Travel And Living

Malaysia : Victoria Station Bayan Baru

2007-12-17T06:23:00.001-08:00

Victoria Station , or perhaps " THE TRAIN RESTAURANT " is in one of my favorite list of best western restaurant in Penang. Beside the foods , the exterior design of this restaurant are unique. It was shaped like a train and best interior design as well. The whole place like as if you were having your meal in a train except they don't have the " cho cho sound thingy "

This Train Restaurant situated at Bayan Baru ( Near Sunshine Square Complex Bayan Baru )

That's our first meal ( The Snail-like Butter ) with warm stim bun . It looks awesome. Nice deco even a single butter.

This is my grandma's meal. The " Wild Mushroom Chicken ". Fully furnished with special sauce and big wild mushroom. Taste good for all age.

That's my father's meal. The Black Pepper Chicken. This is not as tasty compared to my grandma's. The Black Pepper is too hot for him.

Here's my mum's " DRAGON COMBO ". It was almost similar to " COMBO PHOENIX " which include a lobster , chicken meat , corn , tomato , and some fresh vege with fries.

Dragon Combo tastes are not as good as the Combo Phoenix. Combo Phoenix include with chicken meat ( which is grilled and not fried style ) whereas Dragon Combo comes with Fried Dorry Fish and Squid. The fried Dorry fish are so-so but the squid are tasteless.

Tada, that's my meal. I'm a bit phobia with meat and meat and meats.....! Scary~~!
I've choosen the some kind of seafood spaghetti. Very nice taste and inclusive lots of prawns and cheese. No regret of getting this noodle.

For those whom are interested to get to this restaurant , here's the address of it :-

Address :-

17 Lorong Mayan Pasir 5
Penang 11950 Malaysia

Tel : +60 4 642 5988

Operating Hours

NOON-3PM
7PM-MIDNIGHT

Malaysia : Ferringhi Garden Restaurant

2007-12-15T09:44:00.000-08:00

Best open-Air Cum Air-conditioned Western Restaurant in Penang - Ferringhi Garden Restaurant

Ferringhi Garden sits just beyond the Park Royal Hotel on the Batu Ferringhi main road. The restaurant building is placed directly beside the road at the front while the parking lot is located behind the building. The parking is slightly confusing to get to. Taking the first right turn after Park Royal Hotel, I was able to make my way down to the end of the crowded side road and then turn left into the restaurant parking lot.

The parking lot can hold around twenty cars, a large sized lot compared to most in Penang. The reason becomes apparent as I noticed the huge size of the restaurant, around sixty to seventy tables in an open air setting. Besides having a large dining area, the restaurant also has an upper floor section used for large functions.

The restaurant building has air conditioning, yet the cool air intentionally escapes out towards the garden tables. Although it isn’t as cool as the fully enclosed restaurants, eating in this setting is still very comfortable and delightful. People who sit outside are also kept cool by floor fans and air conditioning that flows out of the building.

Now let's talk about the food .. * yummmmmy *

The Caesar Salad was good, although nothing spectacular about it. It tasted much like a traditional Caesar Salad would. While traditional Caesar Salad uses Romaine lettuce, this one did not. In Penang, most restaurants don’t use Romaine lettuce as it is difficult to source in the warm Malaysia environment.

John with his pussy act again ...

John and I are best buddy. I celebrated his " bird-day " in this restaurant. This is his first meal " The Cream of Wild Mushroom ". Taste is better than any other mushroom soups around the corner. Quite a big bowl too.

Look how greedy he was .... trying to swallow all he could....

The " Mongolian Beef Steak " came a little while later. Presentation was delightful and it looked very pristine. Depends on the restaurant, but most steak presentations aren’t this nice. The taste of the steak was fantastic. Cooking is half the battle as well as selecting proper cuts. The restaurant does both well. I could tell from the first bite that the restaurant selects good steaks. Definitely one of the more excellent main courses John tried so far.

Look how fascinated he was .... with his lil' beef

Mine dish was not that facinating as what John has done to his beef. It was " GRILLED CHICKER...something ". Taste is good. Lazy to take picture of it as I'm dying from hunger.

