Waiting on the train.

I think we've done a good thing today. After a little exploring the local temples, we found a fantastic place across from the mosque that has a variety of different foods from around the Muslim world. Needless to say, we were happy to sample what was on offer.

After a nice meal and a couple of beers it was time to go home. Off to the Guangdong fast train station just in the nick of time (as usual) and we're on our way back to Chenzhou.

I hope to post more of my travels, even if some are just day trips around China.

Until next time...

Last day in Guangzhou

That's Canton tower in the background . These sorts of towers are big tourist attractions everywhere, but this one is actually an interesting structure since it isn't just a concrete column. The supporting structure is entirely made steel, much like the Eiffel tower in Paris. And, of course, there are rides at the top.

Guangzhou is also home to one of the oldest Muslim communities in China, and one of the oldest mosques. 

Sometimes called the lighthouse mosque, for obvious reasons, it's also the center of Guangzhou's Muslim community and, of course, the place to go for awesome food.

While wandering the city we found this rather large Buddhist Temple. There's always interesting stuff around the corner in China.

My first rugby game

Today was my first rugby game. I found it similar to American sporting events. Lots of people I don't know playing games I don't know the rules to. Lots of beer was being drunk, however. That made the day palatable. Tonight we get to have dinner somewhere with the rugby players, so that should be fun and interesting.

The place we're at is pretty cool as well. We're happy between Guangzhou and Foshan, which is one of the satellite cities in the Pearl River Delta. I'm sure it has several million people, but it's far overshadowed by the prime city of the region, Guangzhou. Capital and largest city in the Pearl River Delta, Guangzhou is also the third largest city in China. I hope to explore a bit more tomorrow and get some pics. For now, here's what's going on in Foshan.

A trip to Guangzhou

I'm spending the weekend in Guangzhou with friends. I've come down to watch a couple of them play in a rugby match outside the city in Foshan, but it's also my birthday weekend, so we're staying down here to explore the city a bit. Did I mention it's also a holiday weekend? So we'll have some extra time as well. 

I left my kindergarten students after classes and barely made it to the train station in time to catch my train.

Travel by train is always great in China. If nothing else works here, the trains almost always run on time and, of course, they're incredibly fast, so we can get all over the country in no time. Even a trip to Beijing is only eight hours away.

Anyway, once I'd arrived in Guangzhou, it was a simple matter of finding my hotel, which took about 1-1.5 hrs. It turned out to be in the first place I looked, but no matter. I found a really cool temple while exploring.

Anyway, I'll post more sites as I explore the city. I've been here several times before, but there's still a lot I haven't seen...