Signs

Sunday 15^th May 2011

16 days left traveling the world.

MP3 track of the day: Honor him – Gladiator soundtrack

Weather: Lijiang's skies seemed to be covered in clouds cooling the temperature, though none threatened rain.

With my bags packed I found myself stood outside reception before it was open. It was a pain having to check-out so early however I wanted to beat the tour groups to the 'Black Dragon Pools'. The sign on the reception door read 'open 7am' but it wasn't until 7:20am when a, rather annoyed looking, receptionist came to check me out and store my luggage. The front door hadn't been unbolted and, thinking it unwise to bother the receptionist again, I let myself out.

The 'Prague Café' - which was the restaurant I went to last night – opened at 7am and so I was able to devour a hot chocolate, with marshmallows, and a chocolate pancake without waiting. The cost was a little high but the food had been as good as last night. As I head north, towards the pools, I had a slight nervousness within my walk; the 'free entry ticket' Sim had given me was the one he'd used two days ago. It had a months warranty but it also had his name on it; I kept telling myself, if I got asked for 'ID' I'd just have to say that I hadn't got any on me.

I couldn't believe it; the time was 8:20am and, in the distance, I could see a yellow flag going through the parks main entrance followed by a mob of yellow baseball wearing Chinese people. Do these people ever sleep? I decided that, if my free pass didn't work, I wasn't prepared to pay £8 to fight my way through crowds. I stepped up to the ticket sales woman and presented my ticket; she beckoned me to go straight through … result. Once inside I walked quickly to leap-frog the tour group; there was a photo within my guidebook, taken from these pools, that I wanted to copy without anyone in the way. I continued walking around with a look of disappointment; yes the water was clear, yes the pavilion in the middle - with trees either side and a Chinese bridge leading to it - was photogenic but for £8 it wasn't worth it. With not much to see I walked along the few paths available taking photos of the clear waters in front of me. Eventually a path lead to the start of a mountain hike; after yesterday I wasn't really in the mood for hiking however, with not much else to see, I had time to kill. First of all I had to fill out a 'health and safety' form writing my name, time I started my assent, name of my hostel and my mobile, or passport, number. I filled all boxes apart from the last, reluctant to put my mobile or passport numbers down. I placed the pen back on the table but the assistant insisted that I fill out the last box; I put the first seven digits that came into my head and stormed off to start the climb.

Consisting of mainly steps the path had been well made though it was slippery. I started the assent not stopping for breaks; due to the amount of clouds within the sky the temperature was cool though I was still sweating. The mountain kept to go on and on; once I'd thought I'd reach the top another bit would appear from out of know where and, the stubbornness within me, would keep me going. I'm not sure when the guy first came into view but, for some reason, I seemed to have a Chinese bloke following me. I could see him, just behind to my left, contemplating a pass. I quickened my pace, took the inside line and kept looking straight; if he was to pass me it would have to be on the outside. His pace matched mine and, for some reason, I found myself in a race that I didn't want to loose; I passed people, keeping the inside line as much as possible. He seemed quicker on the steps though I outpaced him on the straights and, as we eventually approached the final pavilion I saw him stop, turn around, and head back the other way. We may not be that good at table tennis, we may not know all the secrets to Kung-fu but us Europeans know how to climb a hill. After that brief acknowledgement of victory I lay down totally exhausted.

I eventually got up to look at the view; with the town surrounded by mountains you would have thought that it would have been quite pleasant ... but it wasn't. With so many clouds the mountain tops were faded and the town below was built with little thought for aesthetics. I left the pavilion quickly, passing many red faced Chinese people as I descended. I walked slowly, my breathe returning and the sweat stopping. I found myself at a fork within the path; I knew that heading straight would lead me back to the park but I wondered where the other path went. The path seemed to climb a little so maybe the view was better; curiosity got the better of me and, even though my body protested, I started to climb once more. I wasn't climbing for long when I was confronted by a communications tower; the path seemed to head back towards the park and so I stood at the highest point realising that the view was no better. I turned around and went back down the mountain the way I'd come up. Once at the bottom I filled out the 'time back' box, on the 'safety form, with a satisfied nod from the attendant. I didn't spend much longer within the park; the amount of people had grown and there was only three small temples to look at. I left at 10:30am heading into town.

