Thailand!!! (9 months down)

Now currently in my ninth month here in China, and it has been a roller coaster ride these past nine months to say the least. A real combination of good and bad moments, but that can happen anywhere I suppose.

On to happier topic, Thailand!
My recent vacation to Thailand was unreal! I can’t exactly put it all into words, but it most definitely is a country I would visit again if given the chance but for longer period of time than my previous time spent there.

First stop in Thailand was the legendary Bangkok. I stayed at the “Bodega Bangkok Hostel” for three unforgettable and amazing nights in this unreal hostel. Great people, great food and location was all on point, but most of all the staff that works there is legendary crew of people when it comes to helping to book tours, organize drinking games for everyone at the hostel, Then we have Max gathering a crowd of people to go out and party for night usually at “Koh Sam Road” or just simply suggesting things to do or see. Either at night or during the day they know their stuff.

During the days was usually spent wit some people going to explore the city, markets, food and whatever else we could find during our time in Bangkok. I actually bought some traditional looking Thai clothing as is the tourist thing to do.

Cultural Day Tour
This day tour is offered by the hostel for a good price and is something I highly recommend seeing during your time there. You see a few different temples throughout Bangkok, a few river boats, try some cultural food and the tour guide if you happen to be so lucky is Suez. She is an amazing girl, to talk to and hang with, plus she knows her stuff about the city. If you're a car nut you can definitely bring that up with her, she will know than you expect and probably more than you!



During my last night there me and couple of people made our way to a Muay Fight for the night in style. We pilled six people into a small Tuk-Tuk for about a 40 minute drive, and everyone who seen us was just laughing and taking pictures of us, even the driver stopped and took a selfie with us haha. The funniest part was a cop whom just looked at us shook his and started laughing! The Muay Thai was an unreal experience to see and hear the crowd chant, roar and just experience that side of culture in Thailand. This lasted for about four hours, and we seen eight glorious fights and two K.O.’s that night. After this we know became a crew of seven of crammed into a small taxi back to our hostel to party around the city for one more night before some of us went our separate ways.


My next location was Phuket for about a week, where I again stayed another hostel the “Bodega Phuket Hostel”. Both hostels are owed by the same guys from America. Again I recommend staying here, you're close to beaches, street food, clubs, and not to far away by scooter, tuk-tuk or taxi to go see some amazing tourist attractions.

During my time here I actually met up with a friend whom I work with in China, we’re both teachers and I also ran into another girl I met previously at the Bangkok location which was hilarious. The staff here like the Bodega Bangkok is amazing, the food, the service and especially when I got a little bit sick the staff took me to the hospital and made sure I got the right medications and all. It was walking into a family or a close tight net of friends.

My first day here I went to see the “Big Buddha” temple with a new friend I met the night before. It was a really good day trip we just randomly took there and the driver whom took us there waited for us in the parking until we were finished. One thing I wish I knew was how close Kata Beach was to Big Buddha. My recommendation is going to see Big Buddha first during the day, and then making you way down to Kata beach for the afternoon. Kata Beach is beautiful, quiet, not too many people around and also has shops and food all within walking distance. 

Bangla Street
This street here is packed with clubs and bars to your left and right. It’s impossible to go to Bangla street at night and say you didn’t have a good time. The have indoor and outdoor clubs, same for bars, dancers, street food and to top it all off you're walking distance to Patong beach if you want to keep the party going with an amazing view! One thing I did notice about Phuket is the amount of reggae bars everywhere. I never been to a country and seen so many reggae bars/clubs in my life!

During my time in Phuket I took the opportunity to visit the islands nearby like Koh Phi Phi, Maya Bay, Monkey Island, and a few others. It’s a great way to see the island life of the country and also get some good seafood!

Beaches I recommend
Just a quick thing here. Beaches I recommend is Kata beach and Freedom beach, both are close to there hostel and its not crowed like Patong beach.

The worst part of my trip was flying back into China. The pilot flew from Bangkok, Thailand to Chengu, China, he was supposed to fly us to Kunming, China. I was stuck in Chengdu for 7hrs and then finally made it to Kunming, where I was stranded again for 2 days until I finally made it back to Harbin, China. In Kunming the original flight for us had left by the time we got there and had to spend the night in a hotel. Day one the we missed the flight back to Harbin, because most people do not understand the concept of a line or patience. Finally Day come along and I’m finally on my way back to Harbin. I would have to say this was my worst experience during my travels. I refuse to ever fly again with “China Eastern Airlines”. The amount of confusion I witnessed and experienced was like other I’ve experienced in my life.

Besides that bad experience and getting sick for a day in Thailand, I would say my trip was all in all an unforgettable journey and one I hope to experience again minus the delays and confusions at the airports!

