The Secret Great Wall of China
I’ve been to the Great Wall three times now, and each time was different. The second time I went in 2006, I joined a tour group that was going to the “Secret Wall.” That makes it sound pretty special, but I think you should know what you’re getting into before doing the same. The Secret Wall looks like this:
It’s a completely unrestored section where the wall has been worn down to a low height and is covered in vegetation. Only one of the iconic guard towers was still standing, but it wasn’t stable enough to be able to climb atop it. Since I’d been to the wall before, it was still kind of neat to see this “secret” section. If you’re only going to walk the Great Wall once, though, walk one of the restored sections. You won’t regret it.
The New Yancheng Park in Changzhou
A long, long time ago, I visited Changzhou’s Yancheng Park, the site of an ancient city, and wasn’t too impressed with what I saw. It was an empty park with nothing to remind you of its past glory. The Changzhou government must have read my blog, though, because they’ve revamped the park and built a whole bunch of stuff around the original moats.
The park now charges 90 yuan, which seems a bit steep at first considering a Dinosaur Park ticket is 120. However, the new Yancheng has on display all sorts of monuments and fake mountains inspired by stories of old. Some of it is cheesy. Some of it is cool. But if you’re at all in tune with old Chinese fables, you’ll probably love the first part of the park.
Things then branch off into two sections. There’s the original Yancheng area that nobody cares about anymore and an amusement park. The latter has a couple of 3D motion rides, a log ride, swings, and other barf-inducing round-and-rounds. Overall, the park is more fun than Dinosaur Park, but… it’s also sad that a once historic site has become a very commercialized part of town. Even if that historic site was a bit boring.
Is the Shanghai 2010 World Expo Worth It?
Giant rabbit says no. Well… it’s more complicated than that. Because rabbits don’t talk. Even giant ones. It’s hard to fairly review the Shanghai World Expo, though, since one’s enjoyment of it largely depends on your tolerance for crowds. Big, noisy, spitting, smoking crowds. The expo racks in over 400,000 visitors every day, mostly Chinese. I went on a mild Thursday. It was raining. 438,000 people still showed up.
The lines to go into the different countries’ pavilions are ridiculously long. Popular pavilions like the US, Canada, and Japan frequently run into five hour waits while the notorious Saudi Arabia pavilion has been rumored to reach as long as nine hours. What could possibly be in there that’s so interesting?! Nothing, I bet. While I only had time to see the inside of four buildings (France, Poland, Finland, and China’s space pavilion), I was not impressed with any of them. They mostly showed videos. I can watch videos of your country on Youtube! Oh, wait. I’m in China. No, I can’t…
As I was preparing to see the expo, I knew the lines would be long, and I wouldn’t get to see much. I was never interested in what was going on inside the buildings, anyway. I just wanted to see the outside. Some of them were simple cubes with pictures painted on the side, but other countries really went the extra mile to display something truly creative. Take England, for example. What on earth is this thing?
Russia’s building was rather big and ominous, too:
But the Netherlands had “Happy Town” that looked like loads of fun… until the whole thing collapses and kills 10,000 people. At least that would mean 10,000 fewer people in the Saudi Arabia line.
My favorite pavilion, however, was Korea:
The theme for the expo is “Better city, better life.” The expo grounds really do feel like a little city (walk the whole thing and you’ll see), but a better city? Hardly. The streets were dirty and smelled bad, and the popularity of the expo makes seeing everything impossible unless you’re willing to go every day for a month (a feat that’d cost around $700). Bottom line: I wouldn’t make a trip to China just to see the expo, but if you’re already here for whatever reason, it’s worth a visit just to check out the crazy buildings and see what all the fuss is about.
Gulangyu Island Near Xiamen
The girlfriend and I went on a short trip to Gulangyu Island, which is just off the coast of Xiamen. The island is small enough that you can walk around the whole thing in half a day, which was my favorite part about being there. Gulangyu has some nice beaches, and only one of the beaches was crowded. Nobody seemed to care about all the other (much better) beaches, like the ones pictured.
What makes Gulangyu special is that no vehicles are allowed. Not even bicycles. Sadly, there are a couple of tourist carts that honk at you, but they stick mainly to the outer roads. So it’s nice to walk through the small city and not have to worry about some damn e-bike running over your foot. But the city is surprisingly dirty and smells heavily of fish and sewage (or fewage… or sewish… or fishewage; one of those is funny, I know it).
In fact, the stench of our hotel bathroom was so bad, it kept me awake at night. My advice to anyone who wants to see the island is to stay in Xiamen, as there are more hotels to choose from, and the ferry ride from Xiamen to Gulangyu is only ten minutes and is free one way (eight yuan coming back). Plus, Xiamen has some very nice beaches, too. Beaches, beaches, beaches!