Lastly, The chef gave us a special dessert ( which is free cause I knew the chef and the boss is my friend ) ngek ngek ngek...... * include with the cheeky sound *

The Banana de' Coco Split ... inclusive a medium fried banana , ice-cream and coconut mixture with cakes. Very nice. I've forgotton the name as the pretty waitress ( myanmar ) spoke too fast. I nearly " catch no ball " - Not understand

An Upclose of the BANANA ..

So Finale ...

Do you think it's worth to get your ass over there?

Look at his face ... do you think its worth?

P/S : Some review shots are taken by penangreview.net. Thanks for sharing :D

Zheng Zhou : Qingmingshanghe Millennium Park

2007-11-24T20:08:00.000-08:00

Qingmingshanghe Millennium Park is an ancient theme park with 53 shops in traditional Chinese style. Lord Bao's Memorial Hall was one of the ancient hall built within the millennium park. The memorial hall was built to commemorate Lord Bao Zheng ( 999-1062 ). Beside that , they also have the Imperial Street of Song Dynasty with 400 meters long and 30 meters wide.

Here's some picture of the ancient Lord Bao's Memorial Hall and the exterior of it.

and here's a brief sketch of Lord Bao making a justice for a pair of couple. This story is about a husband which was already married and marry again with a rich family's daughter. The husband lie to his wife that he is still single. -.- what a loser!

Beside this , there's some ancient script and letters written during Lord Bao

Some say if you touch the name of Lord Bao , you will be wealthy and smart ass. I don't believe it but curious to touch it :P

Do u know where is Lord Bao's name?

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Neeh~! Found it? Thousands of people already smudged it. You are not the first one though -___-"

Louyang : The Longmen Grottoes

2007-11-24T08:37:00.000-08:00

Main Entrance to Long Men Grottoes Caves

The Long men Grottoes are on the Yihe River bank, some 12 kilometers from ancient city, about 30 minutes' drive. It is one of the three most important Buddhist sculptures and carvings in China. The Long men Grottoes enjoy a good location where two mountains confront each other between which flows the Yihe River.

A bridge connects Long Men Grottoes zone and another part

The grotto was first carved in North Wei Dynasty, over 1500 years ago and expanded through the succeeding East and West Wei Dynasties, North Qi Dynasty, North Zhou Dynasty, Sui and Tang Dynasties and was finally completed in North Song Dynasty. Over 500 years' renovation and expansion have created the prestigious world cultural site. The most significant chiseling activities happened in the Tang and Norh Wei Dynasties, which lasted over 150 years.

Spanning a length of around 1 kilometer on the hillside along the Yihe River, the niches resemble dozens of honeycombs dotting the area. There are about 2.100 grottoes and niches, over 40 crematory urns, 3,600 inscribed stone tablets and over 100,000 Buddhist images and statues. The largest one is 17 meters high while the smallest is a tiny as 2 cm. One third of the complex are works of the North Wei Dynasty. These masterpieces are the Binyang Cave, and Lianhua ( Lotus Cave). The impressive Qianxi Temple, Fengxian Temple, Wanfo Cave( Ten Thousand Buddhist Cave) are the highlights of the Tang Dynasty's carvings.

One of the Buddha Statue in Long Men Grottoes

One of the in-cave shots

The Longmen Grottos are of great value in world sculpture history and it has been listed in the World Cultural Heritage Site by the UNESCO. To protect such a valuable heritage site, the Chinese government as well as some influential world cultural organizations are trying hard to share this site with the whole word. A large-scaled renovation was undertaken in 2003 to keep the grottos in good condition.

Mini caves with mini statue

Enlarged mini statue

Giant Statue , some where damaged by theft. Mostly the buddha's head were the precious ones.

At times , we still need to " guard " the guards.

Toilets are meant for Men and Ladies. For those who are in between must get to the center ones

Tips:

Comments :In terms of geographical location, the magnificence of the carvings Longmen Grotto ranks the first among the three most significent Buddhism sculptures(Longmen, Dunhuang Grotto in Dunhuan, Gansu province in northwest China and Yungang Grotto in Shaanxi province)
How to get there?
Take bus No 81, 53,60 and the tourism line which departs from the Luoyang Railway Station daily.
Don't wear brightly colored clothing otherwise you will attract variety of insects.
You may consider to bring a camera with wide-angle lens to capture the scale of the cave art possible when it's impossible to back up.

