China 2004
13/1/2004: Shanghai
Flew China Eastern. In Sydney met a girl on the train go to finishing
school I think. Met a Chinese girl on her way to pick up her boyfriend
at the airport.
Shangai is so cold I had ice on my backback.
The hotel is the Baleman. Som form of 4/5 star hotel but still a bit
dodgy. Costs Y250.
Met Jo and her boss. Very charming people. I hope to see them again
when I return to Shanghai.
Travelling to Hainan tomorrow. Haiyan gave me the wrong number for
Vivian's friend. Shanghai CBD is not very different from Sydney CBD. IN
fact the first song I heard was Auld Lang Seine.
14/1/2004: Haikou
Haikou is just like a small country town... with 8 million people. The
whole driving on the right really freaks me out. It's alright when going
straight but turning the corner feels very strange.
I am staying at the Fu Wu Zhi Nan hotel. It is clean and faily cheap
(Y150) The list price for the deleuxe single is Y316 and standard double
Y316.
It appears that it is quite uncommon for a freigner to be seen in
Haikou. Especially in the villages surrounding Haikou. I'm a little
unused to the attention but it's not too bad.
15/1/2004: Wuzhishan Travel Village
Travel from Haikou to Sanya. Stopped at som hot springs on the way.
Ahhh it's the good life.
We were lost a few times. Also we had a flat tire on the expressway.
Fortunately between Haifeng and I we managed to change the tire.
I felt a little sick this morning but I think it may have been the
preservatives in the wine.
Met the mayor of the village where we are staying the night. He is a
friend of uncle Zeng.
The mountainside is very beautiful. The area is known as the five
fingers due to a rock formation on one of the mountains.
I was expecting to just visit Haikou to see Haiyan but it has been a
major family holiday of the whole island.
Haiyan's family have been so worried for me. They have been very kind.
The mayor said so many of the foods we ate were the wild food from the
mountain. Even the pig trotters (which I didn't eat) were from the wild
pig. I am told they have less fat than a farm pig because they run so
much. The chicken is also the wild mountain chicken.
16/1/2004: Sanya
We set off from the mountain town where we were staying. We went to a
"village" showing the Li minority's lifestyle. At first it was
interesting but by about half way through I had the distinct impression
that Punch's getting gypped.
In the afternoon we visited the Nanking temple which is a famous
Buddist temple.
The was a huge bed in my room. I think it was a king size. Woo hoo!
The hotel was the "Golden Phoenix Pea View Hotel." Actually I think
that was Holel.
It had a very funny fire safety sign: "Direction to flee for one is
life."
17/1/2004: Sanya
We all went shopping this morning. Haiyan was particularly interested
in the shoes.
They couldn't find what they wanted so Haiyan called her old friend. He
took us to a local shop which was good for Haiyan.
We also had lunch at a dogy good restaurant with him.
Unfortunately I couldn't do anything that afternoon because I was too
tired.
I am staying at the Gloria Resort.
18/1/2004: Sanya
Haiyan and I visted the butterfly park. On the way back we saw a fight.
We were glad that we change our mind and took a taxi.
We saw som 5 star hotels and went shopping in Sanya city.
19/1/2004: Haikou
Shopping
20/1/2004: Haikou
Shopping
21/1/2004: Haikou
Wnt to visit Haiyan's grandmother. The village she lives in is similar
to some of my relative's farms.
The main difference is the number of people living in the same space.
Even on a farm people live very close together.
The meal was like Boxing Day in Australia with all the extended family
coming to the house. The rather drab and mouldy houses were tranformed
by the addition of red paper everywhere. Since I was the tallest
available I ended up doing much of the decoration.
The tradition that the sons should go their home town during Spring
Festival. The women become part of the man's family once they are
married.
Before we could eat lunch uncle went to the two village temples.
One for a female godess. The other for a god which is less important to
them. Each included a fire cracker for luck.
For those who have not experienced this the fire cracker consists of
about 80-100 individual crackers on a long string.
Each one emits an ear splitting crack until the last gives an even
greater blast of sound.
The fireworks in Haikou continued long into the night.
This night is similar to new years eve in Australia.
Haifeng spent the night at the farm. It is traditional for a member of
the family to stay in the family home on this night. This only apllies
to the eldest brother's family.
Helped start a barbecue that Haifeng had brought from New Zealand.
22/1/2004: Haikou
Shopping.Helped Haiyan's mother use the electric sandwich maker. Had a
talk with Haiyan's parents.
The fireworks have been audible all day. Although the law states that
fireworks are only allowed on the beach and the farms, many people still
light fireworks in the city.
I think the old airport opposite my hotel is also a common location for
fireworks.
23/1/2004: Haikou
Went to visit the Haikou safari park/zoo. Most of it was good. The
animals were in large enclosures and they could roam around.
The zoo section at the end was a little sadder. There were a number of
animals there that didn't want to be there. They fed some chickens to
the crocodiles. One chicken looked like it had escaped natural selection
but it could only run the gauntlet so many times after being repeatedly
pushed in.
At night we went to the beach and lit some fireworks. We were
surrounded by fireworks. The all-encompassing feeling made it very
different from Australian fireworks. Ther were all kinds. Ones which
flew up in the air, those which burned on the ground like a gas flame
and little bombs which turned around.
We also had some Roman candles which were lit like safety matches then
thrown away on the ground.
It is something that must be experience to understand. To be among a
whole beachful of people lighting fireworks and lighting your own is
amazing.
