yangshuo part o n e

Yangshuo was honestly one of the prettiest, funnest, most incredible places I have ever been. There's so much to do there and it is soooo beautiful. I mean just look at it!

September 28, 2014 - 24 hours

I woke up to kenz and madi standing over me at 4:30 am. "kale. kale salad? (my nickname). Are you awake? It's time to go." running off of two hours of sleep, I jumped out of bed and put on some clothes. We were out the door by 5, and made it to the train station just in time. Lucky for us, we managed to get a sleeper train for the 24 hour commute there. It really wasn't so bad. Well.. other than the fact that i was on the top bunk, which was pretty high up, and I couldn't sit up straight without hitting my head on the ceiling. Needless to say, we made it to guilin.

September 29, 2014 - hustled

The train ride lasted 24 hours exactly. After hauling our suitcases up and down several flights of stairs, dripping with sweat, we made it out of the train station. Almost immediately we were swarmed with Chinese people saying "yangshuo?" as they pointed to a bunch of buses. One guy, who looked nice enough, started taking our bags and putting them on one of the buses. Then he charged us 40 RMB ($8) to ride the bus. He was supposedly the bus driver. 

But once we started driving, we realized that same dude standing in the road counting the money we had just forked over. Sickkkk. We got hustled. But it's okay because we still made it to yangshuo and we still had an unforgettable time. The bus ride from Guilin to Yangshuo was 1-2 hours and it was probably one of the prettiest drives of my life. 

After cramming onto a city bus, getting a little lost, and walking for quite some time, we made it to our hostel, Monkey Jane. It was in the most convenient location, too. All we had to do was walk downstairs, down the alley, and we were in the middle of the most adorable little street with shops along the whole thing. 

After we settled into our hostel and took showers, we explored, took some pictures, and then hung out on Monkey Jane's roof, which was the only place the wifi would work.

September 30, 2014 - stranger danger 

After having a lazy morning, we headed back to Guilin to float down the Li River on bamboo rafts, which would take us back to Yangshuo. But when we got there, we were informed that it was too late to do it :/ sooo we wandered around Guilin, and ended up paying some dudes to take us on a fake bamboo raft around some island or something. It was suuuuper sketchy. But it turned out to be super pretty and we got some cool pictures. 

Afterwards, we crossed this bridge. But it looked more like someone threw down some ropes and then some wood on top of it. Picture the bridge Shrek has to cross to save process fiona from the dragon. It was super sketchy. If you haven't already realized it yet, a lot of things in China are pretty sketchy.

After taking the bus back to Yangshuo, five of us were starving and in search of some yummy, cheap food. Around 1 am, we found this guy who was making noodles so we decided to give them a shot. They were  d e l i c i o u s. While we were waiting for them to be cooked, some guy offered us beers. We explained that we didn't drink, but I'm not sure he understood because when we sat down to eat, he offered them to us again. We figured out how to say "we don't drink alcohol" in Chinese and he replied "coca cola?" one of us said yes, and he proceeded to count us, and then went to the convenient store that was 30 feet away and bought us all cokes. What a sweetie! 

We invited him to eat with us and then ended up inviting another dude to do the same because he was eating all by himself. He spoke fairly good English, so it was fun to just sit and talk to him while the other dude pretended he knew what was going on. We stayed out there until 2 or 2:30 and then decided we should probably go to sleep. It was definitely a night I'll remember for the rest of my life! 

October 01, 2014 - the best day

We decided to rent mopeds for the day so we could go do the mud caves and see some other parts of yangshuo. At first, the people who were renting them to us wouldn't let us go, because we were all apparently pretty bad at driving, and the roads were busier than ever due to the holiday. But after a bit of practice, they gave us the okay and we were off. 

I can't even describe to you the thrill of zooming through the mountains in yangshuo on a little scooter. It was so incredibly beautiful and so fun! 

