CHAPTER VI: THE FORBIDDEN CITY

After going to the furthest place we got on list, then we went to the central point of Beijing City, Tiananmen! If you've watched The Karate Kid before, you must've known this place! Yup, The Forbidden City is just right inside Tiananmen. And fyi, this place is so big! No scratch that, it's humongous! I thought I would only spend like one to two hours of sightseeing, but oh boy, I've never been so wrong. It was like I spent three and a half hours just touring around this place. The temples were all so picturesque that I gawked at them more than I took picture. Nope, not kidding there! Althoough it was frozen cold with sun shining so bright (if that even makes sense), but I really was grateful that I've got the chance to put the beauty of this place in frames with vivid colors and sunrays beautifully pouring in. Now, it's forbidden to not coming to this place once you get the chance, because it's really worth the time.

Hippie!

CHAPTER V: THE GREAT WALL

It's time for Beijing trip to make its debut in my blog! Multiple yeays for that! After struggling much in choosing and editing the pictures, it's finally here!

Anyway, when we talk about Beijing, nothing will come to mind but this super long, humongous wall for it is the icon of Beijing, Republic of China even. Yup, it's the Great Wall! The second we arrived in Beijing, it was the very first place we planned to visit. Not only because it is the icon itself, but also because it was the furthest among the places we had on list.

It was two hours from our hotel by bus. Going to this beautiful place was like going through some winding roads. On the bus station, we were offered so many tickets from various buses' ticket scalper which really made us confused like hell. We didn't know which one was the official ticket seller for buses that went to the Great Wall. But we found out eventually, which was kind of funny because there were posters with buses' numbers that went to the Great Wall written on it and that we didn't have to look for tickets because we paid by the time we got in the bus. Amazing, right? We were looking for the tickets that didn't exist in the first place like some crazy people, and at the same time surrounded by "zombies" that yelled at us for not buying their tickets, . Yeah, as crazy as that.

Finally, after reached The Great Wall, we couldn't be happier! It was simply beautiful, especially when we saw the sun was about to set as our view. Although the trees were bald, not having a single leaf at all, but the branch made beautiful silhouttes when it was hit by the orange-colored sun ray. Also, enjoying the remaining snows on the ground that fell the night before and admiring the snake-like wall that stood so strongly among the hills was some of the greatest moment of my life. It was truly worth the pain we had to go through.

P.S.: When you plan to go on winter, please do wear thicker clothes because the wind was not kidding! It blew without mercy upon us, adding the -5 Celcius temperature that froze us like meat put in a freezer. Absolutely cold to death!

Hippie!

CHAPTER IV: SHANGHAI, FIN.

The last day spent in Shanghai was really tiring yet joyful. I went to several places which were famous for its tourist's commercial area. But before doing the shopping, we first went to this cute cafe I can hardly remember the name which was located right beside the Mercedes-Benz Arena. Then, we went to the Chocolate Land and sadly didn't go in because it was somewhat TOO expensive for us, students, which is why I only took some pictures outside (yeah, the ones with the donut).

After that, we continued the journey and went to the Garden of Contentment or Yu Garden. It was a really beautiful place to go to because the architecture pretty much shows you how the old buildings in China look like, also because inside you can find so many shops to buy souvenirs such as bags, jewelry, painting, etc. You name it, they have it all.

To the next destination, I have Tianzifang which is a labyrinth kind of alley with shops and stalls inside that sell every single thing you can buy in tourist's commercial area, from souvenirs, painting, the traditional stuffs like Chinese traditional clothes, to bars and restaurants from many different countries. I even spotted Indonesian's, yet sadly didn't get the chance to take a picture of it.

We ended the day by taking a walk at Xin Tian Di, which is famous for its mixture of the European and old Chinese archicture. It was best to go at night because the lighting was picturesque. Most of the stalls here were eateries and bars, so when you're feeling hungry and craving for European cuisine, this would be the best choice you've got.

So as I said it on my previous post, this will be the last part of Shanghai's trip diary. Spending five days in Shanghai was more than enough for me to enjoy the city. It was really well-spent, going to the beautiful places, eating delicious foods, and getting the chance to know the city better. If somebody asks me would I go to Shanghai again next time? I'll undoubtedly say YES!

Hippie!

INTERLUDE

Hat (Thrifted), Shirt (Blackjack), Blazer (Taobao), Necklace (Thrifted), Pants (Easy), Shoes (Nike)

This is the interlude of my trip diary in Shanghai and Beijing, as well as the second last part of my trip diary in Shanghai and Beijing. Today I'm gonna talk about my outfit that day which was perfectly captured on top of the Oriental Pearl Tower Observatory Ball in the afternoon, and in Tianzifang, European inspired street, at night. Have I told you that the Observatory ball of Oriental Pearl Tower has the transparent glasses that we can see the city beneath our feet and that it was really scary to sit in there? I thought I have told you on previous post, but it's okay to tell you again.

In this ensemble, I'm making it sporty dapper as I was wearing this beautiful red velvet blazer I bought in Taobao, the online shop sent from heaven in China, which made the outfit look dapper but then I gave a little bit sporty twist on the footwear as I was wearing these will-be-forever-cherised-by-me Nike sneakers. Oh, credits to the hat for giving the outfit some elegant vibes and the necklace for the edgy ones.

The best part about wearing this ensemble in Shanghai was that nobody gave a damn about how I dressed up, and that's what I'm expecting to be like in Indonesia someday. *fingercrossed

Hippie!

CHAPTER III: THE ICON

It's finally here, the iconic Oriental Pearl Tower! I've been seeing and admiring this building in so many photographs in magazines or on TV, but seeing it with my own two eyes is just amazing! The building itself, as the world knows as the icon of Shanghai city, is simply beautiful! The view from the top of the building was breathtaking. It would've been better if I went there at night because of the city lights, but remembering that the queue might be somewhat crazy and too long, my friends and I decided to go there in daylight and we didn't have any regret at all because the view was just as wonderful! There was this observatory area where the glasses we stepped on were transparent and I was surprised to see that I could see the city underneath my feet. It was so cool, yet so frightening! Can you imagine if the glasses broke? I'd end up like meat chopped in pieces, like real pieces of meat! Ew, we don't want that, do we?

Anyway, the building is not just about that! It also has a theme park for children, again. After finding one in Century Park, I found another one in this iconic building. And yes, I rode the roller coaster, again. It was fun, though! Haha. After having the time of my life (by that I mean riding the roller coaster part), I went to the museum which was located on the first floor. I've got nothing much in there because of the battery issue. Over all, the Oriental Pearl Tower deserves to be the city's icon for its beauty!

Oh, the Chinese words on the photo means "Welcome to Shanghai".

Hippie!

CHAPTER II: CENTURY PARK

I found out about this park on the internet when I searched the recommended places for tourists in Shanghai. The city has too many parks, I must say. In my list, there were at least 5 parks that were recommended for tourists to go. However, there was only one that I eventually chose, which is Century Park. This park was beautiful! It wasn't just like any park that I've been to, because every five meters I walked, I emitted "woaaah, beautiful!" kind of (embarassing) expression. It's no wonder, because for me, this park is the Chinese version of New York's Central Park or not better, though I've never been there before lol. When you're in Shanghai, make sure to give this park a visit because the view is simply amazing AND, it also has a mini theme park. I really enjoyed riding the Pirate's Ship ride there. It was for kids, though. But still, it was really fun!

Hippie!