyon by accident. I have been walking on the Mount Huang for a whole day. Suddenly the entrance to the canyon emerges. Like most tourists, I don’t want to enter it when I see so long and long and long steps, but there is an old Chinese saying “The most beautiful views are always located in the steepest peaks”. So I decided to try it. I will stay on the Mount Huang for two days. If the canyon is really worth to visit, I can go just a short distance today and visit again tomorrow. Thank goodness! I made the decision. The views changes completely when I pass the first curve. The pines and rocks are surrounded by clouds, which makes I feel I am in paradise. The tender rain and breeze keep touching my face, just like mother’s hand. It is almost night now. I have to go back. See you tomorrow, little canyon.

I searched on the internet in my hotel room. The canyon is liked by every tourist who has ever traveled to the canyon. Hiking in the canyon usually take 4 to 5 hours. It is good to me. I will check if the canyon is really as beautiful as travel forums say tomorrow. The rain is a little heavier and wind is much stronger this time, however it is not enough to force to give up. Some tourists are stopped in front of a cliff. The wind is much stronger and the rain is much heavier here. They tell me they even can’t open their eyes. I encourage them to go with me. I don’t know when I will go back to the Mount Huang, perhaps never. I don’t want to regret when I go home. Fortunately, all of us decide to continue and both the wind and rain are getting weaker after we passed the cliff.

My Backpacking Stuff

I am not the type of backpackers who often risk their own lives. If I go to somewhere dangerous, I will definitely hire a guide. Here I just want to share something I will bring when I am travelling alone.

Weapons

Do not get scared. I am not telling anything about crimes. I think for it is necessary for a backpacker to take something, such as a knife, alone with himself. I have an army knife. If someone wants to rob me, I will show him the knife. If robbers see an army knife, they may think you really want to fight against them. If you only show them a fruit knife, they may think you will not try your best to fight. If they do not think you will try your best, they will try them best.

Food and Water

Although I normally do not stay in the wild, I always prepare food and water, which can support for two days. If the views really appeals to me, I may stay a bit longer, so I need enough food to make me not so hungry.

Cell phone

I have to make sure there is enough power in my cell phone. I think everyone knows why.

Camera

It is indispensable for every backpacker. Record beautiful views, post them on forums and wait for other people’s likes!

Electric torch

I like to go to the top of mountains to see sunrise. It is exiting to climb mountains in dark before the sunrise. So an electric torch is necessary.

Dunhuang - Starting Point of the Silk Road

Dunhuang is the starting point of the famous ancient Silk Road. For the people from south or east China, Dunhuang looks like a foreign country, because the culture and landscape in Dunhuang are very different their hometown.

On the Train
I could choose airplane. It is even cheaper than the train, but my friends told me that I won’t be disappointed if I choose train. The views outside are free! See what I saw on the train below.

Statue of Dunhuang Fairy 
It is the logo of Dunhuang. Who can play the Chinese lute in that way?

Mogao Grottoes
It is the most famous tourist attraction in Duhuang and elite of Buddhist culture. Fresco in every grotto is priceless. Only 40 grottos out of 735 are open to tourists. We are not allowed to take photo in the grottoes, so the photos below were scanned from the pamphlet.

Yumen Pass
In ancient times, it is the entrance for western merchants, but now it is desert…

Great Wall Built in Han Dynasty (B.C. 202)
Most sections of the Great Wall we can see now were built in Ming Dynasty (A.D. 1368). It is really fortunate to see the relics of Han Dynasty

Crescent Spring
It is amazing to see a spring in desert.

Pattaya – Travel with a Group

This is my friend Pavel Hernandez’s travel experience.

Our company is good to us. We can travel to Pattaya for free! I have got this message for over half a year, so I have enough time to search about it. Pattaya is a small city near Bangkok. Yes, it has to be near Bangkok, because Thailand is not a so big country as China. By the way, I am not a Chinese. You can see it from my name. I was born in Chile, but I have been working in China for over 6 years.

Our flight takes off at 23:00 and will arrive in Bangkok at 00:40, local time. We arrived on time. Although we are in south China, but it still surprises us to wear shorts in April.

We got up at 8:00. You have to get up on time if you choose to travel with a tour group. In the dinner hall, we hear Chinese, and Chinese, and perhaps my local dialect. My group mate asks me:” Are we in Thailand?”… Good question. People in other countries often call Chinese “walking wallet”. You will strongly doubt whether China is still a developing country when you see so many Chinese are traveling and shopping all around the world.

Menam River Cruise

Today we travel inside Bangkok. The first activity is Menam River cruise. It is really fantastic! I can see almost every major architecture in Bangkok during the cruise. Then a group of fish comes to us. The owner of the boat sells us bread to feed the fish. They are so big that I think what they want to eat are live animals, but not bread. I can even see their teeth clearly! Several deluxe boats came into view. Our guide told us these boats are used to celebrate the birthday of the King of Thailand.

Fish fighting for bread

There is a lady boy show in the afternoon. There are some adult content, so I don’t share in my post.

