That's good to know. I only took the train because I had my bicycle and needed to get to Uttaradit for a night train to Bangkok and was running out of time. Hardly anyone was on it. It reminded me of the commuter train that runs from Wong Wian Yai to Mahachai, but it was MUCH nicer and air-conditioned. The little Sawankhalok station is lovely. I think I took a photo of the schedule. Should see if I can dig it up.
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1490 results for Cathay Guesthouse AND Hat Yai
4
arisparis
Anis seemed a nice person and we arranged to see several burial sites along with the funeral. The discounted price for the guide and the (hotel’s) car was 1,000,000. At the tourist office the guide was 450,000 with a visit to a couple of villages. Drop by in case there are other people to share the costs.
Our funeral (yeah, it was fun to ask people later “how was your funeral?”) was “medium size”, meaning they wouldn’t kill buffalos. We brought sugar instead of the suggested cigarettes as we both are sugar addicts and non-smokers. I thought we could avoid seeing the killing of the animals, but it was happening just at the entrance to the place. I took many pictures in the hope that our friends would reduce their meat eating habits just by seeing them. I couldn’t believe how many pigs were brought as presents (The government has a nice income as people pay taxes for the animals (100,000 for pigs)). They were tied to bamboo poles and shivered in fear of their imminent death. One buffalo was being cut in chunks. Too glad there were no more. After having tea and spent some time with the family and guests and watched the preparation of food we left the …crime scene.
We visited Tampangallo, Suaya, Sangalla (no fee), Kambira, Lemo, Londa. All places had a 20,000 admission fee except for Londa and Kete Kesu (30,000). The latter we saw it through the rice fields. A non-touristy place you can see for free is Buntu Pune before Kete Kesu, with two tongkonan and several lumbung. At the back there are coffins and skulls.
On Saturday we took a bemo (5,000) to Pasar Bolu, where there were some tourists. A big variety of confectionery and fruits at good prices.
The bemo to Batutumonga (25,000) needed 9 people to leave and the driver thought it would take more than an hour. Many ojeks tried to take us there. We hired a car (90,000) and made a stop at the monoliths of Bori’ Parinding. The view from Lemo and Batutumonga is great.
It took us quite some time to walk to the turn-off to Tikala from where Lo’ko’Mata is 3,5km away. You can see graves inside rocks on the way. We didn’t pay to enter the site as we could see the graves. Then we walked to Tikala. Seeing a couple of buffalos on a truck, I remembered all of a sudden the buffalo market. We hurried back there but it was too late. Some guys were cleaning the place up. I asked for the prices of two buffalos. They cost 30 and 20 million Rp respectively. What a waste of money and life for somebody’s funeral!
A guy named Yacob (0812 44738078), found through a bus company, charged 1,500,000 for the trip to Tentena including a visit to the waterfall and a stop at Siuri cottages by Danau Poso. We would have gone with him hadn’t I had an e-mail from Victory Hotel. A driver on his return trip wanted 1,000,000 as there were other tourists interested in hiring him. The law of supply and demand.
Tentena
As there is road construction 3 hours from Tentena, the road is closed from 8am to 12 noon, 2pm to 6pm and 8pm to 12am.
We left at 5am not being able to see anything for an hour or so. On top of that we didn’t see any construction work on the road. It turned out they don’t work on Sunday so the road is open all day.
The trip was scenic and took us 10 hours as the driver (who barely understood a few English words) did go very fast. We made a few brief stops to eat and have our legs stretched. I can’t tell you how many mountains we have crossed.
Arriving at Victory Hotel we managed (with the help of Noni) to talk our driver into taking us to Air Terjun Saluopa. Anyway he wouldn’t continue to Ampana later as some guests needed a ride in the wee hours to catch the boat to the Togean islands.
The waterfall (20,000) is simply amazing. Too bad we didn’t have more time to spend there.
Victory Hotel has standard rooms (squat toilet, cold water) at 175,000 and deluxe rooms at 275,000. It seemed like all tourists congregated there probably thanks to the very helpful Noni. The room was fine but the bathroom was weird and the hotel was noisy with guests arriving very late on public transport.
We enjoyed food at the shacks by the lake. A good meal for the both of us was only 35,000. There is a new restaurant opposite with no vegan options. You can buy your beer from the supermarket on the ground floor to have it with your dinner.
Two bus companies leave at 9am or 10am and maybe at 5pm for the trip to Palu (130,000) that takes 8-9 hours. It’s 7 hours by taxi (900,000). This road is also closed for some hours. To go there through Besoa would cost us 1,500,000 as the road is very bad.
