Week 10

Week 10: Cultural

26/04/12

This week has been my favourite so far since coming to China.  We all finished our placement and made our way across the border to Hong Kong to spend the weekend with Andrew and Heather.  I also celebrated my 21^st birthday at the weekend and it made my birthday so special being with more friends from home, celebrating in Hong Kong.  We had dinner at ‘TGI Friday’s’ and...I did the world’s highest bungee jump to ensure that I did something on my 21^st birthday that I would never forget.  It was incredible!!

Preparing to do the bungee jump.  As you can see Andrew was very scared

The bungee jump is situated in Macau which is an island inside Hong Kong.  So we were blessed to be able to see this beautiful Island as well as Hong Kong during our weekend.  Macau was completely different to China and Hong Kong.  It was very similar to some of the European cities that I have visited.  The streets were cobbled and it used to be owned by the Portuguese so it doesn’t feel like you are in China at all when you are in Macau.  This new atmosphere was so refreshing and it enabled us all to relax being away from university and enjoy spending time together.  This is something I have learnt to appreciate being away from home.  Simply spending time with people is so special. You don’t always have to be doing something exciting but simply enjoying each other’s company has brought me so much joy.  This had made me greatly appreciate the fantastic relationships that I do have at home.

Being in Hong Kong this weekend also reminded me just how different Chinese lifestyle is.  In Hong Kong we were easily able to order food in English without any problems.  In China this has proved a huge difficulty at times.  I do prefer China in this aspect and the fact that they don’t change their language or compromise their culture to suit the needs of the ever increasing westerners coming to China.

Straight after our trip to Hong Kong we set off travelling to another part of China.  We had been told by everyone we have met in China to visit a place called ‘Guilin’.  Nothing that anyone could have described would have prepared me for the beauty of creation that we saw in Guilin.  I have never seen more incredible mountains than those which are in Guilin.  I actually was speechless for a large amount of this day as I took in the breathtaking sights of rural China.  This trip was also filled with many cultural experiences that I will never forget.  We got to go on a bamboo raft along the ‘Dragon River’ in Yangshuo, pet and feed water buffalo and try the traditional ‘rice noodles’ of Yangshuo.

Our bamboo raft navigator!!

 Guilin is famous for it’s spectacular mountains and it is the place where the scene on the back of a 20 yuan note is from. (yuan is the currency used here in China).  So it was a wonderful experience being able to see this place for ourselves.

 The mountains and the 20 yuan note!!

We spent the next few days in the most beautiful village.  This time felt like a well earned holiday after our placement.  This village also had many products that are available to buy at home but we were able to purchase them for a cheaper price.  This was when I got to try my hand at bartering.  Normally in Northern Ireland I never complain about anything and I have never tried bartering before so this was a first time experience for me.  I really enjoyed it and I was able to get much needed gifts for home.

All together this trip was another great cultural experience for me J

This is the Chinese sleeper train that we took to Guilin.  We also got a sleeper bus back to Guangzhou, both of which were new experiences for m