For around 2000 years, Xian was the capital of China regardless of the ruling dynasties. Accordingly, the city and its surroundings are full of ancient temples, gates and tombs. One of the most interesting buildings is the Great Mosque, it looks like a Chinese temple, the minaret like a pagoda. But the main reason to … Continue reading “Xian”
Cave temples with Buddha statues and an old town (Shanxi, China)
The city is criss-crossed by wide avenues lined with skyscrapers, but in between there are still remnants of the hutons, the old neighbourhoods of low, grey brick houses, where old people drink tea in the shade or play board games in the narrow alleys; coal sellers cycle their wares to customers… The centre of the … Continue reading “Beijing”
More or less wild sections of the Great Wall with mountainous ups and downs between Huanghua and Mutianyu
Around Yangzhou, once again, cone karst at its finest – admittedly quite similar to the corresponding landscapes in northern Vietnam or southern Thailand. The best thing is to cruise through the landscape on a bicycle (if only it weren’t so brutally hot), because between the rocky limestone mountains everything is flat. I was less prepared … Continue reading “Guilin cone karst”
Macau and Guangzhou (Canton)
Ascent of Gunung Agun and various temples, lakes, volcanoes and rice fields
On an islet between Bali and Lombok (Indonesia)