Lore Lindu National Park
I wanted to spend a couple of days in the park staying one night at Bomba and then on to Doda from where we could take a bus to Palu to renew our visas. Although Giora and Laszlo had walked from one valley to the other I still thought it would be possible to use some ojek. Noni informed me walking was the only way to go as the road was too bad and not safe for ojeks.
So we decided to go on a day trip and shared the car (1,100,000) with another guy. We started at 6am and returned at 7.30pm. We made a brief stop to walk to the river in the off chance we saw some hornbills and we did.
Both guesthouses in Bomba, Risky and Ningsih, charge 150,000. I thanked God we didn’t stay there. The former had just a mattress on the floor and the bathroom was awful. The latter had a proper bed with mosquito net and better bathroom.
Near Langkebulawa megalith some women were on a coffee break from picking up cacao fruits. We liked a lot the taste of them. We visited like 7 monoliths and kalambas and saw people fishing with various traps and then putting the fish in their pockets.
It was an enjoyable trip as both the scenery and the megaliths are very worth seeing.
Ampana
We decided to go to Ampana as I wouldn’t want to get stuck on a beach waiting for my visa from Palu. Plus I had no idea how they were after the earthquake. I was also told that Palopo and Gorontalo are the easiest places for visa renewal as they do it in a day.
We shared the taxi (800,000) to Ampana with a Dutch and an Italian guy (it took them 15 hours from Rantepao). We left at 8.30 and arrived at 12.40 with a coffee break. For a moment we believed we could take the 1pm speedboat but it was full.
We went to Marina Cottages since Edi (0862 823 499 51833), the manager, being the admin of many resorts on the Togean islands, could arrange for our accommodation. The hotel is big but only the standard rooms (180,000) were available due to a conference. The bathroom was not to our liking. Both the neighboring Nebula Cottages and Lewaka Hotel were also full.
Finally we got a very nice renovated room (375,000) of Western standards at the Oasis Hotel near the harbor. The Italian guy stayed in a small room (165,000) with cold water bathroom. Dudi (0852 41 998586 or 0822 9147 2012 WhatsApp) was helpful with booking our boat tickets to Bomba at 30,000 cheaper than Edi. They both charged 740,000 for the ticket and the cabin from Wakai to Gorontalo.
Swimming at Marina Cottages at low tide is not recommended as you risk being cut from corals.
We walked to Labuan village at the end of the road and had a lot of fun as everybody stared amazed at the tattoo covered Italian.
derekcommonground
Hey all,
I will be in KL for a few days at the beginning of May and then I've got about two weeks to get from KL to Siem Reap (time is flexible, can spend longer if needed), so I was thinking of spending about a week in Malaysia after leaving KL, with at least a few days in Penang. I'm a budget traveler as I'm out for about six months and trying to stretch it. I'm interested in train travel, interesting cities, good food (vegetarian) as well as some light hiking/trekking and nature stuff if it is really spectacular.
So I was thinking of splitting the time between Malaysia and Thailand, though I'm not super interested in beaches/party stuff so I'm not sure how interesting southern Thailand would be compared to Malaysia. I may stop off in Hat Yai and then head straight for Bangkok. Any suggestions along the way?
15
travtrav
I think we've finally settled on the following itinerary. Decided to skip Bali (will be rain season, a bit scared of trash in the water - plus, long flight from mainland SEA and I don't want to rush her as she will be severely jetlagged for at least half her trip).
9/1: Arrival to Hanoi
10/1-12/1: Hanoi (4 nights - 3 full days)
13/1: Early morning taxi to Trang An/Tam Coc
14/1: Trang An/Tam Coc (2 nights)
15/1: Taxi to Hanoi airport, flight to Siem Reap
16/1-18/1: Siem Reap (4 nights - 3 full days)
19/1: Flight to Chiang Mai
20/1-23/1: Chiang Mai (5 nights - 4 full days)
24/1: Transit to a beach in South Thailand (looking for somewhere away from parties and crowds, preferably somewhere with the option for some active days with diving or walks)
25/1-27/1: Beach in south Thailand (4 nights - 3 full days)
28/1: Return to Bangkok
29/1: Bangkok and depart at night to return home
Any advice would be most welcomed! She really wanted to see Angkor Wat and I had to make a choice between Luang Prabang or a beach. Currently in Lombok, Indonesia, and honestly, I would love for her to see the beautiful nature surrounding the ocean in SEA, so I think I'll leave Luang Prabang out and head south looking for nature and beach.
