Xinwen Hotel Yan'an

... and after talking with the hotel owner negotiated a cheaper price. The only reason we stayed at this hostel is beacsue it was recomended to us in Xian and we had thought about booking in there. So I suggest going to the people who arent harassing you to stay at this hotel or harsssing you at all to let them take you somewhere, chose a quiet one, they are honest and take you where you need to go, or organise with your hostel for transport. This town is full of ...

... den uz teda nee. Zacali jsme shanet hotel. Na vnejsim okraji byly pokoje i za 50 yuanu, coz nas prekvapilo, jenze zda se, ze za a neni sezona, za b vnejsi baraky jsou moderni a hnusne. Pote, co jsme prosli branou do stareho mesta jsme se pevne rozhodli, ze dneska budeme spat ve dvorcaku, i kdyby sme meli hledat az do vecer. To nastesti nebylo nutne, vsude meli prazdno, a jeden drozkar nas tak dlouho ukecaval, az jsme teda kyvli na to, ze se na jim doporucovany hotel ...

... on fait des grands signes, au revoir tout le monde, des faces ecrases contre les vitres ... prochaine fois, je prends la classe au dessus, couchette et compagnie. Pingyao, petite ville fortifiee de banquiers et de banques sous les Ming, a perdu depuis longtemps ses riches habitants, ce qui lui a permis de rester inchangee durant plusieurs siecles, jusqu'a ce que les touristes, pour la plupart chinois, y debarquent.

... It was very nice, not very touristy and lots of art students making clay copies of the statues. The following day we got the Pingyao Tourist ticket, which allowed us up on the City Wall and into about a dozen museums. We dawdled round the wall, so were left to run around about 3 museums, including China's first bank. All too soon our relaxing time in Pingyao was over...now onto the hustle and bustle (and probably smoggy air) of Xi'an. Cheers Gordon

... using our best bargaining skill although we walk away knowing we are still being ripped off! We have lunch in a small, empty restaurant. Never a good sign if somewhere is empty but we put it down to the time of day. We order a chicken dish and some rice and hope for the best. The 'chicken' arrived and we still think that it was actually gammon but not sure what we are eating we fill up on rice and quickly pay the bill! The rest of the evening we spend chilling at ...

... of about 1,400 years. The temple consists of ten large and small halls, and the sutra chanting hall and the monks' rooms. The ten halls include the Heavenly Kings' Hall, the Arhats' Hall, the Mahavira Hall (Da Xiong Bao Dian), and the One-Thousand Buddha Hall, the Sakyamuni Hall, the Bodhisattva Hall, the Ti-tsang Bodhisattva Hall, the Guan Yu's Hall and two other halls. Guan Yu was a famous ...

... of the stadium had been turned into a building site for some flats and shops. This made me think that this was a view into the future of Field Mill and the demise of the Stags! Sorry Dan & Webby. As mentioned earlier, we went back to the Sukara Café for the eveningg and had a really goid night, but I did endure a surreal moment in a local shop. I had decided that in my chilled state, and whilst listening to No Woman No Cry, I would ...

Pingyao was a small walled city, we only stayed here for one night, but still had time to cycle round the whole wall and then go for a lunch cooked by a local family. Apart from that we didnt do much else! The inner city itself was devoid of anything green and extremely dusty so in all honesty we were quite glad to leave!

... s attractions: The Terracotta Warriors. We are really enjoying our time in China and our travels are just flying by. The countdown is on; we have our flights already booked to Brisbane, Australia on January 10, which leaves us with just under two months left to see more of China and parts of Southeast Asia. There is never enough time. Wherever we go, we find ourselves constantly saying "we have to come back!" Oh well, such is life!

... oldest bank and generally enjoying the sun (at last blue sky and not the white haze which covers the south). With the sky being blue and the town quite small the night sky finally revealed some stars, in the larger cities a clear sky is no guarantee that anything is visible in the sky due the light pollution. We met Veronique (de Bordeaux) who with her Mandarin and experience in China (1 year study) was able to help us out and ...