Dajia Hao!<

I think this will be my last update, since I am leaving for Holland next Friday morning, not really looking forward to that I must admit... Next traveling days were tiresome but interesting. Shanghai was great in a way (very modern buildings, nice French quarter and a beautiful old town, good western food) but terrible in another (too crowded, full of scam artists who shout at you all the time "Wanna buy a bag, wanna buy a watch, lady lady), and hard to arrange things such as boattickets to Putuoshan, the buddhistic island.

Just a warning to all Shanghai travelers, be careful for english speaking students/people around Nanjing Donglu who want to invite you to "tea parties" (too expensive) or want to have dinner with you (a friend of me was stuck there and had to pay a bill of 700yuan!! which is  lot of money here in China).

The last day saturday, Jelte and I tried again to get boattickets to Putuoshan (it took us 4 hours on friday afternoon without success and then it took us mre then 45 minutes to find an empty taxi!!!) went to the tourist info and then to some travel agencies, but they could not help us, so we decided just to take the train to Ningbo, about 2 hours from Shanghai. Bought the tickets at the trainsstation (very long queue of course) and then I went to visit the "urban planning center" which has a huge maquette about the city and info about Shanghais future plans. Rest of the day was internet and an expensive drive for nothing to a brigde you could walk on, but which apparently was already closed at 4 o'clock (it was 1730) and of course the taxi driver didn't tell us.

Later we went to the modern Xitiandi, a shopping center in old buildings full of art galleries and terraces, really nice and peacefull. Western expensive prices but the spinach/mozarella lasagna was so great after almost 2,5 months without cheese. At night we had a beer with Dieter in our hotelroom and said goodbye.

Sunday morning I left with Jelte en Jeroen by train to Ningbo. We stayed in a nice youth hostel opposite of the moonlake and close to the station. Then again getting the boattickets to Putuoshan was difficult. No taxi wanted to take us to the ferry booking office (according the Lonely planet), one took us for 5 minutes and then threw us out of his cab. We walked back to the hostel again and they sent us to the busstation next to the trainstation, arriving there and asking in Chinese (of course nobody shou Yingyu) the answer was Mei you, Mei you! And mingtian (tomorrow). But at the "window" next to the Mei You woman they sold tickets to another island and from there we should be able to take a boat to Putuoshan, so thats what we bought. By the time we were really tired and hungry. Had dinner in a very good and busy Chinese restaurant and then went to an English bar where we first were the only guests (later some fat american guys came to play poker) and played pool and shithead, drinking beers. A Chinese woman there arranged a cheap hotel for us at the island, Lonely Planet price around 800yuan for 2 persons, and she managed to arrange 350 for 3 persons! It is all about connections here in China.

So Monday we finally left for Putuoshan!! First 1,5 hours in a too small bus where you hardly could fit your luggage and your legs. Then the bus went on a huge ferry which took us to the island of Zhoushan. There we had to hop on the bus again till the next busstation. We had to ask again in our best Chinese were to buy the boattickets to Putuoshan, this friendly lady told a taxi driver were to take us and then almost 3,5 hours later we arrived at the correct boat, which only took 10 minutes. You have to pay 110 yuan (11 euro) to enter the island, but it is really beautiful green, full of flowers, temples and beaches. Also trouble finding the hotel, but a lady selling ice cream called them for us and then they came to pick us up. Really nice hotel! Then we started walking around, very hot and humid at this green island, but no sun. I walked around with Jelte, we visited one of the beaches and walked with our feet in the sea, nice, but unfortunately there was also a lot of oil in the sand. Walked further, next to the green forests, flowers and coastline, visit some pavelions and a cave. Also a buddhistic yellow temple were we had a delicious vegetarian dinner for (believe it or not!) 2,50 yuan!! (25 euro cent, 2-3 yuan is the price for a small bottle of water). A lot of monks were at the temple, men and women. Then we went to the most eastern part of the island were a famous and deep cave was overlooking the sea. Got a ride from a truck and had to walk the last part over the steep road. We were just on time there before closing time, but arriving there we saw the temple and cave were closed and under construction. Visited another cave (also a long walk in the tropical humid forest, in which we also saw a deer) which was "actually not a cave" (said the sign) and was a small "shelter" not really worth visiting. Couldn't catch a bus back (no one would stop) and there were no taxi's on the island and hardly any otgher cars, so it was a long long warm walk back! Ended at the beach and called Jeroen. Had a beer sitting on the rocks with horrible Karaoke chinese karaoke singing at the background from the beachbar. Tuesdaymorning we took the boat back around 9 o clock. This time the correct fast boat directly to Ningbo and then a short bus ride, only 3 hours instead of the 4 hours of the day before. Bought traintickets to Hangzhou and then hurried back to the hostel to get our big backpacks. In Hangzhou we said goodbye to Jelte who was heading for Guangzhou. We couldn't get a taxi outside the trainstation and then we noticed we had to go to the taxi place underneath the station. There was a really huge queue and only 1 taxi arriving every 3 minutes or so. So we decided to walk to the hostel, which wasn't such a good idea. So hot and humid and that with a heavy big packpack, a heavy small backpack and a small bag. I think we walked more then 1 hour. We're soaked and almost death when we finally arrived at the nice hostel (next to the famous West Lake) at 6 o clock. Shower time! Later we had a nice pizza dinner in a restaurant on an island at the lake, and had some beers while playing shithead at the hostel. Today we walked around the lake. It is also really beautiful and green here and around the lake very quiete and peacefull. Visited a shopping street with houses in old Ming/Qing style. A bit touristic, but quite ok. Ate stinky tofu (which really smells horrible but tastes actually quite good) at a Chinese food market. Then walked back to the lake and visited two temples. The second one was a rebuilt pagode (original from around900ad, but broke down in 1924 and last rebuilt in 2001) which had escalators up hill and believe it or not an elevator to the top. Really tacky, but also reall Chinese. Below were the excavations of the original fundaments and the place were people believe a hair of Buddha is stored. Anyway the view from the top over the lake was very nice, although very foggy. Had a late lunch (16.30) in a Chinese restaurant were they tried to rip of us by bringing us more dishes then we ordered and putting the wrong prices on the bill, but with a little Putonghua (Chinese language) and Chinese bargainskills, we managed to get the real price. Then the dark sky and thunder begun. And then the horrible rainshower with thunder and lighting. Bought umbrellas (always carrying this with me except topday, since today it was nice and sunny) in a store and put plastic bags around our shoes (after having 2 days of wet shoes which didnt dry in Shanghai) and fled to this internetcafe. it seems dry now, so thats ok. Tonight at 23 o clock we will take the night train to Shanghai, Hardsleeper, but unfortunately top beds (the worst place udnerneath the airco and very high so you can't sit on the bed) and that for 16 hours. The other down beds were sold out. Will arrive there at 14 o clock and then our last day in Beijing starts. Friday morning we will fly back to Amsterdam around 11 o clock in the morning and arrive there the same day around 15 oclock. So the last update probably. Photos maybe will follow in Holland. Have too many now and uploading doesn't really work in the internetcafes. Zaijian!! And thanks for reading my long stories, hope you enjoyed them!