Songkran Festival

The Songkran Festival is like China’s Water-Splashing Festival. People splash water to each other and smear a kind of mud made by the local people onto other people’s faces. It is harmless, so when I thanked the buddy who did it to my face. The festival is really necessary, otherwise everyone would be dried by the sun. On our way to Pattaya, lots of kids are splashing water to our bus. How happy they are!

Songkran Festival

Pattaya Beach

I really can’t believe what I see on the beach of Pattaya. Russian tourists planted their national flag on the beach. It means they like the beach very much, but it can also mean they own the beach… Normally, tourists want to enjoy the sunshine on the beach, but I am scared by the sun in Thailand. What I want to do is lying in any shadow I can find. In fact I love the sea. It is the type of tour who switched me off. I WILL NEVER JOIN A TOUR GROUP FROM NOW ON, even if it is free. I have to follow our guide’s order in a tour group. This make me tired very soon.

The highlights is the diner on the beach. I never saw so big shrimps and crabs before!

Miscellaneous

Thailand is a Buddhist country. I can see Buddha in every lobby of the hotels we stay. However, I don’t understand why there are so many red-light district in a Buddhist country…

Cruise to Gulangyu Island

I cruised to Gulangyu Island last month. Actually I went there by plane and boat, but my thought was cruising! Lots of my friends told me the Gulangyu Island in Xiamen is one the most attractive islands in China. It is near the land of Xiamen, so I can either stay on the island or go back to Xiamen to pass the night. I stayed on the island, even though the hotels on the island are three times more expensive than the hotels with the same star rank on the land. I believe the night is the best time to understand the local culture of a place.
My plane arrived in Xiamen Gaoqi Airport on time. I took a taxi to the port. About half of my colleagues have ever been to Xiamen, so it was impossible for the driver to charge me more than reasonable taxi fare. Fortunately, I arrived at the port at 17:15. That means I can see the sunset on the island. It is not unusual to see a plane delay in China because of lots of reasons they won’t let passengers know… I jumped onto my boat. My actual journey starts now.

The boat will go around the island before send us to the island. On our way to the island, we can see the Jinmen Island, which is under the control of Taiwan. Although the government of China does not acknowledge that Taiwan is a country, actually it is. It is the first time I see a sea. The sea is blue, endless, in a word, it is unbelievably beautiful.

Jinmen Island

We finally land on the island. It is the time for sunset. The sun is falling down slowly as if the sea is going to eat it. The sunshine of a falling sun is the most fascinating. It is gentle and won’t make my eyes hard to open. Nightlife begins. The most famous food on the island is jerky, but not some kind of seafood. I bought eight bags of different jerky for only 100 RMB. I think the jerky can support me for three days. The nightlife on the island is not so different from the land. I think the only difference is the wind from the sea.
I do not like bars, so I chose to lie on my bed to appreciate the moon. It is light, big, round… and I wake up. Today is beach time. I do not do anything except enjoy the sunshine on the beach. Sometimes, I swim in the sea. The sea water is not so beautiful as it looks like. I can feel it is biting my skin every minute. In my city, people go to the Li River to swim. The water is clean and cool, and makes me feel much more comfortable than the sea water.

Jerky jerky!

I do not go to any attraction which need entrance ticket on the island. I will do it when my husband travels with me next time… He pays everything!

Never So Close to Terracotta Warriors Before

Great Wall and Terracotta Warriors are perhaps the two most renowned tourist attractions in China. I had been to the Great Wall in Beijing last century, but for the Terracotta Warriors, I had only seen them on TV programmes.
Last month, I got the opportunity to see the real Terracotta Warriors by myself. Our plane landed on the Xianyang Airport, Xian. Immediately, I could feel the air is full of history. Besides, the landform of Xian also appeals to me. I live in mountainous areas, but in Xian, I can’t see even a single hill from every direction!

I am not only interested in the Terracotta Warriors in Xian, but also the fields. Xian and its nearby areas have been prosperous since the first feudal dynasty of China, Qin Dynasty (2000 years ago). If I can dig something out from the field in Xian, it might be an ancient relic with a history of over thousands of years. That was how the Terracotta Warriors were discovered!

Unfortunately, the lovely local people didn’t allow me to dig their fields. So I was on my way to the Terracotta Warriors Museum. The Terracotta Warriors were the Qin Shihuang’s funeral objects. He wanted to continue his rule even after his death, so he made these warriors. Qin Shihuang was a war maniac. I can see this from his warriors’ expressions and actions. They are divided into several squads. Every squad has its own captain and different kinds of soldiers. Every soldier is serious and disciplined. That was why Qin Shihuang’s army could defeat other 6 countries to unite China.

Disciplined Soldiers

It is a pity that the Terracotta Warriors were more or less broken because of the wars and oxidization, and that they are being exhibited in the pit about 4 meters deep. I can’t see them clearly. I understand. If everyone can touch the warriors, they would have been destroyed completely…

Out of the museum, I saw some imitations of the Terracotta Warriors. They are perhaps the best presents for my family.