Aug 2014. Benxi I ordered a barbecued fish to go along with my cold beer at the restaurant beside the river. The waiter shouted out to his mate who was standing on the rocks in the river. They had some sort of a partition by the side of the river where they were growing or... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi I sat down in the restaurant by the river and waited. The waiter came back with a bottle of beer but it was not cold. So I asked him if he had any cold beer in his fridge. He gave me a look, took the bottle along with a few others, put... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi Business was brisk. There were sitting areas inside and outside the restaurant. But most people were outside, enjoying the views, the cool breeze and the soothing sounds of the flowing river. It was noon time and I was weighing the idea of eating here versus taking a taxi back to the hotel... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi The view was postcard perfect. Clear blue skies. The mountains offering a towering backdrop. The waters in the emerald green lake shining in the sun. The Benxi Lake was near the Guanmenshan mountain area and it would have been a sin not to visit this beautiful place before leaving Benxi. It was... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi Pollution will continue to be a long-term challenge for China. It will take many years before a sustained public education program by the government can bear fruit. For the time being, major cities, roads and tourist attractions are always kept clean by armies of efficient road sweepers and cleaners. Parks and nature... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi I would have most probably walked right past this tree if not for my tour guide. She pointed out to me that this tree was called the husband and wife tree as it looked like a bigger was hugging a thinner tree. I looked at it and indeed it looked quite romantic.... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi I hired a tour guide at the Guanmenshan ticketing office while buying the tickets to give me an orientation to the mountain. She was helpful in sharing some interesting pieces of information about the mountain. At one instance, she stopped to pull out a walnut from a fruit. Until then I had... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi I visited Guanmenshan, a mountain forest area in Benxi, without any expectations of what I would see that day. But I have to say that other than the disappointment of not seeing the famous autumn leaves of the maple trees, I was really quite happy. It was a nice sunny day, the... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi The maple trees showing off their golden colours during the autumn was a big attraction at the Guanmenshan mountains in Benzi. But I was too late as the autumn season was almost over. There are no yellow or red leaves in any of the trees. There was even a tree that was... Continue Reading →
Aug 2014. Benxi This was bizarre. There were couple of street food stalls selling various types of barbeque food on sticks near my hotel in Benxi. And what the people did when they were finished eating was to start to sticking their sticks into the rubbish bins and waste cupboard boxes. This collection of sticks... Continue Reading →