In China now on an ABD and ...

[stenogoddess]

I freely admit I'm a spoiled American, and don't really want to get *that* authentic when it comes to the bathroom!

Sayhello

Preaching to the choir over here!

 

[LSmith]

Well, I had a nice wordy report but the dodgy wifi at the airport ate it up. We're waiting for our flight to Chengdu.

ABD is the way to travel to China if you are nervous about toilets and food. They chec kout everything and you know that the food they give you is safe and the toilets are within reason. Yesterday, our bus was caught in a traffic jam in the countryside and we made a highway pit stop. The guides warned us that this was not a "happy house" so only go if you were desperate. So far, the guides have taken extremely good care of all of us.

I'll try to post about yesterday's trip to the Great Wall and today's pedicab tour of the Hutong when I get a more reliable connection.

BTW, I've only managed to connect here by using my Boingo mobile account. It works here!

Our non-ABD guides did the same for us on our trip to China. All of the Chinese guides there know what is acceptable to the Westerners. I laughed when you said that they call them 4 star bathrooms. Our guides rated them like that too although I would have shaved off a few stars. One good thing is that the airport bathrooms are usually spotless.

 

[Halloweenqueen]

Enjoy Chengdu! Are you hugging a panda? We have that option on our trip.

 

[pxlbarrel]

Enjoy Chengdu! Are you hugging a panda? We have that option on our trip.

It's not a Disney sanctioned event. Disney belongs to the zoological society or something like that and they frown on that sort of thing. However, we are given the option to do it if we want and if we're willing to pay. The guides take off their Disney hats when they talk to us about it.

 

[pxlbarrel]

Day 3 of the Adventure

The morning started at 8 am again and our group was off to the Great Wall at 8:00 sharp. A ride through the highways and countryside as our guides told us about the area, the history and we listened to Disney music.

We did a bathroom break at the Schoolhouse, where we were going to eat lunch, because there were no bathrooms up on the wall. The Schoolhouse is run by Americans who moved to China a while ago. They have a restaurant and a glassblowing workshop. They also had 2 sit down and clean toilets. Alas, the water for the sink was iffy and we had to wait for the water to flow for some of us. After that, we headed up the hill. The bus parked and Daisy and our two shadow guides (Joe and Steven) ran ahead to get tickets for the cable car up the hill. The guides told us to take sour time going up to the cable car station and NOT to buy anything until after coming back down. They also gave us a lesson on how to barter.

Rode the cable car up and climbed some really steep steps. They assembled us up top and took a group photo. And I'm going to omit a bunch of stuff now because you guys need to experience it yourself

We were given a time to head back to the assembly area where we had entered the wall. Alas, I wasn't paying attention and ended up going too far down. I looked out and saw the cable cars above my position. I had to climb a very steep portion back... I nearly killed myself doing it!!! As I struggled up the wall, the Chinese people were shouting encouragement to me (or they were jeering me... I've got no clue). At some point I looked up and saw Daisy waving at me. I waved back but it still took me about 15 minutes to get back there. My legs were like jelly and Jannae hugged me when I reconnected with the group. hahaha. What a day already. When we got back down to where all the vendors were, Jennae bought me a coke and a pin as a reward for climbing the most of everybody.

Lunch was at the Schoolhouse and we also had a demo of noodle making. We all got a chance to make some. They wouldn't let us use the big cleaver though ... Even the kids asked for it. We also got a demo on glass blowing. nd a chance to buy some magnificent art. My mom bought two glass swans.

We got onto the bus to head back to Beijing but there was a huge traffic jam. A big green bus was blocking the road for everybody. The bus driver didn't know how to drive through a very narrow part of the road (a disabled car was partially blocking it). Daisy, Steven and Joe headed out to talk to the bus driver while Jennae entertained us with some really bad cow jokes. Finally the bus in front moved and traffic was moving again. Apparently, Daisy told the other bus driver to let our driver drive his bus for him and this shamed the guy into moving.

