2/17/11
2/14/11
Zaijian
I'm back in the States and it's fantastic. I slept for a few hours yesterday afternoon and another ten hours last night. While it still doesn't feel like I'm really back on schedule, I think that by the time tomorrow night rolls around, I'll be back to my normal self. I'm glad that I was able to keep a record of my trip to China, but wish that I had kept more handwritten notes or voice memos or something in order to keep a fresher record of what was going on. The first few days in Beijing were busy and great, but I wish I could remember everything that happened; going to the theater to see a live acrobatics show, spending time in the hostel chatting with locals, etc. Even my trips to the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, while it's nice to have photos, I wish that I had made blog entries about them on the same day to capture all the details. It was impossible at the time since I didn't have email-to-blog set up, and I'll be sure to set that up ahead of time for the next time I go out traveling. Next trip, I'd also like to bring my own netbook or laptop or something (and a mini travel router), so that I can at least type up quick notes even if there's no way to publish them immediately.
Last night, I treated myself to potato skins and a burger with cheddar cheese and bacon and a Harpoon IPA for a taste of America, then this morning I went to Chinatown for dim sum to show off my limited Chinese vocabulary and because I kind of felt like getting some Chinese food. I'm very glad that I'm back home and have my own bed and shower and life, but I'll definitely miss the feeling of going outside and experiencing a completely different way of life than what we do in the US.
Now I need to begin the process of sorting my photos and adjusting them so that they're presentable to the outside world. Unfortunately, a lot of them didn't come out, but plenty of them did and I'm looking forward to showing them off when they're ready. Mostly, it's just going to be correcting levels and color balances and that kind of thing. Expect a link to an online gallery within the next few days. Until then, I'd ask my readers -- both of you -- to go work on saving up enough money (including plane tickets, I spent about $2500 for two weeks) in order to experience your own vacation in China. It's really a great time.
2/11/11
What's an Internet?
Welp, looks like we're on the last leg of our trip here in China. The flight from Harbin to Beijing went off without a hitch, and it's just about time for me to fly back to the United States. Keith and I have split a hotel room near the airport and are just killing time until our bus arrives in 11 hours.
A few quick thoughts:
I think that I've learned a bit about China but much more about travel. One thing that I took for granted was Internet access, that Wi-Fi hotspots would be relatively common, and that when Internet access was available, it would be consistent and reliable enough to be able to make blog posts and write emails with. Completely not the case: China has blocked most all normal blog sites, and even when you're on a network, connectivity to the outside world is touch and go. I also learned that it's important to have your destinations and other important information (like flight numbers) written down, so that even if you can't get in touch with other people in your party (or your email), you can get all your information that you need quickly and easily from a notebook or whatever. Next time, I'll also probably bring sturdier luggage (and less clothes) with hard walls to keep my valuables safe when it's getting thrown in the back of an overcrowded van. Next time I'd also like to investigate to find out what kind of payment is accepted so I don't have to carry stacks of cash around -- Visa is not accepted at most places in China (or at least not U.S. Visa cards, Justin mentioned something about Visa cards from over here working).
Anyway, I'm going to head into downtown with Justin to get some dinner, but am looking forward to reviewing all my photos when I get back home and putting together a nice photo album.
Done with Harbin
Over the past few days, I think that we have successfully exhausted all the tourist destinations in Harbin, with the exceptions of the 731 torture camp (gross) and the Yabuli ski resort (2.5 hours away). We saw the snow festival, the ice festival, st. sophia's church, and got a taste of a culture that is a cross between Chinese and Russian.
In half an hour, our shuttle to bring us back to the airport will arrive, and we'll fly back to Beijing for our early morning flight back to the states. My take on Harbin is that it's not a bad city, but not worth visiting for longer than a few days unless you really love cold weather.
I'm looking forward to heading back to Beijing, where it's warmer and friendlier. I really like Beijing as a city and could easily see me coming back in the future - although probably at a different time of year, not because of the cold so much as because during spring festival/new years, everything is closed. Admittedly, new years eve in Beijing was a LOT of fun, but it's much harder to do all the sightseeing that I'd like to when everything is on a restricted schedule.
2/8/11
Saint Sophia's at Night
Siberian Tigers are Incredible
This morning, we saw the Siberian tigers at the park a few kilometers away and it was absolutely bananas. Tickets to ride a bus through the Jurassic Park style zoo were 90 RMB each, but also on the price list included live animals. Lucky for us, someone else had already purchased a live cow for 2000 RMB for a feeding exhibition and we were going to be able to watch. The tigers are massive and beautiful, but seeing them in action reminds you that they are built for just absolutely ruining other animals in the wild.
I got some really great video footage of the tigers surrounding the cow before going in for the kill - and am really happy with the camera I bought for the trip. After the bus tour we got to tour some of the tigers' pens and pay to hand feed them some live meat, which I did. I bought a live chicken for 50 RMB tied to the end of a stick and dangled it over the tigers and they jumped like 8 feet in the to snipe the bird off the stick. Really cool stuff, Keith got a video of it. I've got pictures but they're on my external hard drive and I'm writing this in my iPhone.
After we finished up with the tigers, we went to Sun Island Park to see the Snow Festival. There were tons of carved snow statues all over the place, my favorite being a massive one of Apollo, maybe 50 feet tall and 250 feet tall.
The day was a full one, and tomorrow we'll be doing some sightseeing around town (cathedrals and temples and stuff) - then going to the Ice Festival for the evening.
2/7/11
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