Three weeks vacation in China and Japan. Visited Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo.
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The story is very detailed since I might use the information myself if I would like to return.
I went to bed already 21:30 the day before and went up 03:00 so I got fortunately quite a lot of sleep. I had forgotten to check in on Internet, if that had been possible, but I luckily got a seat at the aisle on the flight to China anyway.
On the flight from Gothenburg to Vienna you got a big muffins after 30 minutes.
There was a long queue to the passport check in Vienna which you had to pass to come to gate D22. The gate later changed to D28 which I almost forgot to check on a monitor. The boarding card which I had received at Landvetter airport had to be changed. Austrian Airlines gave me a new at a counter close to the gate. They also checked so my visa for China was correct. There was chaos at the gate when a person tried to sort all persons into business class, row 20-38 and the rest. She treated us like cattle. Some had really big suitcases, wok pan, pressure cooker which they had to leave at the gate for check-in. A person came with a weighing machine so I was afraid that they should start to weight the hand luggage but luckily they didn’t use it. They might have used it before and now put it aside. You got something to drink and snacks beside Chinese chicken or Italian pasta. The food was good. You had to fill in arrival and departure card onboard the plane.
A girl was really careful about her hand bag and wanted to keep it at her seat. A stewardess took it however and roughly put it in one of the boxes above your head. The girl later took it down and put it at a boyfriend but the stewardess saw it and almost got angry. She put it in a box again.
Maybe ten percent of the passengers were white while the other were Asian persons. The movie they showed had Chinese subtitles. It is amazing that they can read those characters and see the movie at the same time.
We got a breakfast onboard the plane.
Don’t stop at any toilets when you leave the plane since you should hurry to the passport check where it is a long queue. After the passport check you find empty toilets.
The grip to my suitcase was damaged but I didn’t have the energy to report it. I cannot remember any security checks.
The first Airport Express train leaves the terminal 6:20. Go there as soon as possible since it can be a long queue to buy the ticket. I jumped off at the second stop. The train then continues to terminal 3 and back again to terminal 1&2. The trip took 35 minutes and cost 25 CNY. The ticket is a plastic card which is taken back when you exit the train station at your destination.
It took some time to figure out which direction I should walk but I managed to find the hostel without any problems. I was early so I couldn’t check-in. I had to leave most of my things in a luggage room.
The weather was warm and sunny. You could go out with just a t-shirt and that was almost to warm.
I went to the nearest metro station and tried to explain that I would like to have a plastic card loaded with at least 5 tickets. The woman couldn’t a single word English so I ended up with a single ticket which cost 2 CNY to any station. The train just passed the station where I planned to get off so I had to get off at the next station. I easily found the station where I was on my map but how should I place the map so I know which direction I should walk. I couldn’t find the nearby streets on the map. I asked a person for direction to the “Forbidden City” but that person showed me the wrong direction. I went to a person who was selling newspapers. I said “Forbidden City” and pointed with my hand in some directions while looking like a huge question mark. That person had no idea what I was talking about. I thought they should know the word “Forbidden City” since it is the major tourist attraction in Beijing but obviously they didn’t. I tried with a traffic warder but he just showed with his hand that I should leave him alone. I was standing with the map a quarter of an hour, at least, and all people just passed by without asking if I needed some help. I suppose nobody could speak English. Finally a person turned up and showed me the direction.
There was an incredible long queue to Mao’s mausoleum. I heard later that someone said that it had had 130.000 visitors one day. I first thought that it was the queue to the Forbidden City and I was almost prepared to queue up myself. Luckily I saw that the queue was just for one building and the Forbidden City was at the other side of Tiananmen Square.
I wasn’t sure were the entrance to the Forbidden City was so I walked around and little and first visited the nearby park. The entrance fee was 3 CPY if I remember correct. There some people fished small gold fishes. I don’t know how much it cost but you had to pay for the equipment which you could rent.
The entrance to the Forbidden City cost 60 CNY. The area was much bigger than I expected. It was actually like a small city so you could probably get lost inside. I saw some people who had paid for some kind of electronic map. It had small LEDs (lamps) which showed you were you were and I suppose that you also could listen to some guide information. It was a pity that I didn’t get one of those.
I managed to find my way back to the subway station and also to the hostel after my visit to the Forbidden City. I could then check-in and pay an extra 100 CNY in deposit for the plastic key card.
The room was okay but it was the hardest bed I had ever slept in. I first thought that you slept directly on wood. I had to check and found a mattress which was maybe 2-3 mm thick when you slept on it. It hurt when I slept on my side so most of the time I had to sleep on my back.
There were 3 guys and 2 girls in my room from USA and Europe who studied in Hong Kong. There was also a girl from India who worked as an English teacher and also studied the Chinese language Mandarin. She temporary stayed at the hostel since she was looking for an apartment.
There was only one toilet for men, where you could sit, on my floor which had 18 rooms. The other toilet just had a hole on the floor. I think the Chinese people actually preferred the toilet with just a hole. There was no toilet paper inside the toilet, instead you had to take it from outside in the washing room.
I bought 1.5 litre juice, toilet papers, half a litre of Coca Cola and 2.5 dl vodka for 20 CNY in a shop not far from the hostel.
The roads in China was very good, comparable with the roads in Sweden but you cannot cross a street when you have green light without carefully looking in both directions since bicycles, mopeds and some cars drive anyway. One surprise was that almost all mopeds and a lot of the bicycles used electric engines. China has really come a long way in using that technology and there will most likely be a huge market for electric cars in China. The cars in China are also very good, comparable with the cars you see in Europe.
I walked around and checked where nightclubs, discos and bars were located. I lost count of all people who asked me if I would like to visit a girlie bar, maybe it was 20 persons. There were however no prostitutes on the street, or at least in the area where I walked. I met a guy who seemed nice and who I started to talk with. The conversation ended when he told me that he had been robbed and wondered if I could loan him some money. He was obviously just trying to get money so I walked away.
Around 11 p.m. I went out again to the nightclub Vics. The entrance fee was 100 CNY and I got a plastic wristband. I suppose that it might give me free drinks but I never tried since I had been drinking enough. Vics was a nice nightclub but I wanted to see more of the nightlife in Beijing. I therefore headed to a club called Mix, also just outside the stadium. On my way a young, beautiful Chinese girl started to talk with me. She suggested that I should follow her to another club nearby instead which was called Latte. She assured that it was just an ordinary nightclub and it was free entrance. I thought that it was probably something suspicious but I followed her anyway. The place was amazing. If you visit Beijing I recommend that you pay it a visit. The entrance was free and there wasn’t anything suspicious about the place. The only problem was that I had to take of the plastic wristband I had got at Vics. I don’t know why. There were a lot of guys in the club and I saw a very nice show with a girl who sang. The Chinese girl then wondered if we could go to my hotel. I explained that I lived at a hostel. She then told me that we could go home to her place instead. It would cost 700 CNY. I said that I didn’t want to go and then she just walked away.
