Shanghai Introduction

We're in Shanghai! Creeping up the river as the sun rose over the city was an amazing way to arrive, and the lack of disorientation one usually experiences after a long plane flight, was, in itself, quite disorientating. We stepped into this strange floating hotel/prison in Japan, spent two nights there, got thrown around a bit on the open sea, and then were shocked to find that we were in China, just like that.

And what a shock it has been! We heard more car horns within 5 minutes of leaving the ferry terminal than we had heard during 10 days in Japan. Cars drive wherever and whenever they like, traffic lights are simply a suggestion of when to stop and go, and, scooters whizz around all day and night carrying 2, 3 or 4 passengers, all without helmets and more often than not, up on the pavement...oh, and most of their lights don't work so you can't see them coming. Crossing the road is now something we have to work into our daily itinerary.

So far, we've had many many ridiculously cheap bottles of beer (60p for a massive bottle of local brew) eaten Chinese sesame chicken while the poor thing's eyeball looked up at us from the plate, and strolled along the river front as the sun set on our first full day in China (photo below). As we now sit drinking more of the aforementioned bottles of beer in the hostel's roof garden, with twinkling skyscrapers all around and terrapins paddling around in the moonlit pond below, the next month promises to be a memorable one.

We are staying in a lovely hostel with a cool bar playing good music and serving yet more cheap beer and lovely breakfasts with giant cups of earl grey tea for just a few pounds. People's Square is just across the street, as is the Shanghai Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art. There is just so much to explore and so many streets to get lost in...just don't ask for sweet and sour chicken....and mind that scooter!

If you can read this...

We've found a way!

Final Hours in Japan

29 August 2012

I'm writing this in our spacious cabin on the Xin Jian Zhen ferry to China (more about that later) as Japan sinks below the horizon behind us. Having left Kyoto early on Monday morning, we took a local train to nearby Osaka (from where the boat departed) and spent the afternoon and evening exploring another new Japanese city. The hotel was ideally placed a few blocks from Dotombori, an area along the canal which promised plenty of places to eat, drink and (window) shop. We both loved Osaka instantly. Amazing shops and a kind of old world seaside resort charm that Tokyo and Kyoto could not emulate. The area was filled with Japanese kitsch; all kinds of large illuminated sculptures and adverts attached to the fronts of buildings (think Piccadilly circus meets Camden high street).  Below these, bizarre shops sold things that in many cases we could not identify, yet provided plenty of photo opportunities.

We had a fantastic final evening in Japan, helped, in part, by a gentleman who approached us in the street, thrusting a food menu and a promotional leaflet for a nearby eatery into our hands. After trying to explain that we could not read the leaflet, and he then attempting to explain what it was, we both agreed that the food on the menu looked lovely (again, menus with photos = big help!) and the prices reasonable. We stood umm'ing and ahh'ing as he tried to persuade us to follow him to the restaurant. In Japan, many bars and restaurants are above ground level, with just a list and maybe a few menus at street level describing what can be found on each floor above. It is therefore somewhat of a risk committing to an establishment one cannot see from the outside. Just as we were about to move on to consider other options, he turned the menu over to show a large price, "999 Yen" (£7.90) and something else written in Japanese. 'Unlimited drink!' he said, motioning the internationally recognised hand signal for drink. We looked at him puzzled. 'Two hours, unlimited drink, beer, wine, sake...' he continued. Now, when you consider that we hadn't really had a night 'out' in Japan, as a single pint of regular draft beer costs between 500 and 800 Yen (£4 to £6.35), we now feel that he should have led with this! After checking the 'fine print' of his offer with more hand signals and a few basic Japanese and English words, we duly allowed him to lead us to the seventh floor of a nondescript building behind us.

What followed was two hours of 'order whatever you like' drinking fun (and oh, how we'd missed that!), accompanied by various small delicious Japanese dishes at, again, very reasonable prices, knowing that the drinks bill would never exceed £16. We ended our 120 minutes with Sake (rice wine) and Shochu (potato wine), although we must admit to buying a couple more drinks from the shop opposite the hotel on our way home. We just wish we'd found that place sooner. Having bumped into a few groups of Americans and Europeans on our explorations, it seems we are all searching Japan for just one thing – affordable beer!