Deng Feng : Shaolin Kungfu Show Biz

2007-10-11T11:01:00.000-07:00

After those temples , cemetery visit and vegetarian canteen (yucky!) , finally we manage to escape from it to watch a pure Shaolin Kungfu Show. There were no such things with Co-actor or acting gimmicks! Everything are based on fact and truth. Shaolin Monk divided into 2 categories. One is just a normal vegetarian monk which are only praying and meditation. Another is Fighting Monk. This Fighting monk are allow to fight and protect the country from enemies. They have special permission as they can drink wine to heat up their body.

Why Fighting Monk exist? This is when a King of China being attacked by a group of enemies and this monks are there to save the King. So the King appreciated their help and he made a special permission for this monk for they have saved his life and protected the city.

Shaolin Kungfu are often practiced at the early age which often starts at 6 yrs old onwards. In Malaysia , our pampered child still in the air-conditioned kindergarden. Now you see how lucky we are as a Malaysian. As for China , their parents often send their children to temple to study kungfu to protect themselves and for health conscious purposes.

This young monk practicing meditation method. To decrease stress and increase their inner power in his body. Unbelievable , this monk is just 8 yrs old. They might look small , but they are mighty. In China , you need to think twice before you wanna bully them.

This teenage monk practising " pressing ball " kungfu. I'm sorry i'm not familiar with their skills ( as they did not reveal it ) so I would just have to put it as a guess though... * no heart feelings dude * This kungfu seems like increasing sexuality power :X ( do monks need them? )

As for this , I'm scratching my head out. He seems using is inner power to trim his pubic hair. So I have to name it " Trimming Pubic " Kungfu. You wont believe till you see by yourself. There will be some little tiny hair on the ground after the practice :X

Newly incarnated of Monkey God. Intimidate from a chinese drama series perhaps. I'll name this " Monkey Face " Kungfu. The whole body moves and act like a real monkey. In another sense , this moves just like you were paralyze or some psychopathic dude. So Kids at home , if you're momma gonna screw you , remember to show her your monkey face :p

His moves are like a wild tiger in the forest. From another angle I would assume it would be a pussy cat crawling on the ground. I'll name it " Pussy Boy " Kungfu.

This is the " Butt Yoga " Kungfu. For those new comers , I'm sure you would have the trouble to unlock yourself from your butt :D

Beside that , this is another version of the Yoga Butt Kungfu , which i'll name it as " Fart Up " Kungfu. When your teacher screws you , just show them what you've got :P The Fart Up kungfu style is very effective on someone which irritates you alot :P

For those who dont have table or chair for study, you could use this " Book Reading " Kungfu to get your brain captures what you've read. The two fingers pointed behind your skull is to support your head from getting sleepy ( lots of people will get sleepy when read books ). With the fingers pointed u back , you will definitely captures everything inside the book without reading it twice.

Now It's all about KUNGFU FIGHTING ... Hoooah ...

Deng Feng : Shaolin Temple + Pagoda Forest

2007-10-08T10:25:00.000-07:00

After breakfast at Peony , and again .. Coach bus took us from Luo Yang ( 1.5 Hrs trip ) to Deng Feng. In Deng Feng , We get to visit the Shaolin Temple and Pagoda Forest. Both places are holy and sacred for Buddhism. Very windy outside. The temperature was around 19 degree c.

Statue of a monk.

Remembrance for those who has written poems or poetry. All scholar whom been here dropped some love notes for them in a big large brick. Every brick has different hand writing.

Below are both statues of Kungfu Statue. They presented as the basic principal of Shaolin Kungfu. Let me introduce to you ...

Guys .. read their lips carefully ..

This is Mr. Hummph .. ( some say u need this to do your morning chores in the toilet bowl )

And this is Mr. Haaah ( to release gas - aka - fart )

Both of this statue shows their basic principal of shaolin kungfu by their lips. You need to gather the chi and release the ~~shit~~ energy. It's good for health too.

