Chang Gong Hostel Beijing

... chamber, knowing that the more popular they were with the great man, the better their status and thus the more comfortable their life. Thank the Gods for female liberation!









Traditional Chinese architecture is simply stunning, and it was a joy to take in the staggered sizes, detailed eaves, elegantly curved roofs, carefully planted courtyards ...

... this, but it's worth saying again - the Chinese do NOT like sweets!), and the sweetest ones had nuts or egg, or double egg. I assumed egg meant custard, so I got one of those, and some funky little Japanese rice-ball things.

Of course, egg does not mean custard. It means egg. There's a solid yolk in the middle of my cake. The rest of the cake is sort of crumbly and sweet, and then the yolk is solid and salty. Very odd sensation. It's also taken me two days to ...

... time of the emperors. I was so humbled by the experience, and we even got to eat dinner inside a woman's house. She was wonderful and made great food, but it was so interesting to experience this style of life. We then went to the big Beijing shopping center, famous for designer brand knockoffs. By this time I was almost too tired to barter, so I just observed all of the action. Each floor was a ...

... quite original name of Xidan Shopping Centre and PingPing said: "Here we are." We entered through one door, descended by a stairway to a floor below the street level, and there, among numerous Chinese fast food outlets, chose one, all in green, which PingPing deemed appropriate. I had no idea where she had brought me or what we would eat. I just followed in her tow, mimicking her every action and move like an ape. It eventually resulted in our sitting at a metal U-shaped bar, around ...

... Zi, an Asian version of hacky-sack with feathers, so much fun I had to buy one. The lake is surrounded by hip bars with foreign singers in traditional style buildings, so cool! We hung out a bar with (what I guessed were) five Caribbeans playing mostly Bob Marley covers. It reminded me of Thailand where you will hear Bob Marley and Jack Johnson incessantly. Speaking of Thai, their Pad Thai was awesome. I ate two plates. After a couple beers and a Cuban cigar ...

... wallet that I think I may have gotten ripped off for. Oh well, I'm not much of a haggler, but I've learned a bit and it still only cost $35 Canadian which is on par with what I'd be willing to pay at home :) Then we went for supper to another restaurant, which wasn't that great, and now we're back at the hotel downloading the photos from our cameras to clear the memory cards, and so we can upload photos as well.

... in others. The falling apart parts make you realize just how ancient the wall is. They also add a sense of adventure to the trip. They are also a good weeding out mechanism for those less hearty tourists. If you have a sturdy pair of hiking boots, and don't mind sweating a little bit, I highly recommend a hike on the Wall at SiMaTai. On a final note, if you ever have the ...

... had a BBQ at his place and I had an amazing burger and played Mortal Combat. What are breaks for right? Friday night I was also awoken at 2am with on knock on the door from my friend Cary asking for water. He was drenched from rain (lots of rain this week) and had quite a story. He and Chip went out to the bars of Sanlitun. When ...

... the rain cannot wash the skies of the filth, soot and smog, my tears were a pointless endeavor, helpless against the pain. Coming back to this cold, dark (this hostel is located in basement 4!) and lifeless place, i feel the loss more than ever. Just hours before, he was here. Just hours before, I held him close here as he gently roused me from sleep. But now, all that's left is what's left: a characterless dorm, silent, cold and offers me no solace nor ...

December 9, 2006 20 hours in, 28 hours to go. Not sure where we are exactly. The scenery although spectacular has a similar recurring theme - beautiful mountains and hills surrounded by farm land, followed by big industrial towns, which look grey and cold. This is China. We spent the last week in Hanoi (Vietnam) and the surrounding area, specifically Halong Bay, which is breathtaking - limestone grottoes and caves as far as the eye can see ...