The bustling Muslim Streets in Xian - Xian, China

Halal Restaurant on Muslim Street

Since we were not going to Zhangye...we decided to be closer to the city centre and all its attractions like the Drum Tower, Bell Tower, Muslim Quarter, mosques and the shopping malls. We moved to Ancient City Youth Hostel near Be Dajie metro station.  Getting a cab was much easier with the help of the hotel security staff. We went to Muslim Street for lunch and dinner and we visited the Xian Great Mosque almost every day.  

The street is always full of people and most stalls open until 3 am

The food at the Muslim Street is cheap and tasty but you really have to observe the level of hygiene. Some places can be quiet dirty.  Some of the chefs wore inappropriate attires like sleeveless skimpy shirt. So we were selective about where we eat and what we eat to avoid any related illness. But you'll love the Muslim Street even if you're not keen of eating there. The vibrant streets are lighted with neon all days and nights, the shouting vendors are calling for customers and the creative candy man are pounding the sugar with all their strength.  There're so many activities going on and it's just an amazing scene. 

Just behind the Muslim Main Street, there were many shops which sell Chinese antiques, painting, clothing, shawls, souvenirs and just about anything you may think of. But you really have to be careful with the prices. The price difference from one shop to another can be so huge that you really have to be cautious.  We asked the price of a table runner from a shop in front of the mosque's entrance and he quoted RMB 185, That was really exorbitant as we already asked the price further down the lane where it was quoted for RM 40.  We did not bargain (do not bargain if you have no intention of buying, they might get annoyed) but the vendor slashed the price to 120 then to 85 and finally to 50. We kindly refused the offer because we did not bargain for any price and we walked off. I read the advice of other travelers, where they advised that the bargain should go for 50 to 70%, which I found to be perfectly true. 

But nevertheless, food is cheap and you need not have to bargain. Most of the food prices are labeled and you don't have to worry about being cheated.  I saw the food vendors charging the same price to the locals so no worries about that.  However, we saw an European man bargaining for food which made us smile and perhaps he was taking the advice of other travelers about bargaining.  

This fried pancakes with fillings are really yummy

He's mixing the sugar and nuts before pounding

Pounding the candy

Pound till it's flat

The candy is cut into pieces

Huge pieces are then packed for sale

Small pieces of rice cakes fried

At another stall they stretch the sugar

Then he twists the pliable candies

This bread is delicious when you eat them with grill lamb or chicken

Side road stalls

The street is full of people

A long stretch of the candy

The queue for food can be very long 

My first travel to China - Xian, China

Traveling Chinese style - Xian Railway Station, Xian, China

Due to my tight working schedule, my blog has not been updated for months.  I have yet to write about Xian, China and Aceh, Indonesia.  I was in Xian, China from 12 to 22 September and it was full of surprises.  On arrival in Xian at midnight of 12th September, I sort of sensed the difficulties we were about to encounter for the next 10 days or so. The immigration officers, customs and people at the airport speak only Chinese.  I scanned through the signage around the airport and everything is written in Chinese. I got back into the arrival hall and look for the information counter.  The girl spoke a little English and she showed us where to get the taxi. Feeling confident that I have printed my hotel booking confirmation both in English and Chinese, I joined the queue for taxi.

Soluxe International Hotel - spacious, very clean and good facilities

When it came to our turn we showed the address of our hotel in Chinese.  He talked in Chinese and soon the security man came to us and we handed him our hotel reservation letter in Chinese and after reading it, he directed the taxi driver in Chinese. We entered the taxi and I was surprise to see a taxi with steel bars separating the driver and the passengers.  I thought this must be part of the Communist practice.  The driver talked to us in Chinese and I kept shaking my head as a gesture that I do not understand him. Suddenly, he pulled off by the road side and asked us to get down.  Not knowing what's going on we refused to get down. He can't just throw us anywhere he likes...few taxis behind us were honking and a security man came to our window and he asked us to get off the taxi and using sign language he indicated that the car needs petrol. Ohhhh ok now we understand, but such strange procedure...the driver drove  into gas station and we walked towards the directed exit.  

The reception was quiet when we arrived just after midnight

Then, another cab stopped near us and we saw a foreigner arguing with his driver and refusing to get down. I knocked on his window and I told him "You have to get down here...he's filling up his tank." He's French and speaks English well...we had a short conversation with him and we bade goodbye when our driver was done.  The journey from the Xinjiang Airport to downtown Xian took about one hour and the taxi fare was Reminbi 150. 

Nice hotel

It was midnight and we were glad to arrive at Soluxe International Hotel , where we will be putting up for 2 nights. We purposely chose the hotel because of its close proximity to Xian Railway Station and we were planning to get the tickets to Zhangye tomorrow.  I did my homework on China, prepared my dialog script and my husband planned to use Google translate to facilitate our journey, not realizing that Google is banned in China and so are other social media. Like usual, we decided to do the tour on our own, but we did not expect that it will be a difficult journey for us.   

Xian Railway Station - huge building and full of people

Electronic board displaying the train schedule 

At the hotel, though it was a huge beautiful 4 star hotel, few staff spoke minimum English but most do not speak English at all.  Next morning, we went to Xian Railway station and like "Alice in Wonderland", we were utterly perplexed with our surrounding. Nothing in English, the train schedules were all in Chinese and we didn't understand anything. We spent a few hours browsing through the huge railway station packed with Chinese travelers.  I told my husband that we should give up on Zhangye,  not only the journey will be too long but we may get into more serious problem as it will be further north and we have very limited time. We have to manage our time efficiently and with the long queue and language difficulties, it would probably take the whole day at the railway station.  I also read that getting train tickets especially the soft sleepers need to be done at least a week before. 

