Dorm rooms are rarely an oasis of calm and quiet, buses (also sleeper buses) in Southeast Asia often play Karaoke music with the volume turned way up, and yes, at some point, there will be a howling baby on the airplane seat next to you.
If you haven’t got the point yet: earplugs are a travel ESSENTIAL! Travelling in Yunnan, China, and now starting my travels in Myanmar, made me realise that, contrary to my previous beliefs, it is not that easy to find earplugs everywhere around the world. You will sure be able to locate some in very touristy countries, but do take a small stash from home and find new ones before your stock is all finished! Other questions on travel gear? Check out my travel gear page!
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“Oh my God, Oh my God, Stephen, nice to meet you!” the girl behind the counter exclaimed enthousiastically when I presented myself. I was in the atmospheric but über-touristy old town of Lijang, in a small but very trendy and cozy restaurant / food bar. This place was probably why I decided to come to Lijang in the first place. An avid foodie, I wanted to try to learn some of the cuisines of the countries I visited. So far, I had been neglecting that wish, but China would be different. I had found an ad on the HelpX website, about Rice Slurp, a restaurant which invited foodies to come by and learn about traditional Yunnan food, and exchange views. Sounded good to me! So here I was, all ready to become an expert in Chinese food! Rice Slurp turned out to be more a “food bar” than a restaurant, with small but organic and freshly made - not to forget: very tasty! - snacks and drinks. The crew was not always proficient in English (but much the same can be said of my Standard Chinese ;-)) but each and every one of them was super-friendly and helpful and they made my stay in Lijang a fantastic experience; not only did they teach me about the foods in the restaurant, but they also took me all over town to taste delish Chinese foods - they even invited me to their home for an unbelievably elaborate and delicious lunch! While walking around in Lijang with my new friend Yaw from Rice Slurp, a Chinese lady approached us and (so I learned from Yaw) asked whether I wanted to play a role in a Chinese commercial. If you want to see the quality of my acting, watch CCTV!
My first train experience in China was an easy one: Li accompanied me to Dali, so I got on and off the train safe and sound. But even without Li’s help, it looked like taking a train in China (or at least in Yunnan) was fairly straightforward, even for a non-Chinese speaking person: your train ticket gets checked at three stages - when entering the station, when proceeding to the platform, and when boarding the train. What you should not do, is come to the station too late - all the trains I took in Yunnan, ran perfectly on time! Dali was, for me, a disappointment. The big attraction of Dali - besides shopping till you drop and eating till you burst, in the super crowded tourist streets of the old town - was the vast Erhai Lake, which most Chinese visited by renting a (electric!) scooter. So together with my Chinese companions Yen and Li, I followed suit. I personally found Erhai Lake to be not particularly scenic, and driving around the whole lake in winter time brought our bodies near hypothermia. Luckily, nothing a good Chinese hotpot and some chinese rice wine couldn't fix!
Kunming, 7am. The immigration officers worked swiftly and efficiently to clear all passengers arriving from Kolkata. The airport building breathed modernity. I had clearly arrived in a different world. But an attempt to communicate to the lady in the provision store in the arrivals lobby, made me quickly remember that Standard Chinese was the language everyone knew here, not English. With a lot of effort, I managed to get on the right bus, and with the help of a young girl that knew a couple of words of English, I was able to locate my hostel…where again, no one spoke English… The next day, to my relief, I met 2 tourists to whom I could communicate, and the day thereafter, 2 Chinese guys, one of whom had some basic knowledge of English, decided to take me under their wings, and brought me to all places I wanted to visit. Also, they kept buying me bus tickets, lunch, dinner…wow, Chinese hospitality, it is something else!
I was walking in the backpacker street of Kolkata, my heavy backpack starting to weigh down on me. The last hour, I had been looking at rooms in various states of dilapidation, trying to decide which one would revolt me the least for a one night stay. All that time, I had been harassed by various Indians offering their help notwithstanding my firm indication that no such help was desired. Arriving in Kolkata late in the afternoon had not been a good thing for finding decent accommodation. I had planned to arrive early morning but my train had been delayed by eight hours. Despite the rather horrendous accommodation I had finally chosen, I slept quite well, and my Sunday stroll through the rather calm streets of Kolkata was very pleasant - the many colonial buildings and wide lanes give the city a pleasant grandeur.
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