My time here lately is counted by the train rides.
A short summary before the time on the internet expires:
Beijing to Datong: 6 hours, bottom bunk of a hard sleeper
A personal tour of the Datong Buddhist cave sculptures (the colors were still visible after 1500 years) and the Hanging Monestary (carved into a cliff). It was -22 C in Datong, and we were the only ones crazy enough to go further into the mountains.
Datong to Louyang: 16 hours, top (of 3) bunk of a hard sleeper
Dragon Gate Grottoes and park. The continuation of work on Buddhist cave carvings that accompanied the move of the capital from Datong to Louyang during the Northern Wei dynasty. Absolutely amazing. The weather was warm, the park was beautiful.
White Horse Monestary. A fully functioning Buddhist monestary. The first Buddhist temple established in China.
Louyang to Xian: 6 hours, standing in the passageway between the train cars and in the aisles (Spring Festival break is ending...)
Drum Tower, Bell Tower, Muslim quarter. I ate things that I have no idea what they were. Warm jello, lamb stuffing, and something sweet.
Randomness:
-I was approached no less than 12 times at the Louyang caves to buy these little sets of stone Buddhas or a dragon. 12 different women, the same exact things.
-I watched two people get hit by a car walking across the street in Louyang. Traffic rules are guidelines, not laws in China.
-Some guy tried to pickpocket Jungmin in the market. I saw him and slapped his arm. There was nothing in her pocket anyway.
-We were followed for 15 minutes by a guy trying to sell us bus tickets. He kept at it even after we walked into the train station and bought train tickets. A woman did the same thing when we were heading for the train to leave.
-Passing through the countryside of China on the train, I could see the HUGE difference between the city and the country. Coal mines everywhere, much of the transportation of it using mules; old stone houses that look like they could fall down at any moment; broken down trucks and rusted bicycles everywhere.
-Rating the cities we have been to, they have gone from bad to best. Beijing being the worst (smog), then Datong (cold and coal), Louyang (warm, small), Xian (warm, vibrant city).
-The word "Hello" is beginning to annoy me. It is used by inquisitive kids, when they see the white person (not bad); it is used by hawkers to get me to acknowledge their presence (incredibly annoying)
-The Buddhist cave carvings were just absolutely wonderful. They were carved over hundred's of years, and in such detail, from the 20 meter tall Buddha gazing across the river, to the 10,000 20cm tall little Buddhas decorating the walls of a cavern. Incredible.
I'm in Xian for 3 days, and then I'm off to Nanjing, where I meet up with an old BU frisbee player for a day or two before heading to one of the most inspiring mountains in China for a sunrise hike.
Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Friday, February 18, 2005
Goodbye Beijing
Today is my last day in Beijing, and my last day of secured internet access. Tonight I shall board a night train for Datong. After this I shall be spending lots of time on trains, in caves, climbing mountains, and seeing old stuff. I can't say that I am particularly disappointed to be leaving Beijing. It was a nice city to visit, but I don't think I could stand more than two weeks here. The smog was the worst, I think. I am looking forward to the countryside, to old temples, and beautiful mountains.
A few final thoughts on Beijing:
-Everything is cheap, but Starbucks is more expensive than the US.
-There are people whose entire job is to sit in the back of the city bus and make sure you put your money in the slot.
-If you come to Beijing, I suggest the winter. Everything that was supposed to be crowded, wasn't.
-Don't come to Beijing before 2008. They are in the process of redoing everything for the Olympics. This means that some famous places are under scaffolding, or closed. But at the same time, half of what exists now will be knocked down by the time 2008 rolls around.
-The biggest and most impressive embassies are the Communist ones.
-Try the duck, eat the dumplings, and stay away from foreign food that costs three times as much.
A few final thoughts on Beijing:
-Everything is cheap, but Starbucks is more expensive than the US.
-There are people whose entire job is to sit in the back of the city bus and make sure you put your money in the slot.
