China and more - The whole three weeks until now

Hi All.
Unfortunately, while in China, we could not access my blog site, which is why you are now bombarded with three weeks worth of writing, all at once. On the bright side, I will never know if you don't read it!! This entry is what I have kept on word as we go, so is in chronological order. From now on though, my entries will go directly on line, and the new entry will always be at the top, therefore working from bottom to top - But I guess that is something you will all figure out for yourselves.
To give a quick picture, we are in London, having arrived safely yesterday afternoon. Looked at a car in Heathrow, but decided not to risk it. Caught the underground train in peak hour traffic to get to Pauls'. Several trains, a bus and a walk later, we got here at around six, or seven, or maybe it was only five thirty...you lose track when you have been up for twenty hours. And all on London's hottest day of the year. (Which was a piece of pie to those of us recently arrived from China!)
Today we brought a second hand car from a shonky looking car yard at Wimbledon, and two car seats and a stroller from a carboot sale around the corner. (I am very happy with the two pound stroller! Bargain of the year! The three pound car seat was a necessity, and a good thing to find as well.) I think you Howlett men will be pleased to learn that we bought a Ford Mondeo. My mind was made easy by Jeremy Clarkson voting it car of the year couple back. That was of course a different model to ours, but I have a good feeling about it.
That is enough for now as the lack of sleep of the last two and a half days is really catching up with me.
Tomorrow we are off to Bath - and now I am off to have one.

18th June, 2010. Planes, trains and automobiles.....and ferries and buses as well.

My dire predictions about not getting to bed at all were an over panic. I would have actually made it to bed by midnight if it hadn't been for Eliza's announcement that she needed a bucket. Oh dear. Not what we wanted to hear. And she was right!!
So Shane and I were in bed by one, with Lilli having awoken and saying she was far too excited to sleep...never realizing that she already had been. Eliza was in need of assistance again at three am which left me at about three thirty trying to decide whether to even bother going to bed again. Our flight was due to leave at seven am, so we needed to be at the airport by six, therefore leaving home at .5.20 am. It is hard to sleep when you feel torn about what to do when the alarm goes off.
I lay there questioning whether it was fair on everyone else on the plane to take a sick kid. Of course it is not. Nor is it particularly fair on the child herself. Not to mention my dread of public displays of ...well...lets just say, 'messy bodily functions'.
All of those things meant that canceling was the only fair option -and yet – canceling didn't really seem like an option at all! AND SO, at 5.20 am on the dot, off we set, with a plastic bag we hadn't previously planned to take, filled with spare undies, pullups, top and little towel. Dear Eliza sat in the car pale faced but determined that she felt fine. I sat next to her, jumping every time she yawned or sighed, icecream container in hand. To end this saga, I can simply say that as the day progressed she had no more 'messy bodily functions' to contend with and she seemed to have more energy that I could have hoped for.

The flights went very smoothly – Thank you God for inflight tv. It did occur to me shortly after take off that we may not have given the kids enough information of what to expect, as about five minutes after doing up our seatbelts, Sam declared, “This is Boring'. We had a nice little chat about negative comments and their detrimental effect on all around them. He said it again at the end of the day and then instantly looked at me – remembering. I hope it is a comment we can eradicate.

We arrived at about five twenty in the afternoon at Hong Kong International airport and Shane's mum was waiting for us there. We then caught two different trains into the city. Killed some time as we just missed the 7.30 Ferry and therefore had to wait until the 9.30 one. We were all feeling pretty exhausted by then (it was already about 9.30 pm in SA) and lugging luggage (I wonder if that is where the word luggage literally comes from?) through busy Hong Kong Railway stations was hard yakka. The kids were becoming less and less impressive as the night wore on, and we were very glad to board the ferry for the one hour, fifteen minute ride to Zhu Hai. Lilli looked the consummate traveler as she fell asleep on the floor with her back pack under her head. Eventually Eliza zonked it with her head on my lap, and Sam followed closely behind.
That was all fine and dandy until it was time to get OFF the Ferry. We had three adults and three children. The two big kids have a back pack each, and then there are four wheelie suitcases and one wee one. There was customs to clear (for the fourth time) and then a bus to catch which is notorious for not waiting for people to finish getting off the Ferry. This was the bus we needed to catch as it is a private bus which runs directly to the village where Shane's Mum lives. (a forty minute drive, by the way). We were hit with the logistics of our problem when we decided it was time to wake the kids....and couldn't! They were dead to the world. Eliza was sitting up on Shane's lap with her head lolling back and forwards as she struggled to wake up. And whilst she was entertaining a row of locals with her stupor, Lilli and Sam slept on in a way which was quite awe inspiring. Wish I could sleep like that. We felt quite cruel waking them but we really had no choice, we simply could not carry them and get off the boat. Eventually we got them on their feet. Lilli wept as she walked, wondering aloud at the customs booth whether people in this country often fainted. We walked from the terminal and fortunately our little bus was still there. We loaded up and were on the road in no time. The kids fell instantly asleep and knew nothing of the trip, while we were able to enjoy a night time look at Zhu Hai, which was really very pretty. Lots of lush greenery, nicely lit along the road sides.
The bus dispatched us to almost the front door, and Sam literally feel asleep on the curb. He looked like an abandoned child, his cute wee bott sitting in the gutter, with his knees drawn up, and his head resting on the footpath. He has no memory of this.
Shane's sister was waiting for us to get home, and that was a surprise for the kids. However, we could see that they were barely going to register her presence, so she hid in her room while we tucked the kids up onto the big matress they were sharing, and they had that surprise in the morning instead. They were fair champs I reckon. It was a bigger day than any of them had ever had before, with physical demands made of them that they had not previously had to deal with. Out of all the children, Eliza was the only one to sleep on the plane, and that was only for one hour. So, well done to them. Our wanderings were finally underway!!