Our first stop was the dragon bridge. supposedly. It wasn't as cool as it was talked up to be, but we did get some good pictures and some flower crowns for 5 RMB that didn't even fit our heads.

After that, we found a place with the bamboo rafts that we had gone to Guilin to do. It was so incredible. We had this adorable little chinese man who rowed us  (is that what you call it?) down the river. By far one of my favorite things I've done in China thus far.

Our last stop waaaas the mud caves. What an experience that was. I'm 80% sure most of, if not all of it was man-made. But it was still cool. We had a tour guide who actually spoke English. We saw some neat stuff in the caves, but we all just wanted to get to the mud! Eventually, we did get there. It was sooo cold. Since we didn't want to risk losing our phones, we had way of taking pictures other than the photographer who was there. So we ended up getting a few of those. I think we lasted about 20 minutes in the mud, and then we were all ready to get out and get cleaned up. 

Sadly, the showers to rinse off were cold too. So that was pretty awful. But the next room had hot springs, which was real nice. It was like soaking in a hot bath, which is my favorite thing ever. 

After sitting in the hot springs for a long time, we realized it was 5:45, and we were supposed to have the mopeds back by 7. 

On the way back, half of us got split up from the other half, which was no bueno.  I was the one driving on the way back while Sonya was on the back getting to figure out where the freak to go. Driving through that traffic, on a scooter, with a gimpy helmet, and having no idea where I was going.. was probably one of the most nerve-wracking things I've ever experienced. BUT, somehow, we made it back safe and sound. Thank goodness. What a day.

B E I J I N G

September 5, 2014

The train ride from Ningbo to Beijing was 7 hours, which is pretty good compared to the 23 hours by train it will take to get to Yangshuo. 

Once we got to Beijing, we took the subway to our hostel. I've never been to New York, but I picture it being like Beijing. Lots of people and tons to do. The hostel was nicer than I was expecting. Good atmosphere, very touristy, and popular. There were lots of people from all over the world. Staying in a hostel is a good way to meet people, because you sleep in the same room as strangers. I met a girl named Hannah from England, and some guy from the UK. One of my favorite parts about traveling is meeting new people. 

September 6, 2014

We got up bright and early in hopes of catching a public bus to the Great Wall. Only when we got to the bus station.. It was total chaos and we couldn't figure out what was going on. So instead, we grabbed breakfast from a bakery just around the corner and hopped on the subway to go to the forbidden city.

One thing I hate about China, is all the security checks. Bus stations, train stations, you name it. There are security checks everywhere, and they're completely useless. We wasted probably over two hours waiting in lines for security just that day. 

Needless to say, we eventually made it inside the forbidden city, which was ginormous. My favorite part was the garden. It reminded me of the garden of Versailles. The forbidden city was cool, but a lot of it looked the same to me.

Once we finished there, we walked quite a ways to Tianamen square. We waited 45 minutes in yet another security line, but in my opinion it wasn't worth it. But it was cool to learn some of the history of China, I guess.

We went straight to the Silk Market after that. talk about a long day. There were 4 floors of shop after shop. Tons of shoe shops that were selling the exact same things. So while bargaining, if the Chinese people were asking too high of a price and wouldn't go down, we would just tell them we were going to look somewhere else so they would go "okay okay!" And give whatever it was to us for the price we wanted (usually). Bargaining with Chinese people is NOT an easy task.. But I feel like I did pretty good. I got myself, and Josh a pair of Nike's for 300 RMB.. which is only 50 bucks in American money. According to Josh, they're fake.. but they look and feel real so I don't care. Annnd I also got a Nike backpack for $12. Score.

September 7, 2014

We ended up taking a guided tour of the Great Wall that was offered by our hostel. It included breakfast, lunch, information about the Great Wall, transportation, etc.

It took an hour and a half or so to get there, which wasn't bad. Once we got there, our tour guide, David, explained all the options of what we could do. Hike, toboggan, cable car, etc. We ended up choosing the toboggan, which was the best choice.

