We first thought about China after
seeing an ad in the Weekend Age which offered a 28 day trip, half in China and
half aboard a liner cruising through South East Asia. We had never been to
China and we had never been on a cruise. So after some deliberation and asking
Barbara’s sister Sheelah if she’d be interested, the three of us decided to go.
That was back in early 2013.
The adventure wouldn’t begin until January
2014.
So for the following months we planned
and organised visas and insurance and travel accounts. We had to supply the
tour company with a letter from our GP’s stating that we were fit to travel and
able to walk at least three kilometres. Then at one point the company emailed
us to say that they’d had some cancellations and there were only five people
doing the tour, Barbara and I and Sheelah and another couple. Did we still want
to go?
Of course we did. The smaller the group
the better as far as we were concerned.
So that was how, in early January we
flew first to Singapore and then to Beijing, just the three of us and our
fellow travelers, Andrew and Linda from Newcastle. They spotted us at Changi
Airport in Singapore and introduced themselves. We hit it off from the start.
BEIJING
Once through Chinese customs and
immigration we stepped into the early morning of Beijing. It was freezing and
smoggy as we had expected so we were all well rugged up. The temperature was
minus eleven degrees Celsius.
Within a few minutes we were shaking
hands with Leo, a cheerful young man who turned out to be an economics
graduate, but for the next few days would be our guide while we were in the
capital.
As we drove through relatively uncrowded
streets to our hotel Leo told us a bit about Beijing.
We had four days to
explore this city and obviously we were only going to scratch the surface. We
knew that Beijing was the capital of the People’s Republic. We knew that its
history stretched back to the eleventh century and that the reign of Mao and
his successors was only a tiny part of that history. Before that a series of
dynasties and imperial rulers governed the country.
Now what we were seeing were broad eight
lane highways traversed by BMW’s and Audis and flanked by modern skyscrapers
bedecked with familiar neon logos, HSBC, Coca Cola, McDonalds and all the rest.
Over twenty-one million people live in this sprawling metropolis. Where did
they all live? Where did they work?
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| Our guide - Leo |
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| Traffic |
We hoped to answer those questions but
first we checked into the Jianguo Garden Hotel, had our passports copied by the
receptionist and then took a lift to the ninth floor. Our room was comfortable
enough if a little dowdy. Being winter the place wasn’t at its smartest. But
there was a welcome hot shower. We unpacked and after that travel caught up
with us and we took a nap for a couple of hours. It was around ten thirty when
we finally met downstairs to enjoy a late breakfast of croissants, coffee,
bacon and scrambled eggs.
Leo had told us he’d pick us up for
dinner that evening but until then our time was our own. Andrew and Linda had
already gone exploring so Sheelah, Barbara and I followed suit, strolling along
the broad thoroughfare exchanging stares with the locals and peering into shop
windows, and the variety of street vendors stalls selling hats and scarves and
fruit and vegetables. We branched off the main highway along a side street.
There were people everywhere, some shopping, a group gathering for some sort of
green rally, people sweeping the footpath, policemen directing traffic,
families with children out for a walk; in fact this was just like any big city
in the world.
By now we were feeling peckish. We
looked for a likely restaurant where we could enjoy a light lunch. We found one
and stepped rather tentatively inside. There were some Chinese dining there so
we figured “when in Rome”. Fortunately the menu featured pictures of each dish
on offer and by a mixture of broken English and much pointing, we ordered what
we thought was one small dish for each of us. What we got was each dish served
for three people. This was a veritable banquet of soup and pork and noodles,
much more than we really required. I opted for pork intestines smothered in a
delicious sauce, but neither of the others was interested.
By the time we had finished and paid
what seemed like a very small amount of money, we were utterly sated.
We wandered back to the hotel through a
maze of smaller streets which gave us an opportunity to see how and where
people lived. There were rows of small houses interspersed with larger
apartment blocks and all connected to power via a tangle of wires strung
between poles along the way. The buildings looked a bit drab and grey and lots
of the balconies overhanging the street were protected by makeshift bars and
screens. All along the roadside were parked dozens of little motor scooters and
motorized tricycles, a popular mode of private transport. Every now and then we
would pass the open door to a workshop where someone would be welding or doing
some sort of repair work.
By the time we reached our hotel it was
getting chilly again. We met up with Andrew and Linda again. They were enjoying
a glass of red wine in the bar. We settled for hot coffee.
In the evening Leo turned up again and
as promised, took us out to dinner, a Chinese specialty known the world over as
Peking duck.
By now it was dark and we buttoned up
our winter coats and hats as we walked a block or so to our restaurant. We were
ushered into an upstairs room dominated by a round table with a big lazy Susan.
What followed was a fabulous banquet. Despite having had a substantial lunch,
we enjoyed every bite. First there was chicken and pork and vegetables in spicy
and exotic sauces; and finally the duck.
It arrived already sliced, skin crispy
and the flesh cooked perfectly. Leo told us the ducks are killed in the morning
and roasted in a closed or hung oven. The dish was first created in Beijing but
it is now China’s national dish.
Leo showed us how to eat it wrapped in a
very thin rice flour pancake with a slice of onion or scallion, and dipped in
thick dark hoisin sauce.
What a banquet!
It was still quite early when we
returned to our hotel but we were still pretty tired so decided to go to bed
early. We did however watch a little television before switching off.
CCTV is the Chinese version of an
English language news network, and we were amazed to see a familiar face
broadcasting the news. It was one time ABC weather presenter Edwin Maher.
Apparently he’s been doing English language news broadcasting since 2002.
It was time for bed!
We breakfasted at eight the next morning.
We had a long day ahead.
Leo collected us in his van and we set
off for one of the most iconic locations in Beijing. On the way we passed more
skyscrapers, lots of statues and symbols of the Olympic Games held here in the
nineties and in some places, facades hiding some of the more unsightly spots
from the curious eyes of the tourists. Finally our van swung into a long avenue
before stopping. There it was, Tiananmen Square.
This place became known in the recent
past as the site of the protests which happened there in 1989. In fact this
square has seen many protests and indeed many battles stretching back over
centuries. The history of this, the fourth largest city square in the world,
goes back to 1651 in fact. It holds over six hundred thousand people, although
thankfully there was nothing like that number on the Sunday morning we spent
there.
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| The Great Hall of the People |
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| Police Patrol |
From one end of the square we could see
this vast area of flagstones, with monuments to the heroes of the revolution
and lots of security cameras. There was no shortage of men in uniform either.
We saw a number of squads of grey green clad soldiers swinging across the
square to their various posts at the entrances and gates.
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| Entrance to the Forbidden City |
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| Chinese Temple Within |
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| Temple Detail |
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| Into the Forbidden City |
The place wasn’t crowded today as we
joined some hundreds of Chinese people making their way through the tunnel
leading into the Forbidden City itself. This complex of connected courtyards,
temples and palaces seemed to stretch for miles.
According to the official guidebook…”Rectangular in shape, it is the world's largest palace complex and covers 74
hectares. Surrounded by a 52-meter-wide moat and a 10-meter-high wall
are more than 8,700 rooms. There are unique and delicately structured
towers on each of the four corners of the curtain wall. These afford views over
both the palace and the city outside. It is divided into two parts. The
southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his
supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner Court was
where he lived with his royal family. Until 1924 when the last emperor of China
was driven from the Inner Court, fourteen emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten
emperors of the Qing dynasty had reigned here. Construction of the palace
complex began in 1407. It was completed
fourteen years later in 1420, and then the
capital city was moved from Nanjing to Beijing the next year. It was said that
a million workers including one hundred thousand artisans were driven into long-term hard labor.”
Here
endeth the lesson.
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| Lady in Traditional Costume |
We
could have spent the whole day exploring this labyrinth of courtyards and
magnificent buildings each with their curved and shining roofs of ceramic tiles
supported by red and golden columns.
And
each palace had a name such as The Palace of Heavenly Purity, the Palace of
Tranquil Longevity or the Palace of Earthly Tranquility. There was the Gate of
Supreme Harmony and the Hall of Celestial and Terrestrial Union, and many many
more.
Some
of these buildings had been converted into museums which displayed the relics
and riches of the various dynasties.
Eventually
we reached the far side of the Forbidden City having first passed through the
Imperial Garden with its ancient twisted cedars.
And
finally we reached the street again, crossing a bridge over the moat which was
completely frozen.
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| Inside the Imperial Garden |
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| Imperial Garden |
Once
again we were assailed by vendors selling every kind of souvenir. Here we used
a phrase in Mandarin which Leo had taught us. We had already learned “Ni Hao” meaning
“Hello” or “How are you”. But this one meant “No Want” or “I don’t want this”.
It is pronounced “Boo Yow” and it proved very useful indeed.
Leo
knew a restaurant nearby and it turned out that a large proportion of the
Beijing population seemed to know it as well. We had to wait some time to get a
table, but that at least suggested that this was a good place for lunch. While
we waited two little boys seemed fascinated by the five round eyed visitors and
introduced themselves in broken English, as “Rock” and “Steven”. We were told
that many Chinese have European first names as well as Chinese names.
And
so Rock who was all of four years old, proceeded to impress us with his own
lively version of hip hop dancing, which entertained us until our table was
ready.
Once
inside we found a place filled with Sunday lunchers.
The room was vast and
there must have been upwards of a hundred tables all occupied by families
enjoying their meals. We certainly enjoyed ours. We had sliced pork belly and
soft buns, noodle soup, chicken in ginger and some sort of mushroom we had not
tasted before. All of this was washed down by bottomless cups of hot green tea.
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| Leo does Lunch |
From
the restaurant we were invited into a place where they produced cultured pearls
and they got us when our defences were down. Here we saw pearls in every state
from the oyster to beautiful necklaces of pearls of every hue. Of course we
were encouraged to buy some, and we did. I think there was something in those
strange mushrooms.
By
this time we needed a walk and so we visited the Temple of Heaven, a religious
site set in a large park. The park is a popular place for relaxation.
