Some pictures to highlight China

Tianamen Square


Entrance to Forbidden City




Great Wall, Mutianyu section

Longi Rice Terraces, probably my favourite tourist spot


Cormorant fishing birds and karst hills, Xing Ping (near Guilin)

Li River view from my hostel roof, Yangshuo

Bamboo rafting, Li River, Yangshuo


Pandas in Chengdu, Sichuan


Muslim Quarters, Xi'an (aka where you can buy any Chinese souvenir imaginable)

Terracotta Army, Xi'an
Outside city walls, Pingyao

Inside city walls, Pingyao


Souvenirs, Pingyao



Shanghai, view of Pudong from the Bund, Erin (my roommate) and me


Making silk comforters, Zhou Zuang (near Shanghai)


Zhouzhuang, old perserved canal town


Yungang Caves, Datong. Famous Buddha carving called "China's foreign minister" because it is seen on any tourist promo.


Hanging Temple, Datong

I could say sooooo much about each picture, in fact, I could have posted at least 100 more pictures, I'm working on a DVD and a sort of scrap book so if you are interested, let me know!

what have you done lately?

What have I done lately?? I arrived in Yangshuo, south China, 4 days ago and have been maxin and relaxin ever since! The first day I rode a motorbike through the countryside and saw the farmers harvesting their rice paddies, with water buffalo and all. After I took a bamboo raft down the river to a undergr0und buddha water cave that ended in a mudbath in an underground cave. the next day I toured the Li river and it's beautiful karst scenery (kinda reminded me of the hills in Rio....ahh Rio!). Yesterday I watched some cormorant fishing at night, which is when a man paddles out on his bamboo raft with his trained cormorant birds who go fishing in the night. ...quite amazing actually, the birds are well trained!!! Today just enjoyed maxin and relaxin, wandering around, booked a tour to some rice terraces and to see some minority villages which should be pretty interesting as well. At night I chose from the many cafes/bars, pick a patio that looks nice, and sit and watch the night go by! I have met a nice couple from Germany, a mother/daughter duo from England, and of course some crazy Chinese! I'll still in this little town for about another 3 nights, 7 nights in total, then back to Wuhan via a sleeper bus which should be interesting. I have never taken an overnight bus before, only trains, and they automatically sell you insurance for the sleeper bus (only 2 yuan, about 30cents). It will be nice to travel by the road rather than the train for a change. ....there is flooding in southern china recently. the train i took from Wuhan-guangzhou went right through a city that looked washed away, it was sad, never seen anything like that before. anyways, it's getting late, gotta go meet some crazy chinese at a patio bar for a local beer!