Too Busy For Dia de los Muertos This Year?

Items for Dia de los Muertos Altars, Oaxaca,MX

Grave decorated for Dia de los Muertos, Oaxaca  

 Mexico's Dia de los Muertos is an unforgettable experience.  But if you've never been and are short on time this year, click the link and start your journey! https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2017/10/a-dia-de-los-muertos-odyssey.html.  

Enjoy your trip south of the border, or as they would say there, disfrútala!

How I Tamed the Beijing Subway and Saved a Ton of Money

Subway Station, Beijing Airport District

My recent tour to Mongolia deposited us at a hotel near the Beijing Airport. The majority of people were flying out of there the next morning, but I had an extra day in the city since I was not returning directly to the US  but going on to Japan; my flight was a day later.  I had two pieces of unfinished business in Beijing from my trip there two years before and had been really looking forward to a day in the city.  For one, I wanted to visit a hutong, one of the remaining old narrow alley warrens of streets that have escaped demolition during the development of the city. The other was to shop at a particular store I had missed.

With these things in mind, I approached the hotel desk and asked if they could get me a driver. That didn't seem to register with anyone there, the majority of whom spoke limited English.  I then asked for the concierge.  That didn't work with because this airport transit hotel did not have a concierge. Finally, I asked for the manager who turned out to be very nice and spoke good English.  I told him I was looking for a driver for the day or, at least, a taxi.  He told me that I would be crazy to take a taxi in Beijing;  I had already experienced Beijing's exasperating traffic gridlock on my previous trip. He told me to go to breakfast and that he would have something for me when I returned.   

That something was this, a map of the Beijing subway with my stop marked.

Beijing Subway Map

If you look very carefully, and have very good eyes, you can see the English as well as the Chinese.  As I looked at it, my adrenaline surged as if I were facing a tiger; to me the Beijing subway had seemed incomprehensible and I had routinely avoided subways throughout my trips to China. But I had no choice- it was either skip the hutong and shopping expedition or get out there and get on the subway.

Carefully, following the instructions for getting to the subway, I walked to the station, which is the photo at the very top of this post.  I went in and encountered my first obstacle, buying a ticket from an automated machine with no English.  This is often the case with ticket vending machines in Chinese train and subway stations, although some of the larger stations do have actual ticket windows, which makes it easier. If not, someone will soon come up and ask if you need help; this has never failed.  I have had passing students, police and even station officials come and help me buy a ticket. To avoid having to deal with another machine, I bought an all-day ticket.

Inside the subway, itself, signs were alway in English, very clear and easy to follow.
Each stop is announced in English before arrival on an easy-to-see sign.  In Beijing there are two public languages, Mandarin, the local language, and English.  That means that no matter where you are from, Germany, India, Turkey, Egypt, wherever, if you don't know Mandarin, it is expected that you will know English.   

Sign, Beijing Subway

Sign, Beijing Subway

I easily made it to the stop at South Gong and Drum Lane (Nanluogo Xiang) and spent a wonderful few hours walking around this hutong which like many others had been partly turned into a retail area, although part is still residential.  Tours of the area are available for those who want them.

South Drum and Gong Lane hutong (Nanluogu Xiang), Beijing, China

South Drum and Gong Lane Hutong (Nanluogu Xiang), Beijing , China

Canal in South Drum and Gong Lane Hutong (Nanluogu Xiang),  Beijing, China

My plan had been to exit the hutong and catch a taxi in what I, correctly, assumed would be a busy street with lots of cabs.  The problem was, none of them would stop for me.  Many Chinese cabs these days operate with apps similar to Uber and I did not have one of these downloaded. 

I went into survival mode and glanced at my subway map managing to notice that the stop for the shopping mall, thanks to my prescient hotel manager, was miraculously circled. Suddenly a Beijing subway-pro, I turned around and headed for the subway.  Looking at the large color-coded map on the station wall, and matching it to my small map, I figured out which train I needed to take and where to get off.  It all seemed to easy and my only worry was what to do once I got off at the stop.  I figured, if need be, I could show the map to someone and use my down-loaded Chinese translation app to figure out the way. My worry was needless, because,voilà, the exit for the Indigo mall had been marked clear as day.

Mall entrance inside of subway

Interior of Indigo Mall, Beijing, China

I felt exuberant, went into the mall, made my purchases at what is one of my very favorite clothing stores and left, mission accomplished.

I returned to my hotel via subway and it was very easy because it was just retracing my steps and by that time was familiar with the subway map.   As it was fate had also provided me with a guide, a very lovely young Beijing woman with impeccable English who happened to be leaving the mall the same time as I.  I did not need her help, but we had a nice conversation.

Me, at the end of the day,  having successfully navigated the Beijing subway 

When I finally exited the subway station near my hotel, I felt as if I had climbed Mount Everest.  I had gotten around Beijing the entire day using only the subway and it had cost me all of  three dollars.  I owed a real debt to the hotel manager for insisting that the subway was the only sensible way for me to get around that day.  Otherwise,  I never would have discovered how easy it is to use the local subways. Thank you, Mr. Lee.