I left Latte and walked to the nearby Mix. The entrance fee was 50 CNY. Vics, Mix and Latte were much nicer nightclubs compared to the nightclubs in my city, Gothenburg. Beijing is absolutely not a boring city. The atmosphere in the clubs where wild and the not so big dance floors were crowded with people. I visited Vics again. You get a stamp on your hand when you enter the clubs so you can go in and out. I met the young, Chinese girl again and she asked again if I wanted to go home with her for 700 CNY. She also walked away again when I said no a second time.
I went home quite early, around 2 a.m. and checked my e-mail. The hostel had computers which you could use. It cost just 1 CNY for 15 minutes. You couldn’t access Facebook or Youtube since they were blocked by the Chinese state. The Indian girl who stayed in my room explained however that she, and many other persons, used Facebook anyway. You just had to connect through VPN. She used a VPN connection to India.
I spent the time before noon to check up sightseeing places. I decided to go to the Summer Palace that day. I bought five metro tickets but there was something wrong with them since I couldn’t use any of them on my way back. Maybe they can just be used from the station where you buy them. I also learnt another day that they have to be used the same day so you cannot save them. The persons who worked at the subway gates however let me in and out when I tried to use one of the tickets.
I had been told that the subway station was just a short distance away from the entrance to the Summer Palace, but in what direction. Left, right or should I cross the street. It wasn’t even worth the effort to try to ask somebody. Luckily I found a woman who was selling maps for the Summer Palace which cost 1 CNY. She showed me the right direction.
Outside the Summer Palace I met a girl who wondered if I would like to have her as a guide during two hours. It would cost 150 CNY and the 60 CNY ticket should be included in that price. I said okay. She knew English but her pronunciation was not good at all. Sometimes she spelled the words correct when I didn’t understand what she said. She said for instance “lankest” when she meant longest. I don’t think they have TV programs where they speak English. I can understand that since it must be difficult to read Chinese characters and in the same time look at a movie. I probably didn’t understand most of the things she said which was a pity because she really tried hard to be a good guide and she spoke a lot in English.
Summer Palace was really a lovely place and well worth a visit. I paid her after two hours and then she wanted to have 150 CNY beside the 60 CNY for the tickets. I don’t think she said that from beginning but I gave her the money without arguing about it. She cold need it for her studies. Normally she studied but that week she and her boyfriend tried to get some extra money as guides. She had a holiday since it was the national holiday in China.
On my way from the Summer Palace I couldn’t find the subway station which was strange because it should be quite close to the entrance. I tried to ask several persons but they didn’t understand the word “subway”. If you go to China and Japan, take paper and pen with you wherever you go. Maybe they understand the word “subway” if you write it, or you can otherwise write a train under some houses. A man wanted to drive me to the station for some money but I can be really stubborn sometimes. I just had to find it myself. I came after all from it so I should know my way back. I walked and walked but couldn’t find it. After a lot of time I ended up going with the man who wanted to drive me for money. Embarrassing! I was home at the hostel around 5 p.m.
The hostel arranged a dumpling party during the evening. It didn’t cost anything. I didn’t know what dumplings were but learnt that you make them of pieces of dough with for instance meat inside. You then boil them in water. You could try to make some yourself. It seemed to take ages to make a lot of them and I figured out that you only could eat a few when they were ready. It was not so fun so I went out around 9 p.m. and walked to the shopping centre not so far away. I didn’t find anything special and the prices were almost like in Sweden.
A little later I went to the salsa club called ‘Salsa Caribe’. You find it easiest if you pass the shopping centre and continue to the road with all bars. Cross the big street so you are on the same side as the stadium. Take a little road to the left and then to the right. It was a very nice salsa club, probably one of the best salsa clubs I have visited. The people also danced really well. After some time I got the courage to ask a girl if she wanted to dance. I also danced with an African girl who asked me if I wanted to dance. They had live music and the group who played was very good. A girl also sang a song and she was fantastic.
After Salsa Caribe I visited a club which I think was called Muse and another which was called Charm. Both of them were situated at the Stadium behind Vics. The clubs didn’t have any dance floors so they were for people who just wanted to drink. The entrance was free but I just went in and out since I was looking for nice dance places.
I went to Latte again. Latte have a very tiny dance floor but otherwise it is a very cool place. I didn’t stay so long, instead I ended up at the club Vics again. This time it just cost 50 CNY but then I didn’t get any plastic wristband. It was not so fun so I went home after some time.
I had forgotten to eat so I ate a sausage in a pancake with salad for 5 CNY outside Vics.
I went by subway to the Lama Temple.
I also stopped and took some photos of the railway station. The queues for the subway station were really long. I probably should have crossed the nearby street and entered the subway from that direction instead of from the railway station.
I continued to Temple of Heaven. As usual it was difficult to know what direction you should go from the subway station. I first went in the wrong direction some hundred metres before I went back to the station and found that the entrance to Temple of Heaven was just behind the subway station.
I went home after Temple of Heaven and rested. On my way I bought a hamburger at McDonalds. Usually I never go to McDonalds since I think you should eat the local food when you are on vacation. I was however so hungry so I just had to get something to eat. A double burger, a medium French fries and a medium Coca Cola cost 24.50 CNY. The hamburger actually looked as the picture and not squeezed like in Sweden.
The three guys and the two girls from Hong Kong had left the room. I didn’t mind since they paid no attention to other people. It was a pity however that the Indian girl also had left the room since she was very nice. There was now only a French guy left who was very nice.
The hostel had a barbeque evening and offered a buffet for 70 CNY. You could eat as much meat as you would like but it wasn’t so good so I wouldn’t eat it again.
Later, on my way out, I met the Indian girl outside the hostel. She had found an apartment but was still hanging around at the hostel. She invited me to a “house party” next evening in her new apartment. I gave her my phone number so she could call me next day for further details.
I went to Salsa Caribe but there were not many girls you could dance with. I therefore never got around to ask anybody. Around midnight I walked home but decided to visit Latte on my way. A woman I passed by talked to me. At first I didn’t know what she wanted but she could at least say two English words which she repeated over and over again. Those words were “massage sex”. She clung to me and it was difficult to get rid of her. She was however nice which you cannot say about the African guys who lure in the shadows and come forward when you pass them. I think they try to sell drugs.