After visiting the supermarket I found myself within a small park eating chocolate and seeing what was going on around me. People were walking this way and that all having individual agendas to complete; all around me were small flower boxes with signs erected within them. As I went for a closer inspection I noticed that said signs were in Chinese as well as English. I laughed as I read some of the statements the Chinese authorities thought were so important that they had translated:

- 'Beanify our lives, purify our lives'

- 'Less foot prints, more aroma'

- 'Keep off hands and feet, preserve green'

I chucked to myself as I took a photo of each sign I came across. I wondered why signs like these were translated but train station names weren't. I finished my comical photography and went back to the 'Prague café' for another of their great sandwiches.

The time was 1pm and I found myself sitting within my hostels common room fully satisfied that all I wanted to see within Lijiang had been completed. I went on the internet and updated my blog, which took until the early evening. Afterwards I put my bags back into storage before an early tea at, you guessed it, the Prague Café. I made it back to my hostel at around 7:30pm and decided to head straight to the train station encase of any unforeseen problems.

'You're leaving now?' the receptionist said surprised. I replied with a smile and said that, even though I was three hours early, I would prefer to wait at the station encase anything went wrong. I turned to pass her but she blocked my way; she explained that, due to Lijiang having a small train station, with limited services, the waiting room wasn't usually open this early. She continued by stating that the station was in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do. She pleaded with me to sit back down and wait an hour, leaving at 8:30pm should be okay she said. I nodded and put my bag back down; I got my novel out and started to read whilst the receptionist went for tea.

It was 8:20pm and I was bursting to leave; I couldn't wait any longer therefore I said a quick goodbye before walking out the door. Night had fallen and only house lights allowed me to make my way; it didn't take me long to reach the main highway and I soon found myself at the point where bus number thirteen stopped. I waited and I waited; three 'number two' services went by and I was about to curse the receptionist, and all of her employees, for stopping me catching the earlier services when, finally, a bus with the number thirteen on it showed up. I blew a sigh of relief; the time was 8:45pm and in another fifteen minutes this service would have stopped.

The bus ride was uneventful; darkness consumed the surroundings however, looking at the dirt road the buses' lights lit up, I could tell that we were in the middle of nowhere. We kept going on and on; a few people alighted but most passengers, looking at the amount of luggage they carried, were heading to the same destination as I. At 9:15pm we pulled up at the station. A simple, but large, rectangular building stood in front of me with crowds outside. The receptionist was right, there was nothing for miles apart from a few stalls to my right, the train station in front, a basketball court and a high embankment to my left with a train sitting above. I followed the crowds into the station and resumed my story of Julius Caesar until called to alight the train.

The concrete stairs, up the embankment, were tall and I was glad that I had a rucksack instead of a trolley. Once at the top I caught my breathe and checked the sign stating the way to carriage thirteen. I'd never seen carriages like these before I could tell that there were two floors as there were two rows of windows. As I boarded my carriage I checked my ticket and realised that I would be on the second floor; once there I checked my ticket again to realise that I had the top bunk. I hadn't been on the top bunk, within a train before and it soon became apparent that the lower bunk was the better option. I climbed using the two foot rests provided and hit my head upon the roof. It was so low that I had to crawl along my bed and any chance of trying to sit up was none existent. Still that didn't matter, as the train rolled out of the station the time was 10::30pm and it was time for bed.

I arrive within Kumming at 7am tomorrow!

Toodle Pip!

The tour group versus the tourist

Friday 13^th May 2011

18 days left traveling the world.