A brief synopsis of Japan as we bob our way towards the second country of the tour:

Loves:

Japanese people – so polite, so dignified and immensely proud of their country. I think this was summed up in our final visit to Seven Eleven (a ubiquitous chain of convenience stores) last night. As the cashier handed us our change with both hands, thanking us in the longest most formal fashion the language can offer, and bowing graciously, so too did every member of staff in the shop. This is common, when entering and leaving an establishment, and one never senses that it is done begrudgingly, as a manager hovers behind them waving a stick, maybe.  Their thanks and gratitude appears 100% genuine and oozes with pride for their employer and themselves as individuals. I noted at the time that in a comparable shop in London, you would be lucky if the person serving you even looked you in the eye.

Vending machines – on every street corner, tucked away in small alleyways and hotel lobbies and always able to serve a tasty variety of cold drinks. (I think in the winter, they even dispense hot drinks). In the summer months, it is almost impossible to get through a day without using one. They always work and are never found defaced or tampered with. In certain cases, one can purchase a variety of beers, lagers and other alcoholic drinks from these 'pavement pubs' (my term, not theirs), no ID required. Rosie and I wondered how many minutes such a machine would last in England before it was emptied by teenagers (or simply tipped over and loaded onto the back of a waiting scooter). I think this says a lot about the Japanese attitude to alcohol which seems to promote it as an addition to having a good time, not as a necessity.

Dislikes:

Lack of English menus – although many people speak English and most signs, maps and public announcements are also provided and English, finding somewhere to eat which can offer English or picture menus can become tiresome.  I think most Westerners in Japan long for that traditional Japanese restaurant experience without having to master the language both written and spoken.   We felt that if, like the man in Osaka, more restaurants targeted foreigners and made themselves that tiny bit more accessible, finding that idyll would be so much easier and take the stress out of finding somewhere to eat that isn't McDonald's.   I do not think for a moment that it is intentional.   I think the Japanese are far too proud and polite to start assaulting tourists in the street in order to fill seats, but I do think there is the room to offer tourists something more than is currently available, but on the other hand, maybe this would start a gradual erosion of the very thing the tourists come to see – tradition, history and character.

Expense – If and when the Yen ever returns to where it was in 2007/08 (ie. 210 to 230 Yen to the pound instead of the current 120 to 130) we shall be buying a brick of cash and returning to this amazing country to buy, eat and see all of the things we wanted to on this trip. That is not to say that we didn't thoroughly enjoy our time in Japan, we just had to watch the pennies so closely and often found ourselves gasping at the price of things.

Favourites:

Favourite meal:​ Mai & Yukio's home – edamame, sushi, chicken and yaki soba.

Favourite beer:​ Kirin's Original Brew (a can of which is sat open beside the laptop as I type)

Favourite day: ​Exploring the forest temples of Kyoto

Moving on to the present - As the boat rolls and pitches, the portable elasticated washing line strung across the room with underwear bobs and sways in the empty bunk bed above me. I should point out that Rosie is of course still here, and is actually in the bunk beside me – the boat is so empty that they have given us a 4 bed cabin to ourselves. Ironically, it's the largest of the four rooms we have stayed in so far, with a small sofa and TV area, plenty of luggage space and our own sink. The ship is reasonably comfortable, with all one could need for two nights at sea. There is a games room, a dancing and karaoke bar (which seems to be frequented mainly by the crew who love to sing a rousing Chinese ballad or two when their shift ends), a gift shop (open for just two hours a day and with mostly empty shelves, it is does not quite match the nautical retail splendour of a P&O duty-free outlet), a cafeteria (serving mainly cold bones spattered with a small amount of meat and a large amount of oil) and a handful of vending machines (dispensing cans of Japanese lager at prices which allow us to enjoy beers in the plural sense.