Outside Latte were three Ferraris parked. Soon after I arrived there was a show. Two guys were dressed in high heal leather boots which ended up over their knees. On top they wear costume but below that they just had black string underpants. They danced and were really good also in pole dancing. They young girls seemed to fancy their erotic show a lot, especially when they stripped off the costume so they just had boots and string panties. They were really professional dancers. A girl, who was also very good, sang after their show and I went home when she left the stage. I wondered what kind of club that was.
I ate breakfast 7:15 which was included in the tour to the Great Chinese Wall. You had to pay 12 CNY extra for the green tea which I thought was a big joke, especially in China. They just put the tea in the water without using any kind of filter so I don't know how they drink it. I used my fork to fish up the tea before I could drink it. I got one bread, one egg, a little sausage and one strip of bacon. That was all.
We went in a van, I, a lady from New York, a young couple from London and a couple with two kids. It took around 1.5 hours to go there. I talked a lot with the lady from New York and got her contact details. She told me that I could visit her if, or probably when, I visit New York.
I think it was a very nice part of the wall with not so many tourists. The guide talked a little about the wall during maybe 15 minutes. That was all guiding since he sent us up to the wall on our own and said that we should see each other at a restaurant 1:30, about three and a half hours later.
You could walk up and down but it is recommended to take the cable car up and slide down for 80 CNY. We had just enough time to go as long as you could in both directions before it was time to go down.
The trip down was really fun and you could go really fast if you didn't end up behind a person who used the brake all the time. An advise is therefore to queue up after some teenagers.
There is a market where you can by a lot of things. You can for instance buy three t-shirts for one dollar. We were late so there wasn't any time for shopping which was a pity.
The buffet at the restaurant was very good and we came home to the hostel around 4 p.m.
I rested after all the walking on the wall up and down steps. It can be really exhausting if you are not well trained but you decide yourself how long you want to walk.
I didn't hear from the Indian girl so there wasn't any house party that evening, or maybe she didn't understand that the number I had given her was a Swedish number so you had to prefix it with +, 00 or something like that. I went to sleep quite early instead.
I used my MP3 player as an additional alarm clock beside my HTC Desire HD smartphone.
I spoke with a girl in the reception the day before and she told me that I didn't have to book a taxi in advance. I therefore asked the reception if they could call a taxi for me. They guy told me that I had to do that the previous evening. I told him that the girl had told me that I didn't have to book one in advance. I was a little stressed since I was on my way to the airport. What she had meant was that you just have to go outside and take one on the street and that shouldn't be any problem.
There were plenty of taxi cars just outside on the street but most of them were occupied. It just took some minutes before I found a free taxi. The man in the reception had written down, in Chinese characters, that I wanted to go to the airport, terminal 3. It isn't much help if the driver cannot see. It was very early and still dark outside so the taxi driver went out of the car and held the piece of paper in front of the headlamp of his car. He turned the paper several times since he couldn't see what was up and down. After some time he seemed to understand what was written, and I really hoped that he had got the information right so he wasn't guessing anything. I should have painted an airplane and written 1, 2, 3 together with an arrow pointing at number three.
I was a little nervous but after some time driving I saw a sign with Airport Expway and then I could start breathe again. After some more minutes you saw traffic signs for the airport which felt even more reassuring and he even turned to terminal 3 seven km before the terminal. It took less than 30 minutes and cost 59 CNY.
The terminal is huge but I found right away a display which showed that I should check-in at K1-K14. When I was there and prepared my things for check-in a woman in skin-jacket turned up and wanted to see my electronic ticket printout. I showed it to her and she said that I should follow her. First I thought that she was working there but it didn't take long time before I suspected that she wanted money for her service which I easily could have done myself. She helped me with check-in and showed me the direction to the gates. Then she said "money, 100 CNY". I just said "No way" and gave her 20 CNY and even that was a lot for she hadn't done much.
There was a rigorous security check. Onboard the plane they asked if I wanted Chinese or Western food. I said Chinese and looked forward to get the kind of food they serve in Chinese restaurants in Sweden. The food was however not at all what I had expected since it was some very strange things. I think that all other persons, including all Chinese persons, chose the Western food.
I arrived in Xi'an without any problem. Just outside the terminal are the busses. No 1 goes directly to Bell Tower which took maybe 45 minutes. It stopped at Melody Hotel where the hotel personnel showed me the direction to my hostel. You had to walk forward, turn right and walk all the way down to the south gate.
I could check in directly and had to pay 100 CNY in deposit for the plastic key card.
The weather was foggy. I walked to the Little Goose Pagoda where I also visited the museum. There wasn't any fee to enter the park and see the pagoda but the entrance fee for the museum was 10 CNY.
I later spent some time window shopping. They have everything, more than in Europe I think. It started to rain so I had to go back to the hostel where I booked a trip to the terracotta warriors the next day for 220 CNY and an additional 30 CNY for buffet lunch.
I ate some food at KFC which cost 24 CNY, including Coca Cola, if I remember correct.
I had planed to go to the 1+1 club but due to the rain I just paid a short visit the big bar in the basement where there were a lot of people. They had something called a beer tower and you could also get a plate with 12 burning shots. It was popular to play dice and I think that all tables had it so you didn't need to bring it with you. You could sing a song and get a free beer. Ordinary drinks, such as Vodka with Coca Cola cost 20 CNY.
I read a book and went to bed quite early.
We were 16 persons from two hostels who had booked a tour to the Terracotta Warriors. We went in a minibus together with a very nice guide. You understood at least half of the things she said even if the pronunciation wasn't perfect. It rained the whole day so it was perfect timing for the tour.
It was an experience to see all the warriors.
The emperors tomb was there also. It was just a hill which you couldn't go inside so it wasn't much to see.
An old man was there and signed books about the Terracotta Warriors. Our guide told us that he was the man who found the first warrior. Was that actually true? Was he sitting there every day? You were not allowed to take photos of him and I wondered why. Maybe that would show that it wasn't the same man who sat there every day. We were back home at the hostel around 4 p.m.
I was not feeling so well since I had caught a terrible cold. I had otherwise planned to go to the Big Goose Pagoda and watch the fountain show which should be best in the whole Asia. After that I had also planned to go to the nightclub 1+1. Due to my cold and the rainy weather I went to bed early instead.
I went up 9:30 and ate a breakfast at the hostel which cost 20 CNY and an additional 10 CNY for tea. Afterwards I walked all the way to the Big Goose Pagoda and back.
On my way back I went up on the City Wall.
Young Chinese girls are very beautiful and have really nice clothes. I took some photos and also some photos of the guards close to the fountain.
