DATELINE: Guangzhou, China 

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Author: Lauren Cohen

Where we last left off, I was searching for a Cantonese restaurant that had been recommended to me. I found it (turned out the cabbie hadn't been too far off), and am so glad I did. I ordered roast suckling pig and roast goose over rice. Both were crispy, fatty, succulent, and just plain delicious. After my late lunch, I took the Metro down to Beijing Rd. I only had to transfer twice, and I felt like a pro. By the time I arrived, the sun was down and the neon lights were in full force. I took some great pictures--I think. There were lanterns and Christmas lights on the trees, and people and shops everywhere. Once again I was astounded by the sheer volume of stuff for sale - I walked into a building that contained corridors of stalls, dozens of them, all selling fake Nike and Converse shoes. Where does all this stuff go if nobody buys it? I walked back to my hotel and was drenched in sweat by the time I made it. Determined not to make my one night in Guangzhou an early one, I showered and dressed to head out again. Charlie had recommended a couple of dive bars, after I told him my nightlife preference, but they were a significant distance from my hotel and neither Metro nor taxi appealed to me at that moment. I ate some dumplings, then ventured in to one of the many nightclubs in the vicinity of my hotel. I chose Soho bar. As soon as I walked in, an older Chinese man ushered me over to where his friends were sitting. They shared the pitcher of whatever they were drinking (Henessey cut with something very very sweet - I never quite figured out what) and wouldn't let me leave even though the language barrier meant we couldn't have much of a conversation. Also, I was about 95% sure they thought I was a prostitute. There wasn't much space for dancing, and a skinny guy with a Jackie Chan haircut and a sequined jacket was enthusiastically lip-synching in the spotlight. I left and walked over to another club, which seemed more promising because of the giant Jack Daniels posters outside. I walked the perimeter of the inside looking for the bar, only to realize that it was all table service. Once again, no dance floor. Club #3 was more of the same, but at least there was a bar where I could sit and order what turned out to be the worst cocktail I'd ever had. It tasted like mouthwash. A German guy came over to talk to me, advised me to stick to simple drinks, and ordered me a whiskey cola. He said that the nightclubs in Guangzhou are all really strange - with no dance floor (despite the pounding dance music) and young people gathered around tables playing dice games. I finished my drink. German dude offered to walk me back to my hotel, but I declined (it was literally right around the corner). I went back and watched a Chinese infomercial about electronic cigarettes. At least part of the program was devoted to the premise that regular cigarettes cause birth defects. They illustrated this point by showing a crying woman, a photograph of a hideously and improbably deformed infant, and the same crying woman hitting her cigarette-smoking husband repeatedly. They also cut to a stout, effeminate man lounging in a plush chair and enjoying his electronic cigarette. The "doctors" giving testimonials were all white guys. I'm not sure what to make of that. This morning: checked out of hotel and stashed bags, dim sum lunch (not as good as Philly or NYC, but maybe I didn't order well -- it was a checklist menu all in Chinese rather than carts that allow you to point to things that look good). They brought me chicken feet, even though I know the name for them in Chinese and am pretty sure I didn't order them. The people working in the restaurant seemed to all be watching to see how I would react to them - little do they know, I'm a dim sum Pro. The turnip cake was great, but the char siu bao (my favorite) was kind of disappointing - too little pork and the bun was quite dry. I'll try again in Hong Kong, but even if I don't get great dim sum here, I know it's something I can find easily at home. No worries, mon. Now I'm on the bus to Hong Kong, and I can't believe it's my last stop before going home. I'm so sad that my adventure is almost over, but I can't wait to see my friends and give them presents!

