Back

I finally arrived in Paris Yesterday's morning after more than 14 hours of flights. Now, that this trip has come to an end, it's time for me to go see all the people I missed during this year in Japan and this trip and... to find a job. I know, it's not a sure win.

Anyway, as I don't have any cell phone, if you want to reach emails are still the best option.
See you all !

Sumatra

I am in the South Hemisphere !!!! Waouh !!!

After a whole Toblerone (paid with the detaxing of my MacBook) and a one hour flight from Singapore to Padang, I headed for Bukittinggi, a "small" (Indonesia has the same problem as China concerning the use of the adjectives small and big) town nested between volcanoes, canyons and paddy fields.

Anyway, even if until now I couldn't check if the water in the toilet flush goes the other way (I don't have a toilet flush...), I really love my days here. People are so nice and smiling (even more than in Cambodia and Laos !!) and the nature is beautiful. The conclusion... you really all should come to Indonesia ! (and this is not a message of the Indonesian Tourism center ! It's really me, Antoine !)

See you all very soon to tell you all I couldn't write on this blog... hahahaha !!!

Soon to arrive

For the lazy ones not reading the comments here is some news:

I will be back in France on the 12th of July.

Which means that I have now less than 3 weeks of travel before coming to bother you all French guys and putting a huge distance between me and you all Japan living guys. And as the end draws closer, I have difficulties organizing the end as there is too much to see and not enough time. In the planning some days in Sumatra (to get a new stamp in my passport and reach the South Hemisphere), a visit to a friend living in Bangkok and all the little things you do before the end of a trip. See you soon !

To make you dream

Guilin and Yangshuo

One of the highlights of the part in China ! All the more that Hangzhou was disappointing (if you hadn't understood...). A good climate (heat, sun and some humidity), beautiful landscapes, nicer people... all this made my stay there pleasant and memorable.

One of the Guilin's lakes

Guilin is a typical Chinese city (which means at least 1 million of inhabitants) with a flavor of South-East Asia. People are more talkative, opened and smiling. Maybe the same difference as between Paris and the South of France...

Who wants some popcorn ?

And who wants some Ni... oups !

They sure know how to stay healthy

Two pagodas of Guilin

Yangshuo is said to be a small town but I can ensure you that it doesn't really match the "small town" criteria of France (but Japan...). Its setting is quite magnificent. It was the good occasion to ride on a bike and enjoy the beautiful landscapes under a scorching sun, guided by a local (in exchange of a reasonable amount of... you know what I mean), wearing my fashionable ski trousers... (it was supposed to rain !!!) But you can see this with the pictures !

Yangshuo

And when we leave the town...

My guide...

...and me

My visit in Yangshuo was the occasion for me to have a passionate debate with some young Chinese. Searching for some help in English, especially about the accent (and they were asking a French guy... Haha), we ended up discussiong about various subjects and especially the Irak war and the Tibet's incidents. This was a big surprise for me to discover that these Young ones clearly despised USA as I thought Chinese to be the opposite way. Concerning the Dalai-Lama and Tibet, they had an firm opinion, unfortunately full of holes... They didn't know neither the origin of the conflict nor the several achievements of the Dalai-Lama (Nobel Price of peace...). Starting from this point their opinion (Tibetans are "independantists" who try to destroy the country) was quite understandable. As my knowledge of the situation was quite as bad as them I couldn't really provide any good arguments except the "Nobel Price" one but it was enough to make them doubt and start rethinking the situation. Anyway, the conclusion is that I should inform myself more and so should do the Chinese (but with other sources than the Chinese government...) !

My first fried rice of the trip (what a beautiful way to end this photos' series)

Ciel, ma lessive !

... who understands, understands...

After more than 24 hours of transport, starting Kanchanaburi, Thailand, I arrived yesterday in Kota Bharu, Malaysia. And the place is really nice ! It provides a great change compared to Thailand as people are here mostly Muslims (no more purple-dressed monks in the streets). The buildings and the people's behavior are different. It's really great after almost two months (without counting the time in Japan of course) of Buddhist countries.

