China

China China China!!! Needless to say we were slightly excited about our trip our china adventure. Although with all the hassle of getting the visa in Bangkok we only had less than two weeks to make it through the country. It didn’t seem like too much of a task until we realized just what a big country it is. Its motherfudging huge!!! Judging from the fact it takes max six hours to make it from one end of Ireland to the next we figured maybe three times that for china..ehh NO slight underestimation. From Beijing to our first stop Xi’an, it was going to be over 24hours on the train!! And so this became the week of flights, three in two weeks to be exact. So sorry to Niamh for ruining all her work on her eco friendly trip..we’ve been recycling like crazy to try and reverse the damage. But without Airchina and  their ridiculously cheap flights we’d probably still be only halfway through the country.

Our first day in Beijing, we got another awful shock-RAIN! We were  prepared for the cold, with plenty of layers and hats and scarves, but rain, now that was a shock. We had intentions of doing every touristy thing around the city but after our first stop at the forbidden city we gave up, wet and freezing feet don’t go well with city exploring. Don’t we look delighted in the photos? That was us trying to brave the weather for the photo, we were miserable! 

While trying to cheer ourselves up, we inadvertently started some Chinese addictions- Annie to Chinese tea or as it was called in the stores- Chinese characterization of English tea! It was amazing and tasted strangely like ambrosia rice! And sherry to lattes and McFlurrys. The McFlurry addiction almost got out of hand, at one point she was having three a day!

The day was almost a day wasted because of the weather, but we redeemed it that night, doing what we do best, drinking the heads of ourselves! We had heard that Beijing night life was crazy, with clubs that have 10 floors and rooftop Jacuzzis, and it didn’t disappoint. At night the skyscrapers are lit up and there is such a buzz about the place, how could there not be thought when there is 23 million people living in it, there always has to be something going on. The first thing we noticed when we went into the night club was a stage in front of the DJ box on the dance floor. So strange, the girls get up and ‘drop it like its hot’, pulling out all the moves while guys stand in front and watch. Reminded us slightly of a cattlemart! We somehow ended up in the VIP section upstairs which was individual rooms with endless supplies of alcohol-heaven! Don’t ask us how we got away with it but we just kept walking into each room, sitting down, drinking a few drinks and moving on with some excuse! We didn’t spend a penny all night. Don’t think either of have been called beautiful more times in our lives, if we ever need an ego boost we know where to go. Between Annies blonde hair and Sherrys green eyes we were a hit! One particular guy took a shine and hit us with the most hilarious chat up line ever, think he’s been watching too much american tv, but he just strolls up to us and says ‘Hi, I play in a rock and roll band, would you like a drink’ It was trying to escape this particular guy that we bumped into Pelly! Ah Pelly how to describe her..hmmm well a picture paints a thousand words! 

She was our Bessie for the night, introducing us to her brothers, uncles, great aunts! In hindsight we think that she may have been a hooker and they were her pimps and fellow hoes..eek! But that point aside we had probably the funniest night we’ve ever had ever.

To say we were suffering the next day is a bit of an understatement. It was only due to one particular photo of Sherry that we survived..again a picture paints a thousand words..Orange peel face! We cried laughing for a solid twenty minutes when we saw it, and anytime were sad it sets us straight! We think that it could possibly be used some day to cure depression..maybe even cancer..

Thankfully the rain of the first day was gone and we were able to properly see the city, its amazing. There is a mix of ancient statues and palaces with modern day building and skyrise towers. We also noticed an uncanny resemblence between every middle aged chinese woman and Annie's mam, and any young chinese girl with Annies sister Niamh and Siobhain Diskin. Were thinking maybe a chinese version of Pat Mustard must have been doing the rounds back home! Going through the shopping district was torture. Damn those girls are fashionable. Were planning to head back with an empty suitcase one of these days and go wild! The highlight for us in the city was the birds nest, the Olympic stadium. It was so good we saw it twice. Well actually the first time we went during the day, thought it was beautiful and then were told it is lit up at night time and is even better. During our day visit, things got slightly out of hand. All through India and Nepal people would strangely ask for photos with us in them, even at the taj mahal! Seriously what are they going to do with them, put them on the mantle place?! But we had gotten used to it and even had a coy routine going (what? You want our photo??!!). However this was another level. We were trying to get a photo of the two of us in front of the stadium, when people started rushing over asking to get in the shot. Then they started attracting more people, getting a vicious circle going. Now we know the lives of celebrities (and we were loving it ha!). At one stage there were twenty people around us and another twenty taking photos, and then there were the individual photos with them all! At one stage, we actually had to say ‘No more photos please’! Under the cover of darkness we were didn’t attract quite so much attention and managed to get our photo taken with just the two of us!

