Guangzhou: Watch Your Leg Hairs Carefully.

Travelling in China sure is humbling.  Very humbling.  The way my trip worked out, I had scheduled my trip in ever-decreasing levels of English usage – from the formerly British-run Hong Kong to Macau, and now, the industrial city of Guangzhou.  I was a little nervous to be heading there – with a healthy dose of excitement to be sure, but as it was my first destination in mainland China, I was curious how difficult it would be to travel around.

And, well, much like the U.S. soccer team recent venture in the World Cup, my success was... mixed.

Basically, whenever you visit China, it will be the closest you will come to experiencing near total  illiteracy.  We're spoiled, since coming from a native English background, we grow used to seeing English words or fragments wherever we go.  No matter the country, whether it's navigating the metro in Paris to ordering dinner in Cairo, you normally can get by with guessing.

However, China is vastly different.  The country has only a tiny bit of English translation in use for tourists, so it's a mixture of fun and frustration having to navigate cities using only the slightest visual clues for guidance.  From taking the bus (numbers are Roman lettering, text/announcements aren't), to looking for street names, it's a challenge – and occasionally one that made me want to tear my remaining hair out of my head.  Even my eyes seemed eager for a break from all the complex Chinese characters, quickly jumping to wherever a scrap of English popped up on a sign.  Like this one, in fact:

Talk about prepared, huh?

But that's the logistical side of things – overall, China is a blast to be in with its own mix of contradictions in its exotic, irritating, super-helpful, sometimes incredibly selfish nature...

Getting to Guangzhou was a foreshadowing of this, as I wandered to the bus station to order a bus ticket.  No English, and my serious lack of Cantonese beyond the token hello/thank you made the process a little painful.  But, mutual patience and smiles made it work, and after navigating the warehouse-sized immigration control (with the plus side of finding a decent small bottle of tax-free Johnny Walker for about $3), I was on a bus and on my way.

As a bit of background, Guangzhou is a fast-growing Chinese city (duh - which one isn't??), and it has been making great strides in upgrading its infrastructure.  Thankfully for the tourist, that included a spotless and efficient metro system, that took me across to town for the princely sum of about $.20 a ride.

The downside is that popping out to find my hotel, I had my first experience with the perils of Chinese street signs.  Pure and simple, I got lost.  Hopelessly lost.  Wandering around the chaotic streets by the train station, waddling around doing my best turtle impersonation with my large rucksack, it was painful, especially since I KNEW my hostel was within 400 meters.  Sigh.

But, 30 minutes of sweaty perseverance paid off, and I finally got sorted into air-conditioned bliss, before heading back out to check out the town.

Back on the metro, a little boy was quite openly examining me with an intrigued look on his face – white folks are still something of a novelty to the average Chinese, I guess.  All of a sudden, what does the kid do?  Reaches over and pinched a bunch of my leg hairs.  Not just once, but three times – all the while his mother was mortified and trying to stop him... I guess the temptation of my hairy legs overcame his natural shyness.  Sigh, again.

After sharing big smiles all around, it was off to Shamian Island – a smallish island in the river, full of 18th and 19th century colonial homes.  It was so peaceful compared the main city, that it was like a breath of fresh air.  But, just like so much of China, at least half of it was undergoing feverish renovation, from road to new bistros and posh boutique hotels.  I was struck by this cool statue showing the changes in the roles of women, from peasant farmer to today:

I took the local ferry across the river, looking forward to the view.  After paying my $.15, we puttered out, where I got a wide, sweeping vista of... well... this:

China has a SERIOUS smog problem that makes LA of the '70's seem like the most progressive of environmental paradises.  Nasty.  I read that it's a global problem too, as up to 25% of California's pollution is wind-born from China's surging industrial economy.

That aside, it was great grabbing some mystery meat and flatbread grilled over coals in the street, then my first Tsingtao beer by the river.  The staff of the restaurant were no less curious than the boy, and kept looking over my shoulder while I typed... a wee bit distracting!

