A change of dwelling
This morning we enjoyed out breakfast at the hostel, this merely consisted of snacks from the local convenience store. Due to the poor nature of the hostel, we had decided to move to a different one. Cristina had been looking tirelessly for new accommodation (made more difficult due to some not accepting foreigners). She found one nearby so we settled on that. We spoke for some time in the morning about visiting Qingyan Ancient Town, then we happily checked out and moved to the new place.
We checked into our new dwelling, dropped our bags off, and went straight out. Luckily our new place is by the main road, so we caught a bus close by. We were on our way to Qingyan Ancient Town or Qingyan Guzhen. This is a traditional market town that has existed for hundreds of years. Hopefully we should be able to garner some rich history from the place.
Our new hostel was called On The Way Youth Hostel, check it out here. It was a big upgrade, and pretty cosy with a lovely balcony view of the Guiyang main square. Very much in the centre of Guiyang.
Arriving at Qingyan Guzhen
When we arrived it was pretty calm and peaceful. We walked down a long stretch of road to get to the actual town. As we were walking, Mat and I did realise something strange. Almost every restaurant and stall we walked past was selling pig’s feet to eat. I must say, they did not look attractive, but more of that later. Check out this site for more in-depth info on Qingyan Guzhen.
Once we’d entered the Ancient Town (for a mere ¥10) we continued walking to get to the main market place. It looked just like you’d think a Chinese town should look like. The architecture and decoration of the buildings was fantastic, it really made you feel like you’re revelling in Chinese history. We walked through the many long streets of the town, heads constantly looking left to right and back again with all the small shops. There were foods and drinks of all kinds to sample (which we definitely did), as well as trinkets, odds and ends, and furniture. It was quite amazing really. We tried some tofu (never been a fan) and it was okay I suppose, wouldn’t jump at it again though.
The Great Wall of...Qingyan?
After having walked for an hour or more, we reached the end of one of the streets. In front of us was a town gate to exit. However, there was also a town wall attached to the gate that you could walk on. So we climbed a few steps to get on to the wall, and then began our walk up the wall which was built on and over a hill. This is what I expected the Great Wall of China would be like, except on a larger scale. The stairs were steep, and the journey was arduous. Cristina did not look like she was enjoying it so much haha.
As Mat raced ahead, I waited for Cristina at various checkpoints before I too sprinted up to the pinnacle of the wall. The view from the highest point of the wall was awesome. I was overlooking the entire old town, and at the same time I could see mountains in every direction for miles. Coupled with the afternoon sun, the landscape was truly majestic. This is what we came travelling for, moments like these. Whilst at the top, time stood still as all three of us enjoyed the great sights presented before us.
An unsightly meal
After some time at the top, we decided to descend the wall in search of nourishment. We walked back through the streets we’d come through already in the hopes of finding a place to eat. Cristina eventually settled on a place that was empty. She ordered the food for us which was fine as we couldn’t read the menu anyway. However, what was delivered to us was not a feast for the eyes…nor the belly. In front of us were several pig’s feet on a plate. I definitely don’t shy away from trying new things, so I dug in. At least I would if I could find any meat. All I could bite was bone, fat, or gristle. After fighting for 10 minutes with the foot, I gave up as there wasn’t a scrap on it.
Alongside the feet were some 2 bowls, one with white jelly, the other with black jelly. We tried them, but they didn’t really fulfil our needs as hungry westerners. Cristina seemed to be chowing down and getting the most out of it. Mat and I were truly puzzled as our feet offered no meat. After the meal, we all decided to head back to the bus.
Back to the modern city
As tomorrow is the beginning of the National Golden Week, everyone in China was on the way back home. Naturally, this meant that the bus was packed like crazy, more than usual. The traffic was deadlock, so if you’re in a rush the day before a national holiday, travel early as possible! It was dark by the time we got off the bus and walked to the main square. We quickly freshened up at the hostel before heading out for some actual food. We decided on a fried chicken chain, Dicos. It turned out to be absolutely lush, it was so delicious. Fried chicken and fries with a fruit drink, just the dose of western food I needed!
We also managed how to withdraw money from the ATM in China, something that had previously failed earlier on in the day. After replenishing our coffers, we returned to the hostel and chilled out for the night.
Tip!
We tried withdrawing cash from a local bank’s ATM, but failed every time. After some research, it turns out that only a few select banks will dispense cash for foreign cards. The ones that worked for us were the Bank of China, ICBC, and the China Construction Bank. These are pretty major banks so you shouldn’t ever be far from one in a city or town. We were using a MasterCard debit card. Around the ATM it should display the logos of the cards it accepts (MasterCard, Visa etc.)
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