As we
walked towards the huge round building of the temple itself we passed many
people playing cards or mahjong or checkers, each group surrounded by onlookers
watching every move. There were in fact three temples, the central one being
known as the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. It dates back to the fifteenth
century and is built entirely of wood with no nails. Just how important this
place was to the Chinese people was illustrated by the contents of another of
the three temples nearby.
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| The Temple of Heaven |
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| Sunday afternoon card players |
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| Senior Contemplation |
Inside
was a museum and there were among other things, photographs of just about every
occupying force to invade China over the past century or so. There were British
soldiers, Japanese soldiers, Nationalist Chinese Soldiers, and Americans, each
group posing in triumph in front of the temple.
When
it was time to head back to the hotel we passed a number of people dancing to
Chinese pop music.
It proved too tempting for Barbara who immediately decided
to join the dancers, much to the amusement of the locals. It was a moment of
cultural exchange which I duly recorded on camera.
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| Barbara joins the dance |
We
were getting somewhat footsore by then, so we were more than happy, once back
at our hotel, to flop down in the bar and enjoy a couple of glasses of red
wine. The wine was appropriate as after dinner we were to visit Beijing’s
famous Red Theatre.
This
place used to be known as the Chongwen Workers’ Palace, but it now fulfils a
very different role as the setting of a fantastic show called “The Legend of
Kung Fu”.
This show,
consisting of six scenes, is presented by a group of marvellous Kung Fu
practitioners from all over China. Their average age is only 17 years but they
have studied Chinese Kung Fu since early childhood and the result is absolutely
spectacular. During the 80-minute show, the actors don’t speak so the story is
told through the media of dance, acrobatics and Kung Fu itself. There are sword
fights and feats of endurance involving shattering bricks by hand and all
manner of action interspersed with explanations of the Kung Fu philosophy.
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| Us at the Red Theatre |
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| Kung Fu cast |
It was exciting
and beautiful and highly entertaining; an amazing end to a memorable day.
And tomorrow
there would be more!
It was Monday
morning and we were on our way out of the city to visit the Great Wall.
There was not a
lot of traffic on our side of the eight lane highway as we headed out towards
the countryside. On the other side however it was bumper to bumper with Toyotas
and Hondas and plenty of luxury European cars too. Beijing has an odds and even
number plate policy, which means that drivers can only use their cars every
second day. But to look at that peak hour traffic you would hardly know it. Car
owners also have to pay a fortune for licence plates but again it seems to have
little effect on traffic, not to mention air pollution.
As we travelled
along the highway the tall buildings and apartment block began to give way to open
fields, stretches of woods, and smaller townships. The cold was still with us
though. As we gained altitude and drove into the hills we even passed a frozen
waterfall.
Eventually we
pulled into a car park and Leo lead us to the beginning of a very long winding
trail. At the far end we saw for the first time, what we had come to see; the
Great Wall of China.
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| Frozen Waterfall |
That was pretty
exciting in itself, but now we knew why our tour company wanted that letter
saying we could walk three kilometres.
We need not
have worried however. All we had to do was negotiate a short rise with street
vendors shouting their wares at us, and there was an elevator which in turn
took us to a cable car leading all the way to the top.
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| Cable Car to the Wall |
Minutes later we were standing at the base of the Great Wall itself.
There was a sort of plaza at the bottom and we could look up at one section of this massive structure. After all it is over 6700 kilometres long and this particular section has been restored for the benefit of visitors like us. So what we saw was a flight of steps leading up to the top of a reddish grey stone wall.
When we reached the top seven metres up we stepped onto the parapet and looked along the length of the wall which snaked its way across the hills to the horizon on either side of us. At intervals there were fortress like blockhouses which were presumably used as redoubts for the one million soldiers who manned this place centuries ago.
There was a sort of plaza at the bottom and we could look up at one section of this massive structure. After all it is over 6700 kilometres long and this particular section has been restored for the benefit of visitors like us. So what we saw was a flight of steps leading up to the top of a reddish grey stone wall.
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| And here we are. No captions needed! |
When we reached the top seven metres up we stepped onto the parapet and looked along the length of the wall which snaked its way across the hills to the horizon on either side of us. At intervals there were fortress like blockhouses which were presumably used as redoubts for the one million soldiers who manned this place centuries ago.
The wall itself
is said to have been built wide enough for a chariot to be driven along its
length; too wide for a man to step across and too high for a man to jump.
In fact I
learned later that the wall is not a single structure at all. It started out as
seven different walls built by seven different powerful Chinese states. Then in
221 BC, a single all powerful emperor ordered the joining of the seven into
one. Its purpose was to defend the country against invading Huns and Mongols
and others, although it never actually achieved that aim.
And all that took
the work of a million common people and cost the lives of some three hundred
thousand.
We tried to
absorb all this as we rode the cable car down to earth where once again we were
pursued by sellers of t-shirts and Chinese bric a brac.
It was lunch time and of course there was another of those huge restaurants just around the corner. The lazy Susan revolved and we helped ourselves to sweet and sour chicken, chestnuts and pork and cold beer.
It was lunch time and of course there was another of those huge restaurants just around the corner. The lazy Susan revolved and we helped ourselves to sweet and sour chicken, chestnuts and pork and cold beer.
After lunch we
piled back into our van and drove to what looked from the outside, like a
rather rundown brickworks.
On entering we
learned that this was one of a diminishing number of factories left in China
which made Cloisonné. The word is French but the product is distinctively
Chinese. Cloisonné is an ancient
technique for decorating metalwork
objects, using vitreous enamel.
We were shown through a series of rooms, very grimy and Dickensian, where rows of workers sat hunched over their tasks. Some were working with metal dishes, others with metal jars, first adding compartments, “cloisons” in French, to the object by soldering thin gold strips placed on their edges. These remain visible in the finished piece, separating the different compartments of the enamel or inlays of various colours. Each piece is then fired in a kiln and then laboriously polished. Here are some examples of the finished product.
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| Cloisonne workers |
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| Copper templates |
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| Filling in with enamel |
We were shown through a series of rooms, very grimy and Dickensian, where rows of workers sat hunched over their tasks. Some were working with metal dishes, others with metal jars, first adding compartments, “cloisons” in French, to the object by soldering thin gold strips placed on their edges. These remain visible in the finished piece, separating the different compartments of the enamel or inlays of various colours. Each piece is then fired in a kiln and then laboriously polished. Here are some examples of the finished product.
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| The finished product |
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| Cloisonne vases |
We learned that
this beautiful craft is dying out now, mainly because young people in China
today are not interested in doing such painstaking and demanding work,
especially in such unhealthy conditions.
Then of course
we were invited to look at the factory showroom, featuring cloisonné in myriad
forms from small saucers to huge jardinières, and of course we bought some to
bring home.
We still had
two more visits to make before the end of the day, firstly to the site of the
2008 Olympic Games, taking a stroll across the huge plaza which leads to the
various arenas, including the famous birds nest athletics stadium and the blue
cube of the water sports complex. We also saw the television tower where our
son Paul had worked for the Seven Network.
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| Site of the Beijing Olympics |
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| Barbara bought a panda hat |
That was
followed by a sample one stop ride on the subway.
Our last stop
was for a cuppa.
Actually it was
a more than that. We were seated on little stools while a Chinese lady in
tradition costume, showed us the traditional way to prepare tea. There was
green tea and black tea and even a range of fruit teas. She poured the boiling
water over the outside of the cup before pouring it inside. This way the
temperature of the cup remained constant. Then she added selected tea leaves to
an inner filter in the cup before finally adding the boiling water.
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| The tea lady |
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| Tea? |
Needless to
say, we bought packets of tea to take home, as well as a china cup.
By the time we
headed back to the hotel, the sun was an orange disc in the sky, visible
through a pall of smog.
We enjoyed a
couple of bottles of Australian pinot before a light dinner and an early night.
Tomorrow would be our last day in Beijing before taking the night train to the
city of Xi An……
Tuesday
morning; and Leo our guide arrived at the hotel to help us check out and load
our luggage into the van. Our final Beijing experience was a visit to an area
of the city known as “the hutongs”.
Hutongs are
narrow streets and alleys formed by traditional courtyard residences.
The word is originally Mongol and hutongs have been around for centuries. The best way to see them is in by pedi-cab, a kind of rickshaw cum tricycle, and this was what we all piled into to begin our visit. These places go back centuries and in their early days were quite prestigious residences.
They each had courtyards and large wooden gates which were locked up each night. As we bumped along the narrow streets we passed small shops and peered down even smaller and narrower laneways, before reaching one particular house belonging to a Mrs Fung. Mrs Fung was to be our hostess for lunch. We were ushered inside to a modest living room with TV and family photographs on the walls, and in the centre a large round table where our hostess was laying out lunch.
Mrs Fung spoke
no English but her welcoming smile made us all comfortable and we sat down to eat.
We learned that she prepared lunches like this every day for visiting tourists.
The food was more homely than the banquets we had enjoyed elsewhere. There were
fried garlic shoots, lotus plant, sesame duck, seafood balls and fried
mushrooms, all washed down with hot black tea.
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| Off to see the hutongs |
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| Once were prestige homes |
The word is originally Mongol and hutongs have been around for centuries. The best way to see them is in by pedi-cab, a kind of rickshaw cum tricycle, and this was what we all piled into to begin our visit. These places go back centuries and in their early days were quite prestigious residences.
They each had courtyards and large wooden gates which were locked up each night. As we bumped along the narrow streets we passed small shops and peered down even smaller and narrower laneways, before reaching one particular house belonging to a Mrs Fung. Mrs Fung was to be our hostess for lunch. We were ushered inside to a modest living room with TV and family photographs on the walls, and in the centre a large round table where our hostess was laying out lunch.
 |
| Lunch at Mrs Fung's |
Having enjoyed
the products of her culinary skills, we listened as Leo translated some of her
life story.