-If you come to Beijing, I suggest the winter. Everything that was supposed to be crowded, wasn't.
-Don't come to Beijing before 2008. They are in the process of redoing everything for the Olympics. This means that some famous places are under scaffolding, or closed. But at the same time, half of what exists now will be knocked down by the time 2008 rolls around.
-The biggest and most impressive embassies are the Communist ones.
-Try the duck, eat the dumplings, and stay away from foreign food that costs three times as much.
Lamas, not llamas
Today is my last day in Beijing. As a present for me, the sky was a beautiful blue and there was hardly any smog in sight. At last, fresh air! Of course, this was all due to the fact that the wind was blowing, and therefore, it is -6 Celcius outside. We were going to go to two temples today, but the frigidness deterred us, and we just went to see the Lamas.
The temple-goers in Japan have a routine: Walk up, throw a coin, ring the bell, pray, and bow slightly.
The temple-goers in China have a different routine: Walk up, look, place the incense sticks on the tray, kneel, and bow five times touching the ground.
I have seen this bowing style at every Buddhist temple I've been to here. And yet, in everyday life the Chinese do not bow. I find myself bobbing at people as I am accustomed to do in Japan, but no one else does it.
Back to the Lamas. The Tibetan form of Buddhism is scattered all across China, and one of the largest and most prominent temples of one of their sects is in Beijing. I have never seen so many esoteric and tantric deities gathered in one place. It was beautiful. Also, they have a statue of Maitreya Buddha that is in the Guiness World Book of Records for being 18 meters tall and carved out of a single piece of wood. It was amazing.
The temple-goers in Japan have a routine: Walk up, throw a coin, ring the bell, pray, and bow slightly.
The temple-goers in China have a different routine: Walk up, look, place the incense sticks on the tray, kneel, and bow five times touching the ground.
I have seen this bowing style at every Buddhist temple I've been to here. And yet, in everyday life the Chinese do not bow. I find myself bobbing at people as I am accustomed to do in Japan, but no one else does it.
Back to the Lamas. The Tibetan form of Buddhism is scattered all across China, and one of the largest and most prominent temples of one of their sects is in Beijing. I have never seen so many esoteric and tantric deities gathered in one place. It was beautiful. Also, they have a statue of Maitreya Buddha that is in the Guiness World Book of Records for being 18 meters tall and carved out of a single piece of wood. It was amazing.
Relationships
It took three days, but I finally made it to the Great Wall. I hopped on one of these niftly little tour buses. I paid the equivalent of $6 for them to comfortably drive me to the Ming Tombs and the Badalang section of the Great Wall. Now let me tell you something about these tour companies. While not a rip off by any means, they do have something going with a few vendors along the way. Instead of just stopping at the places I paid for them to stop, they included a few little side visits along the way.
1. The Ming History Museum. 40 minutes of reading about what the woman probably just explained on the bus. Although I'm not sure, since I could neither understand the Chinese, nor did I pay to go into the museum.
2. The Center for Geology in China. a.k.a., "Here's where all the good jade comes from. Now, step over here into this gigantic jade showroom, and buy yourself a few pieces!"
3. Souvenirs, souvenirs, and more souvenirs.
1. The Ming History Museum. 40 minutes of reading about what the woman probably just explained on the bus. Although I'm not sure, since I could neither understand the Chinese, nor did I pay to go into the museum.
2. The Center for Geology in China. a.k.a., "Here's where all the good jade comes from. Now, step over here into this gigantic jade showroom, and buy yourself a few pieces!"
3. Souvenirs, souvenirs, and more souvenirs.
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
Stories from the First Few Days
*We got into a taxi at the airport. As the driver began to pull away, a man opened the front door and got in. Our driver continued. The man rolled down the window and began yelling at people in a nearby van. They yelled back and gestured wildly. He jumped out and ran toward them. We
continued on our way. We passed through a toll booth and the driver pulled over to the side of the road. I am thinking he is going to do one of two things: rob us and leave us in the middle of nowhere, or go to the bathroom on the side of the road. He crossed in front of the car and rolled up the passenger side window.