8
cedezlepassage
You can get a "visa on arrival" at the following Cambodian/Thai border crossings
Anlong Veng - Chong Sa Ngam border crossing (Phusing Land Border Checkpoint, Sisaket)
Poipet -Aranyaprathet border crossing (Aranyaprathet Immigration Checkpoint, Sakaeo)
Phsar Prum - Ban Pakard border crossing (Pong Nam Ron Immigration Checkpoint, Chanthaburi)
Koh Kong - Had Lek border crossing (Khlong Yai Immigration Checkpoint, Trat)
6
ben
Two tricks:
At home I listen to radio news every day in french and english. To practice italian I begun to listen to news alsoin italian on the internet. Here is an exemple: RAI The international news are similar (some tweet coming from the white house, some war, some international incident, etc.) and it is easy to understand and form your ear.
Second tip, I had a friend who was learning french and finding it very difficult. He had little interest and could not concentrate. I bought a porn book (without pictures) for him.
5
run2thehills
So another hitch, Train from Bangkok to Padang Besar is full and I got Bangkok to Hat Yai instead.
Question: How do I get from Hat Yai to Padang Besar and how long does it take? Where can I book the ticket. I will reach Hat Yai at 06:35 in the morning and need to catch another train from Padang Besar at 16:15.
Thanks.
bopsalay1
You have a plan to come Viet Nam next time.
Already, Please check video for Tips : Where should we go when we in Viet Nam
** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftTnOFb_Xd4 **
The “Hanoi or bust” attitude, prompting new arrivals to doggedly labour between the country’s two major cities, no matter how limited their time, blights many a trip to Vietnam. If you want to travel the length of the country at some leisure, see something of the highlands and the deltas and allow for a few rest days, you’ll really need a month. With only two weeks at your disposal, the choice is either to hopscotch up the coast calling at only the most mainstream destinations or, perhaps better, to concentrate on one region and enjoy it at your own pace. However, if you do want to see both north and south in a fortnight, internal flights can speed up an itinerary substantially, and aren’t too expensive.
For the majority of visitors, Ho Chi Minh City provides a head-spinning introduction to Vietnam. Set beside the broad swell of the Saigon River, the southern capital is rapidly being transformed into a Southeast Asian mover and shaker to compete with the best of them. The city’s breakneck pace of life translates into a stew of bizarre characters and unlikely sights and sounds, and ensures that almost all who come here quickly fall for its singular charm. Furious commerce carries on cheek-by-jowl with age-old traditions; grandly indulgent colonial edifices peek out from under the shadows of looming office blocks and hotels; and cyclo drivers battle it out with late-model Japanese taxis in the chaotic boulevards.
Few tourists pass up the opportunity to take a day-trip out of the city to Tay Ninh, the nerve centre of the indigenous Cao Dai religion. The jury is still out on whether the Cao Dai Holy See constitutes high art or dog’s dinner, but either way it’s one of Vietnam’s most arresting sights, and is normally twinned with a stop-off at the Cu Chi tunnels, where Vietnamese villagers dug themselves a warren stretching over two hundred kilometres, out of reach of US bombing.
Another destination easily reached from Ho Chi Minh City is the Mekong Delta, where one of the world’s truly mighty rivers finally offloads into the South China Sea; its skein of brim-full tributaries and waterways has endowed the delta with a lush quilt of rice paddies and abundant orchards. You won’t want to depart the delta without spending a day or more messing about on the water and visiting a floating market, which is easily arranged at Cai Be and Can Tho.
Da Lat, the gateway to the central highlands, is chalk to Ho Chi Minh City’s cheese. Life passes by at a rather more dignified pace at an altitude of 1500m, and the fresh breezes that fan this oddly quaint hillside settlement provide the best air conditioning in Vietnam. Minority peoples inhabit the countryside around Da Lat, but to visit some really full-on montagnard villages you’ll need to push north to the modest towns of Buon Ma Thuot, Pleiku and Kon Tum, which are surrounded by E De, Jarai and Bahnar communities. Opt for Kon Tum, and you’ll be able to visit minority villages independently or join treks that include river-rafting.
