Day 46: Last Blog Entry, Back in Austria
Trip Start
Apr 16, 2009
1
24
Trip End
May 31, 2009
Vienna, Vienna, Austria
Monday, June 1, 2009
What's my conclusion now? Hard to tell, but here are my main learnings: China - what I have seen - is not as exotic as I thought or expected. In fact, staying in bigger cities (small cities are around 1m people), life is almost as modern, organised and manageable as in Europe. Still, China or Chinese people may be controversial in some respects, think of queuing up, or not, think of helping you out, or ripping you off, depending on where you are and what you do. Overall, I found Chinese people be extremely nice, curious, helpful and honest which I probably liked the most. Key, as with any other country or culture, is to learn the language as you cannot rely on English being understood (no surprise, of course). In Beijing, I found being best understood, though. You should also not forget to bring your own toilet paper or tissues - this can be helpful in most of the places ;) And you should practise your bargaining skills - that also helps in many places, and combining with some language skills, enables you to really make good or better deals than without. Hygiene, other than I was told, was no problem at all. Of course, tap water is not drinkable, but I found it rather easy to consider some basic travelling common sense not to risk anything here.
Here are my Top 3 cities that I have visited:
3. Hong Kong - amazing skyline and mix of British and Chinese culture.
2. Hangzhou - a lovely city around the beautiful West Lake.
and, to my own surprise:
1. Beijing - a modern, energetic, dynamic, historic and beautiful capital of a changing China.
What I liked the most:
3. The diverse offer of dishes and food. This is not surprising, as China has a similar geographic size as Europe. Many local cuisines are delicious, and travelling thru this big country then becomes a food journey as well.
2. The hike on the Great Wall, 10km from Jinshanling to Simatai, passing some 30+ towers, seeing rebuilt parts, and broken ones, enjoying great views and sceneries. It is a "great" wall, indeed.
1. Chinese people, their openness and curiousity, and the way how they live and their attitude. Even though the big cities are crowded, taking rides on public transport can become uncomfortable, and streets can be chaotic, Chinese seem to never lose their positive attitude and their smiles. I will definitely miss this!
At last, I want to thank all of you who joined me - locally or remotely - on my trip, who sent me comments or emails to the places I visited and the stories I told. I never felt having travelled alone, though I was, and this was the greatest experience of all. I am particularly grateful for this - your - fellowship. Thank you so much!
