China was my last leg of tour before flying home. It was also my last train ride from Ulaan Bataar, Mongolia to Erlian, a border town in Inner Mongolia. At both the border check points, all passengers were subjected to strict custom and health checks so once again we had to face long hours sitting in our compartments to comply with the government formalities. Patience, patience was all that I learned in this 45 day trip in dealing with people, waiting for bus or train to arrive & take off, asking for directions, finding my way to the right place, time management without an alarm clock - so just loosen your nerves and relax as certain things are beyond our control.
After Erlian, I took a private taxi (CNY200) to my hostel, Beijing. I stayed in Wangfujing Youth hostel (CNY42 dorm) for 3 nights. I had two solid days in Beijing so my priority was to re-visit the Forbidden City, the Palace Museum, Tiananmen Square, Jingsan Park and visiting new places like the Lama Temple, Wangfujing, Old Peking and getting familiar with taking local buses and Metro.
For the final day, I took a bullet train (CNY58) from Beijing South Railway station to Tianjin. With an average speed of about 370km per hour, I arrived in Tianjin railway station in 25 mins. From there , I took a taxi (CNY46) to the Tianjin airport for my flight back to Malaysia. Due to a very bad weather, the flight was delayed for 6 hours.
I arrived in LCCT at about 05.30 on 17th June . Home sweet home at last ! No more Chinese tea but may be a cup of Teh Tarik and catching up with family and friends again.
1) Sunset over steppes in Mongolia - As I took these pictures, I realized that my Europe & Trans-Siberian trip is about to end soon.
2) Bye bye Mongolia - our train crossed the Zamyn Uud train station, heading towards Inner Mongolia, China - my last train ride for this Trans-Siberian trip - a total of 9 nights in the trains starting from St Petersburg and stopovers in Moscow, Irkutsk, Ulaan Battar & Erlian.
3) Erlian (Erenhot), Inner Mongolia, China - a border town in Inner Mongolia, China. During the Jurassic period , dinosaurs lived and roamed across the vast Mongolian grasslands. Erlian is nicknamed the dinosaur town as in the last few decades, archaeologists had discovered and dug out a number of dinosaur fossils in this region.
4) Imperial Palace & Forbidden City, Beijing - off limits for 500 years. The Imperial Palace is home to two emperors of the Ming & Qing dynasties. Admission to Palace Museum is CNY60. My third visit to this ancient place - very impressed after visiting all the main gates & halls which had been used by the Emperors for various ceremonial functions, emperor's birthday, receiving dignitaries etc.
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5) Priceless exhibits in Palace Museum, Forbidden City, Beijing - these items are a class of its own.
6) Lama Temple, Beijing - The Chinese name is Yonghe Gong, most famous Tibetan Buddhist temple outside of Tibet
7) Tall Cypress trees with old and hardy branches, Beijing - these trees have been grown in the Imperial Palace for the last few hundred years.
8) Bell and Drum Tower, Beijing - Drum Tower was built in 1273 but was destroyed and restored a few times. Bell Tower dates back to the 17th century. The location of both towers marked the center of the old Mongol capital.
9) Beijing's Hutong - I visited a few of these hutongs (narrow alleys) near the Bell & Drum Tower and Lama Temple area. Due to modernization , many of these hutong in Beijing has been bulldozed and only a few of these historic homes & courtyards are protected and preserved in old Beijing
10) Jingshan Park, Beijing - close to the Forbidden city, the White Pagoda and the Beihai Park. Great place to relax and go for a stroll. If you are tired after a long walk, enjoy yourself with a cool Chinese beer in many of the bars, cafes and food stalls operating their businesses along the lakeside.
11) Old Peking, Beijing - a new tourist site - partially opened at the time of my visit. The shops, buildings and roads were re-constructed to retain the old flavor of Beijing.
12) Tiananmen Square, Beijing & nearby tourist's attractions - the world's largest public square. In the surrounding, you can see the Chairman Mao Mausoleum, Gate of Heavenly Peace, Front Gate leading to the Forbidden City, Monument of People's Heroes, Great Hall of the People, Ming City Wall Ruins Park etc
13) Wangfujing street, Beijing - my hostel is located nearby the Wangfujing Gourmet street, a tourist haven and in the evening, you could savor various types of local ethnic food, paying a tourist price of about CNY10 per serving. All the shops and departmental stores near the Wangfujing Gourmet street put out a great display of outdoor colorful neon light signboards so the whole place looked very attractive at night.
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14) Wangfujimg Gourmet Street, Beijing - deep fried live scorpions on sale in some selected food stalls here. To the gluttons, this is a great place as a great variety of Chinese gourmet food are on sale here to whet your appetite.
Something to ponder in Beijing: As Air Asia flies to Tianjin, Beijing is just 25 minutes away from Tianjin with the introduction of a high speed bullet train service travelling at 350km per hour before the launch of the Olympic Game in August 2008. You only pay CNY58 for a 2nd class ticket for this comfortable train ride. So there is no need for you to go to Tokyo to experience the Sinkansen train ride ! China is progressing so fast at super-highway speed, so not to worry about public transport the moment you land in Tianjin.
" China is a familiar territory to me having visited this country 5-6 times. My last visit was in 2006 when I visited Xian, Turpan, Dun Huang, Urumqi & Kanas Lake in Northern Xinjiang. After this Europe and Russian trip, I am thinking of exploring China in greater depth in the near future. Do I still have the mental, physical and spiritual strength to keep up with my travel to see some more of the UNESCO world heritage natural and civilized wonders of the world ? I hope I have the answer for you ! As for my 45 day Europe and Russia trip, I have only this to say - one small step forward for an avid traveler & another milestone for me in the world of travelling !
The Secret of Life - Live as though you die tomorrow; learn as though you live forever "
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