Xiamen: Part I

Well, so much for being on a blogging roll… they never last, do they? However, I haven’t forgotten my new year’s goal to be a better blogger, so I figured, “Better late than never!” So here is a recap of my really rainy awesome time on the coastal city/island of Xiamen.

P.S. This is going to be a long one. Sorry/You’re welcome.

It started out with a seven-hour train ride from Hangzhou (in northern Zhejiang Province) to Xiamen (in southern Fujian Province – see a map if you’re still confused.) I spent the train ride eating snacks and reading books on my kindle. It was lovely. And, of course, six-and-a-half hours into the train ride, I find out that the Chinese girl sitting next to me speaks excellent English – OF COURSE. So we had a pleasant conversation for thirty minutes before our train arrived (she was visiting Xiamen too!) and I somewhat wished I had known she spoke English so well earlier… alas, at least we were able to enjoy a little bit of conversation.

My Gear

Then I caught a taxi from the train station in Xiamen to my Bed & Breakfast Hostel (I actually called the hostel and gave the phone to my taxi driver so that the hostel-owner could give him directions, in case you were wondering). After a 20-minute drive, we pull up to this gated community (What…?) and the driver said, “Ok. We’re here.” So I got my bags and stood outside the gate (feeling really confused, obviously) until a young Chinese man called out, “Hey! Are you here for the hostel?” Phew! So it turns out, Koala’s Home (the name of the hostel) is located inside this gated community (otherwise full of what I presume to be incredibly rich Chinese people). The Chinese guy introduced himself as “Wood” (no kidding) and led me to the hostel. As I may have mentioned in my last post, it was the most adorable, cleanest and probably best hostel I have ever been to. Ever.

You can find Koala's Home on Hostelworld.com

Look at this room - it's so dang cute!

So once I got all checked in, I decided I should probably find some dinner (it was about 8 o’clock at this point). Wood directed me to a different part of the city (via public bus) where he told me I should try some “Taiwanese” food because Taiwan is right across the ocean from Xiamen – again, consult a map if confused. So I caught the bus to the area (supposedly full of Taiwanese food) and I walked around the food stalls for about 20 minutes until I realized… I have no idea what constitutes Taiwanese food. So I finally gave up and just walked to a stall with a nice-looking server and asked him what was good. He hooked me up with a fancy rice dish that I actually recognized! Why? Because it was Korean food (bibimbop, to be precise). So, my first attempt at finding Taiwanese food was a failure, but the bibimbop was delicious, so I did not complain.

Also, this street was called "Cow Parade Park."
It was full of cow statues.

Bibimbop! Also known as "ShiGuo BanFan" in Chinese

I then returned to my hostel, unpacked all my stuff and went to sleep. I woke up the next day (Wednesday)  to the sun – yeah! Little did I know, it would be pretty much the only time I saw it. I decided this day would be the perfect one to check out Gulang Island (the one with no motor vehicles). So, I took a public bus to the ferry terminal and then took the ferry (about a 10-minute ride) across the water to the island. Once I got to the island, I realized I had no idea what to do there (didn't plan that far…). So I found a map, and found the beach (because isn't that what this trip is all about?!)

Riding the ferry to Gulangyu

To get to the beach, I had to wander through the twisty little streets of the island, and it was a gorgeous walk. Flowers were in full bloom – all the alleys were so green and colorful! Fruit vendors were on every corner, selling giant mangoes and dragon fruits, plus a few fruits I’d never seen before. All the people on the island were so relaxed – girls wearing long, flowing skirts and big woven hats; guys wearing shorts and shades. It was wonderful. In fact, the only slightly disappointing part of the island was the noise – no, there weren't any cars, so no sounds of honking or engines, but there were a lot of people, and these people were loud. But once I found the beach, I got over that pretty quickly.

I have no idea what either of these fruits are...

 There were also buckets of live sea creatures on every street... ew.

The beach was really cool – scattered across the sand were these giant (and totally climbable) rock formations. I made my way to the less-populated end to find my own piece of rock. Once I got there, I pulled out my lunch (PB&J, crackers and some fresh fruit – yeah!) and had my own picnic by the sea. And on my rock, I couldn't hear anything but the crashing of the waves. And it was exactly what I needed wanted.

Gettin' artsy on ya

Nothing makes me happier...

After a few hours at the beach, I made my way back to the ferry terminal. Along the way, I let myself get lost among the winding alleys. I noticed a lot of the buildings looked a lot like European manors rather than traditional Chinese houses. It turns out, Gulang island was a big settlement for foreigners back in the day, and the influence of that culture is really noticeable in the architecture. Wandering through the streets reminded me of the times I've been to Europe, walking through the various Old Towns of Estonia or the Czech Republic.

Love. It.

At around five o’clock that evening, the rain finally set in. That night, I went back to the Taiwanese food street for dinner, and, again, failed to get Taiwanese food. This time, I had a gyro-like sandwich, which is typical food from Northwestern China. Again, it was delish, so no complaints about the lack of Taiwanese food. Then I spent some time at a nearby café, drinking coffee, reading my kindle and being a total travel hipster. When I finally made my way back to the hostel, it had stopped raining (yay!) so I decided to jog along the beach for some exercise. I asked Wood if it was safe to run along the beach at night, and after informing me that “running so late is bad for your health,” he reluctantly told me that, yes, it would be safe.

So good!

I walked across the street from the gated community to the paved-path that ran alongside the coast. Fortunately, it was well-lit, so I felt comfortable jogging/walking along it alone. I ran/walked for about an hour and then returned to the hostel for a shower and sleep, feeling happy that day one in Xiamen was such a success.

My feelings for Xiamen after Day 1

Come back tomorrow for Part II of my trip to Xiamen! (It'll be another long one - woo!)