The title sums it all up. We went to Tokyo Disneyland, which is located on Tokyo Bay. It was Easter season. I found the park to be pretty much the same as the Magic Kingdom in the US. Almost too much the same. I last visited the MK in 2003 andRead more
Rain and fog is predicted for the next several days, so the prospects of getting some amazing photos are looking pretty slim. The hotel’s breakfast buffet is amazing. Pork Buns, eggs, sweets… too many things for me to sample them all. Some nice coffee too. This is a view of one of the walls inRead more
A new friend, Pete, picked me up at the airport and helped me locate my place. I had booked this on AirBnB, and while the location was great, and the photos made the place look amazing, in reality it was a pretty run-down building. A former hotel (the Salvo Hotel), it was now under aRead more
Last Morning in Lijiang Old Town One of the beautiful daily sights in the old town is how locals and visitors will gather up in the square and folk dance to region folk music. Everyone is welcome to join, and there are plenty of seats for spectators. It’s really fun to watch. Read more
Took a flight into Dali, Yunnan. It was a silk road stop. I don’t really need to get into the importance and history of the Silk Road here. It’s pretty isolated up in the mountains, with a single Noth/South valley leading to other communities along the range. Dali Wood Carving and Marble are what theRead more
I had originally flew into Lijiang, but immediately took a bus to Shangri-La and I didn’t get much of a chance to see Lijiang until the evening I returned. Surrounded by granite mountains, deep gorges, and red clay hills, Lijiang lies within a 8,000 ft high level plain crossroads of established trade routes and minority cultures. The developedRead more
Chengdu I fly west to Chengdu, one of the hubs for heading up the Himalayas. I meet up with Jing and we grab some Chengdu food. One of my favorites: Corn-fried Corn. It’s sweet corn, coated in a mix of a salted duck egg and corn starch, and then fried in oil. Crunchy, salty,Read more
I like to splurge and get a decent, relaxing hotel for the end of each stretch of travel. This hotel was booked based on US hotel pricing and I guess that goes a long way in China. Here’s an idea of what you get for $200/night (at least in Yangshuo in 2010). The place wasRead more