Day one – Sat,19th June – Zhu Hai

It is Saturday – which for Shane's Mum and Sister is market day. We walked into the town and wandered through the streets, and visited the markets.
The first thing to mention is the heat. It is the tropics. You can feel the rest. The Kids have never been to the tropics – bar Lilli's brief visit to Northern Queensland – so you can imagine the rest. Feet dragged. Faces went red. Hair got saturated. After half an hour, Eliza was crying that she wanted to go home! Man! I was hoping to get half way through our trip before anyone uttered those words. Not half way through the first morning! Ha. In fact, I think she just meant back to the compound where the promise of a swimming pool had her drooling.
All that we saw was fascinating. The road side foot path was basically a ramshackle garden, with different types of veges growing the whole way. Not pieces of land wasted. And those which weren't being used to provide food, were generally being used to dump rubbish on. Little piles of rubble were everywhere with an assortment of bits and pieces. Between the walkway and the road was about a metre and a half width of plant life. On the other side of the path it was a little wider, but quickly dropped down to a river bank. Again the plant life was prolific, and the majority of the way there was a row of Banana trees. Who owns all of this? I haven't a clue? It is impossible to tell. There is no look of order or structure. No obvious fences for 'yours' and 'mine'. Just some sort of honour system that seems to be working. How fantastic is that?
We walked down lanes wide enough for a car to travel down, between people's houses. We saw dogs and children, ramshackle buildings which seemed oddly cosy, trailers pulled by scooters, an old temple, complete with Bonsai garden out the back, and lots of friendly people who thought the colour of our children's faces, most amusing. (remember the bit about their faces going red?) Shane's mum also reminded me that these are people who are only allowed to have one child per couple. Therefore a little group of three blondies is not just a rareity due to the colouring...One group in particular were most interested to know who was the mum, of THREE kids.....I couldn't really tell if they were mightily impressed by me, or a little sorry for me!
To be honest, the kids really struggled with this outing. The biggest killer was the heat. Add to that the fact of their l o n g day yesterday (and would you believe it, they were awake at quarter to seven? – yes you would, if you have young kids). To that, ad culture shock. I am not sure to what degree, but they found the smell of the streets hard to bear and wanted to just get back to the cool. I think it is lucky we have such sociable troops, or I daresay the constant attention in looks, words they can't understand, and occasionally touch, would have been a bit much to cope with as well.
Everyone went for a nap at 11am. I think Lilli is the only one who didn't truly crash out. Some peanut butter sandwiches at around three – and it was off to the pool with three different kids. We went to tea out of the compound and over the road at a Chinese restaurant for some authentic Chinese food. Hee hee. Yes. I know. In China, they just call it 'food'. Thank you Chandler Bing.
Sam whined while we were ordering that he wanted to go to London 'now'. He then proceeded to enjoy the food immensely and even had a nibble on a chicken's head. I should mention that the chicken had been killed and cooked by that time. There was a section to the restaurant full of aqariums where you could select your food fresh - the kind of fish, eel, squid or turtle of your choice. The people we were with mentioned that sometimes there is a cage of puppies at the gate for people to choose from...fortunately they were not there last night.
We crossed back over the road with two lanes going either way and something resembling the trenches of WWI in the middle, and made it back safely, to the end, of our first day in China.


Day 3: Sun, Abandoned at Gong Bei

My sister-in-law and myself went with a couple of expat friends to the Gong Bei markets with the intent of meeting Shane, his mum and the kids at a nearby hotel, afterwards, for lunch.
The shopping is all under cover in a mamoth, mall-like building, under ground. It was laid out like a massive wagon wheel, with smaller little corridors linking the spokes...and shops side by side by side up the edges of each walk way. We only had an hour and a half before we were to meet up with our traveling companions, and in that time we only made it up one and a half 'spokes' and to ensure that we didn't get lost, we made our way back the same way we had come. Suitcases were bought for Shane's mum's removal from Zhu Hai (which takes place not long after we depart), thongs for the kids (flip flops for those of you who are feeling kinda shocked!!) and a couple of pairs of socks. Then we went back to the meeting point and waited. And waited. And waited.
We were without a mobile phone and felt quite powerless as to know what to do. We got a nice stall attendant to try phoning Shane – but couldn't get the numbers right. After about forty-five minutes I made my way to the info desk and managed to convince them tohand over the mic to the loud speaker PA. I got to page our friends and triumphantly returned to Jo.
“Did you hear me?” I asked. Jo looked at me blankly and said, “No”. D'oh. If she didn't hear me then there was a good chance they didn't either.
We were debating how long to wait before we tried getting back to Horizon Cove (we didn't even know the name of the place we were supposed to be dining....in fact....I still don't). After waiting a full hour, a worried looking Ma came around the corner, closely followed by Rosemary who was mouthing the words, “I am SOOO SORRY” before we were in earshot. Turns out that when Ma had texted Rosemary and her friend, saying that they were on the bus and would see them at the Motel, Rosemary had assumed the message was from us and had made her way to the Motel at her own pace.
Oh how I wish we were recording the moment when the all met up. Apparently Ma took quite a lot of convincing that we weren't just hiding around the corner somewhere – and that Rosemary wasn't having a lend of her.
Following a later-than-originally-planned lunch, we proceeded to the Zhu Hai Sante Cableway, a mountain possibly called Paradise Hill, which we scaled the easy way – with Ski Lift. Lilli, Shane and I got down the fast way, in the toboggan. Eliza and Sam were quite upset to be deemed too short to come with us.
And now, as I write this, on Monday, the 21st of June, the children are off at school with Ma. Even Eliza is part of the day as kiddies start in nursery classes at around three years old. I look forward to them getting home so that I can hear all about it.
Shane and I have had a nice quiet day doing odd jobs around the apartment, and taking a little walk to the 'Park and Shop', the onsite shop. We bought some things in packets with no english words which we cooked for lunch, and bought drinks which looked nice. And they were. Which was good. We unfortunately over-heated the rice in banana leaf lunch and it was what I imagine it would be like to eat clumps of clag that were nearly dry.
Gotta love experimentation!