Luo Yang : Peony Hotel

2007-10-08T10:07:00.000-07:00

After the Xi'an Mt Huashan sightseeing , our tour coach will drive us from Xi'an to Luo Yang for overnight. At Luo Yang , we will be staying at Peony Hotel.

The Peony Hotel Luoyang is located in both the business center and traffic center of Luoyang on Zhongzhou Lu. It is close to a big park and the flower exhibition center. The hotel was upgraded to a 4-star hotel in 2001.

Introduction on Peony Hotel Luo Yang :-

The railway station is located 5kms away and the airport can be reached in 30 minutes (15kms) from here.

This is a 4-star hotel with almost 200 rooms of varying standards and facilities. All rooms here are equipped with a private bathroom, central air conditioning, satellite TV, IDD telephone and mini-bar.

The Peony Hall Restaurant serves Cantonese food and there is a selection of western dishes available too.

For the business traveler, the hotel has a business center, conference hall and function rooms that can cater for a large number of guests.

Recreation facilities are fairly limited, and there is no swimming pool or gym. However, the hotel does offer guests the use of a billiards room, beauty parlor and massage

Prices of Bedroom ( prices might change due to season ) :-

Single - USD 54

Double - USD 61

Twin - USD 61

Twin for sold use - USD 54

Triple - USD 82

Xi'an : Mt Huashan

2007-10-03T09:32:00.001-07:00

Mt. Huasan situated in Huayin City, 120 kilometers (about 75 miles) east from Xi'an City of Shaanxi Province.

Mt. Huashan is known as 'The Number One Precipitous Mountain under Heaven'. It is one of the five sacred mountains in China. The other four mountains are Mt. Taishan in Shandong, Mt. Hengshan in Hunan, Mt. Hengshan in Shanxi, and Mt. Songshan in Henan.

In ancient times, Mt. Huashan was called Mt. Taihuashan. From a distance the five peaks seem to form the shape of a 'flower' (hua in Chinese), hence the name 'Huashan'. It is famous for its natural vistas of steep and narrow paths, precipitous crags, and a high mountain range. It is home to several influential Taoist temples where emperors of past dynasties made pilgrimages, making Mt. Huashan the holy land of Taoism.

If you want to get to the starting point of climbing this mountain , you need to take this sky-train to the middle part of this mountain and start from it. This rail is longer than the Genting Highland Malaysia and its very very very high. Don't look down if you are afraid of height.

That's the sky-train that I'm talking about.

Another nutty shooter with me. He's a great guy! His name is Tee and yet another crazy Nikonian like me :X

Some side view of Mt Huasan.

After being unload in the loading bay , we will have about 5 minutes walk to the starting point gate. Here's the first gate to the Mt Huasan.

We started off by walking up a very long staircase. The width of the stairs are narrow. Hard to get in 2 person in 1 time. The left lane is down and right lane is up. No cutting queue :D

See how narrow the passage is. This is the sidewalk of the Mt Huasan. Very narrow and dangerous.

After half and hour walk , we reach a point where we need to climb up the stairs ( not walk ). Actually there's a tiny route * secret one..* beside this climbing thingy. No need to have this serious climbing skill to get up to the top :X akekekekee.... poor uncle...

In the meanwhile , we saw a group of aunties having their kaypo-ing time at the bottom of a giant rock.

aunties was surprised i caught them in photo ... they was happy * thought that i'm a journalist * - not to disappoint them so just take a shot for them -

After few kaypo-ing shootout , we reached the JIN SHOU GUAN ( Gold Lock Pass ).

Mt. Huashan visitors know that it is customary to buy a golden lock, and then lock it in the iron chains on both sides of the Gold Lock Pass for families and friends to pray for their safety and health. It is a marvelous spectacle to see thousands of golden locks in the iron chains. Within the mountain gate of Gold Lock Pass, a huge golden lock of about 4 meters (about 4.37 yards) long and 1 .5 meters (about 1.64 yards) high stands in a big rock. It is made of pure copper and forged by 9,999 locks left by visitors. It is a popular photo site. This huge lock can only be opened by throwing coins - one coin represent the status of an ordinary person; three coins, a blessed person and nine coins a most blessed one. Gold Lock Pass is the throat to Middle Peak, East Peak, South Peak and West Peak.