Slot Canyons Near Escalante, Utah
While in China, I was very adamant about seeing as many sights as possible. I had to take advantage of my time there! Now that I’m back in Utah, there’s no rush to go sightseeing. These things will always be here. I, unfortunately, will probably always be here, too.
When I sit down and look at all the available attractions in the area, though, there’s an impressive diversity in my own backyard. The Peek-a-Boo and Spooky slot canyons near Escalante ended up being better spectacles than the Leshan Giant Buddha in Chengdu, and I paid a lot of money to see that Buddha! The canyons were free.
But that’s not to say people shouldn’t travel to China, since there are so many great things to see in the homeland. Remember this, this, and this? Still worth it. But it’s nice to appreciate what’s around your home, too.
A Fishy Shanghai Weekend
I love going to aquariums. There is so much underwater life that is fascinatingly creepy. Looking at some of these species fills you with dread and uneasiness, and yet you can’t wait to see the next exhibit in hopes that it will be even more bizarre. Every aquarium I’ve been to has had a fish I’ve never seen before, too. Like the garden eels in the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium. Man, those are some strange, freaky animals.
I’m still not sure if I love going to Shanghai, though. I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on getting around the city, I’m just not particularly fond of the crowds and being accosted by so many locals to buy crap or practice English. More university students confront me in Shanghai than they do in Changzhou, and, taking others’ advice in mind, you can never be sure if these people only want to learn English from you or want to learn English and siphon your money.
On the subject of money, I’ve discovered two knock-off markets (one near the Science & Technology Museum and one on West Nanjing Road) that can be fun in small doses. Well, they’re fun if the vendors have what you’re looking for. The trouble I ran into last weekend was as irritating as it was baffling. I was on the lookout for an Xbox controller, but whenever I would ask a vendor if they had one, it turned into a huge fight.
“Do you have an Xbox controller?”
“Yes, I have.”
“Okay… where is it?”
“Give me a price.”
“Can’t I see the controller first?”
“No, you say how much you want.”
“Are you sure you have a controller?”
“Yes, I have.”
“I don’t think you do.”
“…”
“I want to see the controller.”
“No.”
“Then we’re done here.”
Why were they so secretive about the Xbox controller, when PS2 and Wii controllers were prominently displayed? Sometimes it felt like I was trying to buy marijuana. A few vendors, when asked, would run out of the store, then come back and say, “Yes, I have,” but they still wouldn’t show it to me. It sounded like only one store was selling controllers, and other vendors would have to buy it from them before selling it to me. I picture a smug Chinese guy sitting atop a pile of controllers, pointing his gold-studded scepter at the lower vendors.
The other thing I wanted to see while in Shanghai was the Barbie store. Okay, whatever you’re thinking, stop it. I was more interested in the bar on the top floor than the merchandise below, as the imagery of an overbearingly pink atmosphere and alcoholic drinks is pretty amusing. But though the outside of the store resonated with girlishness, the bar itself was absent of Barbie personality.
Hey, hot stuff, let’s practice English together.
Rafting through Zhanggong Cave in Yixing
I was a little low on things to do for Halloween. Visiting a cave, however, seemed like an appropriate activity. While Yixing is mostly famous for its teapots, there are also three caves in the area. Zhanggong is the least popular of the three, but we chose it, because… uh… why did we choose it, again? Zhanggong Cave is small, and most of the scenery inside is actually man-made. I could tell, because it was falling apart. The cheesy, colored lights don’t help the atmosphere much, either.
The cave is part of a larger park, and though it is the main attraction there (and the most expensive if you pay for everything individually), the other activities are what made the trip fun. They had two rafting “adventures” you could take, an hour-long drift down a narrow canal or a leisurely row in the dark underneath the cave. I’m glad I went, at least to see something besides another pagoda or temple (or DVD), but, overall, the teapots really are the best thing about Yixing.
P.S. The caption contest is closed, and a winner has been selected. Congratulations, Joe!
Nanshan Bamboo Forest in Liyang
National Day may not be the best time to travel to Shanghai or Beijing or Xi’an, but it’s a great opportunity to hit up nearby places of lesser interest. Like Liyang. There’s a bus from Changzhou to Liyang every 15 minutes, so there’s no rush to beat the holiday crowds. And in the forest, most of the tourists headed straight to the cable car, leaving us with a relatively quiet walk up the mountain.
I was here last year for the foreign teachers’ retreat, but I didn’t even make it to the halfway mark before having to head back to catch a bus. I almost had to do that again. The buses to and from the Liyang bus station stop running a little too early, which is the same problem my family and I rant into at Huanglong. We would have had to run through Huanglong to see it all. I did run through the bamboo forest to see it all. I guess the whole point is to come, take a picture, and leave to tell your friends about it.
Hey, guys, I saw some bamboo. Neener, neener, neener.
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