Day 7, Fri 25th June – School is out....
Yesterday (Thursday) we attended the Zhu Hai International School end of year assembly. We got to watch Sam and Lilli sing a song with Ma's class and Lilli do a skit. Eliza was meant to do a song with the kindergarten class but was having a mini melt down and did not want to participate.
Ma is at the school now finishing up things for her last day. Shane has the kids down at the pool for what will probably be our last swim at the lagoon style pool (complete with water playground which the kids- and their daddy- love). I am supposed to be packing. My aim: to get five peoples clothing and toiletries and shoes into one suitcase, for ten days away. I'll let you know how that goes!
A quick recap of the week:
On Tuesday I felt every bit the intrepid traveler as I made my way to Discovery Bay and back, alone. It involved leaving here at a quarter to eight in the morning, to catch the 8am bus to the ferry. One and a quarter hours to Hong Kong on that, then a walk around the streets, to the Central Ferry terminal where I had to buy a ticket on the Discovery Bay Ferry – which takes 30 minutes. I arrived at Discovery Bay at about 11.10 and was very happy to see my cousins and their friend waiting for me.
We sat in a bar with an icy pitcher of Sangria and ordered some lunch. Back to Trish's on the bus, where she used her waxing skills on my eyebrows, then in no time at all, it was back on the bus to the ferry, back to Hong Kong, search for where to buy my ticket, and then get on the ferry back to Zhu Hai. Fortunately the Horizon Cove bus was still waiting when I got to it, so everything went most smoothly. I spent nearly seven hours traveling just for an eyebrow wax! Ha. Seriously, the four hours spent visiting were well worth it and most enjoyable. I look forward to seeing Trish again, albeit briefly, on the sixth, when we return to Hong Kong, and hopefully Katie when over in the UK, where she will also be wandering around!

On Wednesday, we returned to Gongbei markets, this time with Shane in tow. He did very well with three really nice pairs of shorts for the equivelant of $30 aus. A pair of 'crocs' – although who knows if they are the real deal or not? I could have spent even longer there, looking for the elusive wallet that I am sure I will recognise as 'the one' when I see it, but we were out of time before we knew it. I doubt we will get back there....but I know it doesn't matter because there is nothing we need, (just a long list of wants...) Not to mention that there are makets everywhere, one of which is the Stanly Markets in HK which we plan to visit while there.
For dinner we went to “The Old Junk”. Actually I had planned not to use their name, as the meal was a bit of a disaster. Lilli ordered a cheese burger, with ordinary cheese, not blue vein. It came with blue vein and Shane said, “Don't worry, I'll have that one.” (he hadn't ordered anything) So they went back to the kitchen to make a new burger for Lil, while Shane bit into his, only to discover that the meat was still red in the middle. We registered our inability to eat it like that, and they went off to potter about in their kitchen....eventually Shane sent it back in....it came back out, still red. Lilli's burger came, and it was red in the middle, too. At this point, Shane was losing patience and actually went into the kitchen with it on a plate, asking to use the microwave. They reckoned it had already been in the microwave for ten minutes!! What the?? Ironically I too, had ordered a burger which just didn't come. After reminding them, and saying that if it hadn't been started, to just forget it, it was brought out to me. I cut into the meat, and, you guessed it.....red! I felt so sorry for the gorgeous waitress who was so patiently trying to get the meals right for us. She kept apologising that the head chef was away – and I am fairly certain that she understood what we were telling her about how it had to be 'brown right through' or we could get sick.
End of story is that Lilli ate her chips and the bun without the meat. I had some chips, as did Shane. One of the friends with us had ordered a bowl of chips which simply never came. We didn't have to pay for any of the burgers – and the woman who got no tea at all, got her drink for free.....I made some toast for Shane and I when we got back here...and I know for certain, that I will never feel tempted to eat there again. Ever.

That brings us to Thurday which I have already touched on as the day of the assembly. Followed in the evening by a bus trip to 'Mr Pizza', which more than made up for the previous evenings debacle with excellent food and a lovely atmosphere. Really. (Try not to picture red vinyl and plastic table ware – it wasn't that American.) It was cosy and there I would go again. Happily.

At five o'clock a bus is picking us up to take us to the airport and we are all off to Guilin for a few days. So off I go to pack....


Day 9, Sunday 29th June. Guilin
Yesterday we got out and about in Guilin. Very convenient and close to the motel we are staying at (good sluth work dear sister) is 'Elephant Hill Park'. This is a majour tourist attraction and one of the many limestone mini-mountains that jut out of the ground all over the joint, characterising Guilin. When we drove into the city it was dark, and we were traversing a flat highway with buildings on either side of the rode (all brightly and amply lit), however, in the shadows, behind the buildings, one could just make out the silouettes of these 'mountains'. I am finding them hard to describe. Imagine ant hills in the desert – how they just jut out and sit on the landscape....now picture that the red desert sand is white rock, and that the ant hills have been taking excessive amounts of steriods. Now cover liberally with massive amounts of greenery and...er....you had better look at a picture!!
Anyhoo. Elephant Hill is one of these peaks, aptly named because at one point, where it hits the river it has a tunnel worn through it, making it look like an elephants head. It was quite a long climb up many steps to reach the top. I loved the greenery which grows everywhere, unstoppable. All rocks have moss, the steps have ferns and other little flowers growing between them and overhead there is a constant canopy green.
The kids were dragging their feet from the minute we left the motel – although we adults were rejoicing in the fact that the Guilin air was noticeably cooler to what we had left behind in ZhuHai. (still hot and sticky, mind you). I had to keep reminding myself that they had had a very late night the evening before, in order to stop myself offering them as an intercountry, goodwill gift, to the next Chinese person that insisted they were cute and wanted to photograph them. Ironically, they excelled at the climbing up and down stairs on the hills pathways – it was trying to keep them moving on the straight and narrow that was difficult.
The rivers that run through Guilin are all easily as wide as the Murray...with no threat of drying up. They feed into a system of lakes, in fact, I believe Guilin means, 'Two Rivers and Four Lakes”. Watching the boats come and go is most enjoyable. Peaceful. I couldn't help but marvel at the bamboo rafts which had about six chairs perched on them, canopy overhead and outboard on the back. I mean this is a fast flowing, reasonably busy river, and these things sit about ten centimetres above the water line.
Before leaving the Elephant Hill Park, we let the girls dress up in some traditional Chinese garb on the river bank, for the obligatory tourist snap, with the Elephant 'trunk' in the back ground. We then refused to but the photographers fee (as we hadn't understood how much she was going to charge – we had only grasped the hire of costume fee), so we have some cute snaps of that (and yes, we did pay the costume lady). You can imagine how much Eliza loved dressing up! She now wants to buy one to take home.
Speaking of Eliza. The girl is ready for the paparazzi. She is admired where ever she goes, and seems to find this not surprising. She (and Lilli and Sam) are constantly being photographed by complete strangers, some who do it surreptitiously from a distance, and others who bowl on up and take a child's arm and pose with them. I must ad at this point that we have been met with friendliness wherever we have been and the kids feel in no way threatened. Perhaps just a little overwhelmed from time to time. (eg, after many photos today on our trip, Eliza just stopped smiling at the people gathered around my back and said, “I don't feel like any photos today.”)
In the evening we took a river cruise and it was delightful. Which was good – it certainly took a lot of effort to find out where to buy the tickets and board the boats with language proving to be a big barrier for us. We of course can not get angry, for we are in their country, and it is us that does not know the language. Meanwhile, they do all that they can to help....