New Post Alert!!! 6 Months Down

It is now officially been 6 long months living in Harbin, China, with 6 more to go. Occasionally still meeting some new interesting or cool people around the city, and also being introduced to some hidden gems or events within the city not many people know about, especially locals.

Since my last post a lot has happened in Harbin so far. I’ve been to a live music show in downtown Harbin, that most locals never knew occasionally takes place. The music was good and soulful, although I didn’t understand the words because it was in Chinese haha, other than that it was very good and relaxed vibe. Along with this we have stumbled upon some new cafes that similar life back home in the West or Europe. This is a nice change in pace from the normal routine of life here amongst the small expat community that resides in Harbin of simply going to bars or clubs each weekend.

Halloween was heavily celebrated in China more than I thought it would to be honest. Me and some close friends dressed up as 70’s Basketball team and I was there coach! It was a night to remember in Harbin. Met some cool people at some bars both locals and expats like myself.

SMOG ALERT!!!
When the weather begins to transition from Autumn into Winter here in China, there is heavy increase of smog throughout the country and masks are mandatory especially if you're a foreigner here temporarily or just simply want to protect your health, either way you should wear a mask!

It has started to snow here and to be honest I am actually looking for to winter here, as they have many ski hills throughout Harbin and outdoor activities such as the Ice and Snow show. This takes place throughout Harbin at various locations according to the information I have been given on this major event. Events that take are swimming in the river during the coldest period in winter, an ice city similar to the one in Montreal, Quebec only as I’ve been told it is much larger here in Harbin and also an assortment of games.

On the topic of winter activities that some locals in Harbin like to partake in is hockey. I was privileged to see a pick-up hockey game that one of my friends here plays in with some locals and police officers. The players here are actually really good at hockey from what I seen. I might also find a sport to play during winter to occupy some time here.

That is life in Harbin currently. Until next time!

Did a little Hiking

Fenghuangshan Geopark 

Did a little hiking in Wuchang, Heilonjiang, China at Fenghuangshan National Geopark. It was an amazing experience a truly great way to break in my 4 months of living in China!

This hike so was a work excursion with the school I work with here in Harbin. Great co-workers and leaders I honestly couldn't asked for a better environment to work in, especially since its my first time not only teaching in China, but living here too. The journey began from district in Harbin to Wuchang, which was a 5hr bus ride filled with games, trivia, laughter, food, a karaoke and of course some amazing country side views along the way.

When we finally arrived to our hotel, which was surprisingly a lot nicer on the inside than I would of expected after seeing some of the nearby hotels and motels along the way. As we entered the hotel we were greeted kindly, cleaned up and served lunch before our first hike which was 2500m that took about 2hrs to complete at a good steady pace. There was one view in particular I wish I could of gotten a better look at was, at one the viewing points on the peak of the mountain when the clouds parted a gave you a strong sense of just how high up you were from the bottom of the mountain.

After this we headed back to hotel cleaned up ourselves ate dinner together like a big family, gave toasts, went outside for some more karaoke, team building exercises and a little bonfire to end off the night. 

The second mountain was a 6000m hike with a lot steep steps, plus rain which made it a little challenging to hike through and navigate through safely, but luckily we all came prepared for the unexpected weather patterns. Throughout most the hike when weather was good believe it or not I practically ran up the mountain to each rest area just in case it decided to rain cats and dogs along the way up. I have since been called "Superman" by my coworkers and they wonder if I can fly haha! The entire 6000m hike took me around 4hrs at a relatively steady pace with my team. 

The views along the way and even at the peak of each mountain were breath taking "literally" lol

All in all it was a very rewarding experience of accomplishment, team building and like I said before a great way to ring in my 4 months living in China. 

 

 

This experience was even better, because it was with not just co-workers and leaders, but individuals who are very family oriented have now become family to me and make me feel more welcomed to this country.

Life in China PART: 2

Life in China Part: 2

Life in Harbin, China is still good and only getting better!

James, myself & chill locals @ The Fox Pub

Weather here in the summer I will say is similar to back in Toronto, Canada. What I mean is that the weather is very moody for example, it can be super hot here one day, cool the next or rainy which can leave expats who are still fresh to the environment here a little exposed to the possibility of getting sick more than they normally would in their own home country. When you think about it its honestly not that bad when think about it. Weather like this makes it easier to explore the city and meet other expats from around the world, locals who want to 

become friends, seeing new monuments or tourist attractions, and also getting the chance to test out just how much your Chinese has progressed or how badly your foreign pronunciation butchers the language lol All in all people usually always know or have an idea of what you are trying to say and some will help you with pronunciation. My Advice on the language meet locals who speak English or understand a great deal of English this can help you the language faster.

