Wildlife adventures at Naturelodge, Kg. Bilit, Kinabatangan & The Sandakan Trail

Photograph of myself, HK Wan, my niece, Wan Pik Ki, my elder sister, Lai Meng, my son, Wai Yan and my wife, Sow Lan taken Sandakan Harbour Square (facing Sandakan Bay)

Our Travel: 22nd to 26th August 2009 during the School Holidays

Our Group: HK Wan & Family (Wife: Sow Lan, Son: Wai Yan), my elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling and my niece, Wan Pik Ki.

Our return fare: Special return fare of RM 60.00 per person via Air Asia. As flight was at 7.15am, we stayed the previous night at Tune Hotel, LCCT at a special rate of RM 16.18 per double occupancy. Also, it cost us RM 1/person for transportation to the LCCT.

Our Accomodation:
1) The Nature Lodge, Kampung Bilit, Kinabatangan
2) Sea Front Hotel, Sandakan Town @ RM 69/Room c/w 2 breakfasts & free Wifi

Photograph of my wife, my son & myself taken at Kun Yam Temple - one of the Sandakan Attractions within the famous Sandakan Walking Trail. It took us about 90 minutes to complete the entire Sandakan Trail including stopovers for taking photographs.

Photographs of the 2 (two) Orang Utans at the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabitation Centre. As our visit coincide with the fruiting season, only 2 orang utans turned up at the Rehabitation Centre during mealtime at 10.00am. The primates prefer the seasonal jungle fruits rather than the usual diets provided at the Rehabitation Centre.

During one of our morning cruises, we managed to see 2 (two) orangutans in the wild. However, before I could video or photographed them, they disappeared in the thick secondary jungle.

Photograph taken at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabitation Centre. It cost RM 4/adult for mini bus transportation from Sandakan Town to this centre. The admission fee was RM 30/foreigners and RM 5 for Malaysians & RM 2 for child. However, the camera or video's fee was RM 10 per unit.

Photograph showing a group of Proboscis Monkeys during our wildlife adventure. Proboscis primates are only found in Borneo (Sabah & Sarawak) and Kalimantan in Indonesia.

Photograph showing a herd of Pygmy Elephants in the wild. The pygmy elephants are only found in this part of the world. They are the smallest elephants in the world and their size are about that of a water buffalo.

Another photograph sh0wing a herd of pygmy elephants in the wild of Kinabatanagan. According to boatman, this was our lucky day to see such a large herd of pygmy elephants. Occasionally, due to their small stature, you can only partly see the elephants as they are blocked by the tall grass. At certain time of the year, the pygmy elephants may not appear at all for almost a month.

Our Lodge - The Nature Lodge, Kampung Bilit,Kinatatangan.
Our accomodation consist of a chalet with 2 (two) twin beds and built-in bathroom cum toilet. There is no TV, no internet, no access to mobile phones, no newspaper, really peaceful and keep us fully concentrated on the wildlife adventure, jungle trekking, etc. However, there was electricity supply throughout.

The cost of our accomodation was RM 315/person - a special rate for Malaysian only with a 20% discount for my 11 years old son. The foreigners pays much higher than us (due to a special discount). The cost include all meals, 2 wildlife cruises per day, jungle trekking and night walk (with jungle boots provided). Also, pick-up from Sandakan Town or Airport cost us an extra RM 15/adult (child: FOC)

Photograph of my wife, Sow Lan and son, Wai Yan cruising along the Kinabatangan River in the drizzling rain (in search of wildlife). Various wildlife were sighted during our cruises such as various primates like orang utans, proboscis, the long tailed macaques, the pig-tailed macaques, silver leaf monkeys, herons, king-fishers, various hornbills , eagles, etc. However, the most exciting adventure was sighting a large herd of pygmy elephants in the wild. A crocodile was also seen but moved away as soon as noticed.

Photograph of my wife, Sow Lan and son, Wai Yan resting within the locality of an ox-bow lake after a strenuous 90 minutes of jungle trekking. At this resting place, a blood-sucking leech managed to crawl to my son's navel but it was laughter all the way.

Another photograph of my wife and son cruising along the Kinabatangan River. My son was also enjoying his Sony's PSP Playstation during the cruise.

We left Sandakan on 26 August 2009 by a non air-con minibus and it cost us RM 1.50/person and the bus stopped right up to the departure hall of Sandakan Airport. In all our budget travels, this is our cheapest transportation to any airport.