NOW...for the thing I am longing to tell you about, but also dread, because there is no way I can do justice to it. Our day. Sunday the 29th, our journey to the rice fields.
WOW. Three hours on a bus is a small price to pay for what you encounter when you venture to
Longji rice terraces. Especially given that outside the window there is ALWAYS something to see. This country is so lush it's ridiculous. I reckon if you sat still for long enough, you would see the plants grow, move around, even dance a little. Then there are the houses, shops and sheds that are dotted around the place along the roadside, and the people that are around them, each one with a story to tell....
Our first stop was to visit with one of China's minority popluations. (If I recall right, there are about fifty-five groups which the Chinese government recognise as being under threat) We were driving through drizzle most of the way, and there was fog, in some places so thick that you couldn't see much of the land scape at all. As we wound up higher and higher into mountains we began to get better views. Therefore, it was completely delightful, upon stopping, to be able to see quite well. We visited the Yao people and were allowed the privilege of wandering through their village, which has a river running through it, and seeing how they live. These are a people who are famous for their long hair. The women are, that is. They believe that the longer the hair, the longer the life...therefore, they don't cut it. Except for once, somewhere between their 15th and 17th birthday, when they cut out pieces to give to their parents, as a way of thanking them for giving them life. They have three hairstyles which represent their different stages of life. Until married, it is covered. The woman wants her husband to be the first to see her hair, which she shows him on their wedding night. From that time on, her head is uncovered, and she wears her hair wrapped around her head, coiled. Then, when the woman becomes a mother ( interestingly,due to the governments acknowledgment of the small numbers of Yao, she is allowed up to five children, contrary to the rest of China's one child policy. Our guide, Sarah, is from a different minority group, and she is allowed to have two children) she wears it in a big bun at the front of her head. That is the style she sticks with for the rest of her life. The women of the Yao also like to stretch their earlobes, but then wear red cotton holding the weight of their earrings when they get older, for fear of tearing their lobes. I didn't find this to be too excessive – I am sure I have seen worse in National Geograpic! When a man is looking for a wife, he looks for a woman with a big mouth (because it is believed she will be a good, loud yeller, which is essential for communicating around the mountain side), big feet – good for climbing the mountain, big rear – likely to find birth easy!! and small hands – good for doing needle work, essential as all of their clothes are hand stitched.
Their houses are all wooden, and made without nails. There is a challenge to my carpenter uncles! The bottom floor houses animals (we saw lots of pigs), the next floor is basically the living, cooking and sleeping space, and the top floor is where the rice and supplies are kept – and therefore also houses mice. (Mickey Mice – as our guide kept joking)
To walk amongst these people, and their homes, on ramshackle stones and neat little paths. Between open spaces with tables laid out, and walls of wood, and broken stone. To see their gardens, some water, some in mud. To see their houses perched alongside and one above another in the hillside. To look at the scenery which was every day theirs to belong to. This was a privilege. A joy. How dearly I wish I could have spoken with them. Hung out with them. There was certainly plenty to wonder about as we left their village and headed back on our way, up the mountain.
Again, I hesitate. How can I possibly explain the utter joy of walking up the mountain that has been home to these people for seven hundred years or so. Okay, not to these people personally, but there is every likelihood that it was there great-something, to the power of 35, that helped build these rice terraces, way back when. And here they are. Still making their living on the side of a mountain. A mountain with steep patches that are prone to sliding away when truly drenched. A mountain with stone steps winding their way up and up, back and forth, on a slow but steady walk to the top. A mountain with stalls in clusters, all the way up, with wares for tourists to buy, that somehow doesn't feel 'touristy'. More precariously perched buildings, with chickens and dogs wandering around. Greenery everywhere. Green. Green. Green. Home gardens growing on any patch of soil available. The feel of business and home on what would otherwise be described as a mountain path. We ate our lunch in a restaurant near the top. Local fare. Cooked in the cane of the bamboo which is so prolific here. Bamboo rice, Bamboo Chicken, local fish and pan fried vegetables. It was brought to the table, still in the bamboo in which it was cooked. It took a lot of effort for me to overcome my western ways and grab a piece of chicken, inspite of its still having bones and bits that I didn't recognise, and try it. And of course it was delicious. Again, my fear of tummy bugs made me wary when the fish didn't look white enough, but the sauce it was in was so good, I decided it was worth the risk....you can remind me of that if in six months time I am still tying to eradicate some sort of parasite from my system....is any sauce really that good?
When we reached the top, the mist had closed in a little, but not enough to obscure our view of the rice terraces, just enough to diminish the outlines of the mountains surrounding us. From left to right, as far as the eye could see, for 180 degrees, there were pools of water, with the green shoots of freshly planted rice poking out. They start at the top of the mountains, and work their way down. It reminded me of primary school, when we were shown how to draw a fish, and then add the scales. You start with one semi-circle, then you add a couple more semi-circles to that one. Then, from each of these, another couple of scales are added, and so on. Except on this fish, each new scale was usually a little below the one before.
I guess you have all seen rice terraces before, so the real thrill was in actually being there. Seeing with your own eyes. Walking the track to get there. Smelling the smells on the way....some of them lovely and some of them...well....lets just say, that on a couple of occasions I had to quickly cover my nose to avoid the gag reflex...
For a large part of the way I was in the rain, and it didn't matter a bit. In fact, it was quite enjoyable. Perhaps rain is not the right word. Spitting. When it rains here – it really pours – it is the tropics, after all. We got caught in the rain the day Shane came with us to Gongbei and to get to the markets we had to run through puddles that were almost ankle deep, after just a few minutes of deluge!
As to the kids....well. The only one up for a walking award is Sam, who made it most of the way up. We decided to indulge the girls (and make life easier on all of us grown-ups at the same time) by paying for a chair lift. These are bamboo seats, carried by two men, up the mountain path. They walked the girls up for lunch. Waited while we ate, and then carried Sam and Eliza the rest of the way. We decided Lilli should use her legs a bit – meanwhile, Eliza's conviction that she really is a princess was confirmed in her mind. The brave men then carried all three of them down the mountain – and for all we know, that was their income for the day. Certainly it was an enjoyable and delightful memory for the kids. Lots of Chinese people will be returning from their holidays with snaps of the little white haired children in a cane chair.
Those two parts of the day were by far and away the most interesting things I have ever seen, been or done. I pray that they will lodge in my mind forever.
There were a couple more stops on the way home, more 'touristy' in nature and nowhere near as amazing. Of most note was when the kids and myself all got up to dance with the troupe who were performing. At the end, they picked Lilli up and threw her into the air about three times (think mosh pit). She loved it and after wards declared that she didn't think she would be able to sleep tonight, due to the buzz. They then held Eliza captive while they took their bows. Sam was disappointed that he wasn't thrown into the air also – maybe if he stopped frowning at people.....
We finished our day at a noodle cafe over the road from the hotel. Recommended as being somewhere where locals eat, and where you can get Guilin Noodles. I must be honest and say I found it tough. I am a bit of a germ-a-phobe, but tried hard not to think about that, but then found the smell of the meal really distasteful as well, so swallowed my food in rather large gulps, which is unusual for me, the super slow chewer. Have also found over the road from the hotel, a little bakery called, 'Fiona' Benevolence Delicacies'. My, how apt. If I were to open a shop, I am sure it would sell pastries. And here it is – in China. Strange and wonderful things can be found at Fiona's. (actually, it could be Fiuna – it is hard to tell with their cursive) I don't know if the locals like it, but this sure is one gringo who does.