Back at the hostel I just had time to rest 30 minutes before I had to prepare myself for the Tang dance show, www.tang-dynastyshow.com, I had booked. 5:40 p.m. a man came and fetched me in an ordinary car and drove me to the show. I had booked the show with dinner and was told that you then got a better seat closer to the show. I thought that the tables would be in front of the stage but that was not the case. You first ate at a very nice restaurant some floors above the theatre. I arrived at the restaurant 18:30 and was then more or less alone in the big restaurant. The dinner which consisted of different dumplings was very delicious and the service couldn't be better so I recommend to book the show together with dinner even if that probably doesn't give you a seat closer to the stage.
Most of the people arrived around 7 p.m. and the show started 8 p.m. and continued more than and hour I think.
After you had eaten you had to fill in a paper and give your opinion about the food and the service. One funny thing was that they also wondered what you thought about the smile of the person who served you. I put a cross at 'Excellent' since everything was very good, including the smile of the lovely girl who served me the food.
I had planned to go to the nightclub 1+1 but it rained quite a lot again in the evening so I gave it up. Instead I relaxed in the dormitory and read a book. The other people had left so I was alone in the 8 bed dormitory which was nice for a change.
I went up around 5 in the morning and walked to the Melody Hotel, which took 10-15 minutes, since I planned to take a bus to the airport. A taxi, booked at the hostel, would have cost 150 CNY and you must book it the evening before. I don’t know why they cannot just call for a taxi.
Outside the hotel I saw several busses. I went inside the hotel and asked if all buses go to the airport. I was informed that some buses also go to the railway station. A taxi driver outside the hotel told me that he could drive me to the airport for just 30 CNY. It seemed suspicious low so I didn’t go with him. Maybe he planned to fill his taxi also with other passengers. I took the bus instead which cost only 26 CNY. The bus should depart 6 a.m. but all seats were taken already a quarter to six so it went 5:50. I was lucky who had been there in good time.
The bus stopped first at terminal 1 but most passengers, including myself, continued to terminal 2.
There was a self check-in machine at the airport and I wondered if I could use that. Somebody told me however that it was only for people who didn’t have any luggage to check-in. I am not sure if that was true. Someone also told me that I couldn’t check-in until 2 hours before departure and another person asked me if I had changed my boarding card. I don’t know why she asked that.
I checked-in 2 hours and 15 minutes before departure and could probably have done it earlier than that. There were a lot of young women who worked at the airport and they were really helpful. The security personell were changed in a strict way.
Onboard the plane they asked if you wanted to eat chicken or pork. I said chicken and got some tiny pieces of chicken. I should have taken pork. The flight was late.
At Shanghai airport you had the option to take a Maglev train to a subway station which would be must faster than taking the metro all the way. I wanted to try the train and a ticket cost 50 CNY. Inside the train was a display which showed the speed. It increased up to 300 km/h which then was the speed during the whole 8 minutes trip.
At the metro station I found only ticket machines, no manual service. You pressed the English language button, line 2 and finally the East Nanjing Road station. I inserted a 5 CNY banknote and got a 1 CNY coin back.
It was as usual difficult to find where you were when you arrived at the final metro station. There wasn’t any traffic sign with East Nanjing Road which I should look for according to the road map description from the hostel. I thought of course that it was a street with a lot of cars but later I found out that it was the walking street I was standing on. Anyway, I managed to find the hostel after some time and took a photo of a beautiful cat outside.
As usual you had to pay 100 CNY in deposition for the plastic card key and also pay for the room in advance. My roommates from Germany and England seemed to be very nice guys. I had a terrible headache and it rained outside so I rested for a while.
I went out for a walk down to the nearby Bund.
Later in the evening I walk up to Nanjing Road. There were an awful lot of annoying persons who asked me if I would like to have lady massage, and also if I wanted to buy watches and other pirate things.
I rested a little more, took a shower and planned to go out one more time before I went to bed. On my way out I passed by the bar behind the reception. My German roommate wondered if I wanted to go out with him and some other persons. Beside me and him there were also an English guy and an English woman, a guy from Mexico, a guy from China, a guy from USA and a guy from Canada. We called each other by nationality instead of name so I was referred to as the Swede. We went to another hostel which had a nice bar up on the roof with a view over the Bund. Unfortunately it rained so we couldn’t sit outside. I bought a Cuba Libre for 50 CNY which was expensive.
We talked a lot and the Chinese guy said that he had made love with a hamburger and it was almost as good as the real thing. I have no idea how we came into that subject. The rest of us thought of course that he was joking but he was dead serious. He also said that a friend of him had taken a photo of it as proof. He showed with his hands how he had done which indicated that he had made a suitable hole in the hamburger. Luckily he didn’t pull out anything. There was a discussion if he had used two hamburgers and even if he had used some dressing. I suppose that most people have tried things, especially during the teenage period, but that is something you don’t share with other people. I liked the Chinese guy since he was very friendly, open about things and had a lot of self-confidence. I have to admit that I laughed a lot when he told us about the hamburger and I wondered what the English woman thought about the conversation.
It was a pity that I hadn’t met those guys earlier since they had partied a lot the last days and had had a lot of fun. The guy from Mexico had missed his plane two days ago and the German guy had fallen asleep in a sofa the day before and missed his flight. One of them had celebrated his birthday with a pie-throwing party. The Chinese guy said that the last days had been the happiest in his life.
The guy from Mexico was a real ladies’ man. He started to talk with a woman at the other hostel and he got acquainted with a woman in the McDonalds queue on our way home. He saw a woman outside our hostel on our way home and ran to her before she went inside. He later told us that she had wanted to show him something up in her room where she had given him a kiss.
I went up half past seven. All the other people from yesterday had gone to different parts in China. It was very foggy outside. I went down to the Bund. On my way I met some Chinese, adult men who wanted to take a photo of me together with them. It was a little suspicious I thought but I think that they actually just wanted a photo of me.
A lot of people took wedding photos.
I crossed a nice city park where some people where dancing. The dance was to my surprice almost identical to the Swedish dance called Bugg.
I continued to the nearby Yu Garden. The whole area is very nice with a lot of shops.
I also went into the Yu Garden. You had to pay a little entrance fee to get inside.
On my way back to the hostel I met a couple of girls on Nanjing Road. They said that they wanted to talk and practice their English. They were the type of girls Lonely Planet warned you about. They took you to places where you had to pay a fortune for just a cup of tea. They also wondered if we could go to a nice place nearby. I told them that I was on my way to my hostel and they were welcome to join me if they wanted to speak English. I never thought that they should go with me all the way to the hostel but they actually did. Well, it was okay with me since they were nice girls and it was nice to talk with them. I bought cappuccino to them for 2 x 18 CNY. One of the girls complained that she didn’t feel very well but after they had finished the coffee they wanted to go out. I said that we could go down to the Bund and they agreed. Outside the hostel they told me however that they wanted to go somewhere to eat. I didn’t trust them and I didn’t want to buy any food for them so I just said that I wasn’t hungry and went back inside the hostel.