Northeast of Ho Chi Minh City, Highway 1, the country’s jugular, carries the lion’s share of traffic up to Hanoi and the north, though the recently completed Ho Chi Minh Highway offers drivers a tempting alternative route. For many people, the first stop along Highway 1 is at the delightful beach and sand dunes of Mui Ne, fast becoming one of the country’s top coastal resorts. Further north, Nha Trang is another beach resort that also boasts a lively nightlife, and the tirelessly touted boat trips around the city’s outlying islands are a must. North of Nha Trang, near Quang Ngai, Son My village attained global notoriety when a company of American soldiers massacred some five hundred Vietnamese, including many women and children; unspeakable horrors continue to haunt the village’s unnervingly idyllic rural setting.
Once a bustling seaport, the diminutive town of Hoi An perches beside an indolent backwater, its narrow streets of wooden-fronted shophouses and weathered roofs making it an enticing destination. Inland, the war-battered ruins of My Son, the greatest of the Cham temple sites, lie mouldering in a steamy, forest-filled valley. Da Nang, just up the coast, lacks Hoi An’s charm, but good transport links make it a convenient base for the area. From Da Nang a corkscrew ride over clifftop Hai Van Pass, or a straight run through the new 6km-long tunnel, brings you to the aristocratic city of Hué, where the Nguyen emperors established their capital in the nineteenth century on the banks of the languid Perfume River. The temples and palaces of this highly cultured city still testify to past splendours, while its Imperial mausoleums are masterpieces of architectural refinement, slumbering among pine-shrouded hills.
Only a hundred kilometres north of Hué, the tone changes as war-sites litter the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which cleaved the country in two from 1954 to 1975. More than three decades of peace have done much to heal the scars, but the monuments that pepper these windswept hills bear eloquent witness to a generation that lost their lives in the tragic struggle. The DMZ is most easily tackled as a day-trip from Hué, after which most people hop straight up to Hanoi. And there’s little to detain you on the northward trek, save the glittering limestone caverns of Phong Nha, the entrance to a massive underground river system tunnelling under the Truong Son Mountains, which includes Son Doong, discovered in 2009 and now thought to be the largest cave in the world. Then, on the very fringes of the northern Red River Delta, lie the ancient incense-steeped temples of Hoa Lu and, nearby, the mystical landscapes of Tam Coc and Van Long, where paddy fields lap at the feet of limestone hummocks.
Anchored firmly in the Red River Delta, Hanoi has served as Vietnam’s capital for over a thousand years. It’s a rapidly-growing, decidedly proud city, a place of pagodas and dynastic temples, tamarisk-edged lakes and elegant boulevards of French-era villas, of national monuments and stately government edifices. But Hanoi is also being swept along on a tide of change as Vietnam forges its own shiny, high-rise capital, throwing up new office blocks, hotels and restaurants.
From Hanoi most visitors strike out east to where northern Vietnam’s premier natural attraction, Ha Long Bay, provides the perfect antidote to such urban exuberance, rewarding the traveller with a leisurely day or two drifting among the thousands of whimsically sculpted islands anchored in its aquamarine waters. Ha Long City, on the northern coast, is the most popular embarkation point for Ha Long Bay, but a more appealing gateway is mountainous Cat Ba Island, which defines the bay’s southwestern limits. The route to Cat Ba passes via the north’s major port city, Hai Phong, an unspectacular but genial place with an attractive core of faded colonial facades.
To the north and west of Hanoi mountain ranges rear up out of the Red River Delta. Vietnam’s northern provinces aren’t the easiest to get around, but these wild uplands are home to a patchwork of ethnic minorities and the country’s most dramatic mountain landscapes. The bustling market town of Sa Pa, set in a spectacular location close to the Chinese border in the far northwest, makes a good base for exploring nearby minority villages, though a building boom has taken some of the shine off its laidback vibe. Southwest of Hanoi, the stilthouse-filled valley of Mai Chau offers an opportunity to stay in a minority village. Though few people venture further inland, backroads heading upcountry link isolated outposts and give access to the northwest’s only specific sight, where the French colonial dream expired in the dead-end valley of Dien Bien Phu. East of the Red River Valley lies an even less-frequented region, whose prime attraction is its varied scenery, from the vertigo-inducing valleys of the Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark to the limestone crags and multi-layered rainforest of Ba Be National Park, and the remote valleys around Cao Bang, farmed by communities still practising their traditional ways of life.
hemis
Northern Lights – Aurora Borealis spotting
I think that these tours are often a bit too enthusiastic advertised and it doesn’t matter whether the company is big or small. Here are some things to keep in mind.
Most people obviously don’t do their homework and arrive in Rovaniemi to book an Aurora Borealis viewing on the evening they arrive. This won’t happen more often than you think.