Dinner was my first foray into the spicy world of Sichuan cooking, and at Chuan Guo Yan Ji, I was introduced to stir-fried green beans in chili, with fiery hot eel swimming in chili oil.  Chili, chili, chili – it was fantastic, but I was pretty sure I'd be paying the price later as I headed back to the hotel, which (wonder of wonders!) I found on the first try.  Genius.

My second day was both unremarkable, and strangely satisfying.  There were no amazing sights or anything but it was great to just walk about and explore a 'working' Chinese city.

Breakfast was another attempt at the language barrier – with steamed rice/pork wrappings in gravy called changfen at a local breakfast spot.  I just pointed at what someone was having, added a badly pronounced attempt at 'please', and was all set.  I got an approving nod at the way I used my chopsticks – I'm guessing they didn't get a lot of tourists wandering in.

Then, surprise surprise, I got hopelessly lost (again!) trying to find two temple complexes nearby.  Actually, that worked out really well, as I ended up in back alleys, with schools, houses, and little market streets.  And, being completely turned around, I even got to head down them again and again...

Once I found the first temple, it was well worth the effort.  Called the mouth-twisting “Bright Filial Piety Temple”, parts of the complex dated from the 4th century.  Just a great, and more importantly,  quiet place to soak up the incense, chants, and amazingly intricate detailed carvings.

Next up was the “Lost Mausoleum of the Nanyue King”, ruler of an 8th century mini-empire around G'zhou, which was a discovered when a hill in the city was being excavated for apartments.  Just like London and Rome, digging anywhere is a bit of a lottery exercise, with so much history underneath everyone's feet.  It must drive property developers nuts to have their carefully crafted plans derailed with the chance discovery of an ancient pot or tomb.

The crypt was interesting, but the highlight was the suit of woven jade that surrounded the body.  With 2200 pieces, it was believed to protect the body from decay, and the authorities had to laboriously put it all back together.  Talk about the ultimate in jigsaw puzzles!

A rare find of my favorite German beer – Bitburger – at a riverside pub, and then it was dinner at Panzi's, a sprawling complex with a dozen big rooms and exquisite food.  No big use of fiery spice, but my sauteed octopus was just perfect.

And hey, for the second night in a row, I found my hotel room sans problem.  Maybe this Chinese language thing isn't as bad as I thought...

Hong Kong & Macau: Small Islands, BIG Gamblers

(Oops, sorry for the flurry of posts over the next few days, but I'm playing catchup now that I'm back in firewall-free SF.)

What's that old expression?  “The best laid plans of mice and men... something, something, something”...?

Whatever.  Plans change.  Hong Kong would be no different.  I originally was thinking of spending about 4-5 days there, but Lonely Planet has a funny way of showing you ever more cool things to do and explore.  In this case, it was Macau, another former colonial outpost, and fast becoming known as the “Vegas of the East”.  I just hoped that they focus on the cool (Wynn) and leave out the cheese (Circus Circus anyone?)...

Even after my welcoming night drink fest, I had the best of intentions of an early wake up to tackle a hike up Victoria Peak,  but my liver had other ideas and sneakily persuaded my body to sleep in.

When I finally DID get up, first order of business was to hit up one of the tailors that the city's famous for.  Getting shirts custom-made... it's nice.  Real nice.  No longer quite as cheap as they used to be, I found a well-regarded tailor (thank you Google!) and got hooked up with three shirts.  Not cheap, but the quality was excellent, and what the heck – I'm only in Hong Kong once.

Next?  After checking out the more famous side of the harbor, I took a walk 'round Kowloon.  It's a lot grimier and more of a working district, with less of an emphasis (if any) on high-powered finance.  But, just like Hong Kong Island, it surprised, with a gorgeous and remarkably empty Kowloon Park, and the poshest of posh Penisula Hotel.

Another ferry ride took me to the Wai Chai district, anchored by a truly massive convention center, complete with windows seven stories tall and suspiciously similar to the Sydney Opera House...

I headed up out of the center, through some really cool fish and veggie markets tucked down back alleys.  I even got my first 'gwai loh' comment, as I politely asked a lady if I could take a picture.  An emphatic grimace and shake of the head was one thing, and the muttered “gwai loh” made me grin. (Gwai loh = ghost foreigner)

Next stop?  I popped into another of the tiny parks that pop up in Hong Kong Central.  There were a bunch of old guys playing a mysterious board game involving round discs...