Since meeting some other expats here in Harbin, I have been able to meet a lot of new people, gain some insight on tips and tricks to survive here, and overall new experiences.

 
Jake & I outside Black Jack's Bar

This is Jake the Taxi driver I found who speaks English, which is a huge life saver at night time trying to get home or go out to meet some friends, especially after a good night of bar hopping or partying. I suggest everyone find themselves a Jake while in a foreign country! Very handy resource that not only has your back, but can also teach you some of the language, places to avoid and things to see and try during my time in Harbin.                                                             Boom Boom Room

One of the other local expats I met here in Harbin, who funny enough found me through my blog. His name is James, a really cool guy who like me is an English Teacher and is a big travel like myself which is good to have to exchange info or eventually plan a trip. Another local expat I met through James her name is Estefania, she is from Ecuador and a guy named Prince he is from Iraq. Like James they are super cool, down to earth and laid back people, the best expats I have met so far in Harbin; they know the language and there way around which is really helpful for someone like myself who has just moved here. My first experience meeting all three of them together was a great night started out a bar called the Madieer an then moved to a club called the Boom Boom Room.

Jake, myself & Lisa @ Ava Lava Bar
One of the locals here I have had the pleasure of meeting is Lisa. She is an amazing girl, speaks a fair amount of English which again for me comes in handy. I have tried some new authentic Chinese food with and a few other experiences, all in all what I can say about her is that is smart, down to earth and can hold her own!

Besides all the partying you have to go out experience some of the local life during the day for example check out a local park, a monument, just any tourist stuff you can do when its like piping hot outside and you feel like your melting like the witch from wizard of Oz.

Harbin is a big city but it has a lot of beauty in it and locals can help you experience that beauty, like trying a restaurant, certain foods, drinks, stores for better deals and of course for all us travelers out there; hook up on cheap flights and travel deals. Things you can't find or get just trying to Google it or using Trip Advisor. Those resources can only take you so far and in my opinion only occasionally scratches the surface of life here and what it can offer.

To end off this post I will say life here not what you expect or hear about, much any country. To get the full scoop you need to live and feel for yourself.

Images below are from a local Children's Park in the Daoli District, near Songhua River and Zhongyang Street (Central Street)

Two Months in China

2 Months down!

 So after two months of being in China I must say life here is still pretty good, normal ups and down but can't really complain.

Meeting some new foreigners/expats from time to time, and also making some new Chinese friends who are helping learn the language in exchange for helping them with English. One of the best deals I've gotten in China so far next to my gym membership!

I still say for anyone wanting to get into teaching English in foreign country and you are okay with the occasional or major in your face culture shocks, then China is the place for you. This is from people I have met in Harbin and people from other cities in China I have conversed with during my time in China so far.

The sun setting over river in Hulan, Harbin & sun down at Songhua river

Also was informed by someone I met here who is from Russia about a few different restaurants which are all you eat, a few good places for a nice prime steak and some beers/drinks to try during my time in Harbin. For anyone who knows me well, knows I like to eat and a good steak! For example my steak I ate at the Porsche Museum last year. It was around 38oz 40oz I think and hit the spot perfectly!

Still to come proof of the Walmart and the Beer festival!

Life in China!

Life in China after almost two months has been great truly cannot complain. Only problems I've is the language which I am still learning and the fact I've been sick here more than I usually do back home in Toronto. 

So recently I've been asked by my student's why I don't have a Chinese name, and trying to explain that young children can be difficult when some of them have different levels of understanding the English language. A friend of mine from Toronto helped resolve this issue recently "Jaleel in Chinese pinyin is 贾里尔 Foster is 科史達." So I will present this to my students one day soon and  hopefully its correct, or at least close enough for them to understand or correct LOL
I teach at two different school and, usually have a driver who picks me up from my home and back. Well one day my driver tells me he's a father, I say congrats! Then some Chinese hip hop comes on and he started bobbing his head, I don't understand a thing all I can say is that rapper must of been spitting fire!

Recently got brave and got a hair cut in China, as it is super hot here some days an having a lot of curly hair on your head isn't a good idea. As some of you may have already seen on Instagram, surprisingly it actually turned out good! I also introduced some Chinese girls to Trey Songz, because they've never heard of him before. That was the highlight of that week!
Being a foreigner here is like being a celebrity most days. People wanting to talk to me, always checking out my shoes, getting free stuff or discounts at certain stores and people wanting to take photo's with me. Also as you can see above free food and beer from my favourite restaurant.
Also found a Wal-Mart Super Center here of all stores! (proof coming soon)

Next I am looking forward to Harbin Beer Festival which will be taking place in about two weeks from now, which should also mark my two months in China. Stay tuned!