We both agreed on the change of plan. We managed to get a taxi and lucky, the word Muslim brought us to the Muslim Quarters.  The rain never stops since we arrived and we just have to manage with the weather.  I was amazed with the crowd in the Muslim streets and bazaar regardless of the rain. The street were lined with food vendors and big restaurants.  Just go to any stalls and ask them..."Yuan?" and show them what you want.  They showed us their fingers or calculators to tell us the price and transaction was done.  We survived the day at Muslim Street and had great lunch at one of the Muslim restaurant.  The tender grilled lamb was succulent and delicious.  I love the spice they used which was basically crushed cumin and of course chilly flakes.  The aroma was so enticing that we ate like we have been starving for days!

The vehicle that took us back to Soluxe Hotel - RMB 20 (expensive)

The rain gets heavier and it's time to get back to the hotel. It was difficult to get a taxi and we had to be happy with this new transportation we found in Xian. It travels almost everywhere; on the pavement of huge malls, pedestrian path, back lane, narrow tiny streets and huge road. At some point, when the congestion got worst with these vehicles and other vehicles....they would stop, get down their vehicles, shout and quarrel with each other until they are able to make their way through the tiny lanes .  This vehicles even throng in crowded pedestrian lanes  and we were so close with the pedestrians that we could almost touch them. We were so glad to arrive to our hotel in one piece :).  And that was day one in Xian!

This is how close the vehicle gets to the pedestrians!

Buildings are huge in China

A brand that needs no translation :)

How simple traveling can be in China - you don't really need fancy suitcase

Day 1: raining day and night - in front of the rail station

There were huge crowd everywhere at the station

Trying to figure out what it says - hopeless

We bought an umbrella for 10 yuan

We spotted few Muslims at the railway station

We looked at the electronic screen...trying to make sense :)

Shopping at San Lorenzo Leather Market - Florence, Italy

Colorful quality leather jackets and handbags at reasonable price

San Lorenzo leather market is a popular spot in Florence and the number of visitors flooding the place justifies its popularity. I first come across this market while watching one of most inspiring journey of Samantha Brown aired on television and I thought one day I shall visit this place.I end up visiting this place twice in 2010 and 2012! Even if you are not planning for a shopping spree, a visit to Florence market would be interesting and photographing in this market is fun. But be careful with your belongings and beware of pickpockets around this area.

The market is just a short walk from Santa Novella train station.  It is fun with all colors around us and the noise adds to the excitement. Great place to shop for jackets, belts, purses and wallets for personal use and gifts. Many stalls along the streets have their main store just behind them and the owners speak English very well which makes bargaining easier.  Bargain quietly and politely, as some vendors can be pushy. 

You need a few hours or half a day to shop here and to give yourself time to observe the quality of the leather before purchasing. Quality can vary greatly from one stall to another so pick your items carefully.

Getting the feel of modern Istanbul

Beyond Galata is the modern Istanbul

Unlike the city of Sanandaj in Kurdistan that had made us felt so wanted like a celebrity, nobody gave a damn at us in the crowded Taksim.  From Sultanahmet, we took the tram to Kabatas and there we took a funicular to Taksim . It is nice to have a look at Taksim as it is known to be Istanbul's "Mecca of Fashion", the heart of modern Istanbul and the symbol of the secular Republic. But above all, Taksim is most remembered for it bloodiest Taksim Square Massacre on 1st May, 1977. Hence, even these days you'll find the presence of police at all times here. I was here before and it never change; people thronged through Istiklal Street and Taksim Meydani (Square) was flooded with people.

Istiklal Caddesi (Street), Taksim

From Taksim, we hopped on the Levent metro line with the intention of wandering in Istanbul biggest shopping mall, Cevahir in Mecidiyekoy/Sisly.  It was peak hour, the metro station was busy and the coach was full of young vibrant citizens; perhaps tertiary students or working professionals. I sat with my hands clasping onto my day-napsack…ahh.. how unfashionable I look in comparison to them. They were all dressed up in chic European style…yes it is Winter after all…time to flaunt your stylish winter jackets.

The coach was spotless clean but not until my "dog-nosed" friend sniffed something…she said in my language, “Do you not smell something like urine?” “Ermmm…I do…but I was engrossed looking at these people…they all seem well-dressed and the coach looks clean :)!” Unlike Konya, there are not many ladies wearing head scarves here.

Cevahir Shopping Mall, Sisly

As soon as the train stopped at Mecidiyekoy, we got off, saw the wide roads and pondered which direction would take us to Cevahir. Ahhh…I don’t want to waste time and so I kindly asked the man at the small petty shop for direction and he brilliantly showed us the way. I learnt this from my Iranian friend, Ebrahim…shout, wave and do what ever you can as long as you get your direction right and don’t waste time.

In a few minutes stroll we were at Cevahir Shopping Mall, it is so huge…just like any other shopping Malls in big cities in the world. Right in front, is a huge Starbuck Café…a house of its own. I never get to explore this part of Istanbul the last time I was here. Opened in 2005, Cevahir boasts to have 320 shops carrying several international brand names and local designers too.

Starbucks Coffee in front of the mall

Excitedly, we approached the entrance and was mildly surprise to find that all bags had to be scanned and we had to go through the normal body scan you would find in the airports. Nothing to worry as we’re absolutely bomb-free. We passed our security test and soon we started exploring each and every levels of the mall.

Half way the shopping spree, we decided to have dinner…after browsing the whole floor of eateries we opted for Burger King...what a choice! Anyway, I was trying to avoid the greasy Turkish food to save myself from any stomach upset.

Istiklal Street, Taksim

Near Taksim Square

Cevahir Shopping Mall

Shops in Cevahir

Taksim Neighborhood