A typhoon is currently creeping along the Chinese coastline, and within an hour of departing the port of Osaka, the captain told us we would spend another 24 hours at sea in order to avoid it. This meant three nights aboard the boat! The crew kindly telephoned our hostel in Shanghai to inform them that we would arrive late and we hoped that friends and family back home would not worry too much over not hearing from us on Thursday as I had promised in my previous blog entry. As the prospect of three cold dinners loomed, plus two more strange breakfasts, which consist of two lumps of doughy bread/cake/dough, tepid noodles and a foamy broth we could barely look at let alone consider casting into our quivering mouths, the voyage threatened to draw on our stamina rather more than we had hoped – add to that the fact that an underlying nausea has been lurking in our stomachs since we reached the undulating open sea, and the next few days did not look good.

We were therefore extremely delighted to hear the PA system tell us this afternoon that the typhoon was moving slower than expected, allowing the boat to continue full steam ahead and arrive in Shanghai at 8.30am tomorrow – 6 hours ahead of the original schedule and almost thirty hours ahead of what we had subsequently been told.  Although the boat is like a mini holiday camp, it is also a bit like a prison... a prison which doesn't stop swaying from side to side, so setting foot on dry land is going to feel so good!

I will sign off now as dinner time looms and the pot noodle vending machine hums reassuringly in the corridor outside.

Coming next, Shanghai...

China's Internet Restrictions = Blogspot Banned!

Dear All,

I'm having to use an anonymous techno minded middle-man, a sort of Simon Pegg to Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 3 and 4, in order to send this message out to you as, unfortunately, Blogger, and internet blogs in general, are currently banned in China.  We did not expect that!  So, I'm afraid to report that there will be no blogs for a month while we are here.  I will continue to write them and, if you email me to request such a service, I will send them to you directly as we go along (assuming that the filters here will allow un-censored emails?).  Normal service shall resume on 29 September when we will arrive in Vietnam.

For now, rest assured that we are alive and well, having spent two days at sea with terrible food, but very cheap beer (every cloud, and all that).  Shanghai looks and feels very different to Japan already, and we are overjoyed to see that we can afford to eat and drink out again (beers for less than £2 and a decent meal for less than a fiver).  Japan was incredible, despite the cost of everything, and I have already prepared a blog post ready to email to those who would like to receive it.

All the best to you all,

Simon & Rosie

Osaka calls, and then to sea

We are currently packing our rucksacks ahead of our final evening in Kyoto.  Tomorrow, the bullet train will take us to Osaka where we will have just one night to see the sights before a two night ferry ride takes us to China.  If you have been studying the weather forecasts for Asia, you will see that two typhoons (aka cyclones in the Western hemisphere) are battering South East Asia at present (although the weather here has been perfect).  The larger, Bolaven, hit the Japanese island of Okinawa today and will pass right between mainland Japan and China (aka crossing the route the ferry will take).  Thankfully/hopefully, by the time we sail, it will have moved north to Korea and we shall have a pleasant voyage across calm seas.

But before then, we must say goodbye to Kyoto.  A city full of temples, shrines and castles which ooze with Japanese history; of feuding samurai, ninja assassins and the shogun elite.  Sandwiched between mountains and forests which hug the suburbs (and allow for easy access to tranquil havens away from the heat of the city), Kyoto is vastly different from Tokyo and a place to which we would very much like to return (but not until the Yen is cheaper - Japan, at present, is immensely expensive!).  We have loved exploring the quieter side of Japanese life and a walk through the forest yesterday found us exploring secluded shrines and pagodas nestled among the trees and climbing giant staircases which disappeared into the shadows of the branches. With the heady aromas of burning incense winding through forest on the warm air, and the occasional chime of distant temple bells, it was a day we will never forget - we even caught sight of the elusive Geisha in the evening.  They are, apparently, something of a rare sight, and as camera bulbs illuminated the narrow street, it was as if an A-list celebrity had appeared.  They were gone in seconds, disappearing into waiting taxis and darkened alleyways, and we were left somewhat stunned yet utterly privileged to have had this tiny glimpse into ancient Japanese culture.

Geisha in the Gion district of Kyoto

View of Kyoto from the Kiyomizu-dera Temple grounds

We won't have free internet in our Osaka hotel and will probably be off the grid entirely during the crossing to China, so you can expect to hear from us again on Thursday, live and direct from Shanghai!