It was a real wildlife experience for our 6 (six) members group as we were the only Malaysians amongst the caucasians during our stay at The Nature Lodge. Also, my 11 years old son enjoyed during this Wildlife Adventure at The Nature Lodge, Kampung Bilit, Kinabatangan.

Posted by HK Wan (Email: hengkei@gmail.com) on 7th September 2009

Free & Easy Travel to Yogyakarta from 5th to 8th June 2009

Buddha's statue in one of the opened Stupa within Borobudur Temple Complex.



Photograph of myself taken inside the Prambanan Temple Complex.



Myself, HK Wan, my elder brother, Heng Wah and my elder sister, Lai Meng taken at the Borobudur Temple Complex.

We planned our budgetted self-tour to Yogyakarta or Joyga about 9 months prior to our Air Asia Flight on 5 June 2009. Our return tickets cost us RM 220/person (excl. airport tax at Jogya) despite it was during the School Holidays so that my younger sister, Lai Ling - a teacher could accompany us.

There were 4 (four) of us, namely, my elder brother, Heng Wah, my elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling and myself, HK Wan

On arrival at Adisucipto International Airport, we took the Prambanan Express Train to Tugu Railway Station at Joyya. It cost us Rupiah 7000/person. Our first ride on an Indonesian Train (although we travelled regularly by trains in other countries like Thailand, China, etc) . On arrival, we walked to our budget hotel, Mataram Hotel and stayed there for 3 (three) nights.

The next day, we booked a 7-seater MPV for our full day tour within Jogya, viz. The Buddhism Borobudur Temple Complex, The Hindu Prambanan Temple Complex, Merapi Volcano, etc. it cost us Rupiah 412,000/person including all entrance fees (excl. lunch). It was so easy as the tour operator was located right opposite our hotel.

The next day, we went on our walking tour within Jogya and visited various tourist attractions such as Jogya's famous Malioboro Street, Vredeburg Fort, Beriningharjo market, The Independence Monument, The Palace or Kraton, etc. We returned by horse-cart @ Rupiah 30,00 for the 4 (four) of us.



Photograph of my younger sister, Lai Ling taken at Tugu Railway Station, Yogya. This is the Prambanan Express Train from Jogya to Solo or Surakarta; a distance of approx. 60 Kilometres. The cost of the train ticket is fixed at Rupiah 7000, irrespective of the number of stops

My recommendation is that should you travel by air to either Yogya or Solo, you should not miss the cheap train transportation between the 2 cities @ Rupiah 7000/trip. The trains are regular scheduled and you should plan your holidays by visiting the best of both cities at budget prices.




Photograph of my younger sister, Lai Ling taken outside our budget hotel, Mataram Hotel. It cost us Rupiah 275,000 per night inclusive of a simple breakfast plus free WIFI.

This hotel is located just diagonally opposite the rear exit (for motor cycles parking). We were not aware of this exit. On our arrival, we just followed the crowd via the main entrance and ended up taking a 20 minutes walk to our hotel (instead of less than 1 minute) if we exited via the rear entrance.

Posted by HK Wan on 7 September 2009

Free and Easy Holidays at Pattaya & Bangkok from 16th - 20th july 2009

My brother, Heng Wan, Sister-in-law, Rina, myself, HK Wan and my sister, Lai Meng cruising at Pattaya, Thailand on our way to Coral Island

Photograph of my brother’s family taken at The Grand Palace, Bangkok.

Left: My nephew, Wai Onn, Sister-in-law, Rina, Brother, Heng Wan and nephew, Wai Kit

Reasonable Western Breakfast at Pattaya @ Baht 60 per person. You can have various choices consisting of 2 pieces of toast with butter & jam, coffee or tea, plus bacon, ham, sausages and 2 eggs cooked in various styles.
The most reasonable and delicious Western breakfast at Pattaya at Baht 60/person. We can hardly find similar breakfast in Malaysia at similar prices.

We had a simple and economical 5 Days/4 Nights trip to Pattaya and Bangkok from 16th - 20th July 2009. Our group consisted by my younger brother & family, i.e. Heng Wan, Sister-in-law, Rina Chee and my 2 nephews, Wai Onn & Wai Kit plus my elder sister, Lai Meng and myself, Heng Kei.
We arrived at Bangkok Airport, cleared immigration and then took the airport shuttle bus to the transportation centre. From here, we boarded the Pattaya Bus @ Baht 106/each. On arrival, we took a Tut-tuk to our guesthouse - The Victoria Inn, Soi 6, Pattaya. It was a reasonable guesthouse with free wifi and cost us Baht 600/standard room. The next day, we had an economical tour to Coral Island, etc. plus lunch @ Baht 400 per person.