It had been over a week since we’d seen a wonder of the world and we were getting withdrawal symptoms. Thankfully the great wall was only a stones throw away. The name doesn’t disappoint it is indeed a great wall. We were so lucky with the weather conditions, it was picturesque with snow on the ground but a clear sky. We couldn’t have asked for better. We walked for what seems like hours around the wall, with major flashbacks to Nepal trekking! As we were walking we noticed an awkward crowd of teenage boys who happened to be following the same route as us, stopping when we stopping etc. After awhile, one of them must have plucked up the courage and asked could he take a photo with us. Then the flood gates opened, we must have been in a hundred other people’s photos that day. Damn paparazzi!! By the end we started photobombing with orange peel face, they’re going to get  a shock when they look back on those photos!

Then came flight number two (Sorry Niamh), to Xi’an home of the terracotta warriors. Another wonder of the world! Well technically it’s considered the 8^th wonder of the world, but lets not nitpick! The site is buried under ground and is still being excavated. The first pit we went into is still in the early process, but we didn’t know that at the time. You should have seen the look of disappointment on our faces when we walked in expecting to be wowed and saw what can only be described a muddy whole in the ground. We glanced at each other bemused and burst into giggles, that didn’t go down so well with the locals! The next pit we went into was the real deal and we got the wowing that we wanted. There are hundreds of carved figures, with the tiniest of details included. Amazing to think they were made in  200 B.C. we struggle making playdo figures!

Back in the city, we explored what Xi’an had to offer. There’s seriously was a McDonalds on every second corner, which didn’t help Sherry and her McFlurry addiction. Xi’an boasts about a wall, but after the great wall it was nothing! When we went to the Pagoda and took inspiration from what we saw in India and had a mini holiday photoshoot, standing in the most awkward poses at ridiculously places! We’re not sure that people got we were messing but think that made it funnier!

The most shocking thing about China is the food…apparently a 3-in-1 is not a local specialty!! Its all noodles this, rice that, with meat thrown in everywhere and the word dog used a little bit too often! So for a vegetarian who isn’t a fan of noodles or rice (a bit of struggle when travelling through Asia), Annie had barely eaten anything at all (apart from McFlurrys)! With fear she’d waste away, one night we surveyed all the local restaurants and picked the one of choice. Armed with a piece of paper that had written in Chinese ‘I am a strict Buddhist, I cannot eat meat” which apparently is the only way to stop them chopping up a leg of lamb and sticking it in, we got to ordering. Being in china, the menu is obviously in Chinese, which neither of us have an inkling of, but this menu had pictures so we ordered 5 or 6 dishes, thinking we’d surely strike gold. It couldn’t have gone worse! Everything was either ridiculously spicy (another problem for Annie in asia!), or laced the most disgusting gravy sauce or topped off with slimy tofu that looked like the fat off a ham. The only thing that was edible were the potato balls…a Chinese delight! Just when we thought the dinner couldn’t get worse we witnessed what can only be described as the single most disgusting, repulsive, stomach churning thing we’ve ever seen ever! We have at this stage gotten so used to people hacking up their lungs in the street, in the bathroom of hostels every morning, in the train station etc but the guy beside us in the restaurant took the biscuit. There he was dressed to the nines on a date with his girlfriend or whoever she was, when he turns and hacks up a pile of phlegm and spits it on the ground of the restaurant! And then casually throws a tissue on it! Definitely not good table etiquette! Both us were repulsed, struggling to keep our food down. He was genuinely baffled when he seen our horrified faces or when Annie told him that that was disgusting! Definitely the biggest culture divide yet. Learning from experience, for our next meal we choose a restaurant down the road when you picked the ingredients and cooked them in a pot at your table! Not a bit of tofu in sight! The restaurant had no knives or forks and so our struggle with chopsticks was exposed, Annie was particular brutal was basically just using them to scoop the food into her mouth about an inch from the bowl, but atleast she finally got a decent meal!