In the time of
China’s Cultural Revolution this short, sturdy little housewife had been a
soldier. She was sent into the countryside to work but her family had lived in
this house for four generations. Her mother was still alive and was one hundred
and seven years old. She showed us photographs of her children and a
grandchild, all stored on a computer in a corner of the room.
We thanked Mrs
Fung for her hospitality and boarded our pedi-cabs again, for a last look at
the hutongs. There are less and less of them left in the city now, as many have been demolished to make way for
roads and apartment buildings, although fortunately some hutong neighbourhoods
have been designated as protected areas.
Our next stop took us across town to an enormous Buddhist temple complex known as the Lama Temple. It is also the location of the School of Tibetan Buddhism.
Our next stop took us across town to an enormous Buddhist temple complex known as the Lama Temple. It is also the location of the School of Tibetan Buddhism.
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| Approaching the Lama Temple |
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| Part of the temple |
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| Lions guard the entrance |
This place goes
back to the seventeenth century and was once the centre of learning for
Buddhist monks from Mongolia and Tibet.
We approached
the temple along an avenue of ancient ginkgo trees, through an ornate
traditional gateway to the threshold of the main place of worship. Outside
people were lighting incense sticks and pausing to pray before the Buddha
inside.
Leo, a Buddhist
himself, tried to explain the philosophy but I’m afraid most of it went over my
head. The only part I understood was that to achieve eventual heavenly peace
one had to reach consciousness of oneself and an understanding of all others.
If you translate that into “Love your neighbour as yourself” then I could
relate to that.
I think the
most impressive symbol we saw was a huge wooden statue, said to be the tallest
wooden Buddha in the world. It was centuries old and carved in one piece from a
single tree.
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| The Wooden Buddha |
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| We meet some Tibetan visitors |
On our way back
to our van we met up with two Buddhist monks in saffron robes. We learned that
they were Tibetan and visiting the temple for some special rituals. These holy
men, both in their twenties struck me as a little incongruous however. One of
them was fingering his prayer beads with one hand, while scrolling through his
i-phone with the other.
We had one more
place to visit in Beijing. As I said, we only scratched the surface of this
fabulous city.
This was the
Summer Palace, the largest royal park in China. Built in 1750 on the banks of
the Kunming Lake, and then restored in the nineteenth century by the Dowager
Empress Xi Ci, this estate is fifteen kilometres long and is famous for its
stunning natural views.
A summer palace
in winter is still extremely beautiful and fortunately for us, less crowded. To
enter, we walked past huge bronze statues of mythical beasts and through the
Hall of Benevolence and Longevity.
On the other side we found an almost frozen lake, its icy surface shrouded in mist with a fitful yellow sun illuminating the distant rooftop of the Temple of Buddhist Incense.
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| Mythical Beasts on guard |
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| More guards |
On the other side we found an almost frozen lake, its icy surface shrouded in mist with a fitful yellow sun illuminating the distant rooftop of the Temple of Buddhist Incense.
On one horizon
we could make out an elegant stone bridge with seventeen arches joining two
sides of the lake. And along the lakeside was a long enclosed gallery along
which the Dowager Empress no doubt strolled with her courtiers over a century
and a half ago.
At the end of our walk we encountered what we thought was a royal barge and a line of dragon boats. The original was built in 1755 and again was restored by the Dowager Empress in 1893. She used it as a platform from which to enjoy the view and of course a nice cup of tea.
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| Frozen Lake - the Summer Palace |
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| Lakeside walks |
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| Add caption |
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| The bridge with 17 arches |
At the end of our walk we encountered what we thought was a royal barge and a line of dragon boats. The original was built in 1755 and again was restored by the Dowager Empress in 1893. She used it as a platform from which to enjoy the view and of course a nice cup of tea.
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| Royal Barge? |
Our final stop
in Beijing was the Beijing West railway station where we had to catch the night
train to the city of Xi An 1200 kilometres to the south west.
Leo stayed with
us to make sure we got on the right train and we sat in the main waiting area
along with thousands of local folk. From here you could take a train to
Guangzhou, Kowloon, Hong Kong, Chengdu and even Tibet.
 |
| Waiting for the train to Xi An |
Once again all
our cases and bags had to pass through security and all our passports had to be
checked. We had a few hours to wait and we wanted to get some dinner. I’m
ashamed to say that after searching around, we finished up with MacDonald’s
burgers. I skipped the fries though.
Then we said
goodbye and thanks to Leo and headed for the train. Barbara and Sheelah and I
lugged our cases into a four berth cabin which we would share with a young
Chinese man who spent much of the time texting and playing games on his
I-phone.
Our bunks were
much what you would expect on a train and we all snugged down waiting for sleep
to catch up with us.
XI AN
Eleven and a
half hours later our train pulled into the station and we alighted, bleary eyed
and hungry,into the sub zero morning air of Xi An.
A few minutes
later we spotted our local guide Julia who greeted us in excellent English and
lead us to a waiting van. We headed into the city along with local work bound
traffic, skirting a long centuries old city wall which had once served as this
city’s main defences. Once checked into our hotel we showered and breakfasted
before Julia returned to take us to see what we had come all this way to see,
the famed terra cotta warriors.
As we drove the
fifty kilometres to the warriors site Julia gave us some background on this
city. Xi An is the capital of Shaanxi province and dates back over three
thousand years. It was once the capital of China and the starting point of the
fabled Silk Road.
As we drove
along a modern highway we could see the evidence of a veritable hive of
industry. Everywhere it seemed, new factories and new apartments were going up.
There was also a lot of smog in the air, although some of it may have been fog
too.
Visibility was
down to about half a kilometre but we figured that one day’s pollution wouldn’t
kill us.
We made one
stop on our way to see the warriors, and that was at a factory and showroom
where they made; guess what?...Yup, terra cotta warriors!
We had some fun
posing with these replicas which you could, if you desired, buy and have
shipped home for the garden. They came in all sizes. The rest of the showroom
featured a massive array of lacquered tables and other furniture. We could have
spent thousands here but as none of us actually lived in houses designed for
Chinese furnishings, we didn’t.
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| It's the tourist thing to do |
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| Lacquer work for sale |
And so to the
real thing!
To get to the
three pits which accommodate the terra cotta army as it’s called, involves
quite a long walk across a broad, and very chilly plaza, and then a ride in an
open bus which is even chillier.
But it was
worth every shiver.
I read in
someone else’s blog that “Going to China and not seeing the Terracotta Army is
like going to Egypt and missing the Pyramids.”
I couldn’t
agree more.
The first thing
you see here is a row of enormous buildings like great aircraft hangars, but
more ornate and solid.
We entered the
building called Pit Number One. Fortunately the place was not crowded and
within a minute or so we halted at a railing and found ourselves looking down
on a vast army of more than six thousand of the legendary warriors. They stood
in rows and ranks stretching for 230 metres from wall to wall. Each figure
could be identified by rank and dress and even individual facial features. Of
course these statues were once painted but most of the colour has faded now
because, after all, they date back 2000 years. Many of the soldiers once
carried bows and spears, but being made of wood, they had long since perished.
And there were horses too, and even the remains of chariots.
And what we
were seeing was just one of three pits. Some areas have yet to be excavated so
all we could see was the clay roof under which lies goodness knows what. The
archaeologists won’t find out for another four or five years.
 |
| Pit number one |
These relics
were actually discovered in 1974 by a farmer who was drilling a well. Why are
they there?
Well it seems
that 2000 years ago the Emperor, Quin Shi Huang wanted to live forever and
spent much of his wealth searching for the elixir of life. But just in case, he
also decided to build himself a huge mausoleum and take with him an army of
warriors to protect him in the afterlife.
The vanity of
human beings knows no bounds, then as now.
We could have
spent days exploring the other sites here, but once again time overtook us and
we reluctantly returned to our van and headed back to Xi An.
We had lunch in
a local restaurant, part of a chain rather like La Porchetta only Chinese.
Julia ordered the meal for us and it was delicious. We enjoyed honeyed sweet
pork, a beef hotpot, spicy chicken and chillies and wonton soup.
 |
| Fit for an Emperor |
I do tend to
waffle on about food on our travels, but we experienced so many dishes which
were new to us, and totally unlike Chinese food at home.
After that we
needed to walk and we took a stroll through a nearby public park, where people
were flying traditional Chinese kites. Some of these were hundreds of metres up
in the air, so far up in fact they looked in danger of threatening low flying
aircraft. Well they looked that way anyhow.
 |
| Freezing in the park |
On the other
side of the park we walked up a flight of steps to the Wild Goose Pagoda. This
centuries old building, unlike other pagodas was not highly decorated. It stood
rather drab and dull. In fact it had had several lives since it was first built
in 649AD. It had been built and rebuilt following collapses and earthquake
damage over the centuries. It now has seven levels and a slight lean to the
west, a bit like the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
 |
| The Wild Goose Pagoda |
Inside the
adjoining temple are many figurines of the Buddha, brought here from India
hundreds of years ago.
This place
still operates as a Buddhist monastery and many of those who spent their lives
here, lie buried in the nearby cemetery.
 |
| Ancient Buddha |
Late in the
afternoon we returned to our hotel and after a few glasses of white wine, and a
light dinner, we retired to our rooms to pack once more.
Tomorrow we
would fly to Shanghai.
SHANGHAI
We were up at
six the next morning, in time to get our bags down to the foyer for transport
to the airport. We had breakfast and then Julia picked us up. It took an hour
to reach the airport. We thanked Julia and said goodbye and then we had to go
through the usual immigration and security checks.
Our plane, a
China East A300 took off for the two hour flight south. It was a bit bumpy as
we crossed the mountains but otherwise our flight was uneventful and we touched
down on time at Shanghai’s Pudong Airport.
Goodbye Julia,
hello Avril!
Avril spoke
good English and guided us to yet another van which took us unto the city.