*We were walking down the street. There was a man walking behind us. We are talking. I feel a tug at my bag. I turn to find the man directly behind me, having tried to unzip my bag. Having absolutely no Chinese language I stared at him as meanly and angrily as I could, and walked away. He didn't follow.
*My friend wanted a sweet potato from the vendor. I ask with my fingers, is it 4 yuan? And he says 10. She drops the potato back on the stove and starts to walk away. 5! he says. She turns and gives him a "yeah, right" look. We get a huge golden yellow sweet potato for 4 yuan.
*We stopped in McDonald's for some hot chocolate to warm ourselves up. Two men were sitting at different tables. One was facing a large celophane-wrapped teddy bear. The other was staring dejectedly at a small vase of roses. It was Valentine's Day.
*We went to the bus station for the bus to the Great Wall early Tuesday morning. It was snowing. We don't drive the buses when the snow is falling, they said. We went again the next day. We don't drive the buses when there is snow on the ground, they said.
*I speak three phrases in Chinese. The police man does not speak English. I point at my guidebook where the word for "bus" is written. I point at the map where I want to go. He points down the street where the bus stop is. The perfect sort of communication.
*The kitchen at the noodle place where we ate lunch was half outside. The three Chinese women across the table from us had the same thing we did. They paid 4 yuan. The waitress asked us for 5. I feel bad debating the difference of 20 cents, but it's the principle of the matter.
*The huge man-made lake at the Summer Palace is frozen over. It took us 20 minutes to walk halfway across amidst half finished snowmen and snowball fights.
continued on our way. We passed through a toll booth and the driver pulled over to the side of the road. I am thinking he is going to do one of two things: rob us and leave us in the middle of nowhere, or go to the bathroom on the side of the road. He crossed in front of the car and rolled up the passenger side window.
*We were walking down the street. There was a man walking behind us. We are talking. I feel a tug at my bag. I turn to find the man directly behind me, having tried to unzip my bag. Having absolutely no Chinese language I stared at him as meanly and angrily as I could, and walked away. He didn't follow.
*My friend wanted a sweet potato from the vendor. I ask with my fingers, is it 4 yuan? And he says 10. She drops the potato back on the stove and starts to walk away. 5! he says. She turns and gives him a "yeah, right" look. We get a huge golden yellow sweet potato for 4 yuan.
*We stopped in McDonald's for some hot chocolate to warm ourselves up. Two men were sitting at different tables. One was facing a large celophane-wrapped teddy bear. The other was staring dejectedly at a small vase of roses. It was Valentine's Day.
*We went to the bus station for the bus to the Great Wall early Tuesday morning. It was snowing. We don't drive the buses when the snow is falling, they said. We went again the next day. We don't drive the buses when there is snow on the ground, they said.
*I speak three phrases in Chinese. The police man does not speak English. I point at my guidebook where the word for "bus" is written. I point at the map where I want to go. He points down the street where the bus stop is. The perfect sort of communication.
*The kitchen at the noodle place where we ate lunch was half outside. The three Chinese women across the table from us had the same thing we did. They paid 4 yuan. The waitress asked us for 5. I feel bad debating the difference of 20 cents, but it's the principle of the matter.
*The huge man-made lake at the Summer Palace is frozen over. It took us 20 minutes to walk halfway across amidst half finished snowmen and snowball fights.
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
Beijing or Peking?
The days have been long, this computer won't let me upload pictures, and the smog has made my head hurt, so this first message from the Middle Kingdom will just be a list.
THINGS I HAVE LEARNED:
-How to count to 10 in Chinese.
-My friend is not paranoid - the Chinese government really does monitor foreign students.