We left Pattaya on 18 July 2009 by Bus directly to Ekamai Eastern Bus station @ Baht 113/person. On arrival, took another bus to our guesthouse, The Riverview Guesthouse which was nearby Hualamphong Railway Station and Chinatown - which were our usual places of accomodation within Bangkok due to the reasonable food, shopping, easy transportation within Bangkok. The cost of our guesthouse was Baht 650/standard room. As usual, we had our usual Chao Phraya River Taxi ride to The Grand Palace and the nearby attractions.
We left Bangkok via our usual economical travel via train from Hualamphong to Hua Takhe @ Baht 7 person for almost an hour ride to this station. However, we were surprised that they have stopped the usual bus service from this station to Airport transportation centre (usual: Baht 15/person) but nevertheless, taxi services are available from here to the airport and it cost us a reasonable Baht 100/taxi right up to the airport.

Posted on 7 Sept 2009

The Museum of the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, Cuiheng Cun, Zhongshan, Guangdong

My elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling & myself, HK Wan travelled from Jiangmen to Cuiheng Village. We took the bus from Jiangmen Station to Zhongshan @ RMB 16/person and from there. we boarded Bus No. 12 to The Museum of the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, Cuiheng Cun. The journey took about 1 hour and the fare was RMB 5.50 per person. You can never miss this place as the Museum is on the main road and can be clearly seen from the bus stop.
On the day, 21/3/09, we were surprised that the entrance charges was free-of-charge, perhaps to commemorate Dr. Sun's death anniversary on 12 March 1925. The previous trip, I visited here was almost 4 years ago on 1st July 2005. I came with my octogenarian father and my elder brother and we were taking my father back to our Ancestral Hometown at Jiangmen, Guangdong. We came by mini bus from Gongbei @ RMB 10/person and the mini bus stopped right in front of The Museum of the former residence of Dr. Sun. At that time, the entrance fee was RMB 20 each for my elder brother & myself whereas my elderly father need not pay any entrance fee at all.

This museum is the most visited touristic site within Zhongsan Perfectural City. No trip to Zhongshan is complete without a visit here. Dr. Sun Yat-sen was born in Cuiheng village in 1866. He headed the Chinese Revolution that overthrew the Qing dynasty in 1911 and was sworn in as the Provisional President of The Government of The Republic of China on 1st January 1912. He also co-founded the Kuomintang (KMT) where he served as its first leader. He was also a uniting figure in post-Imperial China and well revered in both Mainland China, Taiwan and by overseas Chinese in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaya, Thailand, Indonesia, America, etc.

The Museum of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, consisting of the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Cuiheng Folk House Exhibition and the Cuiheng Farming Exhibition, is a national protected cultural site to commemorate Dr. Sun Yat-sen.

The Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen
The Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen is a distinctive two-storey building. Dr. Sun lived here from 1892 to 1895, when he practiced medicine and engaged in revolutionary activities in the Pearl River Delta. There are many legacies about Dr. Sun’s childhood, his family, and his early education. The Former Residence is maintained exactly the same as the original look. In 1986, the Former Residence of Dr. Sun Yat-sen was ranked by the State Department “National Protected Cultural Site”.

Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall
This Memorial Hall was built with the 40 million yuan raised by the municipal government and upon the approval of the State Administration of Cultural Relics. On exhibition here are the valuable historical photos and real objects reflecting the life of Sun Yat-sen. Equipped with advanced equipment, this is a modern multifunctional exhibition hall. The exhibition hall provides fascinating insights into the history of Chinese nationalism and an introduction to Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s life story, deeds, personality, thought and theory and revolutionary activities under his leadership. On the second floor is the exhibition of “Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Relatives and Descendants”, reflecting their great support and contribution to the revolution and their sacrifice for the revolution led by Dr. Sun. The second floor also has rooms for temporary exhibitions.


Photographs of myself taken at Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall

Photograph of China's most famous "Soong Sisters" taken at Dr Sun Yat-sen's Memorial Hall.

The 3 sisters, namely the eldest, Soong Ai-ling, the second sister, Soong Ching-ling and the youngest, Soong Mei-ling were the daughters of American educated Methodist Minister, Mr. Charlie Soong who made a fortune in banking and printing. Their mother was Ni Kwei-tseng.

