December 27, 2005

Today’s Menu:

Biking around Old Beijing





























Beijing Drum Tower















Dumplings Lunch

Lama Temple















Temple of Heaven Park






























Gorging on Peking Duck



Highlights: Going native and biking around town, watching the banging of the drum, partaking in the echo experiment at the Temple of Heaven Park, having one last taste of Peking Duck

Lowlights: Being all templed out, saying goodbye to Wang Yi

This was our last day and Beijing and I was both happy and hesitant to leave. Beijing has beautiful architecture and a grand history, but it’s dirty, depressingly old in some areas and teeming with swelling, aggressive masses. Would I return to Beijing again? I’d have to say no. Though I was there for only 5 days, it was enough for me. I got to see the famous sites, interact with the local people, sample the local dishes, engage in colourful bargaining and bought memorabilia. Selon moi, Peking is not a beautiful city and I couldn’t handle being in such a large city for an extended period of time, never mind living there. Beijing, and China in general, is still a developing place, but its overpopulation does not make it attractive for me. For visiting for a short period of time, it gets a thumbs up. For visiting for an extended period, or living there, it gets a boo. If you go, make sure you hit the Forbidden City and Palace Museum, go to the Summer Palace, sample Peking Duck, and climb the Great Wall. Everything else is just gravy.


December 28-29, 2005



We were on the train for a day and it was alright, though it had some trying episodes. Firstly, le train n’etait trop propre. To the naked eye, the sheets looked cleaned enough (though I had the presence of mind to bring along a long piece of fabric to cover the bed, just in case), but we learned that cleaning the bed wear is optional. This was demonstrated when the train stewardess (?) proceeded to clean our room, while we were still in it, by shaking out the previously used blankets and returning them back on the beds. Shudder squared. I’ve taken sleepers in Canada, Ghana and now China, and there really is no place like home.

Another huge minus was the train service staff. Apparently, customer service is not big in China (this was demonstrated not just on the train, but the train experience was the worst). We were ignored, and when we demanded attention, we were treated like stupid cattle but a chain smoking, careless group of riffraff. Makes you wonder what the interview process was like. Actually, makes you wonder if there even was an interview process. Here’s an excerpt from my journal:

“…The onboard service is nothing short of rude and disgraceful. I’ve had wonderful service by people who truly loved their professions and then indifferent service from people who were there for the money. But it’s just awful here. They shit on us for ordering something extra, or they simply tell us there is no more (how can there be no more freakin water???), or they say the waitress is sleeping. I actually fucking hate it here and wish to god we stocked up on proper food before boarding…”

Ah well, it’s over now. Water under the bridge and such. And hell, it was a lot better than the open hard sleepers. I’m sweating just thinking about them.

The positive thing about the train ride was that it gave me time to stretch out and relax after nearly two non-stop weeks. I finished Ishiguro’s Remains of the Day, which was excellent and I highly recommend it. I got to put pen to paper and list my goals for the next 4 years, and let me tell you, it’s pretty exciting stuff. It’s still too early to share, but trust me on this one. I also listed the places I hope to visit during my tenure here. It was just really good to move my ideas from abstract to more or less concrete.