-You can't flush toilet paper; it clogs the pipes. Throw it in the box with the other dirty paper.
-The water is undrinkable because they fertilize the soil with human waste.
-Taxis are scary. Very. (Remind me to tell the story about the cab from the airport)
-Chinese kids don't wear diapers. They pee and poo wherever through a crack in their pants.
-New Year drains the city of it's inhabitants. Imagine New York with no people. Creepy.
-Beijing Duck-flavored potato chips.
-Large bottle of beer costs 50 cents.
-There are excersize playgrounds for adults.
-The best jade is pale green, followed by mixed, dark green, and white.
-Beijing is knocking everything down in order to build everything up for the 2008 Olympics.
-You can't go anywhere without seeing a police officer of some sort.
-There were only 6 interenational postcards stamps in the whole International Post Office.
-Pierce Brosnan narrates the audio tour at the Forbidden City.
-Mao's dead face is lit up bright orange.
-The soldiers outside of the Mao's tomb were selling Mao watches, handerkercheifs, and medallions.
-McDonald's plays the Hansons "Mmm bop"
-Some tea houses double as bars in the evenings.
-Beijing duck is served with the head decorating the plate.
-Beijing really is pretty, at least that's what the postcards of summer show. I can't see it for the smog.
-Legal DVDs are the exception and pirated ones are the norm.
-Line dancing every night at the square. Favorite tunes include Aqua, "Butterfly" and Chinese folk tunes.
PLACES VISITED:
-The "Times Square" of Beijing
-A famous flea market
-The gate a half mile away from the entrance to the US Embassy
-The Forbidden City
-Tiananmen Square
-Mao's Mausoleum
-The futongs (enclosed alleyed communities)
-The expat night life place
THINGS EATEN:
-Dumplings
-Tofu
-Noodles
-Beijing Duck
Tomorrow, the Great Wall!
THINGS I HAVE LEARNED:
-How to count to 10 in Chinese.
-My friend is not paranoid - the Chinese government really does monitor foreign students.
-You can't flush toilet paper; it clogs the pipes. Throw it in the box with the other dirty paper.
-The water is undrinkable because they fertilize the soil with human waste.
-Taxis are scary. Very. (Remind me to tell the story about the cab from the airport)
-Chinese kids don't wear diapers. They pee and poo wherever through a crack in their pants.
-New Year drains the city of it's inhabitants. Imagine New York with no people. Creepy.
-Beijing Duck-flavored potato chips.
-Large bottle of beer costs 50 cents.
-There are excersize playgrounds for adults.
-The best jade is pale green, followed by mixed, dark green, and white.
-Beijing is knocking everything down in order to build everything up for the 2008 Olympics.
-You can't go anywhere without seeing a police officer of some sort.
-There were only 6 interenational postcards stamps in the whole International Post Office.
-Pierce Brosnan narrates the audio tour at the Forbidden City.
-Mao's dead face is lit up bright orange.
-The soldiers outside of the Mao's tomb were selling Mao watches, handerkercheifs, and medallions.
-McDonald's plays the Hansons "Mmm bop"
-Some tea houses double as bars in the evenings.
-Beijing duck is served with the head decorating the plate.
-Beijing really is pretty, at least that's what the postcards of summer show. I can't see it for the smog.
-Legal DVDs are the exception and pirated ones are the norm.
-Line dancing every night at the square. Favorite tunes include Aqua, "Butterfly" and Chinese folk tunes.
PLACES VISITED:
-The "Times Square" of Beijing
-A famous flea market
-The gate a half mile away from the entrance to the US Embassy
-The Forbidden City
-Tiananmen Square
-Mao's Mausoleum
-The futongs (enclosed alleyed communities)
-The expat night life place
THINGS EATEN:
-Dumplings
-Tofu
-Noodles
-Beijing Duck
Tomorrow, the Great Wall!
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Watch Your Step!