Anyway, I will soon leave for Pulau Perhentian to test my diving and my sunbathing abilities. So no worries please, if I don't give news. It's just that I would have fallen asleep in the shade of a coconut tree !

Hangzhou

After spending 48 comfortable hours in Shanghai, spoiled by Aymeric and Celine, I left to Hangzhou , a town I had been advised to go to. I received there the shock that I had been fearing and that had been delayed by my friends in Shanghai. I arrived at the beginning of the evening, under heavy rain and in dark obscurity. As soon as I left the train station I was literally assaulted by a swarm of hotel advertisers. And as the China guide (a guide made by the Chinese government and conveying a lot of funny ideas...) I had bought didn't give me the single start of a hint of where I ought to sleep, I was quite defenseless. I ended up in an ugly, over-expensive hotel lost in a district near the train station. No one in my entourage could speak English, I didn't speak a work of Chinese and I needed to eat and find an internet cafe (I found only to discover this blog and most of the sites I used to consult were censored in China). A really bad start for this town... and it was only the beginning !

A glimpse of the atmosphere near my hotel

In fact, I discovered in this town the real meaning of the two words "Chinese Tourists" (the 's' is very important). This denomination represents a group of people, at least 30, noisy, inconsiderate of the places and the other people and shameless. And they are so many, that I had the impression of being the only westerner in site. My peak of anger was reached when as I was queuing to buy a ticket, a couple passed me, the man throwing a kind of you-lowlife-glance (this gives a good idea of how I was angry) at me and his girlfriend looking slightly embarrassed.

So, even if some of the wonders of Hangzhou were real, I didn't like this town at all and my only thought as I was leaving it for Guilin was "Laos the sooner, the better". An impression so much funnier, my friend Raphael found in Hangzhou a good point for China...

Hangzhou's lake

Another view

A hungry dragon

Russian

Window (some of my comments are quite useless, aren't they ?)

Shanghai

As promised, here are some comments and pictures about my stay in Shanghai, the most non-Chinese city of China.

During my stay, I was hosted by Aymeric and Celine two friends of my years in Centrale who are working in Shanghai. Enjoying the expatriated way of life, with their help, the shock between Japan and China was reduced and I was able to survive... Thank you !

No, I wasn't hosted by a giant bottle

Shanghai is a mix between high buildings and poor districts, huge streets and small paths. You can walk 50m and have a vision of wealth and poverty. Such contrasts exist in most big cities but it's the first time that they are so clear.

They built the Tintin's moon rocket. Proof !

Poorer districts

Once again, Pudong skyline

Sometimes they mix everything

I also seized this occasion to visit a Chinese museum in Shanghai to learn more about the history of arts in Shanghai. It's easily summarized. Thousands years ago, the Chinese culture was magnificent. This lasted until the colonialism of the 18th century. Starting from this era, because of western invaders (British, French...) or communism, the Chinese arts became very poor. I base this assumption in the real vacuum observed in art products for this era. Astonishing compared to the richness of the old Chinese cultures !

The origin of Kanjis

A magnificent... 'bottle' of wine in copper

It was also the occasion to behave like good expatriated living in a country with cheap living costs, and to enjoy activities that I would never dare to in France...

Ritz, Hyatt... I don't remember but it certainly was tasty

Along with quite a correct view

Classy ?!

Heaven's door

Finally, I also visited a Chinese garden. And their trip is to have strange stones with holes all over. I don't know why but it's like that (according to the French guide I met during my visit).

Beautiful ?!

Shanghai will also be the host of the next Universal Exposition. As a consequence, there is construction yard everywhere ! I don't remember the accurate numbers but in 4 years they have built more than 5 subway lines. That gives you an idea of the change pace of this city.

