Day 10 (continued)

Our first stop (which we figured out by matching the characters on our map with those the cab driver had written on his hand) was Zhonghua Gate, an ancient structure, quite tall and several walls thick. There was a nice view from the top -- and we got there just in time as a thunderstorm openned just as we reached the safety of the cab. The next two stops were CAAC and CITS to buy plane tickets out of Nanjing (me to Beijing, Barbara to Hong Kong). From there we drove around the city wall, dating to the Ming Dynasty, and then out to the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial located in the mountains just outside of Nanjing. The memorial, a tomb really, si built into the mountainside and its quite a long climb up many steps to get to the top. I felt like Rocky when I was done.

While the memorial was visually striking, the countryside was even more beautiful, very green and "light" is really the only way to describe it (i.e. thin trees, not firs, etc.) Again, our timing was perfect as it started to rain again on the way home -- still, we insisted that the driver take us through Xuanwu Lake Park -- very pretty but too wet and grey to really tell.

We had dinner with the Japanese businessman at a very good Chinese restaurant in the Jingling Hotel. The businessman obviously enjoyed our company (and told us so), especially since his co-workers are married and he often found himself dining alone. (He was in Nanjing for about a year). What was really funny about this is that there was probably no reason for him to be alone -- the waitress at the restaurant was hitting on him and flirting to such an extent, it was almost comical. I noted that we ate great Chinese food (including eel, which the businessman refused to let us call eel because edible eel has a different name in Japan) and a great vegetable (green) I've never seen before) because it seems in China that most hotels push the Western food on visitors, as if Chinese food would be unacceptable to us.

The Jingling hotel was a spectacle in itself, supposedly the tallest building in China. It has beautiful gardens and the locals stare at it from outside the gates. (The guide boo says that Chinese aren't allowed in). On top is a revolving bar, where we retired to after dinner. Wonderful view of the city and river but, for the first hour we were there, a prime example of the old men-bad band syndrome. Then it was disco -- passable dancing as well. (The Chinese have two dance styles -a VERY stiff waltz and then "disco" which is so bad -- the jump around the floor like John Travolta robots gone haywire). After a few drinks we went back t our hotel, I to bed and Barbara and the businessman to more drinking.

Two quick notes: First, everywhere you go in China there are suggestion forms and books asking you to comment on the service. People do write in them -- I wonder if they're read. Second, while Chinese people have the worst teeth I've ever seen, most hotel rooms come equipped with disposable toothbrushes and toothpaste. Interesting, eh? Also, no toilet paper -- carrying your own is a must.

written by  shoshtrvls on August 10, 1987 from Nanjing, China
from the travel blog: Around the World (1987)
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