A review of the overnight sleeper train service from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Nanning (China). The Hanoi to Nanning train is the only international service from Vietnam, and one of the few international train services in Southeast Asia. There is also a Hanoi to Beijing train that is a continuation of the Nanning service. For this […]
Hotel Review: Vienna 3 Best Hotel Guangxi Nanning Station
Review of the Vienna 3 Best Hotel Guangxi Nanning Station, a budget hotel conveniently located near Nanning Station. Hotel Name: Vienna 3 Best Hotel Guangxi Nanning Station. Address: No.10 Youai Nan Road, Xixiangtang, Nanning, China. I stayed at the Vienna 3 Best Hotel Guangxi Nanning Station in Nanning, China. I booked online at the rate […]
Where to stay in Macau: The best areas and hotels
Where to stay in Macau – a guide to the best areas to stay in, and the best-rated hotels and casinos. Macau (or Macao in English) is a former colonial trading port of Portugal on the Pearl River estuary in Southern China. Macau was returned back to China in 1999, and it’s governed as a […]
Shamian – the historic concession island of Guangzhou
Shamian in Guangzhou is a former concession island that was established by the French and British after the Second Opium War. This small island has some of the best preserved colonial architecture in Asia. It might also be the best 19th century historical site that isn’t a UNESCO World Heritage Site (yet). The island was […]
Notes on Guangzhou: A worthy stopover city beyond the trade fair
I was in Guangzhou on a stopover with China Southern Airlines. In addition to being a modern megacity, it also has some of the best preserved heritage architecture in Asia. It had been nine years since my last visit to Guangzhou. Nine years is a long time in modern China, and Guangzhou (like Shenzhen) seemed […]
A day in Hong Kong is better than no day in Hong Kong
Taking a stopover between flights is a good way to get a bonus trip within a trip. Hong kong is one of those places where I’ll build in a stop if I have the time. I figure that a day in Hong Kong is better than no day in Hong Kong. I first used this […]
The Aiqun Hotel – A budget hotel in a landmark building of Guangzhou, China
Hotel Name: Aiqun Hotel Address: 113 Yanjiang West Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, China. The Aiqun Hotel is a historic landmark in Guangzhou, which I didn’t know at the time of my booking. I was just looking for somewhere to stay near the river in the old part of the city. The Aiqun (also spelled Oi […]
Staying in a Blade Runner-esque apartment block in Hong Kong
Edit: Daxiong Hotel is now showing as HAKKAS GUEST House on the booking sites, on a different floor in the same building. Hotel Name: Daxiong Hotel Address: Flat K, 4/F, New Lucky House, 15 Jordan Road, Jordan, Kowloon, Hong Kong. “I’m staying in that building!” I exclaimed to myself as I approached the Daxiong Hotel. […]
Notes on Macau – Where US casinos and Portuguese heritage meet
When I was in Hong Kong I visited the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, which meant a trip to Macau. I was in Macau unexpectedly last December so I didn’t expect to be back again the following December. I like visiting Macau, even though I’m not into casinos. The UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Historic Centre […]
Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge – 3 bridges and an undersea tunnel on the world’s longest sea bridge
The Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge opened in October 2018, making it possible to travel directly by car or bus from Hong Kong to Macau. The HKZM bridge is an overseas highway with three cable-stayed bridges and an undersea tunnel, so it’s not technically a continuous bridge. However you classify it, at 55-kilometres long it’s the longest […]
