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Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!

a travel blog by prrrrl

Business trip to Beijing with fun stuff in the evenings/weekends in the good company of my pal, RL.

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Breakfast Bonanza!

Beijing, China

It's so popular I can't get any service. It's a breakfast restaurant with indoor seating, hard to find, and it serves many more breakfast options than most. Usually a breakfast place offers only a few things. This places serves fried sticks (a fave of my kids but an unsweetened greasy donut does not appeal to me), tofu soup (another that does not suite my taste buds), stuffed buns (too doughy), dumplings (yum!), millet porridge (bland but not objectionable), pickled radish (okay in tiny amounts), tea eggs (I've eaten lots of these this trip), tofu jelly with sauce (the Beijing smokey flavor I try to avoid) and wonton soup (great breakfast with lots of little shrimp eyes looking up at you before you eat them). I've written (hunt & peck) most of this after ordering twice and before receiving any food. That's busy!

permalink written by  prrrrl on October 2, 2013 from Beijing, China
from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
tagged Choices, Busy and SitDown
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Eight by Nine

Beijing, China

I'm a happy clam! Or should I say mussel since it is their product I'm here to buy. The hostel up-graded me to a two person dorm from a six person dorm - big improvement! And better yet, the other bed is empty giving me a private room. For the time being. There have been nights where I woke up with more roommates then then I went to bed with the night before. (Please don't read that the wrong way!). I can crank down the AC (mostly to rid the room of excess moisture), I don't have to share the bathroom with anyone and I don't have to be super quiet day or night (the lad I thought was going to be my roommate ignored his morning alarm forcing me to zip, wad and Groom a la the proverbial mouse). I've got 5 days here. How long can I enjoy the solitary??

(Comments don't always show up. Want to tell me something? Email my regular address.)

permalink written by  prrrrl on October 3, 2013 from Beijing, China
from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
tagged Hostel, Alone and Roommates
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Salt air!

Xingcheng, China

We had traveled by bus, train, subway, several types of motorized pedicabs, taxi, bench seat bike, foot and now ferry. It was a slow ride to the island that was faded in polluted-view but not far off shore. I mistakenly purchased the all inclusive ticket which would take us by bus around the island to three sites of interest to Buddhists and sinophiles. Though RJ leans towards the former, for him one old red tile-roofed building looks like all the other old red tile-roofed buildings. We skip the pre-paid tour and take the advice of an Aussie dude and his companions suggested: a small fishing village on a small beach. The pre-paid tour does get us the short distance to the other side of the island on the local bus. A very short walk brings us to the shore. The fishing vessels look heavily weathered as if abandoned but apparently not as we see several in active use. Then I spot a old favorite: rocks along the shore perfect for climbing on. We pass locals gouging oyster-like mollusks, dislodging the top shell, harvesting the meat and leaving the bottom glued barnacle-like to the rocks. Low tide is what reveals their quarry. The un-seaworthy looking boats put on the water make a pretty sight with their red Chinese flags flapping in the breeze.

We climb the bank towards a road when we are surprised by a donkey. Or did we surprise it? Its ears were standing straight up as it stared intently at us. Is it tethered? Is it territorial? We're to far to determine the former and too cautious to test the latter. We proceed slowly with jackets in hand to swing at it if necessary. But not necessary. We follow the road back to the village and are pleasantly surprised to find a restaurant overlooking the little bay. Seafood with a view!

It's not tropical Philippines. It's not primitive Borneo. It's not fascinating Kenyan coast. It's not picturesque Bali. It's not perfect Thailand. It's not gorgeous Samoa. But it is a nice day trip off the gray, dusty mainland.

Now if only we had a cart to hitch to that donkey to add to our list of transports...

(Please send comments to my regular email. Thanks!)

permalink written by  prrrrl on October 3, 2013 from Xingcheng, China
from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
tagged Fishing, View, Donkey and Transports
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Children and dogs...

Beijing, China

On the subway I started playing peek-a-boo with a curious toddler sitting one lap over. What else would I do when a small child stares at my blue eyes and then covers their brown beauties. But this game did not end well. I smiled upon reappearing from behind my hands. He cried. Scary foreign ghost!

