Break: Back to the Philippines

Okay, not shortly after this in my Silk Road trip I was starting to experience China burnout so you guys must be getting the same (or at least China stories burnout). So as a break here's a video of Batanes, the Northern most islands of the Philippines.  

It's a slide show compiled by my good friend and fellow photographer Suiee featuring photos by me, Suiee and another photographer friend Jon.  The music is care of our Batanes tour guide/driver who insisted on playing the song everytime we got in his van.  It drove us nuts but now I can't get enough of it. Enjoy.

 

Tibetan Prayer Flags

I know I wasn't going to write about the lake but I must share these pictures of the prayer flags which was the only thing worth while taking a picture of. It also got me to thinking about the Kumbum, the Tibetan monastery we visited.

Kumbum definitely has an important place in Tibetan history, being the birthplace of the Yellow Hat Sect of Buddhism, the biggest sect in China. I couldn't help though but think that it has been marginalized under Chinese rule. Sure the monks and devotees still go about their daily chores and practices but all under the watchful eye of big brother (Chinese Big brother that is). Apart from the strangely modern bar code scanning machines for the tickets, which I must mention we were only allowed to purchase after submitting our passports for inspection, there were numerous security cameras tucked away in the ancient wood rafters of each temple.

If anything, my visit to this monastery only made my resolve to visit Tibet even stronger. The question is, will it be any different there?

A sad day for travel

Thailand protesters have hit the airports and basically shut them down. Strategically speaking this is probably the best way to draw attention to their cause as they were getting prime time coverage on CNN. That was until the Mumbai bombings and hostage situation still ongoing. Apparently a terrorist group attacked two 5 star hotels and started taking western hostages as well as throwing grenades in the train station and restaurants.

If you were planning to go to those places you better check the situation on the ground before you go. The wife and I have plans to go to India (not Mumbai) in December, no plans to cancel.

Me and the Chief

Ming, our exceptional tour guide, decided to arrange a picnic lunch with a Tibetan family. Not sure if she arranged it or if we just turned up on their doorstep to ask if we could used their yard but in any case that's what we did. I guess it's the same all over the world, if you got foreigners showing up on your doorstep, you roll out the red carpet for them.

So we entered their brick compound, laid out our food on the carpets they provided and before we knew it we were swamped by kids curiuously looking at us, parents fussing over their kids and the Chief.

Actually he wasn't the Chief, they probably don't even have chiefs in Tibet, but that's what I called him. He'd come out every now and then making a big fuss over whether we had enough carpets to sit on, or ordering some food from their house to be shared with us or generally just making a lot of ruckus to ensure everything was fine.


It was great. Then he showed us his house, where the cattle were kept during winter and even showed us his family dog, a Tibetan hound no doubt. It was so great in fact that we quickly voted that the highlight of that day, not our original destination - Chinese largest inland lake which was such a non-event I won't even feature it here.

Don't mess with Yak herders

I found out that the highlights of this trip usually involve interaction with the people and this is one of those highlights. Not a lot of pictures and I'll explain later. On our way to China's largest inland lake, Ming saw a Yak herd by the side of the road which we were on. She asked the driver to stop so we could take pictures and so we all filed out of the bus and watched the herd pass us by while we took pictures.

Tending the herd were two women. I noticed that both were pretty much bundled up against the cold and that they both had this weaved rope/cloth with them. One wore it like a belt but the other one was holding it in her hands. Curiosity got the better of me, I think I knew what it was but I just had to know for sure. As she passed by I motioned to what she was holding and did my best David and Goliath sling shot impersonation. At first I thought my gestures were lost in translation but as she walked on by, she picked up a stone from the ground, a nice hefty one the size of a small mango. She put it in her sling and started spinning it.

By this time she must have been a good distance away from our bus but I still couldn't help but crouch down a bit, if she let go at the wrong time that rock was going to head back our way and by the sound of the twirling around (a little like a small helicopter whump, whump, whump) it was going a good speed. She finally released it and it hit the road with a loud crack a good 30 feet in front of her and bounced a good 20 feet into the air. It also had the desired effect, all the yaks were jolted and sped away into the distance.

I used to think that David and Goliath story always had a tinge of creative license in it, I mean how could a giant fall over dead from getting hit by a slingshot but after seeing this I'm a total believer. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of that slingshot. The whole encounter couldn't have taken more than a couple of minutes but I was so awestruck by what was happening in front of me that I forgot to take pictures. In any case, if you ever run into this woman, you better be on your best behaviour . . . . and leave her Yak alone.

The White Pagoda Hill

For a good view of Lanzhou and the Yellow River, provided the pollution has not kicked up too much head up the White Pagoda Hill on the other end of the Zhongshan bridge. Although there are still temples situated on the hills premises, it has become more of a park, dotted with statues, gazebos and tea houses.