Flight number three (Sorry Niamh L) to Kunming. Another city! We really wanted to go into the country side and see the other side of china but because we ended up staying so long in Beijing we didn’t get the chance. When we come back for our shopping spree were going to venture out! On the flight to Kunming, one of us may or may not have left their passport on the plane (we’re not saying who, but past behavior of losing things may be a hint), which led to a very scary 10 hours trying to get it back, especially as we only had one day left on our visa- which costs a $100 for everyday your over, and the embassy was in Beijing a 40hour train journey away and wasn’t open for another two days! AHHH disaster! Especially as the workers at the hostel didn’t seem to get the problem and thought we were worried about not being able to check into the hotel without the passport! Eventually, literally after about an hour of explaining, they got the picture and called the airlines. And eventually after a very sleepless night and hours of waiting around we got word that the passport had been found! Hallelujah!! We vowed never to speak of Kunming again!

Although brief, we did so much in our time in China and was most definately worth the hassle of the visa.Two wonders of the world in a week is no small feat. Now just to wean Sherry off the Mcflurrys! At this stage we think we done enough culteral things for awhile, time to hit Laos and get this party started :)

Nepal

Namaste! 

Nepal WOW what can we say, after our two weeks here we have both answered the ultimate question of 'What is your favorite place in the world?'. Hands down! Well so far anyways, ask us again in 8 months!. The scenery is jaw dropping, absolutely beautiful; snow capped mountains, lakes, green hills, waterfalls and with so much do like trekking, paragliding and national parks, combined with good night life, friendly people and sun whats not to love!

Getting into Nepal in itself was an experience. We made an epic trip from Agra India involving an overnight train, a tuktuk, another train, a taxi and three local buses (which are crazy-them cram an unbelievable amount of people on and at one stage Annie ended up having to hold a womans baby for her, while Sherry had to sit in the luggage compartment!). It was the middle of the night when we first arrived and pitch black, street lights haven't quite made it there yet! The place was abandoned, very spooky. To get our visas we had to go into this derelict looking house, we were both terrified going in, it was like something out of a horror film where your screaming at the screen, 'why would you do that??!!' Little did we know what was inside...a thousands times worse... we pushed the door open and found the light switch only to reveal an obese man asleep in his undies on a kitchen table covered in a mosquito net!!! Seriously think we'll be scarred for life! He quickly got up and covered his modesty by wrapping a tea towel around himself and went amount processing our visas as if nothing was strange! We were in hysterics and struggling to hide it..serious amount of fake coughing had to be done! 

After that ordeal our first stop was Chitwan National Park in the town of Sauraha. Properly the best way to describe it is basically Ireland 50 years ago but with sun and elephants! The majority of people are farmers and everything is done manually. We cycled to a village of the Tharu tribe and got a glimpse of the lives, no electricity or running water, living in stone cottages..it really was like going back in time..not a GHD in sight!  

After the disaster of our Indian National Park adventure, where Annie fell asleep and a Peacock was the highlight of the day, we decided to do a full day jungle trek. Fingers crossed for some some of near death experience- maybe a tiger attack or something- the first thing our guides went through with us was what to do if different animals attacked..now this is more like it! And it didn't disappoint, within minutes we were within meters of rhinos, elephants, deer and of course peacocks! As we trekked our guides gave us Nepalese names. Annie was 'crossaint alicante' meaning spicy beautiful and sherry was 'pullingababy' or beautiful flower girl..we then obviously had to return the favour giving them Irish names, calling them 'guider of the people' or Sharon ni Bheolain and 'the rhino finder' or uachta reoite seachtain seo caite! We did feel prangs of guilt tho when they were delighted with their names and practiced saying them till they had them down to a T! 

Our next day was jam packed, it was early morning elephant trek, followed by laundry duties. We took inspiration from the locals and rocked the head scarf look..key to getting your whites sparkingling! And then a trip to baby rhino sanctuary( these aren't open to public but Sharon ni Bheolain worked there and hooked us up) This was one of the best things we did so far..we even nearly got trampled by one..can you imagine the headlines 'two Irish girls killed in rhino attack..so sad!'

