The Dig on Beijing
So, I've know spent three days in Beijing and feel like I have something to report - although the first day really doesn't count because I spent it in a total haze after the thirty hours of travel followed by a night staring at the bottom of the bunk above me.
So far in Beijing I've done the basics including:
Tian'an men square
Forbidden City
Great Wall
Shopping (and eating) in the "hutong" (alleys)
Met a host of other backpackers (mostly Aussie so far)
Private "art" tour by a couple "students"
The Great Wall was spectacular. It's one of those things which was exactly what I was expecting, but you really have to see it for yourself. No picture can do it justice. We hiked 10 KM of it which took half a day, and that's out of a 5,000km wall.
Beijing is a crazy place. Like the Great Wall, it's scale is mind blowing. Someone recently told me the Beijing Metropolitan area is the size of Belgium, which, though it seems implausible, I believe. This afternoon, I sat atop Jingshan Park, a man made mountain built from the dirt from the moat to the forbidden city. It's one of the highest points in Beijing and looks out over the tiny shacks and government buildings which stretch into the distance followed by the skyscrapers which ring the city near the outer loops, all peppered by hundreds of cranes. This goes on as far as the eye can see.
I started a little slow, but that's what Beijing is supposed to be for. Mostly wandering the streets in a daze basically observing, echoes of "helloooo" trailing my every step with hopes and anticipation of rapid outflow of Yuan. Sleep is still hard to come by, so I'm still pretty hazy during the day, but have started to work through it. Last night I returned from the great wall, exhausted but determined to try some local food. I showered up and took to the "hutou" my hostel's on and found a restaurant with many locals, but a few backpackers. Within minutes I was whisked inside with a waiter hovering over me. I ordered, noodles with eggs and tomatoes which seemed like a safe bet, and of course a large Tsing Tao (beer). WIthin a few minutes I had struck up a conversation with some Italians whom were finishing their trek through china and by the end I was helping them teach the waiter Chinese. The noodles were delicious and the beer more so after a long couple days. Total bill - 6 Yuan (~ $.75).
Today was a long walk through the city including the Forbidden City and JingShan park. I stopped into a few shops where I got many stares because, although tourists are plentiful, few seem to stray from the beaten path. I've gotten ripped off a few times (2 Yuan for a bananna! Zhen De!?), I'm starting to hone my haggling skills- my crowning achievement so far being the "rattle snake sounding spinning balls" which I got for "only" 6 Yuan which is actually a lot, but the guy entertained me so I gave him a break (they're hard to explain but when you see them you'll know - family, you know what you're getting for christmas (if I can get the price lower, that is)). The highlight of my day was working my way from Jing Shan Park to the Drum Tour (the old time keeping tower in Beijing) and running into Isis, an Australian headed for Mongolia I'd met on the bus to the great wall. She came to the drum tower and after jumping on the back of her rented bike to escape the pestering rickshaws (this actually only resulted in us falling over and was not, in fact, a good escape plan). We decided to hit up a place later for Peking Duck, the local specialty. After half a duck, some beer and some rice, we were called over to the table with one of the owners and his friend. We chatted in broken English and even worse Chinese, laughed and ate something that vaguely resembled a fish in a boiling pot. They kept us there for a few more beers before we could politely depart. It's amazing how much fun you can have with someone with whom you can barely communicate. Although we were laughing too, I think they were mainly laughing at us, but that's something I can live with.
Tomorrow I move to a new hostel in the Shantalin which is supposed to be a hotbed of expats. Then, I'll decide where next.
I'll try and post some more pictures, but the internet is sparse and slow over here. Zai Jian.
So far in Beijing I've done the basics including:
Tian'an men square
Forbidden City
Great Wall
Shopping (and eating) in the "hutong" (alleys)
Met a host of other backpackers (mostly Aussie so far)
Private "art" tour by a couple "students"
The Great Wall was spectacular. It's one of those things which was exactly what I was expecting, but you really have to see it for yourself. No picture can do it justice. We hiked 10 KM of it which took half a day, and that's out of a 5,000km wall.
