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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
............ 
Jan 16, 2007 07:00 PM 18 km to the border...
PINGXIANG. Did you hear about PingXiang? It is a little chineese town on the main road to Vietnam... I stay here involuntary in the chineese army camp... Every time I pass through the gate I politely say -Hallo!- to the guards - soldiers in the elegant uniforms. There is not much to do in PingXiang. I buy my daily bananas on the little market (2 yuan per kilo), mandarines (3 yuan per kilo) and tomatoes (2 yuan again). It is cheap: for 1 USD they pay 7.78 yuan... Sorry - no bread... There are people from the minorities visible on the streets, but they are shy to be photographed. No other tourists... 3 km down the road there is a "downtown" of Pinxiang with few hotels and shops.
No much to do - so it is laundry day. Touts offer money exchange: for 1 yuan - 2000 vietnameese dongs. What will be the rate on the other side of the border? Who knows?
Tomorrow in the morning I'll try to cross the border to Vietnam again. It is 18 km to the road border crossing. Next train will come two days later - I do not want to wait so long time...
So please keep your fingers crossed my friends! I believe it helps!
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Jan 15, 2007 07:00 PM No, I am not in Hanoi...
T-5 train departed from Guilin with one hour delay. In Nanning they took all of us off the train... (for cleaning?) an hour later we boarded our international express again... Only two passenger carriages in the train! Bad news: the chineese carriage will go only to the Vietnameese border town of DangDong. Then, in the middle of the night all passengers are changing the carriage to the Vietnameese one! Even Lonely Planet did not mention that...
At 1 am we reched the chineese border town of Pingxiang. Immigrations collected the passports. They came back with them an hour later. No exit stamp in my passport! -You must disembark the train! - somebody translated because the immigration officers know only english: Hallo!
Why me? -In your vietnameese visa you have written date of entry to Vietnam 18th Jan, it is 16th today! -You have to wait two days!
But... there is no disscussion in the middle of the night with the officer who do not speak any European language...
I dissembarked the train...
It is VERY difficult planing four-months RTW voyage to precise the entry date - I did not know T5 timetable... Now you will know what to expect on this outback border crossing...
Good night from China!
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Jan 14, 2007 07:00 PM Ready for T-5 train...
I am back in Guilin-China. At the railway station I got my ticket for the tnternational T-5 train Beijing-Hanoi. Soft sleeper cars only - they charge hefty 527 yuan. But I got it! Depart will be in the afternoon. There is another - less expensive option to get to Vietnam: 10.30 pm sleeper bus to the border for 250 yuan and then on the other side you have to look for the other bus to Hanoi. But I have bad experience with chineese sleeper buses: they are for the people who are up to 150 cm tall and not so wide. I am 182 cm, so for me a night I such a bus is like a hell... Thank you!
On my first evening in Guilin on the main street between rail and bus stations I was bothered by the local ladies. "Beautiful, beautiful!"- they know some english words. "F... - 200 yuan!"-they offered. And when I politely said: Shieshie! Thank you! the price for "F..." dropped dramatically to 100 yuan.
100 yuan is just 12,50 USD. The price for the party with "beautiful" chineese ladies is not so high! I saw the same ladies on the main street today... They did not repeat their offer probably because I had a huge bacpack on me. I did not see any presence of People's Police there...
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Jan 13, 2007 07:00 PM Walk through the rice fields...
Even in the one million-town in China you will not see in the "supermarket" such delights like butter, cheese, margarine, caned meat... They do not eat it! There is plenty of instsnt noodle soups - but the problem is: how to recognize what is inside (I do not like hot, spicy food). A sort of sweet bread is available only in limited cake shops. So, what to eat: there are plenty of cheap street eateries - they serve a noodle soups for just 2-3 yuan and the rice dishes for 6-8y. Bon apetit!
Today I took a microbus (3y) to the village of Fuli. Sorry, there are no traditional houses - China is changing... I took some pictures on the market and the walked out of the village - through rice and sugar cane fields - at the bottom of this fantastic, picturesque limestone formations. I reached other, smaller village with some mud-brick architecture and smiling pepple. There were orange orchards - it is just the harvest time and you can buy a kilo for 4 yuan - just 50 US cents...
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Jan 12, 2007 07:00 PM Cruising Li River - China
In front of the Guilin station you will be bothered by many touts. Most of them offer accommodation and excursions to the rice terraces and cruises on the Li river. The unusual landscape of limestone hills around Li River is the main attraction in the Guilin area. The prices for a few hours cruise starts at 470 yuan on the "foreigners" boat with lunch and english-speaking guide. Next option is 280 y boat for the Chineese tourist. Without insurance (ask!) it will be 210. But I'll tell you the secret: there is another option for the backpacker: take 10y bus to Yangshuo, then 5.50y bus to Xingping. At the Xingping bus station touts will offer you the round trip boat to the village Yangdi - through the most picturesque part of the Rivel Li cruise. And you will pay for the RT boat only 40y instead of 200!!! What a bargain! Yes, I took this little boat. It is still cloudy here and all this fantastic limestone peaks are in the haze, but the views were still exciting... I think it is one of the highlights in the landscape of all China - not to be missed!