Plastic Food

These displays are a life saver when English menus are so rare.  You will find them in display cases on the street outside of, or in the windows, of many restaurants, bars and cafes, presenting everything from burgers and sushi to cocktails and beer - all in plastic form.  We have also seen real food in plates and bowls covered with cling film, although in the heat, these do not look so appetising after an hour or two in the blistering sun! 

I have added the pictures at full size so you may zoom in if you wish.

Shinkansen to Kyoto

Our short visit to Tokyo soon came to an end.  We spent our last evening enjoying beers on the roof of our hostel overlooking the river before having a few mugs of Sapporo beer and cups of Sake in a backpacker's bar across the bridge. 

With slightly fuzzy heads, we woke early the next morning and I ambled to the nearest convenience store to pick up some breakfast (mainly pastries, fruit in jelly and chocolatey bread type things - no cereal or fry ups here).  The heat at 8:30 in the morning is already over 30 degrees so it was a slow amble, and one has to hop from one shadow to the next to avoid creating a human fry up.

At 11am, we were packed, loaded, strapped in to our rucksacks and on our way to Tokyo Station to pick up the Shinkansen 'bullet' train to Kyoto.

Perfectly on time and incredibly fast, we were out of Tokyo and whipping past rural towns and lush green fields before we knew it.  Mount Fuji even made a brief appearance through the clouds. 

And here we are, in a very nice hostel in a lively area of old town Kyoto, surrounded by bars, restaurants, shops and shrines.  Our room has a desk, space for our rucksacks to lay open and is even big enough for Rosie and I to move around without one of us having to step outside!  Already the city feels much more spacious, with wide streets and avenues and trickling rivers and canals snaking between them.  A nice change of pace to the pressure cooker that is Tokyo which simmers beneath a hazy lid of towering concrete and neon lights.

Our first meal in Kyoto was unexpected - as the best meals are - having seen some good looking platters in the window of a restaurant (many eateries display full size plastic versions of their dishes).  We then saw that they had an English menu (quite rare in Japan) and walked into a pretty little Japanese establishment with low tables, curtained partitions, a gentle odour of cigarette smoke and soi sauce, and frequent calls of "Sumimasen" (Excuse me!) escaping from the hidden booths.  Ordering the 'sushi selection' among  a few other traditional dishes, we were presented with the above (for those who don't know, sushi = raw meat (often fish) with rice).  Delicious parcels of fresh sushi were served before us - tuna, sea bream, squid, prawn, eel and....chicken.  Chicken.  We rolled the dice and I took the bullet, hesitantly chomping down on the latter - raw, yes, oh so raw, chicken.  Take that UK Food Agency!  It's actually quite a normal dish here so, of course, I lived to tell the tale.  Just don't try it with your average family pack of chicken breasts from Iceland.

Dinner with Mai, Yukio, Kaoru & Gen the cat

This evening we were very kindly invited to our friends' apartment in Tokyo for dinner.  We were both very excited to see them again and meet their gorgeous new baby boy Kaoru and play with the very affectionate cat, Gen.

Mai met us at their nearby station and guided us to their apartment.  Now, imagine seeing this from your front door every day.  The view was stunning and the photo doesn't really do it justice:

...this was the first time we had seen Mount Fuji in its full glory - the cloud and haze was too thick four years ago - so we stood in awe on their doorstep for a while.

Mai and Yukio served us an amazing array of Japanese food.  We had edamame (soybeans), tori kara age (fried chicken), yaki soba (fried noodles), tofu and a delicious platter of sashimi, nori & sticky rice, all accompanied by an assortment of Japanese beer.  And if that wasn't Japanese enough, we even had a small earthquake as we sat and chatted (although we initially thought that the beer was going to our heads, the building gently swaying below us).

And so we say a big thank you and a fond farewell to Mai, Yukio and Kaoru and hope to see you all in London one day.  Domo arigato gozaimashita!

Good morning Tokyo!

After an eleven and a half hour flight, (with a slight delay in taking off - some people 'didn't make the flight' and had to have their bags offloaded) we landed, slightly jaded and very tired at Narita Tokyo airport smack bang in the middle of a rain and lightning storm. "I think we're back in England," Rosie said as the water poured over the windows in sheets. Luckily, by the time we'd made the long train journey into the centre of Tokyo, the rain had gone and the midday sun scorched down on our pale skin as we made the short walk from Asakusa metro station to our hostel.

