Fine China

Greetings,

First of all, apologies for the tardiness of my posting - but this time there is a valid excuse! Because of laws that control Internet access/content in China there are very few Internet places. Apparently there are only two official, licensed ones in the whole of China (in Beijing), all the other ones are illegal! So you will forgive the lack of updates and emails that have not been forthcoming.

So, now I have completed my China experience I will give you the edited highlights. Without doubt (and I think it goes without saying) my personal highlight was the Great Wall. Completely blown away by it. To think that it was started in the 6th Century B.C and spans over 6,000 kilometers is incredible. Used to keep out marauding enemies, it is said that the beacon lights that warn of an attack could be lit up over all 6,000 kms worth in just two hours! Awesome!

I felt slightly let down by the Terracotta Warriors though, it just wasnt what I expected. Not sure whether it was the fact that they were preserved in a giant airport hanger type thing that ruined the ambiance slightly or the various conspiracies and rumours that only one warrior was actually found, and the rest manufactured as a tourist ploy, but I wasnt as blown away as I thought I would be.

The Yangtze River cruise was excellent and the scenery through the gorgous gorges that we went through was beautiful. Add this to the fact that our 3-star cruise liner wasn't operating and we were 'forced' to upgrade to a 5-star liner instead made it all the better.

Yangshou was the last place I travelled to and was my favourite. Just a really quaint kind of place, with meandering streets and markets and stuff all set within the mountains. Absolutely beautiful.

The social aspect of this trip was excellent, made really great mates with a group of Brits; Steve, Andy and Claire, and we had such a blast together. Add this to the fact that I performed karaoke for the first time, and won a beer drinking competition during talent night on the cruise ship makes it something I won't forget in a hurry!

So, after missing my flights to Hanoi (long story!), I finally arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam tired but safe and sound.

So, thats all from me for me for the moment. I hope you are all fit and well. Hopefully t'internet access will be less sparse through the rest of S.E. Asia so I can keep you all better informed and email more and stuff.

Take care and I will speak to you soon.