Chinanooga Choo-Choo: Navigating China's trains

Beijing Train Station

Trains in China are easy to use once you get the hang of them.  My first acquaintance with 
Chinese trains in Beijing two years ago was rather funny, but was a teaching moment.

We were staying at the Raffles Hotel in the city, arguably one of Beijing's finest.  Our next destination was Datong, and we decided that train was the best way to get there.  Trains linking the two places are not high speed and the trip time is six hours. That didn't seem too bad to us and we asked the hotel concierge about getting tickets.  He said that it was easiest for him to get them for us. That was the last time I asked a hotel concierge for a train ticket.

The taxi driver, for some reason, did not drop us off in front of the station. My guess is that traffic was heavy and he didn't want to stand in line. Instead he let us out a few blocks away where we were met by an army of porters screaming and shoving each other for the job of carrying our suitcases to the terminal.  Once inside of it, we navigated the maze and made our way to the gate.  There we saw a number of people buying tiny plastic stools and sitting on them, many of them smoking, something I have never seen again in a Chinese train station. I discovered the reason for the tiny stools a short while later. The Beijing station offered unique cultural insights and experiences.

We expected that our train car would look like this-

First Class Car, Shanghai to Hangzhou, China

Instead, we found something more like this-

Third-class Hard Seat Train Car

Our concierge, had booked us on a third-class, hard-seat car. Plus, there were a good number of folks seated on the tiny plastic stools in the open spaces at the ends of the car.

I, as an undergrad Anthropology major, thought I had died and gone to heaven.  It was straight out of a National Geographic episode.  Our seats were at a table like the one in the photo.  There was a metal container on the table for the chicken bones (all train stations sell  chickens sealed in plastic bags like potato chips) and sunflower seed shells (just spit them into the container).  My husband didn't share my sense at the wonder of it all,   sitting there complaining about his back and the hard seat from start to finish; he was ready to go back to Beijing and take the next flight out.   The people around us were as welcoming and friendly as they could be without a common language;  this train trip remains one of my treasured memories.

When we arrived in Datong, there was another fight over us and our luggage, among the taxi drivers at the exit.  I found one who was polite and told the others to get lost.  We loved Datong with its  incomparable Yungang Grottoes and, in fact, all of Datong; my husband soon forgot about the train.

In Datong, we ran into two Dutch women who had had a very relaxing and pleasant train  trip to Datong, in a sleeper car.  This was something our concierge had not mentioned to us. Perhaps he thought a six-hour train ride did not necessitate a sleeper, but they said it was really pleasant and restful.  

It helps to know your options when traveling, so here is a link to everything you could want to know about China train travel- https://www.travelchinaguide.com/china-trains/types.htm
There are so many options, although not all of them may not be available on any particular train route.  However, China train websites and apps like China Train Booking or China Trains will clearly spell-out options that are available. Doing your homework is essential before you take off for China.

There are a few more things it helps to know about train travel in China and I will continue the discussion in my next post.

China Trip 75% Off

When my husband first suggested we plan a trip on our own to China in July 2016, I wasn't sure. He is a savvy airline miles user had found some great miles-only fares to Beijing.  I bought a couple of guide books and seeing China's incredible sights quickly went to work on the trip.  I am so glad that I did and have returned to China twice since. These are just a few of the matchless places we visited in the first of our five weeks in China and some of them are places you just won't see on your typical tour of China.  

Summer Palace, Beijing,China

Yungang Grottoes, Datong, China

Hanging Temple, Datong, China

My itinerary:
Beijing-(train)-Datong(driver)-Pingyao-(flight)-X'ian-(train)-Chengdu-(train)-Chonquing- Yangtze River Cruise-(flight)-Shanghai and Suzhou-(flight)-Hong Kong- (ferry) Macau (day trip) (ferry) Hong Kong.  (More about these phenomenal places in another post).

The trip cost us about $6,000 plus international airfare and local transportation.This was about 75% cheaper than a comparable trip through a tour company, and included staying in 5-star hotels and eating in top-rate restaurants.

My approach:
After deciding the length of our trip, I researched "5 week China itineraries" online from everything like top-tier tour companies down to the itineraries posted by individuals in symposium threads on  websites like Trip-Advisor, compared them and drew-up my own list of must-see places.  At this point, getting a map was essential.  You need to know where sights are located and construct a sequence that makes travel-sense. I printed out a blank on-line calendar and started to fill in the dates, in pencil, because my itinerary was evolving. 

Following my tentative travel calendar, I started making hotel reservations.  My go-to site was and still is Booking.com, because you, generally, have about 3 days prior to arrival to make free changes.  This is a good option, because if you are really enjoying a place, you may want to stay a day or two longer. This flexibility is something that a tour cannot offer.