We took a ski lift to where the toboggans were, and then explored a bit. We hiked up a lot of stairs, and took a lot of pictures. The Great Wall was indeed very great. No picture or video could ever do it justice. The view was indescribable. It felt like a dream. 

Once it was lunchtime, we hiked back down to the toboggan station and got in line. HOLY. It was the funnest thing of my entire life. Picture the alpine slide.. only faster, longer, funner, and on the Great Wall of CHINA instead of PC. It was amazing and definitely the best part of China thus far. 

We ended up going back to the Silk Market afterwards. I bought two more pairs of shoes (oops). One lady threatened to KILL Kenzie because she was helping me bargain. I think they were all sick of us "stupid Americans" because we're so cheap. It was still fun, though. 

We also went to a night market on the way home. A few of the girls ate scorpions. Nasty. I wasn't brave enough to try any though.

September 8, 2014

The train ride home was pretty awful. It was way too hot and I could never get comfortable. When we got back to Ningbo, we were immediately swarmed with a bunch of guys trying to get us to use their private taxi's. We were getting all sorts of bad vibes. They were probably gonna kidnap us or something. 

We ended up waiting in line for 45 minutes for a taxi. Some random couple tried to cut everyone in line and as they got in the taxi someone yelled something in Chinese and the couple got kicked out. 

It was nice to finally get back to our apartment in Ningbo. home. My home for 3 more months.

Beijing, you were so good to me. I hope I can make it back to see your beauty again some day.

ALSO, check out this video my cute roommate Jennie made of our Great Wall Adventure. You won't regret it I PROMISE. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voBSfKOSo8o

                   

shanghai

Better late than never, right??

September 13, 2014

We woke up at 4 am so we could make our bus at 6 am. we didn't leave until 5 though, oops. We literally walked for 45 minutes before we were able to get a taxi to take us to the bus station. I almost got hit by a car trying to flag one down and for some reason they were all driving past us. Eventually, we figured out that they weren't allowed to take people anywhere that early, which makes zero sense. Like why even be out if you can't drive people around?
We made it just before 6, but the last group of girls (it takes 3 taxi's to get us all anywhere) didn't think they were going to make it in time, so we paid to change our tickets. WELL, turns out they came in like a minute or two before 6, so we could've made it. But that's just how the day was going.
The bus ride was miserable. No leg room, a backache, a headache, and an empty stomach.
We made it to Shanghai, and it was raining when we got there. Then we had to take the subway to the Shanghai Wildlife Center, which took another 2 hours, which sucked. But it was so worth it.

Every time I do something cool, I say to myself "this is my favorite thing I've done" or "this is the best day of my life." But this time.. I RODE AN ELEPHANT. Well, actually I rode TWO elephants because it was so amazing. It has been on my bucketlist to ride an elephant ever since I decided I was going to Africa. But it was well worth the wait! a dream come true.

And.. I held a baby lion, which was adorable. and fed a giraffe. It was such a fun day and I loved every second of it. China is so amazing. Each new place is so different and unique and I've loved seeing as much of it as I have. I can't wait for what's next. Stay tuned for more China adventures!

Thanks for the good time Shanghai, I'll be back soon I hope. xoxo

SLC ↠↠ CHINA

So.. I made it to CHINA! I've been here for just over a week now and I love it! Karaoke, being stared at everywhere we go, crowded bus rides, going to the market, trying the food, going to church in an apartment, it has all been good for the most part! 

It's super humid where we're at, which makes it even hotter than it already is (which is hot). Our rooms in the apartment have AC. thank goodness. But that along the wifi tend to go out every other day it seems like. None of the rooms in the school have air conditioning, so that kind of sucks. Especially for the kids.. who are in school like 12+ hours a day! Like I knew Asians were smart, but now I know why. 