In the 1930s, Soong Ai-ling and her sister, Mei-ling were the two richest women in China at that time. Both of them supported the Nationalists, while Soong Ching-ling later sided with the CPC. Eldest Sister, Ai-ling was the one who loves "money", she married the richest man and Finance Minister in China, H.H. Kung.

Ching-ling was the one who loves "China" was married to Dr. Sun on 25 October 1915. In the later years, she was a Vice Chairman of The Peoples Republic of China. She was the first non-royal woman to officially become head of state of China, acting as Co-chairman of the Republic from 1968 until 1972. She again became head of state in 1981, briefly before her death ( 29 May 1981), as President of China. Soong Ching-ling is sometimes regarded as Asia's first female head of state, although her title of Honorary President of the People's Republic of China was purely ceremonial.

Mei-ling was the one who loves "power". She was a prominent political leader in her own right, the wife and partner in power of the leader of the Kuomintang (KMT) , Generalissimo of the Chinese armies, and later President Chiang Kai-shek.

Posted by HK Wan, May 2009

The Wan (Pinyin: Yin) Family Ancestral Home, Hehou Li, Jiangmen, Wuyi, Guangdong

Photograph of myself, Wan Heng Kei, my elder sister, Wan Lai Meng, my 85 years old father, Wan Kam Tai and my younger sister, Wan Lai Ling taken at the unoccupied Wan Family Ancestral Home, No. 57, Hehou Li, Jiangmen, Wuyi, Guangdong.

The Yin (尹) or Wan (Guangdong) surname
Yin (Chinese:) or Wan (Cantonese) 尹; pinyin: Yīn; was originally a pictogram of a royal headdress. It was first used in 2,597 BC by the son of Shao Hao (one of 5 kings in the "pre-China" Five Kings era), who took on the surname and became the Duke of Yin (a village in northeast China). In 1,783 BC, the Shang Dynasty created the Position of Yin (equivalent to First Minister, most-favored Minister, or Lord Protector). Lord Yi Chi of the Hua tribe helped orchestrate a near-bloodless coup bringing the Shang Dynasty to power, was rewarded with this title, and changed his name to Yi Yin (伊尹). In 800 BC, Bo Jifu, a renowned judge during the reign of Zhou Xuan Wang, also held this position, and changed his name to Yin Jifu. During the era of the Imperial Examination System, three other magistrates took on the surname Yin (尹) to denote their Imperial rank and royally-favored status. Yin settlements in China can be found south-west of Tonghui in Gansu Province, as well as in the Pearl River Delta.

The Yins are/were exempt from China's One-child Policy due to the rarity of their surname and reverence for their historical role.

Chinese : from the name of Yin City, in present-day Shanxi province, or from a status name of a government official. A grandson of the legendary emperor Huang Di (2697–2595 bc) was granted Yin City and in due course his descendants adopted the name of the city as their surname. Additionally, throughout the Shang (1766–1122 bc) and Zhou (1122–221 bc) dynasties, there existed a high government position called Yin. Many descendants of Yin officials adopted the status name Yin as their surname.

My Ancestors from The Wan Family originated from our Ancestral Home at No. 57, Hehou Li, Jiangmen City. This Ancestral Home was almost 200 years old. My siblings , my cousins and myself were the 23rd Generation whereas my father, Wan Kam Tai was the 22nd Generation. A copy of the Wan Family Ancestral Heirloom from 1st Generation until present is still available.

According to the Wan family heirloom, the 1st generation started during the Ming Dynasty. Although my father was born in Klang, Selangor, Malaysia; he returned to the Ancestral Home in 1930 together with my paternal grandfather, grandmother, my father elder sister, younger brother, younger sister and my father. Thereafter, my paternal grandfather returned to Malaya to work for my grand-uncle but passed away the following year of tuberculosis. My father and his sublings spent their childhood and education at Jiangmen until 1938 until the Japanese invaded Guangzhou. Due to the Japanese war attrocities against China, my father and his younger brother returned to the then Malaya to avoid the Japanese but not for long as by December 1941, the Japanese has begun their invasion of British Malaya.

