China with Mum 😍

To China, our tour guides and fellow travellers. Seeing Shanghai from the top of the second tallest tower in China was a great way to finish our tour.  The lift took us to the 88th floor in under 45 seconds.  The views were simply incredible.  I would go as far as saying that it topped any I have seen before, except the top of the Eiffel Tower.  The span of the buildings seemed limitless. Check out those brave souls cleaning the windows next door.  They were higher than us! A quick stop at the French area of Shanghai (that certainly did not look very French and did not serve any croissants or decent coffee). Then, a final chance at some last minute 'Made in China' shopping. We boarded our flight home.  This one was a bit ordinary, but at least 11 hours straight to Melbourne.  We sweet-talked our way through Virgin bureaucracy to get a seat back to Adelaide 5 hours sooner to arrive home in time to unpack and shower before din...

Suzhou is famous for the supply of 80% of the world's silk.  The other 20% comes from Italy. So, it was a privilege to visit the town and its' silk factory. I didn't know this but silk is produced by worms feeding on mulberry trees.  In Suzhou, the trees are small and have large leaves which gives the worms plenty of tucker.  Once the worms mature, they spit out a single strand of silk to make the cocoon.  This strand is nearly 2km long.   The cocoon is harvested and silk woven to produce garments.  5% of these worms create a twin cocoon, that is two worms intertwine their silk strands to wrap themselves up together.  This silk is much stronger and used for things like silk parachutes and silk quilts.  In fact, it is so strong, that the US is importing this particular type of silk and currently working on developing bullet proof vests made with it for their defence personnel.  How interesting! Of course, following this we were invited t...

Antioxidants.  Polyphenols. I'm no longer concerned about turning 40.  I have the key to an eternal healthy life in a small plastic bag right here.  It cost me a small fortune, but as they keep telling us: you can't put a price on your health. I'm talking about our visit to  Green Tea Plantation just outside of Hangzhou. We were treated to a tea ceremony and learnt all about the slimming and anti-ageing properties of green tea.  We learned how to make it properly so as not to kill the good stuff in the process. First of all, forget Lipton tea bags.   Secondly, don't pour boiling water over your delicate green tea leaves.  Wait 3 minutes until the water temperature comes down to 80 degrees.   Thirdly, re-use the same leaves 5 times. You can use cold water and some lemon to make iced tea, too. The bad news is, you have to drink 20 cups per day for any noticeable health benefit.  Or you can just buy the tablets which are 18 more concentrated and...

Today was an opportunity to go on a spiritual journey.   We visited Lake Taihu, which is the size equivalent to 3.5 Singapore (whatever that is...?) First, we witnessed a Kung-fu performance followed by a Tai Chi lesson in the park (just like in the movies hehe). The lakeside was serene, peaceful and quiet.  We got a chance to take a walk along the broad walk, and take some selfies which were appropriately enhanced by the locals.   This vibe followed us to the Grand Buddha.  What a beautiful sight and so very therapeutic.  Not surprisingly, a stop over at a Pearl Farm to buy fresh water pearls was in the programme, before we arrived in Hangzhou.  Hangzhou is a 1000 year old city, so a lot of culture and history to experience.  Another comfy high end hotel to rest our feet and an evening to ourselves to do some shopping was just what we needed. Namaste.

I always thought when in China, you eat cat in disguise. Well, it didn't quite get this far (not yet at least), but close enough for my liking. After a long journey on the bullet train from Beijing to Wuxi, I was pleased to find a reasonably priced room service menu and ordered a comforting (and safe) Shichuan style spicy chicken noodles. I received chicken stomachs floating in noodle soup... Never mind, I had some pringles and beer. Earlier today, we were treated to a visit to a large herbal medicine centre and given a lecture about the benefits of Chinese medicine over Western Medicine.  This centre was apparently 350 years old and was used to treat the emperor.  I'm already a great believer in natural remedies so I was lapping it up.  Apparently, in the earlier times, doctors were paid by their patients to keep them healthy and as soon as a person got sick, they got their money back.  What a great philosophy - it's all about prevention. There is very little high b...

'Conquering' is somewhat an overstatement.  From a physical effort point of view, it felt more like getting to the top of Lofty.  But the views were a tad more breathtaking.   Mum was a trooper climbing those steps. We treated ourselves to a cold beer (or three) at the end. But before we did all that hard work, we fuelled up, as promised, on some dumplings. On the way to the Wall, we made an obligatory stop at a jade factory, where we were bullied into loving the gem stone enough to drop some cash on it.  Apparently China is second behind Burma in producing jade, with Russia in third and New Zealand in fourth spot (a useless fact, but you never know when it might come in handy at a quiz night). The jade bangle worn on the left wrist has many health benefits, as it massages a number of important acupuncture points when wearing it.  Mum bought one and rubbed the thing up and down her forearm all afternoon, but at the en...

Today we visited Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, Summer Palace and pigged out on Peking Duck.  I call it a successful day.   Fact: there are 25 million people in Beijing alone. 1.4 billion in China. 5 million cars.  There are restrictions on which cars can drive which day of the week, depending on their number plate.  Except on Saturdays and Sundays.  On the weekend, all cars are allowed, and they all take the liberty.  It was like 'porridge' on the road today, as described by our tour guide Maggie (yes, like the noodles kind hehe). Fact: Tienanmen Square is the largest square in the world. Fact: Religion is forbidden in China.  Officials, military personnel, government employees are not allowed to have a religion. Smart. Fact: The portrait of Chairman Mao in the Tiananmen Square weighs 5 tons  Fact: The Forbidden City is called forbidden, because the locals were not allowed in, and the Concubines and servants living there ...