Crazy lady in Kyoto

No, I did not meet anyone crazy, everybody is super relaxed and polite, not to mention organized. It was me. I am crazy about Kyoto. I always wanted to come here and see the beautiful temples and learn a bit more about the history of the Empiriqal Japan and its ways. Discovering Asia, especially the ancient times is an amazing thing. 

I saw in Tokyo, formerly known as Edo, the difference in climate from the Chinese one. I am not talking politics. ;) The humidity is lessened than in mainland China and it is not so very hot. 

I was still getting used to Asian custom of people constantly thanking you and bowing. And then instinctively I bow, and then they bow again, and it goes on and on. I would really like to learn the rules of it, as it seemed I got something wrong. it's probably the matter of who bows last, how many times, or the occasion. Well, good thing I came to a country that everybody was willing to explain you all of the rules, any time. And even written rules-they are everywhere. Flashing down from buildings, sidewalks, streets.

Sometimes funnily spelled, but I complied, when in Rome.....

Afterwards, the road took us to the famous temple. Well, us and hundrets of tourists with selfie sticks. The street leading up to it offered geisha makeovers, and lots of women did it, walking tiny steps up the hill to the temple. 

And there it was, raising high in the back, the red temple. I saw a lot of groups dressed the same, and a lot of students, as well, dressed in school uniforms, which was funny, because it was Saturday.

The most memorable thing about Kyoto was the bamboo forest. The next day we got to it, it was raining and still, ethereal were a lot of tourists. The sight took my breath away.

It threw me back eons and eons, until I saw the selfy people. I knew that people took a lot of pictures of themselves, but it is starting to get ridiculous. I mean, we all take selfies, but the quantity... It is ridiculous. It's better just asking someone to take the picture for us. 

Kyoto was beautiful with its temples, parks and lovely people. The time was passing by, so we hurried on to Osaka to catch the plane back to Hong Kong. I started wishing to stay here a little bit longer, but that is always like that.

Kisses

Steamy Gora

It would be a pity not to see the volcanoes, so we went to Gora to bathe in hot springs and climb a volcano. Sadly, the volcano of Hakone was shooting ash, so they decided to close the rope way, and no one could see it. I was really looking forward to it, even though I was sad to leave never sleeping Tokyo. Just the thought of having my body soaked in a water gushing from a volcano got me super relaxed. 

Once we got off of the super train (all of the trains in Japan are so fast, clean, organized, that they have my love), we got to a little mountain train that zig-zagged to Gora in Hakone region. You could really smell the ashes in the air once we got off of it. The volcano was waking up. We wanted to see it, but sadly, they closed the rope way because of the risk and offered us the lake visit instead. The boat was pirate like and very fast. The clouds were hiding the Mount Fuji, considered the home by the Japaneese. Nevertheless, the experience was a blast. We went for a quick hike once we got across and entered this bakery that I had to suggest for #thefairtraveller, you can see it on www.thefairtraveller.org. The restaurant on the third floor with that view was accompanied with great dishes (the kings of sandwiches). I think the original Lord of SANDWICH would be proud and stopped that poker game of his (see: Wikipedia). 

Pancake at Bakery and Table Hakona.

Going home to Gora from Moto-Hakone-ko.

By now, I got very well adjusted to the Japaneese ethiquete and respectfulness. Just about when you feel yourself wondering around and looking confused, somebody is there to help you to find your way. Or if you have a question about the rules and how one should behave, you can just look around and find them written all over. So, the sightseeing magazin we were given at the train station with the extravagant places to be visited, also contained different set of rules one is advised to follow while at the hot springs site. It is amazing how everything is detailed in explanation and you can picture everything working perfectly in an almost theatrical, respectful manner. Also, we were given yukatas to be worn around comfortably at the hotel (I ignorantly thought it was kimono at first), also to go downstairs to enjoy hot springs and when using our terrace bathtub (the best part). 

Downstairs, the water was steaming. It was 56 degrees Celsius and I could just enjoy it for 10 minutes, but a perfect experience. Everyone is naked in the joint bath, and I was a bit surprised, but soon enough got over it. What to say, it was a perfect end for a perfect day. I fell asleep at 9 PM, and got up early enough to have the famous Japaneese breakfast including soup, fish, rice, boiled tofu, and more at exactly 8 o'clock in the morning. Ready for yet another fast train, this time to Kyoto favorite. I will make a short YouTube film there, for my dearest friend.