Shanghai on first impressions, was a very western looking city. As this was
Chinese New Year there were decorations everywhere, plus every logo and neon
sign you would find in Melbourne or Sydney. And there were streets lined with
plane trees and familiar architecture.
 |
| Meeting Avril |
Having checked
into our hotel we met downstairs for coffee. Today was Linda’s birthday and our
guide, Avril met us with a birthday cake which she had brought especially.
We had some
time to ourselves that day just to look around and relax. But in the evening we
met up again to visit a theatre featuring an amazing display of acrobatics
mixed with dance and balancing acts and juggling, and all performed by
youngsters aged between fifteen and their mid twenties. This show went on for
about an hour and a half and ended with a spectacular act on motorcycles. This
began with a single rider inside an enormous steel mesh sphere, hurtling around
at speed up and down, and around and around. Then he was joined by a second
rider and they criss-crossed one another, and then a third and so on until
there were seven motor cycles whizzing around inside the sphere in a heart
stopping display of skill and timing.
An
unforgettable show!
On the
following morning, a Friday, we met Avril once again to see some of the sights
of this city of 24 million people, the largest by population, in China. Our
first stop was to the street known as the Bund. This was once the financial
heart of Shanghai and still is today.
Early in the twentieth century citizens
of many countries came to Shanghai to live and work. In the 1920s and 1930s, almost 20,000 White Russians and Russian Jews fled
the newly established Soviet Union and took up residence in Shanghai. They
joined communities of British and French and Japanese. By 1932, Shanghai had
become the world's fifth largest city.
 |
| Bank Buildings on the Bund - Shanghai |
When Mao came to power in the fifties most of the
western business interests got out of town but they left behind them, the Bund.
This was the heart of what was known as the Shanghai International Settlement.
Today you might call it China’s Wall Street.
The Bund (or embankment) runs alongside the Huangpu River. There is now a broad
promenade which throngs with tourists who come to admire the dozens of historic
buildings, banks and trading houses from all over the world. We entered one
bank building, originally the HSBC building established in 1923. It is now the
Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and the interior has been restored to its neo
classical glory. In the centre is a huge dome supported by marble columns, and
dotted across the yellow and white marble floors are luxurious leather sofas
and chesterfields for the comfort of the wealthy customers of bygone days.
 |
| The market is bullish |
 |
| Another bank lion |
Back on the
promenade we took photos of bronze statues symbolizing the wealth of Shanghai
today. We watched long lines of barges carrying coal down river. On the
opposite bank we could see rows of high rise apartment buildings and the tall
needle like Oriental Pearl TV Tower. Avril told us that ten years ago there was
nothing but farmland over there.
 |
| Coal barges on the river - Shanghai |
 |
| The Oriental Pearl Tower |
From the Bund we drove to the biggest retailing complex in China, the Yuyuan Tourist Mart. This gigantic shopping mall was all dressed up for Chinese New Year, with red and gold decorations and replicas of traditional historical and contemporary scenes. We were advised to keep a careful eye on our belongings here as it was a known haunt of pickpockets. We could see why.
 |
| A Local Shopping Mall |
 |
| New Year decorations |
We could also have bought fake Rolex watches, jade ornaments, t-shirts and all manner of knick knacks.
So it was a
relief to break away from the crowds and visit the Yu Garden.
What a
contrast. One minute we were jam packed in a busy shopping mall, and the next
we passed through an ancient stone gateway into a peaceful landscape of
greenery and rock ponds.
This place was
first established in the Ming Dynasty around the 1550’s and it occupies two
hectares. We wandered along the winding pathways passing water features and
manicured trees and bushes, large gnarled and ancient trees, and various
traditional Chinese buildings which once housed the elite of old Shanghai.
 |
| The Yu Garden - Shanghai |
It was lunchtime
so we stopped at a nearby restaurant to rest and re-energise.
After that we
visited one of the many silk factories in and around Shanghai. Here a young man
showed us the various processes involved in making silk from the cocoons of the
silkworms to the finished product. Silk is one of the oldest known textile
fibres, dating back to the 27th century BC and it was first made in
China.
All of this we found very instructive but we knew what would come next.
 |
| Spinning silk |
 |
| Silk workers |
Sure enough
there was a showroom featuring everything that could be made from silk, and
surprise surprise…it was all for sale.
We had vowed
that we wouldn’t buy any more stuff to take home but in the end our resolve
crumbled. Barbara and I bought a beautiful silk bedspread and matching
pillowslips, not knowing how we would pack them into our already overburdened
luggage. But there was more. They had a clothing showroom as well. Two shirts
and scarves and blouses later, we staggered out into the street wondering what
had hit us. The only consolation was that we weren’t the only ones. Sheelah and
Linda and Andrew got stung as well.
It was time to
go back to our hotel but Avril suggested one more visit, this time to Nanjing
Road.
Now Nanjing
Road is Shanghai’s main shopping street and it is mostly pedestrian mall. It is
Fifth Avenue and the Champs Elysee, Oxford Street and Collins Street all rolled
into one, from MacDonalds to Louis Vuiton to Tiffany’s. In earlier times it was
called Park Lane. These days it hosts about one million visitors every day.
So it was
perhaps a good thing that we had spent all our money at the silk factory.
 |
| Near the Nanjing Road |
We did however
afford to purchase a few glasses of wine back at our hotel.
This Saturday
would be our last day in China proper and we were going to spend it out of
town.
Avril picked us
up at 9.30 and we drove out of the city in heavy traffic. The day was quite
cold and smoggy and we were driving to a town called Zhujianjiao. It is one of
a number of so called “water towns” not far from Shanghai.
We arrived and
walked along the road to the old part of this quite ancient town. Lots of
tourists, foreign and local, come here just to see the old buildings and
waterways, and to dine at the many cafes and restaurants. In the past this was a trading area where
ferries and barges used the canals to transport goods. Boats are still very
much a part of the scene here today.
 |
| Zhujianjiao water town |
 |
| A minah bird |
 |
| Hot food - unknown |
As well as the
canals, the town boasted a network of narrow lanes and alleys where scores of
shopkeepers cooked traditional food in the open, and the smell of it permeated
the air.
A common dish
was made with pork wrapped in leaves and tied with bamboo before being deep
fried in a wok. There were other shops with dried pork and ducks hanging on
racks outside.
In some ways we
were reminded of Venice but instead of gondolas there were sampans on the
water. We took a ride on one of them, passing gently alongside outdoor cafes
and stalls, and under the arches of old stone bridges.
We alighted
again outside the restaurant where we were to have lunch. It was a very busy
little place and we were ushered upstairs to a separate room as waiters shouted
orders down the stairs to the kitchens. We drank green tea or Tsingtao beer
with dishes of fried beans, battered chicken, egg noodles and prawns. It was
simple stuff but delicious all the same.
 |
| Our boatman |
 |
| Stone bridge |
By mid afternoon
we were back at our hotel and feeling a bit tired. So we rested for an hour or
so before meeting downstairs for drinks in the lounge. The five of us shared a
bottle of Chilean merlot followed by two of Bordeaux, and a supper of spring
rolls, sesame toast and other nibbles.
Then it was
time to pack once more. Next stop Singapore!
In the morning
we checked out again, our destination the airport and then a plane or
Singapore. Perhaps the highlight of the day was that journey to the airport. It
was aboard the maglev train.
The maglev is a
high speed magnetic levitation train, the first of its kind in the world. It has no wheels or axles but it’s levitated a
short gap away from a guiderail using magnets to create both lift and thrust.
This amazing
means of transport reached over 300 kilometres an hour during our eight minute
trip to the airport. But don’t expect to see one in Australia any time soon. It
cost over a billion dollars to build and that was on Chinese wages.
 |
| The Maglev - from the poster |
SINGAPORE
And so we left
China, boarded our plane to Singapore, and five hours and thirty minutes later
were being greeted by our Singapore travel agent Mr Kamahl.
He made sure we
were comfortably settled into our hotel. Here the weather was suddenly much
warmer and I began to develop a cold. No matter! We only had one day in
Singapore and we were looking forward to two weeks of luxury on a cruise ship
with nothing to do but relax.
It was Monday
and the five of us decided that if there was one thing we would do during the
few hours before we joined our cruise ship, it would be to visit the famous
Raffles Hotel.
We took a taxi
to what is probably one of the most iconic hotels in the world.
This grand old
colonial style hotel was built in the 1880’s, not by the British, but by a
couple of Armenian brothers from Persia (Iran).
On our arrival
we were approached by a magnificently attired concierge in a white tunic with
gold epaulettes and a white turban. He politely directed us to the Long Bar and
we walked along a long white cloister bordered by cool green ferns and palms
until we reached the famous Long Bar. This proved to be just what its name
suggests…a long bar.
 |
| Raffles Hotel - Singapore |
 |
| Raffles concierge |
 |
| Raffles foyer |
But it
certainly has some style. Above the rows of bottles on the bar wall there hangs
a painting of a lady who would rival Chloe.
And of course there is the Singapore Sling, a drink invented here and consisting of gin, cherry brandy, pineapple juice, Cointreau, Benedictine, Grenadine and Angostura Bitters. Of course now that this sweetish pink concoction is famous worldwide, they charge a fortune for just one. We paid it nevertheless and also followed another Raffles tradition of nibbling on peanuts and chucking the shells on the floor. Don’t ask me why they do that; they just do.
So now we had crossed one more item off the bucket list although I have to report that when Barb and I got home a couple of weeks later, we had our Singapore Sling illusion shattered by one of our daughters in law who claimed that this allegedly carefully shaken cocktail was actually served up from a large container stored under the bar.
 |
| The famous Long Bar |
 |
| The Lady of the bar |
And of course there is the Singapore Sling, a drink invented here and consisting of gin, cherry brandy, pineapple juice, Cointreau, Benedictine, Grenadine and Angostura Bitters. Of course now that this sweetish pink concoction is famous worldwide, they charge a fortune for just one. We paid it nevertheless and also followed another Raffles tradition of nibbling on peanuts and chucking the shells on the floor. Don’t ask me why they do that; they just do.
 |
| Singapore Slings |
 |
| Drinkies |
So now we had crossed one more item off the bucket list although I have to report that when Barb and I got home a couple of weeks later, we had our Singapore Sling illusion shattered by one of our daughters in law who claimed that this allegedly carefully shaken cocktail was actually served up from a large container stored under the bar.