Checkers?  Nope, after realizing after five minutes that I had absolutely no idea of the object, rules, and even the name of the game (found out later it's Xiangqi), I moved on to check out the Jockey Club in Happy Valley – site of the only legal gambling in Hong Kong.  Given that Hong Kong-ites (Hong Kong-ians?) love to gamble, race day is supposed to be ludicrously nuts and I wanted to get my few bucks in on the action.

The stoopid race schedule didn't cooperate, so nothing was on, but it was pretty interesting walking around the inside of the track, which plays home to the rarest of treasures in Hong Kong – space for athletic fields, smack dab in the midst of stunning views of the districts nearby.

I had a couple of false starts the rest of the afternoon.  After taking the double-decker street tram back downtown...

… I ended up missing closing time with a famous dim sum restaurant by 15 minutes.  Curses.  I did get asked to join in the photos of a Chinese wedding party nearby, but shyness and the fact that I was dripping sweat in the 90 degree heat made me sheepishly decline.

Reinvigorated by a blessed blast of AC and a walk in a mall, I headed back up the Mid-Levels, bound and determined to hike to the top of the Peak... only to get foiled by the thick, thick fog that would have made my quest for views rather pointless.

What to do, what to do?  What else besides take advantage of any one of HK's many Happy Hours – in this case, a few drinks right by the escalators.  I ended up chatting with two Americans who were taking a break from teaching English in Shenzhen in China, which worked out great since they gave me lots of tips about navigating successfully.

An easy night back in Kowloon let me get up nice and early for my long-overdue hike up Victoria Peak.  In this case though, my lack of motivation led me to substitute tram for hike, and a much faster 10 minute trip up.  Result!

Still, we did get some amazing views as we trundled up, only to find the top covered by fog.  It was a little spooky being above the teeming city, with no sound or sights, and I decided to wait out the mist a bit with an oh so manly berry smoothie break at a coffee shop seemingly on top of the world.

Waiting wasn't really doing much good, so I did the Peak circuit walk instead, and success!  The sun peeked out, shining on dew drenched spiders in their webs.  Best of all?  It was flat, flat, flat...

Heading back to Kowloon, I grabbed my things and caught a fast ferry to Macau where I found myself staying in a....a... well... shithole of a hostel.  Sigh.  Such a shame after the great Hong Kong Maple Leaf – the only things this one had going for it were price and location (former brothel in the former 'red door' district - if walls could talk...), smack in the old town.  Paper thin walls, grimy bathrooms, and pretty much everything else nasty made sure that I'd be spending very little time here outside of sleep!

With only an afternoon, I did a quick walk 'round the well-preserved old city, where the marks of the Portuguese founders can still be seen...

… before heading to the main plaza and the shell of the St. Paul's church, a 16th century masterpiece whose front facade is all that remains.

  

Then it was time to go explore the gambling side of Macau... I started with the older casinos, like the Grand Lisboa, which towered over the city, and kept reminding me of one of those giant plastic cocktail glasses you get in only the finest and most discriminating of Reno's casinos.

On a classier note, I got to duck into the Wynn as well, with its own water fountain show and its rather impressive line up of Rolls in the driveway:

...before heading across the several kilometer long bridge to the Ilha du Tapa, site of the newest of the casinos, starting with a near-carbon copy of the Venetian.  Near-copy to be sure, but much, much bigger!

As far as gambling goes, the casinos were pretty cool, with all the bells and whistles.  There was something different though...

I mean, sure, there were odd games, and a serious fixation on Baccarat, but after a few minutes, it hit me – the atmosphere was completely different.  To the mostly Chinese crowd, gambling is a SERIOUS business.  Smiles were rare indeed, and even alcohol was pretty scarce; I wasn't sure if that was by regulation or more likely choice, as they didn't want anything to distract them.

All told, I was glad I came to check out Macau, but a day was enough and I scrapped my plan to stay another night.  Enough of this, I couldn't wait to go explore mainland China.

And, to finish on a complete random note – this was the beer I least expected to see in Asia, let alone Macau...