According to my father, when he was staying and studying at Jiangmen in the 1930s, there were about 80 houses within Hehou Li and all these houses were exclusively owned the Wan or Yin Clans but some of the houses were rented out to others families. However, during our last visit in March 2009, there was only about 3 (Three) Wan Families left. Some of the houses were demolished into apartments, hotels. One of the still remaining Wan Family was the present neighbour at 56, Hehou Lane. The elderly Mr. Wan of House No. 56 was 2 years younger than my father and he was my father's school mate. He belongs to the same 23rd generation as myself or my siblings.
During the latter years of the 19th Century and until the 1950s, most of the Wans from Hehou Li have migrated to Malaya, Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, Vietnam, America, etc. This include my paternal grandmother and my father younger sister (Auntie) who migrated to Malaya (via Hong Kong) in 1951 just after the Chinese Communists took over the country.


2) GONGKENG TEMPLE AND SPARROW FLOWERS

Photograph of my Jiangmen relative, Mrs. Mai Qiming, my younger sister, Lai Ling and elder sister, Lai Ling taken at the Bamboo Groove, Gongkeng Temple.


Photographs of Sparrow Flowers taken from Gongkeng Temple, Xiaopenglai Hill, Tangxia Town, Xinhui. Jiangmen,

The Sparrow Flowers is one of Jiangmen's precious plants. Every year around April, strings of blossoming Sparrow flowers hang all over the branches. Every blossom has a "head', 'tail'. 'mouth' and 'eyes'. When breezes sweep by, the 'wings' flap on and on just like millions of sparrows that are about to fly.
Gongkeng Temple which is situated at Peng Lai Mountain (Pinyin: Xiaopenglai Hill) of Tangxia Town, Xinhui - about 13 kms south of Jiangmen City is the best place to watch this beautiful sight. It is well covered by green woods with small stream runs through Gongkeng, making it a famous tourist site within Jiangmen.
On the hill of Gongkeng, there is an ancient temple, TIANCHENG TEMPLE (also named Gongkeng Temple) which was built during the last years of the Song Dynasty. On the left of the temple is the "Rock of Dragon Head". There is water running out from the rock all the year round. The water is cool and sweet, called "Dragon Fountain Water". Beside the rock is the three-storey Yiyun Tower. From here, you can get a full view of the scenic spot within Gongkeng Temple. There is a long winding path leading up the hill. The path is sheltered by big trees and sparrow flower vines. Along the path, you can see fantastic scenic spots, such as Guanyin Rock, Yading Rock, Tagong Pavilion, Wangjiang Pavilion, Immortal's footprint, etc.
Around Gongkeng Temple grows an extraordinary kind of creeping and climbing plant - the vine of Gongkeng Sparrow Flower. It is called the 'exotic flower of South China'. The wine stems, which twine around the big trees, hanging like swings and ribbons. The vine blossoms during the Qingming Festial for about a month.
The flowers looks like a sparrow, and almost the same size. Clusters of flowers hang on the vines like thousands of sparrows nestling in the tees. Each creamy colour flower has one receptacle and four petals. The receptacle is like the head of the sparrow, with two black spots like the eyes on two sides. The petal in the middle looks like the body of a sparrow, and the two petals on the sides look like two wings. The petal underneath stretches like the tail. The styles and stigmas inside are like the internal organs. If the flower is scratches, it will shed a small amount of red juice - just like the blood of the sparrow. One or two hours after the flowers are plucked down from the tree, the colour becomes brown, just like the colour of the feather of a real sparrow.

HK Wan (Email: hengkei@gmail.com)

April 2009

The WAN Family of Tiong Nam Settlement, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - (Photograph taken on 31 January 2009 at The Royal Selangor Club, Kuala Lumpur)

Front Row: Marcus Wan, Wan Lai Meng, Aaron Wan with Baby, Keegan Koid, Wan Heng Wah, Wan Wai Yan, Wan Pi Ki & Rina Chee
Middle Row: Ivan Wan, Wan Heng Wan, Wan Mei Suet, Wan Lai Ling, Patriarch of the Wan Family, Wan Kam Tai, Doreen Ting & Wan Heng Kei
Back Row: Wan Wai Wen, Wan Wai Kit, Wan Wai Onn, Doreen Cheong, Wan Ee Lin & Husband, Koid Hsiang Lin
Not in the picture: Grand Daughter Wan Po Yee (Studying in Purdue, Indiana, USA) & Wan Heng Lim

Free & Easy Travel to Zhouzhuang, Suzhou, Shanghai & Hangzhou (12th - 17th September 2008)

Photograph - from Left: myself, Wan Heng Kei, elder brother, Heng Wah, Nephew, Wan Wai Onn, younger brother, Heng Wan (Back) & wife, Rina (in front), Niece, Wan May Suet & elder sister, Wan Lai Meng.
( Photograph taken at West Lake, Hangzhou ).

