Harbin, China

Posted on December 29, 2007 by Travis

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.

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.

(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.

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.

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.

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.

Hong Kong

Posted on December 26, 2007 by Travis

We are now leaving Hong Kong for Harbin. The last few days have been extremely busy with the festive season. With the little time we had in Hong Kong we managed to visit the following places:

Hong Kong skyline and the Peak

Unfortunately we arrived a time with a lot of fog (or maybe that was all the smog), and the skyline was a dull grey. We still took many photos though. From the skyline we walked to the Peak, which is Hong Kong’s highest mountain. A tram ride takes you to the top and gives you access to the Sky Terrace all for $48HK.

JW Marriott Cafe and Lan Kwai Fong

A few of our friends decided on having a Christmas eve dinner at the JW Marriott Cafe. It was extremely expensive (around $850HK, double the normal price due to Christmas) and not worth it, it was fun trying the seafood and deserts, but we would definitely not do it again. After dinner we ventured to Lan Kwai Fong, which was supposed to be the best bar and club strip. It was really just a whole lot of people crammed into a small street with everybody having no idea of what was happening.

Disneyland

We decided to visit Disneyland on Christmas. Disneyland was the highlight of Hong Kong, was better than expected and very fun. I even got a photo with Mickey Mouse.

My’ experiences:

Mong Kok at night with the hundreds of thousands of people crowding the streets, whilst billboards illuminated the streets as if it was day time.
The Hong Kong coins are quite interesting. The $5 coin looks like 3 coins stuck together and the $10 coin is silver with a brass inner core.
Disneyland, definitely ‘The Happiest Place on Earth’ and made even nicer spending it with Sonya on Christmas day.

Sonya’s favourite memorable moments:

Eating fairy floss whilst lining up to take photos with Mickey Mouse.
The Disney safari boat ride provided much entertainment for the ten of us, particularly the funny accented tour guide ‘Rick’. “Welcome to Disneyland, the land of magic, the land of wonder…the land of work.”
Other memorable moments include running around the Disneyland complex after our friends who were trying to find that perfect spot to watch the fireworks and discovering the hallucinosis-like effects of the snowman glasses.

Daft Punk – One More Time

Posted on December 18, 2007 by Sonya and Travis

Daft Punk was a blast! We both had a fantastic time on Sunday evening, here are some snapshots we took between dancing:

Sonya’s comments:

By the time we had arrived at the festival, it was well and truly packed. People of all different shapes, sizes and ages were there. There were the teenagers with their Alive 2007 shirts and beer in hand, the ravers with their giant furry pink leg warmers and the geeky 20 something year olds who had obviously been waiting for this for a long time. One thing was clear, the anticipation in the crowd was enormous and by the time the two robots appeared on stage, the audience was going wild.

Daft Punk played for about 1 hour, and then came out again for an encore (after the crowd had started chanting to the tune of Da Funk). I particularly liked the end when the duo turned around leaving the audience with a view of “Daft Punk” lit up on the back of their jackets – it was too cute!

The show left me with bizarre sense of happiness. Whether it was the messages of being “Human” and “Together” being sprawled across the stage screens or Elvis’ “Can’t Help Falling in Love” being played immediately after the show (causing everyone to embrace each other in togetherness), I’m not sure. All I can say is Daft Punk are very good at doing what they do.

Travis’ comments:

It is no doubt that the light show was the most impressive setup I have ever experienced. However, I was really there for the music and I was left a little disappointed. The set was exactly the same as their set back in Coachella April 2006, almost 2 years ago. I am aware that synchronising the lighting with an improvised set wouldn’t achieve the same visual experience, however, I would have liked some surprises thrown in to mix things up.

The highlight of the show was Sonya’s scream when Something About Us was played gaining a lot of stares from those around us.

I did have a lot of fun and hope to see Daft Punk again in the future (minus the pyramid light show).

Daft Punk – Nevereverland

Posted on December 15, 2007 by Sonya

Tomorrow, the French house robots known as Daft Punk will be on the Perth Esplanade’s grassy lawns for their Nevereverland tour. Guess which two lucky people will be attending?

Travis and I bought tickets as soon as they were released, and now – only less than a day to go! We can hardly contain our excitement.

Initially, Travis was keen on making our own robot costumes. I dismissed this idea, noting it would be too hot in the middle of December to wear such outfits. Unfortunately, tomorrow’s forecast is “cloudy, with rain periods – max 22”. Oh well!

Recently, I re-watched Interstella 555, an animation film featuring the Discovery(2001) Daft Punk album (a particular favourite).

A few months ago, in eager anticipation, Travis and I watched Electroma, a film produced by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo. Somewhere between Sci-fi and indie/arthouse, much of the film is delivered through vivid imagery and centered around themes of existence, and loneliness. I enjoyed this, as it gave a bit more insight into the Daft Punk persona.

So now, the world of the two robots finally come to Perth. Along with their myriad of light effects. And there will be twenty thousand Perthians to greet them, including us.