China
Stories
Cruisin Yangtze River and time to go
Another overnight train brought us to Yichang, for our Yangtze River Cruise. Let’s face it; not exactly the stuff of adventure, but as per Denis, if you want cruise on the Yangtze, and go through the locks, it’s the only option.
Kunming, Xi'on and the Terracotta Warriors
We never got the chance to get bored on the overnight train from Beijing to Xi'on: a steady stream of people, usually school age, wanting to practice English, or simply curious, kept us occupied.
We traveled “Hard Sleeper” class, but it’s not as hard as it sounds. The sleepers are padded and clean, grouped in packs of six, just like in European trains. The difference is that they are not closed off so people walk past your bunk, but traffic is low during the night.
Jul 30 2004 - 23:00Beijing Sightseeing, Day 2
The first day I puttered around Beijing on my own. The Metro system is safe, clean fast and easy enough to figure out: there are only two lines. I started at the Lama (Yonghe Lamasery) Temple, built 1694, and then just went up a side street to the Temple of Confucius built in 1302 (with additions during the Ming and Qing dynasties). Since it was raining I had it pretty much to myself.
Nov 28 2004 - 00:00First Day in Beijing, China
China was a pleasant surprise, and with the exception of the occasional core dump, all systems functioned well. After my trip to Vietnam, I was expecting China to be much rougher and backward; instead I found modern cities with good, clean, public transportation, a middle class with enough money to travel, and genuinely friendly, curious, helpful people. The food, if you can accept a certain uncertainty, was scrumptious.
May 10 2004 - 23:00Images
Around 22m lost Bush administration email messages have been recovered. Guardian, UK
The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem, it is generally employed only by small children and large nations. - David Friedman
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