Author Archives: Travis

Xi’an, China

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Xi’an was our final destination in mainland China. We initially planned to be in Xi’an for a full day as this would give us ample time to see the terracotta warriors and the Qin tomb. Unfortunately, due to the bad weather in Hangzhou, our flight was delayed a day, and this meant seeing the terracotta warriors was extremely rushed. Fortunately, it all worked out in the end and we did manage to see the terracotta warriors as planned, but we would have liked to have spent more time wandering around the city. The little time we spent in Xi’an was very enjoyable and all worth it.

Muslim Quarters (Beiyuan men Islamic Street)

Xi’an has a large number of Muslim Hui people, so we thought it was a good idea to sample the Islamic influenced cuisine. After watching Chuanr of lamb and beef cooking on the street, we stepped inside, took a seat, and waited for the sticks of meat to be served. We tried numerous, various dishes, mostly trying to pick the more traditional food as recommended by the Lonely Planet.

Entrance to Beiyuan men Islamic StreetWaiter bringing Chuanrs of lamb to our tableIslamic influenced Chinese cuisine

Bell Tower

Situated within walking distance from the Muslim Quarters is the Bell Tower. We took a few quick photos before calling it a night.

Bell TowerBell TowerBell Tower

Terracotta Warriors

The number one reason for visiting Xi’an was to see the Terracotta Warriors. The Terracotta Warriors is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, described as the most ‘significant archaeological excavation of the 20th century’, and over 2000 years old.
Unfortunately, due to our flight being delayed from Hangzhou we had only 4 hours to see the Terracotta Warriors and Qin Tomb. We arrived early in the morning to the museum and were one of the first there. Upon entrance of the first pit, we were left awestruck by the expanse of warriors all gazing at us. As we further read the history, walked between pits and then finally the museum of weapons well preserved warriors, the privilege of being able to see it all set in.

Early in the morning walking towards the Terracotta Warriors museumObligatory photo of Sonya and myself and the WarriorsTerracotta Warriors, Pit 1, Xi'an
Terracotta Warriors, Pit 1, Xi'anTerracotta Warriors in broken pieces, Pit 3Terracotta Warriors, Pit 3
Terracotta Warrior archer in the museumCrossbow trigger, part of the weapons found with the Terracotta WarriorsHigh ranking General
Bronze horse and carriage, part of exhibit; the crown of the bronze worksOld lady sweeping snowSonya and myself with some snow covered horses

Emperor Qin’s Tomb Mound

With a little time to spare before needing to catch our flight back to Hong Kong, we quickly visited Emperor Qin’s Tomb Mound. At this time it was snowing which made it all the more enjoyable and a nice way to end our trip.

Sonya and snow covered topiarySonya and myself at the Qin tombSnow covered purple lettuces
Snow covered pathWen-Tai and Jeff on the steps ascending to the tomb moundThe unopened tomb entrance

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Zhouzhuang, China

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Unsatisfied with Suzhou, the following day we made a day trip to Zhouzhuang. Like Suzhou, Zhouzhuang is a famous water town and also shares the name Venice of the East.
We purchased a tour tickets in Shanghai on a recommendation from our hotel, the tickets included bus ride and a few entry tickets for ¥140 per person. On arrival in Zhouzhuang we had lunch and tasted what we believe are some of the more traditional dishes; pork shoulder (Wansan Tipang), molluscs and an interesting cold chicken dish that none of us were game enough to try.

Street of ZhouzhuangUnknown building in ZhouzhuangTraditional Zhouzhuang dishes

Chen Yifei and the Twin Bridge

The Twin Bridge. Consisting of Yong’an Bridge and Shide Bridge, is one of the historical monuments and cultural relics listed under the protection of Jiangsu Province.

Hawkers selling pork shoulder (Wansan Tipang)One of many bridges in ZhouzhuangChen Yifei and the Twin Bridge monument
Sonya and myself sitting on the Twin BridgeAnother bridge of many in ZhouzhuangOld buildings along the canals

Shen House

One of the attractions was Shen House; Shen House was the private property of the descendant of Shen Wansan, the first millionaire of Jiangnan. The interiors had various items which you could not touch; around the exterior were very beautiful gardens.

Display on entering Shen HousesBeautiful courtyards and gardensJust the guys
Nice looking gardenSonya with some waterfowlMyself sitting on an ox statue, not part of Shen House

Boat ride along Zhouzhuang canals

The highlight of Zhouzhuang was the boat ride through the old town. We tipped the oarsman ¥20 to sing three songs during the ride.

Myself enjoying the boat rideSonya, Jeff and the oarsmanJust passing under one of the bridges in Zhouzhuang

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Suzhou, China

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We made a day trip to Suzhou from Shanghai; Suzhou is only 45mins away from Shanghai by train. Suzhou is famous for its classical gardens which are listed as a World Heritage site.

Upon arrival, unsure of what to do and constantly being annoyed by tour operators, we decided to agree and go on a tour for ¥120 per person. The tour visited the following places:

Suzhou Calm Garden

Out of 9 Classical Gardens of Suzhou that make the World Heritage listing, the Suzhou Calm Garden is unfortunately not one. The garden was a slight disappointment; maybe due to visit during winter, the garden didn’t feel ‘lush’ enough. The entry to the garden included a tea tasting and boat ride down the river.

The distinct teapot in front of the teahouseRiver flowing through the Calm GardenSuzhou Calm Garden
Magnificent peacock wood carving from the roots of a treeSonya standing in a brightly coloured archInside the teahouse

Boat ride on the Grand Canal

One nickname for Suzhou is Venice of the East, due to its similar buildings on the edge of the canals. However, pollution and rubbish make it look nowhere as appealing.