In the evening I went out and took some photos with my mobile phone. I searched for some dance places nearby and at the Nanjing Road but couldn’t find any. There were probably places but maybe they had signs with Chinese characters. I met an awful lot of people who asked me if I wanted to buy watches, bags or if I wanted lady massage, girlie bar or a beautiful Chinese girl. It was really annoying with all people who tried to sell things and they didn’t take no for an answer. They were obviously not allowed to sell pirate copies of for instance Rolex watches since they didn’t carry the things with them. Instead they had pictures of the things they were selling and if you were interested you probably had to follow them to a dark backstreet nearby.
I didn’t find any dancing places so I went to bed around midnight.
I went down to the Bund early in the morning. People exercised with for instance swords. One group of elderly men had ordinary kites, “drake" in Swedish, which you could see high up in the air. Another group used another type of kites which with a lot of practice could fly in different directions just above the people who walked there. There were also some kind of meeting between doctors and ordinary people. It was a really nice atmosphere at the Bund.
I took the metro to Xiantiandi which I had heard should be a good nightlife area that I wanted to check out. There were many open-air cafés and some nice parks.
In Fuxing Park nearby people fished small goldfishes. You could rent the equipment from a person. Unfortunately I missed a nice dance show which just finished when I arrived.
Small children don’t have diapers. Instead they have a big opening in their trousers. I saw some kids who were pooping on a walkway. Their parents just placed some plastic on the ground which they could do it on.
I passed People Square where you could see a lot of white pigeons. I passed by a man who had a falcon. He didn’t want any photos taken but I took one anyway. I also passed another person who came walking with a falcon or hawk.
I went into Peoples Park where they had some entertainments for kids. At one place I saw something interesting. A lot of people seemed to sell something since they had written advertisements on papers. I didn’t know what it was since it was written in Chinese. You could however see digits which seemed to be age, length and weight. Later I heard about match making and when I now search for it on Internet I find this. “If you are seriously considering marrying a local Shanghai girl or guy, you should visit the match-making corner at People's Square Park.”.
I walked Nanjing Road home.
I went out in the evening. There were some dance performances on Nanjing Road. The people who danced looked like they had only been taking some lessons for beginners. Some danced also disco. There were an awful lot of people who watched them to my surprise. Don't they have anything better to do? I have to confess that I also watched them. I was the only person from outside Asia and probably therefore an old man tried to persuade me to dance with them but I said "No way".
I ate some food at KFC for 24 CNY and took a McFlurry for 10 CNY at McDonalds.
I walked towards People's Park and went down to the Hong Kong market. I couldn't look at all the shops since they closed at 9 p.m. I didn't find any nightclubs.
I went down to the Bund half past 6 and took some photos before I checked out at 8 a.m.
The Japanese guy in my dormitory wasn't sleeping in his bed so I thought that maybe he had met a girl. I found him however sleeping in a chair in the corridor outside the room. I suspect that he had lost his room key or maybe locked himself out. He probably didn't want to wake us up so therefore he maybe decided to sleep in the chair instead.
I took the subway, line 2, all the way to Pudong International Airport. It took an hour and cost 7 CNY. I had however to change train once since the train I went with stopped going. You had to wait a few minutes on the other side of the platform.
I could check in three hours before departure. There was a TV at the gate where they showed bullfighting. It was the first time I saw it since they don't send it on Swedish television which I think is right. Killing an animal like that isn't something you should enjoy looking at.
Onboard the plane you could chose between chicken and fish. I took fish which was quite good. You had to fill in two papers onboard the plane and another one at the airport before you could enter the passport queue. I filled in one field incorrect so I took a new paper and filled in everything again. Due to this I came last in a very long queue.
I had a headache again and now I understood that it was because my cold. The channels to my sinus, "bihålor" in Swedish, were probably blocked so therefore you got a headache due to the pressure differences when you fly.
At the passport check they took a photo and your fingerprints. A man at the customs looked very briefly inside my suitcase which I had checked in.
I walked to the tourist information and talked with a girl about the different options for travelling to my hostel. There were at least three different ways you could go by train and subway. The girl recommended the Airport Express which went directly to Namba subway station. It cost 1080 JPY.
I found the subway when I arrived at Namba station but there were only ticket machines and no personal service. You had to start by putting in some money but the question was how much did it cost. A young, very nice, Japanese girl asked me if I needed help. She showed me that it cost 200 JPY to the station near my hostel. She wondered if I would like to have some company since she was going in the same direction but some stations further away. After my visit in Chine I thought that all people who contacted you in some way just wanted your money. I therefore first thought that she expected that I should buy her tickets but she had some kind of card and didn't want any money. It was so nice to meet a person who helped you without expecting anything in return. We talked a little during the trip to my station. She told me that she studied English and that she had been shopping at Namba and now was on her way to another shopping centre. She told me that she started to study English at school when she was three years old. Was that really correct or did I misunderstood her?
I found the hostel without any problems. I still had a terrible headache so I just relaxed and bought something to eat at a nearby Family Mart. I planned the following day when I wanted to go to Kyoto.
On my way to the subway in the morning I met a guy who cleaned the streets. He picked up a cigarette fag-end with a long pair of tweezers. The streets in Sweden are quite clean but I have never seen any pickup a fag-end before. The traffic was maybe even calmer than in Sweden and it was nice to be able to cross a street when you have green light without worrying about cars, bicycles or mopeds.
I took the subway to Namba station where I changed to another line for Umeda station. At Umeda station you also find Osaka station where you can take a JR train to Kyoto. It takes 30 minutes to Kyoto.
At Kyoto station I visited the tourist information. They told me that I had to take a bus to the area where the temples are located. A single ticket cost 220 JPY. It would then cost at least 440 JPY both ways. Another option was to buy a day card at the tourist information for 500 JPY. I decided to buy the day card which seemed much easier. I also got maps with walking tours and good bus information. I should take bus 100 from bus stop D1 and I should go to the bus stop called Gion. You enter the bus in the middle and get off at the front where you pay for the ride. There was a machine where you could put your card. I wondered if you also should put a day card in the machine or just show it for the driver. May the machine would take the card. I tested however to put my card in the machine and luckily I got it back.
I crossed the street and walked to something which looked like a temple. You had to walk a little while into a garden before you found a road leading to other temples.
