Sanshui Huaqiao Mansion Foshan

i knew it would happen, but only four days in and sarah has chinitis, all the smells, tastes and intruguing aspects of CHina have resulted in symptoms including vomiting in front of a chinese family in Qingping markets. we walked through a really really fascinating marketplace full of kittens, puppies, tortoitses, so many fish, salamanders, chip munks, every manner of claw, dried lizards, mushrooms, fungi and bunny ...

We caught a train from HK to Guangzhou on the 4th. Its a very hectic city. Lots of people, bikes, cars and buses. people riding bike on the road with ridiculous things tied to the back. we are staying on an island in the city named shamian. its very pretty, but a true tourist hub. our hostel is lovely. we thought that we were truely livinh the high life until we visited a hotel across the road that ...

Enjoyed our meetings and colleagues. Went to dinner at a typical Guangdong/Canton restaurant. Menu was very creative. Plenty of exotics - baby pigeon, sting ray, fish guts, beetles, snakes, chicken feet. Was a bit naseous, but likely because of jet lag.

Arrive after 11 pm and my company screws up the pick-up. 20 guys trying to sell me sim-cards are chasing me around baggage claim because I'm clearly not moving out. After an hour and deciding I won't be picked up, I bee-line for the first cab in lineup. The ...

Guangzhou was thankfully pretty uneventful except for this one little episode I thought I'd share...

Because of the 'swine flu' or H1N1 virus most of the border control areas scan your body as you walk through with your passport. I wouldn't have even noticed this had it not been for Ollie getting pulled aside for his very 'high temperature'. He was immediatley carted off while I had to go through immigration and wait for ...

Arriving to Guangzhou late at night was like being involved in a futuristic / sci-fi movie. Tiered freeways, 6 lanes wide weaved in and out of each other and highrise buildings – I expected the bus to hang a massive right and drive up a building at any moment – but then I realised that I was just tired and my imagination running away with me. Highly voyeuristic, peering into ...

We arrived at Chimelong Hotel after taking the 10:40 a.m. ferry from Kowloon (operated by CKS). The ferry ride was an easy 2 hour journey, for about $23 usd per ticket. After getting off the ferry, we boarded a free shuttle bus to the hotel. The hotel was the third stop on the shuttle, which lasted around 30 minutes.

The check-in at the hotel was a long process. Twenty minutes wait in line, then another 15 minutes to check in, despite having at least 8 ...

... to the Han Dynasty (BC221 to 207). It has been known throughout its history for its ceramics, metal working and carving. Foshan is also famous for its Ancestral Temple (Zu Miao) and it got its name Foshan (Buddha Hill) from three statues of the Lord Gautama that once stood on a nearby hill during the Tang Dynasty (AD618 to 907) when Foshan used to be an important Religious centre. Zu Miao Ancestral Temple ...

... other winks. We've landed well. Day Two in Foshan The apartment is what we never allowed ourselves to expect: two bedrooms, two bathrooms, nice kitchen/livingroom area, well working A/C, washing machine, and a good view. However much we're excited about it though, the last tenant didn't seem to put so much stock into his living area. The school said they sent a cleaner through, but the cleaner, whoever she is, didn't manage to get the tobacco ...

Saturday

Awoke in the morning to a great view of Hong Kong from my bedroom window. Ate an early breakfast then took a local bus to Kowloon Station. Kowloon is the stepping off point for China and you do all the formalities before boarding the train. Lots of people in the crowded train station and took a while to find the immigration and departure areas. Went through passport control, checked my bags in and hung around for the train to leave. Once the train ...