Sapporo has the most dangerous sidewalks in Japan. The weather is such that the snow melts and freezes into 5 inch thick sheets of ice. Residents wear spikes on their shoes. Curiously, they don't use salt to clear the sidewalks. Instead, there are boxes placed at major corners where you can pick up a small bag of gravel to sprinkle in front of you as you walk. I think I was in more danger of injuring myself walking down the street than on the ski slopes.
Scary Story
Fugu, pufferfish, is a wonderfully tasty and poisonous fish. It is usually expensive because it is difficult to remove the poison and it is delicious. One fish has enough poison to kill 36 grown men. Are you scared? I ate some last night. We happened upon a restaurant that had a festival special, so we all ordered some. After many jokes about death, we finally tried it, and it was really good! But then, for some unknown reason, I got really light-headed and almost passed out. Everyone suddenly got serious and there was a suggestion that we go to the hospital. But after 10 minutes I was fine, and no one else had any problems. I'm thinking maybe I had an allergic reaction to something in the dinner. Or maybe I got a weak dose of the poison, which sometimes causes people to have a tingly tongue. Or someone suggested it was psychological. Either way, don't worry. I'm fine. I'm not dead.
Yuki Matruri
I was really excited about the Snow Festival. I heard it was supposed to be amazing. Well, the feats of architecture and art were definitely impressive, but I'm also glad I included skiing in the trip.
The Snow Festival is put on in three places in Sapporo. Makomanai has huge snow scenes with ice slides for the kids. This area is the most popular place for schools to bring their students on a field trip. I was attacked immediately by kindergarteners asking for foreigners' signitures. There were quite a few foreigners.
Susukino was the ice sculpture area. There were quite a few fish and eagles, including a house with real fish frozen into the walls.
The main site was Odori. This is park that runs through the city about seven blocks long. Here is where the huge snow scenes and life size snow buildings were constructed, along with smaller character sculptures. My favorites were the Nagoya castle, Mickey and Minnie riding a dragon, and Darth Vador. The best time to see the festival is at night when they light everything up, so during the day we went ice skating, toured the Sapporo Beer Museum, and wandered around Sapporo. It was a nice relaxing time.
The Snow Festival is put on in three places in Sapporo. Makomanai has huge snow scenes with ice slides for the kids. This area is the most popular place for schools to bring their students on a field trip. I was attacked immediately by kindergarteners asking for foreigners' signitures. There were quite a few foreigners.
Susukino was the ice sculpture area. There were quite a few fish and eagles, including a house with real fish frozen into the walls.
The main site was Odori. This is park that runs through the city about seven blocks long. Here is where the huge snow scenes and life size snow buildings were constructed, along with smaller character sculptures. My favorites were the Nagoya castle, Mickey and Minnie riding a dragon, and Darth Vador. The best time to see the festival is at night when they light everything up, so during the day we went ice skating, toured the Sapporo Beer Museum, and wandered around Sapporo. It was a nice relaxing time.
Monday, February 07, 2005
The Northern Island
The days are flying by here in Hokkaido. Two days ago we stopped by our friend's apartment in Tomakomai. There wasn't much to do in his little town, but we amused ourselves by testing the limits of his apartment-there were seven of us sleeping over.
Yesterday we went to the best onsen I have ever been to. It was out in Noboribetsu, the site of sulfer springs and "hells". There were 15 kinds of baths: hot, really hot, waterfall, walking, lying down, cold, outdoor, milky, and the list goes on. It was wonderfully relaxing. Afterwards we walked around the hells where sulferic gases spouted from the barren ground and wafted around the mountains. It smelled horrible. My hair still reeks of it.
We returned to Sapporo and went to the the Sapporo beer factory for dinner. They serve all you can eat Gengis Khan there. This is mutton that you cook on a grill on your table. It was delicious. The Sapporo beer went well with the dinner. We'll actually take the factory tour tomorrow.