I may not buy those padlock ( as my house got tons of it ) , so i've decided just to take a pic with " them " ahahhaaa..... full of luck and health huh :X

After those padlock scene , we took ourself some time for some crazy shootings on top of the precious mountain. Let me introduce to you another nutty shooter gang , his name is Mr. See

I'm not sure what he's trying to shoot at ... maybe upskirt practise... :X

he's one of the Olympic Beijing 2008 medalist :X fake medal :D got cheated :P

Money Face Trader ... He was so happy to get our business!

Yeah we know we've been conned .. so? .. who cares? It was just RMB 20 and It's GOLD medal of Olympic ...

Another Tips :-

Fees:	Entrance Charge: CNY 100 (Apr. 1st-Nov. 30th), CNY 50 (Dec. 1st-Mar. 31st); Cable Car : CNY 110 (round-trip), CNY 60 (one-way)
Best Time to Visit:	April to October

Xi'an : Big Wild Goose Pagoda

2007-09-24T09:35:00.001-07:00

This is the " BIG WILD GOOSE " pagoda. Everyone asking the same question, do you think its a goose? why this pagoda doesn't look any like a goose? Why they name it goose?

hahaha ... dont ask me ... i also don't know. This is a holy place for Buddhists. It's some sort like a temple and some part are cemetery burial for holy monk.

In this area , what interest me are the structure and monument build by some ancient monks.

This area is damn big. Bigger than a Queensbay Shopping Mall.

The wall engraving are fascinating. I bet in this days , most of the modern architect can't do what the ancient does.

Story behind the curtain :

As the symbol of the old-line Xian , Big Wild Goose Pagoda is a well-preserved ancient building and a holy place for Buddhists.

The pagoda is located in the southern part of present day Xi'an, in what used to be Chang'an City in the Tang Dynasty. Actually, the formal name of the pagoda is Ci'en Temple Pagoda, but since the temple disappeared a long time ago, the pagoda is known by its other name.

The square, multistorey, brick structure is sixty-four meters high. On a high mound, it seems to rise into the sky.

Big Wild Goose Pagoda was first built in 652 in the Tang Dynasty. Xuanzang, a prominent Buddhist scholar of the time, planned to have a huge stone pagoda built to house the Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures he had brought back from India, but the plan fell through because it was difficult to find the needed stone and the cost was prohibitive. He decided instead to build a mud pagoda reinforced with bricks, but the mud pagoda was not strong and the construction was not done properly. The pagoda collapsed not long after it was built. It was rebuilt between 701 and 704 on the order of Empress Wu Ze Tian.

The pagoda tapers sharply from the first storey up, giving the entire structure the shape of a pyramid and making it stand very firm. Wooden steps and flooring inside allow people to go to the top and enjoy the splendid views in the suburbs of Xi'an. In the past, those who had passed the imperial examinations to become officials went there to inscribe their names on the pagoda, the ambition of every young official. As a result, gathered in front of the pagoda were tablets inscribed by those who had passed the imperial examinations in Shaanxi for more than a thousand years, from the Tang to the Qing Dynasty.

The outer walls of the present pagoda were covered by a thick layer of bricks in the Ming Dynasty. A tablet on the lintel of the door on the first storey is vividly carved with designs of a wooden hall in the Tang Dynasty. Kept under the pagoda is a stone tablet with an inscription made by Chu Suiliang, a calligrapher in the Tang Dynasty, which is an important relic.

Xi'an : Huaqing Hot Spring

2007-09-23T09:54:00.000-07:00

After the terracotta warriors , we sat back the coach bus and they took us to another hotspots in Xi'an which is the Huaqing Hot Spring. This hot spring situated at the northern foot of Mt. Lishan in Lintong County. Huaqing Hot Spring is famed for both its dainty spring scenery and the romantic love story of Emperor Xuanzong ( 685-762 ) and his favorite concubine , Yang Guifei in the Tang Dynasty ( 618-907 ).