The Mad Yellow River

Lanzhou did have a few tourist stops which we had a look at. One of them was the Yellow River which is the 2nd longest in the China. You know how rivers that run through cities are nice and meandering. Look at the Thames running through London or the Seine in Paris, nice bodies of water leisurely passing through the city as if it was taking in the sights.

The Yellow River on the other hand looks like a river with a mission. It rushes through Lanzhou at breakneck speed as if it had some place important to go. Because of the currents, it wasn't until 1909 that the first iron and therefore permanent bridge was built over the Yellow River. All bridges before the one above were temporary in nature since they would seasonally get destroyed by the annual floods.

Anyhow, because of its strong currents, the locals used to float merchandise downriver via sheepskin rafts. Quite a sight to behold really, sheepskin blown up like balloons and stuck together. Nowadays you can still see the rafts but instead of cargo they now float tourists down the river. In what must be one of the most dangerous things to do as a tourist, in a place not known for safety, floating down the Yellow River on sheepskin raft must be way up there. Now I'm kicking myself for not doing it.

China on Holiday

Our next stop brought us out from the big cities that the western world knew about and dropped us right in the middle of what I like to call real China. Lanzhou (pronounced Lanjow more or less) is still a big city but rather than historical sites and city walls, the city is known more as an industrial city. It's grimy, dirty, slightly chaotic with regards to traffic (then again that applies to all of China) and polluted.

I decided to take a quick walk around the hotel to see if there was anything to . . . . see but walking along the streets, past the impromptu street vendors and the old apartment building I didn't think there's be much to see.

I eventually ended up crossing a major intersection into the city's main square and there I hit the jackpot. No big statues, no ancient historical site, even better, I saw China on Holiday. It was basically the middle of the National Day holiday week and here on a rather plain city square, surrounded by shopping malls now busy selling the latest cellphones was a Luneta like park where the locals decided to take their kids and grandchildren out for a day. There was rollerblading, lots of picture taking and a very sanitized way of pigeon feeding (can't be too careful with bridflu around).

Street Food

We had some free time after dinner and so a bunch of us decided to go to Xi'an's Muslim Quarter. It's a great place to visit, one could say it's highly commercialized with lots of souvenir shops dotting the place but what the heck, it's part of the city and I was going to check it out.

I'm glad I did. Sure it was a tourist destination but 95% of the tourists there must have been local Chinese enjoying their National Day holiday which made it interesting. Right at the front of the main street, just off the Drum Tower was this guy with a humongous telescope selling peeks at Jupiter for 20 Yuan. I was tempted but decided to take a picture of him instead.

Walking on we came into a flood of people doing the same thing we were doing, talking a stroll to see the sights. The main street is amazing, shops selling everything from tea to sweets on both sides, then you had carts and kiosks on the street selling terracotta warrior miniatures, Chinese art, and T-shirts and if that wasn't enough, every little bit of free space left over was taken up by some guy selling rubber rats and spiders or other trinkets.
What was the best for me though were the food stalls selling everything from squid tentacles to unidentifiable meat products. I used to think I was adventurous when it came to food but for some reason I had my guard up in China.

Tang Dynasty Entertainment

As if we didn't have enough culture around us, walking among ancient buried statues, staying in cities centuries old surrounded by still standing city walls, we decided to go to a theater. This theater showed what was expected to be the type of entertainment prevalent in the Tang Dynasty. The theater was not quite the Albert Hall, one section was for patrons who were having dinner during the performance.

It was great, a bunch of elaborate dances, amazing costumes and a guy mimicking a bird which was kind of freaky. Still, visions of House of Flying Daggers came to mind when ladies did the dance where Zang Ziyi had a dress on with long sleeves. So the movie actually did have some historically correct things in it. Amazing.

Photo notes: We got stuck in the back which was okay. The good thing about China is that most of the time you're allowed to take pictures. Staying in the back though I had to pull out my long lens (100-300mm), jacked up the ISO so I could maintain a fast shutter speed (400-800) and used the banister beside our table as a tripod.

More Photos?

One of my blog followers asked for more photos on the blog. I'll try and comply but blogger really isn't made to display a lot of photos.

However, I do have my official website where I upload most of the photos I take on trips so what I'll do from now on is announce when I've uploaded the pics on my other website, I'll usually do this after I've finished with one place.

To get you going, and since I've finished with Beijing more or less, go to www.pathfinderphotography.com. Beijing is a featured gallery on the site.

Best Meal of the Trip

Our tour took us from Beijing all across China to its western border town of Kashgar and throughout this journey we had . . . you guessed it, a ton of Chinese food. Some of the best tasting food came from Hunan province and the restaurants we ate in that served that kind of cuisine were always decorated with lots of Chairman Mao paraphernalia since he came from that province. Lots of spicy dishes from these restos and one even gave us a free Chairman Mao pin.