Dreamy Sanya

Taking an 18 hours bus ride to the famous Chinese vacation site was bearable only because I had the picture in my head of the beautiful sandy beaches and clear blue ocean. Luckily, the bus was a sleeping one, the first one I ever saw. The laying beds were tiny, so a tall person would have to crouch their legs, but I think that is better than sitting for 18 hours. The most interesting were the people and we to them as well, it is amazing how many friends one can make and as well how much one can learn from simply taking the local bus or train, instead of "high security" tourist buses and transportations. I wrote about the experience of the bus drive and its sustainable manner on thefairtraveller.org, if you want to read more about it. 

The Island of Hainan, which was our I final destination had two cities which we were planning on visiting: Haikou in the north and Sanya in the south. Haikou being the more eventful one, and Sanya as a tourist resort with beautiful beaches and a rainforest. Having only three days, we decided to take a long break in the sun and go for Sanya. The north offers a lot of beautiful biking sites, but after Gui Lin we needed a beach rest and the sun. If I had a couple more days on my own, I would bike through the rainforest close by, but the 35 degrees Celsius temperatures discouraged me and I spent most of the day's laying on the hot sand.

The history of this place is what intrigued me,with my latest found interest in the Far East cultures and the development. Although very much controlling, the government of China lets whole of the island of Hainan have a little bit more of the independency in decision making for the accomplishments in the WW2. Also, in language, there is a difference, while mandarin is standard and official as a language, most of people either don't know it or decide to communicate solely in their dialect. The people are very kind and responsive, but there is little possibility I conversations. We didn't stay in a to orient resort, where there is a possibility of people knowing how to speak English, but decided to go where the local life is, and experience their daily life.

 We arrived and the buses air conditioning gave us a false impression of a moderate temperature. It was 35 degrees with a sensation of 42 because the humidity. But the sun was so nice on my skin. In Hong Kong and Guilin it was raining all of the time and we hardly ever saw the sun, but here it was so nice and warm, it was amazing. We used the Airbnb service for the first time and struggle to find the apartment. The coordinates were wrong, we couldnt explain the directions to the taxi driver as he didn't speak any English. Roaming around in the heat, I was wondering whether this was a good idea, but suddenly, the host called us and he found us in the city. Word of advice: whenever in China, print out everything in Mandarin, so you can show it to the bus or the taxi driver.

I wonder how long it will take me to learn it, well, at least I have the pictures and stories of my class. It was in Sanya that I communicated the most my three and a half sentences of basic survival mandarin, and I realized I don't know how to say: " I would like it spicy, please.", such a shame. 

Sanya has the best sunsets, all three evening we spent walking along the beach and admiring the colors sun threw at its last moments. Take a look by yourselves:

Saying goodbye to this beautiful, relaxing place that gave us good food, relaxation and an escape from the Internet we very much needed. The very warm ocean gave us memorable swimming times and wonderful fish for our dinner. The people here gave us all of the smiles in the world, and understanding for our lack of talking. I thought of it as an uninteresting tourist resort, but in fact it is so much more.

Packing our bags, we are going to Tokyo next. Not with bus, nor train this time we are not going to be nature friendly, we are flying.

Quaky Tokyo

The first time backpacking Asia, I landed in this city with a feeling of 70es being revived on a global scale. Business people emerging from everywhere, having a chat late in the evening, after a long hard day at the office, eating out in tiny fast food places. Really lovely atmosphere. We were really sticking out with those giant backpacks, tired from changing planes and trains all day. But, these people never seemed to notice that it was 11 o'clock in the evening. For getting to know the city, one must adapt to its ways, so we decided to get up early tomorrow morning and explore it to the fullest. 

Waking up to a mild earthquake, now there's an experience. I was told that that was quite normal, but I realized I know nothing about emergency procedures in case of the earthquake. I just stop there with a puzzled look on my face, not standing in the doorway or under something. The whole building was shaking, like a roller coaster. I felt excited and decided to get up afterwards, even though it was 5.40 AM. it was the perfect opportunity to visit the worlds famous Tsukiji fish market where tun prices reach millions of moneys ;) And off we were, just to find out that tuna auction started at 5 and you can't participate just as an observer. It was a perfect opportunity to eat fresh sushi, so we stood in the line, it was exactly 7.20 AM. once we got in the market tiny sushi shop, it was 9.30 AM and we got served a huge portion of sushi and fish eggs with rice and a bit of see weed. It was excellent, even though it was so early in the morning. You have to experience everything the locals do, so we spent a couple of hours at the fish market. 

Frozen tunas that came on the planes this morning were giant. All the variety of fish and shells, and the smell was delightful. We were given the rules on every each step, and basically what they told all of the tourists that they should stay out of the way of working fisherman. 

Again with too little time on our hands, we decided to explore the park, the best place in any city. 