At some places you had to pay entrance fee. At one of those places you got an incense, 'rökelse' in Swedish. I wanted to see if it smelled something and put it to my nose. I didn't notice that it was already burning so I burnt my nose. I got tears and my nose started to flow so it looked like I was crying. Luckily nobody saw me. I had just entered a monument which was a tribute to the unknown soldiers of world war 2 so maybe people would have thought that I was really mourning the loss of somebody during that war.
I later bought a green soft ice for 300 JPY after I had seen all the temples I could find. I passed by a place where they had really cool masks.
I took the same bus back from the same stop but on the opposite side of the street. I had bought a return ticket to Kyoto for a little more than 1000 JPY. The train to Osaka should depart from platform 4 and 5. I couldn't find a train to Osaka so I had to ask a couple of persons and they told me that the train for BanAshi, or something like that, was going to Osaka. Osaka is a very big city with over 2.5 million citizens. I forgot to ask what station the train went to. Maybe there are several stations. I jumped off the train when I came to a station called Shin-Osaka since I wasn't sure if the train was going to another city after that. I asked the station master if there was a train going to Osaka Station. He informed me that the next train which arrived a few minutes later on the other side of the platform was going to that station. I took that train and the two subway trains before I arrived at my hostel without any further problems.
I had got a map at the hostel where you could see all interesting places in the neighbourhood. There was a supermarket some blocks away which I went to. Everything seemed to be twice as expensive as home in Sweden. I bought a couple of bottles juice and something cheap to eat. Back at the hostel I rested, ate some food and planned my trip to Nara the next day. I also talked with the guy at the reception about my coming journey to Tokyo with Shinkansen.
I bought a single ticket to Nara for 540 JPY in the ordinary subway machines.
There were a lot of school children onboard the plane. Three girls played what we in Sweden call bag, stone and scissor. The person, or persons, who lost got a slap on the hand, a blow on the head and a snap with a finger on the forehead by the other person or persons.
I couldn't find any tourist information at the station but I found out that the temples where close to the station so you could just walk, following a lot of school children. Everywhere you saw quite tame dears which were not afraid of people.
Some very cute children came to me and one of them asked me, "Excuse me, may I ask some qustions". I said that it was okay. They asked where I came from and what I was called. All of them wrote down what I said. I took a photo of them and they also wanted to take some photos of me. Their teacher was nearby and thanked me very much for my cooperation.
On the top of the hill I met two very nice women who asked where I came from and we talked a little. There were a lot of grasshoppers on top of the hill. I searched for lizards but couldn't see any.
On my way down some people said good afternoon in Japanese. I didn't know what they said at first but found it later in my Lonely Planet guide book. If you travel to Japan you should definitely learn some words like good day and thank you because Japanese people are very friendly and it would be impolite not to be able to answer in a correct way.
There were a lot of deer everywhere which were not afraid of people. A school class had a picnic when a deer tried to eat their food. The teachers tried to push it away but without any success.
I visited the museum before I went home. At least one school class travelled with the same train.
During the evening I went to Namba shopping centre and looked at some shops. I don't think I have ever seen so many shops before.
In the morning I bought a ticket for Shinkansen the following day. I booked a seat with the fastest train, Nozomi, which went 10 a.m. The ticket cost 14000 JPY. You probably don't have to buy tickets in advance since every 10 minutes one of the fastest trains goes to Tokyo.
I went shopping at Namba during 3.5 hours before I returned to my hostel for some rest.
In the evening I went out shopping for another three hours.
I also ate a pizza buffet for around 700 JPY or 950 JPY including a medium size Coca Cola. In the above photos you can see what kind of food they eat in Japan and also how much it cost.
I bought a couple of shirts, a t-shirt and three belts. I took out 20.000 JPY from an ATM machine down at Namba Walks which is an underground shopping centre. The latest fashion in Japan seems to be to wear something which nobody else is wearing.
I checked out at 8 a.m. and had a lot of time before the Shinkansen train departed at 10 a.m. At the station you could see that a train departed every 10 minutes and that my train departed from platform 10. My seat was in carriage number 4. Two signs at the platform showed where you should wait to enter carriage number 4. You could enter in the front and in the rear. My seat was in row 16 so I thought that you should enter from the back of the carriage but the numbering of the rows wasn't the same as in airplanes. Each carriage had 20 rows with 5 seats. The train had 16 carriages so there could be maximum 1600 persons. The train departed exactly on the minute and reached also Tokyo station exactly on time. I thought that the Shinkansen used special rails but it seemed to be the same as for instance here in Sweden. It wasn't like a maglev train.
I had planned to take the subway from Tokyo station to Shinjuku station but when I bought a ticket from a ticket counter I got a ticket for the JR trains. It was however much better since it was just some stations away and you didn't have to change anywhere. The ticket cost just 190 JPY.
According to the instructions I had got from the hostel I should walk towards north from the station but what direction is that when you cannot see the sun. I luckily went in the right direction anyway. The capsule hotel should be just in front of the subway station but I couldn't find it. I looked quite a lot until a very nice, elderly couple came and helped me. The man phoned the number to the hotel and they explained for him where it was. I had passed it since the big sign was in Japanese characters. There was also a sign in ordinary characters but it was hidden behind a tree. The couple had actually been living in Oslo during 5 years and even paid a visit to my city, Gothenburg.
The check-in was at 3 p.m. so I left my suitcase at a luggage room. It was very secure since only the persons who worked there had access to the room and you got a checker in the same way as you get when you leave things in a nightclub wardrobe.
I went out and walked a little during one hour in the neighbourhood. Across the street, in the subway building, was a nice "cowboy"-shop which had an awful lot of nice belts. The problem was that they were too expensive. All of them cost around 10.000 JPY or more.
I returned to the hotel at 3 p.m. You had to lock your shoes in a little box and give the key to the reception. At the reception you got a key to another locker box where you could put your other things. You also got something which looked like a pyjamas which you were supposed to wear. The locker box was just about 20 cm wide and used for hanging in your clothes. It was difficult to squeeze in my bag with all things but I managed to do it after I had taken out most of the things. I thought that you could keep things in your capsule but you couldn't lock it.
I put on the pyjamas and went for a shower which you found after some searching a couple of floors up. You had to sit on a small chair when you showered. There were women nearby who for instance could give you massage.
After the shower I took some photos of my capsule before I went out. I put on my clothes and you had to leave the key at the reception. In return you got a receipt and the key to your shoe box.