Tour boat on Suzhou Grand CanalMinor canal branching from Suzhou Grand CanalBuildings on the edge of Suzhou Grand Canal

Fengqiao (Maple Bridge) and Hanshan Temple (Cold Mountain Temple)

Hanshan Temple is famous because of the poem A Night Mooring by Maple Bridge by poet Zhang Ji.

Suzhou Grand CanalPoet Zhang JiHanshan Temple entrance
Traditional pastry being made in Hanshan TempleSonya enjoying her traditional pastryDistinguishing yellow walls of Hanshan Temple

Silk and Pearls

With small tours it is quite common at the end to take the tourists to shops disguised as attractions in the hope they will buy something and hence the tour guides get a commission. And this tour was no different. The first stop was a silk factory; Suzhou is famous for its silk in China. The silk factory was quite interesting, I didn’t realise that each silkworm cocoon was unwound to produce raw silk thread; it is a very mechanical process. The second unknown destination took us to a pearl factory, which wasn’t at all interesting.

Large machine unwinding the silk threads from silkworm cocoonsPearls in a pearl oysterPlenty of pear necklaces

Suzhou city

At the end of the tour we had some free time to wonder around the city centre and view Suzhou at night. At night, the canals water reflected the buildings and light and the whole city didn’t look as dingy.

Suzhou city centreSuzhou canals at nightSuzhou canals at night

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Harbin, China

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Harbin was our introduction to mainland China. In two days we managed to see a lot. It started of badly with our group being swarmed by the Harbin taxi population upon arriving at the airport. Travelling in a group of 10 meant we needed 3 taxis which made things difficult. Later on we found out we were ripped off by the taxi drivers as well.

To make things worse when we arrived at the Friendship Palace hotel, the hotel did not have details of our booking made through hotel.com.au even though hotel.com.au had charged our credit card. We did manage to get rooms but only after repaying.

The next day, still shaken from our taxi experience we all decided to arrange a 2 day tour for ¥938 (approximately $152AUD) per person. The tour included a tour bus, all entry tickets and a tour guide.

Included in the tour was:

Harbin Tiger Preserve

We came face to face with many big cats, including tigers, lions and even a liger. We started in a minivan driving inside the large open enclosures; the tigers were quite interested in us, coming right up to the van’s windows. Following the drive, we went by foot on the internal walkways and experienced tiger feeding time.

Large tiger at the entrance of Harbin Tiger PreserveOne of the stars of the show, Tiger at Harbin Tiger PreserveTiger approaching minivan of tourists
Workers repairing the enclosure in the presence of onlookersLioness with blood covered paws licking some iceTravis and Sonya and a few tigers at Harbin Tiger Preserve

Harbin Polarland

Opened in 2006, Harbin Polarland was featured seals sea lions, penguins, Arctic Wolves, dolphins and even a polar bear, plus many aquariums with exotic marine life. The extrance also featured many snow and ice sculpture and as this was our first experience around them we had a lot of fun taking lots of photos.

Sonya and I (barely visible) sliding down an ice slide at the entrance of Harbin PolarlandSea lion showSpooky looking eels
PenguinsPolar bearArctic Wolves

(Ninth) Harbin Ice and Snow World

Harbin Ice and Snow World featured some of the world’s largest ice sculptures. On entering the size and complexity of the brightly coloured sculptures was quite outstanding. The ice sculptures were replicas of the Great Wall, Pantheon, Five-Pagoda Temple, Gate of Heavenly Peace, Stonehenge, plus many more I don’t know the name of.
Entrance to Harbin Ice and Snow WorldChurch coloured pinkIce sculptures at Harbin Ice and Snow World
Sonya and myself and the replica PantheonIce sculptures at Harbin Ice and Snow WorldOverview of the ice sculptures at Harbin Ice and Snow World

Harbin Jihua Ski Resort

The second day started with a 1 hour drive to Jihua Ski Resort to attempt skiing. The tour included 2 hours of equipment hire and admission. Even though the ski slopes were artificial, they still looked very beautiful covered in snow.

Sonya and our friends and the instructorSonya in all her ski gear about to hit the slopesSki slopes at Harbin Jihua Ski Resort
Entrance to the ski slopes at Harbin Jihua Ski ResortMyself on one of the slopesSonya, myself and friends including our tour guide

Sun Island Snow Sculptures

After skiing we ended the day with a visit to Sun Island which features snow sculptures as part of Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival. The snow sculptures are lit up with coloured lights, giving them an eerie feel due to the shadows. The festival also featured the world’s largest snow sculpture.

Boy and Girl snow sculptureUs surrounded by snow covered treesWorld’s largest snow sculpture. 35-meter-tall and 162-meter-long, it is situated it what is known as the Romantic and Marvellous Area
Snow sculpture lit up with colourful lightsSonya and myself inside and small house made from iceEerie looking head ice sculpture

Harbin Russian Street and Songhua River

To end our Harbin tour and visit, we walked down the Russian Street (Zhong Yang Street). This all happened while it was snowing and lead to much shenanigans while playing with the snow. For dinner we ate traditional Russian cuisine and drank vodka and kvass. After we walked to Songhua River and walked on the river as being frozen made it quite safe.

Sonya at the Russian StreetRussian Street (Zhong Yang Street)Traditional Russian cuisine
Ice toboggan slide down the bank of the Songhua RiverTraditional Chinese sky lanternHarbin airport in the morning

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