Today is the day of the memorial for Toni Nicholls. Thinking of Peter and Jess.
We left Chongqing by bullet train at 8:40 this morning. It is a very comfortable and efficient train, travelling at more than two hundred kilometres an hour. We travelled through more lush, hilly countryside and a lot more tunnels. So far most of China that we have travelled through has been like this, very hilly.
When we arrived we were met by a minibus that drove us for an hour through the traffic of Chongdu to our hotel, where we checked in. Then we went for an orientation walk and to find some lunch. We walked along Tibet Street. This is a street that is lined with Tibetan shops as there is a large Tibetan minority in this city as it is fairly close to Tibet.
We ate at a little local restaurant. I didn't know how we were all going to fit into, but as we filed in we went right through, through the kitchen and out into an alley behind, that had more tables set up there. We were surrounded by some pretty grotty looking high rises. Allen ordered for us again, and we had wonton soup, some beef, chicken and beans.
After that, we walked further until we got to a temple complex and a famous walking street. Allen told us the options we had for the rest of the afternoon and then he left us. I went into the temple, which was called the Wuhou Shrine. There were a number of ancient wooden buildings with lots of statues of historical warriors, emperors and other important people. There were a number of beautiful gardens and ponds as well. Then I walked down the street. It was narrow, windy and lined with touristy little shops selling lots of souvenirs.
I then decided to head back to the hotel as I was tired. I got lost several times and had to double back. A couple of times I tried asking people, and although they really tried to be helpful, the language barrier is huge and they didn't know where my hotel was, even though I had a hotel card with me with the address on it. I also had a map of the city but the scale was too big and it was all written in Chinese as well. After wandering around and doubling back a couple of times, I found a young man who spoke good English who set me off in the right direction, even though it felt wrong! When I got to the next large intersection I was lost again. I tried a couple of directions and then asked a cabbie who was sitting in his cab, and he looked at the card, signalled me to get in, drove me around a large block and got me to the hotel for a dollar.
Frustrated and tired I laid down and had a nap. Paul came back an hour later. I decided to give dinner a pass (another hot pot meal) and went back to sleep. I went to the lobby for 7:30 to meet the group as Allen had arranged for us to go to a traditional Chinese show at a large outdoor teashop. It was excellent. There were musicians, actors, dancers, puppeteers, shadow hand puppeteers, and an amazing group of men who could change masks on their face or their robes as they flashed a flag across themselves. It was instantaneous. All of these people were in fabulous colourful costumes and/or played ancient Chinese instruments. Great night. Then back to the hotel to drop off everyone before Allen and I took a cab to a bar for a couple of beer (no one else wanted to go). In the bar they wanted to sell us a dozen Budweiser (!) for a 150yuan or six for 100 (there are 7 yuan to a dollar). I guess they want to get you in and keep you there as there are dozens of bars on this street. We opted for six, had a great talk and then headed back to the hotel by midnight. The job of tour guide is an interesting one for Allen. Because of his interaction with all the tourists for ten years, he says he feels not quite Chinese anymore. Somewhere in between Chinese and Western. He is also very jealous of us in that we get to travel the world and he has been unable to leave China. It's not that he can't leave, it's more that he doesn't make enough to travel abroad and it's hard for Chinese to get visas from other countries as they want some sort of proof that you will go back to China, land ownership is one of the criteria. He is twenty nine and married with a five year old, which also hinders his travel plans.
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