We get up at about 6:30 every morning for breakfast. early, I know. But so far it hasn't been an issue since everyone usually goes to bed early anyway. We're all trying to get used to the 14 hour time difference so everyone has been pretty exhausted. Once we all adjust, I don't think it'll be as easy to wake up every morning for food that's not that great..

Food wise, our school is supposedly one of the better ones, but they still have some pretty nasty stuff. At dinner tonight, there were little tiny fish that still had their eyeballs, along with some other kind of fish, some green seaweed looking stuff, and rice. Rice is always safe. I didn't realize that when people told me the Chinese eat rice with every meal, that it was actually true.. Like who eats rice for breakfast?? weird. But I can tell that the cooks/chefs/whatever they're called, really try. This morning they had CEREAL and milk, and some fruit! Although the milk was warm, and expired, (everything here is) it could've been worse. So I'll try not to complain too much about the food. But don't count on it.

We started teaching yesterday. The kids already have my heart. They are adorable. They can be real stinkers a lot of the time, but it's really hard to stay mad when they're so stinkin cute. I'm already starting to realize how incredibly hard it's gonna be to leave in December. 

Buuuut we just arrived in Beijing so peace out. (oh, and I'm loving black and white today if ya can't tell)

xoxo

 

reminiscing

One year ago, I had the amazing opportunity to go to Kenya, Africa. In the three and a half weeks I was there, I watched a chicken get slaughtered, held a baby crocodile, fed giraffes, rode a camel on the beach, went skinny dipping in the Indian Ocean, went on a safari and saw just about every animal there was to see (which is rare), made lots of great friends, met some amazing people, etc. And while all of the above things were extremely cool and I'm so glad I got to do them, none of those things had the same amount of impact on me as simply being around the people of Africa, especially the kids. They are literally the happiest human beings I have ever come across in my entire life. And compared to us, they have nothing. I've never felt so guilty for having so much. We all take so much for granted, without even realizing it. 

For example, not only do we have plenty of food to eat, but we have a variety. Where I went, there were very few people who were necessarily starving, but the majority ate the same thing for every single meal, every single day. ugali & kale. 

Second, while we're all sitting on our smart phones and social media, or laying in front of the tv, the women are outside doing manual labor often times with a baby on their back and no shoes on their feet. 

Third, when it gets dark, they ACTUALLY go to sleep. What a crazy idea that is.. They don't have lights or microwaves or.. wifi. Heaven forbid. 

They don't have hot water either. They rarely shower. But when they do, it's with a bucket of water. Don't worry guys, I showered almost every night. And luckily, we were able to boil water so our showers were still hot. 

The biggest thing though, is they don't have any fresh water. I can't remember the statistic but I think it's like 80% (maybe more) of deaths in South Africa are due to water born illnesses. Some women walk 6 km (3.728 miles) a day, one way, to get water. And it isn't fresh water either. Usually it's murky, muddy water, with all kinds of bacteria. K but seriously.. Eight miles A DAY?? And they'll often have to make the trip more than once. That's crazy. Can you imagine carrying a gallon and a half of water ON YOUR HEAD for nearly eight plus miles a day? I can't. I tried it. I barely made it twenty feet. 

BUT, I was able to give fresh water to three different areas. We drilled into the ground and put in a water pump that would allow villagers to have access to fresh water. The amount of gratitude the people showed to me and to my group was the greatest feeling. I mentioned in my earlier post that I believe in making a difference in the world. No matter how small. And I really felt like I was able to accomplish that in Africa. 

I was also able to go to several orphanages and schools. The people there are great, don't get me wrong. But those kids.. stole my heart. Their spirits are so pure and so perfect. I wish I could've taken them all home with me. Mark my words, I will adopt a little African baby one day. 

The people really are the most genuine, kind-hearted, happy people I have ever met and I'm so glad I had the opportunity to go and experience life from a different perspective. I hope one day I can go back. 

xoxo Africa, I miss you.

t u m a i n i