Traffic was really bad heading back to the city. It was the second day of the tomb sweeping holiday. It was a free night for us and dinner was on our own. Unfortunately, the restaurants suggested by the guides were packed to the gills because of the holiday. We ended up at a ramen noodle place in a nearby mall. Afterwards we headed to the night market to see if we could find somebody eating bugs. Hahaha... We found a girl from Spain who ate a bug of some kind. Ewwwwwwww.

Next report on the pedicab tour...but it's time to sleep. It's been a heck of a long day.

 

[pxlbarrel]

The Great Wall

Flying my kite

A man and his donkey

Yum... Centipedes and spiders and ???

 

[Halloweenqueen]

What a beautiful day at the Great Wall! I have a huge fear of all the stairs. This is our first tour activity and I am very worried that I will trip on the worn stairs. I'm a bit of a clutz.

I'm on the fence about the panda hugging. I'm a big animal lover and can't help but think it can't be good for the pandas. Pandas are my favorite animals though and I would love an opportunity to get close. I will have to decide soon because I guess there is a limited number for our tour. It's a pretty steep price and my daughter would want to have a hug as well. It would be over $400 for us to do it.

The weather looks amazing! Thanks for sharing the photos. My family is really enjoying them!

 

[LSmith]

What a beautiful day at the Great Wall! I have a huge fear of all the stairs. This is our first tour activity and I am very worried that I will trip on the worn stairs. I'm a bit of a clutz.

I'm on the fence about the panda hugging. I'm a big animal lover and can't help but think it can't be good for the pandas. Pandas are my favorite animals though and I would love an opportunity to get close. I will have to decide soon because I guess there is a limited number for our tour. It's a pretty steep price and my daughter would want to have a hug as well. It would be over $400 for us to do it.

The weather looks amazing! Thanks for sharing the photos. My family is really enjoying them!

Holding a baby panda will cost at least $165 to $200 pp last time I checked.

Don't worry about the stairs. You can do as many (or as little) as you want. It's up to you.

 

[pxlbarrel]

1300 RMB to hold a panda. I don't think the pandas mind it. Apparently, they're given a treat while you hold them so they're quite content.

As for the steps.... It's true, you can do as much or as little climbing as you want. And at one point when it looked too steep for me, Steven, one of the shadow guides offered me an arm to help me down. You cannot be as clut6 as me. Just don't overshoot the rendezvous point!

 

[pxlbarrel]

Our last day in Beijing started with us putting our bags outside our room at 7:30 am. We would see them again at the airport as we checked in to our flight to Chengdu. But first, it was a pedicab ride in a Hutong. We split into 2 groups: Mushu and Mulan. We were in Mulan and went with Daisy and Steven. Our pedicab took us along the lake and our first stop of the day... Knot tying. We entered this talented woman's house so we could learn how to Chinese knot tie. We were a pretty good group and most of us could do the elementary knot. it was here that we found out that Steven is not only a shadow guide but has spent many years as one of the guides helping in the Hutong portion of the tour. He could tie pretty good knots!

Next, our pedicab took us to our yo-yo lesson. This was my favourite. We drew quite a crowd of onlookers as we all tried to play....including some stray dogs.

And finally, our pedicabs took us to our paper cutting lesson. We learned about our teacher's home, how housing worked in China and we got to cut out Chinese characters. After that we walked to our lakeside restaurant, Noble House. Again, we were inundated with a huge amount of food. And when I mean a lot of food, I mean massive amounts of food. No way we could finish it all.

After lunch we headed to the airport to fly to Chengdu. The guides help everybody check in and get through security. The airport was VERY warm. Take note for all those travelling in the summer. To board the plane, we boarded a bus that took us to our plane. This is where the waiting began. Our plane sat on the runway for 1 hour due to air traffic. When we finally left, they served a dinner which I declined. More food?????

When we landed, Daisy, Steve and Joe ran ahead to grab all the bags. Jannae stayed with us when we all went to the restroom. Note... Only ONE of the toilets was a sit down. All the rest were squat. The ones using them joked that thry deserved a pin for using them.

