Where can I start off for day 4? Me and Su were on our way to Tianjin for a 2 day trip, and I would never have to see that bunker in the Academy of Sciences (near a Wal-Mart Supercenter, for reference) again! Thank god since I couldnt stand brushing my teeth and washing my face and hands in freezing cold water for another day. Also, there was no internet or anything either, it wasn't a deal breaker but since I had other plans, I needed it to check emails.
I did get to check my email though, at a Mcdonald's again...and had breakfast/lunch there too. First time trying a Mcd's in China and it wasn't bad at all. It seems McDonald's in Asia always tastes better than the ones in North America. After "brunch", and before Tianjin, we headed off to the Temple of Heaven, and like every site in China, it was big. I think it's the site where emperors prayed to the heavens for good luck/harvest. Perhaps it was also the place for the mandate of heaven? (need to check up on that though). Nothing I have seen in Korea can compare to anything I've seen in China. I don't really have too much to talk about for the Temple of Heaven since nothing can really describe it. For those that don't know what it looks like, it's the Calgary Chinese cultural center but much larger and more grand.
On a personal note, I didn't think Beijing would be so demanding, physically and emotionally too. Physically since I've been out for at least half the day, everyday. Emotionally since I would've never thought I'd want to learn some Mandarin too. I felt foreign and not Chinese since I could barely speak a word of Mandarin, yet I can speak Cantonese. I really don't know how to feel when I go up to a Chinese person and start speaking in English. Maybe I felt that way because Beijing wasn't really my home, Guangdong and Hong Kong are.
Anyway, right after arriving in Tianjin, I already had some interesting stories to tell. We arrived in an almost empty train station (Tianjin West Station), built in the middle of no where, on a grand scale, in my opinion to just show off, like some buildings in Pyongyang... and that should've been an omen of things to come...we first tried a taxi to take us to Su's cousins' house, so we left the station to find one. But apparently, the taxi drivers thought it was too far away and it was also nearing their quitting time so they said no...
After that, we tried a bus. Tianjin was completely new to both of us so we had no clue about what bus to take. So, we walked back towards the bus stops in front of the station and asked some people which bus to take. A lady pointed us in the right direction, which was the way we just came from...walking back we looked for the bus stop. What a surprise when we found the info given to us by that lady turned out to be wrong...it was nearing 8 PM and we were both hungry, McDonald's again. Thank god the cashiers in there helped us on which way to go. Turns out it was the subway we were supposed to take.
The subway turned out to be right, but there was another surprise that awaited me at Su's cousins' house. No heating... I can honestly say I hate Tianjin. From the train station built in the middle of no where, to its lazy taxi drivers, to no heating in the houses even when it's freezing. If first impressions mean anything, then I'd never recommend anyone travel to Tianjin, especially during the winter months.
I still can't believe how poor some parts of China are. Most public facilities lack running hot water, and heating, not in major cities, seems optional. Not to sound like I'm complaining or anything, but when there's no heating during the winter months, you might as well sleep on the streets outside...looks like China isn't all it's made out to be.
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