1st June - Sanshui to Zhaoqing

Arrggggg! How did it get to June? I have only just left the UK!

35p pot noodles for breakfast. How classy and healthy....

I spent the morning using the internet in the room planning CS, emailing and also catching up on this blog and photos.


On the road for midday. The road to Zhaoqing was basically a motorway all the way. I did not know what to expect beforehand. Even though the biking was rubbish the road was good quality and I am still all excited by a new country even if what I am seeing is not the most beautiful part of the country.


Again I was very surprised by the wealth of the area. I did see a few older buildings today though.


I love these umbrellas that the Chinese attach to both motor bikes and bicycles to keep off the sun and the rain. Awesome.


It was very humid today and the sun was pretty bright. Everything is very hazy. I did not even notice the mountains in the distance until they became really close. I saw for the first time the type of mountain that China is famous for: pointy with trees.....

I am enjoying listening to Bill Bryson's A Short History Of Nearly Everything on my ipod at the moment while taking in this new country.

I met Rantu at the main train station in Zhaoqing around 4.30 without too much trouble finding it. He is a really lovely man that I met through Couch Surfing. He came to pick me up on his bicycle and we rode back to his lovely flat which over looks the lake. I was very impressed by the cycle lane all which runs all the way around the lakes edge. The infrastructure again is totally different from what I expected. Everywhere there are new houses and shopping centers. It is all very clean.


I had not eaten lunch and Rantu suggested that I have something light to eat as he would take me to a yoga class in the early evening and then back for a big meal later. He had prepared boiled mung beans cooked in sugar for me. Apparently it is a thing that is often eaten chilled in warm weather. It was very tasty and refreshing and exciting because I have never tried it before. :-)

We cycled to the yoga class (which Rantu organises) and I gave it a go..... I am so rubbish though. I am strong not flexible! It is just like stretching for 1 hour and 30 minutes. I was of course the only westerner there and everyone was looking at me. I was rather embarrassed as I am rubbish at yoga.

We took the long way back to Rantu's flat so that I could see more of the area. His English is fantastic. He used to work as a translator and he was very happy to explain many many attributes of current Chinese culture and give me many tips for cycling through the country.


After the yoga class, we biked back to Rantu's flat and talked cooked us noodles with eggs and veg (he seems to be the only vegetarian in China). I loved his cooker which is designed to have a wok in the middle rather than on top of the stove.

Wan Yun (the yoga teacher) and Xiao Yu (her daughter) came round after dinner to say hello, drink tea and eat water melon. We had a lovely evening of many giggles.

It has been a fantastic way to met people in this new country and get a feel for the place before heading on. I changed my mind and decided to stay for one more day and see more of this area with Rantu. They were all very friendly and Rantu is playful and loves to tell jokes.


After the others had left Rantu took me for a walk along the side of the lake. It is very pretty.