Another photograph of myself and my elder sister taken at the 9-turn zigzag bridges, Xiaoying Island, West Lake, Hangzhou

Group Photograph of Wan Family taken at the "Romance of the Song Dynasty' , Song Dynasty Town, Hangzhou

This was our first travel via Air Asia-X. Once again, thank you Air Asia-X for providing us cheap and reasonable airfares to Hangzhou. After browsing the internet, we decided to conduct our "own tours" of various cities within The Yangtze Delta, i.e. Hangzhou, Shanghai, Suzhou & Zhouzhuang. There were 7 (seven) of us from The Wan Family of Tiong Nam Settlement, Kuala Lumpur, namely, my elder brother, Heng Wah, elder sister, Lai Meng, younger brother, Heng Wan & wife, Rina, daughter, May Suet, son, Wai Onn and myself, Heng Kei.

Our flight to Hangzhou via Air Asia X Flight D 72602 departed LCCT on 12 September 2008 @ 8.10am and arrived at Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport within the scheduled arrival time of 13.10 pm. After immigration clearance, we proceeded to Gate 5 to purchase the bus tickets for the Hangzhou airport shuttle service to Hangzhou Railway Station @ RMB 15/person. On arrival, we enquired with the locals as we intended to purchase CRH (or China Railway Highspeed) train services to Shanghai. Unfortunately, we could not board the next train D 678 departing at 5.25 pm as the Railway station was packed with local commuters going back to their respective hometowns; that Friday being the beginning of the weekend and the coming Sunday a National Holiday (Mid Autumn cum Lantern Festival) with Monday being a replacement holiday. We were lucky to get the next CRH train D 680 leaving at 18.18pm. The journey from Hangzhou to Shanghai South Station with a distance of approx. 160 Kilometres took 78 minutes (as compared as the usual 3 to 3 1/2 hours by normal bus). The CRH train travelled as fast as 170 KM/hour and it was smooth ride all the way. It was so comfortable that I managed to catch some extra sleep for about 20 minutes during the trip. In fact, during the 5 hours flight from LCCT to Hangzhou; eventhough I was tired, I could not get more sleep than inside the CRH train. The CRH train took exactly 1 hour and 18 minutes to arrive at Shanghai South Station. On arrival, we walked to our pre-booked Shanghai O.K. Hotel located about 300 Metres from the Southern Exit. The Shanghai O.K Hotel (http://www.okhotel.cn/ ) was a reasonable budget hotel and cost us RMB 188/twin beds with full internet access. The free internet access was useful to me as I brought along my laptop and every available free time, I was on-line with the internet world and my working office clearing the outstanding workload. At times, I worked up to 2.00 am in the morning, thus for me, it was more like a working holiday (at my expense). The location of this hotel was perfect especially when it was so near to the Shanghai South Railway Station which was also the inter-change station for Shanghai Metro Station Line 1 & 3. At any Metro Station, you can travel to a total of 9 (Nine) different Metro lines within Shanghai as well as the 2 (two) Railway Stations, the Main and South Stations. Furthermore, the cost of travelling via Metro (for all lines) is reasonable at mimimum RMB 3/person and maximum RMB 6/person. Within 5 to 10 minutes walk from Shanghai O.K. Hotel, you can find cheap & reasonable food stalls. Also, the Shanghai South Bus Terminal as well as the Shanghai Long Distance South Terminal are less than 5 minutes walk away.

Night view of The Bund facing Pudong. My nephew, younger brother & wife and elder brother.

Another photograph of myself taken with the colonial buildings in the background. The Bund, Puxi, Shanghai

Photograph of myself taken at Tiger Hill Scenic Area, Suzhou, Jiangsu

For our first " on-our-own tour " , we decided to visit the famous garden city of Suzhou. It was so easy to travel there. Within the Shanghai South Railway Station, there are 2 other Metro Lines, i.e. Line 1 (which goes the the main Shanghai Railway Station) and Line 3. All you need to do is to take Line 1 to Shanghai Indoor Stadium (2 stops) and then inter-change to Line 4 for the next stop at Shanghai Stadium. Alternatively, you can just take Metro Line 1 only to Shanghai Indoor Stadium and then a slow 10 minutes walk to Shanghai Stadium. Our targeted destination was Shanghai Sightseeing Bus Centre (SSBC) which was located at staircase No. 5, Gate 12 of Shanghai Stadium. At SSBC, you can join the locals or foreigners for numerous cheap and reasonable tours (mostly Chinese guided tours). There are daily tours as well as 2 or 3 days tours to other tourist attractions within Shanghai and the nearby Provinces such as Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui Provinces, etc. Tours of 2 days or more are inclusive of hotel accomodation. If you are in Hangzhou, you can join the equivalent of SSBC, i.e. Hangzhou Tourist (Yellow Dragon )Centre - HTC at No. 3 Huanglong Road, Yellow Dragon Sports Centre. Whether you are in Shanghai or Hangzhou, you can chose the tour supermarkets at SSBC or HTC to conduct your own tour.