Interior of the Huaqing Hotspring * everyone was at the front of statue ( right hand corner ) - wonder why? *

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Buahahhaa .. some nut fella trying to peel off Yang Guifei's Skirt to see what's down under -___-"

Beside that " central of the attraction spot " there's alot of ancient spas in this area. Damn they already invented spas during before our time :D Imperial families are really enjoying their stuff very well. Now i know why Chinese love Spas , Long Bath , Jacuzzi and all those reflexsology products.

At this spa, there are four hot springs. They have a flow of 112 tons an hour and a constant temperature of 43°. The water comes up the ground from the geographic faults and cracks at the stratum about 1750-2500 meters deep.

The spring water contains limes, sodium carbonate, sodium sulfate, and other materials, which makes it suitable for bathing and the treatment of quite a few diseases such as dermatosis, rheumatism arthritis, and muscular pain.

Climb the steps east of the hot springs, and you will gradually see the Five-Room Hall where Chiang Kaishek stayed temporarily during the Xi'an Incident. Up the winding path, east of the Five-Room Hall, you will see a bridge-like structure. On summer and autumn evenings, the sunshine's off this bridge in a way that makes it look very much like a rainbow. Therefore, it gets the name the Hovering Rainbow Bridge.

Located on the Xixie Ridge ("the West Embroidery Ridge") of Lishan Mountain, the remains of the beacon tower of the Western Zhou Dynasty (1134 ~ 771B.C.) it easily identified.

Close to the Huaqing Pool on the Lisan Mountain, there are many scenic spots. Such as, East Garden, Peripateticism Pavilion, The Remonstration Pavilion, Sanyuan Cave, Palace of Laozi, Peony Ditch, Evening Glow Over the Lishan Mountain, Palace of the Grand Mother, Beacon Tower, and many others.

The local government and a Singaporean company joint-ventured, to build cable car on Lishan, they introduce the cable product from Austria. The carriage proves to be comfortable and safe. The transportation capacity one way is 1200 people per hour.

Travelling in the cable car, you will have a panoramic view of the Lishan Mountain and the nearby towns. From a distance away, the Wei River looks very much like a white ribbon. During sunset, tourists can really enjoy "Evening Glow Over the Lishan Mountain" - one of the eight scenic spots in Guangzhou Area. It is obvious that touring the Huaqing Hot Spring, people can not only appreciate the beauty of the ancient Tang palace constructions but also can visit many other places of interests to pursue a tour of history.

According to legend, the Grand Mother was an outstanding leader of an ancient tribe in the remote matriarchal clan community. Some people still hold the fact that she was just Nu Wa who made up the sky with the smelting stones.

An open-air spa

Everyone was having fun playing waters like a small kid

The little fountain was believed that whoever wash their face and hand will bring good luck or something. You need to lineup to get those water -__-" It's hard to get to your turn as Chinaman are rough and bad manners. They often cut your queue. Eventually i saw someone bringing his toothbrush and paste for his morning chores :X

History of Huaqing Hot Spring :

The famous love story between Tang Ming Emperor (Tang Xuan Zong) and Yang Guifei (Lady Yang). "In cold spring months, Lady Yang was granted to take baths at the Huaqing Hot Spring together with the emperor. Her peach cream body gently touched by the smooth hot spring"; "The drum in Yuyang which indicated a rebellion startled the Music of Nishang Yuyi".

These are poem written by Tang poet Be Judi describing the beauty of the plump Lady Yang when she was granted to take baths at the Huaqing Hot Spring. The significant "Xian Incident" which had the National Party and the Communist Party involved took place here in the Huqing Hot Spring.

The beacon tower was build at the top of the mountain to give alarm of border attack in ancient times. It was constantly guard by special soldiers. Once the enemy pressed towards the border, the signal from the beacon tower was send. The way to make smoke during the day was called "Feng", and the way to light the sky with fire at night was called "Sui".

"The Beacon Tower" was the place where such stories took place like "A single smile costs one thousand pieced of gold" and "the sovereign rulers are fooled by the beacon fire".