The flying worker... a consequence of such a high pace

But I am not a professional guide, so I will stop with this crap. Shanghai is I think one of the most enjoyable Chinese city in that it's really westernized, and... there is a Burger King ! And one of the big discovery of this stay... the Norean bath ! It's some kind of a huge bath complex (the same for Aquaboulevard and a simple pool) where you can bath, do ping-pong (ok it is still the same as onsen..), have massages, sleep, have your hair cut, eat... it's endless ! Something really worth trying !

B-B-B-B-Burger King !!!!!

Korean bath...

I certainly forgot some nice pictures... fortunately ! If not, I would have nothing to tell you at my return ;)

A new start

I finally decided to drop the idea of going back home with the trans-Siberian railway. The reasons ? Difficulties forgetting the needed visas, high price (the plane ticket for Ulan Bator costs as much as the one for Paris) and tight schedule that would prevent me from truly enjoying Mongolia.

So, instead, I will go to the South Hemisphere !
This time no visa problem, a lot of islands and sun. On the schedule a bit of the north of Thailand, a bit of Malaysia, of Indonesia to finally fly back to Paris from Singapore (or Kuala Lumpur).

And as I need some time to book my plane ticket and re-schedule all this, maybe at the same time I will finally start posting some articles on this blog to tell you about the first part of my trip...

In deep...

The verdict has been given...
Without round trip air plane tickets, I can't get a Chinese visa at the Chinese embassy in Bangkok !

This changes my trip a lot as it seems more and more sure that I will have to hop on a plane to finish this trip. Three possibilities:
- Trying to get the Chinese visa in Laos (after having made the Russian one in Bangkok) as the officer in Bangkok told me that without air plane tickets this was the only way for me to get the Chinese visa (an assumption contradicted by all travel forums).
- Flying directly to Ulanbator after getting in Bangkok the Mongolian and Russian visa (for approximately 400 euros)
- Going on visiting southeast Asia (Malaysia, Singapour, Indonesia) and going back to Paris directly by plane (for also approximately 400 euros)

The choice is difficult between money issues and administration issues. I still haven't decided so any advice is more than welcome !

Antoine regretting its visa-free UE

Cambodia's sky

As I finally arrived in a place with a good internet connection, here are some pictures I took in Cambodia. By the way, have a look at my itinerary as I try to update it frequently (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=fr&msa=0&msid=116169824604136133032.000436b8039694f49a955&ll=45.828799,68.90625&spn=85.76851,185.625&z=3)

An expatriated friend is always useful as he shows you the good bar.


And even the photos to take.


And I didn't even use the sunset mode.


See you next time...

Lazy

Too much to find the inspiration and write interesting articles. But I have an excuse.

I still do not find the time to publish my pictures and as my narrative is mostly based on it... (this is the real advantage of writing... can't hear any complaint)

Here is at least a little on my last trip related decisions:

I had decided to go to Tibet... I think we can say it's screwed.
Not giving up my idea of not taking the plane, and after realizing that the first part of my trip had been done on a hellish speed, I had decided to give up on India and Nepal (for another time of course ;) ) to go instead to Myanmar, when... I also gave up on this idea. To this day, I will go to Malaysia and Singapour (unless some other disaster occurs) before going to Mongolia (if I finally manage to get the Chinese and Russian visas !).
To cut a long story short, I am quite annoyed actually !

Yes, I really am alive and well (and so are Lun Dy, Mom and Jay)

Sweet sticky rice with mango

During my stop at Luang Prabang, I used this opportunity to attend a "cooking class" (it was more a demonstration than a lesson) where I learned a delicious Laos recipe. Unfortunately, I won't be able to re-try it before my return in France so I am counting on some of you to test it. Here it is:

Preparation of the sticky rice:
- Use Japanese rice or "white" rice (the one covered with a white powder)
- Wash it till the water doesn't get white any more
- Put it on the water for 5 hours (it has to be soft)
- Wash it one last time
- Cook it with steam until it's cooked and sticky

On a pan, make caramel (three big spoon of sugar). Then add coco milk in the pan (3 dippers).
Then add the sticky rice where you had previously added coconut milk also (enough so that the rice grains are not sticked anymore). Cook it on hot fire until all the coconut milk has evaporated. Take it off the fire and add a coffee spoon of sesam powder and stir well the whole.

