We’d only been in the air 2.5 hours and we were touching down in what felt like ‘a world away’ from Xi’an. The sky was clear, the air was warm and thick with humidity …. a blanket of lush palm trees stretched out as far as the eye could see. My heart lifted…possibly the only problem I’d face on this holiday was an unsuspected falling coconut. China and the tropics aren’t two words you would usually put together, right? China’s all about being a contrast of strapping concrete jungles and ramshackle villages, often side by side….the old and the new….the Ferraris and the Tuk Tuks, all cobbled together to make up the world’s biggest and busiest population. Nestled in China’s south west, in Hainan Province, Sanya it seems, is an exception to China’s manic rule. Looking more like Australia’s Gold Coast 40 years ago, our 30 minute drive to the hotel cut a path through the dense palm fronds; I was almost relieved to see a few three-wheelers chugging by, a couple of motorbikes saddled with entire families and some scruffy street food stalls on the corner. It was still China. Albeit - China’s Hawaii. Perched as far north from the equator as Hawaii, Sanya is on the southern tip of Hainan Island, flanked with a 20 kilometre stretch of sandy beaches. Due to its remoteness from the political centres during Imperial China, Sanya was often called ‘Tian Ya Hai Jiao’ (天涯海角) "the end of the sky and ocean" or "the end of the earth.” Consequently, it served as a place of exile for officials who found themselves ‘out of favour’ with the country’s rulers. Just quietly, it didn’t look like a bad corner of the world to be placed in captivity! Warm all year round — the coolest in January with an average of around 21 degrees, and the hottest, a balmy June with an average of 29. These days, Sanya’s singing to a different tune… It played host to the first leg of the 2008 Beijing Olympics torch relay, not to mention the 2015 Miss World pageant! And it’s the training centre of choice for the Chinese Beach Volley Ball team. Long before this though, the Nanshan Temple constructed in 1988 on the site of ancient Tang Dynasty remains to commemorate 2000 years of Buddhism in China was capable of drawing its own visitors — Monks contemplating the universe from the Seawatch Terrace, at the edge of Chinese civilisation. Oh and this...one of the tallest statues in the world! Called the Guan Yin of the South Sea of Sanya, it’s a 108 metre tall Buddhist statue studded in gold, silver and diamonds! Impressive huh? It seems, China has unearthed it’s pearl in the ocean for everyone to see. Today it’s jam-packed with hundreds of hotels, from the cheapest hostel to the six-star variety….it’s the holiday spot for around ten million tourists each year. Currently, most of them are locals…..especially in winter! Many from the north of China (including desperate foreigners like us) and Russians who like to come in their droves to escape the freezing arctic winters. Those numbers are expected to increase to 20 million by 2018, with overseas visitors reaching one million, making Sanya the largest international tourism hub in South China. Thomas Cook has even grabbed a slice of the action, signing a deal to create new travel packages direct from the UK. This influx of tourists has, as you might expect, seen Sanya face a few expected challenges. Lack of infrastructure being one of them, difficulty in reaching the location due to limited flights and airport capacity, traffic and road safety, pollution of the beaches and most importantly a shortage of quality hospitality talent to service 250+ hotels. But that isn’t slowing down the rapid expansion! Giant, sleek high-rises are under construction from every angle, reaching up into sunny skies. We stayed at the Sheraton and whilst we didn’t see too many other foreigners, when it comes to pool hopping, it seems the locals like to keep to themselves, for the most part, anyway. You could be forgiven for thinking we actually had the resort to ourselves! Yep, just us! No doubt looking highly dubious in our ‘boardies’ and bikinis, schlepping from one pool to the next for much of the day or lolling about on the beach, under the softly swaying palm trees, watching the jet skis lay idle, as the sea softly rolls in.... For the record, most Chinese don’t like to be in the sun for too long (sensible if you ask me). The very fact that we ordered lunch by the pool had the pool-boys in a slight frenzy… clearly this is not a regular occurrence. You can take China to the tropics but cocktails by the pool is still a bit of an enigma around these parts. Hence we went BYO. Of course, I’m always on the job, researching for the book — so it was with keen eyes, I witnessed the locals in true ‘holiday mode’. For many Chinese, going away for a holiday is a relatively new concept, especially a 'resort-style' vacation. Generally, locals like to come down to the pool early in the day and then come back again later -- when the sun is starting to subside. Their stints at the pool are usually conducted at lightening speed! Everyone comes at once and it’s chaos. There’s grandma, granddad, mum and dad, babies, kids, friends…everyone having a quick dip…often wearing a giant ‘floatie’ device (many Chinese can’t