DATELINE: Guangzhou, China 

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Author: Lauren Cohen

The rest of my train ride was relaxing and enjoyable. I talked to the mother and son in my compartment a little because she spoke some English and explained that her 8-year-old son was learning English in an after-school program. She even asked if I work for Wal-Mart because she recognize the Sam Walton button on my bag (thanks Andy!). When I wasn't reading, I entertained myself by helping Daniel (the kid's English name) practice his phrases, much to his mom's delight. For dinner I grabbed one of the rice boxes from the ladies who came around with carts. In addition to white rice, it contained (in descending order of deliciousness): breaded pork on a stick, ground pork with pickled hot peppers, marinated mushrooms, a cold and tasteless omelet, and rubbery bean curd. When I didn't finish, Daniel became concerned that I don't like Chinese food. I tried my best to explain that the food on trains isn't very good in America either. Sleeping on the train was just heavenly. The motion of the train was soothing and felt directionless when I closed my eyes. I need to do this train thing more often (Trans-Siberian sometime in the future perhaps? I met some travelers who had been on it). I slept soundly all night, then fell back to sleep in the morning after brushing my teeth and all that. Guangzhou is hot and busy. It took awhile to get my room because the hotel couldn't find my online reservation (the hotel in Kunming also had this problem, yet none of the cheap backpacker hostels did. Curious). My hotel is right on the Pearl River, which should provide some nice walking this evening. Then I was off to find a Cantonese restaurant recommended to me by the acquaintance I made in Kunming. I showed the address in Chinese to the cabbie and he said OK, but he turned clueless soon after and I somehow ended up in the electronics district. At least there was a McDonalds so I could get some fries as a snack (whenever a Chinese person makes me mad, I get an insatiable craving for American fast food. It's like my own personal patriotic rebellion) and a Starbucks so I could use free wi-fi and pick up a copy of the local English-language magazine with restaurant and bar listings. Roast pork awaits!

DATELINE: ?, China 

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Author: Lauren Cohen

Stupid internet.

DATELINE: ?, China 

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Author: Lauren Cohen

Hour 3 of the 23-hour train journey from Kunming to Guangzhou. I just ate something delicious in the dining car. It was pork, I think, with onions in a spicy chili-oil-hued sauce. Some of the pieces were pure fat and some had the soft texture of offal, but everything tasted like the sauce. I'm sharing a compartment with a mother and son, and a single lady. All Chinese--in fact everyone I've seen on the train is Chinese. The little boy had a McDonald's bag and offered me some French fries. My upper-berth soft-sleeper is very comfortable and has plenty of head room, a cozy blanket, and a pillow with a pillowcase that smells freshly laundered. The other people in my compartment seem to want to sleep even though it's the middle of the afternoon, so I have to use my book light whenever we go through a tunnel. (Last night, Charlie asked me how many books I've finished during this trip. "None, but I've been reading Dostoyevsky.")The hard-sleeper cars seem more lively, with people talking and playing cards across the aisles. I'm sure when nighttime comes, though, I'll appreciate having a quiet compartment with a door that closes.

DATELINE: ?, China 

(Click map for more useful detail)

Author: Lauren Cohen

Hour 3 of the 23-hour train journey from Kunming to Guangzhou. I just ate something delicious in the dining car. It was pork, I think, with onions in a spicy chili-oil-hued sauce. Some of the pieces were pure fat and some had the soft texture of offal, but everything tasted like the sauce. I'm sharing a compartment with a mother and son, and a single lady. All Chinese--in fact everyone I've seen on the train is Chinese. The little boy had a McDonald's bag and offered me some French fries. My upper-berth soft-sleeper is very comfortable and has plenty of head room, a cozy blanket, and a pillow with a pillowcase that smells freshly laundered. The other people in my compartment seem to want to sleep even though it's the middle of the afternoon, so I have to use my book light whenever we go through a tunnel. The hard-sleeper cars seem more lively, with people talking and playing cards across the aisles. I'm sure when nighttime comes, though, I'll appreciate having a quiet compartment with a door that closes.