Wed, 30th June – Yangshuo

The last entry took us to Sat night in Guilin. The Sunday morning after, we were off on a ferry to Yangshuo, where we have been ever since. Unfortunately I had let a headache go on for too long by then and found myself to be nauseous in the morning and even once the nurofen had kicked in, I remained in groggy, greenish state for some hours. Fully functional, but not fully appreciative, perhaps. The ferry ride felt to me more endured than enjoyed, which is a shame, because it was truly spectacular scenery. The river Li winds between these limestone mountains that I have previously mentioned.
Unfortunately, the river is heavily littered and plastic bags are visible, clinging to the branches of low hanging trees and in the plant life growing up, out of the water. We also had the disconcerting (but thoroughly 'normal' experience of watching at least five pigs float by – bloated, with all four legs sticking up in the air). Mid trip, a man pulled his bamboo raft alongside the ferry and tied on, walking around trying to hawk his wares – jade Budda's and candle holders. The kids enjoyed racing turtles with a couple of little Chinese boys who had them with them on the boat. We were also very lucky to meet with an American student/teacher, who spoke fluent Chinese, and helped us to understand a lot more of what was going on around us.
Despite not meeting up with our hotel's pick up, we eventually made it to the 'Rosewood Hotel' with the aid of Lucy. She is a local who offers her services to lost and confused looking westerners – and whilst her comprehension of English isn't great, her knowledge of the local area is excellent. We feel really blessed to have found her...maybe we weren't meant to meet up with the hotel pick-up.....she has so far taken us on a day trip on bikes, tonight she organised our tickets and transport to the famous Yangshuo light show (at a seemingly bargain price) and tomorrow she is escorting us to the water cave. I am not sure how she survives. She was with us from nine thirty, to about six pm yesterday and cost us 50rmb. That is about nine dollars. You can see how easy it is to justify the cost of a personal guide...she is certainly worth much more than that!!
The bike ride took us through the country side: to get there, one had to first leave the city. What an experience, riding through Chinese traffic. I did wonder what would happen if any of us got hit by a car – but you can't dwell on that thought as you weave your way through the swarming mass of scooters, bikes, cars and tractor-inspired-trucks. It was quite a buzz, especially on reentering the city and making our way around a big roundabout. I had Lilli behind me, on a tandem, Shane had Sam behind him (also a tandem), and behind Sam, in a cane baby seat, sat Eliza....Shane definitely had the biggest load. Eliza's little cane seat was actually designed to go on a bike, unlike a lot of the ones we have seen which are designed to go on the ground. On four legs. They simply secure a child's cane chair to the bike's carrier and off they go. So cute!
Our first stop was up river, where we caught bamboo rafts. Ma and Shane's sister took Eliza with them and Shane and I took Lilli and Sam with us. These long narrow boats are about six to eight pieces of bamboo strung together, with two cane chairs tied on (kind of like the bikes, but bigger!). A man stands behind with a pole (also bamboo, I'll warrant) and pushes the raft along the river. You go along like this for a tranquil hour and a half, with a small weir every once in a while. Along the way there are many river traders, some on small bamboo rafts, like the one we were on, some on bigger bamboo pontoons. They try to sell you drinks for you or your 'pilot', or water sprayers. Most amusing was the floating computer stations at the bottom of most weirs, where they would print off the photo someone had snapped of you seconds earlier, and try to sell it to you. This is the perfect example of the juxtaposition one finds every where in China. A floating raft of bamboo, laden with modern equipment. A woman with a cane hat, wearing a cotton blouse and baggy pants, sweeping the sidewalk with a broom made from twigs, below a huge electric bill-board advertising the latest technologies. A man working in a construction site, consisting of bamboo scaffolding, no hard hats, wheelbarrows and thongs, whilst texting someone on his mobile. Shopping centres with toilets where the soap and water dispense themselves, the toilet flushes automatically, but the escalators leading to them, don't escalate.
Once off the river, we rode our bikes (which had conveniently been transported down on a truck, with Lucy) on further to Moon Hill Cave, where we dined, then walked the 800odd steps to the top of the peak. What a view! Amazing. Worth every drop of sweat – and that's a lot of drops! Local women who make their income off of the tourist trade walked up with us, fanning us all the way. That is a tough one. You don't ask for it. You don't necessarily want it (although it is actually helpful) but how do you not pay? I mean, the woman fanning Ma was 74!!! When a 74 year old woman accompanies you up a mountain to keep you cool, you sorta feel obliged, you know:?
My woman was lovely and kept telling me the Chinese words for things I would love to share them with you now, but unfortunately I can't remember any of them. Actually, that isn't quite true, I did manage to tell a woman today that her baby was beautiful – I didn't get the word quite right, but she knew what I was aiming for. We showed our thanks by purchasing some of the post cards the women were selling.
I hope to figure out how to ad photos to this blog so that you can see some of what I am trying to explain.
Tomorrow we are off to the Water Cave where the kids are very excited about the mud baths. I am not so sure how I feel about sitting in the mud that hundreds of other have sat in. Still, we are here. So now is the time to try it.