swim). Unicorns, swans, crocodiles take your pick…there are a myriad of giant floaties up for to hire. After a brief splash and a few happy snaps…no sooner had they arrived, they’d gone again. Just like that. And we were back to floating solo. But don’t be fooled into thinking the resort is empty. Make it to the buffet for breakfast in the morning and the place is heaving. Lunchtime and the Chinese restaurant is bustling. For many locals, the chance to relax in a decadent hotel room on a hot and humid day is no doubt far more appealing, than scorching themselves by the pool like those er, silly foreigners! If you’re feeling more energetic than some….my insider tips tell me - there’s plenty of opportunity for water sports like scuba diving (just make sure the operators are certified) jet skiing, surfing and snorkelling. WuZhiZhao Island is a popular haven for water sports with its crystal clear seas, pristine beaches and coral reefs. DaDongHai is where it all started in Sanya and is home to shopping malls and restaurants, including the recommended American style sports bar ‘Dolphin.’ There's even an opportunity to shop, when lazing around the pool all gets a bit too much! ;-) The Government knows its market well and has backed a tourism conglomerate in setting up the world’s largest duty free shopping centre. Brandishing 72,000 square metres of luxury goods bearing the the latest brand names, all you need to get in on the actions is proof of a plane ticket leaving Hainan. Pick up your goods at the airport when you say Zai Jian! There is an 8,000 yuan (US$1200) per customer spending limit though, I’m told! Tip: During Chinese New Year, it's more than likely, the city will be flooded with tourists and you can expect everything to be extremely expensive, so perhaps not the best time to go! To date, flights operate from most major cities in China, including Hong Kong and Taiwan. There are also seasonal chartered flights to Singapore. So if you want to do very little in the way of…well… anything — you had better jump on the wagon and check out these super flight and holiday deals the guys at Paylesser sent me. They assist travellers like you, by offering a wide range of the latest coupons and offers including hotel discount coupons! (You're welcome!) ;-) Oh and don't forget to try the seafood. Happy Holidays! This is China’s Hawaii! … [Read more...]
China’s Paradise on Earth – Hangzhou! Is it Worth a Visit?
If you do an internet search for the top places to visit in China, more often than not, Hangzhou will score a place in the top ten. Before last weekend, I didn't know too much about the city, but given Marco Polo promptly declared Hangzhou "beyond dispute the finest and noblest place in the world" I figured I was safe to add it to my list! Oh and in a double (must visit) whammy the city also has a song written about it that famously says, "There is paradise in heaven, on earth there is Hangzhou." Clearly this is a city with quite a reputation to uphold…. While we're based in Xi'an, we're ticking off the bucket list, trying to see as many interesting places in this wide, extremely diverse land as possible; so with the most reasonable airfares on a national holiday, first cab off the rank was indeed Hangzhou. A short one hour 45 minute flight, south east of Xi'an, Hangzhou is also a 45 minute train ride from China's metropolis, Shanghai… and it shows! After spending almost eight months in Xi'an, there's definitely a different feel to this comparable city of eight million. Once the capital of China (during the Song Dynasty) today it's the capital of the Zhejiang province. Without doubt, Hangzhou's exposure to a metropolitan city has paved the way for a more cosmopolitan influence. Whether that's a good or a bad thing, I'll let you be the judge. (Mind you, the ginormous Forever 21 clothes store, sleek, shiny Apple store and friendly uber driver, kind of had me at hello.) Compared to Xi'an - which I suspect largely due to its location in the North West has been isolated from other major cities - English was noticeably more present in Hangzhou, driving less chaotic (with less beeping) (perhaps that's because there seemed to be much fewer bikes on the roads) and on first observation, there seemed to be a lot less street food stalls. You could say, in looks, the two cities are almost chalk and cheese. Xi'an boasts an unmatched historical charm, with its ancient monuments, perfectly landscaped streets and manicured tree-lined pathways; while the more subtropical Hangzhou has a rugged, overgrown feel, with its weeping willows draping themselves in wildly carefree fashion across the city. Little streams and rivers wind through the city with cute arched stone bridges; and the city itself is wrapped with mountainous ranges. A 30 minute drive from the airport to the city, once we were safely deposited to our hotel, we did what all the brochures suggested and hightailed it to the city's pride and joy, Xihu or 'West Lake.' We found a sprawling six sq kilometre freshwater lake with scenery that has no doubt impressed over the years - so much so, it's been immortalized by countless poets and artists, and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Technically, there are 'ten