1 US Dollar = approx 7 HKD
Arrived in Hong Kong early evening on Saturday, and took Airport Express
train ($90 HK) into Kowloon Station and transferred to free shuttle bus
to Holiday Inn; walked to
Chungking Mansion
in about 5 minutes. Stayed at Happy Yeung Guest House: overpriced, but
last minute. There was a large queue to get in the elevators, and the
place doesn't have a very appealing feeling. There are better hostels
that could be had from hostelworld's website in advance. Took a stroll
around the
Nathan Road area for the remainder of the evening.
Next morning, walked through Kowloon Park for a while which was quite
nice; then took MTR to Central Station ($8.50 HK) and toured around the
Landmark area including
Mandarin Oriental Hotel;
took in Victoria Peak (long wait in line for the gondola ride up); once
reaching the top and taking a few requisite photos, I did the Morning
Trail circuit until it started to get dark. Spent the evening wandering
around the many cafes/restaurants that are in the Soho area of Hong Kong
Island. Returned to Kowloon via Star Ferry (2.50 HKD) a few hours
later.
Next morning (Monday), applied for a Chinese visa (across the road from
Chungking Mansions, where you fill out a one-page application and they
take your photo), and then took the ferry over the Central, and toured
the antiques area of Hong Kong Island; toured some interesting galleries
and window shopping; ate lunch. Toured the area of
Avenue of the Stars
and Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design. Picked up my
passport after 6pm, and went for dinner in a cool area of restaurants in
Kowloon.
Walked around another part of Kowloon this morning, and then took the
train to Shanghai at 3:15 pm (every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) from
Hong Hom train station (18 hours). Got top bunk in hard sleeper. Made a
note to enquire about bottom sleepers in the future, as they are easier
to get out of, and you can sit up on them when you don't want to lay
down. Had dinner in the dining car. Considering the length of the trip,
it seemed to go by rather quickly.
1 US Dollar = approx 6.3 yuan
Arrived in Shanghai, and walked from train station down to the Bund, where I got a single room (260 yuan) at
Captain Hostel
near the Bund (37 Fuzhou Rd). After settling in, toured the Bund and
some of the central area. The following day, walked the Nanjing Road
shopping street with lots of mega department stores (and lots of toots
and women asking if I wanted a lady for the night), and did some more
general sightseeing. The following day, toured Old Town which was packed
with tour groups; French Concession which was one of my favorite areas
of the city; and in the early evening, took the public ferry (2 yuan) to
the Pudong side of Huangpu River for a stroll and a bite to eat. For
such a large city, it felt smaller than I had expected.
Next morning, bought a high-speed train ticket to Beijing (560 yuan) and
headed for the train station. 5 hour duration at 300 km/h. Due to
technical difficulties, the trip took longer than expected (extra four
hours).
Because I got in later than expected, it was dark. Got a single room at
Super 8 in Xienmen area (208 yuan). Would have preferred a hotel with a
tour desk (which ended up being just down the street from where I
stayed).
Following morning, toured the very popular Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City, and then
walked along the street running east to west, and through a couple of
neighbourhoods and their hutongs. Beijing's metro system is always very packed with people at any time of day or evening.
Walked a portion of the
Great Wall
the next morning at Badaling (bus from Xienmen area. This proved to be
much tougher than expected as the steps are often quite steep. The hilly
scenery was spectacular. In the afternoon, took the subway to the
Olympic Stadium area and walked around (the open plazas are massive).
Next day, I toured another area of Beijing near the
Lama Temple,
and then toured the temple itself. Walked quite a bit later in the
afternoon, trying to soak in a little more of Beijing prior to my
departure later that evening.
Arrived in Xian in the morning after an overnight train (12 hours) and
got a room at Han Tang Hostel for 140 RMB. This was my favorite hostel
of the trip, hands down. Having arrived from the train early, I was able
to book a tour to the Terracotta Warriors (9:30am; 260 RMB) that began
half an hour after I checked into the hostel. Great timing, and a great
site to see.
Next day, toured through the Muslim Quarter for quite a while, the Bell
Tower and Drum Tower, and did some shopping (rainy day). Arranged a
flight to
Guilin through the hotel (680 yuan) for 7:40 am next morning.
Arrived in Guilin by plane (1.5 hours) and took a taxi into Guilin bus
station (50 yuan) where a woman whisked me to Yangshuo (1 hour 20
minutes). Settled into Tony's Inn near Xi Jie (Foreigners Street) (90
yuan for private bed) and went for lunch.
Rented a bike (20 yuan for the afternoon) with a guide named Mo (50
yuan) and biked around the outer part of town. Went to the Moon Water
Cave (mud cave and hot spring). Amazing. Continued the bike ride around,
and then went for dinner at a little place near my hostel. Note that
the booming music from West Street is very loud until around 1am or so
every night.
Went on a bamboo rafting tour the following afternoon (75 yuan; 3 hours)
on the Lujong River. Went shopping for a couple of jackets for the
remainder of the afternoon, and had a nice dinner in town.
Next morning, switched over to Monkey Janes Hostel (80 yuan for private
room with twin beds), which has a popular rooftop bar. Had nice
breakfast with coffee at a local cafe. Went rock climbing this afternoon
(160 yuan for 4 hours; booked through the front desk at hostel). This
was very tough and something I don't plan on taking up anytime soon.
Following day, went for another bike ride with Mo ( 5 hours) including a
one hour pit stop at Liugong village for kayaking (60 yuan from the
restaurant for an hour).
Headed for Shenzhen by overnight sleeper bus (9 hours); very confusing where to go when you get dropped off
in the middle of nowhere at 6:30 in the morning. However, another giy
and I hooked up and took the fastest cab drive I think I've ever had to
the border. Through customs, changed money, and found a room in Kowloon.
Took the ferry to
Macau,
and spent the remainder of the day here, touring the casino area, and
more importantly, the Portuguese colonial area, which was packed with
tourists, but very interesting nonetheless.
Packed up for mid-morning flight. Went to Kowloon Station, where you can
check your bag with the airline in the city, and then make your way out
to the airport.