Some wonderings: Do the men who carry unfit westerners up the rice terrace mountains, thank us for the trade and hate us at the same time for thinking we have the right to get them to carry us?
Some cool facts: We fed all seven of us, at the local noodle bar in Guilin for less than six dollars. That is including 2 bottles of beer, three soft drinks and two fruit juices. I don't really know how that is possible.


Friday 2nd July – Travelers Tummy Strikes!
One of us has finally gone down. It was inevitable. We have been as good as we can be – but not fanatical – it was only a matter of time before a bug made it's way from the moist and warm environment around us, to the moist and warm environment in our tummy. Poor Lil. The worst two hours of illness I have ever witnessed, and without wanting to gross out any of you readers, I must say that she ended up throwing up little bits of blood. She has slept for the last hour and a bit and is now chatting away about currency conversion and a game she has invented in her head. I am thinking she is through the worst of it.
We had a quiet day wandering the streets on Wednesday, and yesterday visited another 'first'. It was a cave, under a mountain, which you enter via boat on a stream. You then wander along pathways for some three kms total. (Wearing nothing but your bathers and borrowed plastic clogs....never been caving like that before!!) There are lots of formations which (unlike any cave in Aus that I have visited ) you may touch, in one place even hit, to make music. I should also mention that these formations are dead. Whilst they no longer have a beautiful opaqueness about them, they are still quite spectacular, given their sheer size. The chambers under a mountain are substantially cathedral like in places....at other places we had to walk doubled up in size to get through, hands on backs to stop bangs from occurring.
Towards the end of the chamber, we partook of our first mud bath. The kids were looking forward to this part with great excitement – me....not so much. However, in we all went to the cold water with muddy bottom. About as high as our knees. The wall around the pool had thick mud on it which quickly became face packs for us girls and we all made sure to coat our hair as well. It would certainly have been more fun, if less cold. The kids looked just like they do when I allow them to play in the driveway puddle on a wet winters day. And yes, just like at home, I spent a good portion of my afternoon, trying to get the muddy colour out of our clothes.
After the mud, we went a little further into the cave, and down what appeared to be a windy staircase to the centre of the earth. The sound of rushing water got louder and louder as we went down, and very soon we were in an under ground river – able to wash away the mud in the pebble lined river bed, or by sitting under the little water fall where the water came rushing into the chamber. It wasn't warm – invigorating describes it. Amazing is another word. I mean, it isn't everyday that you get to wash in fresh running water, somewhere beneath the earth's surface.
We left the cave the same way that we had come in, and our last delight was to soak in the geo-thermal springs. There are a series of little pools that get hotter, the higher up you go. Blissful. And again, a unique experience that none of us had ever had before.
We left our dim dwelling and felt our eyes adjust to the glare as the boat left the base of the mountain, and entered the little green pool where we disembarked. The kids (and even myself, briefly) had a dip in this outside pool. By the time we got back to town, it was nearly three in the afternoon. We had totally missed lunch, and the kids hadn't even complained, which shows how totally enjoyable their experience had been. That, and the fact that they had had fruit to snack on.
We ate at 'Cloud Nine' a nearby restaurant with a good reputation – apparently Kylie Wong of australian cookery fame, mentions it in one of her books. We tried the 'beer fish' which is one of Yangshuo's famous local dishes. It was nice enough – but we enjoyed everything else we ate just as much. It is really an adventure at every meal as we try new things and try to avoid things too hot to handle. (and, I confess, too different for us to handle)
It is now early afternoon and I am still in my Jammies, and haven't left the room – which is probably obvious, because it would be very weird for me to head out and wander around in my nightwear. Lilli seems to have stopped with the retching. Relief! Now we just wait and see how long it takes for her to feel well again.
This time next week we will be in the air to the UK. Shane has been very busy online looking for a car for us to purchase, and insurance to accompany it. It is all exciting. I actually look forward to when we get to Southern Cornwall and stay in the Yurt. I think things will feel a lot easier, when surrounded by people who understand us and signs that we can read....and space. It is there that we will commence our home schooling and attempt to set some sort of travel routine.
We will also start to plan our 'Chester Surprise'. Mwah, hah, hah, haaaa......

Monday 5th July, How the other half live....