scenes' at the West Lake…..each with its own story to tell. We got dropped off at the "Broken Bridge" and enjoyed a leisurely stroll over it shuffled shoulder to shoulder with a thousand other holiday makers. Note to self: attempting any tourist attraction on a public holiday in China is probably not the smartest move. (Especially as a foreigner where your chances of getting mobbed by the paparazzi are considerably higher!) That said, we were not to be deterred! If 'Brangelina' can do it, so can we! For a very brief moment, we considered hiring a boat with the hundreds of other boating enthusiasts to row around parts of the lake or more preferably, one we could power ourselves - but to be honest, there seemed to be a lot of people on the lake going nowhere, fast! We eventually got on one of the bigger ferry boats for RMB 55 (kids under 6 free) which had us motoring to one of the lake's islands in a jiffy. Lush green and picturesque with its pretty flowers, I'm pretty sure on a slightly less chaotic day it would be quite the peaceful haven to wander through. We later found out this is known as the Three Pools Mirroring the Moon - the largest island on the lake. From here you can see the famous Leifang Pagoda. If you want to get up close and personal, you can take the boat across and climb to the top for RMB40 -- but, given we now live next door to a Pagoda, we opted to gaze at this marvelous monument from a distance! (I'm told it's at its best like this anyway!) So after meandering around for a good 45 minutes, the shoulder to shoulder fight for space on the footpath all got a bit sweaty and we stared at the map for about ten minutes trying to work out how to get off the island! We eventually found the right boat that took us back to the foreshore! We spotted the 'Jazz Bar' on our map and spent about half an hour trying to locate this little refuge. We eventually found a little watering hole with an outdoor garden where we could grab a beer for 15 kuai and put our feet up. It's no inner city trend-setter, but definitely hit the spot and quenched our thirst. On advice, we then walked about ten minutes inland to Wushan Square. Here there is a town square and a narrow lane way with some cute market stalls, selling all sorts of weird and wonderful local trinkets. I'd like to say it was worth it, but if you're strapped for time, I think you could probably give this spot a miss. Although you do get to feast your eyes on this marvelous oriental gem. Waking up the next day to an extremely hazy, sopping wet day meant our trip to the famous Longjin Tea plantation was out of the question (forgot my gumboots), but I've heard it's well worth the visit, so try to factor it in to your plans. This region is famous for one of the most prized and expensive teas in China, Dragon Well green tea and you can pick and sample it here in spectacularly serene surroundings. Instead, we went back to a different part of the paradisiacal lakeside for a late afternoon wander (and hopefully a beverage or two)… Weary of heading back to more of the same, we were pleasantly surprised to find this little waterfront sanctuary (on Hubin Road) at sunset was a hive of activity. Pagoda's were lit up, mountains shone and oriental boats glistened as they chugged across the lake. Basking in the glow, West Lake really did look quite heavenly. The city's shopping hub is very close by, so we ambled through to get a feel for Hangzhou's city centre. Modern and quite sophisticated you get the feeling this isn't just a typical Chinese city but one that has a sense of purpose and is progressing at a rapid pace. I'm not quite sure it's 'paradise on earth' but if you pick your moment, it's definitely a little pocket of bliss to hibernate from the mainland madness. So, is it worth the trip? If you're visiting China, I definitely think it's worth adding to the itinerary. You could potentially cover it with an overnight stay. Live in China? I'd recommend a day trip the next time you're in Shanghai. Living in Shanghai? Of course it's a great weekend escape. A few tips: As with most Chinese cities, if you don't speak Chinese and/or know the geography of the city, hailing a taxi can be a fruitless exercise. Hangzhou is no different. Use Uber taxis. We found ourselves stranded in the middle of a busy square on an even busier public holiday with a toddler fast approaching 'witching hour' - unable to get a cabbie to agree to take us (that foreign thing), we reverted to Uber taxis. Whilst the driver couldn't speak any English or understand our Chinese (why is it in a 'situation' it's far easier to use your 6th grade French!!??) he soon tracked us down and came running through the street to find us. Now that's service! (Oh Uber, please come to Xi'an!) For first-timers, my suggestion is stay by the lake, if you can. There are quite a few hotels along the waterfront including the Hyatt and Wyndham and plenty in the cheaper category. Of course, where ever you are in China, be sure to have your hotel written down in Chinese to show the driver. I keep harping on about it, I know...but do try to avoid visiting any attraction in China on a public holiday. Oh, and don't forget your tissues and hand sanitizer! This is China. … [Read more...]