MP3 track of the day: No one – Alicia Keys

Weather: A pleasant temperature with a pale blue sky dominating. Thin white clouds stretched out over large areas and, during the afternoon, Lijiang experienced a short storm.

It was starting to get personal; as I quickened my pace through the cobbled streets of Lijiang I knew that, as every second went by, tour groups got closer. The time was 7:30am and I was out taking photos of the old town before hundreds of Chinese tourists descended. Like I said, it was personal ... it was me versus them. I knew the tour groups would have the numbers on their side however I had time, though the sun wasn't playing fare. The sky, within a lot of my photos, became bleached and I tried many different camera settings to bring it back to reality; some settings were successful but each took time.

At first the cobbled streets were almost deserted; the roads were a little uneven and, with Lijiang's huge footfall, the stones had become shiny reducing grip. I focused mainly on the big tourist areas knowing that, when the crowds came, I could venture off into the side streets. Everywhere you looked the old, grey, Chinese roofs dominated and, with bright green trees located in strategic places, the scenes provided good photo opportunities. I walked this way and that, getting lost numerous times, until I'd covered the main areas. As I walked shops were opening that were barred shut only thirty minutes ago.

I couldn't ignore my stomach any longer; my guidebook had two locations marked for 'great cake' though, within the windy streets of Lijiang, both took time to find. I settled on 'Well Bistro' as they looked open whereas 'Don Papa' didn't. One lady was washing the floor when I stepped in; however it seemed not to matter as she smiled at me and showed me to a table. The cake was cheap but the hot chocolate wasn't; unusually both were served at the same time making a pleasant change. I had little choice in what cheesecake I could opt for and no berries, or cream, accompanied the cake. Still the cake was pleasant enough but not as good as Dali; the hot chocolate gave the same story and I soon paid and left. I continued my photographing by concentrating on the outskirts of the old town. Unlike Dali – where it's new town is located 18km away – Lijiang's new town surrounds it's old so, when a new looking building came into sight, I knew it was time to turn around.

The time was 10am and empty roads I'd walked down only an hour ago were full of people. I tried to take photos but it was getting increasingly difficult, and increasingly time consuming, as I had to wait for people to get out of my way. Around 11am I gave up; I put my camera within my bag and walked for a while heading towards my hostel. This morning I couldn't find my McLaren baseball cap; as I'd walked around the old town I kept trying to retrace my steps and, by the time I found myself at the front door of the 'YHA' hostel (where I booked my train ticket), I knew that I'd either left it here or it was within my dorm. The lady recognised me instantly and apologised greatly due to overcharging me; it turned out that my train tickets cost £15 less than she'd asked for (therefore costing £65) and, as a result, she stood there fanning 135 Yuan. I laughed and took the money knowing that it would be going back to her very shortly; I booked myself onto a day trip to the Tiger Leaping Gorge for tomorrow.

Departing at 7:50am I arrive at a guest house three hours later. Tina's guest house is only a forty minute walk from the gorge and, with the last bus back to Lijiang leaving at 4pm, I should be able to have three or four hours looking around. I gave the lady 110 Yuan and she laughed as she received the money back. As I stepped out of the hostel I popper my head back around the door and inquired into if anyone had found a baseball cap. She searched her wooden reception desk, first scanning left and then right, before showing me a very dirty looking McLaren cap; I smiled and acknowledged that the cap was mine.

Back on the streets of Lijiang I was going to go back to my hostel but, with my baseball cap found, there was no reason to. I went back into town for a quick bite and pondered what to do with the afternoon. First of all I had to purchase snacks for tomorrows trip and then I'll visit the 'Mu Mansion' before climbing up 'Lion Hill'.