Our next stop was the town of Pokhara..two words..Breathtaking beautiful! It is the most picturesque place; Its a bustling town on the edge of a lake surrounded on one side by huge snow capped mountains and the other by green forests and hills. And even extra super bonus points they have a night club - Busy Bees! Well a night club of sorts, its no Coppers but good by Nepal standards! We tested our trekking flasks one of the nights by filling them with vodka (kinda pathetic that in one of cheapest countries in the world were still rocking the sneaky naggins..now thats commitment!!) In busy bees we met two American girls and some italian guys and drank them under the table! hardy bitches! Although there was an unfortunate incident where we were brought on stage to sing U2..eek think we may have told them Bono was our Dad! Well that lie was shattered almost instantly when the two of us couldn't remember the second verse of 'with or without you'..seriously theres only about two lines! we'll put it down to stage fright! '

The next day there was no time for hangovers because it was paragliding time woowoo! In hindsight it probably wasn't our wisest move to drink the heads of ourselves the night before we ran off the side of a mountain..But it was definitely worth it...was amazing to see panoramic view of Pokhara, even more beautiful than down below...our tandem instructors did tricks flipping us around etc..twas a mere miracle that the previous nights happy hour didn't reappear! 










Well it wouldn't be a trip to Nepal if we didn't hit the mountains for trekking..somehow our plans got drastically more ambitious the longer we spent in Pokhara, in the end we had somehow signed ourselves up for a week long trek to Annapurna base camp (ABC), the highest mountain in the region!








So off we set. After much mulling over the idea, we made the executive decision to get a porter. Don't judge; how could two frail girls like us carry a rucksack up the mountain, we needed the assistance of a strong hunky man.. but alas we got Amrid..a wee slip of a thing..eek..fingers crossed he had some hidden strength. Like maybe he'll do a Hulk kinda action, ripping off his shirt and running up the mountain carrying us too! That was a dream too far, within the first five minutes he was pumping sweat..and I mean PUMPING and needed to take a break..we hadn't even made it to the official starting point! We had gotten a DUD! He also spent alot of the time concerned about his hair and was constantly doing a hair flick! It all made sense when he explained he wasn't actually  a porter but a maths teacher trying to earn some extra dollar on his two week holidays.. that's all well and good but we have a fecking mountain to climb..we wouldn't mind but bag wasn't even heavy (8kg to be exact). We had apart from a few items (ahem Annie with her hairdryer and ahem sherry with some going out tops) had been very economical in our packing..he most definitely had it easy, some porters were carrying two and three rucksacks tied together, one guy was carrying a bag of 25kg and one poor chap was carrying a fridge, yes a FRIDGE! and I don't mean a mini one that fits a can of coke, this was the whole shebang- fridge freezer with an and ice maker!






Eventually after taking breaks every half an hour or so so Amrid (who we were now calling Sonny Boy!) wouldn't keel over, we made it to our overnight lodge..hes lucky the views were so unbelievable that we didn't really mind going slowly! Walking only a few hours was like entering a different world, every corner could be the scene off a postcard..there are huge valleys and waterfalls, rows and rows of rice patty fields cut into the mountain sides, all topped by snow caps in the distance. Walking the thousands of steps (literally thousands, someone had counted! makes you appreciate how hard daily life is for the people living there, every task in painstaking- the walk to school is an hour up the mountain..to think we complain on a Monday morning! Getting supplies was an ordeal too, there's no 4x4 rolling in, its donkey conveys all the way! 











The second day was TOUGH! Our legs were still adjusting and were sore and tired, and we were passing through valleys which meant climbing up steps for an hour only to go down the other side and then back up another one..my legs burn going up the stairs sometimes so this was extreme! We both took different approaches..twinkle toes Mannion pranced up the steps, while plod Kirwan put the head down and literally took it one step at a time! Very different techniques but both effective..in fact we made it to our lodge by just after mid day..we had lost sonny boy awhile back and while we waited for him we assessed the situation.. we realised we had gotten our budget drastically wrong, mountain food was somewhat more expensive than we thought..apparently we should have around 1200rb each a day...we had ~300rb! No dinner for us so :-( eek..when your trekking 8 hours a day it probably isn't the best time to start a crash diet! Basically we would probably starve to death (slightly dramatic!) if we continued  at this pace but if we upped our trekking hours a day and made the trek in six days we could atleast afford dinner! When we told sonny boy our plan he was not happy! Claiming it was not possible (with many hair flicks thrown in!!!). The only way he would agree was if we left half the weight of our bag behind. Who needs a change of clothes after a days trekking..we probably could survive without the hairdryer though! So just as most trekkers were arriving into the lodge for the evening we were off again..and damn it, you know it..up another valley! 