Today we're heading out to the opening ceremony for the Snow Festival. I'm excited about huge sculptures made of snow.
Yesterday we went to the best onsen I have ever been to. It was out in Noboribetsu, the site of sulfer springs and "hells". There were 15 kinds of baths: hot, really hot, waterfall, walking, lying down, cold, outdoor, milky, and the list goes on. It was wonderfully relaxing. Afterwards we walked around the hells where sulferic gases spouted from the barren ground and wafted around the mountains. It smelled horrible. My hair still reeks of it.
We returned to Sapporo and went to the the Sapporo beer factory for dinner. They serve all you can eat Gengis Khan there. This is mutton that you cook on a grill on your table. It was delicious. The Sapporo beer went well with the dinner. We'll actually take the factory tour tomorrow.
Today we're heading out to the opening ceremony for the Snow Festival. I'm excited about huge sculptures made of snow.
Friday, February 04, 2005
Facts and Opinions
It is very easy for me to forget that there are people who know nothhng about Japan. Or people whose views about this country are decidedly different. I met an Australian who, upon hearing that I lived here, asked what other Japanese thought of Hokkaido. To hin, it is a perfect place filled with friendly people. He can't imagine anyone thinking differently. And there were people on the shuttle bus talking about the fish market they went to in Tokyo, "There were all sorts of things I would never eat. I think some of hem are used as aphrodesiacs." What!? It shocks me every time when I hear people's opinions about things that have become commonplace in my life. How can they not know the truth of these things? But then I realize that I have been lucky to experience the whole of Japanese culture in real life, and they are only presented with glimpses from movies and scenes from tour bus windows. Come visit me for a while. I'll show you what the real Japan is like.
Powder
I have just completed three days of amazing skiing in Niseko, Hokkaido. My skiing friends say I have now been spoiled for skiing anywhere else-the conditions were that good. My experience went something like this:
Day 1: Staying on the greens(easy) remembering what I learned the first time and getting used to the powder snow.
Day 2: Tried some reds(intermediate) and became frustrated at my inability to turn or stop while going fast. Fell too many times, but the snow was so soft that the only injury I got was a bruised thumb from when I hit myself flailing.
Day 3: Miraculously figured out how to ski and spent the entire day in the reds and occasionly an ungroomed. I even went over a few hilly jumpy things. I really didn't want to leave.
Overall, I had a great time. The place we stayed was cozy and friendly. There were tons of Australians everywhere. And I learned to ski with a decent amount of skill. Now it's off to my friend's house and Sapporo!
Day 1: Staying on the greens(easy) remembering what I learned the first time and getting used to the powder snow.
Day 2: Tried some reds(intermediate) and became frustrated at my inability to turn or stop while going fast. Fell too many times, but the snow was so soft that the only injury I got was a bruised thumb from when I hit myself flailing.
Day 3: Miraculously figured out how to ski and spent the entire day in the reds and occasionly an ungroomed. I even went over a few hilly jumpy things. I really didn't want to leave.
Overall, I had a great time. The place we stayed was cozy and friendly. There were tons of Australians everywhere. And I learned to ski with a decent amount of skill. Now it's off to my friend's house and Sapporo!
Thursday, February 03, 2005
Rotemburo
One of the best things about sports outings in Japan is the soak in the onsen, hot springs bath, afterwards. The one across from my hotel has a wonderful rotemburo, outdoor bath. I sat in steaming sulfer tinted water, leaning against volcanic rock and admiring the naturally sculpted wall of snow at the edge of the bath. This snow also provided ample ammunition to lob over the wall at the guys.
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
Siberian Winter
I am on my way to Hokkaido. I watched the weather last night: the coldest air of the year is descending from Siberia bringing with it the most snow most people can remember. In the countryside people are dying from snow falling off roofs, collapsing roofs, and trying to clear snow off roofs. But it's gonna be great for skiing they say. And I'll have four days of it-as long as my flight isn't cancelled.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)