I left my hostel, placing my food for tomorrow within my locker, and walked in the direction of 'Mu Mansion'. Little did I know that the white gate I'd photographed earlier was the entrance to said mansion. The crowds had grown and so, apparently, had the entrance price; my guidebook stated that it should cost thirty-five Yuan but there, in black and white … and in English, read 'entrance sixty-five Yuan'. Two questions ran through my head; firstly was the mansion worth £6.50 and secondly was it worth visiting with the tour groups that were bound to be inside. With a no to both questions I left the site, however I felt intrigued wondering what was behind those big white walls. My guidebook stated that the gardens were impressive and maybe on Sunday I'll have a look. For now I departed in the direction of Lion Hill.

Just like every tourist attraction within China finding the entrance presented many problems. I spent half an hour walking in the direction of said hill only to find my way blocked; eventually I found an entrance gate which asked for fifteen Yuan. £1.50 seemed a more logical price for an attraction and so I paid the amount before being told to head left. The entrance fee would have been worth it, just for the view, but being practically the only one up the hill was an added bonus. Below me sat thousands of ancient Chinese roofs that were positioned at all angles hiding any roads from view. The scene below seemed one of tranquillity however I knew anything but would be occurring on those narrow streets. I took many photos enjoying the fact that I had full control over the viewing platform. After this I head along a path that seemed to go into a wooded area. As I walked I turned my MP3 player off; the only sounds I could hear were the birds within the trees and my feet as they leap-frogged one another. This was the first time I'd witnessed total silence within China and it was joyous. Sadly the path didn't last long. I stood on a patch of dry earth with rocks, and trees, positioned sporadically all around, there seemed to be a path above me and so I hiked up to that and followed it back the way I'd come. This path lead to a twenty-two meter high pavilion which looked out of place; sadly a few people were within this area, including a small boy who was crying due to being scared by the peacocks caged to the left.

Before entering the pavilion two smaller shelters were positioned either side of the path; one with a bell and one with a drum inside. Neither held much interest and so, with a quick photo, I went inside the dark pavilion and passed a ticket inspector who was uninterested if I had a ticket or not. I walked up many flights of steps with some barely lit; once at the top a small, squared, wooden platform presented itself. Windows were positioned all the way around with glass that wasn't clear enough for photos. Luckily some panes had been removed and so I took a couple of shots ignoring the small, tacky, souvenir stalls set up behind me. I didn't stay long and I soon found myself back at the entrance; a few spots of rain had begun to fall and so I quickened my pace towards my hostel.

Not enough rain was falling to warrant an umbrella, however even the slightest bit of moisture made the shiny cobbled stones slippery. My pace declined as I found my full concentration was focused on where I was standing; once back at the hostel I got myself, and my computer, within the common room before thunder could be heard. Seconds later a torrent of rain fell from the grey skies above. Lijiang doesn't seem to be as 'hippy' as Dali and, in the seat opposite, sat a genuine, normal, traveller from Israel; we chatted as the rain poured, both focusing on our own PC's from time to time. It's great to be surrounded by real travellers again and I fear, in two days time, this important aspect of travelling will fade as quickly as it had come.

Neither of us witnessed the rain stopping; the Israeli left for food as I looked outside the window to see blue skies once more. I was deeply into my work and so I remained seated until the early evening. With the tour groups on their way home I went in search of food before returning to my hostel; I wasn't that tired but I needed an early night. Tomorrow I had to be up by 7am … I had a tiger to see!

Toodle Pip!

Arrived in Lijiang

Thursday 12^th May 2011

19 days left traveling the world.

MP3 track of the day: She wants to move – N.E.R.D

Weather: Still hot within Dali however the temperature within Lijiang is a lot more pleasant, due to it being higher within the mountains. The skies are still blue and fluffy white clouds float effortlessly across the sky.

Due to having a stupidly early night I was up ... stupidly early. I got ready and went on the internet before time, I thought, had ticked on enough for me to be able to get through the doors of my favourite breakfast joint. As I approached the 'sweet tooth' café it turned out that I was still a little early and so I went for my last walk around the streets of Dali. I'm going to miss Dail; yes it's full of tacky souvenir shops, yes it's full of tour groups and yes you can't really say that it's the 'real China' but the skies are always blue and it has a very relaxed atmosphere.