I ate a kebab for 700 JPY including a Coca Cola. I talked a little with the nice guy who came from Istanbul. I also bought a couple of nice shoes for 3990 JPY before I went back. Now you had to do the whole procedure again to get inside. I didn't want to put on my pyjamas so I just sneaked in to my capsule when nobody was around. I don't know if you had to wear the pyjamas but I suppose that Japanese people have a lot of strict traditions. I rested for one or two hours before I went through the whole procedure to get out again.
I visited the nearby red-light district of Tokyo. It was almost only men on the streets. An African man wondered if I wanted to play with tits during 2 hours for 10.000 JPY. It might have been tempted if I didn't have a couple of them at home and those tits had an advantage that they belonged to a lovely, intelligent woman you also could speak with. Playing with tits during two hours is a lot of time. You really have to love tits. You should actually get paid for spending so much time with them.
Another African man wondered if I wanted to have a woman. I was not interested. He didn't take no for an answer and told me that I at least could have a look. I agreed since then I maybe could get rid of him. I thought it was nearby but he walked some hundred meters before you had to take a small elevator up some floors. He knocked on a door which looked like an ordinary apartment door and somebody opened. Some really cute, young Japanese girls turned up at the door. He told me that two hours with a girl including free alcoholic drinks would cost 10.000 JPY. According to him you could even take the girl to your hotel room if you wanted to have sex. I would however never trust a guy like that. I told him again that I really wasn't interested in sex and that I just wanted to walk around by myself. He didn't give up and told me that he just wanted to show me another place. I told him that he just wasted his time but I followed him. He showed me a catalogue with a lot of beautiful Japanese girls and it was just to choose who you would like to spend two hours with. He also told me that I could watch striptease and even take photos of completely nude girls for 5.000 or pay 25.000 for just sex and massage. I told him that I still wasn't interested and reminded him that I had told him that before. Now he got a little angry because I had wasted his time and he wanted to have 1000 JPY for the trouble of showing me the clubs which I had told him that I wasn't interested in. I gave him 300. Now he got really angry and grabbed my sweater and in the same time made a phone call. I forced myself away from him and said that I should call the police. I ran down the steps as fast as I could until I came out in the street. I had no idea where I was but walked quickly in the direction where I thought my hotel was located. After some time I saw the place where I previously had bought a kebab which was a relief. I continued to walk as quickly as possible until I was close to my hotel. There I heard somebody behind me say "Are you looking for me?". I turned around and saw the African man. I got scared and with my heart in my mouth tried to walk away as fast as possible. "Would you like to have a Japanese girl?" I heard him say. I looked quickly at him again and now I saw that it wasn't the African man I had been running from. What a relief! I said 'No' and continued as quickly as possible to my hotel.
I travel a lot and should know better than follow somebody in such a district to a place you don't know anything about. You could have been robbed even if Japan is a very safe country. Hopefully I learnt something from that experience.
I wrote my diary in my capsule and went to sleep around 11 p.m. Luckily I had only booked one night in the capsule and I really looked forward to leave the place early in the morning the next day.
I went up half past seven. A lot of costume dressed men prepared themselves for going to work. They had their costumes on in several places so it was obvious that you didn’t have to wear the pyjamas everywhere.
I went through the procedure to get out a last time and went to the Shinkuku station. After sunset you see the African men everywhere but during daylight they are gone. They are like predators searching for prey in darkness. I had some problems to find the right subway line but an English talking, white guy helped me. He told me that I could walk some hundred meters underground to another subway station which was better for my destination.
I found the hostel without any problems. It was very nice, much nicer than the hostels in China although they had been quite okay. I was told that I could check-in after 4 p.m. but that wasn’t correct. I could in fact check in directly but the bed wasn’t available until 4 p.m. There was a free locker, the best I have seen in a hostel, where I could put my things.
I walk in the neighborhood to Sensoji Temple.
I also took the subway to the Imperial Palace. You could just see it from outside the walls since he was living there.
I visited Ginza which seemed to be a shopping center with warehouses like Oxford Street in London.
When I came back to the hostel I met Tom from England who was going to stay in the same dormitory. He had been on a business trip and now had some days vacation. He developed a program for blind people which converted light to sound. I had previously seen a TV program about a man who made clicking sounds and could use the echo like a bat. Tom told me that you only can do that if you learn it as a child. The program he developed could be used by people who got blind later in life. With a lot of practice the brain can learn to convert the sound to something like a picture so in some way you can say that you can see, maybe even colors.
I rested and had planned to go out that evening. It started however to rain so I gave it up.
I also shared the room with two guys from Spain and a woman from Taiwan who studied Spanish in Spain. They travelled together. The woman told me that you could buy sushi cheap in the nearby Life supermarket. The supermarket closed 10 p.m. but around 9 p.m. they reduced the price for all sushi to just 50% since sushi is only fresh during one day. I bought something to eat but I have to say that I didn’t like it very much. I am not so fond of raw fish but normally I eat prepared fish almost daily at home in Sweden.
I went to Roppongi which is one of the best nightlife areas in Tokyo. I wanted to check out some salsa clubs for tonight. I found both Salsa Caribe and Salsa Sudada beside Hardrock café.
I passed by a pet shop where the were selling dogs.
It started to rain so I went into a McDonalds and took a McFlurry for 100 JPY. I read some documents about the nightlife in Tokyo which I had printed out. You could read that it is the “men’s world”. I suppose that Japanese men can go out and have fun with young Japanese girls while their wives stay back at home. It costs of course money. I thought about it and must say that it is a really boring world. It is much more fun in Sweden where both men and women goes out. In Sweden you can have a lot of fun with women in your own age, and an important thing is that you don’t have to pay for it. I am not talking about just sex now.
On my way home to the hostel I had problem with the subway ticket for the second time. You have to make sure that you buy the tickets at machines just outside the line which you are going to use. I had bought tickets at one line and then I had walked to another subway line. I couldn’t pass the gates to that subway line. You then show the ticket to a person who works there and if you are lucky you get your money back and can buy a correct ticket at the nearby machines.
In the evening I ate dinner at a noodle bar just across the small lane outside the hostel. It was like spaghetti in a soup with some onions and 5 slices of meat. It was actually quite good and cost 800 JPY. You got a lot of food so you were not hungry afterwards.
In the evening I went to Roppongi again. Now there were a lot of sleazy, unpleasant African men. Sorry to say it but my previous encounter with one of them had affected me quite a lot. All of them are of course not like that but I think that Japan would be a much nicer country without them. “Hello Sir. How are you?” you could hear them say when you passed by. “Fine” I more or less snorted out while I passed them as quickly as possible without even looking in their direction.
