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paperbag princess
Joined: 07 Mar 2004
Location: veggie hell
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 Posted: Fri Jun 11, 2004 10:59 pm Post subject: advice on china |
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| hi all, i was just wondering if anyone could recommend either a good tour in china (one that doesn't hold your passport as ransom), or good hotels in beijing. i'm planning on going in july and any advice would be appreciated. |
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cacheSurfer
Joined: 07 Dec 2003
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2004 1:02 am Post subject: Re: advice on china |
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| paperbag princess wrote: |
| hi all, i was just wondering if anyone could recommend either a good tour in china (one that doesn't hold your passport as ransom), or good hotels in beijing. i'm planning on going in july and any advice would be appreciated. |
well...i just got back from Beijing a few days ago.
there is an information booth in the airport that can book you a hotel.
(you must give your passport number to them) its china law.
i would recomend to go the really old section of the Great Wall. it hasnt been restored and you can avoid the crowds.
we did a 10k hike that took 4 hours. it was truly amazing!
the section is called Simatai. (if you do the hike....it goes through 2 sections, but i can't remember the name of the other section. it starts with a "J" though)
GO there! trust me!
Also go to the Fragrant(sp) Gardens. (it's just outside of Beijing) another great place.
about tour guides.....you can hire a private tour guide just about anywhere. and they are really cheap. when you go the Forbidden City they will be standing out front with businesses cards. they usually speak good English. We met our tour guide there. I lost his business card, but his name is Peter. if you happen to run in to him he is really cool. he took us to the great wall for really cheap.
I wasn't too impressed with the Beijing nightlife....but the beer is good and cheap! There is a great market on the south end of the Square. good shopping and food.
here is a random sidenote....
Last Friday was the 15 year anniversary of the student protest at the Square. Our tour guide Peter got to witness the whole event. He saw the killings and the beatings. 
I hear a lot of media reports today that say that the people are happy and that they like their current situation. i think it's total BS. thats not what i saw when i was there. there is no middle class and the people want to be free!
anyway....i hope this helps.
later. |
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Tiger Beer
Joined: 07 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2004 2:09 am Post subject: |
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I just flew into Beijing.. booked into a hostel downtown.. and signed up for some Great Wall excursion from the hostel. Ultracheap. I don�t recall having to give up my passport though.
My hostel was so close to Tienamen Square, I just walked down there as well as the Forbidden Palace.
Yeah, I bit Beijing nightlife as well.. has absolutely nothing on Seoul whatsoever. Not even close. Its quite dull and boring actually. I always find it strange when I read expat websites where they rave about Beijing nightlife.. when compared to Seoul it seems almost non-existant. |
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Ilsanman
Joined: 15 Aug 2003
Location: Bucheon, Korea
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2004 6:59 am Post subject: yes |
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I have advice about China: don't go.
Chinese people have the worst reputation in the world for being dirty, rude, and lying. In my experience and many of my friends too, it is true more often than not. |
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Tiger Beer
Joined: 07 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Sat Jun 12, 2004 2:21 pm Post subject: Re: yes |
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| Ilsanman wrote: |
I have advice about China: don't go.
Chinese people have the worst reputation in the world for being dirty, rude, and lying. In my experience and many of my friends too, it is true more often than not. |
I�ve been a few times. Never been lied to there. My experiences were Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Chengu, Leshan, Leijiang, Dali, and Kunming. Fairly pleasant people-wise.
They do seem.. ahmm.. indifferent. Opposite of most poor countries where everyone is trying to get your attention for a few $$$. In my experience, everyone just left me alone. I was completely free to wander around and do whatever I wanted completely and totally hassle free. It was when I was trying to do something and needed assistance that was the problem. People seemed indifferent.. but could have been coupled with a language barrier.
For example, I was literally in the middle of nowhere. Came from Leshan.. and trying to catch a bus to Kunming. I stood in line for an hour, and when I finally got to the front of the line, they said come back tomorrow. I asked "why?" and no one would tell me why. There were fifty people in line.. I was literally in the middle of nowhere.. the line ONLY went in two directions (either Chengdu or Kunming).. and they tell me to come back tomorrow?? Is it because someone who speaks English will be working tomorrow? I just don�t know.
Actually I just booked a bus back to Chengdu instead.. and assumed a train to Kunming from there.. so I was fine. But there are moments of frustration if you way out back in the middle of nowhereville in China. |
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just because
Joined: 01 Aug 2003
Location: Changwon - 4964
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2004 12:56 am Post subject: |
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I went and thought it was magic.
Must admit, was a tourist and did a lot of touristy things but that was exactly why i was there. Great fun |
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cacheSurfer
Joined: 07 Dec 2003
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2004 5:49 pm Post subject: Re: yes |
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| Ilsanman wrote: |
I have advice about China: don't go.
Chinese people have the worst reputation in the world for being dirty, rude, and lying. In my experience and many of my friends too, it is true more often than not. |
sure, they are dirty and annoying at times.
But dont let that stop you from visiting and enjoying a unique country.
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cacheSurfer
Joined: 07 Dec 2003
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2004 5:54 pm Post subject: |
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| Tiger Beer wrote: |
Yeah, I bit Beijing nightlife as well.. has absolutely nothing on Seoul whatsoever. Not even close. Its quite dull and boring actually. I always find it strange when I read expat websites where they rave about Beijing nightlife.. when compared to Seoul it seems almost non-existant. |
totally true about the nightlife.
the last night i was there was cool though. these four chinese guys asked us to play cards with them. they gave us beer and taught us a cool chinese card game.  |
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Zyzyfer
Joined: 29 Jan 2003
Location: who, what, where, when, why, how?
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| Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2004 3:32 am Post subject: |
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Just seconding the "go to an old part of the Great Wall" bit. I had a lot of fun and have some awesome memories and photos. We were going practically straight up and straight down, and the wall was crumbling and didn't have any solid steps, and it was freezing cold. Meanwhile, our tour guide is casually smoking cigarettes and only wearing a thin leather jacket as he leads us up and down the mountain. It was pretty sweet, and I'm not being sarcastic.
If you go through the Forbidden City, when you exit, don't take a ride with anyone. Instead, bear left and follow the moat around all the way back to the front. It's a nice, quiet walk in the city with some good scenery.
I guess the drinking spot is Sanlitung, but as others have said, the nightlife isn't anything special. It's quite tame, really. But I knew some people who went on a tour, and they appeared to have had quite a blast, as the tour guides took them to places where they could drink snake blood or snake wine or something like that. It really depends on your company.
If you're going to be there for more than a handful of days, you might want to look into going elsewhere. It's an interesting city, but it won't hold your attention for long. |
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