In April 1982, on a construction site that was well under way, the ruins of the Imperial Pools in the Tang Dynasty Huaqing Palace has discovered. After excavation and sorting out the information at hand, archaeologists found the ruins of the five pools in an area of 4, 200 square meters.

They proved them, the Star Pool, the Lotus Flower Pool, the Crabapple Pool, the Crown Prince Pool, and the Shangshi Pool, all of which were in historic records. The Museum of the Imperial Pools in the Tang Dynasty Huaqing Palace was build on their ruins and was opened to public in October 1990

I guess this is what they called " The Tower Beacon " or perhaps .. Love beacon?

Xi'an : Terracotta Warriors

2007-09-22T09:31:00.000-07:00

Date : 1st Sept 2007

We left Gloria Plaza Hotel ( where we will be staying for 2 days 1 night ) at North Yanta Rd and hop into a coach bus which took us about 45 minutes from our hotel to the Terracotta excavation site.

As we're heading to the excavation site , we do really ~~suffer~~ enjoy our 45 min bus trip. The bus keep on bumping up and down. The suspension must be too hard. Some dealers and I were at the rear seats and we do really digested our food instantly * within 45 min too * -__-"

Finally all those bumpy rides , we reached the most significant archaeological excavations site of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses.

This excavations exhibition exterior looks like a grand palace style * chinese do have their creativity minds *

Before you enter their halls , you need to purchase a ticket for indoor tour. It doesn't cost much as the entrance fee is about RMB 20 ( RM10 ).

Outside of the entrance , there's a little cottage which contained lots of terracotta warriors and horses in miniature size. Some even in boxes ( contained the general , officer , archer , horse , warrior ). Besides that , you can get autograph from those farmer ( the discoverer of the ancient dolls during 1975 ). Each book stated price of RMB 100. Everything is expensive inside here. Some even act as fake farmer. You wont realize until you see the signature of the book are totally different and did not have any documents to proof but the advantage is that they charge lesser for a book * 50% discount * :P Actual farmers whom discovered the excavation are only few. About 5 of them. Most them passed away due to old age. Only left 2-3 only ( if not mistaken after translated by our pretty tourguide )

Here are some picture of the interior excavations site. This section was not suppose to be photographed. Why?

There's a man open a stall for group photo business. If each of us wanna take a picture with this blardy background ( only this angle ) , we have to pay RMB 50 for that. Awww China man are really money minded :(

More pictures of PIT 1 excavation site ( the largest excavation pit ) ...

A fake up close of a terracotta warriors and horses ... * if we can reach this close , mostly are fakes *

Some old-fashioned weapons during the era of Dynasty Qin were found in this excavations.

The warrior that squad down are mainly the Qin's Archer. Always alert.

Some were left with no head ( due to some crazy warlord burn down Qin's tomb ) and with some landslide incident too.

Some Short Stories of the famous ruler of China , QinShiHuang.

Emperor QInshihuang was the first emperor in China's history. He was a great politician, leader who unified the country and started off a 2,000-year-long imperial history in China and exerted a far-reaching influence on the subsequent dynasties.

Emperor Qinshihuang seceded to the throne at the age of 13. During the Spring and Autumn Period china experienced a social turbulence and chaos. Though the king remained his position as the overlord, he has no more controlled his vassals, intrigue and vice rampant. The whole country was actually divided into several small states, each with a ruler. In order to expand their territory, strengthening their power, the stronger claimed wars on the weaker regularly, resulting in the disunity and disorder of the country. Qin State gradually became stronger through series of power struggle. In 230 Bc, Yinzheng conquered the other six smaller states and unified the country. He claimed himself the first emperor-shihuang, means the first Emperor.

