Guangzhou (Canton), China
Going to Mainland China
I was so excited for this day. Marc and I were traveling to Mainland China for the very first time. We booked the trip from our hotel, the J.W. Marriott. The day long trip, a very long one, began with a representative for the tour picking us up at the hotel very early in the morning. I believe is was still dark when they arrived. Anyway, we were ready and just waited for them at the lobby. From there we traveled to other hotels both in Central and Kowloon to pick up the other tour participants. Most of our fellow travelers were from Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Marc and I were the only ones from the US save for another couple from the Midwest.
Our arrival by ferry in Mainland China
I was quite surprised when I found out that part of the tour was a visit to a wet market. I guess it was a novelty to some of our travelers but definitely not for me. Coming from the Philippines and living just a hill away from SF Chinatown, it was a scene I see on a regular basis to this day.
A fish vendor in the wet market
Fish, anyone?
The next stop for us was a trip to the Guangzhou Zoo.
That's me right before entering the zoo with our tour group.
From the zoo, we had a stop in a local restaurant for some Chinese food for lunch. Coming from San Francisco where a huge Chinese population principally from Southern China resides, I get to eat very tasty and real Chinese food. The food I ate here was so similar to the food back home. In fact, there was hardly any difference.
Marc on the commercial street where our Chinese restaurant was located
Here I am acting cool although deep down I was really ecstatic to be in Mainland China.
This is the restaurant where we had lunch during our tour. I wonder if this place has survived the modernization that has taken place in Guangzhou.
The facade of the restaurant where we ate
With flash
