CHINA!

Ever since I was little boy I thought of China as this far-off mystical place that Marco Polo took an epic journey to. An enormous empire at the edge of what I thought could be Earth. The place where they built the Great Wall ages ago, where you can find the Forbidden City, where all the clothes I wear get made and where many curious people dream of going one day. A country I studied about in Political Science back at Stellenbosch University, South Africa and a country whose presence I could see while travelling through many parts of Southern Africa.
A current Super Power that has opened its doors since the Cold War. The country with the world’s largest population and yet so many secrets surrounding this state-run country of which we still know little about. It was all this mystery and curiosity that made me want to go and see for myself.

I packed only a small camera backpack with all my camera gear, a few items of clothes, my passport and a map. The opportunity presented itself at the end of September to go to China and I was not going to miss out on this one.

The Slow Boat To China

One of the many ways to kill time while desk warming as a public school English teacher in Korea is to Facebook, read the news, day dream or look for travelling options to potential destinations. I started looking into ferry transport from South Korea to China and I was amazed to see the amount of options available. There are ferries that run almost every day from Incheon to ports in China and all I had to figure out was the dates I’d need to travel. A few phone calls later with some broken English and my spot was booked on a night ferry to Qingdao, China. The trip was going to take place during the week of Chuseok (Korean Thanks-Giving) and I had only one week to make the journey. Airfare during this period was expensive and I had no problem to take a 17 hour ferry to a distant port in China.

Not so long ago I returned from a fantastic two week vacation in Indonesia with Clementine where I sipped pineapple juices, spoke English all the time, stayed in cheap easy to find B&B’s and was catered for by a Tourism infrastructure that looked after all types of travellers.
This time I was looking for a different rush. One where I’d do minimal research, land at a port in fuck knows where China, take a deep breath and think to myself: Why the hell did I choose this route.

This unfortunately was not the case. I arrived on time at the port in Incheon where I boarded a gigantic boat with a red carpet, duty free shops and happy Chinese faces. I don’t know what I actually expected. Did I think I was going to be on ferry where they crammed people on and you share a small cabin with Soju drinking Koreans that fart and spit on the cabin floor?
This ferry (Weidong Ferry) was luxurious enough with everything you’d need for a 17 hour trip across the Yellow Sea. I booked the cheapest bed in a room with about 50 other people. A very basic bed with linen and a pillow provided. The round trip cost me only 210000 Won.

The nights sleep was comfortable and it did not for one moment feel as if I was on a ship. The excitement grew and I soon caught my first glimpse of Qingdao through the morning mist – a city that looked as mysterious as what I’d thought it would be. I smiled through customs, jumped a crowded bus and headed to the train station. Scenes of rundown, half built buildings, dirty pavements, people taking to the street with their produce, potholed roads and cranes on the horizon. The craving experience of new smells, interesting sights, a diverse range of cars and people crossing the road as they like – This was it, I made it to China!










I opted for the first train that would leave Qingdao and headed to Beijing after being in China of only an hour.
The station was modern, the bullet train even more and I was soon cruising at 200km/h North to the capital.

The mist and smog did not clear up but I could see the countryside as we sped through where farmers used every square of land. Hard working men and women ploughed and worked the fields. We passed massive industrial plants that send black clouds of pollution into the air. These were the industries I expected to see, but not so many.

The most prominent thing that stood out for me when entering China and throughout my brief one week stay was the amount of construction taking place. New apartment blocks were built next to old dilapidated ones and cranes coloured the horizon.
The construction increased even more as I entered the outskirts of Beijing and my 800km journey by train was soon over. A few subway stops later and I walked through the busy streets to the backpackers where I ended up staying for the week.

The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square

At the heart of Beijing you’ll find the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square and the city is designed around these two prominent landmarks in a grid formation.

The Forbidden City is huge, with impressive architecture and layout. You can spend quite some time here and even more if you’re really enthusiastic about the history surrounding it. Thousands of tourists visit this landmark daily as they get herded through this huge palace ground. Some places are still out of bounds and you’re at all times aware that someone is watching you.

Police officers and military personal guard this palace like in the old days. This time it might just be some crazy tourist or radical extremist wanting to make a point, but chances of this happening is very slim.

























The security increases even more as you enter Tiananmen Square. A mandatory police check point and you’re on this massive square with thousands of people walking around as they gaze at the size of this world famous square. The trees that could have made this square beautiful were removed many years ago so that intruders could not hide in them and has since been replaced by CCTV cameras that watch your every move. Police officers and undercover cops patrol the square with vigilance and I was watchful to just sit down (there are no seats and you have to use the CCTV towers as resting place).
As I have mentioned before: you often go to world famous places to remember something small not related to the place at all. In this case it was a young child who could not hold his piss and decided to whip it out on the square to relief himself right then and there. No toilets, no trees, no seats, no food, only a massive square that carries a lot of history and significance for the People’s Republic of China. A spectacular sight and one I won’t soon forget.