Although, Emperor Qinshihuang reigned his country for a short period of less than 40 years, he has made great achievements in the social development in Chinese history. To consolidate and protect his newly-established regime, the emperor reformed politics, economy and culture. He had the walls built by collapsed six states along their frontiers linked together and had the Great Wall built. After the founding of the dynasty, Emperor Qin standardized the language and writing of China, which had varied greatly from area to area during the Warring States Period. Also, currency became standardized as a circular copper coin with a square hole in the middle. Measurements and axle length were also made uniform. Many public works projects were also undertaken. He had the walls built by collapsed six states along their frontiers linked together and had the Great Wall built. Roads and irrigation canals were built throughout the country. The famous Ling Canal, located in Xing'an Town, some 70 kilometers away form Guilin in Guangxi Province was built at that time. The century long irritation project now still works very well.

At the same time of taking effective measure to strengthen his country, Emperor Qinshihuang exhausted his resource to built luxurious palaces for personal pleasure. Shortly after his succeeding to his father's throng at the age of 13, the emperor began to build his huge mausoleum for enjoyment after death. Interestingly, Emperor Qinshihuang believed in eternity and he even ordered his ministers to seek for an elixir of immortality.

The emperor died in 259 BC and was buried in the elaborately built mausoleum in Lishan.

Xi'an + Luoyang + Zheng Zhou + Guang Zhou

2007-09-14T02:19:00.001-07:00

Organiser : Nikon ( Malaysia ) S/B

Duration : 7 Days / 6 Nights

Map of Location :

Our Depature Date For this trip was on 31-08-2007 from KLIA ( KL International Airport ) to Guang Zhou. Our depature time was 6:20am. We have to wake up at 4am -____-" We stayed overnight at Concorde KLIA on 30th Night to celebrate Merdeka ( Malaysia Independence Day - 31-08-2007 ) ... ok atleast im PATRIOTIC enough that i've secretly celebrated in my own room * hey i did turn on the TV ok .. watch our Pak Lah shouted several times until soar throat *

Next ....

Here's our flight schedule to Xi'an :-

KLIA to Guang Zhou ( 4 Hrs Trip )

Guang Zhou Transit to Xi'an ( 2 Hrs Trip )

We have to spend 6 hrs ride on plane to get to xi'an. As the big plane does not cover direct flight to Xi'an. I can say this is my first real " ass pain " ride.

Here we are at the Baiyun International Airport ( New Airport in Guang Dong )

Some outlook of their latest infrastructure :-

Pretty Stewardess on the road ... * psst even the worker stretch his neck to look at them *

One more thing .. Water Bottles ( contained water ) are not allow to get through customs checking. They request us to take out. They are afraid passenger carry liquid contained items - suspect osama/hijacker carry toxic. One thing i know that their customs are helluva strict. They check everything. My whole Body Checkup , X-Ray , Body Scanning. Thank god they din even check my underwear!! -___-" * maybe they did...i din notice *

Before we sit on the Transit Plane , we need to get on a small coach bus to get us up to the plane.

Here we will be having a small introduction among dealers from the whole Peninsula Malaysia and crack some ice breaking jokes to get ourself warmth and friendly among dealers ( atleast i wont be standing there like a ku ku )

We will be deployed shortly right beside the small little transit plane. A ladder will be hosted to get us up.

Everyone has to show their ticket to confirm seat and right plane.

Once we've boarded into the plane , pretty stewardess greeted us " ni hao " ( You good ) ohh hell ya i'm good :P you are pretty too hahahaa :X * buaya mode on *

Rating/Comment for China Southern Airline :-

Mark : 8/10

Reason :

1. Friendly and Pretty Stewardess

2. Punctual on schedule

3. Foods are good

4. Their English Language are bad. When announcement , I heard French

Overall their services and qualities are much more better compare to our local flight airliners. Always not punctual. MAS delayed our flight on 30th August. From 8:40pm to 9:40pm and from 9:40pm to 10:40pm. Totally insane. Waited in the airport for more than 2 hours. I'm so disappointed with their quality services.

After 2 hours flight , we arrived to the airport and fetch by xi'an local coach conducted by a xi'an pretty tourguide. Her name is Susan. Susan will be taking us to our Hotel for check-in and relax at Gloria Plaza Hotel continue with our dinner at Xiang Yue Lou Hotel. We ate 5 times today. This is insane. My tummy cant support it and had a ache during this first day trip. Darn *#&@( and some of us were sick. Thank god i had some medicine with me.