Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,

Burgerkidscafeteria in Tunxi City.
(Printed in one long word on everything here)
That’s where my elchepo coffee (complete with lid and straw) I can be found this steamy night.

Upon awakening on Friday (31st July) I felt like I had had enough of Qindao. My patients was wearing thing last night but I still wanted to visit to Lao Shan so even though I knew all rates would double come Saturday I decided to bite the bullet and fork over the cash instead of leaving. When I went down stairs I found, what looked like a ticket line for a Beatles re-union in the hotel foyer. I fought my way to the front desk got out my money and told them I would stay another two nights but they wanted more money than I gave them which was at the old rate and the new rate for Saturday night.

They then told me that they had now changed the price today instead of tomorrow.

Needless to say I didn’t bother staying even after they told me how beautiful Qingdao was fifteen million times. I then told than what I thought of the tourist industry in Shandong Province and explained to the million people in the foyer that the rates shouldn’t change until tomorrow and to go to choose from the hotels around the corner. The tour leaders then and the hotel staff then began arguing I went to pack and when I left I happily said my goodbyes during the heat of what was still the same argument.

I wonder if the hotel staff had to pay back the money or whether the people went to a new hotel.

The 24 hour Hard Seat journey to Huangshan

I then headed across to the train station and tried for a ticket to Huangshan or to Tunxi city but was told that the train didn’t stop there so I grabbed a ticket to Hefei city (150 Yuan hard seat). I then kicked back for a few hours in what has to be the most beautiful waiting rooms outside of Russia. Honestly, the Qingdao train station really is a beautiful building. I boarded my train at seven in the evening and so began my 24 hour journey south in freaking hard seat. I was surrounded by people of all ages yet strangely everyone seemed too nervous to talk to me so I buried my head in my book and read my way into the new day.

And then into the new morning

There was a young guy who obviously wanted to talk to me but didn’t know how to start a conversation and around three in the morning we finally began talking and continued well into the next morning. His name is Chen Guan Yue and his family is originally from Xinjiang Province but they had been living in Hefei City in Anhui Province for most of his life. We got to talking to other people and where they were going etc and I found that many of them were going to Huangshan yet last night when I asked for a ticket to either Huangshan or to Tunxi city I was told the train didn’t go to either of them even though it was a Fuzhou train.

Even though I thought it strange I simply had to accept it.
Needless to say prior to arriving at Hefei city I purchased a new ticket to Huangshan/Tunxi city.

After my buddy and his student friends left at Hefei several girls boarded and were very interested in asking questions and giggling at everything I said. We chatted and giggled our way to Tunxi City which is the main city for Huangshan (mountain). So if you want to climb Huang Mountain and actually find a Chinese ticket person who can read and understand Chinese then you need to grab a ticket to Tunxi City. I arrived in Tunxi just after seven in the evening and felt like death.  

Last night the train felt like a butcher’s fridge and today it felt like a baker’s oven.

I checked out quite a few hotels in the train station area and decided against the one that smelt so much like Chili (due to the eatery below the window) that it made my eyes water as soon as I opened the door and decided on a room in the little family hotel on the right hand side of the train station (if you are in front of the station) as it was a huge room with a huge bay window and I was more than happy with the price when I compared it to my rooms in Shandong Province. After doing my hand washing and a shower I headed out into the steamy night in search of some delicious noodles. I thought the city was actually bigger than I found it to be.

I headed down Qiantyang Lu and made my way to the river and then walked along the river and soon found myself at the Lao Jie entrance (also known as Ancient/Old Street).

As I was in the area I slowly made my way through the droves of people to the Huangshan International Youth Hostel (double room 140 Yuan or 120 Yuan with YHA Card). I ordered my usual YHA meal (club sandwich) and a very cold Corona beer and got to talking to a guy named Justin from Canada. He’s a teacher back home and has been in China for a month teaching at Summer Camp. We chatted for several hours and of course the bar closed at eleven when then meant the air-conditioner was turned off so we decided end the night and meet up the next night for a beer or two.

Sunday, 2nd August 2009 – Tunxi City Adventure

I woke around mid morning and felt so refreshed after a huge nights sleep (even though I watched Batman The Dark Knight until 3am). I decided on a huge day getting lost in the streets of the city in search of the cities charms.   I spent much of the day around the north east of the city and then made my way along the river to the Ancient/Old Street which is the cities main tourist attraction. Here you can find tourist store after tourist store all within charming Ming styled 'Huizhou Buildings’. It is very much like all the Ancient Streets in all of China and the world for that matter.

Filled with tourists and beautiful ancient architecture will with tourist stores!

I spent a few hours walking around taking photos and then decided to visit the Wancuilou Museum (36 Yuan) which provides an in-depth introduction to Huizhou architecture, furniture and antiques, elegantly ranging over three (or was it four) floors and if you are lucky like me and see someone one of the staff coming down from the roof top (not the garden balcony) then you can grab some awesome happy snaps from there as well).

After a few hours walking around I really wanted to get out of the tourist area so headed across the at the end of Lao Jie and followed the road in hope of finding the real Tunxi and I wasn’t disappointed with what I found. As I walked it felt like I was walking back in time. Huizhou house after Huizhou house lay empty and left for dead. Between these others were occupied with families and soon I came across small fields and Huizhou houses with both children and chickens racing in and out of the front door.

Here I felt at home and I slowly made my way past the children yelling out Hellow over and over again.

I then zig zagged my way towards the river and found myself at a bridge in the north west of town and directly across the river from me was a huge church. I crossed the river and of course found the church locked up tight against the outside world. I then made my way back to the city along the river until I found the small chicken shop in which to re-caffeinate, rest and write this blog.

Beers N Noodles toya…..shane

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The soundtrack to this entry was by Powderfinger
The album was ‘Odyssey Number Five’
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