Learning to count

Chinese style, thanks to a lesson from one of the young guides, Erin.

One

two

three

four

five.

Well, yes…but then….

six

seven (chicken head)

eight

nine

ten!

Who knew?

Let’s go fly a kite

The view outside came as a small surprise this morning.  Well, of course, we knew we were expecting to arrive in Dalian, China sometime just before lunch, but a little earlier than that, we looked out of the window and saw a kind of Manhattan skyline coming into view.

This was not quite what we’d been led to expect.  But Dalian is a growing city, at the forefront of modern China and clearly the place to be these days.

Once again, the whole place seemed to be a building site and those who had been here as recently as two years ago said that it was barely recognisable.

The silver turtle shaped structure which was near to our berth reflected the sunshine on this, another glorious day.  Cold  but clear, we were delighted that the weather was fine, because we were planning a little outdoor activity here.

Shortly after passing by the turtle – actually, the forum for the World Economic Forum which will meet here every two years (the so called “Summer Davos”),  the Captain turned hard left and parked the ship perfectly just across the water from it.  (I hope you don’t mind my using such nautical language!?)

Far from the small, regional town we had expected, Dalian is a thriving city and home to 6 million people.  This afternoon, it seemed like everyone was out in their car, for the roads were incredibly busy and every spare inch of land was being used as a car park.

Zhongshan Square was our starting point.  We’d split into groups and eight of us introduced ourselves to Edward our young guide for the afternoon.  He explained a little of the background to the city, pointed out a few prominent buildings (this is a bank, that’s another bank and over on that side of the square is yet another bank)

We set off walking down the main street, past KFC, Apple shops and Zara amongst other familiar brands.  This was far from the communist China of old and LV, Gucci, Prada and Dior appeared to be thriving here – though Edward said that the people who could afford to shop in such places were not locals but wealthy Chinese people from other parts of the country who chose to buy property here.

We passed a cinema and other more Chinese shops selling more everyday items, though the people on the street were younger and more fashionable than the general population, we felt.

Here was a large, modern shopping complex alongside a public transport interchange.  The car park here was full, too, with modern imported cars as well as the native Chinese variety.  On the short walk we took this afternoon, we passed several Range Rovers, Audis and other, similar high end vehicles.Oh yes, consumerism is alive and well in Dalian!

The “international flag” was flying here too – because just underneath the surface of luxury goods and high end shopping, a more familiar and less glitzy China was there to see.

Cars had been parked – left – everywhere, including all over the pavement, which had created other problems, too.

The pavements were in a terrible state.  So much new building, so much investment and yet, such basic things as simple maintenance seemed to be overlooked.  At times, walking wasn’t easy – avoiding the parked cars, negotiating the broken and badly repaired paving slabs and stepping up and down foot-high kerbstones needed concentration and if that wasn’t enough, crossing the road involved taking one’s life in one’s hands, for in spite of a green flashing pedestrian signal, it still wasn’t safe to assume cars would stop.

Poor Edward, he had quite a task taking care of us!

Eventually, we reached The People’s Square, where a few of the inhabitants of Dalian were enjoying the sunshine.  We caught sight of the little one, all bundled up against the cold, and took a photo or two.  I’m sure none of us noticed anything particular about him/her until we downloaded our photographs later

A bit chilly, perhaps?

An elderly gentleman took great pleasure in showing off his ability to use the keep fit equipment, which our friends tried to emulate with limited success but with more than a few laughs.

But the rest of the Peoples’ Square was more about the buildings which surround it rather than the square itself.

The notice was politely worded, though.

Next stop was a coffee shop, where we enjoyed a glass of jasmine tea and a snack in a room marked “VIP”.  The hot drink was welcome after a brisk walk in the cold air, that’s for sure.

Whilst we were enjoying our tea, we were each given a kite ready for the next stop – the Peoples’ Park.  Sadly, there wasn’t a great deal of wind this afternoon, but that didn’t stop us running madly around trying to get our kites up into the air.  Some local Chinese people were amused by our efforts and tried to help.  Some even had a go themselves and grinned as they could get the kite to fly far more easily than we could.

It was huge fun, however, and most of us did eventually manage to get the things to fly, if only for a few seconds.  This is my Angry Birds kite, up in the air above my head, just before the string became snaffled on my camera strap!

We ran all over the place, squealing with delight like small children, really enjoying the fresh air and the opportunity to have some fun.  The one mystery was the identity of the man in the purple anorak.  He was there the whole afternoon, though didn’t travel on our bus, didn’t seem to be “with” us, and yet was always there hovering.  In the park, he even got out a kite and flew it with us.  Hmmm.

Whilst we flew kites, the ladies of Dalian were dancing and swirling ropes and ribbons to some very loud Chinese music just over the other side of the pond.  They giggled and shouted to one another, having just as much fun as we were.

