Day 14 - Blogabond

I started the day by taking a walk down the Bund, a few side streets and ending up at the Friendship Store, where I promptly bought some bottled water for the boat trip. Then it was back to the Peace Hotel before I put on my pack and headed for the boat dock. It was a fair walk, quite interesting to walk along the Harbor and the area around the Shanghai Mansions.

The waiting room was up several flights of stairs and very warm. I ran into Claus there (who I had met when I first bought the tickets) and met some other fellow travelers -- Americans who taught English in northern China. Finally it was through customs and another long walk to the boat.

Not quite the "love boat," but a real cruise ship (Hoboken, 1957). The cabin was better than expected, really quite nice, private bath. There was even a swimming pool (dubbed the goldfish bowl by a fellow passenger).

While there were quite a few Hong Kong Chinese aboard, most were westerners on their way either home or to Thailand. Across the hall from me resided Andy, an engineer from New York on his way home after traveling through Thailand and China. I also met a Young couple from California teaching English in Beijing -- he was in the midst of applying to law schools, including Hastings, so we talked for a while. Then came a survey of the ship and dinner, where I met another couple -- she was Belgian, he was getting his doctorate in Belgium but was from New York. The two of them, Claus and I spent most of the time together for the rest of the trip -- eating meals, playing cards, sharing books.

written by

shoshtrvls on August 14, 1987 from Shanghai, China

from the travel blog: Around the World (1987)

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