Journey to the World

One hour before the flight I had a work emergency so I almost missed the train to the airport. Ten minutes after sitting in the airplane to Qatar one of the stewardesses announced that there’s a problem with the airplane’s door. This caused the first delay in a combined deal of Arkia Airlines and Qatar Airlines. This is considered a cheap flight from Israel to Beijing with two connections. One in Amman, Jordan and the second is in Doha, Qatar. The downfall of this deal is a long wait of six hours in Doha.

So we came back to the airport, waited for an hour, got on the bus and the airplane for the second time, only to hear of a airport strike started the minute we boarded the airplane. So here we go for the second time from the airplane back to the airport.

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El-Al’s airplane landed on time in the international airport of Beijing. The Chinese waited with folded wheelchairs for the Israeli paralympic expedition. I went straight to border control and to get my bags.

In order to Baggage Claim you have to get on the light train inside the airport. It’s a free ride, but you have to get down in the correct station, where most passengers leaves the train. Digital billboards in the train show both English and Chinese directions. Without too much trouble you can easily find your way.

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That day I woke up late trying to get over a jet leg I got the day before. At 12:00 in the afternoon I walked out of the hotel. In front there’s a store renting new city bikes for 10 yuans  per day (you have to leave a deposit of 300 yuan). The forbidden city is located a few kilometers from the hotel I was staying in. Thirty minutes of bicycle ride. On the way I discovered how much China, or at least Beijing, is bicycle friendly. All main roads have at least one lane only for bicycles. On one road I noticed the bicycle lane is even wider than the cars lane.

The forbidden city is open until 17:00. The compound is huge, so those who want to see everything, need to be in good shape, or get early in the morning to give enough rest time.

Between huge walls and ancient Chinese buildings I started to feel like things are repeating themselves. The ticket’s price is 35 yuan. Students get a discount. In the other side of the forbidden city there’s a garden that’s worth a visit since it is different than the rest of the structures.

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That day I rented a bicycle in front of Far East hotel. The price is low, only 10 yuan per day (300 yuan deposit). The store owners know a little English but are very nice. They agreed I get their bike back at midnight instead of the regular hour. The temple of heaven is located not so far from the center. Half an hour is sufficient. It depends on the speed you’re riding and the way you can handle Beijing’s streets which are not easy for navigation due to their obscure names repeated in various variations. You may find two different streets having the same name, but a different suffix such as dajie or Rd. These added to a combination of the Chinese words indicating East / West (or North / South) can be confusing.

You can go inside the temple of heaven (TianTan) from the north or south entrance. The route is direct from one entrance to another. It is not too long so you can walk through it in three hours or even less. Overall, the temples inside are pretty but when you’re travelling under pressure, you can skip this place. Although the direct route, where most tourists are walking, isn’t too long, the park itself is a huge place. You can easily spend half a day inside. Forests on each side of the route, within them are peaceful walking trails. The ticket you buy at the entrance is sufficient for most sites. You should notice that you can visit every site only one time. The guard cuts a part of your ticket every time you enter a site, though you can always go back using a bypass road to the left or to the right of that site.

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The great wall of China has many parts, some visited by more tourists, some by less. That day I woke up early for a change, so I took the opportunity to visit The Great Wall in Badaling. This is the most touristic part of the wall, but to be honest I didn’t mind walking in the same route with thousands of other Chinese tourists.

The Great Wall is located a one hour bus ride from Beijing. An organized tour from the hotel is expensive – 260 yuan (including a ride and lunch). It gets out at a crazy hour – 6:20 in the morning. I took the cheapest realistic option – bus number 919. In order to get to the bus station, I took the subway. The subway’s ticket is ridiculously cheap (1 yuan). From the subway you have the walk about 10 minutes to the bus station. The bus leaves about every twenty minutes. The ticket costs 12 yuan. Last bus leaves the great wall to Beijing at 16:00, so make sure your schedule is right.

The Great Wall in Badaling is loaded with Chinese tourists on Fridays. I guess it gets worse on Saturdays and Sundays. The views and landscape are breathtaking, simply beautiful. Nonetheless, looking backwards, if I had the option, I would’ve picked a different part of the wall.

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The Summer Palace is located twenty kilometers from the center of Beijing. According to the Lonely Planet you can get there by riding a bike. I took the opportunity, started cycling at 10:00 in the morning for a long ride in Beijing’s streets. I had a map for a change, which I purchased in the hostel I was staying in (10 yuan), and so the planning became a little less complex.