When we got to baggage claim, everybody checked to see if their bags were there and some of us helped push our luggage to the big truck that was taking it, Daisy, Steven and Joe to the hotel. Jannae took us and our local guide Bobby to dinner where more food was thrown at us. Everybody was wiped. two of the kids were falling asleep. We were in a private room and there were two couches in there. The two kids lay down on them and the restaurant staff appeared with blankets for them!

Chengdu is an amazing city of lights. Our hotel, the Shangri-la is amazing. The guides managed to get us all views of the river.

Next day ... Pandamonium!!

 

[pxlbarrel]

Pedicabbing in the Hutong

Yo-yo master by the lake

Chengdu at night from our room

 

[sayhello]

Wow! This really does sound like a great adventure. The pedicab activities sound like fun. And that view from your room in Chengdu is beautiful!

Looking forward to more report!

Sayhello

 

[pxlbarrel]

Well, this adventure is quickly becoming an adventure about the toilets!! More about that in a later report...

Day 5 of the Adventure

We met in the morning at 8:30 for our bus ride to the Chengdu Panda Research Base. I think a lot of us, especially the kids (and me!) were looking forward to this the most. On the way to the Pandas (today was known as Panda-Monium), Bobby told us about Chengdu's famous spicy ladies and their henpecked husbands.

It took about an hour or so to reach the Pandas. Traffic was so-so as the first working day after the tomb sweeping holiday. Chengdu is a mass of bicycles, electric bicycles and scooters. Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcycles, and cars all compete for the same real estate. It was scary watching them drive but they all seem to know what they're doing and they certainly have fast reflexes!

Back to the Pandas. Our first activity was getting photos taken in front of a panda statue. And then we realized ... we're taking photos of statues when the real things are INSIDE the park!!! Next we were ushered into a room where one of the conservation biologists gave us a presentation on the pandas. Everybody listened intently, even the kids in the group. Finally, the biologist led us to the first panda enclosure where we glimpsed a panda with his back to us, munching contently on bamboo. You always knew where a panda was ... a crowd was usually around it.

We moved from enclosure to enclosure and pandas were plentiful! Then ... it was time for the optional event that is not an ABD event. The night before we were told that for 1300 RMB, we could get our photo taken holding a baby panda. The money goes right back into the conservation of the animals and the animals seem to enjoy it .... they're given treats so they just eat and eat and eat. That's what pandas love! We get a t-shirt, dvd, and certificate along with holding the panda. When we're told about it, the guides make sure there are no little ones nearby in case the parents don't want to shell out the money. They're very aware that this is expensive and they don't want the kids bugging mom and dad. LOL

Anyway, as we were looking at a panda mom and her baby, Bobby told Jennae and Daisy that we could do the Panda Experience now. Those of us who opted to do it were taken to a very crowded room where we paid our money, were given our "gifts" and then told to put little blue plastic bootie coverings on our shoes. We then waited to be taken in for gowning and gloving and then the pandas. My brother and I got separated from the group. The guy ushered the rest of the group in and then wouldn't let us in with them. Note... we're Chinese and look like everybody else I guess. Bobby came along and told the people, rather forcefully, to let us in. Yay for Bobby! We met up with the rest of our group and put on the gowns and gloves (to protect the pandas from us). One by one, we sat down and a baby panda was placed into our hands and an apple slice was given to the panda. The smaller kids had problems holding the panda (it was bigger than them!) so the panda just sat next to them. When it was my turn, the dream and one of the reasons I wanted to go on this tour, was fulfilled. I never thought I would ever hold a panda bear in my arms. This was so AMAZING!!!! We all left the Panda Experience chattering away about what we just did and we all started looking at our photos right away too. They have staff who take photos with your cameras and they took a LOT of photos so that at least one if not all of them turned out.

After that, it was a blur ... we watched more pandas, a group of 5 pandas eating, red pandas (they are sooooo cute) and then it was time to shop in the gift shop. If you're a stamp collector or want a unique and cheap souvenir, you can buy a post card, a stamp and have it stamped by the post office on site. It's a special postal cancellation unique to the park. I bought a t-shirt of a panda doing all the moves in tai-chi. We then discovered another gift shop with more artsy stuff and I ended up buying a tiny black laquer screen with the most amazing artwork on both sides. Only 400 RMB or about $60.