As for the men, well, they were assembled over the length of the stepped sides of the larger pond sitting cheek by jowl playing cards.  Edward explained this is a long standing Dalian tradition and they’re playing a local game that only locals understand.  All I can say is that it was a pretty serious business and they didn’t appear to be having anything like as much fun as the rest of us!

After an hour or so we were all exhausted and starting to get cold.  It was time to return to the ship.  In the late afternoon, a jolly bunch of kite flyers came noisily home, then, carrying their brightly coloured gifts and commenting on how pleasurable it can be to spend an afternoon doing something so simple.  Walking and talking with a young person from another culture, learning about their life and their country was great.  The kite flying was an added bonus.

But it was good to be back in the warm again!

To the Palace

The Deoksu Gung Palace to be precise.

It wasn’t so much of a palace as a series of brightly painted pavilions, set in an area of parkland.  Sam, our guide, explained that on this occasion, it was going to be easier to stick in a group, to follow him and he would take us to the spots where there was something worth seeing.  That was fine with us.

Before we’d even entered the gate, we were already overwhelmed with colour and pattern once again, and this time, it wasn’t overlaid with anti-pigeon netting.  I apologise for it being so hard to tell which way up the photographs are supposed to be – most of them were taken at strange angles, in order to capture as much of the colour and pattern as possible.

These first three were looking almost directly up at the ceiling within the gatehouse, whilst Sam bought our tickets.

The richness of the palette and the variety of pattern was simply marvellous and many of us stood, open mouthed, trying to take it all in.

Actually, the outside of the buildings was rather simple in comparison.  The plain red outer walls of the buildings and the slate grey roof tiles contrasted well with those brightly coloured interiors.

We took countless photographs of every section of each building we visited, though really, one was much like another.

The main throne hall of the complex was approached by a three-lane pathway with a line of stelae demarkating where each level of nobility or civil service stood.  The central pathway was for the king, naturally – and guess where Sam suggested we walk?

At first glance, the interior of the structure was dark and dull, but a closer look in the gloomy light revealed a rather more decorative throne setting

and a very elaborate ceiling!

What intrigued me was the juxtaposition of this traditionally built palace compound with the modern day Seoul beyond, in particular that curvy glass structure of the City Hall.

I just loved the colours, though!  Look at those eaves, where the repeating pattern results in so much more than the sum of the parts, don’t you think?

Another peculiar arrangement was of the western-style art gallery and the Seokjojeon right there in the midst of all the traditional buildings.  This had been built in an effort to modernise around 1910 and to me, it looked really out of place.

Lastly, there was the concubine house, finely detailed and rather resembling a band pavilion in places, but by now, I was getting a little blase about those colours and was finding something new to interest me.

How about these lovely soft shades in the wall alongside?

Or the fascinating patterns just the other side?  Really, the wealth of detail in this small area alone was something to treasure and I was happy to be able to record it in a few – well, perhaps more – photographs, whilst the group were still discussing concubines!

With a few more colourful pictures to round off the visit, we made our way back to the gate where we had entered.

As we did, we spotted something happening.  We ran to find out what was going on…

Oooo.

We’d passed by some similarly dressed guards at one of the other gates but had driven by so quickly, there had been no chance of taking a photograph.  Here was our chance.

This fierce and serious looking chap gave off scary vibes until we spotted him sneakily adjusting his (fake) moustache!

His colleagues were similarly stern but had somewhat softer countenances.  Mind you, I was curious about those peculiar toggles on the top of their hats.

These four guards held the attention of the visitors for quite some time and they stood still whilst photos were taken and people approached them for a closer look.  Until, that is, they were upstaged.

Suddenly, no one was interested in the guards any more!

Actually, it was time for us to return to the ship and to end our whistle stop tour of Seoul.  I think we’d had a reasonable glimpse of the city – certainly enough to whet our appetite and encourage us to find out more.  We realise that we knew very little about Korean history, that I had never even heard of the main historical figures and that there was a large gap in my general knowledge about the country as a whole.  Even a short visit such as this one has highlighted a few details and I am very much the richer for having been here.  Isn’t that a great benefit of travelling?

Tonight, we’re rocking and rolling again on our way over to Dalian, China.  The Captain has recommended we take care and secure everything overnight.  Never a dull moment, eh?

An nyoung ha seh yo Seoul!

Well, it was really An nyoung ha seh yo Incheon when I opened the curtains at 5am this morning and yes, it was raining.  We were negotiating a lock, I believe, though having opened the curtains to see some people working in an office right outside, I pulled them quickly shut again!  Being at sea does make one a little casual about looking outside in a state of undress

A couple of hours later, we were able to look outside properly, to see we were berthed in a place which might have been Gloucester…just because a city is half way around the world doesn’t necessarily make it interesting or attractive!  Incheon is the port for Seoul and we’d chosen to take a “glance” at the city, rather than visit a folk village or venture into the DMZ and peer at the North Koreans over the border.

