Ducati Monster Forum

Going to China Mid Nov. Being the large and mysterious place that it is, I was wondering if any of you savvy travelers have been and taken note of any 'can't be missed' sundries or spots to behold.
Any advice at all?

The slow boats...

But seriously: talk to Zee from Oz. And mostro900. They've both been there. mostro900 lived there for a while.

Yes it's large.  Wanna narrow down what part you're going to?

Start working on your visa ASAP.  If there's a chance you might go back within the next 6 months then try to get a multi-visit one, will make your life far easier.  I usually use Visa Network (http://www.visanetwork.com/) in SF.

I'll be heading over semi-frequently. Hong kong area company apartment awaits me.  ;D
That will always be the jump off point. I'm open to suggestions. Maybe this trip will be around Hong Kong.
Business visa on the way. thanks!

Hong kong is actually considered a different country when it comes to visas so be aware. not sure if you even need one for Hong Kong...

Ya I'll definitely be flying into Hong Kong then going to China, just over the water from Hong Kong. ..and I guess getting a lot of shots first. Not looking forward to that semi-sick thing from inoculations.

No visa needed for HK for US citizens but you definitely need one for mainland China.

Are you going out into the countryside?  If you're sticking to big cities you probably don't need shots.

stanley market on the island http://www.hk-stanley-market.com/ (http://www.hk-stanley-market.com/)

victoria peak http://www.orientaltravel.com/province/city/area/HK_Victoria_Peak.htm (http://www.orientaltravel.com/province/city/area/HK_Victoria_Peak.htm)

lan kwai fong (for bars/night life) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lan_Kwai_Fong (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lan_Kwai_Fong)

temple street night market http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294217-d315245-Reviews-Temple_Street_Night_Market-Hong_Kong_Hong_Kong_Region.html (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294217-d315245-Reviews-Temple_Street_Night_Market-Hong_Kong_Hong_Kong_Region.html)

temple of ten thousand buddhas http://www.fodors.com/world/asia/china/hong-kong/review-161043.html (http://www.fodors.com/world/asia/china/hong-kong/review-161043.html)

take the speed ferry to macau ... unless macau did a MASSIVE spick-n-span project, expect the entire island to smell like a urinal ... but it's worth seeing, if just for the road race circuit.

the jumbo floating restaurant in aberdeen http://www.jumbo.com.hk/eng/main.php (http://www.jumbo.com.hk/eng/main.php)

Johnc with something useful and informative?????   :o :o :o

I have almost no advice. But a friend of mine went there and brought back a "Chairman Mao" lighter. I am surprised  that 15 years later it still works. Get one of those.

We had a thread in NMC with some advice about Hong Kong:
http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=16289.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=16289.0)

As far as mainland China, if you're going to Shanghai, Beijing, or Xian I can make some recommendations.

HK is very easy to get around in, everyone speaks English, the subway system is very efficient.  Lots of traffic (they drive on the other side) but the driving is ok.   Things tend to be fairly expensive there.

On the mainland things tend to be cheaper (both in price and in quality), although Shanghai is more high-end.  Anywhere in mainland China be very careful with the traffic, even crossing the street is dangerous.  Those drivers are some of the craziest I've seen (far worse than the Italians).

Hong Kong is like New York, it is overbuilt and highly urban and pretty pricey for good times.

I was not impressed with it, what other places are you going to? 

There is a lot of fun to be had.  See if you can find any ex-pat groups there for pointers, that's what I did -- you'll find they are almost 100% American & UK male divorcees, all having the time of their lives.... go figure...

someone stole my account ... fack you  [roll]

Thanks for all the tips guys! See you in a couple of weeks!
mebe I'll post some pics like the n00b in Asia that I am. ;D

Ciao for now  -E       [wine]

Safe travels! :)

DO NOT EAT THE FISH HEAD SOUP!

I just heard the craziest stories... about fish head soup.
Colleagues took to me to a fancy restaurant and ordered me the pickled chicken claw stack and waited for my reaction. Ya know that's coming right?

This engineer foody friend of mine was explaining, as he nibbled between the toes, that much of Chinese delicacy comes from the idea of 'having an obscure experience' rather than eating to take on calories, the lowly survival habit we all have.

Ok, I'll bite. Keep this in mind when describe all manor of putrid dishes. When I say, putrid, I mean, we DROVE past a market selling fermented tofu, TOFU, mind you. It smelled like a rotting cow by the side of the road. You could smell the tiny breeze wafting this delicacy down wind for a good mile. One little cart with this tofu had us two americans muffling our, "aaaaawwwwwwgaaaawd," politely as it was explained to us that this is their version of Limburger cheese and it was quite popular. I saw it at several markets.

No. really, we eat moldy stinky ass cheese from France pretty regularly. And don't say you won't pay $15.99 a pound for it too.

The other thing is, it has been discovered that when stuck in a place with a short list of edible items that a malnutrition can set in. The body reacts to this by shifting what is palatable on a psycho-physiological level. Fish eyes and pig heart "stem" start tasting like a snickers bar in order to obtain difficult trace minerals, vitamins etc.
Hence, fish head soup. Supposedly its a rapid change that occurs with sailors, for example, lost at sea for several months with nothing but fish to eat. They start eating the fillet, and after a couple of months, all they want are the eyes and livers.

Its true that stuck in a stadium seat for an entire 9'ers game, by the 4th quarter I'm wantin' the cheese wiz-nachos bathed in chili.

Notice the rambling?


This is the beginning stages of insanity.




Soon he will talk to himself, for lack of anyone else.



Run Eric!

ramble ramble

PS the funniest thing is we went to a little out door cafe and ordered fries and onion rings with beer from the menu with English translations.

We got TIGER beer, cucumber sticks and fried duck heads. 
We rolled off our chairs laughing.