Adventures in China

Bea and I mustered enough courage and braved the cold in Beijing and Shanghai for some well-deserved r&r. We visited majestic historical places and THE great wall of China. Climbing the great wall has been a long-time dream of mine. And finally, in a freaking 9 degrees below zero temperature, my childhood dream became reality. No longer just images printed in Chinese books and history materials. I shivered in the cold but I saw the greatness that is THE great wall. Places visited include Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Wang Fu Jing, Great Wall, Bird's Nest, Water Cube, Ming Tombs, Guo Lin Peking Duck and other malls.

Two things about Beijing: The rush of humanity begins when the clock strikes eight and five (think Manila MRTx10). Spitting anywhere "and or" expelling substances out of people's esophagus is considered a norm.

Shanghai, on the other hand must have been one of the most beautiful cities I've seen. It's so beautiful that the word is just an understatement. We took the sleeper train from Beijing to Shanghai. We spent two days and one night here, visiting only The Bund, Nanjing East, Yu Yuan and Xindiandi. Everyday was labeled xiao long bao day. Shanghai's European architecture swept me off my feet.

We may both seem crazy in planning our trip to China in winter but we just want to escape the humdrum life in the tropics. It was nice roaming around unfamiliar streets and taking time to talk and sometimes enjoying the silence in the cold.

Take advantage of every seat sale that Cebu Pacific has. Sign up and follow them in their Twitter accounts for latest updates. We also booked cheap hostels for a reasonable and budget-friendly trip. For first timers in China, getting a visa may be a bit tedious. I just turned 22 so they required a personal appearance. Add to that the Php 50,000.00 you need to have in your bank account. But other than that, if you get the visa, you'll enjoy China!!!