We had to rebook our journey due to the events in the Middle East and had now travelled to Beijing via Kuala Lumpur. This gave us a chance to get used to the time change.

What do you need for China, a sim from China, which we bought at the airport for 30 days. A sim from Holafly that does roaming via Spain, so we don't need a VPN. Apart from Google and Whatsapp, almost everything was accessible anyway. The WeChat and Alipay apps are essential for survival, we almost only needed cash for tips. The translation app then takes care of the rest, which works quite well. We didn't notice much in the way of checks on the locals, only our guide in Beijing was checked once and asked why he had a VPN client on his mobile phone.

Everything in China is bigger, higher, louder and, above all, there are an incredible number of people. You have to get to grips with that first, there's no queuing, you just push until you get to the front. This applies to the streets as well as everything else. But they are all friendly and helpful, and with a few words of Chinese and a bit of arm wrestling you can always get to your destination. And as we had a group tour with only two participants, the guide was always able to help. Apart from two places, we always had more or less German-speaking guides.

It's all very well organised and geared towards large crowds, luckily we weren't travelling in peak season, but we got an impression of what it can be like at the Terracotta Army. Without Mia, who guided us through the back entrances and against the flow, we would never have made it.

We were able to experience so much in the 29 days, new impressions, new cultures and behaviours. It was also physically demanding with almost 5000 metres above sea level, the countless stairs up and down, it was always a challenge. We are a little proud that everything went so well and that we persevered.

The food was consistently good to very good. In Sezuan it was really really spicy, even though we like spicy food, we couldn't eat it. And you don't have to eat everything, such as chicken feet, which is available almost everywhere. It tasted almost the best in Beijing. We didn't realise the legend of sweet & sour chicken, which is a European invention, but it is available in almost every restaurant and is far too sweet. In general, there is sugar in a lot of dishes, which is not really our cup of tea.

China really has a lot to offer, they are way ahead in terms of technology, economically everyone has been moaning a bit because everything is getting expensive, just like here. Covid has caused a lot of economic damage and there are many unemployed people. You don't notice it so much in the big metropolises, but you do in the countryside.

It is a clean country, there is a lot of cleaning. Whether on the streets or in tourist areas, on the train there is always someone running around with a broom. The roads were very good throughout, with a few exceptions in rural areas.

Travelling by train is almost like flying, but cleverly organised. There is a security check at the entrance similar to the one at the airport, just not quite as precise. They took a mousse away from Sylvia because it was more than 100 ml. Then there's a waiting hall and the trains are called, your ticket is linked to your ID, that's the same everywhere, we've never had to show our passport so much. Then you go to the platform and the carriage numbers are marked on the floor, there are almost only reserved seats. The high-speed trains travel at up to 350 km/h.

Hongkong macht den Abschluss, die Führung mit Polly und die Nacht im Penisula Hotel, werden sicher in Erinnerung bleiben.

It is very difficult to make a selection - there are so many great memories that we are taking with us. We will always remember the people, the incredible landscapes, the megacities, the food in Beijing. We could go on and on, but we've already done that in detail.

Hier noch der Link zu allen Beiträgen zum Nachlesen

Das Frühstück ist so schön privat und wir geniessen die Ruhe, mit dem Buggy geht es direkt vor den Lift und wir fahren hoch zum Check In. Oha eine ordentliche Schlange die hier die Koffer abgeben möchte. Der Flug von KL nach Mauritius geht gerade mal 7 Stunden und schon treffen wir alle wieder bei der Einreise Kontrolle.

Vikash wartet schon auf uns und wir fahren nach Hause, jetzt erst mal eine Teller Spaghetti und dann bald mal Nachtruhe.

Eine unglaubliche Reise geht zu Ende und wir werden noch lange brauchen alles so richtig zu verarbeiten.

Hier geht es zu allen Beiträgen.

Schon um 9 Uhr müssen wir los zum Flughafen in Hongkong, es sind ca 4 Stunden bis nach Kuala Lumpur. Bei der Warteschlange lernen wir noch Marcus kennen, er hat lange in Deutschland gearbeitet und verkauft Containerweise Lebensmittel. Wir sind für eine Nacht am Flughafen geblieben und übernachten im Sama Sama Hotel im 9. Stock hat es noch so was wie eine Lounge die im Zimmerpreis inbegriffen ist. Coole Idee wir bekommen sogar einen Negroni und die Häppchen sind tip top. Morgen Mittag geht es weiter mit der Air Mauritius nach Hause.

We go to the lobby for lunch, there is nasi goreng which is very well made and there is live music on top.

es gibt einige Restaurants under anderm auch eine Bündner Stube, wo es Fondue und Raclette gibt.

Da es regnet können wir die Aussicht aus unserem Zimmer geniessen und genau, gar nichts machen, auch mal schön. So langsam wird es dunkel und wir gehen noch auf einen Drink in die Bar und dann ins Restaurant Spring Moon. Zwei Sterne Restaurant, es war gut aber nicht wow. Der Tee Sommelier war super.

The view is almost more impressive at night.

We then drive to the shopping centre in the harbour, where Li Ning has a flagship store. We had already bought shoes from this brand a fortnight ago and we were so pleased that we bought some more. We wanted to buy a small cabin suitcase anyway and because we had bought so much, we bought another one on top.

Zurück im Hotel gleich nochmals los ins Shampoo Shui Po Viertel, da gibt es eine mehrstöckiges altes Einkaufszentrum indem wird allerhand Computer Ware angeboten, da sind sie alle, die Schrauber. Markus ersteht noch Zubehör für seinen Mac.

Jetzt wechseln wir die Szene, Sylvia will Perlen und Zubehör kaufen, die Shops quellen über von kleinsten Teilen, aber von dem was sie wirklich gesucht hat findet sie nur wenig.

Now we make our way back to the hotel and take a break, as we have walked more than 13,000 steps today.