Ticket to Somewhere

Whenever someone mentions to me about the famous Forbidden City, the first thing that comes to my mind is the Disney movie, Mulan. Its probably my most favorite, and perhaps the one where I fully gained awareness of the Imperial Palace. If you don’t know the movie, then maybe you’re way younger than me, but I can assure you, hindi naman yun nineteen kopong-kopong :) haha.

The whole point of going to Beijing for me other than climbing the Great Wall was to be able to enter this place (yung Peking duck naki-join lang sa listahan).Masayang gawin ang bawal di ba? LOL. But kidding aside, it no longer is forbidden for commoners and tourist to enter and explore what once was the Imperial seat of power in China. So prior to the trip, I made sure to book our group a tour of the Forbidden City along with the other places relevant to Beijing’s rich history. (www.itourbeijing.com)

The morning of July 9 was filled with sunshine, and what made it sunnier was having a very accommodating and fun-loving tour guide.

Meet Sunny! (the lovely lady in blue)

She was to be our tour guide for the 2 days of our stay and having been a seasoned guide (she’s been at it for 3 years now) she’s very pro at what she does. She provided us with in depth details about the places we went to and was very attentive to our needs. greeeaaat!

Anyhoo, our first stop was the Imperial city. I personally think that it is very important to begin any trip in China over this place because this is what you learn in history class (which more often than not, hindi mo naman pinapakinggan kasi nakakahilo ung detalye!). This is where you trace the very roots of China’s dynasties, and this is where you can realistically visualize the climatic point in the 1st Mulan movie where the Huns attempt on the life of the Emperor (at least for me and my cousin who loves the movie up to now). But once you see the entire place, you’d realize there’s more to that, so much more that it would take you at least 2 hours to navigate the entire place! At yun ay kung pasilip-silip ka lang and picture-picture here and there.

A little overview 

The Forbidden City was the cradle of imperial politics and administration. The first ever emperor to move into the palace was Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty (1421). It is given that name because ordinary people were denied entry as it is the imperial residence and the center of the Middle Kingdom. Its purpose lasted until the Qing Dynasty until the founding of the republic in 1919 -Insights Guide Beijing

Before you enter the Forbidden City, it would be wise to check out theTian’anmen Square, the place where major post-dynastic revolutionary events unfolded (insights guide) and where the people of Beijing gather for both festivities and protests back in the days. It is also known as the largest square in the world (and I can attest to that! every side you look ang layo ng mga buildings!) and it also the place where thousands of soldiers and citizens gathered to hear Mao Zedong declare the People’s Republic of China from the Tiananmen Gate. 

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Talks of visiting China were in the works at least a month before I actually got to score promo fare flights. Never did I expect to get this far for this year’s travel, but thanks to my tita and mom’s generosity, I got to go (yey!). Two weeks before the planned trip, mom and I secured our tourist visas in the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China (located at the World Center, Gil Puyat Ave, Makati). A week before the trip I was booking us tours for the many attractions in Beijing, and 2 days before the flight, we were packing our bags. My suitcase, tickets, Insights Guide book, and my energy we’re all ready, however, my communication skills weren’t - nonetheless, we were all good to go!

Our flight was at 735PM bound for China’s capital city - Beijing. Its a 4 1/2 hour flight with no time difference and arrival was July 8, 2011 past 12 midnight in the Beijing International airport. Immigration was smooth since there weren’t other flights arriving and they have this really cool camera thing on the immigration booth that takes a photo of you and records your information. We had airport employees assisting us since we asked for wheelchair aid for my aunts and I was trying to figure out what they we’re telling us, and them the same thing. The language barrier was pretty hard to deal with for first timers like us. I seriously tried learning useful phrases in Mandarin, memorizing the intonations, syllabication, and pronunciation using online tutorials and my guide book, but when I got there I didn’t have the guts to utter any of it because I might end up to be a comical fail. I did try some small words to say in broken Mandarin, and lo! one of the employees asked me (in Mandarin of course) if I was the tour guide and if I spoke Chinese (hahaha. who’d have thought na naintindihan nyo ung mga sinabi ko, di ko nga sure kung tama! haha), the only part of which I understood was the “if I spoke Chinese” part (He later politely translated it in English after seeing my dumbfounded face). Of course I had to say no, otherwise I’d end up communicating with him with a big question mark hanging over my head, but it was nice to know he thought I actually can! big LOL. After the immigration, the mishaps did not end there! (kakalanding pa nga lang umeepic fail na kami! haha) My aunts in wheelchairs were brought ahead to the waiting shuttle of Sheraton Beijing, and since my mom and tita where far behind because they had to do forex, we had to wait for them only to realize in my horror that I’ve lost the employees who were suppose to point us to where the shuttle was parked. My niece and I had to scramble for a few good minutes to locate wherever it was and I went down to the arrival area again to search for some guy in yellow. Thankfully on my 3rd attempt to circle the arrival area, he was there and he led us to the shuttle. We left the airport waaay past 1AM and checked-in the hotel at past 2AM. Tired from all the epic fail instances, we all tucked in for some rest to get ready for our first day in Beijing. Thank goodness, the bed was so fluffy and comfy.

