Macau, Shanghai, Beijing, Datong, Xi'an

This is so annoying! I have been trying to get some pictures (and text) on this website, but there are massive hurdles in this country!! First of all, it is not easy to find a fastish internet. If I do, it is most likely that there is no CD or USB entrance to load up some pictures. And on top of it all, the blogger website has been presented in Chinese, so I did not know what to click on!! Luckily, a Chinese guy who speaks English and was smart enough to find out how to change the settings, changed the language into English. Honestly, it is the most complicated country I ever travelled to. Usually people will speak some English or at least I can read the words and know or remember what it means. That turns out to be a little difficult with the Chinese caracters! Speaking, however, is a little easier. I know a few things now, that make life much easier here and I have met a few Westerners who speak more or less fluent Chinese!!! That is quite shoking and I feel like there is some pressure on me now to learn it too (if the English can do it...). It is already late now, so again I won't be able to write a detailed story. In short: In Hong Kong, people like to do picnics on holidays and sundays in the middle of a traffic square, next to a six lane road. Macau was interesting, a lot of Portuguese architecture, but very smoggy! Shanghai was quite a bit colder and not the best weather, but an interesting place too. Everybody tries to annoy you and wants to practise their English with you. Beijing - I love it! Great place and especially the old parts of the town, the "Hutong", which are the little streets which have not been changed into the modern China. There you can still find the little houses and typical Chinese architecture. They sell dog meat on a stick, grilled chicken feet, mini sharks, sea horses and sea star on a stick, and whatever else you can (or cannot) imagine. And obviously we went to the Great Wall which was fantastic, absolutely stunning! It is so long, it just dissapears into the horizon and it looks like a dragon because it goes up and down along the hills. I wish I could upload a picture! We walked about 10 km of it. After Beijing we went to Datong where we visited some Buddha temples that were built into a cave. We had some troubles to get money here, because there was a nationwide system error with the banks and their computers, ATMs and whatever can provide you with money. The staff of the Bank of China seemed to find it very amusing and was more busy with asking us where we're from instead of helping us. Anyway, now we're in Xi'an which is a great place. It is not as freezing as it was up in the north and people are very friendly here. The city has a wall around it which makes it look a bit like out of a movie or something, very beautiful. Of course, as the Chinese love lights, the wall is light up at night time. And there is one of the eight's world wonder here, some terracotta worriors. It is actually amazing, man sized terracotta soldiers, horses, waggons etc. representing the army of a king which were burried here in a massive field very many years ago. Tomorrow we're leaving to the mountains, hiking some 2160m to see an apperantly stunning sunrise too early in the morning. Alright, I'm going to bed now, hope to write some more soon! Good night.