Nevertheless
one of these days I’d like to go back to Raffles and luxuriate in that old
colonial atmosphere, fake cocktails or not.
We were due to
join our cruise ship at 4pm so we still had a couple of hours to kill so we
strolled along the banks of the river until we found a pleasant little outside
bar. We sat in the shade and enjoyed the first bit of tropical weather we had
encountered since we left Australia.
It was enhanced
by a couple of long cold beers.
An hour later
we had left our hotel and were driving down to the port of Singapore with Mr
Kamahl. He made sure we got through the usual formalities of passport checks
and so on. We bade him farewell and went aboard the MS Volendam where we were
welcomed on behalf of the Holland America Line, along with about fourteen
hundred other passengers.
The Volendam is relatively small as cruise ships go
and we soon found our stateroom which turned out to be everything we had hoped
for. We were met by our cabin staff, Wibi and Indra who brought our luggage in,
while we looked around. We had a bathroom with a spa, a queen sized bed, a TV
and best of all, our own private verandah. When we sailed an hour later we sat
out there, sipping drinks and relaxing. It was great just knowing we didn’t
have to pack or unpack again for two weeks.
That evening the five of us enjoyed the delights of the dining saloon, along with a bottle of Cab-Sav. By nine thirty we were ready for bed. With the Volendam gently rocking us to sleep as she sailed into the South China Sea, we drifted away. Tomorrow we would explore the ship and find our sea legs.
After breakfast
in the morning we set about familiarising ourselves with our new surroundings.
We had a full day at sea ahead so we took our time, discovering the various
lounges and bars, even a casino not to mention a clothes shop, a hairdressers
and a jewellery shop and a theatre. In the next fourteen days we would learn a
lot more about the cruising life. For one thing there seemed to be a wide
variety of people aboard but with a preponderance of retirees. Quite a lot of
these got about on walking frames. There were people from the USA, the UK, from
India, Germany, Holland, Poland, Israel and Australia. Despite the fact that we
had over fourteen hundred fellow passengers, we never felt crowded and it was
always possible to find a quiet spot in some lounge where we could read or play
scrabble or just relax. There was always a choice of activities and after a
couple of shipboard meals we realised that it would be very easy to gain a lot
of weight.
We would have to keep up the exercise which we did by regularly
walking the promenade deck or using the well set up gym. Indeed some of the people
we encountered sunbathing by the swimming pool stood out as a beacon of warning
about the consequences of overeating.
 |
| Joining the Volendam |
 |
| Leaving Singapore |
 |
| Towards the South China Sea |
That evening the five of us enjoyed the delights of the dining saloon, along with a bottle of Cab-Sav. By nine thirty we were ready for bed. With the Volendam gently rocking us to sleep as she sailed into the South China Sea, we drifted away. Tomorrow we would explore the ship and find our sea legs.
 |
| Dinner aboard |
 |
| Watching the ships go by |
 |
| Poolside on the Volendam |
 |
| Some people shouldn't |
I won’t go into
a daily report of our activities aboard the Volendam. Mostly when we were at
sea we relaxed or indulged ourselves. In the evenings we would gather in one of
the lounges where we could enjoy live music, while we enjoyed wine or cocktails
before dinner. Then we would take the lift down to the main dining saloon. The food was not as we had
expected, made up of American super sized courses, but rather modest servings
of excellent cuisine. After that we had a choice of bars and lounges where we
could enjoy more music, popular, classical or rock, and maybe enjoy a snifter
of Scotch.
I’ll say more
aboard shipboard life later.
The following
day we were due to make our first port of call.
KOH SAMUI
We awoke to
find our ship anchored offshore from the Thai resort of Koh Samui.
 |
| Koh Samui |
 |
| Political demo - Koh Samui |
 |
| Koh Samui market |
We’d put our
clocks back an hour last night and we were up for breakfast by seven. Now Koh
Samui is an island that is part of Thailand and it’s noted for its long white
sandy beaches. But we were only to be in port for about half a day so we
decided to skip the beaches and just explore the town. We went ashore in one of
the ship’s tenders and strolled up to the township called Nathon. As it turned
out there was nothing much to see but a long main street with the usual tourist
traps. We did encounter a motorcade of cars honking and flag bedecked. There
were elections coming but we couldn’t tell which side these supporters were
from.
Along this
rather dilapidated street were lots of open air shops, and people shouting
their wares. Some were cooking food on woks and there was a fruit and vegetable
market with all sorts of exotic produce for sale; things like rambutans and
dragon fruit.
We passed a
massage salon and Barbara and Linda decided to get a foot massage while Sheelah
chose to wander around the shops. Andrew and I did the same for a while and
then sat at one of the outdoor cafes and ordered a couple of bottles of cold
beer.
We picked up the girls and headed back to the waterfront where our tender awaited. On the way we dropped into a supermarket (Tescos believe it or not) and bought some wine. It was much cheaper than on board our ship.
 |
| Market Produce |
 |
| A cold beer in Koh Samui |
We picked up the girls and headed back to the waterfront where our tender awaited. On the way we dropped into a supermarket (Tescos believe it or not) and bought some wine. It was much cheaper than on board our ship.
THAILAND
Overnight the
Volendam took us into the Gulf of Thailand and was now docked at Laem Chabang,
the main port of Bangkok, about two hours inland.
This time we
had decided to take an organised tour. There were reports of political unrest
in Bangkok but we were assured that our tour would go nowhere near any trouble
spots.
We boarded a
bus after breakfast and settled back for the drive to the capital. Our guide
for the day was a tiny Thai woman who spoke excellent English and told us a lot
about Thailand as we drove along. From the bus we could see lots of evidence of
industry with new factories being built as well as housing estates and
apartment buildings. Eventually we found ourselves in the Chinatown district of
Bangkok and we alighted in the middle of a huge flower market.
Our guide told us to stick together like sticky rice as we moved in single file through the crowded streets. The flower market is the biggest in Bangkok and is open 24 hours a day. On both sides of the road there were combination houses and shops. The shops were open to the street, with the houses one or two storeys above. And every stall offered flowers for sale in every imaginable form. And they were not only flowers native to South East Asia. There were marigolds and roses, carnations and orchids and lilies and even tulips. You could buy by the bunch or in floral displays, wreaths and garlands. The perfume was almost overwhelming. And at every stall there were men and women busily cutting and arranging, fashioning palm fronds into gorgeous shapes or making garlands for New Year gifts or temple offerings.
We spent an
hour in this place taking photographs and gasping at the never-ending
kaleidoscope of colour at every turn.
 |
| Bangkok Flower Market |
Our guide told us to stick together like sticky rice as we moved in single file through the crowded streets. The flower market is the biggest in Bangkok and is open 24 hours a day. On both sides of the road there were combination houses and shops. The shops were open to the street, with the houses one or two storeys above. And every stall offered flowers for sale in every imaginable form. And they were not only flowers native to South East Asia. There were marigolds and roses, carnations and orchids and lilies and even tulips. You could buy by the bunch or in floral displays, wreaths and garlands. The perfume was almost overwhelming. And at every stall there were men and women busily cutting and arranging, fashioning palm fronds into gorgeous shapes or making garlands for New Year gifts or temple offerings.
We reluctantly
reboarded our bus for another tortuous ride through the Bangkok traffic,
eventually stopping near a long white wall with a guarded entrance. We were at
the Grand Palace, the official residence of the kings of Siam since 1782.
These buildings
have been developed over the centuries by succeeding kings, and some of the
more recent ones bear an obvious European influence.
But the most
awe inspiring part of this complex is the temple of the Emerald Buddha and the
pagodas and glittering golden towers. Its Thai name is Wat Phra Kaew and it is
the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand. From the outside you approach this
temple up a long flight of marble stairs leading upwards to ornately decorated
walls painted with gold, and colored glass. You have to remove your shoes to
enter and when you do you see the Buddha high above you. This figure sits raised high on a series of platforms. A seasonal
cloak, changed three times a year to correspond to the summer, winter, and
rainy season covers the statue. A very important ritual, the changing of the
robes is performed only by the King to bring good fortune to the country during
each season.
 |
| Thai guard at temple complex |
 |
| Gods,beasts and temples |
But it is the story
of how this Buddha came to be so revered that is most intriguing.
 |
| The Emerald Buddha |
Legend says it was
originally from India but hundreds of years ago it was covered in plaster and
hidden in Cambodia. Then it was recovered by the Thais in the fifteenth
century. A couple of years after its recovery the image was accidentally
chipped and under the plaster, the statue was found to be made from a single
block of green jade.
Surrounding the
temple today are all sorts of ceremonial halls, and golden towers, memorials to
the kings of Siam (Thailand).
Around the base of
some of these monuments were supporting figures of mythical gods, elephants and
monkeys and evil beings all painted in gold and enamel and shining mirrors.
Every now and then we would meet saffron robed monks filing past and chanting
their prayers.
If we saw nothing
else in Bangkok that day the journey would have been worth it.
But there was one
more thing. We visited a huge complex where they cut and polished gemstones.
This place like so many places where tourists are taken, is a scam. Once you’ve
seen the jewel cutters at work you then find yourself in a huge showroom with
all sorts of jewellery for sale, and dozens of multilingual sales people eager
to offer you a bargain. And in fact there are many beautiful examples of the
jeweller’s craft for sale. We gazed in wonder and silver and gold necklaces set
with sapphires and rubies and emeralds the size of pigeons’ eggs. And there
were rings with topaz and citrine and jade. Some of these were selling for
thousands of dollars and we saw some people from our ship, buying some stuff.