I write this from luxury. You see, we figure we wont be able to afford to visit Italy with the kids – which is a shame when one is so close; so, we decided to just call in on Venice for the night. Alright, I admit that any true Italian would be horrified, but The Venetian, in Macao, is a pretty amazing place to visit. Perhaps not as amazing as a city that is nearly a thousand years old, balanced on pile-ons and sporting golden mosaics, but it is, never-the-less, an experience to be had.
As you would rightly deduce, The Venetian is a themed hotel, based on Venezia. (Venice). My Hong Kong cousin loves the place and I really wanted to check it out. It is replete with glass chandeliers, painted ceilings and even it's own indoor and outdoor canal system. I heard, but can not verify, that this hotel has the most floor space, of any hotel in the world. It would not surprise me. I have never walked into a hotel before and felt like I was entering an exclusive shopping centre. There are two levels of shopping district alone.....all designer brands....and as well as the Hotel's many and assorted restaurants, there is also a food court! The indoor canals are all surrounded with Venice street facades, and an indoor sky (blue, with white clouds would you believe...and some pretty pinkish grey tinges on the 'horizon') Tacky perhaps... but I like it!!
On the ground floor there is an outdoor 'pool garden'. This is a stunning area of about seven rows of palm trees, and multiple little hedge rows, with flowering trees scattered around, with five different pools scattered throughout. There are also several fountains, the largest of which, is actually one of the pools. This is delightful, as it satisfies the deep urge that we have all had to just jump in to a fountain. We have all had that, right? At some time? As a kid perhaps, or simply last week, when you were walking along, sweating in the sun, and had to walk past a fountain of splashing, sparkling, cool water. Just thinking about it makes me want to jump into one. You were able to stand under one of the four cascades and shower whilst swimming around.
The largest pool has a shallow end for kids, which is graced by an inflatable slide. Parents are allowed on as well, so we all had a lot of fun on that. Running down the middle of the pool garden, and also around the edges, are little rooms that can be rented, and curtained off if desired. I can imagine Paris Hilton resting in one with some bad-boy rapper, wearing his had backwards and a dog chain around his neck.
Outside the sky was a gorgeous blue (the bluest I have seen since leaving home) with white floaty clouds drifting by so rapidly, that they looked fake. Or like they were on fast forward. I thought it amusing that the inside sky was more believable than the real one. As they rushed past the central part of the hotel's tower (there are about four sections, and the middle one is not dissimilar to the Grand at Glenelg in colouring and design) they made one quite dizzy, and Eliza was quite convinced that the building was tipping.
As I sat there, wrapped in a lovely big towel, watching the kids play and the sky get dark, there was a breeze that makes ones skin sing. It is that perfect temperature that makes one neither cold, nor warm....just alive. And I wondered how it is that I am so lucky. So blessed. So rich. And I watched those of us guests who were soaking up our environment, perhaps even feeling like we had earned it, or deserved such a break.... then I watched the woman whose job it was to walk around and pick up the towels that were discarded around the place. Damp and used. Left where they were, because they could be. And I wondered if she had ever had a holiday? And where would it have been to? I bet she has worked hard. Today. Yesterday. Probably always, and always to come. She deserved a break.....but it was me, laying back, watching my kids and feeling my skin tingle in the perfect breeze.....how did that happen? And why? And what can I do with it?
The first thing, I guess, is to be truly grateful. And I am. I am also most eager to impart to my kids that this is NOT reality. This is an exception. A treat. A joy and a privilege. Not a right. How will that go, I wonder. I mean, I had never set foot inside a place like this until well into adult life, and my first travels came at age 22, having saved my own money, and then working as I went. Here are my kids, so young, seeing and experiencing these things 'for nothing' as it were. Just a part of their childhood experiences – how do we prevent them from taking it for granted?
I ponder this, whilst wrapped in a bathrobe and donning slippers – neither of which are mine – sitting at a leather topped desk, while the kids sleep angelically in their curtained bed (and Eliza in a cot – much to her delight). So you see, I am enjoying the 'lets pretend'. The hyper-reality of this place where for one night we are the 'other half' (I am pretending to be a famous author in her pent house – so thanks readers, for helping me out on that one) and tomorrow we will re-enter the heat and reality.
The kids have crashed out with good reason. Yesterday we left Yangshuo. We went for one and a half hours in a mini van to the Guilin airport, leaving the Rosewood Hotel at two. Our flight wasn't leaving until six, so we had plenty of time up our sleeves once there. Then the plane was delayed. Not welcome news when you have already been trying to amuse three kids for a couple of hours, you have little food and it is uncomfortably hot. It was one of those things that is nothing more than a to-be-expected blip on the radar, and yet, at the time, feels like something that must be endured. It is funny how often I feel the child within me be made to grow up, now that there are children around me. You see, I want to have a melt down. I want to complain that I am too hot. I feel uncomfortable. I am tired. I am hungry. I want to lay down. I want to feel cool. I am sweaty. But I don't. You see, I am an adult, and I have to choose to behave like one. I never really realized that it was a choice. When I was little, I just presumed that all of the people around me, were simply behaving as grown-ups, because that was how grown ups behave. Suddenly, I am uber aware of three little people modeling their behaviours on mine (gulp – and yes, I see plenty to make me cringe) and suddenly I realize that my turn is over. I have to stay positive for the kids. It is also an interesting adjustment emotionally as I can tend to use Shane as my crutch, and make him be the adult while I behave like a child, but again, I see how I can't do that now. We are a team, and both need to be strong to get the kids through this. The difference in their attitudes when outside is dramatically different to that of inside. In the cool, they are fine; step outside and they wilt before your eyes.
I digress. Majorly. We didn't get back to Zhuhai until after eleven thirty pm, with the kids only sleeping for the last hour or so of the journey. Then we were up by eight, because before moving on, we needed to return the two mattresses that Ma had borrowed in order to accommodate us. This also felt like something to be endured, as we walked along the street, dripping sweat in the early morning sun, lugging (with the help of two belts) a mattress between us. At times like this, I always imagine that Shane and I are a team in the Amazing Race. Usually we work well together, but at times, I get snappy, and I berate myself for being one of those people that when you are watching, you think, 'Cripes. What a nag. Tell her to do it herself!' Today we would have won the challenge.