We drove back to the hotel for lunch. A huge international buffet is provided by the hotel's Cafe Z. The most amazing desserts...holy cow. I was in a chocolate coma. The rest of the food ... well, I'm finding a hard time eating anything because of how tired I am and how much food they're throwing at us. After lunch, we were told to meet in the lobby so we could go to one of the hotel function rooms for our Kung Fu demonstration. This was fun and ... well, painful for me. ABD provided us with two Kung Fu masters (at 21 years of age!!) I volunteered with the kids in the group to do the stick fighting. Ok, limber young bodies and my stiff and old one just do not mix. As Bobby yelled out that a special prize would be availabe for the best stick fighter, I wondered out loud if it was a chiropracter. I did not volunteer for the next demo ... on kung fu fighting as a tiger. The kids and some of the adults had fun doing that ... especially the yelling part. We then got photos taken with the masters.

Free time was next but my brother and I spent our time packing because ... get this ... the next morning, our bags had to be out in the hallway at 5:15 am and we had to be in the lobby by 6:30 am. And since we were going to the opera at night, the only time we had to pack was during the free time. I know that some others walked outside to the river and looked around the area. There's also a Starbucks very close by.

Dinner was in the Cafe Z again. It was ... the same food as lunch but honestly, how could any of us eat? We had just eaten a couple of hours earlier!!! We then met at the bus to be driven to the opera at the teahouse. We were told that for 50 RMB we could get a massage or an ear massage. Ear massage? Some guy comes along and cleans the wax out of your ear ... and then rings a bell.... all while you watch the opera. Mmmm... ok.

We were allowed to take photos of the performers putting on their makeup. Our seats had little tables in front of them with tea cups and peanuts. A server came along and filled the tea cups up with a really long spouted pot. Some of our group got massages while sitting in their chairs. The show then started. To me, it resembled vaudeville ... a series of different acts. My favourite were the puppeteer, the shadow guy and the closing act, the most amazing face changing opera.

We got back to the hotel around 10 or 10:30. We had a very early start in the morning ... our flight to Xian.

Photos to follow ... eventually. (I typed this on my brother's laptop since it's faster than typing on my iPad....I was concerned that my carryon would be over the limited 5 kg of the domestic flights that I didn't bring my keyboard ... well, they don't weigh our carry on. They don't ever really see us because the guides check us in with the airline.)

 

[pxlbarrel]

 

[lttlmc3]

I just want to snuggle that panda! Awwwwww!

 

[CBEB]

LOVE LOVE LOVE this trip report! Thanks so much for the stories and pictures!

 

[sayhello]

Wonderful! I have to agree with you, holding a panda would be HIGH on my list of must-do's for that trip! That, and seeing the Terra Cotta soldiers...

Great pic of you holding the Panda! Yay!

Sayhello

 

[disprincessatheart]

WOW! I know that there is almost no chance that I will ever get to china in my lifetime (the epcot version is as close as I will get) I am really enjoying your reports. Thank you for sharing this amazing experience!

And I have to agree that even though I first thought $200 was a crazy amount of money just to hold a panda, after seeing your pictures, if I had the money to do the trip, I would find the money to hold the panda too.

 

[pxlbarrel]

If you're going on this trip, I would recommend bringing a LOT of memory cards for your camera. Pack what you think you need and then add two more. You end up taking so many photos of the pandas that you may have to go through and get rid of some photos. I shot so much video that I'm actually worried I may not have enough card space for the end of the trip.

You don't want to have to sit there and try to decide what to delete from your camera. I mean, the next thing you see on the trip are the terra cotta warriors and you end up with a gazillion shots of those too! Load up on memory cards... That's my tip of the day.

 

[Halloweenqueen]

Amazing photos! I'm doing the panda hugging now for sure! Awesome!

We are going to the mask changing show as well. Can't wait. Massages and ear cleaning....eewww.

Thanks again for sharing your experience. I'm so happy to find new posts.

I think your next stop is Xian, right? Can't wait to see!