When I last left you, Rich, Matt and I were going into Bangkok on our day off. We went to see Wat Pho, the temple of the Reclining Buddha. This was a really cool temple. It was different than the temples I have been used to in China, the designs were a bit different but it was really cool to see the different types of Buddhas. It was also nice to finally have a day off.
Before I continue with Saturday, I definitely want to tell you about our Friday night. We started the night off right with a one hour Thai massage. This was absolutely amazing but not what you are probably thinking a massage would be like. Think about a ball of uncooked dough. If you want to make pizza you have to beat, knead and strech the dough out into the shape you want. Matt, Rich and I were the dough. We had every muscle in our body worked on, from our toes to our head. At points the massage would hurt a bit but in the end the feeling was great. I have never felt so loose and flexible as I did after the massage. My shoulders which have been carrying the weight of my two carry-ons felt great after the massage. For 8 bucks, this is a massage I am planning on getting everytime I go to Bangkok. After the massage, we walked around our area for a bit and grabbed dinner at a decent asian/thai buffet. We finished off the night relaxing in our apartment with some beer and ice cream.
On Saturday, after Wat Pho, we tried to see the Palace but unfortunately you need to have pants so that will be an adventure for next time. In the early afternoon Matt and Rich headed out to India and I spent the rest of the evening catching up on e-mails and follow visit reports.
On Sunday I travelled to Guangzhou, China. If anyone wants to see what China was like in the late 80's early 90's, go to Guangzhou. It is very polluted, you can look directly at the sun during midday but only see the outline. Unfortunately I had some problems when I arrived in Guangzhou. I decided to take a taxi, but he couldn't understand the hotel I was asking him to go to. It took 30 minutes to get him to understand where to go. Not the greatest welcoming. When I arrived in my hotel I met the counselor from South China Normal University so I was able to go out and enjoy another native dinner. Visits in Guangzhou were interesting, it was really hot out and the first school I visited had two separate campuses about an hour and fifteen minutes apart so there was a lot of driving. I actually found it hotter in Guangzhou then in Bangkok, but apparently my experience of Bangkok was unusual since there was only light traffic and the temperature was comfortable.
On Monday evening I took the express train from Guangzhou to Shenzhen, which was cool. It was different from the train between Shanghai and Nanjing, there was actually a bit of countryside between the two cities so that I could see some of the field. Southern China is all rolling hills and mountains so it is very beautiful (once you get away from the Smog).
Shenzhen was a lot like Guangzhou only newer so a bit nicer to be in. The hotel I stayed at was right on the harbor and within a short walk of the schools I was visiting and the ferry terminal to Hong Kong. All in all I didn't get much time to explore Guangzhou and Shenzhen, but that was ok with me. In the evening I took the ferry to Hong Kong, which would have been nice if it wasn't raining.
I have now arrived in my hotel in time for the Signal 8 Typhoon warning to be issued which basically means there is a hurricane over us. It is pouring and the winds are reaching 60+ miles per hour, but don't worry, I'm safe! But I don't think I will be leaving the hotel anytime soon. I can hear the walls creak everytime the wind blows. Apparently this will pass by tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have some more interesting stuff to talk about tomorrow!
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