Comments on: First Nibbles in Xi’an…

By: Alivin clark

Alivin clark — Thu, 19 May 2016 13:08:14 +0000

Awesome I Love this

By: Natie

Natie — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 15:23:46 +0000

My niece works in Taiyuan and posts on Facebook everyday. VPN, she says.

By: Nina

Nina — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 15:23:55 +0000

IMO, China has poor hygiene, both environmentally and food cooking. Though Citadines is centrally located, the surrounding area leaves much to be desired. Matter of fact, between the hotel and main ave., we saw a boy doing # 2 on the sidewalk (noticed that children’s shorts has a slit in the crotch, hahaha). We never got sick, though… but always made sure that we only ate food that were fully/newly cooked or piping hot.

By: Nina

Nina — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 15:07:40 +0000

Hope you’re stopping by the hole-in the-wall, 100+ year old Lao Mi Jia Xiyangshi for mutton soup and the hopia bakery both by the Muslim Quarter/Market and Biang BIiang Mian for sheet noodles. We did stay at Citadines Central also which is just OK but the location is excellent. When we were there in Oct./Nov. 2013, there was a bombing at Tiananmen Square a few minutes before we arrived. There was a news blockout, nothing in the internet nor one can get info from the hotel. We only got details from a Fil. couple we met who mentioned that a Fil. doctor and daughter were among the casualties.

By: Marketman

Marketman — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 12:35:42 +0000

emsy, thanks, I haven’t found a single Coke Light so far, just zeros… :) And yes, someone told us to get a VPN, but was wondering if that violated any laws. cumin, we are off on a private guided market tour tomorrow, that’s on top of all the walking around we did on our own! hiddendragon, it is a wonderful treat, huge doses of culture AND food! But 2-3 days is enough…

By: emsy

emsy — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 10:55:31 +0000

VPN is the best way to get around The Great Firewall. I personally use Betternet. Just get it from the App Store and connect every time you need to get into banned websites. For translation, get Pleco app. It’s not the best for whole sentences but it’s a great app for words and phrases as it translates it to local usage.

Oh and I’m not sure if you’re still a Diet Coke drinker, but the locals call it “jienyee kuh-luh” for Coke light and “lingdu kuh-luh” for Coke Zero. Have fun in China!

By: cumin

cumin — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 10:08:20 +0000

MM, have you spotted the markets that take over some sidewalks early morning? Amazingly fresh produce and unusual food carts — they cook right in front of you, so good I skipped the hotel breakfast.

By: hiddendragon

hiddendragon — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 09:03:25 +0000

** Unsurprisingly, quite a few websites are banned/strictly monitored in China. FB is outrightly banned. Re gmail, you get a creepy feeling that somehow, someone’s has gone through your mailboxes. When i visited, outgoing msgs would take a few creepy seconds more before it goes out, and when mail comes in, it feels like, somehow, someone’s read it (like opening your luggage in the US, feeling funny, and finding TSA’s letter in there). Gmail sent from the Philippines to friends in China sometimes never get to them.
** I’ve read a few times that China employs a couple of hundred people who go through people’s email, maybe using some keywords like Tiananmen, 621, etc. AFAIK, “market manila” is not yet one of them.
** Xian remains in my bucket list. Should do it soon. If I get a visa.