Riding in Beijing’s streets, apart from the physical effort and lack of convenience, gives you a freedom similar to what you get by riding a motorbike. You can stop everywhere, sometimes ride against the traffic direction or on sidewalks. Those who plan to ride along with the traffic should know that traffic lights in general, and the green or red lights specifically are taken by Chinese drivers as a recommendation and nothing more. The roads are wide and organized. There are traffic lights for cars, for pedestrians and even special traffic lights for bicycles. Traffic policemen are stated in almost every possible location. Any one of the described does not seem to interfere with cars, pedestrians or bicycles to cross a junction on a red light in front of the open eyes of the cops, without any implications whatsoever. Surprisingly, drivers who cross on a red light are very cautious. They get into traffic without a difficulty. It seems as if this is part of the driving culture of the city. I have not seen accidents or near-accidents in the entire time I was in the city.

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On the last day in Beijing I had a night train to Pingyao, the city which became famous for its ancient city and historical houses.

That day I rented a bicycle to do some shopping around the hotel. Surprisingly, during the entire week I stayed in Beijing, first week of September, was unusually hot. But the last day showed signs of the autumn. Light rain fell from the skies.

I stored my bags in the storage room of Far East hotel before going out. Although being called a hotel, it was actually a hostel. The place looks good and well maintained. The rooms pricing was too high for my taste, but in other places it is not different. I paid 80 yuan for one bed in the dormitory. I would’ve paid more if I didn’t get a reservation in advance using the internet. The Olympic games raise the prices, and I almost had to beg so the reservation price would stay that way for three days (regular price went up to 120 yuan per bed). The bad feeling of arguing the staff made me think twice whether I should come back in the future or not. The reception clerks speak a little English, but don’t expect anything close to a fluent conversation. You won’t find any flexible prices. On the contrary. Organized tours are priced too high. Beds in the basement dormitory do not justify their price. The mattress is thin and the bed is rough. In the first floor there are more expensive dormitories – thicker mattress but smaller rooms, as well as double-deck beds unlike in the basement.

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Around 7:30 in the morning the night train arrives in Pingyao. Before we arrived an old Chinese man explained to me where to get off and gave me some information for the rest of my journey (naturally he spoke Mandarin).

After our conversation, he told me that he’s a hostel owner in Pingyao, and so he invited me to check a room as I told him I have no reservation. I could not say no to a free ride from the train station to the center of the city as his hostel is listed in the latest Lonely Planet.

We arrived in a vehicle typical to Pingyao – a small car similar to those used for transportation inside a golf course. A price of 70 yuan for dormitory dropped to 60 yuan after a little bargaining. The room itself was luxorius enough to be a hotel’s room. Inside the room were two beds, a TV, an air-conditioner with a remote, toilets (western!) and a shower with hot water, all inside the room. I though I’d get a room similar to the one in Beijing, but in practice, when only two persons share a dormitory it turns into a nice surporise. The only disadvantage was that the lock is outside, meaning you cannot lock the door from the inside without blocking the entrence for your partner.

The entire hostel had an ancient atmosphere – red lanterns and fabrics hanging over each door, so even when the door isn’t closed, it’s not too bad.

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After using the internet till 3:00 in the morning the night before, I woke up late. I didn’t miss much because a rain flooded Pingyao since early hours of the morning. In the afternoon me and Martina went together to Shuanglin temple located outside the city. We got one of these motorized tricycles (25 yuan after bargaining) and arrived after twenty minutes of slow drive.

Shuangling temple (entrence fee: 25 yuan or 12 yuan for students) is not very big. Inside are colored statues within a few structures. Other than that, it’s quite boring. When we went out 30 minutes later, the driver was busy pumping one of the wheels using a manual pump. We used the time to travel in the village close to the temple. Unlike the noisy Pingyao, the village is quiet with no tourists.

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Strange noises at 5:30 in the morning. A few Chinese people stood near my bed speaking loudly. They were talking in Mandarin buy I was clear that I was their topic of conversation. I opened my eyes and saw an old woman pointing the bed I was sleeping in. I then figured out it was time to go… My hope of sleeping till Luoyang was shuttred. I got my bags and moved to the other car. The morning has already broken, but that didn’t keep me from falling asleep again.

At 11:30 in the morning the train arrived in Luoyang. Eleven hours in total. In the train station I was raided by a bunch of old Chinese ladies. They all tried to get me into their own hotel. I walked after the lowest offer – 60 yuan, which went down to 45 yuan after a little bargaining. The hotel is located two minutes from the train station, just over the side of the road. The hotel’s name was in Chinese so I have no idea what’s its name. A neglected room with a double bed, a little stiffling and dirty walls. In any other situation I would leave and go to another place, but my broken bag convinced me to stay. Before I went to my room, the woman in the reception managed to sell me a ticket for the minibus to Shaolin temple and back (40 yuan). Later I’ve discovered the dirty shared bathroom. The shared showers are located in a different floor than the room but at least ehy have hot water in the evening. The reception lady recommended that I go that day to Longmen caves. The time was already 13:00.

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