Chengdu and Beijing

You will now get an update for Chengdu and Beijing.

Chengdu was not really a tourist time, since I stayed in Peter's flat with his roommates Thomas and Philipp. It felt more like visisting some friends studying in Dresden or Berlin than being in the middle of China.

The flat is on the 7th floor, no elevator. Therefor you have a rooftop terrace - perfect to chill with some beers and enjoy the first days of spring.


me + Kingway


Peter + Kingway + Muziek Piete


getting the essentials.


on the way back from the gym


in the restaurent around the corner


Nontheless did I see some things in Chengdu, this is the peach blossom in the countryside around the city where I was with a friend of Thomas


me


Maggie


Jiling road, a place for tourists, looks ancient but is fake. Nice to hang out and eat + drink. Thank you Nina for showing me around the town.

some performance


lovely atmosphere


traditional music


Chinese ppl love kites, especially kids and old men. This pic is from a flower garden Nina showed me where all the stressed out city people stroll around, drink tea and play mahjongg on the weekend.


Nina


Opening of a bar Peter's friend Jasmine (in the middle) took us to. Somehow the landlord (Adam, on the right) found out about us being German and we found out that he studied in Wuerzburg some mere two decades ago and still speaks German. Somehow we then found out that Remy Martin tastes even better when it's free.




Beijing

Sichuan Airlines took me (with the hottest stewardesses, the worst food and no beer) to Beijing.


View over the forbidden city


Palace of eternal happiness, everlasting wishfulness, infinite wisdom or whatever they are called - the 42nd concubine's bathroom.



view from the gate of the forbidden city over what is supposed to be the world's largest square. Mao's mausoleum in the center, national museum and parliament on the left or right




Mari in the subway


Even if you consider our sheer awesomeness, note the great wall in the back.



Our tour to the great wall


me, KQ (Taiwan), Mari, Hanna and an Israeli couple we shared the taxi with on some tower



I'm running out of time, I'll tell you next time how I almost missed my flight because all the Beijing roast duck restaurents close so early.

Greetings from Tokyo!

Pictures Achim

Similan Islands diving

Finally the pictures found their way from Stuttgart to Renningen and to my blog.

I don't think I need to comment on every pic. It's only some turtles, fish, Franz, Achim and me. Enjoy!

Xi'an

I've been to Xi'an and of course I've been to the terracotta army.
Here are the pics:









The problem with Peter is, that he really likes my lens and conclusively is using it a lot - so there are loads of pictures with me in them.

Double Cheeseburger Blues


Xi'an at night


Belltower in the middle of the walled part of town at night


me + belltower + fake cherry blossoms (it's been snowing for god's sake and all they do is set up plastic blossoms...)


my favorite shop


belltower


delicious food in the Muslim quarter


more


Peter and myself in front of the Belltower


KFC - we had to renact a pic Peter had taken when he was here last year



somewhere in the streets


baijiu with the more then amazing hotpot


after a couple of days and a visa extension there Peter had to return to university in Chengdu and I was like: "Hey, I'm coming with you!" It may be the opposite direction from my ultimate goal - Beijing but whatever. Apparently McDonald's tried to set foot in Sechuan province but failed because their food wasn't spicy enough and the local Chinese people said: "That taste' like nuthin'!" Now McDonald's has some special spicy burgers only available here - can't wait to try them. Otherwise of course Sechuan food is amazing and amazingly spicy. I love the Sechuan pepper which numbs your tongue and your lips!
Anyway that's for the next blog.
We had a rather pleasent train ride and now I'm staying with Peter at his appartment.

Pictures from the ride.









See you in Chengdu! Stay sound!