Hakka House

Be careful what you wish for: I wanted to experience something other than the built-up glitzy shopping mall known as Shanghai. I wanted to get away from the millions of people of the big coastal cities. I wanted some down-time.

Xiamen – Nan Putuo Temple

The next day I met another Steve, from Berlin. I should mention most of the Westerners I’ve met in China have been named Steve, which can be confusing at times, but makes it very easy to remember names. Despite having

That ain’t Gargamel

Xiamen and Gulangyu

After a week in Shanghai, it was time to take high-speed rail 700 miles south for some fun in the sun of Xiamen. Xiamen is a great little town. And by little town I mean city of 3.5 million. By

Train to Xiamen

Domestic flights are so inexpensive in China, traveling by train usually isn’t that much less. But flying from one city to another doesn’t give you a sense of the distances involved, and besides, traveling through Europe, some of the most