Hong Kong: Ferry Rides for a Quarter but $100 G&T's

(Ah hah... back in SF - free from the Great Firewall at last!)

Heading out from Singapore, I was really pumped to finally get a chance to explore Hong Kong.  Ever since reading James Clavell's massive novel Tai-Pan, set around the founding of the colony by the British, this little speck of land off China has always intrigued me.

And for anyone looking the quick executive summary – it didn't suck.

If anything, it was the exact opposite.  Oh, sure, I came in expecting the postcard vistas of tall skyscrapers, good Chinese food, and a great ferry ride across the harbor, but Hong Kong provided so much more – surprise after surprise on every side and around every corner.

Okay – the quick snapshot about Hong Kong... it was an island a few miles off the coast of China with a stunning harbor.  Back in 1840-something, the Brits founded their colony there to provide an easy way to keep trading and influencing China, without any connections to land that would leave them vulnerable to China's massive army.

Today, nearly 13 years after the UK gave it back to China in '97, it's still a unique mix of Chinese, British, and overall ex-pat.  My first impression?  Think of the biggest Chinatown you can think of, multiply it by 50, and then give it a heady mix of New York's raw energy with a dash of British refinement.  It's pretty intoxicating.

Arriving was a little less exciting now that planes don't have to dodge skyscrapers en route to Kai Tak Airport.  Instead, I came in via their ultramodern new airport and then by bus into Kowloon, where I got off to find my hotel.  All I knew was that it was in the Chungking Mansions.  Now, that's a posh name, but that's about all that can be said... this was a seriously dodgy skyscraper smack dab on the 'Golden Mile' for tourists.  Dodging a number of extremely determined touts, all dead set on telling me that my hostel was no longer in business (“and hey, how about trying this one...?”), I walked through the lobby market level that wouldn't have been out of place in Third World countries to at last find my elevator.

It was packed, and as we ever-so slowly worked our way up, each time the doors opened, it was another surprise.  From African laborers' low cost lodgings, to a Baptist church, and a dozen mysterious businesses, you never knew what Chungking Mansions was going to throw at you.  Just like Hong Kong, in fact.

Excitement aside, I was more than ready to find my room at the Maple Leaf Hostel and it's tiny but absolutely spotless room.

My first day out and about was unabashedly playing the tourist.  I hopped onto the world famous Star Ferry to head over to Hong Kong Island proper.  And, just like Sydney or San Francisco, these ferries are hands down the best way to get introduced to the city.  For a little over a quarter, you got vistas like this:

I then took Lonely Planet's walking tour – that winds among the back alleys and markets of Central.  It was fun, but also humbling – and a little taster of the fun and frustration that travelling in China would bring.  I mean, travelling in Europe, or any place that uses the Roman alphabet, you can generally guess and work your way around.

With Chinese?  The writing is beautiful, but not very helpful to your typical gwai loh/tourist (ghost person in Cantonese)...

But, that was a huge part of the fun.  Even ordering my first meal was a challenge, with lots of pointing and smiles, that got me some really tasty noodle soup in the end.

So, meandering through dried fish markets (complete with seriously overfed guard cats – talk about a cushy gig!):

… to dried flying lizards and dozens more things that I'm still unclear on, it was all good fun.

Working my way up the hill, I ducked into some hidden temples, and then a really cool photography exhibit about Hong Kong using infared film.  Weird, but very cool.

Next up was heading up to Mid-Levels via the world's longest series of escalators – at 800 meters.  It's a pretty amazing achievement, a nearly complete second level pedestrian expressway that's wedged in and between skyscrapers.  Going down in the morning, and up in the afternoon, it's the commute of choice for thousands of Hong Kong's professionals.  Nice.

Halfway up, it hit me – we all have friends who are masters of seemingly defying physics by squeezing unbelievable amounts of things in their car, room, purse, or even their over-worked brains.  Well, Hong Kong just took that skill and extended to an entire city – showing a mastery of architectural Tetris that is second to none.  Facing a never-ending crush of new inhabitants, the city has become super adept at adapting and fitting in people, roads, and even, yes, escalators wherever they can.  Shopping plazas are in nearly every office building, linked by a near-continuous network of raised walkways.  Even the property developers get into the act, maximizing the rents they receive by going vertical, even on a wide but ridiculously shallow lot.