This was way out of our league but I learned later that even though this
factory is government sponsored, much of the stuff is grossly overpriced. There
was however another showroom selling Thai silk and we did spend a bit there. I
bought a green silk table runner which seemed reasonably priced.
 |
| Guard at the Grand Palace |
 |
| The Grand Palace |
 |
| Thai silk shop |
 |
| Thai silk |
By now it was time
to return to the Volendam for drinks and dinner.
 |
| Aboard again |
That evening I sent
off an email to the family back home, just to let them know what the cruising
life was like. Here’s part of it.
“…….I have to tell you, we
could get used to cruising.
We have a very comfortable stateroom with its own verandah and a bathroom with a spa.
Our every need is attended to by a steward who does the bed and replaces the drinks and makes sure there is fresh fruit in the room.
When we are at sea our routine is very leisurely. We dine in a saloon called the Rotterdam Restaurant. Or we can choose from a couple of more intimate restaurants or an area called the Lido where there is a nonstop buffet.
The
range of food is amazing. For breakfast you have choices from European, Asian,
American menus with fresh juices, every kind of fruit and cereal and bacon and
eggs, a full English breakfast and even vegemite.
Then we can walk it all off again by walking the promenade deck. (1mile is three and a half times around). Or there is tai chi, a gym workout, a swim in one of two pools. For the more sedentary minded there are many quiet spots, libraries and bistros where tea and coffee is always on hand. There are about fifteen hundred passengers aboard but you never feel crowded out.
A few words about our fellow passengers. There are Americans, Indians, Asians, Brits and Australians and I've heard Dutch and French accents too.
On the upside many of the people we have met are friendly and interesting. On the down side there are quite a lot of people built like Clive Palmer who waddle along in baggy shorts held up by braces and topped with lurid tropical shirts. Many seem to be only barely alive, wandering about with a sort of slack jawed vacant look. And that's just the men. Among the women there is a goodly selection of Miami retiree wives with wrinkled leathery tanned skin and far too much makeup. I don't want to generalize too much. And then there are the Zimmerframe people...no no enough!
By lunchtime we can opt for the Lido buffet. Then we can sun bake or read or watch a movie until it is time for drinks at one of the bars or as we do, meet up with our fellow travellers, Andrew and Linda and enjoy a few glasses of Shiraz. Then dinner with once again a stunning menu along with a great wine list. It's getting so that we have to force ourselves to have alcohol free days.
After dinner there is still plenty to do or not as we prefer. Last night for example Barb and I sat in a comfortable lounge listening to an excellent young pianist accompanied by a violinist whose melodies transported us to Vienna and old Europe. Of course this was partly because of a glass of Pinot and a single malt whisky.
We have a very comfortable stateroom with its own verandah and a bathroom with a spa.
Our every need is attended to by a steward who does the bed and replaces the drinks and makes sure there is fresh fruit in the room.
When we are at sea our routine is very leisurely. We dine in a saloon called the Rotterdam Restaurant. Or we can choose from a couple of more intimate restaurants or an area called the Lido where there is a nonstop buffet.
 |
| Shipboard life |
Then we can walk it all off again by walking the promenade deck. (1mile is three and a half times around). Or there is tai chi, a gym workout, a swim in one of two pools. For the more sedentary minded there are many quiet spots, libraries and bistros where tea and coffee is always on hand. There are about fifteen hundred passengers aboard but you never feel crowded out.
A few words about our fellow passengers. There are Americans, Indians, Asians, Brits and Australians and I've heard Dutch and French accents too.
On the upside many of the people we have met are friendly and interesting. On the down side there are quite a lot of people built like Clive Palmer who waddle along in baggy shorts held up by braces and topped with lurid tropical shirts. Many seem to be only barely alive, wandering about with a sort of slack jawed vacant look. And that's just the men. Among the women there is a goodly selection of Miami retiree wives with wrinkled leathery tanned skin and far too much makeup. I don't want to generalize too much. And then there are the Zimmerframe people...no no enough!
By lunchtime we can opt for the Lido buffet. Then we can sun bake or read or watch a movie until it is time for drinks at one of the bars or as we do, meet up with our fellow travellers, Andrew and Linda and enjoy a few glasses of Shiraz. Then dinner with once again a stunning menu along with a great wine list. It's getting so that we have to force ourselves to have alcohol free days.
After dinner there is still plenty to do or not as we prefer. Last night for example Barb and I sat in a comfortable lounge listening to an excellent young pianist accompanied by a violinist whose melodies transported us to Vienna and old Europe. Of course this was partly because of a glass of Pinot and a single malt whisky.
CAMBODIA
Our next port
of call was in Cambodia in the port of Sihanoukville. Early in the morning we
arose to see from our verandah, a bay which narrowed at one end with a single
spanned bridge connecting two spits of land. The atmosphere was quite smoggy
and the sun was coming up like an orange ball over the distant mountains. After
breakfast Sheelah, Barbara and I joined a tour bus to sample a little Cambodian
culture. We would only be in port for a few hours so we would not be visiting
the capital, Phnom Penh.
As we drove
along a rather bumpy road we saw rows of tin shacks and run down shops. This
place was obviously quite poor despite the fact that people seemed to have
plenty of work to do. We could see folk cooking in the open and others selling
stuff by the roadside. Certainly no-one looked as if they were starving and
lots of people were driving around on rather smoky motor scooters.
Our first stop
was at a village called Tumnuk Rolok and it was pretty obvious what the main
industry was here.
The place
reeked of fish. We walked along a rather rickety jetty where the fishing fleet,
all painted turquoise lay at anchor. There were men repairing nets and lines,
and women cleaning and gutting the day’s catch. And all around lots of little
kids chattering and smiling at the curious western tourists.
As I said, to
our western eyes the place looked pretty run down, but to the people of this
village it was just day to day life.
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| Tumnuk Rolok fishing village - Cambodia |
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| Fishing fleet |
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| Unloading the catch |
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| The catch |
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| Must be the boss |
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| Local kids |
Our next stop was at a local market a few kilometres down the road. This, like so many Asian markets, was a bustling complex bursting with energy. People jostled each other and us as we picked our way past the myriad stalls selling every kind of fruit and vegetable. There were sellers of shoes and sellers of clothing , and the ubiquitous tuk tuk drivers offering to take us on a ride at bargain rates. And in the middle of all there were beggars too, arms outstretched for money.
 |
| Local market |
Some had amputated limbs and there were mothers holding babies and holding out tins to the passers by. Despite these somewhat depressing aspects, I love market places. It’s where you see real life.
By contrast our
next stop was in a more salubrious area where there were hotels and luxury
villas. This was on a stretch of coastline bordered by long sandy beaches. The
area is known as Ocheteal Beach and it was shaded by pine trees and colourful
umbrellas. We sat and watched young people on jet skis and others sunbathing
and in one or two cases large European tourists who should never be seen in swimming
trunks.
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| Ocheteal Beach - Cambodia |
This place has
a reputation as a place to party, and perhaps that’s what happens at night. I was
told there were lots of cheap bars and sleazy dumps around. While we were there
we enjoyed cold drinks in the shade while purveyors of foot massage for five
dollars tried to persuade us to buy.
There were
children selling beaded bracelets for a dollar. We spoke to one ten year old
who spoke very good English. Her ambition was to be a tour guide.
Our last stop
on this tour was the Intra Ngean Pagoda, the area’s most prominent religious
site.
Our journey
took us along the coast road past more white sand beaches. We saw monkeys
eating fruit by the roadside.
When we reached
the pagoda we entered the highly decorated building, its walls painted with
depictions of the life of the Buddha. Outside was an enormous golden figure of
the Buddha himself, in a reclining position and attended by golden statues of
monks.
 |
| Reclining Buddha |
This place is
also a monastery and many monks live here. Indeed many are interred here in
small mausoleums called stupas. Stupas are used as a last resting place for
many Buddhists and vary in size and richness of ornament depending on the
wealth of the family. Some have small doors in them so that relatives can place
food there for the deceased person’s journey to the afterlife.
Buddhism is
very much an other worldly philosophy but not so separate from reality as we
might think. At the back of these stupas I saw one monk lying in a hammock, one
leg hanging over the side and gently rocking himself in the warm morning sun,
and on the top of a flight of steps, I saw another enjoying a contemplative
ciggie.
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| Temple at Intra Ngean Pagoda |
 |
| Buddha's attendants |
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| Stupas |
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| Reclining Buddha?-reclining monk! |
It was
Australia Day. I realised this when I was on my way to a quiet place to read
and passed one of the bars where music was being played.
I heard the
voice of Slim Dusty singing ….”It always feels like Sunday
When you’re catching barramundi.”
For a moment I
felt like going back to bed until Monday.
But I settled for
reading the Age in a lounge far away.
Our ship was
running parallel to the Vietnamese coast. The sky was leaden and the sea very flat.
The temperature was somewhere in the twenties and the day was made for
relaxing. So that’s what we did.
That evening dinner
was formal. They had four of these events on our voyage, when we were expected
to wear collar and tie and more dressy attire.
I drew the line
at a tie but I did wear a jacket and no-one challenged me. I did see some
people in dinner jackets but not many.
At dinner that
evening the five of us Barbara and I, Sheelah, Linda and Andrew, were seated at
a table with an American couple, Tom and Joanie. They were nice people and we
swapped travel anecdotes and asked questions about each others’ respective
countries.
Tom came from
Boston and I jokingly asked him to say something with a Bostonian accent. I was
expecting something like a JFK comment when he stunned us with…”Get outta here
ya f….n retard.”
This was from
the movie The Departed which is set in Boston. We all collapsed into helpless
laughter and the party proceeded from there.
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| Australia Day party |
Dinner that
evening included superbly cooked tournedos Rossini and after that we went
upstairs to the Crows Nest, a bar and dance floor where Australia Day was being
celebrated with lots of flags and balloons and they played Sherbert and AC/DC
and a song called Nobody Likes a Bogan.
It goes…
Well he's the
king of fashion in his neighborhood,
With his ripped blue jeans and a flannelette shirt.