"Check in not until 3 PM," the friendly receptionist said. "Three hours from now." Now, we were really tired at this point. Rosie managed a few hours sleep curled up in her seat on the plane, while my lanky proportions prevented me getting any shut eye at all and so I had resigned myself to watching films and TV shows, which, by the end, all blurred into one long, eclectic TV programme, all projected into my fuzzy brain from six inches away. By the time we got to the hostel, I had been awake for over 24 hours.

We dumped our rucksacks and took a good walk around Asakusa, an area we fell in love with during our first visit to Tokyo in 2008. In between admiring the many market stalls selling curiosities ranging from 3 foot tall dolls, tattooed from head to toe in Japanese designs, to fried octopus (octopi?) on sticks, we made a friend (Hideo) as we sat sheltering from the sun. Telling him of our travel plans, "I must have your email address, to follow you around the world!" he said, pulling a note pad and pen from his bag. After picking up some edamame and pork gyoza in a nearby seven eleven and falling into the bunk beds of our cupboard-sized room we fell sound asleep for around 3 hours until our carefully timed alarm chirped us to life. Showers felt utterly amazing and brushing ones teeth was like cleansing the soul of satan. You just have to love long haul flights!

Having shaken ourselves awake and taken in the amazing view of the river from the roof terrace of the hostel (pics to follow soon) we wandered around in the relative cool of the evening (although still around 27 degrees) and later found pints of Kirin beer at 300 Yen (around £2.45), fried meat and veg and big bowls of sticky rice for dinner. We now sit, sharing a can of Asahi beer from a vending machine in the street, while planning our day tomorrow. We are thinking we might sleep well tonight!

Less than an hour to go...

...and I've just realised that we're actually going to Japan today, now that we're surrounded by Japanese travellers. It hasn't felt 100% real until now.

We'd like to say a big thank you to our parents for all of their help over the past few months, without which we would not be able to do what we are about to do. We really are immensely grateful. Thanks to Rosie's brother Dan for keeping an eye on our flat and to Hannah for lending us her rucksack and other very useful bits and bobs. And thanks to anyone who knows us and has wished us well on our travels. See you in Tokyo tomorrow morning!

Xxx

The last (British) beer

...and found a cracking craft beer boozer in the process - The Clapton Hart

What's in the bag?

I've been asked on a number of occasions, 'What on earth do you pack for a years travelling?'  Well, your questions are answered.  The bags are packed and here followeth our kit list.  We also think it will be good to compare what's in there now with what is still in there upon our return to the UK.

Simon

Small Rucksack (Osprey 15 litre)

1.      Still camera with a spare battery and 3 memory cards totalling 64gb

2.      Digital video camera with spare battery and 64gb memory card

3.      Mini tripod

4.      iPod and headphones

5.      2 x ventolin inhalers (for occasional tight cheasted'ness)

6.      Glasses (I don't see so good)

7.      1 x box of 30 daily contact lenses (I don't like glasses)

8.      Ear plugs (pardon?)

9.      Chap stick (pucker up)

10.  Umbrella

11.  Document wallet containing passports, driving licences, insurance, itinerary, vaccination record books (all the important stuff)

12.  A wedge of various currencies for the first few countries

13.  A pen

14.  3 x books (a collection of short stories by Roald Dahl, a novella by Kingsley Amis and the Alan Partridge Autobiography which was £1 in a charity shop - how could I pass it by?)

15.  Nice new notebook for all of my wondrous ponderings

16.  Hoodie

17.  Waterproof jacket (a Berghaus Velum, amazing light weight and super breathable outer shell)

18.  Sunglasses

19.  USB memory stick

Large Rucksack (Osprey 70 litre)

1.      Walking boots

2.      4 x 200ml bottles of P20 sun screen (Rosie has another 3)

3.      Washbag containing solid shampoo and lithium ion shaver for extra long battery life, plus all the usual potions and lotions

4.      Money belt

5.      Zap-it (a small keyring device which zaps mosquito bites with a small electric shock, thus killing the histamines under the skin and stopping the itching)