Generally spoken the northern lights are more often and stronger seen further north, think of the latitude where Inari is located. This isn’t because of the habitat of the arctic fox (Lappish tale) but the solar winds which blow once in a while and depending on their strength, the force of the Aurora Borealis is measured in a KP-Index. If the KP-Index is medium, say around 3, the polar lights can be seen in Rovaniemi and Kemi area, if it is high 4-9 even from further south but if it’s low you are better off further north.
I spent a week in and around Rovaniemi and while on some days the Aurora Borealis had a KP-Index of 3+ the sky was obscured by clouds EVERY night. So bring TIME and patience with you if you really want to see the magical lights as it’s pretty much a piece of luck if you have only 2-3 days on your hand. Commonly polar lights show up between 10pm and 2am but can be seen as early as 7pm or after 2am.
These websites are useful for your decisions apart from checking the local weather forecast.
http://www.aurora-service.eu/aurora-forecast/
http://www.aurora-service.eu/aurora-school/all-about-the-kp-index/ Explanation of the KP-Nrs.
http://auroraforecast.gi.alaska.edu/
http://auroraforecast.gi.alaska.edu/?area=Europe&date=20180324 Europe Map
http://en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/weather/rovaniemi Weather forecast Rovaniemi.
Some of the tour operators give you quiet indifferent information if you ask them about the possibilities of the Aurora Borealis showing up over your head for the following night. I have heard sentences like - well we don’t know we just look out of the window or similar things. This shows clearly they run the tours anyway regardless if you can see the polar lights or not.
Therefore ask precisely what happens if you have booked the tour and it’s pretty clear due to the weather forecast and / or the KP-index that the magical lights won’t show up on that night.
Further don’t think you necessarily need a tour to see the lights. There are spots in Rovaniemi where they can be seen pretty well (which means with only a little light pollution) and some of these spots can be reached by foot in 5 min to max. 1h, depending on where you are located e.g. the arctic garden behind the Arktikum (museum) is a popular spot and the top of Ounasvaara fell (Head a couple of hundred meters east of the Sky Hotel to the Tottorakka lift station) is another good choice. There is a 3rd place close to the Guesthouse Borealis.
Any location with no light pollution and an unrestricted view of the sky works – the darker, the better. PS: I haven’t been to any of these places as the sky was always cloudy but asked local people about their opinion and that’s what they told me.
My personal tips are: Check the websites mentioned and if the indications are good for that night book a tour on that day or the following if the weather stays stable or venture out alone!
I finally got lucky on the last possible night when I was already in Kemi. (See the 3rd post).
Nearly all tour operators in Rovaniemi organise one or more kinds of Aurora Borealis watching. You can choose to reach a place to see them by car or reindeer, by floating in an emergency dry suit in a lake, in the presence of a professional photographer (with additional tripods) or via a special night flight (the plane flies above the clouds with windows closed at all time) so if the KP-index is good they can be seen). The flying carpet option they announced for next year :)
Prices for these Aurora watching trips start roughly from around E 70 – E 400 for adults and last 2 – 3h in general.
PS: Remember they are free to see, all you need is walk to a suitable place.
Sieriporo Reindeer Farm
www.sieriporo.com / Email: ari.maununiemi@sieriporo.com / Cell: +358 40 845 87 54.
The family has done reindeer husbandry for over 200 years. The farm is located about 15km out of Rovaniemi by a lake you will get to experience the Lappish way of life.
They run different tours where you can see the farm, hop on a sleigh pulled by a reindeer or go ice fishing. You can also enjoy a night trip and hope to see some of northern lights which greatly depend on the mood of the arctic fox :)
Prices range from E 79 – E 149 for adults and E 55 – E 105 for kids up to 14 years of age.
Tours last 2 – 5h and transport from / to Rovaniemi, winter cloths and hot drinks plus traditional snacks are included.
If I had had more time I would have gone on a Fat bike tour for some hours.
Santa Claus Village, Arctic Circle:
Bus No 8 runs from the city centre of Rovaniemi to the Santa Claus village.
The place has plenty of restaurants, endless souvenir shops, a post office, 2 Santa’s, hotels (inclusive igloos) and tourist activities. You can meet huskies at the Huskypark (www.huskypark.fi / Cell: +358 50 541 51 58) and go with them on a teaser sledge-ride or a slightly longer one of 5 or 8km if pre-booked in advance. You can also hop on a sleigh pulled by a reindeer and other stuff. Obviously the are the arctic circle signs and a huge outdoor thermometer for selfie driven people. NB: Santapark was already closed in March.