However, one of the best meals we had really didn't have much to do with the taste of the food, although it was still good. While in Xi'an, one of our "scheduled" restaurant stops was full and Ming turned to us and asked if we were willing to eat at a very "local" restaurant. We all said let's go for it and after a short walk down a busy neighborhood street we walked into a noodle house. The restaurant was more like a long corridor with fold away tables and chairs set up on the side. Since our group of 10 was too big to fit inside we were spirited to the back of the restaurant and outside, yes outside, the back entrance into a courtyard surrounded by walk-up apartment blocks. There was laundry hanging out to dry, kids toys strewn across the pavement, you could hear the TV wafting out from a second storey apartment, it was dark and dingy. In other words it was perfect. The waiter magically set-up folding tables and produced plastic stools for us to sit on.

Soon we were slurping up our spicy noodle soup dishes while a mother walks by to play with her baby in a corner of the courtyard. A little later on, three young, flash and fashionable people step out of their small apartment for a night out on the town and even later on, the garbage man came by to take out the garbage. Why was it perfect? Because this was a slice of real life in China. Apart from the meal, you were almost a member of the audience in a play that is life in China. Oh yes, that and Ming treated us out to beer . . . .

Buried

Close to the city of Xi'an lies one of the most important finds of the 20th centuries. It's hard to believe we can still find treasures these days but in the 70's 4 villagers were digging a well and by some divine intervention dug up a head of one of the Terracotta Warriors. 3 of them wanted to bury it again, fearful of the wrath of the gods, but the fourth took it to the proper authorities and the rest they say is history.

Now the Warriors are displayed in the site itself. A huge hangar has been put up over the three pits that are still being excavated. It's a sight to behold and even though I remember seeing a contingent of these statues on display in London back in the 80s, one is never prepared to see so many of them in the original site.

For those that don't know anything about the Terracotta Warriors, and without sounding too much like a history teacher, these were basically part of the tomb of China's first unifying emperor, Qin Shiu Huang. He built them to ensure he had an army with him when he went into the afterlife. The amazing thing about this is that each individual statue is unique, from the armor he wears to the facial features.

We went during the National Day Holidays and so I felt like half of China was there with me but despite this, when you look at the face of an individual statue, you can't help but be transported back to 200+BC feeling like you're looking into the face of a real live ancient warrior.

US Elections

Sorry, will continue my Silk Road stories tomorrow. I was busy watching the US elections and as always, the US has elected the leader they deserve and it turns out it's not such a bad thing this time.

The Beginning or the End

We finally make our way out of Beijing and get on to the Silk Road itself. Our first stop is Xi'an, either the end (if you are coming from Europe) or the beginning (if you are heading to Europe) of the Silk Road. It is also China's longest lasting capital spanning several dynasties, there are 7 ancient capitals of China.


Now Xi'an is a modern city and tourism is a major industry here thanks to the nearby Terracotta Warriors discovered nearby in the 70's. The city itself though has a lot to offer, from it's city walls, to the Golden Wild Goose Pagoda to it's Muslim Quarter.


I especially liked the city walls and decided to wait until sunset one day just to see what would happen, how the lights would come up etc. I was not disappointed.

Raising the Red Flag

From my travel Diary
06:21 28 Sep 2008 Tiananmen Square
Woke up at 5:00am to watch the flag raising ceremony at Sunrise. Went with Brooke who was the only other person willing to do it. We get to the square (Tiananmen Square) only to line up with the throngs of locals doing the same thing. People are only allowed to line up in front of the flag and so we wait 6-10 deep. Policemen pass by shouting something in Chinese and I make a joke to Brooke that they're probably saying "Watch these two foreigners and let me know if they do something suspicious". The policeman seems to be checking us out and my paranoia goes into overdrive. He finally approaches us and says in very broken English "Please check your belongings" meaning watch out for pickpockets which made me feel guilty, he was watching out for us after all.

So we are standing around for the flag to arrive for another 30 minutes. When it does and is slowly being hoisted up I expect the crowd to burst out in a nationalistic fervor, singing the national anthem at the top of their lungs, hands over their hearts and fists in the air. Rather dissapointingly the only things up in the air are the numerous cameras taking pictures and the only one I can hear singing the nathional anthem was the woman behind me . . . she was kind of whispering it more than anything else.

Nonetheless I can know say that I have seen the Red Flag rise on Tiananmen Square at sunrise. Not many people can say that.

Travel Notes: There's no pomp or pageantry so don't expect anything close to the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace. It's just a bunch of soldiers marching in to get the job done. Flag raising is done at sunrise and flag lowering at sunset so check out when sunrise and sunset is when you visit. Is it worth it? I liked it, nothing like waking up early in the morning to wait around for an hour with a bunch of locals. Don't bother going super early also, the square is off limits and so people have to line up across the road from it. When the police do let people in it's from different points so you're still not ensured a front row seat.