I ordered the white chocolate cheesecake and once more it came with far too many berries. However, unlike the previous time I'd ordered it, I got cream. I scraped most of the berries off and cut the cake into slices; each slice was accompanied with a proportionate amount of cream and berries. I couldn't really savour the flavour, due to constantly 'clock watching', therefore I ate quickly and headed back to my hostel to pay my accommodation bill.

I hadn't been informed that a taxi would be taking me to my coach, however it wasn't a major problem. My only concern was that if the taxi dropped me off incorrectly I had nothing written in Chinese asking where the coach to Lijiang departed from. The hostel receptionist walked me to the taxi pick-up point and we chatted slightly before it arrived. The taxi driver had to pick up one other person (a Chinese girl who spoke a little English) before dropping me off, at a tourist office, that I could have walked to quicker. There we both waited for our coach to Lijiang.

The coach turned up half an hour late; the driver had a cigarette hanging loosely from his mouth and looked uninterested as he put mine, and the girls, rucksacks in the boot of the vehicle. There were already people on the coach and I was surprised to find a single-seat remaining vacant. As we drove away there were a few reasons why said seat had been left vacant; firstly there wasn't any leg room and so I had to sit sideways, secondly the sun was beating through the window burning my arm (I still didn't close the curtain as I wanted to see where I was going) but the most annoying aspect of sitting within this seat was that the window next to me was loose rattling for the entire journey. I pressed my MP3 players ear phones, gently into my ears, and turned the volume up.

I spent the first part of the trip reading my guidebook, looking up things that I would like to do within Lijiang. After that I looked at the view outside; at first the view wasn't that spectacular and I was contemplating in pulling the curtain to save the skin on my arm. I persevered; I moved slightly away from the window and continued to look, using my hat to try and provide shade. As the hours ticked by the view got better; we started to climb up into the mountains and deathly drops could be seen below. The ground was dry and rocks were scattered across the landscape but there were few trees or urban settlements. The settlements I did see were usually agricultural; the villages were surrounded by fields and many a peasant could be seen working away. It was a lovely sight, but nothing I'd not seen before. For the last hour the road turned into a dirt track – due to roadworks – and I was thrown this way and that; the window started to rattle even louder and I could feel eyes upon me as if it was my fault. To make matters worse some of the Chinese had started to spit into the bins provided and one guy was smoking … with a no smoking sign above his head.

Eventually we stopped within Lijiang. One positive was that we had stopped closer to the old town than I'd expected; on the bad side I had no idea where I was. I started to study my map when the only other tourist on the bus – who also happened to be British – came and asked if we could travel together. That was fine by me though he had less of an idea where we were than I did. The Chinese girl, who'd boarded the coach with me, tried to help. Luckily I had my destination written in Chinese; she grabbed the piece of paper out of my hand and went to ask the first local she could find. I was praying more that the sheet of paper would be returned (as without it I had no hope) than actually been given the correct directions; the girl returned, handed me my directions, and pointed westerly. Before we could thank her she had started walking within the opposite direction.

After a few minutes walking I had some idea of where we were; west seemed a logical direction and so we continued walking. As if by magic a Chinese guy appeared out of nowhere and decided to accompany us; with his large suitcase he struggled to keep up however he kept talking in Chinese and, occasionally, would grab my directions from me to ask locals. As quickly as he had appeared he seemed to disappear; we looked behind us but shrugged as we decided that he had been consumed by the crowds. It mattered not, we were getting close and, after asking another two locals, we found ourselves at a crossroads within the old town. I usually ask older people for directions, as they seem to know where places are; however as I looked to my right two Chinese women – with really short and really tight skirts – were coming along the street towards us. The look of the 'innocent tourist' comes easy to me now and as they approached I asked them for help. Once again my Chinese directions were grabbed from my hands and they started walking down a street to my right; I followed, flicking through the pages of my guidebook trying to find 'fancy dinner later' in Chinese without success.