A well kept mullet and a packet of smokes,
His mates will all tell ya he's a real top bloke.
His real name is Barry, but his mates call him Bazza.
And his girlfriend's name is Sharon, but ya just call her Shazza.
Real top Sheila, real top sort,
She'll even change your stubby while you’re watching sport.
Nobody likes, nobody likes, nobody likes a bogan.
Nobody likes, nobody likes, nobody likes a bogan.
With his ripped blue jeans and a flannelette shirt.
A well kept mullet and a packet of smokes,
His mates will all tell ya he's a real top bloke.
His real name is Barry, but his mates call him Bazza.
And his girlfriend's name is Sharon, but ya just call her Shazza.
Real top Sheila, real top sort,
She'll even change your stubby while you’re watching sport.
Nobody likes, nobody likes, nobody likes a bogan.
Nobody likes, nobody likes, nobody likes a bogan.
But when they got to the Pub with No Beer
we decided it was time for bed.
VIETNAM
In the morning we had already docked in
Vung Tau. During the Vietnam War this place was a major centre of operations
for American and Australian troops. Australians were based 30 kilometres away
at Nui Dat. While driving by bus into the city proper our guide Chien told us a
bit about the region. It is one of the country’s major ports and is also a base
for offshore oil exploration.
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| Vung Tau - Vietnam |
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| Fishing fleet - Vung Tau |
As we rolled along the highway we passed
many substantial houses interspersed with padi fields, and to our surprise
Catholic schools and churches. The country is predominantly Buddhist but we saw
houses with statues of the Virgin Mary prominently displayed.
Our bus reached the city of Vung Tau
proper, a very modern coastal city with wide boulevards and free flowing
traffic. Interestingly enough we passed a few bars with distinctly Australian
names such as Ned Kelly’s and Crocodile Dundee’s and Gazza’s Place…a hangover
from the war?
We stopped at yet another Buddhist temple.
It was originally established by the local fishermen to venerate the whale,
good luck in their eyes. Inside along with the usual Buddha, they kept the
ancient skeleton of a whale.
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| Buddhist Temple |
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| Exploring tourists like us. |
Needless to say, the second we alighted from
the bus we were assailed by street vendors selling all sorts of souvenirs,
including silk dressing gowns emblazoned with dragons and things. And
everywhere else we went that day, these same vendors would turn up, having
trailed us on motor scooters, their stock packed in boxes on the back.
 |
| Mobile retailers |
Further down the coast we stopped to
admire a huge state of Christ. It was called Christ of Vung Tau and stands on
top of a mountain. It is 32 metres high, and that’s two metres higher than the
one in Rio.But then the mountain is much smaller.
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| Christ of Vung Tau - Christ |
This being Vietnam New Year (Tet) there
was a festival of flowers going on and we spent some time admiring displays of
marigolds, orchids, chrysanthemums and bougainvillea. As well there was a
wonderful display of bonsai shrubs and trees.
We returned to the Volendam in time for a
late lunch followed by a bit of sunbaking by the pool. By the time we gathered
for dinner, our ship had cast off and we were moving down the channel into the
open sea.
When the sun rose next morning we were
sailing along the Vietnamese coast towards our next port of call, Nha Trang. As
we navigated our way into the dock we passed a series of steel pylons which
looked like small Eiffel Towers.
On closer inspection we found that they supported a string of cable cars which ran from the port side to a resort across the bay.
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| The Harbour at Nha Trang |
On closer inspection we found that they supported a string of cable cars which ran from the port side to a resort across the bay.
We were only stopping for a few hours and
we weren’t inclined to do another bus tour. So late in the afternoon Barbara
and I decided to go ashore by ourselves. We walked across the car park to where
we could see a bunch of taxis lined up. We found a driver who would take us
into town and back for twenty dollars. Minutes later we were rolling along the
beach front past rows of resort villas and flash hotels. There was the Novotel
and the Intercontinental and all the rest. We wanted to buy a few things and
our driver told us in broken English, that he would take us to the market…”very
cheap”.
 |
| Taxi into Nha Trang |
Then we realised that we needed local
currency. The rate back on the ship was ridiculous because they give you US
dollars first, then convert them into Viet dong.
We found an ATM and I used my Visa card to
withdraw one point seven million Dong, about ninety dollars Australian.
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| Nha Trang |
 |
| The market |
 |
| Barbara shopping |
Our driver took us down a number of
winding streets off the main drag and then pulled over, beckoning us to get
out. We began to feel a bit edgy but we needn’t have worried. We told the
driver to come back in an hour but he insisted on staying with us and guided us
through the hectic marketplace. Barbara bought some new sunglasses and some
tops and shorts and I stocked up on socks. Thank goodness our driver was still
with us or we would not have found our way back to the cab.
Of course there are always rogues wherever
you go, but our experience on that drive restored my faith in the honesty of
most folk.
That evening aboard the Volendam there was
an Asian style barbecue on the pool deck and we enjoyed Korean beef and spare
ribs, spicy chicken, fried rice and lots of exotic salads.
Later on we somehow
ended up in the piano bar where a pianist was doing Neil Diamond numbers, not
my favourite stuff, but three shots of Jamieson’s helped dull the pain, plus
the fact that we persuaded the man to do American Pie and a couple of Leonard
Cohen numbers.
 |
| Sunset - Nha Trang |
 |
| Poolside BBQ |
And so to bed.
The next day was a quiet one. We were
still in the South China Sea with nothing to do all day but take it easy. Which
we did!
The Volendam was already docked in the
port of Danang, by the time we arose on the following morning. There were a
number of tours available and many of our fellow passengers had already gone
ashore. We all wanted to visit the town of Hoi An, noted for its tailors, so
Andrew suggested that rather than pay through the nose for a bus tour, we
should just go ashore and find an obliging taxi driver.
We did and found a guy who would take us
to Hoi An for the day and return us to the ship for around a hundred US
dollars. That worked out at twenty a head. A good deal!
We piled into his people van and drove
off, soon whizzing along a highway dodging motor scooters and bicycles. Forty
minutes later we arrived at Hoi An. This beautiful old coastal town with its
mixture of French colonial and Vietnamese architecture!
 |
| French influence Hoi An |
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| In search of shopping |
We had been to Hoi An before and we wanted to visit a tailor’s shop where we had bought clothes on our last visit.
We found it alright but we’d forgotten it
was Tet and the place was closed. Our obliging driver took us to a couple of
other places but they weren’t what we were looking for.
We had no choice but to find somewhere for
coffee. This we did and it turned out to be the best coffee we’d enjoyed since
leaving home.
We decided to just wander the streets and
enjoy the atmosphere. Our wanderings took us inevitably to the seafront where
the Hoi An market was in full swing. It seemed that not everyone had gone home
for Tet after all.
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| Hoi An Market |
We dodged swarms of motor scooters, or
rather they dodged us as we picked our way through the stalls offering every
fruit and vegetable known to man. There were herbs and spices too and women in
bamboo coolie style hats, shouting their wares at the crowd.
It was getting close to lunchtime and our
driver offered to take us to a seafood restaurant which he knew. We drove a few
kilometres out of town until we came to an inviting stretch of beach; white
sands and coconut palms with tables laid out in the shade. The service at this
place was a bit slow because of the Tet celebrations and once again most of the
staff had gone home to visit their families. It turned out that because of the
shortage of staff, the place was being run by the owners. She recognised our
accents and told us she lived mostly in Australia. In fact she lived in
Caulfield.
Who knows, we may meet her again someday, in Glenhuntly Road. In the
meantime we ordered cold drinks and enjoyed the view. Needless to say we were
soon being pestered by peddlers selling all sorts of souvenirs. We couldn’t
resist one lady who was offering wrist bands and necklaces which she assured us
would bring good luck. As she put it; “Shit will not happen.”
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| We lunched by the sea - Hoi An |
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| Sheelah & Linda - Hoi An |
When the food arrived at last we tucked
into squid and prawns and other fruits of the ocean, washed down with cold
beer. Altogether that meal cost us about $35 US.
After lunch we had to leave for the
Volendam which would be sailing at five.
Besides which we had planned to join the
regular afternoon trivia quiz which I’m pleased to say, we won.
We sailed on time at 5pm and as our cruise
was approaching its end, Barbara and Sheelah and I had planned to have a
special dinner together in one of the smaller restaurants, The Pinnacle.
So that evening we were ushered to one of
the alcoves in this elegant restaurant, and were seated at a table, set with
gleaming cutlery and white linen.
That was a meal we will remember for a
very long time.
When eventually we rose from the table, we
went up to the pool deck where they were holding an Asian market to mark the
Chinese New Year. The whole place was a blaze of red and gold Chinese
lanterns. Then someone began to bang on
a big drum and most of the Chinese staff aboard the Volendam burst on the scene
accompanying one of those leaping traditional dragons, its ornate head bouncing
up and down and winding its way around the deck. A great ending to another memorable
day!
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| Chinese New Year aboard the Volendam |
The following day was a Friday and we
spent it doing very little. We didn’t get up until late, downloaded the Age and
read it over a lazy breakfast. We walked around the promenade deck. We played
scrabble. The five of us thought we would repeat our trivia triumph of the
previous day, but we missed out by a point. Then lunch and a nap! God cruising
can be exhausting!
That evening there was another one of
those formal dinners with once again a magnificent menu.
Later on there was a concert in the
theatre, where a young violinist accompanied by a five piece band, played pop
and light classical music. It was a bit Andre Rieu but ok.
By the time we decided to turn in, the
ship was doing its own musical accompaniment, blasting away on its foghorn
every few minutes. Looking out from our cabin we could see nothing but thick
fog.
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| Fog |
We awoke again the next morning with the
fog lifting and the craggy islands of Halong Bay rearing up through the
gloom. We could just make out the
coastline with its fringe of tall hotel buildings, and in the bay, lots of
little boats and trawlers mixed in with larger cargo boats.