So far our outfits on the mountain hadn't stood out of place too much, but now were higher up and in with the pros, we were looking a bit ridiculous..eh spot the rookies.. we looked like we were fresh out of Russel Park after training..vest tops, running shorts and our battered asics runners..we couldn't pack trekking gear from Ireland and had intended renting some but decided to save our money and chance it, the only legit thing we had were our trekking socks, which we only wore at night in case they gave us tan lines!! Needless to say we stood out amongst the crowd especially the Japenese who were kitted out with trekking pants, thermals, jackets, hats, glasses, walking poles and hiking boots..they were like people out of a northface advert! But obviously all that stuff is just for show because despite our mammoth climb and lack of gear we got our goal of MBC (the last stop before base camp) a day early!..not to boast but the word amazing was used to describe us and they took our photo..(yeah that was definately boasting!!).












That night while counting our pennies to see what we could afford to eat, crumpled in between some receipts president Grant was suddenly staring back at us...a 50 DOLLAR BILL..EEK the famine is over we can eat again!! Were pretty sure people at the bottom of the mountain heard us cheering..so this is how it feels to win the lotto!! After spending days druelling over other peoples dinners while we survived on rice, we went ALL OUT!!! We had the feasts of all feasts eating until we could barely move! yum yum yum! 



That night Annie's cocoon technique to keep warm in her sleeping bag was definitely put to the test, it was freezing..minus 20 something degrees!! Not that we really got a chance to sleep because we had to get up at 4.30 to make it base camp for sunrise. Eager as ever we were the first to set off, it was very surreal walking just the two of us in the pitch black except for a tiny torch surounded by huge peaks on every side. We had left Sonny Boy behind so we didn't even know if we were going the right way! We could see a light in the distance so we just hit for that..as we got closer the views were spectacular..there was a full moon that was hitting the peaks- unreal like nothing we've had ever seen before. Even more amazing though within literally minutes the sun rises and you can see light touching the very top of the peak and creeping its way down until the whole peak is illuminated..amazing! By this stage Annies fingers were frozen, more than likely the early stages of frost bite, and wouldn't even move..so she had to revert to hitting the touch screen of her camera with her face to take photos..but surprisingly they actually were some of the best snaps!! We then went and got tea with Michael and Orla an Irish couple we were lodging with...the best cup of tea anyone was ever had!!! We later learnt that word of our amateur outfits had spread, one america guy we were chatting a few days later hilariously was like 'oh your those Irish girls who were up at base camp at sunrise in sweaters'!!

























After that the trekking downhill was a breeze, even Sonny boy was in better spirits! determined to never repeat our cringe worthy performance at Busy bees we used this time wisely to practice our songs, we even threw in a Garth Brooks melody..watch this space! We had to calm down our routine down though when Sherry nearly took a fatal tumble when she whipped her hair back and forth a little too vigorously! She would have been a goner except for a perfectly positioned tree she had to grab onto..phew close call, we'll keep those moves to more solid ground! On the way down we also detoured towards the springs for a well deserved dip, almost like having a hot bath except for the monkeys everywhere!








Back down at ground level came the hard bit, saying goodbye to Sonny boy :-( were gonna miss his hair flick so much!! It was devasting :p Somehow we managed to contain our tears and parted ways never to see him again..well we did actually see him again later walking down the street, but we hid so he wouldn't see us so that doesn't count!! We had intended to go out and celebrate our trek but the week had taken its toll and were KO'd by about six o clock..our only regret is that we never did get to redeem ourselves in Busy bees because the next day we left for Nepals capitol Kathmandu, just a joyeous eight hour bumpy trip away.



Kathmandu hmmm how to describe it...lets just say it doesnt have the charm of Pokhara..its very much like India, back to piles of rubbish everywhere and cows and pigs roaming free! The highlight is the monkey temple..we nearly cried when we got there and there was hundreds of steps up to the temple, our legs were still cramping from trekking. Without ALOT of effort, our legs shaking we reached the top. The monkeys run the show up there, running in amongst tourist..we even saw one steal food from a little boy..twas hilarious because he was tubster and started to cry!!! that made the steps up there worth it!! Aparently some of them are even more crafty and will rob cameras etc and won't give them back unless you give the food..smart lil feckers! 


Both of us wish we could have stayed longer in Nepal, especially Pokhara, were even looking up real estate in the area so we can come back every year. Forget any sun holiday you've been on, if you two weeks Nepal is the place to be..we probably would have been sadder leaving except we were heading to the China..can't really complain about that-except were pretty sure the great wall will involve more steps :-( :-(