Getting there and back:
If you're booking your flight with cash, it's best to book 21 days in advance since prices often go up after that. I've learned that when I travel it's sometimes better to book a one way ticket, unless you have to be back by a certain date. It's easier and cheaper to book one-way fares with miles.   For this trip to China,  we booked an arrival and departure via Beijing, only to later realize that it was time-saving and easier to leave from Hong Kong.  Fortunately we were able to change our departure city without a change fee.


Getting from Place to Place:
First of all, research travel distance in-between your destinations- is it short enough for a train, or would a flight be better?  

I booked travel, both flights and trains online, using apps like Expedia for flights and one of the China train apps like "China Train Ticket".  The one time I let a hotel concierge book a train for me, there was a very funny misunderstanding  which I'll write about in my post on Chinese trains. 

Sometimes, in China, I booked travel a day before leaving a city.  This, like the flexibility that comes from using a hotel app, is really nice.  I always found a flight or train even though it might have been a little cheaper if I'd booked further in advance. I did have one item that was set, the Yangtze Cruise and for this transfer, I had to plan and book transfers to and from in advance.

A word about transfers- always an item always mentioned in tour itineraries.  It's easiest to be met by someone at an airport holding a sign with your name on it and you can book such transfers in advance even without a travel agent.  But you don't have to- I never bothered.  I did do research in advance googling, as one instance,  "best ways to get from, Shanghai Airport to downtown Shanghai". There are tons of resources online that will walk you through various options, including discussions of how and where to find taxis, shuttles and how to avoid over-paying unscrupulous middle-men. 

Make the Internet your Travel Agent:
There is so much travel information available online and it's all free.  If you need your entire trip sewn-up before you take off, this isn't the approach for you.  But with a little willingness to take chances and a sense of adventure you can create a journey that is totally yours.

That doesn't mean you have to do it all on your own. If you decide you want a tour-guide or driver in a particular place, you can easily find these online.  Websites like Viatour and Trip-advisor are excellent resources and I would recommend consulting these and many others as a part of your trip planning. Or ask the concierge of your hotel, if you haven't planned in advance, but I prefer knowing what my options are before doing this. 

Explore your phone's App Store for travel resources, like the China Train Ticket I mentioned before. 

"But I don't speak Chinese";
Don't worry, neither do most of the people visiting China. People are often astounded to learn that we visited China without a guide. The fact is, throughout Asia signs in places like airports, train stations, even subways are both in the local language and English.  It is essential that you be able to read English, which, if you are reading this, you can.

A real life-saver are the translation apps are available online, like Google translate and others.  It's better to have one that works off-line and one that actually speaks the Chinese phrase that you need to communicate.  Sometimes, I'll just show people the Chinese translation of what I want to say and that works too, but spoken is better.

VPN:  
It is essential to buy and download one of these for a month (they are inexpensive), since without them you won't be able to use your internet in China since google, Facebook and other sites are blocked over there.  My go-to is ExpressVPN, but there are others and some offer free short-term trials.

Visas:
You will need a visa for China, but they are not difficult to get and there are on-line instructions for the process. 

And most important, get your courage on.  Don't be intimidated by travel- it's a learning process and the rewards of doing it yourself are saving a ton of money 
and going where you, and not some random tour company, want to go.

When Did I Become a Backpacker?

Me on China's Great Wall

When did I become a "backpacker"? It's hard to say. It could have been when I, at age two and much to the chagrin of my parents, took off on a solo stroll with my doll carriage.  It seemed like a good idea at the time and I remember the glorious feeling of freedom to this day.

 There is something about travel spontaneity that is hard to match, especially when rewards are reaped.  Like the day in London over 20 years ago, when noticing a gathering crowd, I hopped out of the cab I was riding in with my two teen-aged sons and husband to explore. Thanks to a London bobby who had a single ticket to give away, I ended up in a reviewing stand watching Her Majesty the Queen's annual review of her troops. Sure, my jeans skirt  was no match for the morning coats and fascinators of the British royalty seated around me, but it was an unforgettable experience. 

The wonderful thing about the loosely-structured, independent travel that I call backpacking is the room it leaves room for serendipity and chance.  When your days are planned and structured by someone else there is very little room for these mysterious entities to have a chance. To me they are a big part of what makes up the experience of travel and the personal growth that, hopefully, comes with it.

My travel portfolio is filled with stories of the wonderful serendipity of solo, loosely structured travel, but my husband gets some credit as my travel muse.  It was his outlandish suggestion in summer 2016 that we go to China, all on our own, that really started the wheels rolling.

Me with my "Travel Muse" on China's "Great Wall"

At first I said no, but after perusing a few travel books, the incredible sights of China quickly changed my answer to yes.   It never occurred to me that I couldn't do it. I started pulling up online China itineraries, picking out the essentials and adding to them from my own research.  At first I was irritated that my husband had left most of the planning to me, but that quickly changed to the challenge and exhilaration of having five weeks in China to fill. 

 In my next few blog posts, I will share how I put this trip together and did it for a fraction of what  a five-week tour of China would have cost.  You can do the same thing for a trip to anywhere you'd like to go.