Archive | Asia

Travel Guide To China

By Gilles on 27. May 2008 in China

Chengyang Wind & Rain Bridge, Dong Village near Sanjiang, Guilin region, China

We traveled the 30 days our visa permitted throughout China’s southwestern provinces in Mai 2008: Guangxi (Guilin, Yangshuo), Sichuan (Chengdu, Leshan, Emei Shan), Yunnan (Lijiang, Dali, Kunming, Yuanyang) & Xishuangbanna (Jingling). This was definitely not enough! Nevertheless, we now know it can be easily done without a common language. This introduction to China also was an immense eye opener and some of the negative concepts we had of this country we corrected or simply vanished! Continue Reading →

Luang Nam Tha – The Base To Explore Nam Tha NPA

By Gilles on 26. May 2008 in Laos

Around Luang Nam Tha

New town Luang Nam Tha is best described as a stretch of road of about 1 kilometer, lined with buildings, mostly serving the budding tourist industry here. We stayed at the comfortable & central Manychan Guesthouse, in a huge room with air-con for the equivalent 4.8 Euros. On that ”stretch” making up the town are numerous restaurants, but we tried to give most business to the ladies on the markets, top quality food for 0.5 cents a meal! Continue Reading →

China – Budget

By Gilles on 26. May 2008 in China, Country Budget Guide

Leshan, the Biggest Bhudda, near Chengdu, China

China’s Southwest is unbelievably cheap to travel for western tourists: even though we significantly upgraded our standard of living and traveling, no longer really taking care of what we spent, we spent about 35 Euros a person per day. This could have been cut by at least one third, of course if we wanted to! Continue Reading →

Crossing The Chinese – Lao Border

By Gilles on 25. May 2008 in Laos

Around Luang Nam Tha

Laos welcomed us with a big thunderstorm. While we were filling out our visa application and later had our passports checked & stamped at immigration, the first thunder roared. And soon, the skies came open… Somebody waved us into a “jumbo”, a big tuk-tuk with a roof. We jumped on it and off we went, not really knowing where we were going and actually how much it would cost… Gilles was sure it would take us to the next town to catch a bus for the two hour ride to Luang Nam Tha, Heidi had her doubts. Continue Reading →

Eating Out In China

By Gilles on 25. May 2008 in China

Of course, we tried many different eateries … Some of them very simple!

Eating was heaven! Even though we never consulted the Lonely Plant when it came to choosing restaurants in the last 10 months, because the places recommended are always far more expensive, in China we have come to appreciate those recommendations: the places mentioned in the guide usually have an English menu! Continue Reading →

Xishuangbanna – The Southwestern Most Part Of China

By Gilles on 24. May 2008 in China

Jinghong, the capital of the Xishuangbanna province, seems like the Chinese Riviera, China

When we visited Yuanyang, we were rather close to Jinghong, the capital of the Xishuangbanna province. However, the bus trip would have taken two full days on very bumpy roads. So we took the bus back to Kunming and flew the 40 minutes from there to Jinghong, where we were in for another surprise. Continue Reading →

Different Ways To Explore China

By Gilles on 23. May 2008 in China

From left to right: Gilles, Murielle, Martin, a German biking around the world, Camille, Michael – Yuanyang, Yunnan, China

Our fellow travelers in Yuanyang were, as usually, most interesting! Martin has traveled to China 11 times since 1992 (!) and knows every corner of Northwest & Southwest of China. He had lots to tell about how the country has transformed in a positive way. Especially the attitude towards foreigners has changed dramatically, reflecting the official government policy. Continue Reading →

On The Way To Yuanyang

By Gilles on 22. May 2008 in China

Rice Terrasses of Yuanyang (here in Duoyishu), Yunnan, China

Squashed in our narrow seats riding the bus for almost 8 hours from Kunming to Yuanyang, we often asked ourselves if this trip was worth the trouble. The air was stuffy and worst, some passengers smoked. When the first person was lighting a cigarette, Gilles immediately went up front to the driver to complain. However, when he saw that the driver was smoking as well and that no “No smoking” sign could be seen, he gave in. The trip took us along farmland where rice, tobacco and corn are grown. Often we passed long stretches plastered with greenhouses. Continue Reading →

Mastering Language Barriers

By Gilles on 21. May 2008 in China

Market at a small Hani village near the Rice Terrasses of Yuanyang, Yunnan, China

When we arrived in Kunming, after a five hour bus ride from Dali, Gilles finally decided to go to the hospital because he had had an upset stomach for more than one week. Needless to say that this was some kind of an adventure in a place where not a single person spoke more than two or three words of English! After running around for about one hour, going from one desk to the next queue to the next information center, where embarrassed nurses laughed but could not help, he finally managed to pay the registration fee and find the room with the right doctor. Continue Reading →

China Is Mourning

By Gilles on 20. May 2008 in China