24/1/2004: Haikou
Stayed at Haiyan's parent house sleeping in the morning.
Went with Haifeng to have tea with his friend. His friend was friendly
but a little shy. We then went shopping. Finally we went to have cold
black bean for afternoon tea.
25/1/2004: Hong Kong
Met Lisa in Shenzhen then went to Hong Kong with Frank. Had some
trouble with immigration. They wanted me to have some blue form.
Visited the zoo and botanic gardens.
At night we rode the peak tram. Rode the tram in HK city for HK$2. This
is good for seeing the life in the city.
Had lunch and dinner in dodgy good restaurants.
Had a very refreshing drink: shrim moi tong.
Saw many people meeting at the HSBC building for Spring Festival.
26/1/2004: Hong Kong
Today we visited the giant Buddha statue and the attached temple.
Then we went to the Hong Kong art museum. The ancient Chinese artifacts
were of average interest. The modern Hong Kong art was more interesting.
Dehumanisation and the commoditisation of life in gerneral seemed to be
a significant theme.
We also looked at the Hong Kong History Museum. This is a must-see. The
exhibition was presented in a very stimulating and realistic way. Frank
kept on commenting, "I remember we did this when I was a child."
hong Kong has a very good feel. It is reasonably easy to navigate. Ther
are many people. Something is always happening.
The transport is brilliant and the Octopus card is extraordinarily
useful.
27/1/2004: Shenzhen
Took the whole morning to reach Shenzhen.
First Frank and I misunderstood each other. Then I needed a second visa
to return to China.
Lisa and her boyfriend picked me up from the railway station.
I withdrew some money which turned out to be a hassle because only the
main branch in Shenzhen could withdraw foreign currency bank accounts.
Lisa drove a hard bargain for the VCD player Y260.
Had a traditional Cantonese dinner with Lisa's family.
The hotel room was cold and became colder and colder as the night
progressed. Ther was cold air coming from the sliding door.
28/1/2004: Shenzhen
Slept until 10am because of the cold room.
We went to the Chinese and minority culture park.
They had some fairly tame models of famous Chinese landmarks.
The minority section was considerably more interesting. We watched a
few demonstrations and performances of their local culture.
Lisa wanted to try all the activities that we saw in the park. However
she didn't have a chance to try the flying fox.
After a whole day visiting the park we visited uncle Zeng's friend's
art studio. He is the retired director of the Shenzhen museum. He is
also a famous artist inside China.
29/1/2004: Shanghai
We still managed to reach Shenzhen airport with plenty of time to spare.
Met with uncle Zeng and a manager in Shanghai, also called Lisa.
Went to see the Nanjing (?) temple which has a "lake" in the centre and
a zig-zagging bridge in the middle.
We had tea at the teahouse in the centre of the lake. It was rather
expensive at Y60 per cup.
Went to see the waterfront.
30/1/2004: Shanghai
Went to visit an old friend of uncle Zeng's. Fortunately he spoke
english which made it very easy to talk with him.
We all talked about travelling, Shanghai, Australia, Malaysia, politics
and many other things.
It is also interesting to see Australia from the outside perspective.
Australia is seen as trying to distance itself from Asia.
We then visited the top of the tallest building in China.
Looked at the shops on Nanking Road.
Went to a little restaurant near the hotel somewhere.
Jo translated.
31/1/2004: Shanghai
Visited Su Zhuo today. We took a day tour for convenience. We saw a
famous Chinese garden from the Ming dynasty.
We also saw a temple. Some temples in China are very large and much
like many Christian churches, one wonders whether the money would be
better spent on the poor than so many large gold statues.
Unfortunately we also wasted some time at the friends of the tour
guides shops. One was a tea crockery shop. The other a silk factory.
Both involved an introduction to choosing the best product and of
course their products met all the criteria.
1/1/2004: Aeroplane
Met a cool guy on the plane. Emmigrated from China to Australia 15
years ago. Trained as an engineer. Used to run a coffee shop, now runs a
crockery importer. Setting up a factory in China. Complained about
Chinese government beaurocracy.
China Roundup
Everyone in China I visited was unbelievably kind. Special thanks (in
no particular order): Uncle Zeng, Frank, Lisa and Jo. Also to Uncle
Zeng's friends in Hainan, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Shanghai who helped me
out with accomodation and invited me to dinner. Thanks to Lisa's family
for inviting me to dinner and welcoming me when they didn't really know
me that well.
My impression of China is quite similar to what I expected before I
left. China is not as backward like some people have claimed. Nor is it
a mystical paradise. The answer lies in between. Everyone is just trying
to make the best living they can.
There are many instances where the Chinese culture challenged simple
customs held in Australia. For example many friends or family of the
same sex will have much more physical contact than in Australia. People
of a different sex will seldom have physical contact. Unless they have
not seen each other for a long time in which case it is customary to
hold hands.
The highlights for me were seeing the traditional way of life in
Haiyan's home town and meeting so many people.
I enjoyed travelling in China and will travel their again. Lisa
suggested Yunan province. If you go to China yourself: leave your ideas
about China at home and look up as many friends as you can.
Zaijian!
Useful words in mandarin (and maybe Hainanese) (written in PINYIN):
Cesuo: toilet
Bao le: I am full
Hao bu hao (ma): Good?
Hao her: Good to dring
Hao chi: Good to eat
chin nin hao: Year you (polite) good
je dianhua: Answer the phone
zhen shenma mingzi ma?: This has what name? (colloquial)
Please note: I can't be bothered writing the tones so don't even ask!