The Great Wall of China XP

The Great Wall of China, or literally known as Chang Cheng (长城) as we already is one of the 7 Wonders of the World. During the trip to Beijing, the section that we visited was the Badaling section. To reach the Badaling section, take the subway train Line 2 to Ji Shui Tan （积水谭）. From there, exit the station and turn left. Walk for about 5 minutes to the bus station and take a ride on the bus 919. It cost you only 12 yuan (RM6) for a ride. The journey will take about 40-60minutes depending on the traffic. As you reach there, you can choose to take a cable car ride or walk up ( I suggest that you walk up)..hehe

That's the ticket I bought to walk up aka mini hiking. It cost us 45 yuan (RM22.50) as the entrance fees.

Plum Blossom trees all over the mountains at the entrance



An easy walk up at the beginning..

Lovely view isn't it with the plum blossoms around..luckily it's still Spring.
Unfortunately, it was very foggy on that day.


One of the solitary watchtower


One World One Dream! Beijing Olympic 2008..
Personally I do not think it is a good idea to erect this up by the Great Wall of China as it will affect the aesthetical value of the surrounding of the Great Wall of China.


We need to walk up the stairs to some of the section of the Great Wall


That's me touching the millennial years old wall


Half way up..love the view!


Steep stairway


One of the watchtower



Lots of visitors daily. I was considered lucky as I visited it on the normal weekday


That's the gold plate I bought after reaching the 888m of the Badaling section

BELOW Will be more of my photographic view of the Great Wall of China
ENJOY!












And remember to take this sliding car down to the base of the Great Wall..you will have the sensation of riding a roller coaster down there



That's all for now...Check out for the next post on Summer Palace!

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First Bullet Train Experience: Tianjin-Beijing

Finally, the chance for me to experience a ride on the bullet train came to life..nevermind the Shinkansen of Japan, behold the China Railway High-speed (中國鐵路高速). The CRH could speed up to 330km/h which took only 30mins from Tianjin Train Station to Beijing South Railway Station. To get to the station, take a bus shuttle from the Tianjin Airport (Exit no.2) to the Tianjin Railway Station, then get inside and the ticket counter is at the left side..mind you, it's all in Chinese (Mandarin)..so you need to know some keywords. As soon as you arrived at Beijing South Railway, you will be able to navigate around as they station is part of the subway system of Beijing.

a look into the CRH


As I took an Airasia X flight from Kuala Lumpur to Tianjin, I need to commute from Tianjin to Beijing by a bullet train..


with a mere 59 yuan (approx rm30), you could purchase a 2nd class ticket..however the seating is not definite you might need to stand for 30 minutes


That's the 2nd class seating



And here's the 1st class ticket..it's only RM35 (70 yuan)


That's the configuration of first class seating..totally different for an extra RM5


Nice seating with audio system and tray for reading etc..FYI, outside foods are allowed..you can get a McD meal and eat it inside as well


That's the top speed of the CRH 330km/h (+/- 1km/h)


That's me as a proof that I was on the bullet train

Bullet Train Ride from Tianjin-Beijing..see how fast is the speed..

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Hostel Review: Lianlian Templeside Hutong Guesthouse

During my trip to Beijing, part of my wonderful stay was in this wonderful guesthouse aka hostel. A guesthouse run by a family with two young and friendly English speaking receptionist, the Lianlian Templeside Hutong Guesthouse is highly recommended for backpackers and seasoned traveler. Starting from about USD 10 per night for mixed dorm bedroom, it's one of the most affordable guesthouse I've ever been. Do not expect breakfast to be included but you can order some continental breakfast. The cleanliness is perfect.

As you entered the guesthouse, you will experience the feeling of staying in an ancient Chinese area. Let's take a look more on the photos below.

The entrance to the Hostel


One of the roommate in the mixed dorm I stayed


The hutong of An Ping which the hostel is situated at


and here we go..
inside the hostel, fancy those decorations of red lanterns, bamboo chairs and the oriental experience




a rooftop area for relaxation and tea drinking activity


Under a shady tree with overlooking old rooftops..priceless experience

Well I'm not going to elaborate on the rooms as it's not some kind of old mattresses and bed..it's of normal bed but it's very comfortable and gave you a good night sleep. Besides wifi and internet services are also provided free of charge with 24 hours security. Very affordable travel packages could be planned and prepared by them.

I would like to give this hostel a rating of 4.5 out of 5 as the location is a little far from the subway station of (Xisi or Fuchengmen) of approximately 15 minutes walk plus looking for the location..it might be a little complicated for non Chinese speaking tourist, but it's a good experience to get to know more about the roads and streets of Beijing. Anyway, this hostel is actually situated in the middle of the city. To make reservations, you could visit the Hostelworld website.

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Giant Bird's Nest of China

It's a been a while since the last posting..and yea..this time it's a post from my first trip to Beijing, China. On this first posting I will be posting on the Olympic Stadium aka the Bird's Nest. Located at the Olympic Green subway station the stadium cost $ 423 million. The design originated from the study of Chinese ceramics, steel beams were implemented to hide the retractable rooftop and thus given the name Bird's nest. Ai Weiwei was the artistic consultant of the project. The cost of the ticket to enter the stadium is 50 yuan (approx. RM25). Let's get to the photos below!

HDR Night View Shot of the Bird's Nest Stadium 

That's the Olympic Stadium from afar

That's me with the stadium and water cube behind

Close-up of the bird's nest stadium with difficult architecture

Close-up of the bird's nest stadium with difficult architecture

The Five Friendly Mascots of Beijing Olympics, Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying, Nini

The interior of the stadium..it's hugeee and vast

3/4 panoramic shot of the stadium

Dual color seating of red and white

Up-close in the dusk

That's the water cube during the windy night

The Olympic tower with the five rings symbol

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Of Cherry Blossoms and Sakuras

6th time in Japan, 5th time in Tokyo, 1st time experiencing Spring season aka Sakura season..but a lil not so lucky as I did not get to experience the full bloom as I had to go back to Penang earlier due to Cheng Beng (Qing Ming) and research + teachings. Nevertheless I believe that I will have the real chance again next year..Weathers are weird, in some parts it snowed in Spring and early blooming of Sakuras although it snowed. (Warmer temperatures are needed for Sakura to bloom)

Anyway let's enjoy some of the sakuras that I got to spectate.

Just glad to have noticed the first bloom of Sakura in the University of Tokyo (Toudai).

At a closer shot

and here's some more at the Ueno Park..thanx to my friend, Siew Fong who brought me there..

that's some of the Sakura Trees ..no blooming yet for this one


And here you could see some buds already started to open up.imagine when it's full bloom..blissful right?


Here are some sakuras, half bloom


finally spotted some






Closer shots for you


Beautiful pink sakuras


White Sakuras

that's all for now..will be posting on the landscapes of the University of Tokyo in the next post...Be sure to keep track of it. :D Any questions or queries, could be forwarded to my email

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