Last day in Shanghai and we had some catching up to do with the blog so we stayed in the hostel cafe until midday and then went out in search of some older looking parts of Shanghai. On our way to Shanghai old town and the YuYuan gardens we bought some fantastic street food in the form of potato noodles, chives and spice…yum! This definitely set us up for the rest of the day and we walked onwards to YuYuan. Shanghai does have historic sites but many of them have been very modernly updated, it’s difficult to see past the sparkling gold exteriors and more plasticy looking brick work.

In amongst the streets here are hundreds of tourist shops selling typical Chinese craft and souvenirs along with famously long queues for the most well known dumpling restaurants and tees houses around. It seems to be the place for tourists to swarm towards and have their photographs taken. We did however find the less frequented YuYuan gardens, perhaps because you have to pay 30yuan to get in…? Who knows, but it really isn’t a place you should miss if you do visit Shanghai because it contains it’s original features, stone work and gardens, it does take you away from the crowded streets and manages to keep a sense of serenity about it.

On our way back we walked by People’s Square, which wasn’t very busy and then caught a quick tube back to East Nanjing rd, back at the hostel more pool was played, more defeats but not for Dave. We stepped out for some local cuisine, experience the troff style toilet and we packed ready to leave the following day.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)

We had over 30 hours to go when we woke up the following morning ready for our complimentary breakfast. Although the food announcements were made in English it seemed that the Chinese announcement was always much earlier, so by the time we arrived at the canteen they were already tucking in and the food left our for us was a little lukewarm. So we decided we would turn up for food 10-15 minutes before the scheduled timings and low and behold the food was always a little hotter and we were there at the same time as everyone else. For breakfast though we shouldn’t have bothered and on the second day Helen opted for porridge that we brought with us, whilst Dave had the left over cereal. We did have a few bowls and spoons with us which helped on the self-catering side. Chinese breakfast on the Yanjing consisted of Chinese porridge which is like a soupy rice and on this occasion flavourless broth, accompanied with some eggs that looked like they’d been boiled weeks ago. The fruit wasn’t free but was a good bonus to this poor meal. It would be good to experience Chinese porridge whilst we stay in China so that we don’t only have this experience to go by.

The only full day we had on the boat saw us catch up on our editing and writing whilst in between doing some more research and reading for China. We would pop out every so often to get some sea air on deck and noticed that the weather was changing. Leaving the calm seas of Japan led us out into some low-visibility conditions where we felt we were literally in the middle of no-where. The temperature up top had also dropped, but it was dry and we could still get outside as the sea was still calm.

We had bought a series of Peep Show, Misfits and The Hangover Movie from i-Tunes before we left Japan, however we didn’t authorise them on the laptop, so when we realised that we wouldn’t be able to watch them on the boat (no internet to authorise) we resorted back to more editing, writing and podcasts we already have. Still we did remember about the table tennis room and after hiring bats and a ping pong ball we had a few games following our own made up rules…Dave won best of 3 but Helen was starting to feel giddy due to the lack of oxygen down that part of the boat (excuses!) we were certainly better than the Chinese guys playing next to us!! Beth and Rick were busy writing but later on we arranged to meet them for another “tasty” Yanjing dinner followed by some more card games. We picked up a few more games for our travels that hopefully we’ll pass on and play with others, especially now Helen has written down the rules.

In between our working and walking around the ship we would photograph parts of the boat as there was always something to document. From the rescue boats, piping, old rope, left chairs, signs and the worn interior to the guests on board playing cards, learning their dance moves and posing for photos on deck. It was worth doing this journey for the content we have captured. A little like being in a Carry on Film at times! The staff who were all dressed in uniform aimlessly pursued jobs that didn’t really exist. We did watch one girl clean the upstairs area over and over again eventually she was tested for the cleanliness of the space, the finger test was complete and she seemed to pass with flying colours. Why they didn’t pay this kind of attention to the wash and toilet areas was beyond us.

On our final day on the boat we looked forward to arriving at the port in Tianjin at around 2pm. Our own supplied breakfast did the trick and we did manage some more editing and writing followed by another walk on deck. It had certainly become our little home for a few days but it was definitely time to leave. We noticed that the Chinese guests were dressed and ready for the arrival many having been in tracksuits and pyjamas for a few days. Bags were already starting to pile up next to the exit door in the lobby area. We still had a fair few hours left though so we weren’t in a rush to pack just yet. We had great pleasure in photographing some ladies practising Tai chi and ballroom dancing upstairs for an hour and they loved the fact that we wanted to photograph them. They all seemed to really enjoy their time on the ferry and the endless episodes of a Chinese soap opera had definitely kept most people enthralled for at least half a day. Apparently they even had it on full blast in the dorms for the entirety of the night, oh how special class did us proud.