Santa’s visit:
For many - funny wise for adults as much as for kids and for Chinese as much as for Germans no visit to the Arctic Circle would be complete without a visit of the Santa (free of charge). As I was here toward the end of the high season there were only few people. Be ready to queue for a longer time in Dec – Feb.
Fortunately or unfortunately according to different people there are now 2 Santa’s (or even 3?) at the Santa Claus village - the official one and the rookie.
So if you like Santas feel free to visit both of them. I preferred the surrounding of the official place as it is more elaborate and bigger but found the other Santa more sympathetic. In the end it comes to roughly the same. The price tag for photos is however high. Count on E 40 for about 2-3 photos and some additional free stuff on a USB.
Eat: Santa’s Salmon Place, http://santas-salmon-place.com/ Cell: +358 46 9585169
You’ll get a fresh piece of Norwegian salmon grilled in front of your eyes on the open fire plus some potato salad, mayonnaise and warm bread. Hot cheese with cloudberry jam can be ordered for dessert. Hot drinks are available. It’s a cute little place in the form of a Lappish hut and it can get booked up to the last seat in a very short time. You may need to wait for some time in high season but it’s worth the experience. The salmon meal cost around E 22 per person.
Inexpensive accommodation in Rovaniemi:
Guesthouse Borealis, www.guesthouseborealis.com, Cell +358 44 313 17 71.
It’s a long time runner just above the train station and about 1.2km from the city centre.
Room rates start from E 63 per person breakfast inclusive. There is a small kitchen you can use for cooking.
Guesthouse Outa (city centre) http://www.guesthouseouta.com/ Cell + 358 50 492 69 91. Singles E 53, no kitchen, no breakfast.
Hostel Café Koti, (city centre). www.hostelcafekoti.fi Cell: +358 44 796 13 33. Singles: E 102 / 10-bed dorm: E 30. Communal kitchen. Breakfast not included but they have a restaurant. Check-in: 15.00 – Check-out: 11.00
Food / Supermarkets:
There are many inexpensive supermarkets in town and some of them offer even hot meals.
And yes kiddies if you can’t live without Big Macs – you’ll even find a Mc Donald’s here.
Arktikum, Science Centre and Museum
www.arktikum.fi / Tel. +358 16 322 32 60
Prices 2018: Adults E 13, Kids 7-15y. E 6, below free / Family ticket E 30 for max. 2 adults and 2 kids 7+. Open from 10am – 6pm Tue – Sun. Most of the year the museum is closed on Mondays apart from June 1st – Aug 31st
There is also a culture pass for all the 3 museums in Rovaniemi including Korundi and Pilke.
Pilke is a museum centred on Finnish forestry with lots of hands-on exhibitions, great with likewise minded kids (its entry is right next door to the Arktikum and Korundi is a Contemporary Art Gallery a short walk away. Prices are: E 20 for adults, kids 7-15 years E 15, below free.
Martiini Knife Factory (outlet store)
Vartikatu 32. The shop is around 3-4 min walk from the Arktikum. Cell: +358 40 311 06 04
There is also a shop in the Santa Claus Village.
Here you can buy traditionally shaped Finnish knives (machine made) with very sharp blades. They come in a variety of sizes, handles and blades and make excellent gifts for skilled hands or otherwise great opportunities for doctors-in-training :)
Some of the knives are 2nd hand quality and cheaper in price. When I visited the shop a free name engraving on the blade of each knife was included. Prices range from E 15 to over E 1’000.
Sim Cards:
I got an unregistered Sim card from DNA from a local shop in Rovaniemi for E 10. For 1 week I had unlimited calls within Finland, inclusive SMS and mobile internet. For each additional day I paid E 1 extra. A great offer if you make and receive a lot of local calls.
15
tinevos800534
I loved Chengdu. We spend four nights there and I wish I could have stayed for a week. We just loved the atmosphere of the city, the nice people and the food. We took some time to relax at the hostel. walk through People's Park (next to our hostel), go to the panda's, do some shopping and visit Wenshu Monestary. We didn't even find the time to go to Leshan.
The problem is that it's all personal taste. We stayed at least three nights at one place (4 in Beijing and Yangshuo). That's a schedule that fits us best. Other people like to see more in a short period of time.
Speaking of Yangshuo: we stayed in a hostel outside the city of Yangshuo, rented a scooter for 3 days and had a great time driving around. Beautiful surroundings, guesthouse with a nice swimmingpool. Great place to relax.