It was a shock to go to the washroom for the first time in China. It was during a stop in a rural while taking a Sleeper Bus from Hong Kong to Yangshou. The bus was equipped with a small closet washroom, but I never saw anyone use it. If the locals were not using it, I wasn't about to. We had been warned about the toilets in China, but nothing could have prepared me for this experience. I followed other ladies from the bus into the building that housed the facilities. I was preparing myself to use a squat toilet for the first time, but to my surprise it was even worse. … [Read more...]
Beautiful Yangshou Beyond The Tourist Trap
This was a very pleasant town to hang around for a while. The scenery in the surrounding areas is really beautiful. We noticed that on the Lonely Planet site someone posted a question to experienced travelers. They asked them to name the most beautiful place they had ever traveled to. Yangshou came up on many people's responses. Some travelers then responded "Are you crazy?" "It's just a bunch of western style restaurants and a load of shops selling junk". Obviously these people did not take the time to explore outside the main town area. Make sure to get out and see the beautiful … [Read more...]
Yangshou Town, Becoming More Western Than Chinese
Yangshou has a small town area that has developed for tourism. It even has a street called "West" or "Foreigner" street named for the westerners that come here. There are many restaurants and places of accommodation catering to foreign tourists. It does seem kind of strange to come all the way to China and then eat food from home, and then find out all the cafe staff and shop keepers can speak English. However, the western food would be a nice break for someone who had been traveling in China for a while. Who Knew We Would Be Such An Attraction, Especially While Eating We were warned … [Read more...]
To Yangshou By Sleeper Bus
We got onto our bus from Hong Kong and started our journey to Shenzen, which is just across the border in China. On the bus ride out of Hong Kong we got some spectacular views of skyscrapers along the shorelines of the harbour. It was only an hour to get to the border. The difference between Hong Kong and China was immediately apparent. People were pushing and shoving past us to get into line. The crowd was literally crawling over our bags and us! We were getting nowhere fast and finally had to start fighting to get to the correct line. I think I took out a couple of people with one of my … [Read more...]