Four months in Asia

China

Attraction | "Great Things - An Overview of China"

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In 2004 I was able to take a four month trip around Asia. China has always fascinated me and as the northernmost country included in my plans, it was the first country on the itinerary. My overall plan was to travel through Asia from north to south and I followed the same strategy in China, so for me, first stop Beijing. Beijing~~~~I arrived in Beijing in the early morning after a ten hour flight from London. After catching up with sleep, I spent what was left of the day walking to and exploring Tiananmen Square. The square is vast. Actually it is a rectangle, 500m wide and 900m long. At one end there is the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall and the Qianmen gate, which is the vi...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on June 28, 2009

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Chinese Culture Shock

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My trip to China was over four years ago and pre-Olympic games, it was noticeable at the time that the government had already started initiatives to ready the nation for an influx of international visitors. For example there was a daily TV program to teach the English language.Nevertheless the language and cultural barriers were as large as I have ever faced. It was hard to get used to the Chinese habit of spitting, although this was one of those practices that the government had already started to discourage in anticipation of increased visitors in 2008, so no spitting signs were found in many places. I have noted in my journal that I did not see a single other westerner on...Read More

My trip to China was over four years ago and pre-Olympic games, it was noticeable at the time that the government had already started initiatives to ready the nation for an influx of international visitors. For example there was a daily TV program to teach the English language.

Nevertheless the language and cultural barriers were as large as I have ever faced. It was hard to get used to the Chinese habit of spitting, although this was one of those practices that the government had already started to discourage in anticipation of increased visitors in 2008, so no spitting signs were found in many places.

I have noted in my journal that I did not see a single other westerner on my first day in China. It surprised me that I continued to see very few westerners as the days progressed as I have never thought China to be a particularly obscure holiday destination. I believe the explanation is simply that the tourists are spectacularly outnumbered by the Chinese population.

I was stared at nearly everywhere I went, I have lost count of how many Chinese wanted to take a photograph of me or with me. My face must adorn many a mantlepiece across China. Most would ask (or gesture) for permission, but I remember once whilst sitting outside and taking a break that a small group were surreptitiously trying to capture me on camera. I had read this might happen in guidebooks, which spoke of this as if it were a problem. Indeed it may be for some people, but I only ever found it amusing and it did not annoy me at all.

On the other hand I was annoyed on many occasions when I would be queuing to buy an entry ticket or underground ticket and a local would just step in front of me. However they are not meaning to be rude, a tap on the shoulder and an "I’m next" type of gesture would rectify the situation immediately. Well you know how the English feel about queuing.

Finally, a few words about the cuisine. Well I thought it was pretty dreadful and woefully behind the standard in your average Chinese restaurant in the UK. A lot of the food was really greasy and unpleasant, I quickly learned to opt for vegetable based dishes and when I found somewhere bearable then I would repeat visit. Definitely not somewhere to experience gastronomic delights and wine is ghastly too.

The phrase I have most often used to describe my trip to China in the subsequent four years is undoubtedly "hard work". I will probably continue to use this phrase for a long time to come. It is difficult for me to really say how much of this was due to me travelling independently and by myself for much of the time, but that is definitely part of it as I think the lack of even basic conversation for this length of time and the difficulties in communication just about everywhere was draining after three weeks. I hope I don’t sound like an insufferable English woman abroad, because I have travelled reasonably widely and don’t want to bring England with me when I go away and I don’t expect everybody in the world to speak English either, but China was like being on another planet at times.

Looking back at my four month trip, I would say that China (excluding Hong Kong) was easily the most challenging country I visited, and I would even go so far as to say it was the least enjoyable country as well. Strangely though, I have come to realise that be that as it may, it was also the most memorable and thankfully, mainly for the good reasons.

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Hong Kong

Attraction | "Hong Kong days - An overview of HK"

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After my three weeks of independent and solo travel in mainland China I was really looking forward to Hong Kong. From the moment I arrived everything was so much easier and less stressful. Mainland China had been hard work and Hong Kong provided much needed respite.My journey was relatively easy, a quick flight from Shanghai and I was soon making my way through the airport terminal to the MTR train station. My hotel was in the Wan Chai area of Hong Kong Island, I believe I got one train over to the island and then changed lines to go a few more stops to Wan Chai. It was a very easy system to negotiate and I was checked in and ready to start exploring in no time. I had about five days ...Read More

After my three weeks of independent and solo travel in mainland China I was really looking forward to Hong Kong. From the moment I arrived everything was so much easier and less stressful. Mainland China had been hard work and Hong Kong provided much needed respite.

My journey was relatively easy, a quick flight from Shanghai and I was soon making my way through the airport terminal to the MTR train station. My hotel was in the Wan Chai area of Hong Kong Island, I believe I got one train over to the island and then changed lines to go a few more stops to Wan Chai. It was a very easy system to negotiate and I was checked in and ready to start exploring in no time. I had about five days in Hong Kong and at the start I wondered how on earth I would pack everything in that I wanted to do, although in the event I was able to quite comfortably.

On my first day, I started by taking the famous Peak Tram (a funicular railway) up to the top of Victoria Peak. There was quite a long queue when I arrived but it moved quickly and was well worth the wait. The tram ride up the extremely steep slope lasts eight minutes and was quite an experience, even more so going back down. The Peak is large enough for a long walk at the top and the views over the harbour were amazing, I bought some post cards at the top and enjoyed a coffee whilst I wrote them out.

Whilst I decided to stay on Hong Kong Island, many holiday makers choose to be based in Kowloon across the strait. I went over on the underground train one evening and found it to be far more crowded than Hong Kong Island and perhaps more down market. I didn’t want to stay over here for a long time and I mainly went over to enjoy looking back at the Hong Kong skyline and to get some great photos. There is a light show every night as well, but you need to arrive quite early to get a good spot. I took the Star Ferry back which was another opportunity to enjoy the view of Hong Kong island.

Another day I went to Lamma Island, there are ferries to either end of the island and I took the one to the quiet end as I heard there was an interesting walk across the island which would finish near the other busier ferry terminal. With hindsight I would recommend taking the ferry to and from the busy end of the island! The walk took hours, it was really hot, no shade, but the biggest issue I had, particularly as I was by myself, was that the route was not well signed at all and it was unnerving to see so few people along the way. Perhaps if I had not done this by myself I would have enjoyed it more. I was certainly happy to arrive at civilisation at the other end of the island and remember ordering some very large and tasty prawns in a restaurant overlooking the sea.

Another island excursion was to Lantau Island, the main attraction here is the hill with big Buddha at the top.

I had an enjoyable half day at Ocean Park, which is kind of an amusement park but not on the scale of say Alton Towers or indeed anything close. The park is on two levels and you take a cable car from one to another, it is quite a long cable car ride, very high and I was quite frightened at stages especially as I was the only person in my car. There are a couple of pandas in the park, which were nice to see although they don’t do much.

On my final day I took the ferry to Macau (passport required). When I arrived I decided to take the bus rather than a taxi but I got on a bus going the wrong direction, as in away from the town centre and areas that might be of interest to a visitor. The bus driver did not speak English, he was very rude and aggressive and was not interested in trying to help me even with the assistance of my map and signage. Neither were any of the other passengers. A group of school boys grabbed my map and started passing it down the bus and started to laugh and point at me in a very horrid manner.

To cut a long story short, eventually I managed to find my way into the central district. The town centre was a slight improvement on what I had seen so far of this miserable and ugly island, but the earlier experience put me off the whole place and I soon took a taxi back to the ferry port and went back to Hong Kong Island. I loathed Macau and will never step foot there again, not for all the tea in China.

Besides these excursions I also enjoyed simply wandering the many shopping malls, both on Kowloon and especially on Hong Kong island. And one afternoon I decided to take the double decker tram and travel the length of HK island and back and just enjoy the sights.

My days in Hong Kong up and it was back to the airport, next stop Vietnam.

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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on July 2, 2009

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Vietnam

Attraction | "Reunification Express Trail - An Overview of Vietnam"

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It was a quick two hour flight from Hong Kong to my starting point in Vietnam of Hanoi. It is likely that most people would start a holiday in Vietnam in one of these two cities and work their way towards the other. Better still, some or all of the travelling between towns can be made on the Reunification Express train. Hanoi~~ I vividly remember my arrival in Hanoi, a stark contrast to ultra sleek Hong Kong airport. This was a different side of Asia. I took a taxi to my guesthouse and the journey was an experience in itself. Lunatic driving, constant horn honking and what seemed like thousands of mopeds. It was common to see three of four people on one moped and I shall neve...Read More

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on July 2, 2009

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Cambodia

Attraction | "Bus Stops in Cambodia - Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville"

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I had travelled south through Vietnam, which meant it was a very quick (40 minute) flight from Ho Chi Minh City in the south to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. Once in the country, getting around is quite an adventure but not necessarily in a good way. Trains are infrequent and not reliable and the roads are in very poor condition. I found there was not a bus service between two regions I wanted to visit meaning a shared taxi or minivan was the only way to get to the second location. But shared taxi drivers will try to cram six adults in one average saloon type car which I can only imagine to be very unpleasant for a six hour journey on potholed roads. Minivans have the same over-crowding iss...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on July 2, 2009

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Angkor

Attraction | "Angkor....What? Temples of Angkor and Siem Reap"

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I generally found Cambodia a challenge to travel around due to poor transport links, but one places that is served well is Siem Reap and I chose to fly here from Phnom Penh. I used Siem Reap Airlines, I found their planes to be modern and the service good. The airport at Siem Reap is excellent for its size. There are several flights a day between the two locations, flight time is 50 minutes and the cost about US$50 one way. The true backpackers would of course choose to save a few pounds and spend six hours on an uncomfortable bus instead.. A couple of days earlier, I met a fellow Brit at a bus stop in Sihanoukville. We were both planning to visit the temples of Angkor next and decided...Read More

I generally found Cambodia a challenge to travel around due to poor transport links, but one places that is served well is Siem Reap and I chose to fly here from Phnom Penh. I used Siem Reap Airlines, I found their planes to be modern and the service good. The airport at Siem Reap is excellent for its size. There are several flights a day between the two locations, flight time is 50 minutes and the cost about US$50 one way. The true backpackers would of course choose to save a few pounds and spend six hours on an uncomfortable bus instead..

A couple of days earlier, I met a fellow Brit at a bus stop in Sihanoukville. We were both planning to visit the temples of Angkor next and decided to share the experience and the cost of a tuk tuk. Whilst I was flying to Siem Reap, my new friend decided to take the bus so he set off the day before me. I arrived in the town at around midday and met up with my friend in the lovely Red Piano bar restaurant and we worked out a sight-seeing plan. Most people would probably recognise the image of Ankor Wat, but there are hundreds more temples in the area, built over a period of 600 years by the Khmer empire. Tourist maps of the area are readily available so with that and a guidebook, it was fairly easy to come up with a plan of what we should see and in what order based on location.

Itinerary done and we spent the rest of the afternoon exploring Siem Reap. I thought it was a very attractive small town with a good range of shops and places to eat and drink. At about 5pm, we decided to go and buy a three day pass (US$60) to the Angkor site. Entry for the evening before is included as a bonus, so we went to the Angkor Wat site to watch the sunset. We took a tuk tuk down to the gates to buy the ticket and we arranged for the driver, Mr Peach, to be our guide for our second and third days. His fee was US$8 a day and we saw no reason to haggle over this.

On the first of three days, we decided to go and see the temples situated further afield, some a good 20 miles from the town and a bit too far to go in a tuk tuk. Instead we hired a car and chauffeur for the day costing US$30. We explored the temples to the east of the site including Banteay Srei and East Mebon which were my two favourites of the five we visited in the morning. In the afternoon, we started to head back to the more central area and managed to fit in another five visits. Of these Ta Keo and Ta Phrom were my favourites. Ta Keo was a quiet site and the pyramids were incredibly steep. We started to climb up one side but then turned back because it was so steep and tackled it from another side instead. When we did get to the top and look down, it was so steep you could not even see the steps, it looked vertical. Climbing back down was pretty scary as it is so steep and there is nothing to hold on to. I had to offer to go first and my offer was accepted!

Ta Phrom is an amazing site and was probably my favourite of all the temples. This is quite a large complex and a decision was made not to restore it so it has been left exactly as it was found, that is being totally over run by trees. The roots and trunks of the trees have grown over the temples and almost become one. The size of the trees is an indication of for just how long the temples had been here forgotten. This is one of the more well known sites and accordingly it was busier than some of the others. But there are many temples to see and they are sufficiently spread out for there to be no real problems with crowds.

We went to see Angkor Wat on our second day, this is the largest and best preserved of any of the temples. It is the one most commonly used in photographs and of course one of the most popular. I too thought it was fantastic, it was great to be able to climb to the highest levels and this time there were hand rails to assist with coming back down again. It is a must see, but definitely not my favourite.

On our final day we went to see the oldest temples, known as the Roulous temples and dating back to 890. These are smaller and made of red brick as opposed to the grey and brown stone used elsewhere.

I am extremely glad we had three full days and four nights in Siem Reap. So many people and most of the organised excursions that I have seen, only provide two full days and three nights. I don't think it is enough and if you are going to go all the way to Cambodia, this will surely be the highlight so don't rush it.

The experience was truly remarkable and its position as Cambodia's top attraction is well deserved and unsurprising. It has to be up there as one of the best travel experiences in my life so far. I even ended up getting married to that chap from Nottingham that I met at a Cambodian bus stop and who shared this experience with me..
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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on July 2, 2009

Angkor
Siem Riep, Cambodia
Siem Reap, Cambodia

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Banyan Tree Bangkok

Hotel | "Top of the World"

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I first heard of the Banyan Tree when a fellow traveller in Vietnam told me that dinner in the roof top restaurant of the Banyan Tree would be the perfect way to end my trip before returning home to London. I was determined to do this and the following month I met another traveller in Cambodia who travelled on to Bangkok with me and agree to accompany me to this magnificent restaurant on the final night of my trip.It was a perfect evening and ending to my trip, I was only sorry that my budget on this particular trip did not permit me to actually stay here. In 2005, I was back in Thailand for Christmas and New Year and with that same traveller that I met in Cambodia, who was now my fianc...Read More

I first heard of the Banyan Tree when a fellow traveller in Vietnam told me that dinner in the roof top restaurant of the Banyan Tree would be the perfect way to end my trip before returning home to London. I was determined to do this and the following month I met another traveller in Cambodia who travelled on to Bangkok with me and agree to accompany me to this magnificent restaurant on the final night of my trip.
It was a perfect evening and ending to my trip, I was only sorry that my budget on this particular trip did not permit me to actually stay here.
In 2005, I was back in Thailand for Christmas and New Year and with that same traveller that I met in Cambodia, who was now my fiancé. This time I had the pleasure of spending four nights in the Banyan Tree including New Years Eve.

I made my booking directly with the hotel by email and they were very courteous and prompt with their replies. I was offered a nightly rate of US$225 including New Years Eve and this was for a "club room". In fact every room in the hotel is a suite. Our suite had large bathroom with oversize bath and separate oversize shower, medium sized bedroom and a large lounge with two sofas, coffee table, TV media cabinet as well as an office area. Every night there was a different gift left for us on our pillows, including a cuddly tortoise that I am particularly taken with and another night we received carved wooden bookmarks.

The club rooms are all on one of the higher floors and the additional benefits included early check in / late check out (very useful as most flights back to the UK are at about midnight), use of the club lounge which provided free internet access and unlimited complementary snacks, soft and alcoholic drinks all day and inclusive breakfast served on the outside terrace of one of the restaurants which was a hot and cold buffet of a very high standard. I thought it was worth the additional cost which was about $35 per night for the room.

The hotel is conveniently placed a short walk from both a Skytrain station and the MRT (underground) station, which are easy to negotiate, pleasant to travel on and cover most of central Bangkok. It is not in the heart of the main shopping areas but I did not see this as a problem due to the transport links and rather I preferred it to be not so bustling as it can be in the shopping districts.

In the evenings, as we have been to Bangkok several times before, we were more interested in trying out the various restaurants in the hotel itself rather than venturing outside, although there is a rather good Irish bar en route from station to hotel that we made a re-fueling stop at once or twice. The highlight of any stay in this hotel has to be dinner at Vertigo, which is open air and the highest restaurant in Bangkok. We were here for a spectacular, black tie, eleven course, New Years Eve black tie dinner, an experience that will never be forgotten.

One disappointment for me was the hotel spa. The spa is extremely well-appointed and luxurious, however I found it very difficult to get an appointment and this was despite the supposed priority booking for club room guests. I went to make an appointment on my first day at the hotel but was told they were completely booked up for the rest of my stay, so this presumably means it is wise to book treatments in advance.

The day I arrived at the hotel I was suffering from an ear infection and being concerned about the flight home I contacted reception to see if they could recommend a doctor. Within 15 minutes, the hotel nurse and assistant manager came up to see me and after examining me and deciding that I should see a doctor, they then provided a limousine to take me to the local hospital (which was itself outstanding). When I returned to the hotel an hour later, I found a get well card and an extremely large box of chocolates which I thought was a very nice touch and I think is indicative of the attention to detail and client care that the hotel provides.

Of course there are far cheaper, good quality hotels to stay at in Bangkok. But this was a suite and a high quality one which I think is good value compared to an equivalent suite in one of the major "western" hotel chains. So for a short trip, a treat or a special occasion I would highly recommend the Banyan Tree. If I return to Bangkok again, I will undoubtedly be returning to this hotel.
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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on July 2, 2009

Banyan Tree Bangkok
21 100 SOUTH SATHON ROAD
Bangkok, Thailand 10120
66-26-791200

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Asia Journals

Four months in Asia

China

Chinese Culture Shock

Hong Kong

Vietnam

Cambodia

Angkor

Banyan Tree Bangkok

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