Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,

How’s the weather been?
Fine, just bloody fine, thanks for asking!
Talk about having crappy and cold weather!

The last couple of days I’ve barely left the hotel due to the constant drizzle and bone chilling cold so sadly I still haven’t had the chance to check out the Seven Crags Park nor head to Mount Dinghu as planned. What I have done though is watched a few too many movies (thanks to my nifty little travel buddy!) and move hotels due to my first hotel tripling in price due to it being Spring Festival.

Here is the hilarious run down the latter

As I was checking out four couples left due to the price.
I offered to stay and even pay a tiny extra, but they wouldn’t accept.
That prompted me asking the question; 'So you would rather have no guests and no money’.
The answer was a disturbing yes simply because at Spring Festival the hotel raises its price and that’s that!

As I like Zhaoqing city and still have several things I want to do even if I have to wait another few days for it to stop drizzling I then offered to pay them three or four nights in advance which they also declined. The reception girl was very sweet and sadly had to follow hotel policy but tried her hardest to help me and rang the manager who came to the front desk. She then told the manager my side of the story and there is no need to guess what followed. The manager told me that I could continue to stay at the hotel if I paid the triple Sprig Festival Prices to which I explained that I had witnessed four couples leave after enquiring about the hotels triple Spring Festival prices.

My jaw dropped at her answer; oh that’s normal. I told her that if they didn’t raise the price (so high) they would now have nine paying guests including me.

Anyhow the entire thing was a waste of time so I cut it short and headed out to a small hotel I found the night before which can be found about a three minute walk from the big greedy hotel. About a five second walk away is a funky little Japanese type eatery I’ve been spending a lot of time in reading, writing and watching a movie or two as when I arrive they usually flick through the channels and see if there is a western movie on.

The food is just like the waitresses, absolutely delicious!

Tonight I dropped into the Bruce Lee ‘Kungfu Rice’ eatery again (and it’s not the second time) as I just can’t get enough of it and totally declare it the greatest and most healthy fast food chain upon the face of the entire planet as everything’s steamed, fresh and comes with rice. They don’t have coffee nor is there any need for it as the soup that accompanies the main meal comes with ginseng.

When I do need coffee I head to where I can be found writing this, good old McDonalds.
Where would I be without them?
Probably KFC or Dico’s!

Besides eating, watching DVD’s and sleeping I have actually had the late afternoon and evenings to get out, walk around, grab some fresh air and exercise. I’ve spent a lot of time around the river area where I walk baffled as to how the entire area hasn’t burned to the ground. But then again I’m constantly baffled by this everywhere I walk in China as the electrical wiring is so amazingly dangerous that it actually makes me giggle.

Zhaoqing Fuxue Palace or better yet, the Zhaoqing Museum

I’ve also spent quite a few hours in the Zhaoqing Fuxue Palace (free to enter) which I found on my first night here but as it’s been closed each day since I haven’t had a chance to actually step inside to find out what ‘The Palace’ is. I thought it was just a fancy name for a temple but I found out that it actually is the Zhaoqing Museum and maybe it can also be known as the River View Tower which I thought was little pavilion across the road. Anyhow the whole thing once again leaves me in doubt as to the Lonely Planet writer ever actually visiting the river front area as it is known as the Zhaoqing Fuxue Palace or the Zhaoqing Museum on the map, the sign on the actual building and also by the locals and only on the internet have I found the name ‘The River View Tower’.

BUT, that could actually be the tiny little pavilion across the road.
The top of it is the strange coulourful photo you see on this page.

The museum itself is a great place to lock yourself away in to get some peace and quiet and covers an area of eight thousand one hundred square meters. It has three exhibitions and each display a different theme/history from a different dynasty. From the photos I’ve attached it’s pretty easy to see that two of them are art and the invasion of Guangdong by the Japanese. The third which really didn’t blow my hair back was the stone carvings. In fact I’m not actually sure what they arem supposed to be, I have seen them in many museums but have never bothered to find out why they are so important.

So note to self;
If they are in many museums then maybe, just maybe they are worth investigating!

The next halarous adnveture for this Blog

Ok, for those that have travelled with me, they’d know that I am a very easy traveler and don’t really ask for much besides a lock, if there is no a/c in summer then a fan is fine and I’ve lived through southern winters where my head and body are numb throughout due to there being no heating, what I do ask for is to be warm while sleeping.

Upon returned to my hotel room and finding it totally freezing (as expected) and as there is no heating I went down stairs and asked if I could have a second quilt/doona. I was astounded that I had to pay five Yuan for it but as I was freezing last night I forked it over and five minutes later they brought me a tiny single and very thin ‘thing’ that was not much bigger than a towel. I then pointed to the a/c on the wall and told them there is no heating and then asked for a second quilt/doona, to which they replied that they have none. I then went to the doors of the three empty rooms on my floor and asked for one from one of the EMPTY beds and as it is past mid night and not expecting a rush hour of tourists I thought they’d give me one.

But you guess it, I was told that they might be needed.
I then took them to the floor below and showed them that the entire floor was empty.

Anyhow the entire thing was useless so I still have only one thin quilt/doona, my head is numb from the cold, my bag is packed and tomorrow I will move to yet another hotel and choose a double room for only ten Yuan extra that I found yesterday and I will then have a second bed that I can snaffle the extra quilt/doona from and be toasty and warm while sleeping. You may think that I a whinging but you should hear the arguments that are happening in the room that has just been paid for next to me. I just went to see what it is over and you guess it, heating and a second quilt/doona.

You see there is a way around everything if you are simply prepared for the adventure!
So I guess that is the point to this pointless blog entry;
The adventures you find during your adventure
Oh and maybe the museum and wiring.
Beers N Noodles toya…..shane
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The soundtrack to this entry was by Iron Maiden
The album was one of the greatest live albums ever ‘Live After Death’____________________________________________________________