6.      Waterproof document pouch

7.      Waterproof camera case

8.      2 x board shorts

9.      Rash vest

10.  Trunks

11.  4 x shorts

12.  2 x short sleeve shirts

13.  Chinos

14.  Jeans

15.  Belt (for holding up the aforementioned trousers and shorts)

16.  10 x T-shirts

17.  Long sleeved shirt

18.  Linen trousers (ready to be tie dyed)

19.  Pyjamas (funky, of course)

20.  13 x pairs of pants

21.  7 x pairs of short socks

22.  3 x pairs of regular socks

23.  Pair of warm weather walking socks

24.  2 x pairs of walking sock liners

25.  Electronic card reader and spare batteries (for online bank transfers)

26.  Maps of USA, East coast Australia and South East Asia

27.  First Aid Kit - as recommended by Nomad for round the world travel

28.  B***shitter's Tours rubber stamp - many thanks to Hannah & Lisa for this amazing device!

29.  Head torch

30.  Fake wallet

31.  Mini compass

32.  5 x boxes of 30 daily contact lenses

33.  iPod FM transmitter

34.  Mains socket adaptors

35.  Length of paracord

36.  Mosquito net (impregnated with repellent)

37.  12v cigarette lighter adaptor (for GPS, iPod & USB charging)

38.  Selection of audio cables to plumb iPod into TV's and stereos

39.  Platypus collapsible water bottle

40.  Travel towel

41.  Silk sleeping bag liner

42.  Shemagh

43.  Convertible walking trousers

44.  Flip flops

45.  Waterproof rucksack cover

46.  Cable lock

47.  Camera charger

48.  iPod mains plug

49.  Cable ties

50.  Lightweight gloves (yes, I know it's going to be hot, but these are ready for spring time in the US National Parks)

51.  Bin bags

52.  2 x sporks (a spoon and a fork, combined into one super hand utensil)

53.  Portable washing line

54.  Double sided tape

55.  Universal sink plug

56.  Shaver charger

57.  Swiss Army Knife (again, many thanks to Hannah for loaning this and the rucksack!)

Rosie

Small Rucksack (Osprey 15 litres)

1.      LG netbook and charger

2.      Waterproof jacket

3.      South East Asia Lonely Planet book

4.      Travel Journal and Diary

5.      Point-it (a book full of hundreds of pictures of everything to help when our limited knowledge of foreign language fails)

6.      1 x box of 30 daily contact lenses

7.      Shorts, vest and leggings

8.      Hoodie

9.      Glasses

10.  Umbrella

Large Rucksack (Osprey 55 litres)

1.      Walking boots

2.      Flip flops

3.      3 x 200ml bottles of P20 sun screen

4.      Warm weather walking socks

5.      2 x pairs of walking sock liners

6.      15 x pairs of pants

7.      2 x bras

8.      Sports bra

9.      2 x bikinis

10.  2 x belts

11.  12 x tops

12.  Light weight cardigan

13.  5 x dresses

14.  Convertible walking trousers

15.  Long sleeve shirt

16.  Short sleeve shirt

17.  4 x shorts

18.  2 x skirts

19.  Pyjama shorts

20.  Scarf

21.  Head torch

22.  Waterproof rucksack cover

23.  5 x boxes of 30 daily contact lenses

24.  Toiletries bag

25.  2 x travel towels

26.  Platypus collapsible water bottle

27.  Sandals

28.  Silk sleeping bag liner

29.  Hair accessories

30.  Sewing kit

31.  Make-up bag

32.  Anti Mosquito Kit containing, 2 x bottles of Deet, 2 x tubes of Ultrathon, 2 x bottles of clothing treatment and sting relief stick

33.  Anti mosquito incense coils

34.  GPS

35.  Walking tour print outs (thank you, internet)

Plus various lady bits and bobs and a couple of novels (yet to be selected) in her handbag.

So there it is.  They are full, they are heavy and they ARE coming with us!

Early night for us tonight (if we can sleep at all) as we're adjusting to Tokyo time (GMT+8) by getting up super early each day. The alarm shall be set for 3.30am and we shall head to the bus stop at around 8.30.  Flight departs at 13:30.  See you at T5!