Just one warning: avoid Mr Jack Li from CITS Guilin - his office is in the kiosk in front of Guilin Station. He knows English but he is cheating foreign tourists: he will send you for the Li River cruise by local transport charging twice money that it is worth!
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Jan 11, 2007 07:00 PM China - cold and hazy Guilin...
Did you ever wait 10 minutes for the opening of single internet window? That's how it works here! In front of my hotel I found internet cafe - is is more like the game saloon, but it has also internet facility... They charge only 2 yuan per hour, but the speed is so bad...
It is cold and hazy here - today I was walking around the town visiting the tourist attractions - they are not cheap... They charge 50 yuan for the entry to Solitary Beauty Park (palace surrounded by the wall with a picturesque peak to climb and to enjoy the view). Then if you cross the bridge there is nice Seven Star Park to visit (another 35 yuan to pay - no mercy, no discounts!) - the view from the Sky Pavillon on one of the hills is spectacular... if it is sunny day. Bizarre limestone formations are closing the horizon...
I spent an hour at the train station first trying to get the information when the train to Vietnam is departing and then trying to buy the ticket... The lines are long... The knowledge of english - almost zero... So for your information: departs are on Monday and Friday only at 2.36 pm... Finally somebody explained me that I can buy the ticket only two days ahead... Too early... I'll stay in the line again...
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Jan 10, 2007 07:00 PM China - riding the bus to Guilin...
My charming guide did not expected that the last direct bus to Guilin will depart from Canton at 9.10 am. Lonely Planet is wrong: it takes now only 7 hours. We found the connection with bus change at Babu. Departure 10.45 am to Babu - 7 hours, 100 yuans. And then 3.5 hours to Guilin (65 y). In China very often when you buy the bus tickets you must buy also the travel insurance - this is like extra 5 y to pay... and you have no choice... The long distance buses are suprisely comfortable - I had enough space for my long legs. The attendent serves free mineral water and chineese snacks...
It was dark when I arrived to Guilin - close to the bus station I found Huali Hotel. On the wall there is official room price: 240 y. But withe the help of nice english-speaking fellow after some we bargained it to 100 yuan. (1 USD =7.73 y). Beds are hard but there is even hot water in the shower. It is cold here but the mountains around are beautiful...
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Jan 09, 2007 07:00 PM Along the Pearl River -China
It is good to have a friend in the far-away country! We met four months ago in the high mountains of Pakistan, where we taravelled together bumpy and dusty roads of the Hindukush...
It was almost midnight when my delayed Nortwest flight landed in new Guangzhou airport. She - the charming Chineese lady - was waiting for me patiently in the arrival hall. I was really happy to see her again!
In the morning she guided me to the busy downtown of 3.5-million Guangzhou (former Canton). I hoped to see there some high buildings - I saw much more then I expected. China surprises me... They run now a lot a construction work and soon in Canton there will be more new skyscrapers then on the Manhattan. :) We had my favourite dumplings - baodzy - for lunch... Then we visited Chan Clan village, three main temples and imposing stone cathedral - the tourist highligts of Canton. On the river there is Shamian Island - former colonial enclave with narrow, shaddy streets ant some old, fancy buildings. At the dusk it is worth to be on the promenade on the riverside of Pearl River - lights, iluminated boats pasing by, wonderful music - just enchanting moment... It was great day - thank you my friend! Tomorrow I am heading to Guilin...
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Jan 08, 2007 07:00 PM Sayounara Japan!
My last day in Japan... I did not plan a long stay here - first because I saw already the tourist attractions of the main Honsiu Island. Second - it is sunny, but cold here - not the best time to travel. Third - Japan is very, very expensive for the backpacker... For 1 USD they pay only around 110 yen...
I left my backpack in the locker (300 yen - they are common at all bigger Tokyo stations) and took a last walk through the famous Ginza quarter - full of the skyscrapers.
In the evening I am departing to Guanngzhou (Canton) in China. Sayounara!
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Jan 07, 2007 07:00 PM Mt Fuji after 26 years...
I am lucky again. The sun is shining so I decided to take a bus to Kawaguchiko - the little village at the bottom of legendary Mt Fuji... Tokyo is huge town and it takes a time to move around... Allow at least one hour to come to Shindjuku bus station. It is not easy to operate ticket-vending machines - the explanations are in Japaneese so ask somebody for help. The local train to the bus station cost me 260 yen. Then I found departing point (not easy again) and bought the bus ticket (1700 yen one-way). Buses are comfortable and have WC but nothing is served on the bus. After 2 hours I saw Mt Fuji again... 26 years ago I was climbing Fujiyama from the bottom to the top in two days... Now it was a chance to see the majesty of this legendary mountain from the distance. In Kawagichiko I took a cable car to the hill - 630 yen RT... The view was beautiful but let you know that in the mid-day you have the sunlight from the opposite side - the pictures are not so clear...
Then I took a long walk along the picturesque Kawaguchi Lake (walking on the snow - can you imagine?) enjoying the views... In the evening I was walking again through the bright Tokyo downtown. Today is the "holiday of the 20-years old". On that day the young ladies wear their beautiful kimonos and go to meet another some age frinds. I took many lovely pictures of them - hope to publish them after return...
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