Lilli was better at the end of twenty four hours, by the way. The rest of the family went of for a last day of bike riding with our faithful and helpful Lucy. In the arvo , Lilli felt well enough to get up and about a bit. Ma and Sister, took the kids to KFC for tea so that Shane and I could have a dinner and shop to ourselves. The food was disappointing, but the company excellent, and it was a nice last night, in Yangshao. Interestingly, the smell of the Rosewood Hotel was lovely. Distinctive. Incense and oils I think – presumably Rose wood – and I loved it. Twenty four hours later, however, and everything smells slightly musty. Like things that have been put away damp and forgotten about. I guess that is the thing that one tires of here. The damp. It is damp in the heat, and it is damp in the airconditioning. It is simply wet air, and nothing is ever completely dry. On the upside, my skin hasn't been dry either, and my hair, well,... who knew I had curls?
Tomorrow we are off to Hong Kong where we will briefly see my dear cousin, who is then leaving to come home for holidays about seven minutes away from our house, and letting us stay in her home for three days. There I should be able to log on and put all of this stuff on line.
I don't want to go to bed, because then morning will be here and I shall have to get up and try to push things back into their cases, and after a while face the heat again, allowing the bubble to burst. On the upside, I get to snuggle up in a bed with a canopy over it. ALL my life, I have wanted to sleep in a bed with curtains on it. Tonight I get to. So goodnight from this Lady, see you tomorrow when I am back to being just me!

TUE, 6th July, I'm bored...

Eliza has begun to use the word 'bored' a lot. Usually once we are on the move and walking around the in the heat outside. She looks at you with her red face and dripping hair, and in an awful whiney voice (the kind I was determined never to hear from my kids) declares that she is bored. What she really means is that she is hot, bothered, tired and feeling unable to cope with another step. Last night she awoke and was scared in our strange surroundings. She tossed and turned for a while and eventually sat up in her cot at one a.m., and said, “I'm so bored of this.” She then crawled into bed between Shane and I and stayed there until seven a.m.. Consequently, I didn't have the princess perfect slumber that such a bed had promised, but all is well.
We have checked out of our room and are currently in the Qube , the hotel's play room. And oh man! No signs of boredom here!! There are slippery dips here that are mental. I mean really – I thought one of them was a wall and the man at the top was simply there to stop children from falling to their deaths. Really amazing and insane looking! Lilli was first to conquer them, followed by Sam, and eventually even Ellie Bea had a go on the smaller of the three (the one that ends in a ball pit. So much fun,. Lilli just came and kissed me on the cheek to say thanks. A good time has been had by all.
Shane has taken the map and gone to man.u. World. Yes. Map. We have needed it throughout the building. It took us about ten minutes to get from the restaurant to the front foyer after breakfast. A mammoth maze.

Friday, 9th July, Good-bye Hong Kong, Hello London....

Tuesday brought us safely to Discovery Bay, via the central ferry terminal at Hong Kong. (From Macau we had to ferry to HK. On disembarking, I noticed that Sam didn't have his back pack. Back onto the ferry we went, looking under and around the seats where he had been sitting. Eventually I realized that it was obviously back at the Hong Kong ferry terminal – and was quite distressed by the notion of all his personal 'stuff' being left behind, eg pencil case, sticker book, journal. When I gave up and left the ferry, approaching Shane, he said, “Where is Sam's bag?” and it was only then that I realized that there were only three suitcases gathered around Shane's feet, a little red one, conspicuous by its absence. SAM! I hadn't realized that we were not only missing his backpack, but his suitcase (clothing and more) as well! After the initial panic we were quick to realize that it was the best possible place to forget baggage. (They were sitting next to a freezer of icecreams in the little milkbar/seven 11 type store, on pier 3.) Not because the baggage would be cool and well-fed, but because ferries leave the terminal for Discovery Bay every twenty minutes, and the people at the other end were happy to put it on the next ferry. This meant a simple trip by bus from Trish's apartment, back to the Plaza for a pick up not long after our arrival. Phew!
Of course one would hope that this was a lesson learned for our dear Sam.....not so. Yesterday morning he left his hat on the bus, causing a half hour delay in our morning's travel. Thankfully it was able to be retrieved, and Sam had half an hour in which to sit and reflect on taking care of ones possessions. Five hours later, the hat was gone. It now lives somewhere at the Stanley markets, and once it is given a wash, will make a fine hat for some lovely little Chinese child....who will probably look after it better than its previous owner. As for Sam...well, I guess we will need to be vigilant in our watching of him....and continue to try to instill in him the importance of stewardship.

Wednesday saw us journey to Disney Land. It was -well, just as you would imagine Disneyland to be, I guess. I think we were lucky because the ques to things weren't too bad and we all enjoyed everything we did, which included, amongst other things: the Lion King live show, The river raft ride (which, as Sam rightly pointed out, would have been even better if the elephants had been real). various rides; carousel, teacups, and the ultimate – Space Mountain. An ultra fast roller coaster that goes 'through space' It was a thrill that we all loved. Eliza JUST scraped in on the height requirements and impressed me greatly by not being terrified, but by actually letting out whoops of joy as our bodies were whisked through the air at terrific speeds. We did this one twice.
There were glimpses of huge costume characters, water parades and a shared fairyfloss on a flashing stick. The kids' favourite thing was the Stich show, which was a very clever animation that was entirely interactive with the audience. Shane and I are still trying to figure out how they did it and the kids thought it hilarious. I enjoyed the experience of Mickey's magic show in 4-d. It is freaky to have wind blow at you from the screen, and feel your hair get all blown around.
Tomorrow we are off on an 8.30 flight to London.
It feels like we have been gone for a long time already, but we are only three weeks in.
To give a truthful conclusion to our visit to China and Hong Kong, I must admit that I never had much enthusiasm about visiting here. It was more or less to see family. And I acknowledged that China would be 'interesting' to visit. Now I am full of it. Of China,I mean, not the proverbial! It has been amazing. At times awe inspiring. Always interesting. A challenge with it own reward. Not only would I recommend it to other travelers, I would even consider coming again.