Arrival
We arrived in Shanghai on Chinese New Years Eveand watched the city explode with fireworks, let off at random and in great numbers from above on the 45th floor of the Radisson Hotel in Shanghai, the colours reflecting off the glass fronted high rises. Over the next two days we fought with the crowds as we wandered the dusty city, admiring the modern and anciant architecture, the compact Yu gardens with the Koy fish, Bonsi trees and ancient garden rooms and the maze of hawker filled streets of the Old Town and adjoining bazaar.
Shanghai, a city full of people - families on holiday for the Spring Festival, hawkers selling plastic rubbish, food sellers cooking small birds, octopus and pancakes. Grime, pungent smells and pushing crowds. Pick-pockets abound, one successfully lifting my wallet containing our three train tickets to Nanjing - hard won at this time of the year - and all my credit cards. High rise buildings competeing for height and unusual shape, in adguxted position to the houses in the Old Town.
It was wonderful to see Piers and we were very proud when he chatted to fellow customers in a traditional tea house but even more so when he explained to the police what had happened to me in the underpass from the Bund (to the great surprise of the police) - the interpreter they provided did not even understand my question "so you are my interpreter?"!
Contemplating Shanghai as we departed for Nanjing, rushing past paddy fields and vegetable plots squeezed between factories and high rise. Peasents living in shacks teetering by festering canals and ponds, next to business parks, washing hangng to dry. Travelling at 200 km/hr, after one hour we are still not into countryside. This is a scary city - sprawling and smoggy. Buildings constantly knocked down and rebuilt. On occassions it is hard to tell the difference but the government plans to have 80% of the population urbanised by 2020 - currently 40% are.
Nanjing to Xi'an
A night in Nanjing in a better class of hotel than Shaghai. There, to get to our room, we had to walk past the kitchens where they had on display several tanks full of dying fish, crabs and other sea life. It was not a happy sight. In Nanjing all this was hidden from view but no more "fresh" fish for me! Piers slept in his own flat and went to sort out his visa. We had to contend with breakfast by ourselves - nothing was recognisably food except the fried eggs! So far, food in China has been a challenge. The best meal I have eaten so far was a Mc Donalds (yes, I am really ashamed to admit I have contaminated myself with Mc D).
The sleeper train ride to Xi'an was in a carriage packed three high with bunks. Trains in China are amazingly long and incredibly full. Piers had got us 3 bottom bunks so we could sit until bedtime. The toilet was a hole onto the tracks but suprisingly clean for most of the journey. Hot water is freely available so everyone eats pot noodles and drinks tea. We had a 12 hour journey and had to disembark at 5 in the morning. We stayed in a hostel which was the cleanest and nicest place we have stayed so far and by a long way the cheapest. The Hostel in Xi'an is built in the traditional style of a Hutton - all rooms facing into a courtyard. Infact the outside must be several 100 years old and was right next to the ancient city wall. The food here is fantastic and suddenly I find my appitite again.
Xi'an is the jumping off point for the Terracotta Army but is actually a very interesting place in its own right. The impressive brick wall surrounding the city is a complete 6 kms long and wide enough for two cars to pass if they could get up[ there. Currently there is a Spring Festival chinese lattern show over 1 km of it - a bit kitsch but impreesive never the less. The city of 8 million must have as many vehicles - the traffic is unbelievable - snaking its way around pagodas and temples that the planners wanted to demolish but saved by creating round-abouts instead. There is a thick layer of brown dust on everything and a smog haning in the air so the whole place has a surreal mono-colour to it.
The terracotta army is impressive though I have an unfounded conspirisy theory that it is all a huge hoax as they all looked too "disney". Perhaps I had too high expectations.
The highlight of our trip to Xian was our climb up the sacred mountain of Huashan. It was also a challange both physically and foodwise. The small town at the base of the moubntain was poor and food was basic to say the least - mostly inedible. We started climbing in the twilight at 7.20 am. It is hard to describe the mountains - there are five peaks joined by narrow strips of rock called dragons backs, which describes them perfectly. It was a tough four hour climb of 6 kms, with the last two being scarily steep with 2000m drops to one side. As we climbed the sun came up and we could see the peaks rising above us. Then after about 3 kms we looked back to see a cloud rolling up the mountain - it caught us up and enveloped us in a chlorine smelling fog. We only managed to climb clear of it at the very topm of the North Peak.
The dragons back from North to South peak was too much for Andy - he was literally on his knees with vertigo - but Piers and I managed to cross the 2 foot wide back, with 3000m drops both sides. I was not as happy as I could have been but the view looking back was phenominal - cloud shrouding temple capped peaks, glimpses of the incredible smooth sided, tan coloured maintains thrusting up jagged 3km peaks. Frozen waterfalls, trees clinging onto rock and brightly coloured birds - woodpeckers, red-winged rock hoppers and long-tailed jays. A Chinese painting.
Before leaving Xi'an we visited the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (don't you just love the names). Set in 26 hectares of beautiful grounds it is a real oasis from the traffic that clogs the city. Built in 645 AD for an empress its treasures were hidden from the Chinese people. It was a fitting end to our stay in Xi'an before rushing to catch the train to Beijing.
The highlight of our trip to Xian was our climb up the sacred mountain of Huashan. It was also a challange both physically and foodwise. The small town at the base of the moubntain was poor and food was basic to say the least - mostly inedible. We started climbing in the twilight at 7.20 am. It is hard to describe the mountains - there are five peaks joined by narrow strips of rock called dragons backs, which describes them perfectly. It was a tough four hour climb of 6 kms, with the last two being scarily steep with 2000m drops to one side. As we climbed the sun came up and we could see the peaks rising above us. Then after about 3 kms we looked back to see a cloud rolling up the mountain - it caught us up and enveloped us in a chlorine smelling fog. We only managed to climb clear of it at the very topm of the North Peak.
The dragons back from North to South peak was too much for Andy - he was literally on his knees with vertigo - but Piers and I managed to cross the 2 foot wide back, with 3000m drops both sides. I was not as happy as I could have been but the view looking back was phenominal - cloud shrouding temple capped peaks, glimpses of the incredible smooth sided, tan coloured maintains thrusting up jagged 3km peaks. Frozen waterfalls, trees clinging onto rock and brightly coloured birds - woodpeckers, red-winged rock hoppers and long-tailed jays. A Chinese painting.
Before leaving Xi'an we visited the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (don't you just love the names). Set in 26 hectares of beautiful grounds it is a real oasis from the traffic that clogs the city. Built in 645 AD for an empress its treasures were hidden from the Chinese people. It was a fitting end to our stay in Xi'an before rushing to catch the train to Beijing.
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