Then you serve this rice with slices of mango (or any other fuits that go well with such a flavour) and some sesam powder on top of the rice.

It's ready !

Concerning the articles about my trip, unfortunately, until now all the computers I used were so slow that I couldn't upload the pictures. So I will start publishing lessags about my trip... without images.

I am waiting fo the comments of the ones who tried this recipe !

Welcome to China

On the 11th of April, I left Osaka on a ferry for Shanghai. This was the beginning of a trip, I had been dreaming about since august 2007 and my encounter with another french guy in Mukaijima, who told me of his plan to come back to France using the trans-Siberian railway (plan he finally couldn't achieve). 8 months later, my studies achieved, inspired by this trans-Siberian plan, motivated by the possibility to meet with some friends in Cambodia, I left Osaka.

Bye bye Osaka

Bye bye Japan

After this little introduction where I pretend to know how to write, let's get more direct.
The trip lasted 48 hours for a departure on the Friday at noon. As I had chosen the most economic solution, I slept in a kind of big room where we were 10 to 15 men. This trip was also the occasion to eat cup noodles and... cup noodles. Finally, some strange people appeared in this trip. They were moving in bands, playing ping-pong holding their racket in some strange way, and talking very loud in some kind of language that I didn't understand at all... I learnt after afterwards that we call these people Chinese.

An heliport... have they already used it ? I don't think so

When you have a lot of time to kill...

46 hours of navigation later, we had closed on to Shanghai and could see the entry of the harbor. The water had gone from deep blue to earth brown, the smell from see breeze to trash gust, and cranes had appeared all around the boat.

Hello China

Hello Shanghai

As we were going upstream, the cranes were replaced by buildings, the air became more and more polluted, and the water... nope it stayed the same. We finally stopped in front of the famous skyline of Shanghai... I was arrived at the Empire of the middle !

Pudong Skyline

Welcome to Laos !

Finally, I have left China. Starting today I will wander in Laos with its smiling people, its french food and its beautiful sceneries. My first stop is at Luang Nam Tha to enjoy one of the eco-treks organized in this area.

The good news is that my blog is not censured anymore and I plan to catch on my late as fast as possible to feed you with some comments on my first ten days of trip in the Empire of the middle.

See you soon for real articles !

Alive

First thing first, I succesfully arrived in Shanghai on last sunday after two days of boat. After visiting this city for two days, hosted by french friends working there, I went to Hangzhou and was welcomed by rain. So I stayed only one night and directly skipped to the next town: Guilin, from which I am now writing this message.
During these days, I also discovere that my blog was censored by the chinese internet so as long as I will be in China, I won`t be able to read your comments or write long posts about my trip... sorry !
Anyway, all is in the title... deshou ?!

See you

The departure

Here it is ! J-0...
I am quite nervous. After getting used to the safest country in the world I tend to over-exagerate the adventures waiting for me. But there is no room for hesitation...

Let's go !

Third step: the equipment

I thought it could be a good idea to share with you my equipment so that you can either give me advices or use it if one day you plan on making a long trip like me. It was based on the fact that I will spent most of my time in tropical places (hot). So here I go:

Bags:
- Big backpack 60L (the top can be detached and used as a small bags (10L))
- Small money pocket
- Big plastic trash bags (to protect the inside of the backpack from the humidity)
- Small plastics bags (to make compartments inside of the big backpack)
- Small water-tight bags (for important objects such as camera)