We walked alongside the river, took a metro to get to the royal imperial palace. You can't enter it because the royal family still lives there and I am sure they wouldn't like to have constant visitors that snap photos of them. :) the park surrounding the palace is amazing. All of the herbs, plants and grasses are in their own place, very tidy, orderly and you can stare at it for hours. It was very hot, but no humidity was in the air, creating a pleasant late summer day for the pouring visitors. It was just nice to sit there and read a book while elders of Tokyo gathered and quietly drew landscapes. I find it amazing the business of later generation in Japan and China; they work, get up early to draw in the park, go on hikes or to baths and are very respected by the youth. 

The strolling in the park in the middle of tall buildings is like a breath of fresh air on a hot day- refreshing.

We were lucky enough to witness a traditional wedding in front of a temple situated close to the park. 

That evening was perfect to visit a skyscraper to see everything from up above. There is a top restaurant in busy neighborhood Shibouya loved by young adults who work a lot through week and weekends they like to dress up and hang out in the park. Never witnessed the Goth Lolita's or  any kind of Manga costumes, but night time was packed with people looking to have a good time. The city was even more alive than during the day.

When we woke up in the morning, it was hard to say goodbye to the tiny apartment in middle of Shibouya. We took the bags and went off for the volcano. Yes, a steamy semi-active Hakona volcano. 

From Gui Lin to Yang Shuo

Late in the evening, we arrived to Gui Lin. The train station was a bit far from the town, so taking a cab was the best solution. But how to communicate the message? One semester of mandarin and I never got prepared for that, aaaand I had no wifi. Luckily for us, there was a Canadian trying to get to a business meeting in another city, so he asked if we would share a cab. We were happy to say yes. His Chinese was impeccable, but he had no luck, as he learned the dialect of Beijing. So, a nice Chinese student helped us set a deal and off we were. It was an excellent trip as the Canadian told us how he decided to live in China, for two years now, and some very amuseing stories. It felt like an instant friendship between al of us. Of course, we got invited to his girlfriend and his apartment in Beijing, counting second invite. The first one was to Shanghai, from the lovely girl that got my room for a month. Yeey, meeting people is so exciting.

We got off at the bus station and went to our hostel, which was just 500 meters away. We booked it two months ago, as for the visa to China, you need confirmed accommodation and the time duration of your stay, and it sounded nice, with its name Riverside Hostel. The pictures were nice and revues mentioned friendly staff.

Even though it was late, and it was my first time in China, the hunger beat the fear of unknown foods. It lured us out on the streets in search for some food. Hong Kong must have spoiled us as I didn't have to think of the words to say to either order or express myself, somebody would always understand English. The Cantonese dialect, spoken in Hong Kong, is pretty different than the mandarin one, which I started to learn six months ago, so Hong Kong never gave me the oportunity to shine. 

Yet, there we were, in Mainland China, where nobody spoke nothing but their local dialect of Mandarin, and I had to pull out my symbol cards. I remembered that couple of sentences, but couldn't speak them out in an understandable way (started revising my mandarin tomorrow), so we just pointed to the pictures and got CRABS. I was hoping for the big ones, but these were tiny ones still with shells, with almost no meat in them. So, ignorantly, I started to open them, eating that tiny amount of meet, and after a couple of them, I finally asked the waitress how to eat them. With a wondering expression she basically told me to put it in my mouth and chew. ALL OF IT? Hmm, tried it and it was super. Like chips, and with it, their local beer Liq, it was excellent. 

As we were munching on the crabs, I was looking down the street with all those tiny restaurants and buckets of living fish, vegetables and fruit, the terraces where everybody was smiling and inviting, young parents going out with their newborns in their hands and enjoying their late dinner. It was so natural, pleasant and full of life it just amazed me. Surely it can be a little too much at first, but I felt there is more to discover and I was looking forward to following days.

Later I had a hipohondriach thoughts about how I might be allergic to shell fish, and thoughts that I was going to die, but that just belongs to my craziness, not the surroundings. It is easy to get scared in a new bed, late at night.

The following day, we decided to take the boat on the river Li. We did not ask anybody for any info, just went to the reception. They told us it's a bit late, and we just missed the bunch that left a minute ago. We figured that the boat must go in the opposite direction as well, so we took a bus to Yang Shuo and for an hour and a half of heart attacks (the traffic rules are quite different in China, people over passing right, left, driving in opposite directions and then honking upsetingly when somebody goes towards them, demanding them to move, etc). We came to Yang Shou and sat in the first restaurant to get some info. We found out that no boat takes the passengers back up to Gui Lin, because the current is strong.

