Today is my last day in Guilin and I still have lots to do! I do not want to leave this place at all. It is so beautiful here.
Guilin, China: You Can Ride a Bobsled Down Yao Mountain!
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Category Archives: Asia
Guilin, China: Sun and Moon Pagodas
Following my morning at the Reed Flute Cave, I napped. When I woke up later, I went outside and for the third time, tried to find the bus that goes to Fubo Hill. I walked around in every direction from my hotel and all it got me was sweaty. I kind of wanted to go back to my room and cry, but instead, I thought I might be near the Sun and Moon Pagodas. I did have a map, but maps are useless to people who just cannot master reading them.
I walked for a bit and made the observation that there may very well be more scooters in China than in Naples. The huge difference is that scooters in China are silent. I mean REALLY silent. So silent that at one point, I had the life scared out of me by a horn blaring at me. I turned and the scooter was less than an inch from me and I never even heard it coming up. I honestly thought at first that maybe for some reason, they were all turned off and just gliding. Nope, dead silent motors.
Guilin, China: Bamboo Raft Ride on Fanglian Pool and Reed Flute Cave
Today’s plan was to go to Fubo Hill. To get there, you need to take bus #1. I could not find a bus stop for this line. So instead, I changed my plans and took the #3 bus to the Reed Flute Cave. Buses in Guilin are only 1 RMB, which is about fifteen American cents. Total bargain.
I was able to follow along the stops by simply looking out the window when we would stop and reading the name of the stop we were at on the bus stop sign. When we got to where the next stop was mine, I stood up. A Chinese man made gestures to show me “NO” and motioned for me to wait. Um, okay. In the end, it turns out that the stop for Reed Flute Cave is at the parking lot. The one right after leaves you directly at the entrance. Thank you kind sir!
I got off the bus and lit a cigarette. A man approaches me to try and sell me a ride on a bamboo raft on the little Fanglian Pool across the street. No matter what I said, he would not leave me alone. If I were not smoking, I would have walked away. Finally I decided it was easier to just take the damn ride (5 RMB = $.85 USD) than to sit there arguing any longer. For less than a dollar, it was worth it.
Guilin, China: Elephant Trunk Hill Park
After my oh so exciting first sleep on mainland China, I was up bright and early for my first day in Guilin. I could not have been more excited. I went outside to stare at the Li River from behind my hostel.
From here I went walking around the streets near my hostel. Just about instantly, I met Jerry. Jerry is a tour guide who offered me lots of options for tours to take in and around Guilin. I was not interested in any of them, since I already had everything planned out before I left home. I ran into him regularly for the rest of my trip. At some point a couple of days later, I was pretty far away from my hotel just walking around and I hear “HELLO JENNIFER!” being yelled at me from across the street. Oh hello Jerry.
Hong Kong, China: Chi Lin Nunnery
Of course everyone should visit here because it is absolutely beautiful. I however, had an ulterior motive. I had read that you can get your fortune told here and then take that knowledge off to Macau with you. Since I was going to Macau later in the day, I was so excited to find out if I was going to become a bazillionaire. Unfortunately, I had to wait and find out on my own since I could not figure out at all where exactly you can get your fortune told.
It wasn’t a wasted trip though. Look how beautiful the grounds are.
This is the only time I actually saw blue sky in Hong Kong. As an extra kick in the ass, this was the same day after I spent the morning taking pictures of nothing but gloom, fog and black skies at The Peak. Sigh.
Macau, China: Final Gambling Chapter Featuring MGM Grand and the Venetian
So after spending a day doing touristy stuff, I earned my right to continue on being Gamblor! Hopefully I will do as well as I did on my first try, which you can read about here.
My plan is to play $100 HKD (just under $13 USD) in each of the five casinos I plan on visiting.
Where better to start than in my own hotel? Lisboa’s casino was offering $20 HKD free play to new sign ups. This is about $2.50 USD. I also got a free cookie and a little change purse.
I lost my $20 free play and my allotted $100 (and an extra $100 for good measure.) I went to cash out my last few cents and found out I had played enough to earn $50 HKD in free play. Lost that too. BUMMER. When I went to collect my change, there were two women working the cashier’s cage. One was obsessed with me and you could just tell she was dying for me to go to her window. She looked SO EXCITED to see me walking up. So I decided to get some good karma by obliging her. No one has ever been happier to speak to me in my entire life.
Back over to Wynn. Surely I will win here, since I did last night, right? Maybe. I lost my $100 in a Code Red slot machine and put in a second. Because I said I was only going to play $100 and now I am playing $200. This got me $1000. That is about $129 USD. This means I can put in another $100. Cashed this one out at $900.
Macau, China: Ruins of St Paul’s Church and Macau Fortress
Most people do Macau as a day trip from Hong Kong. Being a gambler, I stayed and played for a few days. But I did take a morning to play tourist. First up was Senado Square. This was a quick walk from my hotel – Lisboa. Some street views on my way: 
The May heat meant that when I went to take my first picture, the camera was physically hot. Also, it meant my camera did this, which freaked me out a bit when I realized the fog was inside the camera, not just on the lens.
This was my first trip ever with a fancy camera and it fogs up. Great! Don’t worry, I did figure it out and was able to get some pictures after all. WHEW!
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Macau, China – Loving Hotel Lisboa and Gambling in Wynn Casino
I originally did a quick recap of Macau here. Now it is time for me to finally begin posting more details.
When I left Hong Kong for Macau, my wish was to be in my Macau hotel room by 7:00, and in bed by 9:00, to gear up for a huge full day tomorrow.
To get from Hong Kong to Macau, you can take a ferry or a turbo jet. This was all very easy to figure out. You buy a ticket and then you get your seat assigned by a sticker at the gate. That $172 price = $22.19 in USD.
I wish I had gotten a window, but I wasn’t lucky enough.
Hong Kong: Kowloon Park and The Symphony of Lights at Victoria Harbor
My second stop in Hong Kong is Kowloon Park, where I plan to kill some time before the Symphony of Lights at 8:00. It is no longer raining but it is still soaking wet and very hot.
The Hong Kong subway is very easy to navigate. There are signs all over that tell you which exit to take for where you want to go. Bonus, everything is in English.
Quick Recap of Macau, China
I will be posting tons of details and photos later on. But for now, a quick recap.
How long was I in Macau? 44 hours
Is it actually “Macau” or “Macao”? I am glad you asked. I have seen it spelled as both and you just gave me the perfect way to have both spellings in here for web searches.
Where did I stay? Hotel Lisboa. I picked it because I loved the way it looked. My impression of Macau before I got here was that it looked more like Reno than Las Vegas. Judging from the area outside my hotel, I nailed it.
How much was my hotel? $267.84 USD. I just had to do it. It was totally worth it.
How much money did I spend in addition to my hotel? $433 HKD = $55.85 USD
What did I spend that on?