Clothings:
- Hiking shoes
- Flip-flops
- Socks
- Underwears
- Swimsuit
- Short
- Jogging
- Jean
- Light trousers
- Belt
- Sleeveless T-Shirt
- Short sleeve T-Shirt
- Long sleeve T-Shirt
- Shirts (long and short sleeve)
- Ski coat
- Krama
- Cap
- Gloves
- Laundry soap

Health and hygiene:
- Toothbrush and toothpaste
- Soap in a watertight box
- body soap/shampoo
- Towel
- Deodorant
- Razor (electric or manual ?), shave gel
- Cissors
- Higiene kit
- Medicaments kit
- Aspirin, band-aids, disinfectant
- Personal medicaments
- Medical book
- Antimalarial drug ?
- Mosquitoes repellent, sting balm (mosquito net)
- Sun protecting cream
- Sunglasses
- Glasses and contact lenses
- Toilet paper

Sleep and eat:
- Sleeping bag
- Small alarm clock
- Earplugs
- Small light with batteries
- Padlocks
- Swiss army knife
- Flask

Various:
- Pens, notebook
- Envelopes, paper letter
- Small calculator
- Small sewing kit
- Cord, clothes pins
- Electric plug adaptator
- Lighter
- Compass
- Camera, memory cards
- USB key
- MP3 player, headphones
- Nintendo DS ?
- Passport, insurance papers
- Identity pictures
- Copies of important documents
- Money
- Books, travel guides
- Log book
- Photo album with spare photos

If you have any comments !

Second step... the itinerary

For now, I still only have a rough draft of it as I still need to check whether or not I will have the time to do it and if not which towns I will not visit. Anyway, here it is :

The whole itinerary
The part in Asia

Advice are still welcome.

First step... the backpack !

Though it is best to choose it after deciding what to bring, I couldn't resist the temptation (another example of the consumption fever that has been inhabiting me since I have landed in Japan).
As a result, after jumping from retailers websites to advice websites, I rushed to a shop dreaming about the perfect bag for the four next months: with a lot of gadgets (at least with a shower and a television), fancy so that I can even look cool in disco with it and very light (if it could reduce partially the weight of the inserted clothes...).
I am sorry to tell you that I didn't find such a bag... but with the advice of the seller, I found a cheap, light and not too ugly one. With 60L I will even be able to bring you some souvenirs... maybe !


And I took the chance to buy a wonderful sleeping bag (in fact, I am still trying to convince myself) which will be very useful in India when it will be 40 degrees (maybe I should have bought a PSP instead...) as it has been designed to make the user sleep comfortably even with 6°c outside. Anyway, I hope to use it during my crossing of the Siberia (I finally have a rough itinerary).


I am ready to face the world ! (almost...)

Il faut un début à tout - A beginning is needed for everything

Et à défaut d'être celui du voyage qui va occuper ces quelques pages internet, ce sera tout d'abord la création du-dit récipient.
Pour marquer mes surprises ou tout simplement donner de mes nouvelles et prouver que les Mongoles ne m'ont pas encore fait rôtir, j'espère que ce journal électronique vous sera agréable à lire.
Enfin, pour permettre aux quelques Japonais de pouvoir me lire, j'écrirai tout en Anglais (interdit de se moquer, seulement de me corriger). J'en entends qui râle déjà et bien moi je leur rétorque que vous avez tous appris cette langue passe-partout alors un petit effort... et à très bientôt pour le récit des préparatifs.


And even if it's not the start of the trip that will be told about in these few internet pages, this will be the creation of this previously refered blog.
To emphasize my surprises or to simply give some news and prove that I still haven't been cooked by some Mongols, I hope that this electronic diary will be pleasant to read.
Finally, to enable the Japanese to read me, I will write everything in English (it's forbidden to make fun of me, the only allowed thing being to correct my mistakes). I am already hearing some grumbling about this... to these people I will answer that you all learnt this useful language so I only ask of you a little effort... See you soon for the tale of the preparations.