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| Sunrise - Halong Bay |
We had been to Halong Bay when we toured
Vietnam, so we decided to stay aboard just watching the sun come up and taking
snaps of the rocky outcrops that typify this region.
Our voyage was now almost over and after
dinner that evening we started to pack our considerably expanded luggage into
our original suitcases. Outside the lights of Halong Bay were fading into the
darkness. We had one more day at sea, and then Hong Kong.
Sunday was uneventful.
The fog was long
gone and the sea sparkled as we bowled along at a steady eight knots. Barbara
got up before me as she was taking part in a charity walk of ten laps of the
promenade deck.
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| They change the mats daily so we know what day it is. |
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| Three times around equals one kilometre |
When that was over and we’d had coffee, we
all turned out for another crack at the trivia quiz. Lost again!
In the afternoon we returned reluctantly
to packing our belongings. Somehow we managed to fit everything in.
Then it was our last gathering for drinks
in the lounge before going in for dinner. Apart from the food, the highlight
was a very jolly parade of the entire catering staff in chef’s hats and waving
ladles, while they wound their way amongst our tables singing “We are Family”.
Everyone gave them a rousing round of applause. After all their labours behind
the scenes were a big part of what made this trip so enjoyable.
HONG KONG
When we got up at seven in the morning we
were already docked in Hong Kong.
From our verandah we gazed out at a
skyline of shining glass towers stretching the length of the bay.
By nine o clock we had breakfasted and
were lining up to disembark. Our luggage had been sent on ahead, so it only
remained for us to say goodbye to the people who had looked after us for the
past fortnight.
 |
| Coming into Hong Kong |
Then we were on the dockside, picking up
our cases and looking out for the lady who would get us to our hotel. Her name
was Cecilia. She was a woman of about fifty and keen to hustle us along to a waiting
bus. We piled our cases aboard and followed. We drove into the city proper
along immaculate highways and then through a long tunnel leading to Kowloon on
the other side of the bay. We wouldn’t be able to check into our hotel until
later, so Cecilia took up a winding mountain road past numerous luxury villas
and hotels until we reached the top of what is known as the Peak.
From there we could see practically the
whole of Hong Kong, a panorama of soaring skyscrapers and apartment blocks and
then the bay itself with ferries and sampans scurrying to and fro.
 |
| Hong Kong from The Peak |
We took lots of photos and enjoyed an ice
cream, before descending once again to sea level. Our next stop was Repulse
Bay, an inlet with a popular beach curving around a stretch of calm water and
once again skirted with high rise buildings. It was a public holiday in Hong
Kong so many people were out enjoying a day at the beach. There was also a
shrine or two where you could touch the belly of the Buddha if you wanted to
get pregnant. I’m sure there was a better way!
 |
| Seaside - Repulse Bay |
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| How to get pregnant |
After that we drove along the coast to
visit a traditional fishing village. This turned out to be a “village” of
fishing trawlers which were anchored out on the water. So we clambered aboard a
water taxi which took us down the river past a giant floating Jumbo restaurant,
lines of very luxurious motor cruisers, and finally to where the trawlers, each
with their hulls painted black and red, lay at anchor. They looked a bit run
down but Cecilia told us that in fact the families which lived aboard ship were
actually quite comfortably off. They simply chose to maintain their traditional
lifestyle.
At lunchtime Cecilia took us to one of
those restaurants where you have to queue for a ticket to get a table. This
seemed to take forever but eventually we were shown to a table, one of several
hundred, where we were the only Europeans in sight. When the food did arrive it
turned out to be as delicious as it was intriguing. There was spinach and noodles, dumplings and
sticky rice, duck and pork belly. A satisfying lunch!
 |
| Jumbo Restaurant |
 |
| Floating fishing village |
 |
| Some boats not for fishing |
 |
| Lunch with Cecilia |
The highlight of our day however, was a
visit to a place called Ocean Park. This was a sort of combination Fun Park and
zoo. But we were only interested in one thing. We wanted to see the pandas.
That took some doing as the place was very
crowded but finally we reached the panda enclosure. These animals tend to
squabble a lot so they are mostly kept in separate areas. Each enclosure
consisted of a quite large sloping area with bushes and grass and bamboo. The
pandas come out from their dens at the top of the slope and they can wander
about at will. At the very bottom, where we and the other visitors stood, there
was a wall of reinforced glass and as we watched, each panda would waddle down
giving us a good view, and so too for the panda to get a look at us.
Altogether there were two elderly pandas lazily chewing on bamboo and occasionally stopping to look at us madly taking pictures. In another area there were two younger pandas. One lay stretched out on her belly on a wooden platform and occasionally yawning, her legs swinging over the side,.
 |
| And here come the pandas |
 |
| Add caption |
Altogether there were two elderly pandas lazily chewing on bamboo and occasionally stopping to look at us madly taking pictures. In another area there were two younger pandas. One lay stretched out on her belly on a wooden platform and occasionally yawning, her legs swinging over the side,.
The other came right down to the glass
just a metre from where we watched, and sat there looking back over her
shoulder towards us, as if to say “Take the photo now. This is my best side.”
 |
| How do I look? |
There was one other interesting animal
too, a red panda which is a much smaller creature with reddish brown fur, two
pointy ears and a very cute face.
 |
| Red Panda |
By now it was late afternoon and time to
check into our hotel. Our room turned out to be more of a suite. It was on the thirty
second floor with a stunning view to the streets far below, and the mountains
looming above.
We demolished the one bottle of South
African shiraz which we had left from our purchases in Koh Samui, then went
down for dinner. By nine thirty we were in bed.
It was Tuesday, the last full day of our
journey. So Barbara and I, Linda and Andrew decided to take a ferry to the
island of Macau while Sheelah chose to relax and explore locally. We took a
taxi to the ferry terminal to find the place swarming with people with the same
idea. We had to queue to get tickets and then learned that we couldn’t get on a
ferry until 1 pm. That meant we would barely arrive before we would have to
turn around and come back. Then we found that we could get a ferry at 11am if
we travelled business class. We had no choice. We had to fill out departure
cards because we were leaving Hong Kong and then queue again to pass through
immigration and have our passports checked.
A taxi took us into the city proper and the place was teeming with holidaymakers, mostly according to our taxi driver, here to gamble at one of the many casinos. He told us only half jokingly that Macau had more casinos than schools. Certainly we passed at least a dozen as we drove along. We paid the driver and set off to explore on foot. We had a map but finding somewhere where we could open it up in this crowd was a challenge. Here too they were still celebrating the New Year and the streets were buzzing.
While
Macau is now officially part of China, it still retains much of its Portuguese
colonial character and is classified as a special zone as is Hong Kong. With
the exception of the garish casinos and hotels, many of the buildings are of a
much older style of architecture. Eventually we reached the centre of the city,
Senado Square, which was ablaze with Chinese New Year decorations. But the
buildings bordering the square were much more colonial than Chinese. Just off
Senado Square we found a little café and decided to stop for lunch. We were
shown to a table outdoors in what appeared to be the back yard. There were a
few others eating there, so we sat down. The place had clear plastic café
blinds all round, and on the other side the alleyway was piled with cartons and
cardboard boxes. But we were here now and besides the place had its own
distinctive “ambience”.
MACAU
Our journey to the former
Portuguese colony of Macau took about an hour aboard a high speed hydrofoil. We
disembarked in Macau and immediately had to go through another series of
immigration red tape. A taxi took us into the city proper and the place was teeming with holidaymakers, mostly according to our taxi driver, here to gamble at one of the many casinos. He told us only half jokingly that Macau had more casinos than schools. Certainly we passed at least a dozen as we drove along. We paid the driver and set off to explore on foot. We had a map but finding somewhere where we could open it up in this crowd was a challenge. Here too they were still celebrating the New Year and the streets were buzzing.
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| Where are we? |
 |
| Local Transport |
 |
| Holiday crowds - Macau |
 |
| Senado Square - Macau |
 |
| You can see the Portuguese Influence |
We chose Portuguese style dishes of spicy
chicken and vegetables served with fried rice and bottomless cups of strong
black tea. Watching through the café blinds a few minutes later, we noticed the
same lady who had just served us our meals, sitting on a stool and enjoying her
own lunch, al fresco.
Leaving our five star restaurant ($10
Australian all up) we continued along the narrow streets with the wrought iron
balconies of apartments looking down from above. We visited what was once the
house of a wealthy banker Lou Kau, who was noted for his charitable works back
in the nineteenth century. Inside was a mixture of Chinese and European
influences. And of course this old city has much of a Christian influence too.
The old Roman Catholic Cathedral was closed but we went inside St Dominic’s, a
late 16th century Baroque style church, the oldest in Macau.
 |
| St Dominic's 16th Century Church |
By now it was mid afternoon and time for
us to find our way back to the ferry terminal. The sea was up a bit when our
hydrofoil headed back, and some passengers looked a bit the worse for wear by
the time we disembarked. Dinner that evening was arranged by Cecilia who took
us to a Chinese restaurant ludicrously names Maxim’s. We enjoyed our last
dinner in Hong Kong and called it a night. In the morning we did some shopping
and I bought a pair of Rockport shoes for a fraction of what I would have paid
at home.
The only other event worth mentioning was
the drive out to Hong Kong’s airport. Until 1998 you flew out of Kai Tak
airport, a hair-raising experience in which you seemed to fly so close to the
high rise buildings that you could reach out and touch them.
Nowadays you drive for over an hour out of
Hong Kong proper, and take off from an airport built mainly on reclaimed land.
Its name is Chek Lap Kok.
From there we flew to Singapore and finally
home.
So what did we get out of those twenty
eight days in the mysterious Orient? We learned that twenty eight days is
nowhere near enough time to really know these fabulous places and the culture
of their peoples. We learned that a few hours in a port is no way to get to
know a country, and we learned that two weeks aboard a luxury cruise ship is a
great way to relax and unwind. We also learned it’s a great way to put on
weight.
All of which means that our Plan A is to
lose all that weight, and Plan B might well be to do it all again some day.
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| The Volendam |
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