Following two women presented it's own entertainment and I didn't really take in much of the surroundings. All too soon the girls stopped; I looked at the sign to my right to find that we were stood outside the hostel I was booked into. I thanked them, still annoyed that I couldn't work out how to ask them for their numbers, as they smiled and left. The hostel seemed nice enough; the receptionist's English wasn't perfect but I managed to check-in successfully. The other English guy decided to check in too and we were both shown to the same dorm room. A little small but pleasant enough we both dropped our stuff off before heading into town. The time was 3pm and I was starving.

My guidebook stated that the small cobbled streets of Lijiang were a maze for the inexperienced and it wasn't lying; the streets were narrow and they turned and twisted as if they had a life of their own. It was difficult to pinpoint useful landmarks as all the buildings looked the same, all sold the same tourist souvenirs and all seemed to play the same music. We walked for a while in any direction that took our fancy; we chatted about our travels as it appears that we have both been to the same places. Lijiang maybe a maze but it's extremely pleasant; whereas Dali was flat, Lijiang is built on a hillside meaning that many roofs, of many buildings, can be seen as you look up. Small stone bridges crossed smaller stoned rivers and squares appeared out of nowhere. We didn't walk for long as we were both hungry; we found a restaurant and were shown to a table in front of a live musician. We tried to keep our conversation alive but the music was too loud, in the end we asked to be reseated to which the waiter moved us to the third floor over looking the street below. The view was lovely however we both felt that the waiter had been a little extreme; I ordered a plate of vegetables, with tofu, which was as exciting as it sounded. We ate and chatted for a while before leaving said restaurant full, but bored.

We continued to walk through the old town before returning to our hostel; once back I picked up my diary and went to reception to book my 'Epic train journey'. In three days time I want to start travelling to Loyuang, which is five hours to the east of Xi'an; at the best its going to take three nights and consists of taking:

- a night train from Lijiang to Kumming

- a two night train from Kumming to Xi'an

- a five hour train from Xi'an to Loyuang

In some ways I was looking forward to the journey; all of it would be in the comfort of a soft seater cabin and, as long as I stocked up on supplies, it should allow me to rest and get back on schedule. I went to the reception to purchase said tickets however, due to their lack of English, the process became painful. Instead I opted to follow the suggestion made by a fellow traveller and I walked down to the local 'HI' hostel. I walked into a rather pleasant building with a wooden counter, there I presented my mammoth trip to the lady on reception. Apart from answering the phone while serving me she was very polite, helpful and pleasant; she said that she could only help with the first two train journeys as the last one would started outside of the province of Yunnan; using the internet she showed me that many services depart from Xi'an to Loyuang and once she'd written down a short passage, in Chinese, stating that “...I would like to purchase a soft seat on the 8:35am, or 8:55am, train from Xi'an to Loyuang...” I was more than confident that I could get this rail ticket on my arrival within Xi'an. Once the two rail tickets had been booked I asked her about a day trip to the 'Tiger Leaping Gorge' which she said was possible; the hike takes two days and I haven't got that amount of time but the day trip sounded promising. It consisted of a three hour bus ride before being dropped off forty minutes from the gorge; I decided to think about it but, having come all this way, I was very tempted. I thanked her and said that I'll be back tomorrow to pick up my train tickets (which cost £80 … not bad considering three days of travel).

I returned to my hostel to find my evening disappearing. The English guy I'd met earlier had found a small group of travellers to chat too, which consisted of one Canadian and two British; I joined in the conversation until they left for tea allowing me to surf the web. Tomorrow I'll look around Lijiang, including the 'Black Dragon Pools', before picking up my train tickets and, I think, booking myself on a trip to the gorge for Saturday. For now sleep … it's been a long day.

Toodle Pip!