We woke up to this view from our hotel room in the Great Wall Sheraton Beijing which is located in the Chaoyang District. Big thanks to one of my Uncle’s Starwoods privileges, we got a hot rate. It was past 8AM and the city was waiting for us. We had some cup noodles from breakfast (yes, it pays to have some baon in case of quick food emergencies) and got ready to get somewhere in the city. I didn’t book any tours for our first day so we’d have all the time in the world to take on Beijing by ourselves and by our own pace. So we decided to have our first stop within the Wangfujing area to visit St. Joseph’s Cathdral (and give thanks for a smooth flight and arrival). Taxis were readily available at the entrance of the hotel, and the doormen are nice enough to translate your destination to the driver, when they still can’t figure it out, the concierge gives you a card written with Chinese characters of the places you want to go to. Since communicating is hard, do remember to bring a map, highlight where you want to go to and show the drivers in Chinese characters. The government normally mandates all licensed Chinese taxi drivers to learn English, but since I think it is a very tedious task for them, most just carry on without the lessons. 

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June 23, 2011

We woke up to another sunny sky on our last day in Laoag. Since we were scheduled to head further north to the towns of Pagudpud, Bangui, and Pasuquin, everybody was up and ready by 730AM. We had our last set of complimentary breakfast at the hotel, and I just had to try their Mira De Polaris sandwich entree, which was their take on Eggs Benedict. Expect nothing fancy, the spin on the meal is that it uses the local longganisa instead of ham, and the hollandaise sauce was more of the syrupy kind. I must say, I did enjoy having it for breakfast, and have just realized that the longganisa Ilocos Norte is actually pretty good to pair with bread (thus, I do that now for breakfast).

We decided to check out early of the hotel so we don’t waste any time in case we finish touring late (flight back was at 9PM – which then got delayed by an hour). I was pretty much thankful that the warm sunlight greeted us as family and friends back in manila texted and tweeted that it had started to rain over there. By 8:30, we were loading all our luggages in the van, ready for one last hurrah in Ilocos. I just have to take the opportunity to thank the staff of Mira de Polaris for attending well to our needs.  The front desk officers were very much courteous and helpful that despite being a boutique hotel, service was exemplary. The rooms were very clean and comfortable too.  However, I think the breakfast is made upon order so if you don’t want to wait long, call it in advance  so it can be prepared before you come down to the cafe.  The hotel also offers tour services and airport transfers, so just contact them or check their webby: www.miradepolaris.com

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(Catching up on super late entries)

June 22, 2011. Sunshine greeted us on our 2^nd day in Ilocos. We scheduled the day for a trip south to the town of Vigan, Ilocos Sur. We were served breakfast at the hotel’s café and was picked up by the van at 8AM. Since we weren’t able to view the Marcos Mausoleum the previous day, Manong Leo drove us again to the town of Batac. The Mausoleum where the body of former Pres. Ferdinand Marcos lies is located beside the ancestral house of the Marcos family who are natives of Batac. Pictures were not allowed so we just took shots of the outside of the place. We had to wait for awhile for the guard/keeper to open the place. The mausoleum is open to the general public however you have to wait for guards or authorized persons to escort you inside otherwise you cannot freely go in and out of the place. The place was pretty much solemn with chamber music plays inside and upon entrance stands a gold sculpture of the president. We were guided inside the small chamber and we’re walking around the hall within 20-30 feet from the enclosed body of former President Marcos. It was a brief viewing of his body, but that few minutes were enough for me to evaluate my thoughts and perception towards the man known in our history to be a dictator.

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I’m officially back on solid ground without the frills of packing, unpacking, and packing within 24 hours. My adventures for the past few months have been more than great.

I’ve seen a shoreline of windmills, have 2 hours worth of delayed departures, ate some Peking duck, had some side street yogurt drink, climbed a wall, used a pair of chopsticks for eating more than usual, speak some incomprehensible Mandarin, get a flight rebooking, eat some Yoshinoya bowl (bakit kasi wala na sa Pinas nyan?!), lounge around the Merlion, settle my feelings, drink some flavored Yakult, get lost, cable car my way to the Peak, eat Chinese Mcdonalds, spend a day with Asian Mickey in the Asian branch of the Happiest Place on Earth, drink cups of Starbucks White Mocha, return to the Chocolate Hills which were on peppermint green color when we got there (proving the ever famous song “Balik Bohol”), eat some Lechon, Bond with my mom, bond with my grade school best friend, bond with my aunts, bond with my niece, nephew and brothers, rekindle my love for Korean entertainment, have a shopping spree with ongoing big sales, hoard Asian magazines with faces of Kim Hyun Joong and 2PM on it, meet interesting people, improve my tour guiding skills, babysit not-so-little children, buy numerous tickets, act like a responsible adult and mother hen, and master the skills of online booking during seat sales.

I’ve traveled. I’ve learned. therefore I have lived the past 3 months well.

I know i’m pretty late with posting my experience with every place I’ve been these past few months, I’ll catch up on this very soon. For now, I hope the summary above would suffice. :) Xie Xie :)