The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall is huge as it stretches over more that 8000km. There are many places to view this breathtaking landmark from and I decided to leave Beijing and travel 3 hours North with some travelers from the Backpackers to spend time walking on the wall.

We could see the Wall from far away as it cut through the mountains and the anticipation grew to set foot on this remarkable piece of architecture.
The amount of hard work and years of labour that went in to completing the Great Wall is truly astonishing.
The tour on the wall takes you about 6km (plus 4km to get there and back) and you have roughly 3 hours to complete it at your own pace. This is more than enough time to appreciate the perfection put into the completion of this spectacular piece of history. The views are even more magnificent and the weather was perfect.












I couldn’t have asked for a better day and more rewarding experience. Walking only 6km on the wall was well worth it and I wished I could have walked further on into the mountains. There are parts where the wall has been restored and others where it’s still in its original form.

The long route to the Wall paid off and I wanted to continue the route north jumping on a train to Mongolia or any part of this vast country. My visit to what I thought to be a distant part of the world was short lived and it was back south by train and ferry to return to South Korea for Monday work.
I only touched the surface of what is an extremely interesting country and I would love to one day return and jump on that train.

INDONESIA!

One of the main reasons for coming to teach English in South Korea is that I will have the opportunity to do some traveling during my vacation periods. I have only been here for 4 months and this opportunity has already presented itself.
One of the many places to see on my big to-do-list was Indonesia. July month was going to be ideal weather conditions and I had only 2 weeks off to make this journey.
I was extremely excited to go traveling and more so knowing that Clementine would be joining me. Clementine arrived 3 days prior to the trip and we took off for Jakarta Indonesia as the Saturday morning calm came to an end in Korea. Two weeks in Tropical Indonesia – Lets GO!

We arrived in Jakarta at night and boarded a connection flight to Mataram in Lombok. It was dark and the beautiful landscapes and lush green vegetation had not presented itself yet. A complete different place to the South Korea we left that morning. In the dark we were exposed to busy streets with people, scooters, children and street vendors. Dark alleys with potholed roads and street dogs not chained up as in Ganghwa. I could smell the fresh air and my level of excitement grew as we neared the ocean.

Race Rinjani

Climbing to the top of a volcano was one of the many things I wanted to do in Indonesia. I did some research and Mount Rinjani appeared to be one of the many winners. Mount Rinjani is one of the largest volcanoes in Indonesia and dominates Lombok Island. What we did not know was that the hike would not be for the faint hearted.



We were picked up from our bungalow in Senggigi Beach at 05:00 and drove to Rinjani as the sun rose over Lombok. We watched Lombok wake up with more scooters, livestock and people taking to the road. There was a smell of burnt firewood in the air. That same morning ash smell as in many parts of Africa – a smell related to poverty.
The TV-Game of dodging potholes, skinny dogs and overloaded scooters was soon over as we reached the starting point for our hike to the crater rim of Mount Rinjani.





Hiking to the top of Rinjani must be done with an accredited tour operator. They provide you with guides and porters who carry all your sleeping goods and food. These are the rules set out, but I met many solo travelers on a budget who paid their park fee and hiked alone. There is only one way to the top and you don’t need a guide. There’s enough hiker traffic on this route to not get lost or in trouble.





Paying the operator gives you the benefit of not carrying any food, sleeping bags, tents, mattresses or water. The porters carry everything and make this trek seem effortless as they carry the heavy load. All you take is your warm clothes, a camera and some extra’s you might need.
What they don’t give you is the energy required to conquer this mountain. Hiking through a humid rainforest of mud and rain can be tiring. I did not struggle too much but Clementine soon informed me what I think most people think when climbing Rinjani:
“Al-Ber, the more I look at that Mountain, the more I want to vomit!”





It’s an 8 hour hike to the rim of the volcano crater where you set camp for the night. Throughout the hike the guides give you water and prepare meals. Good Indonesian food of fried rice with chicken and some biscuits on the side. There are a few sheltered stop over spots as you make your trip up and the smell of human poo informs you that you will be reaching one of these stopping points soon.













The night was cold, really cold.
“I think I can die now” were Clem’s words as the wind woke us up during the night.

We were up just before sunrise and hiked the last 20 minutes to the top where we were treated with one of the most spectacular views I’ve ever seen. Watching the sunrise over Mount Rinjani made it all worth it. Our tired muscles, dirty bodies, desire to take a civilized shit and lion smelling breath was put on hold as we looked in awe at the beautiful surroundings we found ourselves in.







A filling breakfast and 4 hours later and we were back at the starting point. We did the 2 day hike only to the crater rim at around 2600 meters above sea level, but many hikers take the grueling 3 day hike to the summit of Mount Rinjani at 3726 meters. The weather conditions were perfect with only a little rain. Rinjani was a hike recommended to me and one I can recommend to anyone visiting Lombok.

From the bottom at Senaru it was back on the TV-Game route and off to the Gili Islands to relax and recover.