Sunday, January 10, 2010

Back from China!

(Originally posted on my deviantART account at mandarinmanmark.deviantart.com)

I just got back from China yesterday after a three week vacation. The return trip took me over 20 hours door-to-door! To get from my dad's flat in Suzhou to my flat in Auckland, I took a taxi, a train, a subway, a maglev(!), a three hour flight, an 11 hour flight, then a bus, all without any sleep! So I was exhausted when I got back, and slept for 12 hours, being awoken by my alarm clock for work.

I had a good vacation, although I was sick for two of the three weeks! I got bad food poisoning the first week, and as I was just about recovered, I ended up with a bad cold! Well, at least the last week was OK, although it had its share of problems!

I ended up visiting, in chronological order, Macau (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Zhuhai, Kaiping (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Hong Kong, Suzhou, Xidi and Hongcun (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Huangshan (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Hangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai. I had 5 flights (including a two-segment one), an overnight train ride, three long-distance bus rides, and 5 long ferry rides, making a total of 5 border crossings, not including a transfer in a different territory. All in all, a surprisingly busy trip!

Anyway, I will start processing the photos from this trip and writing about it in my travelogue at mandarinmanmark.blogspot.com, although it may take a while for me to start working on my China trip info.

See you guys around dA!
- Mark

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Hey Mark!

It has been so long since we have spoken or connected in anyway that I never knew you were living and touring in New Zealand. That is so exciting. I have a very good friend doing the same thing with his girlfriend right now and I had the opportunity to spend 8 days touring the South Island when my friend and I chance encountered a cheap flight to Christchurch from Melbourne (I was studying there).

I'll be back down in that area of the globe soon enough. I am going to be looking to travel and work in some of the more exotic spots. Chase the dream, if you will.

Lets talk soon, anyways. Keep up the great writing on this blog. Your ability to describe the environment through which you travel is very effective.

Keep it up!
James Watson