On Saturday, 13 Sept 2008, we chose the 1 day Suzhou Tour from 8.30am and the tour ended at almost 8.00 pm (due to traffic jams all the way from Shanghai to Suzhou ) as the locals were jamming the roads to return to their respective hometowns due to Mid Autumn Festival. The cost of the tour was RMB 228/person and it is worth it.

The places we visited at Suzhou were:-

1) Ou Yuan Garden,

2) The Lingering Garden or Lui Garden

3) Hanshan Garden & Fengqiao Scenic Area

4) The silk producing factory

5) Suzhou famous landmark, Tiger Hill & scenic areas

By the time the tour completed at SSBC, it was almost 8.30pm and raining, so we miss our planned night tour of The Bund, Huangpu River and Pudong.

Photograph of myself taken at one of the scenic spots within the ancient water-town of Zhouzhuang

The next day, 14 September 2008, we decided to visit the Yangtze Delta famous ancient water-town of Zhouzhuang. It was perhaps one of the most visited watertowns in China. We were recommended to Zhouzhuang by a British lady whom we met at SSBC the previous day and she informed us that this place was the best picturesque tourist attractions within Shanghai suburbs. Moreover my Malaysian friends who came here before also recommended this place as the Movie, "Mission Impossible" was also filmed here.

The local tour cost us RMB 150/person, i.e. RMB 70 for the return bus ride and RMB 80 for the entrance fee. However, if your are an elderly age 60 years + (as my elder brother), you only pay RMB 50 as entrance fee. The actual entrance fee at the gate was RMB 100/person (if you go there with your own without going thru SSBC). There was no guide for the tour to this ancient water-town; you just spend freely for 5 to 6 hours on your own at Zhouzhuang ancient water town. The tour starts at 8.00am and ends at 3.00 pm (at Zhouzhuang) and thereafter, the bus will return to SSBC Shanghai.

Zhouzhuang lies between Shanghai and Suzhou and it is an ancient town within Kunshan City, Jiangsu Province bounded with rivers and lakes. It is said to be one of the best waterside town in China. This ancient town has a history of more than 900 years old (since the late Song Dynasty) with many houses built during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. There are about 100 houses with courtyards, and 60 of them have arch gateways made by carved bricks.

With lakes on four sides, the beauty of Zhouzhuang was specially found along the waterside lanes and around a number of the stone bridges.

Zhouzhuang was a popular tourist destination within Taihu Lake. It was also noted for its profound cultural background, the well preserved ancient residential houses, the elegant watery views and the strong local colored traditions and customs. It has been called the "Venice of the East". There are various attractions here such as:-

- Twin Bridges built during the Ming Dynasty

- Fuan Bridge built in 1355 during the Yuan Dynasty

- Sheng House (built: 1742),

- Zhang House (built during Ming Dynasty and bought by Zhang Family in early Qing Dynasty)

- Chengzu Taoist Temple built 1086 - 1093 during Sung Dynasty

The tour ended at sharp 3.00 pm within the Zhouzhuang Bus Parking Bay. If you late, you will have to return to Shanghai on your own. Two of the locals were late for about 5 minutes and nearly missed the returned trip to Shanghai. The SSBC's driver was about to drive-off after getting cellular phone numbers from 2 other locals (as evidence in case of any official complaints).

We arrived at SSBC Shanghai at about 4.30 pm and walked to Shanghai Indoor Stadium, took Metro Line 1 to People's Square. On arrival, we were shocked as we have never seen so many commuters at this station which was also an inter-change for Metro Lines 2 & 8. The crowd looks like coming out of a "full-house stadium" and was packed everywhere. We have never seen so many people congested in a Metro Station (even in Guangzhou, Hong Kong or Singapore). After departing from People's Square, we took a slow casual walk all the way to The Bund. It was packed all the way especially at the tunnel where Chinese Police were controlling the crowds (not vehicles or other traffic). It took us more than 5 minutes just to cross the pedestrian tunnel beneath Zhongsan Road and get over to The Bund.