The rest of the day was pretty much checking out the financial district, from its ever-increasing skyscrapers and the old colonial district.  Hong Kong is funny that way – going from incredibly hard to pronounce Chinese name to stuffy British with “Queen's Road”, and then back again.  Fun, but a little surreal.

And, as a reward for my efforts, I took a break in the Mandarin Oriental... a legendary hotel that was once of the world's finest.  A gin & tonic in their rooftop bar was just the ticket, especially as it was the spot that my dad and mom met up when he was able to take R&R from Vietnam.  From the Trevi Fountain to here, I always get a kick out of knowing that my folks and I had enjoyed the same amazing view.

When the bill came, I casually glanced at it, and got a nice shock... $100!!  I mean, it was an AMAZING drink, but dropping a cool Benjamin on it?  Oh, wait, that was in HK $.  Ten quid was much better.

My first night was another great introduction to Hong Kong's ex-pat scene, as I met up with Dana, my friend Michelle's good mate.  After catching the rather kitsch lights and laser show from Kowloon, where a number of the bigger skyscrapers flashed their lights in time to 80's synthesizer music...

… we met a bunch of folks at an informal networking gig, then kept on going in the party district of Lan Kwai Fong.

Many, many G&T's later, including the briefest of stops at an bar made entirely of ice, and I was good for only a cab ride back to Kowloon.

Curses - the Chinese firewall got me...

Hey all -

I've received some good-natured heckling about the time between my last post... generally along the lines of:

a)  Are you still alive?
b)  Are you still alive and are just too lazy to post?

Ah-hah, fear not, feckless hecklers... there's an option c - the dreaded Chinese firewall.  Basically, Blogger and Picasa aren't readily accessible when you're in country, so I'm going to have to wait to post until once I get back to SF.

Sorry 'bout that :)

Cheers,
Mike

Kuching: Cats, Kayaks, and Free Booze

My last stop on my magical mystery tour of Malaysia was the up and coming city of Kuching.  I'd heard really good things about it, with legendary food and a great mellow vibe.  Plus, scoring bonus points for a cat person like myself, Kuching is a city that has an unnatural fascination with guardian felines...

The chilled out vibe started as soon as I got my taxi into town.  The taxi driver was super relaxed, and to round things off, he followed the Malaysian custom of randomly punctuating his conversation with “la”.

“La” is kind of the Swiss Army knife for the Malaysian language – covering everything from agreement, DIS-agreement,  indecision, anger, happiness, and everything in between.  And, not to be confined to merely one language, the Malays often use it in English, giving a lilting, poetic feel to the conversation.

This really doesn't translate to writing, but this is a small sample:  “So, la, I moved from Kubu-la because, la, there were too many other drivers, la.”  I even gotten into the swing – nodding knowingly and saying (what else?)... “La.”

So, the trip was off to a good start.  I popped into the Bedz hostel, where the basic name belied the great value; for the princely sum of $15, I got another immaculate room with the blessing of uber-powerful AC.

The next day was more of a “getting to know the city” session – I started with Lonely Planet's walk through Chinatown and an early breakfast of the region's signature dish of kokok gee.  Tasty – with a bunch of noodles and seemingly the kitchen sink thrown in.

The rest of the day was pretty relaxed.  I just kept popping in and out of the city's many odd alleys and temples...

...walked along the renovated riverfront, and finally retreated from the heat by ducking into the Hilton.

I know, I know – not particularly culturally adventurous but what can I say?  I'm a sucker for good AC.

I redeemed myself with dinner though – walking up, up, and UP a bunch of stairs to the “Top Spot”, a collection of seafood stalls around a cheerful chaos of tables.  It was absolutely worth it, as I ended up with an entire black pepper crab to myself, combined with brilliantly sauteed local vegetables and a beer for about £6.  You have to love Asia.

The next day was fantastic as well, as I was able to squeeze in a bunch of fun stuff before I had to fly out to Singapore.

It started in the morning with freshly-made pork bao puns at the locals-only restaurant, and then I met up with our day tour group.

