I found China!

After two weeks in Shanghai.. hidden behind yet another bunch of tall glass towers, and past two blocks of tourist shops, i found China!

I was starting to think they didn't have any left!

Random pics...

Allright, let's be honest, there isn't much happening here these days! So here's a little selection of some random pics i shot here and there..

Bund underpass to Nanjing road

City Plaza mall

City Plaza mall

On my way to work

Cool ad!

"What's-its-name" temple surrounded by glass towers

Ginseng tea

Yet another huge mall

Reflection of the government house on People Square

Reflection of an ad in Sintian Di

Reflection of the Urban Planning museum

Reflection of my hotel
..that's quite a lot of reflections!.. they're just funny i guess!

Fog on the bund

Shitty weather tonight!





The cool thing about these digital cameras is that you can shoot in complete darkness without a tripod! (and since they make blurred pictures even in day light, you seldom notice the difference!)

The land of the rising sun...

Trying to be a photographer in the land of the rising sun gives you two good reasons at once to wake up at dawn! And it's pretty tough for a late sleeper like me!

Here some "Shanghaines" performing their early Thai Ji session.

What shall i eat tonight?

One thing you get to learn quickly when you travel is "don't ask questions and eat!"... it even happens to be good sometimes!

Aside from the inconvienience of this type of menu, the hardest part about ordering food in chinese restaurants is that, chinese usually eat 4 or 5 bowls of different things together, so you're supposed to pick not one item from the menu but a bunch.. but then when you're alone you end up with way too much to eat!... this is all very confusing for a stranger like me!

Another thing to note is that when you ask for a glass of water (and you have to ask because apparently chinese never drink with their meals, except for soup or tea), they bring you a glass of hot water! Surprising at first but that's how it is.. in France it's room temperature, in the US it's crazy cold half frozen, and here it's hot! just got to know it!

The Great Firewall of China

In the midst of all this crazy high tech and unleashed economy environment I was almost forgetting the past -and present- realities of China!
Aside from being a very funny pun for computer geeks like me, this "great firewall" a reality which, amongst other things, prevents me from accessing my -or any other- blogspot page.. (this is also the reason why I don't answer any comments, for those of you who asked!)

... I was about to add a pretty sarcastic comment, but let's face it.. i don't have the balls! What do i know about this country? I may disapear myself, just like my website did!

"Light paintings" on Nanjing road

These neon signs are just never-ending fun!





And to end the evening.. "knocking on heaven's door" by a chinese band at the ARK's!

Zhouzhuang

I woke up at dawn this sunday..


To go visit the village of Zhouzhuang (pronounce.. er.. forget it!)

A very pretty -and very touristic- village 2 hours away from the city.. kind of like a smaller chinese version of amsterdam!!




Oh.. and for lunch I had a full Wansanti all by myself, along with "grandma's tea"!

I had to do it!

Well.. OK, now I look like shit! But that's what's cool with hair.. it grows back!

Shanghai by night..

...is all i get to see since i'm stuck in this stupid open space office all day! can't wait for my first week end here!

So here's People Square..








And Nanjing Road...

The biggest "china town" I've ever seen!

You would have guessed it, everything is in chinese! Everything but the brand names that is! It's all the more striking that they're the only words you recognise in latin alphabet..

As soon as you're out of the airport, the number of giant posters advertising for Budweiser beer, Buick cars and Hooters restaurants, give you a fair idea why Mr Bush is so friendly with his good old commies pals!
Then when you reach the new city of Pudong, you really feel at the heart of the "world company"! Every major western brand owns a tower here.. Opium has been replaced with electronics and fashion products but it seems to me that Shanghai has always kept its role of dedicated entrance port for foreign investment in China!

Flight AF114 Paris-Shanghai

It hasn't been 2006 for 72 hours and I've just reached China! Happy travelling year everyone! Having said this, it's been raining cats and dogs since i got here and i'm jetlagged to the core.. so i'll get back to you when i'm awake! Below some quick snaps of my first impressions!

my first chinese meal at the office

Out of the blue..

My first photo exhibition!
Paris, december 2005.
Come check it out!

As everybody keeps yelling that i never post anything on this blog.. well here's a little something!

First i thought i'd include a little map of the trip, generated on airtrecks.com.. it's not too accurate but it gives a rough sketch of where i'm supposed to go..


My recent trip in India (don't forget to check pictures at http://joune.free.fr/photos/thumbnails.php?album=20 !) taught me a few things..

• travelling with a guitar isn't that much of a hassle and can be really convienent when waiting for a train for 5 hours.. (it also works great with kids!)
• i didn't find time to post a single word on this blog in a month i was away.. not too good a sign!
• processing films in India for 20Rps a roll sounds like a great deal but i got all my films scratched!
• film quality does matter!.. how will i be able to buy quality films when i'm travelling??
• No use packing ten pairs of pants and 20 shirts.. you can live on a couple of pants and shirts for months , it's easier on your back.. and you'll end up buying stuff along the way anyway..
• 30 hours by train isn't such a big deal, at least in India.. there's always tons of things happening out the window and you can play the guitar to kids to kill time..

Mmm.. i guess i knew all that already.. what exactly was i trying to say in this post??

Oh and i checked
http://www.transsib-travel.com/transsiberien_individuel.htm
for my transsiberian trip.. wonder if i should go with them or just get to russia and figure out my trip from there! any suggestions?!

..later everyone.. next post in two months!

Second post! In english this time!
I think we're going totally wild in here!!

So here's the thing.. I didn't create this blog only because I think my life is sooo interesting!.. as a matter of fact, so it happens that, starting in April 2006, I'll be taking an 11 months leave from work (and salary! sic!) to travel around the world!

.. Ok everybody does it! Yet it's necessarily unique for each and everyone!

As I'll be travelling alone, I thought this may be a good option to stay in touch with my many many friends!.. So if anybody ever reads this, chances are that he/she will be english speaking..

Well, ok i'm not gone yet.. so you still have some time before it starts being interesting at all!

In the meantime, I'll try to keep you -anxious readers- posted on my preparations to that formidable experience!.... only i'm not really preparing much so far!

Let's start with the first draft of my planning.. If nothing else I'll be able to monitor how much I shift from my original plan!

Here it goes:

• April - May - June
• Germany
• Poland
• Bielorussia
• Russia
• Mongolia
• July - August - September
• China
• Tibet
• Nepal
• India
• Myamar
• Indonesia
• October - November
• Australia
• New Zealand
• December - January - February
• Ushuaia
• Argentina
• Chili
• .. and back to Paris..
  

As I write this I realize it's probably already more than I can handle in the timespan I have.. we'll see..

Now don't even try to tell me "Oh you're not going to Africa!".. I know!
I'll need a whole new trip for Africa alone! and it just won't fit in this itinerary..

Now how am I going to go to all these places??

Ideally, I'd like to make it all the way to Indonesia without flying.. by trains and buses, bicycle, hands and knees..
sounds a little tough doesn't it? I'm not sure..

After that I don't think i'll have too much of choice to get to Australia and New Zealand and south America.. The ocean is not an option!

I've also started to think of what VISAs I need..
http://www.action-visas.com
has good info on this.

That's it for today... It's the second and biggest blog post I ever made!
(life is full of small satisfactions!)