DATELINE: ?, China 

(Click map for more useful detail)

Author: Lauren Cohen

Hour 3 of the 23-hour train journey from Kunming to Guangzhou. I just ate something delicious in the dining car. It was pork, I think, with onions in a spicy chili-oil-hued sauce. Some of the pieces were pure fat and some had the soft texture of offal, but everything tasted like the sauce. I'm sharing a compartment with a mother and son, and a single lady. All Chinese--in fact everyone I've seen on the train is Chinese. The little boy had a McDonald's bag and offered me some French fries. My upper-berth soft-sleeper is very comfortable and has plenty of head room, a cozy blanket, and a pillow with a pillowcase that smells freshly laundered. The other people in my compartment seem to want to sleep even though it's the middle of the afternoon, so I have to use my book light whenever we go through a tunnel. The hard-sleeper cars seem more lively, with people talking and playing cards across the aisles. I'm sure when nighttime comes, though, I'll appreciate having a quiet compartment with a door that closes.

DATELINE: Kunming, China 

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Author: Lauren Cohen

I'm not sure what to make of Kunming. My experience here has been different than in any other city because I chose to stay in a hotel rather than a hostel. The difference in atmosphere is significant: instead of a relaxing bar or courtyard, there's a swank lobby lounge with a grand piano. Instead of a casual cafe, there's an overpriced buffet at the "revolving restaurant" on the 23rd floor. Above all I've noticed that nobody staying here seems to be my age. When I did my requisite "first night get the lay of the land" walk, I was dismayed to find that all that seems to be around here are other hotels. Feeling sort of bummed out and lonely, especially because I had left behind lots of fun in Dali, I watched Tommy Boy on HBO and turned in early. Today I planned to venture out to the Bamboo Temple, because I wanted to see the sculptures. They are supposed to range from realism to caricature to hyper-realism to surrealism, and apparently the sculptor responsible disappeared after completing it because he offended people's sensibilities. I thought I was all slick because I had the hotel concierge write down the name of where I wanted to go in Chinese. I hailed a cab and gave him the piece of paper. The cabbie began yelling at me in Chinese and gesturing wildly with his hands. I stammered back that I didn't understand and he continued his rant. Finally I just said "OK," and he started driving. It turned out that what he was yelling was something along the lines of, " I don't want to drive to the Bamboo Temple, so I'm going to take you to the Western Hills instead." I decided to roll with it. I took the cable car up and enjoyed the view. Of course there were vendors, and I grabbed an ice cream bar with an ear of corn on the wrapper. It was sort of like a wafer cone in the shape of an ear of corn, with corn flavored ice cream in the middle. Very odd, but not entirely un-delicious. I saw a restaurant with picures outside that looked like a Yunnan speciality called Over the Bridge noodles. It's a soup broth with a thin layer of oil over it, served with a bunch of raw meats, cilantro, chives, egg, and noodles. You dump everything into the broth and it cooks. Pretty good, but not as good as Pho. I asked the taxi driver to take me not back to my hotel, but to the address of a bar recommended in Lonely Planet. The place wasn't anything special, but there were comfy seats for a beer and some reading (I feel like these blogs are making me seem like an alcoholic). I walked around that area and on the campus of Yunnan University. It was only when I decided to take a cab back to my hotel that I was able to gauge just how far from civilization I was staying. I figured I would probably end up heading back out in that direction for the night. I ended up staying around here because, by some miraculous coincidence I managed to run into the one other American solo traveler staying in the hotel. He was a teacher in Guangzhou, so he was able to give me a lot of great tips for Guangzhou and Hong Kong. He was only in Kunming for the night after long day of traveling, with a flight to catch early in the morning, so he wasn't up for anything too crazy. We walked around the area of the hotel and confirmed that, indeed, the only bars around were the ones in hotels. He knew enough mandarin to ask people where to go have a beer. We were pointed to a convenience store. When he explained that we wanted a bar, we were told to take a bus or a taxi. We ended up sitting in the hotel lounge, even though the beers were overpriced and the music was terrible (operatic Chinese versions of Scarborough Fair and the Titanic song, for example). I appreciated having some company though. So, in stark contrast to the debauchery of the previous few days, I find myself, for the second night in a row, in my room by 10pm watching a movie. It's not too different from my life in Brooklyn, I guess.