Now, normally, I'm generally a very independent traveller, and absolutely loathe the idea of blindly   a tour guide holding a guiding umbrella aloft from sight to sight.  But this tour was different – nice, mellow, and very laid back.

Our first stop was the legendary orangutan rehabilitation center... where they raise and release orangutans into the wild to rebuild the population.  The bonus for the tourist?  You get to see them up close and personal at feeding time – their human-like expressions are incredible, and they are often remarkably cheeky with each other.

I've also found a contender for the “Best Job in the Whole World”.  Ritchie is the dominant male at the center.  However, without predators, he just gets to hang out and impress the ladies..  Nice gig, huh?

We saw a half dozen other ones too – from a mom and her baby, to a male who just hung out about 15 feet away.  Who was studying whom?

And of course, the young ones stole the show – check this little guy out... I think every guy in the place was wincing the entire time he struck this pose:

Oh, and did I mention cheeky?  One young adult cottoned on to the fact that rather than forage, it was sooo much easier to just swipe the baby's food.  He even mastered the “who, me?” expression of injured innocence.

The rest of the day was spent kayaking down a mellow river.  No Class V rapids or anything, but as far as a great way to explore the countryside, this couldn't be beat.

We even got to check out a local village waiting for our guide, and I ended up taking some pics of the local schoolkids, who were born hams for the camera:

Once on the river, our first stop had us hanging out with some of the locals sampling everything from soursop fruit (delicious) to local pepper and a bunch of herbs, with some rice wine to top things off.

Throw in a beach lunch stop and some time for jumping off a log, and it was  a good day all around...

My last night in Kuching?  I admit it, I easily get caught in a rut – and headed back to the Top Spot.  With that much choice and a great view to boot, I couldn't resist.  In this case, it was corn/crab soup and sauteed cuttlefish in chili... mmm.

To close the loop of my time in Malaysia, I got to spend some time back where I started in Singapore.  This time around, I wasn't fired up to see anything in particular; I just wanted to explore a bit more of the city.

So, after dropping my bags off, I headed back downtown to go check out the rest of the Colonial district.  There were yet more massive malls (surprise, surprise), a ferris wheel (although London's is bigger [hee, hee], even an equally massive good luck fountain:

Once again, I left firmly convinced that the Singaporeans live to shop.  Period.  I'm not opposed to malls and such, but man, how much time can you spend just wandering around looking and buying stuff?

More interestingly, my next leg took me to (yes, overused word alert) MASSIVE new casino/living complex called the Marina Bay Sands.  Three towers supported a fully-fledge park on the top level, it's pretty stunning...

The hotel's not fully open yet, and as your shorts-wearing correspondent, I wasn't able to pop my head into the casino.  But with 550,000 visitors in the first three weeks, I'm willing to guess it's pretty posh.

Finally, I just headed back to Chinatown.  While I avoided shopping, I finally gave in and got a seriously short haircut... clippers only.  I guess my thinking was pretty basic... “must... get... rid... of as much heat as possible”.  With so much skin exposed on my noggin, I think I'm on the right path!

With most of my last day in Singapore to kill before my flight, I decided to head over to Changi Airport early and just relax.  It sounds weird to include relaxation and airport in the same sentence, but Changi does things absolutely right.

For anyone cursed with having to fly out of dull and dingy Heathrow or Gatwick, check out the amenities:

• free wifi
• free movies in a theater, 24 hours a day
• showers
• free butterfly garden
• tasty AND non-overpriced food

I had experienced all of this my first time through in 2009.  But Changi had one more secret that elevated it into a backpacker's paradise... I wandered into the duty-free liquor store, and saw they had a cabinet with some bottles of whisky, port, and brandy with little plastic cups.

No attendants, no ID checks or pressure to buy.  Nope, this was the rarest of all things... a SELF-SERVICE whisky bar.  Brilliant.

21 year Chivas, 18 year MacCallan, Johnny Walker Green Label... and so on.  I can't say I drank a lot, but it was an amazing way to sample some otherwise pricey booze.  Lovely way to end my first leg of my trip, and send me on my way to Hong Kong.

Oh, and to finish on a Malaysian note... la.