I started imagining factories that produce boats on a daily base just to send them to Yang Shou with tourists, and never returning again, so there must have been a graveyard where those boats go to, after serving their divine purpose and then piling them up, or just letting them find their way to the ocean, to serve to the poor fisherman... Aaaaah, that's why they do it. Anyways, back to reality, tHat seemed hardly likely, so we thought that they are trying to scam us, because conveniently, three of them had boats. We went to the docks and indeed, they are sending empty boats back to Gui Lin. Lesson number one: people are generally honest, we should believe them. 

For comfort, I went souvenir shopping on the street market. I asked for the prise of the cone hats, and it was too much. I said my thank yous and carried my own way, thinking the hats are too big to carry them all around the bus stations and airports as we had thousands of places to visit still. Not being good at negotiating (check out the Wild, wild Fez post on this blog), but still the lady wounded up running after me, pushing the prise down to an affordable one (for the Croatian standard), and I went to the bus carrying one large bag of cone hats. Lesson number two: the people are honest while bargaining, too. Anyway, I am glad I didn't get ripped of like in Morocco.

The city of Yang Shou is beautiful and one should definitely take that touristic boat and than stay over in the city for three days or so. As we already payed for the hostel, we had to stay in Gui Lin, but we took that boat the next day:

The river Li is amazing with those pointy heals surrounding it and bamboo rafts quietly roaming on it.

The city of Yang Shou is an interesting one, with lots of bike rental shops, the nature being very close. That made me feel very sorry because you define toy have to sleep here to explore the country side on a bike, or just go hiking alongside the river.

Just a couple more days in Gui Lin and off we go on a volcanic island of Hainan to soak in some sun. The plants here gave me an allergy, so I was sneezing all of the time, but the scenery really made up for it. 

Soulful Hong Kong

Hong Kong literal translation is a port (Hong) full of scents (Kong), it got its name for all of the perfumed items  that the tradesmen were selling in the first period of its making. 

Suffering a great jet-lag, we got on a cultural tour of Hong Kong, organized by Stephen. I found it on the couch surfing events and was very excited to learn something new. The huge guide was sitting on the coffe table and was waiting to be picked up. I always like to hear a human voice rather than get digital or written information, and Stephen was just excellent. He showed us his city with a lot of emotion and answered every question.

So, let me try to show you the beauties that we saw.

We met Stephen at the Sheung Wan train station, where he explained the old city centre was. For the Chinese at time of the Opium war, it was hard to live in the very city centre where all the fighting has been done, so they started to move at the close area near by - Sheung Wan. Even today, those two areas are close to each other- just a station away by metro, but you could really see the difference. While the centre is modern, full of shopping malls, new age buildings, in the olden part the charming ancient spirit rules the streets: colorful signs advertising  everything from foot massages to dry fish, enchanting smells of delicious food coming from everywhere, as the local tiny food shops are very visited. Cars honking, lots of people chatting while rushing the streets in an unorderly manner, here I really felt welcomed to Asia. It's not that we didn't enjoy the central part, where we ran for delicious French made burgers the very second day (jet lag food), I really liked Hong Kong in the parts where the tall buildings ground themselves, at the very bottom where the colors, smells and people are. 

Stephen later took us through the dry fish street, that's of course the local name for it, I forgot the actual name :). It got its name for all the shops that sell dry products to make a soup, which funnily is as important as in Croatian culture- as a child you are not allowed to eat anything else before you finish the soup. Just the ingredients are a bit different: everything is dried or smoked for preservation and judging by the smell, the taste of it is amazing (still haven't had the opportunity to taste it). All the mushrooms, dried fish stomachs, nuts, noodles was so neatly stacked away and some of it still drying on the streets and had its own place in this seamed chaos.

 

Later we went to discover other wonders, but I don't think it would be fair to Stephen to revile everything, so I will stop there, and invite everyone who is once in Hong Kong to find him on couch surfing. 

The group later went to sightsee the Central part, but jet lag was sneaking up from behind, so I had to go take a nap.

The evening was spent just walking around the street unsuccessfully trying to find the dumplings place, but found a cute little restaurant and afterwards a bar. A little heads up: the beer in restaurants is way cheaper than in bars, so if you are on a budget, just stay wherever you were eating to drink the beer.

Me being first time in Asia, I came with a lot of prejudice (just finished readin Jules Verne: Around the world in 80 days IN FRENCH!!), but Hong Kong's beauty and soul blew me away. Sadly, the three days have passed and we have to leave this beautiful view on the harbor 

And go.

There are some photogrammas for you to see the city the way I saw it: