Hong Kong: The Not-So China

If you can imagine, this is the final city post in our Epic China Aventure.  But first I just need to say this:  The girls were real troopers throughout our 16 17 day trip.  Our kids travel incredibly well.  We are blessed that they can sleep just about anywhere, aren't picky eaters, and are generally curious enough to hang with us when we are trying to find something.  Not that we didn't have our share of I don't want to's on the trip, but a well placed snack, quick diversion, or letting them pick the next thing to see goes a long way to keep the girls happy. 

Our last leg of the trip brought us to Hong Kong.  As with the Tibet conversation, I was looking our our days and trip plan and found a few extra days.  "So, Ronnie what about Hong Kong?" "Sure - why not!"  and it was added.  Just like Shanghai, Hong Kong had a different vibe than some of the other cities in China.  But what do you expect from a former British colony. 

We landed from Shanghai early in the afternoon and set off for Victoria's Peak for the night view and some dinner.  Ronnie treated me to a little taste of home by the name of Bubba Gump's.  The view during the day was pretty hazy, but we enjoyed riding the tram to the top and decided to get dinner first and enjoy the night view.  The view at night was spectacular.  You could see the harbor, to Kolwoon, and even off to some of the further points in.  We stayed up there a little and enjoyed the night breeze and the scenery.  It was getting late and we had a big day planned for the next day (when do we ever not...), so we headed back down on the tram and back to our hotel for the night. 

Going back to what I was bragging on my kids about earlier, a lot of this vacation has been about what Ronnie and I wanted to see and do, and not necessarily what the kids wanted.  They earned a day of fun for being such good travel companions...  So, for our last day in China, we went to Hong Kong Disneyland.

We let the girls in on our plan a few weeks before starting our travels and let them plan out what they wanted to do in the park.  We explored every nook and cranny on the Disney site and then some more.  Then we found some really exciting info - Holly was going to be tall enough to go on Space Mountain!   We planned to get there when they opened and stay through the fireworks, though I was a bit concerned that there wouldn't be enough for us seasoned-Disney-goers to do. 

We hopped the Metro on Saturday and 45 minutes later we arrived at the main gate.  We even got to ride the special "Mickey" subway train.  First up was a stroll down Main Street and then we made a beeline for Space Mountain.  I could barely keep Holly still to take some pictures along the way; she was so excited to ride the coaster! 

The Disney Line on the Hong Kong Metro

 When we were looking at the website, I had told Holly all about how Space Mountain was one of my first roller coasters and I had ridden it with my mom when I was 6 as well.  Well, Sarah also happens to be the right height to ride the coaster.  Sarah isn't so sure about the whole roller coaster thing yet; she barely likes to go on the teacups with Ronnie as it is.  But she decided to brave it and go.  The whole time we were in line (a total of 5 minutes), Holly was just pumped; Sarah looked like she wanted to crawl inside of a hole and disappear.  I kept reassuring her that she didn't have to go, that daddy or mommy would stay with her while Holly went on the ride, but she didn't want to miss out.  So our time came to get in the seats and Holly settled right in with me; Sarah was on edge as soon as they lowered the bar.  Then...  the ride started.  Holly laughed and screamed and cheered her way through; Sarah cried and cried and cried.  Poor thing - she tried to be brave but it just didn't work for her.  Holly got off the ride begging to go again so she and Ronnie went while I stayed with Sarah and we planned out our next stop. 

The park wasn't crowded at all for a Saturday.  I think the longest we waited for anything was the Tomorrowland Raceway, and it was all of 15 minutes.  We walked right on to most rides, got a seat for all the shows, and didn't have all our friends on top of us.  After lunch, the girls were begging to find the Princesses.    And so off we went to find them.  The girls were so excited to see Snow White and Cinderella.  We visited and took pictures, then headed over to the Festival of the Lion Kingdom.  After the show, we went princess spotting some more and found Rapunzel.  She was really chatty - I think she was just as excited to see the girls as they were to see her.  We headed on down and found Aurora and Belle.  Sarah was so excited to meet Belle and even got a kiss from her.

After dinner, it had started getting dark and was nearing time for the fireworks.  So we did a theme park blitz - about five rides on Space Mountain, the Tea Cups about three times, It's a Small World, and Winnie the Pooh.  We settled in for the fireworks and enjoyed a fantastic show.  Sadly, we bid DisneyLand goodbye - it was nice to get a taste of home this far away.  Even more sad was this was the ending to our China vacation (or so we thought). 

We slept in the next morning and ate a late breakfast, as our flight back to Korea was a mid-day flight.  We caught the bus to the airport and boarded the plane, but someone wasn't as courteous to do the same.  They had to delay our plane as they searched for the no-show passenger's baggage and find more airspace for us to fly in.  About an hour later we were off, but we had a connecting flight through Beijing.  The flight attendants didn't have a lot of information for us, as they really couldn't tell us what was going to happen until we got on the ground...  which was 2 minutes too late.  At the transit desk they informed us that we had been rebooked on a flight out the next morning.  At first, we were irked because we were just ready to get home and the lady who was giving us our info couldn't speak a lick of English (though she had an "I speak English" nametag on).  But other than that, we decided to head to the hotel because it was going to be an early morning flight the next day. 

In the flight delay debacle, we got to chatting with some French exchange students, who had gone to Hong Kong for a long weekend.  They are studying civil engineering at a university near Suwon.  It was fun to talk with them, they didn't mind our kids asking all sorts of questions about why they had different accents, where they were from, and what their favorite thing was about Korea.  They also seemed entertained by the Oliver girl's antics as they were getting a bit impatient with all the hurry up and wait, and even joined in on some of the hide and seek and I Spy. 

Finally, about 12 hours later than originally planned, we landed safely back on Korean soil and made our way back to the house.  Our trip of a lifetime that took months to plan, had us travelling thousands of miles, and meeting the most interesting people had finally come to an end.   We've talked about it and we can't say that there was just one experience that was our favorite, it was too varied and different to even compare.  Suffice to say, I am already planning what will happen on our "next" trip to China. 

China: The Financial Giant

The next stop on the trip was Shanghai.  The city serves as the most influential economic, financial, international trade, cultural, science and technology center in East China.  And boy could you feel it when you hit the ground.  Our flight from Tibet landed late in the evening and as usual, our tour guide, David, was waiting to wisk us off to our hotel.  The city has a very impressive skyline and we enjoyed the view driving in.  Soon enough we reached our hotel and got settled in for the night.

We met up early the next day for a full day and started out at the Yuyuan Garden.  As we were walking to the garden, we immediately ran into a group from University of Florida.  Yep, the Gator Nation is everywhere....  But it was fun talking to them.  The group was the study abroad group for architecture students.  The Yuyuan Garden was built by a government officer in the Ming Dynasty for his parents.  It was to be a place for them to relax and enjoy a tranquil and peaceful time in their golden years.  The garden occupies about 5 acres in the middle of old town and it is exactly what Pan envisioned - a peaceful garden retreat full of rockery, ponds, pavilions, and courtyards.

After the gardens and lunch, we decided to venture off the beaten path a bit.  I had researched some things to do for our day on our own and came upon Tianshan Tea Market.  We talked with David and he said we had enough time to fit it in; plus it would be easier for us to do it with them as it wasn't really accessible via subway.  We found the market easily, picked our shop and settled in to try the wares.  The store was the size of a small convenience store and had a try before you buy policy.  Think of a wine bar experience, but make it tea and that's what we had.  We sampled green teas, jasmine tea, oolong tea, ginsing tea, fruit tea and more.  Each time, David would let us know what we were tasting, how best to serve it, and what the beneficial purposes were.  And if he didn't know, a quick conversation with our tea host would confirm it.  We had a wonderful time chatting, sampling, and learning.  Ronnie and I settled on purchasing the fruit tea for the girls and oolong ginsing tea for us.

We then headed to take in some more sights before dinner.  We visited the Shanghai Museum, where David hooked the girls up with the English virtual guides...  why we haven't gotten those before is beyond me.  On our way to dinner, we stopped at the Bund, which is a big river walk with the amazing view of Shanghai's skyline.  The architecture in the Bund is very European and is reflective of the city's importance as a major trading port and a former British settlement. As usual, the girls were a big attraction and may have been more popular than the skyline.  I think most of our time was spent watching people take pictures of and with the girls. 

After dinner, we went to the Portman Acrobatic Show.  A few years ago, I tried to get Holly to watch the Chinese acrobat show with me at Epcot, but she wasn't interested.  She found out exactly what she missed at the show.  We saw the performers spinning plates, juggle with their legs and feet, dancing contortion, climb poles, bungee jump, dive through rolling hoops, and bicycle on a tightrope.  It was so much fun and the girls were absolutely amazed....  and thoroughly exhausted from our day. 

The next day was a free day for us to explore Shanghai on our own, though the weather looked like it would rain.  We had picked up a subway map, some pointers from the concierge and set out for our day.  We decided to let the girls pick our first stop and they chose the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum.  Great choice - lots of room for them to run and play and tons of interactive exhibits.  I don't think we covered but 20% of the museum in the four hours we were there.  We watched an IMax film, played in the kids science area, went through the rainforest, and created an earthquake.  We checked out the webcams from science centers all over the world.  The girls had too much fun.    

Next it was my choice and I wanted to head to the fabric market and do some quick bargaining.  After, we headed to Nanjing Road for dinner and walked to the Bund to take in the skyline at night.  Luckily, the weather had held off for us, so we took the Bund train to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.  The tower is 468 meters (1,536 feet) tall and is the world's third tallest TV and radio tower.  And the night view from the top was amazing.  The next floor down had a plexiglass floor where you could stand out over the street.  It was getting late so we headed back to the hotel to pack as we had an early flight the next morning. 

Shanghai is also going on the to-do again in China list.  It's a great city with a fantastic vibe -- just makes you want to explore every nook and cranny. 

China: The Roof of the World

When I planned the trip back last year, our conversation went something like this: 

Chris:  So we have Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai and it's a 9 day trip.
Ronnie:  Okay.
Chris: If we extend a few days, then we can fit in Tibet.  What do you think?
Ronnie:  Might as well, since we'll be on that side of the world anyway.

And with that, we added 3 days to our itinerary to visit Lhasa.  Best.decision.ever!

 

(left) The mountains peeking through the clouds on our plane ride; (right) the view from our room

We left Xi'an bright and early on Saturday, and were awestruck by the mountains out the window during the flight.  When we landed in Tibet, we were immediately struck by the scenery:  plains that stretched out to snow sprinkled granite mountains and big bright blue sky.  We spent the day acclimating to the high altitude (12,000 ft) and learning the do's and don'ts for Westerners visiting Lhasa.  The Chinese government doesn't trust our Western ways of thinking, so there are guards posted every 100 meters, with patrols marching through the markets.  We were cautioned to mind our p's and q's and not take pictures in the general direction of the guards (who were EVERYWHERE). 

The guards in Barkhor Market

Our visit also coincided with the "60th anniversary of the peaceful liberation of Tibet."  To learn more, click here.  Okay, enough politics...  onto the travel part.

The next day we headed out to see some of the sights.  We were still a bit woozy from the altitude, but took it nice and slow.  First up, Norbulingka.  This is a beautiful garden complex which also served as a summer palace for the Dalai Lama.  Our tour guide, Gyatso, guided us through the history of Buddhism in Tibet, while walking the fine line of not talking too much about the political history of Tibet.  That is one of the do's and don'ts for the area... especially for native Tibetans talking with Westerners.  In the afternoon, we saw Jokhang Temple, one of the most holy Buddhist sites in Tibet.   

 

 (Left) Door to the temple at Norbulingka; (right) The Dalai Lama residence at Norbulingka

Jokhang Temple

The next morning brought us more beautiful skies and amazing sights.  We started by visiting a traditional medicine hospital.  All I can say is folk medicine is folk medicine regardless of where you are in the world.   After leaving the hospital, we wandered around the Barkhor market, which surrounds Jokhang Temple.   We saw many people spinning hand held prayer wheels and chanting Tibetan prayers.  Some were locals and others were pilgrims who were walking to Jokhang Temple. 

The pilgrims had walked from their homes to Jokhang Temple, sometimes hundreds of miles, and some of them even walked in a special way to show their devotion: They take three steps, say a prayer, and lie face-down on the ground. Then they stand up, take three more steps and repeat the process. The act of taking a prostrating pilgrimage can take the devotee years to reach the Jokhang from their homes. But they do it, as a sign of devotion and a way to help improve their karma in this life and the next.  We walked with them for a good bit.  They would hold our hands and pray, they would touch the girls on the head and pray for them, but mostly we just walked with them hand in hand and had a lovely, peaceful morning, and an experience we will never forget.

 Walking and praying in Barkhor

Potola Palace

Next stop was Potola Palace and the 2,500+ steps.  The Potola Palace was built as a wedding present from the king to his bride, a princess from the Tang dynasty (from Xi'an). After the fall of the monarchy, it became the home of the Dali Lama and the seat of political power for Tibet (until 1959 that is....)   So we scaled our way up to see the palace.  Again, the girls were troopers, though Gyatso and Ronnie carried them most of the way up.  My legs were fine, but I felt like I was sprinting and couldn't catch my breath; I still think my heart was going to beat out of my chest.  We finally reached the top and were rewarded with one of the most breathtaking sites of the area. 

After touring the palace, we made our way to the Sera Monastery to watch the afternoon debate.  The Sera Monastery is the premiere Buddhist university in Tibet, and is where the current Dalai Lama studied.  It is legendary for their monks debating on the teachings of Buddha and the philosophy of Buddhism.  Walking up to the courtyard, we could hear the murmuring of the crowds and claps of the hands.  But walking in the courtyard provided a whole different scene.   The debates are said to further the monks' comprehension by having them defend their stance on the teaching and will help them to reach more knowledge.  Monks were paired up to debate the topic of the day, with one standing and one sitting. The debater and the questioner hashed out the topic.  In a battle of words, they use a variety of gestures including clapping their hands, pushing their partners for an answer, or plucking their prayer beads to win the virtue of the Buddha.  I've posted a video below, because it is too amazing to not see for yourself.

On our last day in Tibet, we visited Barkhor Market for some last minute shopping and hanging out with the locals.  On the way to the airport was our last stop, a visit with a local family.  Gyatso explained that there were several families living in the one house, but they were all related - sister, cousin, brother.  They treated us to butter tea and some traditional snacks, but then they really treated us by sharing folk songs and dance.  It was fun to watch and the girls joined in a little bit.  It was a great way to end our stay in Tibet.

China: The Ancient Capital

Next up on our itinerary was Xi'an, the ancient capital of China.

Our first day we went straight for the Terracotta Soldiers, which technically is funerary art that was buried with the First Emperor of Qin. Once completed, the pits were sealed and families were moved out to the area to protect it and the emperor's mausoleum. As most things happen when time passes, the exact location of the masaulem and the army was forgotten until 1974, when a farmer digging a well found something more in the ground than water.

The sheer size of the pits and area was absolutely amazing. To think that this was all done by hand is completely overwhelming. The soldiers were arranged in flanks exactly like they would be if they were going to war. Our tour guide explained this was because they were the army for the Qin Emperor in the afterlife. A small corner of one of the pits was dedicated to reassembling some of the broken warriors, though no one was working in that area the day we visited.

After the Terracotta Soldiers, we headed for the Shaanxi History Museum. When I first put Xi'an on our itinerary it was for the Terracotta Soldiers. However, what I didn't realize is that Xi'an is the cradle of life for Asia, as it sits in the flood plain of eight regional rivers and Shaanxi Province is the birthplace of the ancient Chinese civilization. Xian City was the capital city in thirteen dynasties which in total lasted over 1,100 years. The Shaanxi Museum is put together very well and showcases the history of the region splendidly. We browsed through the museum quickly, as museums aren't really the girls thing and moved on to our next destinations, the Wild Goose Pagoda and the Tang Dynasty Music and Dance Show.

The next day, we started out by visiting the Great Mosque, one of the oldest, largest and best-preserved Islamic mosques in China.  The mosque was built as a result of Islam being introduced into the area by Arab merchants and travelers from Persia and Afghanistan in the 7th century.   We didn't linger in the Mosque too long as it was threatening to rain and we wanted to press to our next destination, the City Wall.

The first city wall was built during the Tang Dynasty in 600 AD and was expanded during the Ming Dynasty in 1200 AD.  The City Wall is in impeccable shape, though most of the ramparts have been destroyed, the wall itself is intact.  Luckily for us, the rain had disappeared so we could enjoy our visit to the wall.  We rented double seat bicycles and rode around for an hour.

After our bicycle ride, we visited a local Xi'an family for a late lunch.  Their apartment reminded me of ours in Korea, though smaller.  We chatted with our tour guide for a while about life, parenting, and history.  She was really floored by some of the history of America, especially the fact that my mom worked outside of the home and I work outside of the home even after having children.  Our conversation wound around the Civil Rights movement, and the choice that women have to either work or stay at home.  Let me add this disclaimer:  if the women in Xi'an start getting ideas, it's not my fault. 

After lunch, we returned to the hotel, took the girls swimming, packed for our next destination, and rested up for the remainder of the evening.  Unfortunately, our flights were changed to a flight at 0-dark thirty and I left Xi'an wishing I had more time to explore the city.  Guess we'll have to add it to the list when we return to the Great Wall.