In Xingcheng I took an early morning solo stroll down modern city allies to the ancient city wall. I made it inside before the kitschy shops opened and the noisy crowds gathered - ah, peace! Down one what we might call an alley but in Ming Dynasty China was a real street a local canine was waiting at its gate for re-admittance. My legs were just another early morning stroller's legs. Panting and waiting. Waiting and panting. But then pooch looked up. It saw my big nose (I think dogs are color blind so we can't blame my blue eyes). It panicked, reared up and pounded its front paws on the gate of wait. The gate popped open and the pooch ran for the safety if its owner's courtyard.

Children and dogs cry or flea at my visage. Aren't I special.

permalink written by  prrrrl on October 4, 2013 from Beijing, China
from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
tagged Dog, Ghost, Run and Cry
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Useful!

Beijing, China

Hiking poles sure are handy. They are probably good for hiking, too. This trip the only action they've seen is reaching for shoes deep under the bed and closing windows too high to reach. Not sure it's been worth carrying them from the US and all through Liaoning. Oh, well...



permalink written by  prrrrl on October 5, 2013 from Beijing, China
from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
tagged HikingPoles and Usefulness
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Morning Surprises?

Beijing, China

I sure hope there are no caterpillars under my pillow tonight.

I use my clean clothes wadded up under the hostel's thin pillow to raise it to a comfortable height. My clean clothes dry on clotheslines on the Terrace. The Terrace is populated with fuzzy caterpillars. I picked 7 or 8 of my clean clothes before wadding them up. Don't want squashed caterpillars on my outfit tomorrow!

permalink written by  prrrrl on October 5, 2013 from Beijing, China
from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
tagged Laundry and Squish
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Jade!

Beijing, China

We left NC on Thursday; we arrived in China Friday. Sunday morning we were still both jet lagged. What to do at 5am? Dirt market! There is a weekend flea/dirt market of many decades history on the south east side. It's grown very touristy in recent years and the Prospect of finding an authentic antique are increasingly slim. But what else to do at that early weekend hour? Dawn barely Broken, we head for the subway. It used to be that one had to get to the dirt market by 5am to snag the best deals. We arrived just after 6 and very little was yet set up. We wandered as venders unpacked. RJ being an antiques dealer I thought this place would interest him.

I didn't plan to find anything but did! Ancient pieces of jade that used to be bracelets, fracture plains filed smooth, with holes drilled at mid-point or end. I'll have a dozen unique pieces to add to my collection very soon. dRt cHc* to rise again!!

While working these unique pieces into my designs I drop one. It Broke. My supplier tried to file the edges of what the became earring dangles (and they look good!) but being high on the Mohls scale jade, it ruined her file!

  • dRt cHc is my line of high end, exclusive, one of a kind and rare jewelry pieces.


    • permalink written by  prrrrl on October 5, 2013 from Beijing, China
    from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
    tagged Jade, Broken, PanJiaYuan and DRtCHc
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    Sitting Pretty and Not Loving It

    Beijing, China

    Before moving to China I read an observer's assessment that the Chinese could not make a comfortable chair. So true! I'm currently dining at a restaurant with great atmosphere but clumsy furniture. The decorative wooden drop frame means I can hardly pull up to the table as my legs can barely fit under. The cross bars on the front of the chair just two inches from the floor mean I can not pull my heels back in order to let my thighs drop giving me more clearance under the drop frame. Pretty, yes. Practical, no.

    I did not pick this restaurant for the ambience but for the street view. When dining solo people watching is fun.




    permalink written by  prrrrl on October 6, 2013 from Beijing, China
    from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
    tagged Furniture, Discomfort and Ambience
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    Ouch!

    Beijing, China

    I just got body-slammed trying to get off the subway car. There is no sense of letting exitors go first on subways or elevators. People rushing in/on might block one's egress so aggressiveness is common.



    permalink written by  prrrrl on October 6, 2013 from Beijing, China
    from the travel blog: Beijing, 2010 or Liaoning, 2013. They are appear to be mixed up!
    tagged Subway, Etiquette and Pushiness
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