Brian and I got back from a ten day trip to China last week. While the jet lag since we got back has been debilitating, everything else about the trip was fantastic.
We flew into Beijing and spent our first few days there. We stayed at the Red Lantern House hostel in Beijing. It’s in the Xicheng district, which is very central. We ended up with a private double room with a bathroom for 240 RMB/night. That’s about $34. They also have delicious coffee, which can be hard to find.
To help us acclimate, we booked a couple of tours through Cycle China. They cater to English speakers who like to be on their own or in smaller groups. It’s more expensive than your typical bus tour, but so worth it. Our tour guide Nemo was excellent. On our first day, he took us around to the Beijing sites. Unfortunately for us, the sky opened up and flooded the city. Nemo bought us all ponchos, and then took us to Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden City.
We had hoped the rain would keep away the tourists. It’s possible that some stayed away, but the city was still packed with Chinese tour groups. Because early May is a holiday for the Chinese, a lot of them get out and see the sites. They seem to always travel in large groups. The leader carries a flag and the rest of the group wears matching hats. Here’s a photo of one group crossing the street:
In the afternoon, it cleared up and we headed to the Summer Palace. From the temple there, you can look back and see amazing views of Beijing.
The next day we headed to the Great Wall at Jintang. It’s a more remote part of the wall. Much of it has been restored, although we did get to walk on a short segment that hadn’t been restored. It was a very steep hike up, but the views were amazing. We also stopped by the Ming tombs on our way back to town, but those paled in comparison to the wall.
After Nemo had shown us the sites, we headed to see our friend Erika in Xian. Xian is a twelve hour train ride to the west of Beijing, and on the way there, we took a soft sleeper which is basically a private room with four bunks. It was very nice and spacious. On the way back, we took a hard sleeper which is an open car with rows bunks three high. It makes for much more interesting people watching and isn’t nearly as cramped as it sounds. My only real complaint was the restrooms, which were definitely overused in the hard sleeper cars. Otherwise, the ride was fine and we ended up sitting next to a fluent English speaker on the way back.
Xian is a big tourist site for a few reasons. It was once the beginning of the Silk Road, a major trading route between the East and West. It was where Buddhism was first brought to China. More recently, tourists have come to see the terracotta warriors found buried in the ground by a farmer 30 years ago.
Our major reason for visiting Xian was that we had a friend there teaching English. We got to stay on campus with her and learn a bit about what it’s like to live in China. Erika also showed us the best places to buy pirated DVDs, told us which street food was vegetarian, and was just a great guide. Xian is a mid-sized city for China, but it has a population of 8 million. Trying to navigate it on our own would have been a challenge.
After a few days in Xian, we headed back to Beijing. We spent our last few days in Beijing visiting the city’s many parks. Beijing’s parks seem to be most used by the city’s older, middle-class population. They come early to practice their tai chi, calligraphy, traditional dance, and hacky sack. They often have grandchildren in tow and seem to have a very pleasant life. Of course, you see older people who don’t seem to be in nearly as good of shape, but the emphasis on physical activity later in life seems to improve the overall quality of life. Interestingly, you rarely see kids out playing games.
Considering how far the dollar goes in China, I would consider retiring in China if it weren’t for the poor air quality and the fact that I still have another 40 years of working to do.
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