Tag: DuGe Courtyard Hotel

China (Beijing, Yunnan and Sanya), Touring In Beijing Then On To Kunming, 5 April 2010

Both slept well.

Packed and took breakfast at DuGe – quirky & good in parts. Peppery sausages were nice.

Sophie met us and took us off to see the Olympic stadium (birds nest) and then on to Chinese medicine centre.

We met lecturer Doctor Hu (you couldn’t make it up) who told us all about it and insisted that Ged must be Shakespeare reincarnated.

Uncanny resemblance.

Dr Hu also arranged for some trainees to massage our feet and for an aged professor to tell us what ails us & sell us some very expensive Chinese medicine cocktails, which we politely declined.

Hardly able to walk now (okay I made up that last bit) we wandered to back to the car and headed off to 798 district – art complex formally factories.

Some very interesting some not so interesting but all a great atmosphere.

Took some refreshments at an outdoor café, then off to the airport.

First class flight Kunming – service excellent, food terrible.

Met by Martin “Mr Fixit” who insists I look like a movie star he cannot name – Lucien from Underworld – that’s Michael Sheen.

Kind words, Martin – in my dreams I look like him – click the picture to see the fandom wiki

Took us to surprisingly splendid Green Lake Hotel and even hung around to help us order our dinner.

Ate some local style pork and Cantonese chicken, gai lan and rice washed down with a very palatable Montepulciano.

There is a placeholder and links piece for this trip, with links to all the photographs, the full itinerary and stuff – click here for that.

China (Beijing, Yunnan and Sanya), A First Class Journey & Arrival In Beijing, 3 & 4 April 2010

We were very keen to see a rural and scenic part of China; Yunnan Province seemed to fit the bill. We’d also seen little of Beijing on our first visit to China, which in any case had been so long ago.

Squeezing A Heck Of A Lot Into One Day In Beijing – Including Making The Holiday Inn Beijing Go Pop, 17 November 1993

The journey was a bit of a contrast too.

Got ready at leisure – the cab wasn’t due until 1400 in any case. But the cab didn’t show – blind panic!

Arranged a local cab and we set off 25 minutes later than intended – good job there was no traffic.

Got through procedures pretty quickly – fast track and all – went to Dixons where Ged splashed the cash on a new camera and accessories.

Then to club lounge where we learnt that we have been upgraded to 1st class. Snacked at smaller “club lounge” by gate. Then boarded.

Plane slightly delayed at this point but with three staff attending to the three first class passengers the journey passed remarkably quickly.

Ged watched Sex & Drugs & Rock’n’Roll. Daisy same plus several other movies.

Toni Friend, who worked for BA, had helped us to get a good price on Club Class tickets. She then went the extra distance for us and got us upgraded to first class – our only ever experience of flying first class. Extremely luxurious and pampering it was; quite unsettlingly so in fact. But a super kind treat and it is nice to have done it once.

Arrived in Beijing on time – huge airport. Much changed in 16/17 years.

Met by guide Sophie and taken to DuGe Courtyard Hotel [a beautiful Hutong]– very nice.

Go through mandatory room change/upgrade procedures followed by room safe failure procedures too. In the midst of all this go for a stroll around the Hutong district, in particular walk Nanluogu Xiang a few times, partly in vain search of recommended restaurant.

Return to enjoy new room (suite) and a beer on our stoop which looks out onto the lovely courtyard.

Slept plenty in the afternoon, then fiddle around with camera and water system. Bath and get recommendation from hotel for a local restaurant.

End up at home your roast duck restaurant. Unprepossessing to look at but superb meal for a tenner plus unexpected tip – certainly a local place! Very tired on return.

There is a placeholder and links piece for this trip, with links to all the photographs, the full itinerary and stuff – click here for that.