Getting closer to the port we traveled through hundreds of anchored trawler, container and fishing boats, it was really surreal traveling through the middle of this and felt a little like no-mans land. The wind up on the very top deck was immense, Helen had to run through it to avoid being blown over. Close to the front was Beth, Rick and JP all enjoying the blast so we joined them in what felt a little like being on a roller coaster; arms in the air facing the sea at the front of the boat, hair standing up on end due to the blast of the wind. It felt amazing and pretty invigorating, Dave snapped away as our mouths were shaped by the wind.

We were ready to leave and the boat eventually got into Tianjin port at around 2.30pm. After we got off the boat we passed through passport control and stepped out to the front of the building only to by hounded by taxi drivers pushing us into their cabs. We travelled with Beth and Rick to the station in Tianjin which is a good 40 minute journey from the port. This was our first experience of Chinese driving and the manic layout of the roads in this area, something I’m sure we will get used to but after a 48 hour boat journey we weren’t quite ready for. We met up with JP at the station and we all boarded the high speed bullet train to Beijing south station together. Arriving at Beijing south we said our goodbyes to our Yanjing travel buddies and decided to get the tube to our stop as it was right on the same line as the train station.

We looked at the underground map and used the ticket machine to select where we wanted to go. It came up as 4 Yuan for two tickets which equals 40p, we were not sure if this was correct as it seemed so cheap! Xisi was our stop on line 4 and the hostel was not too far to walk from here so we jumped on the subway. We were booked into a hostel in the heart of the hutong area and when we eventually found the place in a dimly lit street, we were informed that they could upgrade us to their Templeside lodgings which is their luxury house a few streets away for no extra charge. It sounded like an offer we couldn’t refuse so our host walked us through the streets to Templeside and showed us to our room. Once again we have been spoiled on this trip, the room was huge with a bed twice the size of any standard double. It felt a little like some of the furnishings had been taken from Neverland, especially the fittings in the bathroom. The only downside was the drain smell. Something again I think we will be getting used to during our stay here.

We ordered some great Chinese food that was delivered to the hostel and certainly expelled the taste of any food we had eaten on the boat. We asked the hostel to ring the owner of the apartment we are moving to and we arranged a pick up for the next morning at 10.30am. Time to head to bed for our first nights sleep in Beijing.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)

We have taken the final nights sleep at our first accommodation of our adventure. Bye bye Hotel Sakura you have done well. It’s time to leave the city-scape and head into the hills. First stop is the local underground station to get to the overland train. With one change of train along the way, we settle into our seats. Even the ordinary class, non-reserved seats are very comfortable with lots of leg room and space for bags etc. We see people eating out of wooden boxes that contain a surprisingly nice looking assortment of food items. We think we may have to get something like this for a quick and easy meal.

Views along the second train are great and the sun is shining. Blue skies adorn the mountain trees and the small plots of land that people tend for vegetables and fruits. So much is grown locally for personal consumption its great to see. The Ryokan owners supplied us with a free pick up from Fuji Yoshida station so while we waited, we popped into the food store and bought ourselves a takeaway boxed meal. Looked good.

Our pick up arrives and we are taken out of town to the smaller village Oshino where our Ryokan is based. Inn Fujitomita is lived in and run by a lovely couple along with their three children. It’s a big place and we learn that we are the only guests for the next two days. The film “The Shining” springs to mind with the retro 70′s carpet and long corridors. Never the less we are shown around and given instructions of what to do. There are a few rules you must follow when staying in more traditional guesthouses in Japan; not shoes in the house and slippers are provided, no slippers on Tatami mats and we are told the correct way of wearing a Yukati gown. The room is huge, about four times bigger than Sakura rooms and its very traditional Japanese in style with a great view of the “Shy mountain”, Mt Fuji. Now this is what we have been waiting for!

Feeling the need to get out and see whats around we set out for the nearest lake in Yamanaka. When I say nearest it is about 4km away but we thought we could make it there and back before dinner at 6.30pm. After a long highway path we eventually made it to the lake, a quick photo and then a turn around to walk back along a slightly different road. Oh how quickly it gets dark here in Japan. Before long we were walking in the dark following a map that wasn’t exactly accurate. We even had to stop and ask at a hotel in the village to ask for directions. Time was rapidly approaching 6.30pm! We made it with 30 minutes to spare but it was a quick last few km to make it on time. Freshen up and a change of clothes then dinner. Dinner at Inn Fujitomita was outstanding! We will leave it to the photos to tell that story! There were a couple of strange flavors and textures but we pretty much demolished the lot.

Our host Hiromi, asked us if we would like a lift to a nearby village in the morning. We accepted and headed to the Onsen bath. Very hot and soothing on our weary legs. Back up to the room followed by a little bit of photo editing, free wi-fi and then off to bed.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)