I went to Salsa Sudada around 8 p.m. but was informed that they had a wedding party so I had to come back after 9 p.m. which I did. At first I suppose that most people were from the party and couldn’t dance salsa even if they tried. Later however came people who danced well, but maybe not as good as the people in Beijing. The entrance fee was by the way 1500 JPY which included one free drink, in my case a Cuba Libre.
I danced with a couple, really nice ladies. Unfortunately the dance floor was only about 3 x 3 meters and it soon got really crowded. The subway also stops around midnight and after that you have to take an expensive taxi home. I had previously asked at the hotel reception how much a taxi would cost and was told that it could cost 5000 JPY. It wasn’t worth to stay after midnight so I went home already 22:30.
Tom, a guy from Canada, a girl from New Zeeland, a girl from England and some more people were sitting in the sofas near the reception. I joined them and we sat and talked for a while. They were going to a rave party they had heard about but wasn’t sure exactly where it was located. They asked if I wanted to join them. It would have been fun but I said no since I was heading for China early the next day. A couple from Barcelona in Spain arrived when the other people went to the rave party. I talked with them until 2 a.m. in the night before I went to bed.
I went up 7:45, packed the rest of my things and checked out around 8 a.m.
I walked to Asuka station where you can take Keisei Line directly to Narita airport. You have to take the airport train from the ordinary subway platform. The train should go 8:50. You buy the ticket in the ordinary subway ticket machines. You specified that you should go to the airport. The ticket cost 1240 JPY. I think it took 50 minutes to terminal 2 which is the stop before the final destination which is terminal 1. You have to check up in advance which terminal you are going to.
I was stopped by two security guards who checked my passport and wrote down number and name on a paper. First I wondered why but then I saw that they just compared it with the visa on another page in the passport.
I was quite early so I went to the information counter and asked when I could check-in. They checked my flight and told me that I could check in 10:30, 3 hours before departure. I could only check-in to Changchun and not all the way to Beijing since Changchun to Beijing is a domestic flight.
The airplane was really nice and the food was good so you don’t have to worry that the planes in China are bad. Some men in costumes arrived late, really sweaty. They had probably been running and stank of old sweat. Luckily they didn’t sit beside me.
I could check-in directly when I arrived at Changchun although I had to wait some time before the departure. It was cold and quite dark in the terminal building and no shops.
It was raining in Changchun but luckily it was better weather in Beijing but only 9 degrees. I passed a quarantine check where they had a monitor to check the temperature of all arriving passengers. It was late so I had previously arranged a taxi pick-up for 200 CNY by e-mail conversation with the hostel.
I was tired so I didn’t do anything that evening. A Russian guy in another room was really noisy and sang a song similar to Kalinka when he came home to the hostel together with some other people in the middle of the night. Thank God that I didn’t have any drunk Russian guys in my dormitory.
I had been seeing a lot of things during the three weeks vacation so I was too tired to make any trips. I just walked around in the neighbourhood.
I visited among other things the clothing market and the marked under McDonalds. You should visit the clothing market if you want to by clothes, shoes etc. They have an awful lot of clothes on several floors but it can be quite an exhausting experience when all try to persuade you to enter their little shop. A woman said that a belt cost 85 CNY. When I walked away I think I could get two for 30 CNY. A guy from HongKong stayed in the same dormitory as I stay in. He said that they hear that he has another accent and therefore also treats him as a tourist. He told me that he use to start bargain with 10% of the price. He then increase to about 20% before he walks away and gets their final price. All shops have similar clothes so he uses the price information he has received when he starts to bargain more seriously in the next shop.
I walked around the stadium and took some photos.
In the evening, 18:10, a guy fetched me and a woman called Adriana from Colombia. She studied in Melbourne in Australia and hoped to get a permanent workpermit so she didn't have to go back to Colombia. She had just been with her brother in Shanghai. He visit China one month every year when he travel around and imported different things.
When we arrived at the theatre it was more or less empty. Nobody has informed us when it started. The driver fetched the tickets and placed us on some seats in the middle. Maybe we had to be so early otherwise the tickets would be lost. We asked a person there and was informed that the show started 19:15 so we had to sit there and wait 45 minutes. I had asked at the hostel if you could take photos. They told me that it was okay when I bought the ticket the previous evening if I didn't use the flash. I asked again before departure and the girl didn't know if I could take the camera with me. She asked the driver and he said that it was okay to take photos. Before the show started a man walked around with a big sign which showed that taking photos was not allowed. Some people watched the audience carefully during the show and if you took up a camera they used a bright, green light which they used on you until you put your camera away.
The show was incredible and it is something you have to see if you visit Beijing. It was close to the nearest subway station where I used to take the metro. If I had known that I would have tried to buy the ticket myself because that would probably be much cheaper. It was a pity that they didn't sell a DVD after the show.
On our way home I and Adriana stopped at a cheap restaurant and took something to eat. I ordered something which contained so much chilli so it was impossible to eat it.
I went to the nightclub Latte afterwards since I wanted to take some photos of that incredible place. I used the camera and filmed a sequence but then somebody came and almost took the camera from me. It was so dark so I couldn't see how I should deleted the things I had filmed. Luckily there was a lamp nearby so I could find the right buttons to remove it otherwise I don't know what they would have done with my camera or memory card. Unfortunately for them I therefore cannot make any PR for their club here.
Back at the hostel I saw Adriana. I ordered a Cuba Libre and talked with her until midnight.
I had booked a taxi for 140 CNY the last evening. Normally it cost around 100 CNY if you just grab a taxi on the street.
There was a noisy guy at the reception, probably a drunk Russian guy, who seemed to practise some kind of karate for himself. Maybe he thought that it would impress the people at the reception but I am quite sure that they thought that he was really a pain in the ass.
I had to give the taxi driver 10 CNY extra to pass into the airport area. I wonder if that shouldn't be included in the fee I had already paid at the hostel.
At the airport you had to fill in a departure card and they used a webcam for a check with your passport photo. On the backside of the departure card you find some instructions for how you should fill in the different fields. You are referred to as an 'alien' which sounds quite funny.
You also have to pass a quarantine check again where a person looks at a monitor showing the people who pass by. It shows if you have a fever. I passed the ordinary security check without any additional checks.
The taxi had departed from the hostel at 4 a.m. so I was at the airport before 5 a.m. I had checked in and passed all checks before 6 a.m. but then almost all shops were closed. They opened around 6:30. One litre Absolute Vodka cost 127 CNY.
I ate some dumplings which were good and only cost 10 CNY. I also took some shrimps with vegetables. It all cost 50 CNY.
Boarding started 7:00. I travelled with Austrian Airlines and I think the service and food were very good. I had to wait 8 hours at the airport in Vienna before my plane to Sweden departed. My father fetched me at the airport as usual.