First, we had an hour or so on the motorway, speeding past large apartment blocks with huge identification numbers on them.  At this point, South Korea wasn’t exactly proving to be how we imagined – I expected it to be high tech glossy, my hero thought it’d be more like Taiwan; a diluted version of China.

Sam Kim, our guide spoke most of the way about the country and the booming businesses which are boosting the economy here.  Hyundai, Kia, Samsung, LG..the list of familiar brands was a long one and I imagine most of us had something of Korean origin about our person in one way or another.

I had been intrigued by the script, which is totally different from Chinese and Japanese.  No clue here about what warning to heed…except perhaps a reminder to wear a seat belt?

One surprising sign out of the coach window though.  A little incongruous don’t you think?

Now, we knew this was going to be a glance at Seoul and nothing like a detailed and comprehensive tour, but we’d driven at speed past a couple of likely looking places and were getting a bit antsy.  You see, the coach had anti-glare film on the windows ,making photographs through them virtually impossible and really, we didn’t want to just ride about on a bus all day.

Fortunately, we drew to a halt outside a Buddhist temple and before any of us could utter a word about being “templed out”, our eyes fell on this gateway.

In we went, to the inner courtyard.  You can tell by the light that the rain had stopped by now and the day was brightening, though it was chilly.

How about this for the inside of the eaves?  A pity it was covered in netting to protect it from the pigeons, but all the same….what colour!

This dear little figure oversaw the proceedings from a distance.  What a sweet expression.

The brightly painted pavilions were a joy to behold, absolutely covered in the most detailed patterns and pictures, all in the same palette of colours.  People went about their business, entering the temple leaving their shoes outside, many of them dressed in the same grey quilted clothes.

Interesting shapes and a charming small motif on the front there, adding a little individuality.  I didn’t quite see if that was printed or pieced, but I did like the quilting, for sure.

Given half an hour to wander around, we were happy campers, snip-snapping away, oohing and aaahing over the details and enjoying being out and about, free to wander.

We loved looking in the odd corners, where there might be an interesting wall or different style of building.  This was such an interesting place and suddenly, our glance of Seoul was beginning to take shape.

The next stop was at “Mary’s Alley”, described to us as the old antiques area, where we could do some shopping.  Hmm.  I’m ok about shopping but not so hot on antiques…but hey ho, let’s enjoy the opportunity to take a look around anyway.

Look at the first stop in that street (well, next door to the 7-Eleven where we started).  Does it look interesting?  Tempting?

Look inside?  Paper.  The most wonderful selection of oriental papers imaginable, in every colour and texture, some with metal flakes, others with leaves embedded, but almost all a great deal finer than we see at home, unless we go to a specialist shop.  At 2000 Won per sheet, I had to choose a selection, didn’t I?  (1000 won = 60p)  Who knew that this street would prove to be the handmade paper centre of the trip?!

Other stores were selling socks…

Little bags and sets of notepaper.

Beautifully coloured pottery such as these lidded teacups.

And my favourite, these lovely tassels in all colours of the rainbow. 

We spent another happy hour mooching around and returned to the meeting spot with our little treasures.

Before we did, we took the opportunity to visit the best maintained public loo I have seen in ages.  Not only did each cubicle have a charming piece of artwork inside, the washbasins and surrounding areas were spotless.

The hand drier was interesting, too!

Fortified by the cutest little bar of chocolate from the 7-Eleven, we climbed back on the bus and did a quick show and tell on the way to the next sightseeing spot.

I’ll share the details of that in the next post.

We’ve no idea what day it is

But we have internet again!

We’ve spent two days at sea, sailing through the Korea Strait in between Japan and the Korean peninsula. 

We’ve listened to fascinating presentations in the theatre and learned a little about the places we’ll visit.

We’ve watched demonstrations and tasted a few new flavours.

We’ve enjoyed delicious meals with friends around large tables full of laughter and fun.

 

We’ve chosen to eat in different places and varied the menu.  Last night’s Italian supper was especially fun.

This morning, the sun was shining and we ate breakfast in our favourite place, overlooking the back of the ship and the cool, blue sea.

The whole day, we seemed to be sailing through small groups of islands and the weather was glorious.  The seafood lunch outside on the pool deck was blissful and we made the most of it, because the forecast for Seoul tomorrow is decidedly chilly.

This morning, we had another emergency drill, because the new rules state that one must be done every 14 days.  We must have been on the ship two whole weeks…oh my.

This lunchtime I enjoyed a tour of the galley with Jane.  I always find it interesting to see what goes on behind the scenes and this was particularly fascinating.  Who knew we drank so many bottles of wine each day? (300-500!)

 

This afternoon, we rounded off the day in good old tea time trivia style. One point short of a win on this occasion, but never mind.  We’ll remember Michael Schumacher started his F1 career with Benetton next time, not Ferrari.

This evening, we’ll meet our friends for drinks and then dinner in the steakhouse restaurant.  We arrive in Seoul early tomorrow morning and have a full day of sightseeing and exploring a new city, not to mention adding another new country to our list.

Ker-ching!!