The Bund is located within Huangpu district in Shanghai. The area centered on a section of Zhongshan Road which runs along the western bank of the Huangpu River facing Pudong, in the eastern part. The Bund usually refers to the buildings and wharves on this section of the road as well as some adjacent areas. Some of the famous buildings are The Peace Hotel, The Bank of China Building, The Chartered Bank Building, The Customs House, HSBC Building and others.
The Bund is also one of the most famous tourist destinations in Shanghai. Building heights are restricted in this area. It has dozens of historical buildings lining the Huangpu River, that once housed numerous banks and trading houses from Britain, France, USA, Russia, Germany, Japan, The Netherlands and Belgium, as well as the consulates of Russia and Britain. It lies north of the old walled city of Shanghai and used to be a British settlement; later American and other International settlements moved in. A building boom at the end of 19th century and beginning of 20th century led to the Bund becoming a major financial hub of East Asia.

By the 1940s the Bund housed the headquarters of many of the major financial institutions operating in China, including the "big four" national banks in the Republic of China's era. However, with the Communist victory in the Chinese civil war, many of the financial institutions moved out gradually in the 1950s, and the hotels and clubs closed or converted to other uses.

Pudong is a district of Shanghai that enjoys sub-provincial administrative status. It is named "Pudong" because of its location on the east side of the Huangpu river, on the opposite of Puxi, the west side. Since the beginning of its development in 1990 when plans were first announced, Pudong has become a New Open Economic Development Zone, and emerged as China's financial and commercial hub. Pudong is home to the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and a skyline that includes the symbolic Oriental Pearl Tower, the Jin Mao Building, and the Shanghai World Financial Centre, reflective of Shanghai and China's rapid economic development. Pudong now has China's 1st & 2nd tallest building, i.e. The 101 storey Shanghai World Financial Centre completed in 2008 @ 492 Metres and Jin Mao Building completed in 1999 with 88 storeys and 421 Metres high. However, another new tall building, i.e. Xujiahui Tower is being planned in 2010 with 92 storeys and 462 Metres high.

We left Shanghai on Monday, 15 September 2008 by CRH Train D657 leaving at 9.30 am and arrived Hangzhou at 10.48 am. On arrival, we took a 20 minutes walk to our pre-booked budget Hotel, Blog Inn which was about 1 kilometre away. Although the rates were almost similar to Shanghai O.K. Hotel but the condition was not as good. On the otherhand, it also has free internet access and the food prices around it was much cheaper than Shanghai, e.g. the usual small pork meat pau cost RMB 0.50 (RM 0.25 cts) each and a large size fritter cost RMB 0.60 (RM 0.30 each) as compared to prices in Malaysia being 2 to 3 times more. After checking-in, where else to go to Hangzhou - Shopping and Hangzhou's famous landmark, The West Lake, the musical fountain, etc.; we only returned at about 9.30 pm.

The next day, we arranged with Blog Inn for a full day Hangzhou City Tour (8am to 6pm). The visited places were:-

1) Tiger Running Spring at Hupao Valley

2) West Lake - Boat Ride to Xiaoying Island, Mid-Lake Pavilion and the Three Pools Mirroring the Moon

3) Temple / Mausoleum of General Yue Fei

4) Visit to the Silk factory

5) Romance of the Song Dynasty / Song Dynasty Town

6) Visit to Hangzhou's famous Longjin or Dragon Well Tea Processing Factory

7) Lingyin Scenic Area and Lingyin Buddhist Temple

8) Yellow Dragon Cave

We left Hangzhou on Wednesday, 17th September 2008 via Air Asia-X Flight D 72603 departing at 2.00pm and arriving at LCCT at 7.00pm. We really enjoyed conducting our own tours within the Yangtze Delta cities of Shanghai, Hangzhou, etc. It was fun and cheap and we are looking forward to return next year as we intended to visit other places such as Nanjing, Huangshan, Wuxi, Wuzhen, Tongli, Putou Mountains, etc. Also, with China's cheap and fast CRH trains and Tourist supermarkets at Hangzhou and Shanghai, we strongly recommend all travellers to conduct their own tours which would be much reasonable and enjoyable.

Happy Travelling

Posted on 10th October 2008 by HK Wan

Email: hengkei@gmail.com