Beijing is a crazy place. Like the Great Wall, it's scale is mind blowing. Someone recently told me the Beijing Metropolitan area is the size of Belgium, which, though it seems implausible, I believe. This afternoon, I sat atop Jingshan Park, a man made mountain built from the dirt from the moat to the forbidden city. It's one of the highest points in Beijing and looks out over the tiny shacks and government buildings which stretch into the distance followed by the skyscrapers which ring the city near the outer loops, all peppered by hundreds of cranes. This goes on as far as the eye can see.
I started a little slow, but that's what Beijing is supposed to be for. Mostly wandering the streets in a daze basically observing, echoes of "helloooo" trailing my every step with hopes and anticipation of rapid outflow of Yuan. Sleep is still hard to come by, so I'm still pretty hazy during the day, but have started to work through it. Last night I returned from the great wall, exhausted but determined to try some local food. I showered up and took to the "hutou" my hostel's on and found a restaurant with many locals, but a few backpackers. Within minutes I was whisked inside with a waiter hovering over me. I ordered, noodles with eggs and tomatoes which seemed like a safe bet, and of course a large Tsing Tao (beer). WIthin a few minutes I had struck up a conversation with some Italians whom were finishing their trek through china and by the end I was helping them teach the waiter Chinese. The noodles were delicious and the beer more so after a long couple days. Total bill - 6 Yuan (~ $.75).
Today was a long walk through the city including the Forbidden City and JingShan park. I stopped into a few shops where I got many stares because, although tourists are plentiful, few seem to stray from the beaten path. I've gotten ripped off a few times (2 Yuan for a bananna! Zhen De!?), I'm starting to hone my haggling skills- my crowning achievement so far being the "rattle snake sounding spinning balls" which I got for "only" 6 Yuan which is actually a lot, but the guy entertained me so I gave him a break (they're hard to explain but when you see them you'll know - family, you know what you're getting for christmas (if I can get the price lower, that is)). The highlight of my day was working my way from Jing Shan Park to the Drum Tour (the old time keeping tower in Beijing) and running into Isis, an Australian headed for Mongolia I'd met on the bus to the great wall. She came to the drum tower and after jumping on the back of her rented bike to escape the pestering rickshaws (this actually only resulted in us falling over and was not, in fact, a good escape plan). We decided to hit up a place later for Peking Duck, the local specialty. After half a duck, some beer and some rice, we were called over to the table with one of the owners and his friend. We chatted in broken English and even worse Chinese, laughed and ate something that vaguely resembled a fish in a boiling pot. They kept us there for a few more beers before we could politely depart. It's amazing how much fun you can have with someone with whom you can barely communicate. Although we were laughing too, I think they were mainly laughing at us, but that's something I can live with.
Tomorrow I move to a new hostel in the Shantalin which is supposed to be a hotbed of expats. Then, I'll decide where next.
I'll try and post some more pictures, but the internet is sparse and slow over here. Zai Jian.
posted by AJH @ 8:54 AM
2 Comments:
At 10:26 AM,
Tim said…
Loving the blog, makes me feel like I'm almost there with you. When I get around to going to China one of these days I may actually know what to expect.
At 11:43 PM,
Space Monkey said…
The ten km on the wall sounds incredible. Have you done any Tai Chi with random people in the mornings?
Rather than jumping on some girl's bike and falling in the gutter, you should get your own bike or maybe old fashioned skates. You could wear knee pads and tiny shorts.
I love the picture of the street caligraphy. Could you bring me one of those giant brushes? I could tie it to my butt as I ski and write giant letters in the snow. Some of the pics looked a little foggy and chilly; is it cold?
Your blog mysteriously lacks description of fairer sex. How was the lady on the bike? Given your record and my own, would you please court a girl for me who doesn't speak English. You're better at that than I, and then I wouldn't mess it up by communicating verbally with her.
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