China Travel Guide 3

[sweety_paige]

^Thanks for confirming this =)

[Lea]

grabeh. super hassle nman sis aleng_maganda. :/

[javazcript]

sis aleng maganda, grabe naman ngyari sayo..

if i may add, yung friend ko na nag punta sa shenzen last sept 14-18 (hk-macau-shenzen), i asked her na kung pwede eh tanong naman nya sa lowu boarder if nag iisue sila ng visa tlaga (yung visa kasi nila eh dito sa manila palang inayos through a travel agency), sabi nya hindi raw nag iisue ng visa fo Philippine passport holder...hindi na po nya tinanong sa officer kung bakit...so advice nya eh dito na lang daw sa manila kumuha ng visa, para walang hassle.

[sweetviolet]

to all my female networkers... let's post/share good and bad experience in your travel to Beijing. Me and my family will spend a 6 days vacation in this beautiful historic land. kindly share some tips and suggestions on where to stay, eat, shop etc

[mama squeak!]

Hubby's flying there later this month. It'll be his first time there. He's a foodie so I would be happy to get some tips too on good places to eat there.

[mommyjo]

to all my female networkers... let's post/share good and bad experience in your travel to Beijing. Me and my family will spend a 6 days vacation in this beautiful historic land. kindly share some tips and suggestions on where to stay, eat, shop etc

same here! we'll be going on feb.. hoping to get tips here! 

[m_lim]

madumi ang C.R as in! as in hindi ako humihinga pag mag pee. yung chinese food rin nila, hindi ko type. iba yung lasa from here or hk.

for me, must see ang great wall. hindi ko maimagine paano nagawa yon. shopping, so so lang.. mas okay parin hk.

[eibeib78]

madumi ang C.R as in! as in hindi ako humihinga pag mag pee. yung chinese food rin nila, hindi ko type. iba yung lasa from here or hk.

for me, must see ang great wall. hindi ko maimagine paano nagawa yon. shopping, so so lang.. mas okay parin hk.

Ang ganda talaga ng great wall of china sis, cute pa ng mga monks 

[theflygirl]

Hubby often flies to BJS but on a return-same day basis. But now that the route has been given to their equipment (with some flts on a 2day stay), I'm fixing my docs for my visa application. Will submit em after the oct/nov holiday when I come back from Singapore.

[mama squeak!]

^Haha nagpareho pala scheduling with 5J. They have 1 and 2 days overlay schedules. Kaya nga bigla ako mapapakuha ng visa because hubby has a 2 day overlay next month and sasama ako. I hope I get my visa on time.

[theflygirl]

^Ditto! Heehee...that's our plan, too. What's 5J's crew hotel there? PR's is Sino Swiss...btw, did you submit your visa applic personally or did you course it through an agency? Do they really require an NBI clearance? I'm too busy to go out and get all sorts of docs, with 4 kids and all so I was hoping to get by with the minimum number of documents. Haha. What the heck...Dunno about Nov flight sked yet...coming out sometime this week, though. Getting a Chinese visa lang for a spur of the moment trip...along with a Korean visa, been wanting to go back for the longest time...oops, OT...good luck with your visa...hope it arrives on time!

[mama squeak!]

^I think the NBI clearance and other docs are for first time visa applicants. I previously had a sticker visa so I'll just need to present that, my passport and booking certificate. I'll course it through our company accredited travel agent na lang. Hassle daw kasi pumila sa embassy as what I've read here. I've got better things to do than stand in line for hours at end 'no.   

Re crew hotel, naku di ko natanong but it's new daw and of course near the airport. Hubby said it takes around 30 minutes to get to town from the hotel via train. Pwede na at least libre hotel, pang-shopping na lang! Haha! 

[theflygirl]

Yes, it'll be my first time to apply for a Chinese visa. Oh, so that's why they require the NBI clearance. Guess I'll have to brave the lines. Speedy naman for renewal, kahit mahaba. Do you think it's ok even if I have no specific date for travel yet? Haha. Sigurista lang ako para anytime, pwedeng get up and go.

I checked out Sino Swiss, near the airport as well, of course. Hope it's not too far from the airport to be able to take the subway into the city.

True, big deal yung free accom.

[mama squeak!]

^As far as I know, they will be asking for specific dates. I just checked with our town office and madali lang naman daw mag-apply thru a travel agency even if it's your first time. Yun lang marami ka pa rin na documents na i-submit. Normal processing is 4 working days. They also have express at 2 and 3 days.

Teka when hubby was with PAL before they have liaison officers who process passports and visas including sa immediate family ng flight crew. I used to avail of that service before when I go on trips with him. Wala na ba yun ngayon?

Re airport hotels, they have shuttle services that can take you to the train stations. Lapit lang naman daw.

[theflygirl]

My hubby mentioned that to me, re the LOs. He just got back his passport after renewing his US visa last week. He hasn't submitted it to the office yet. He'll be renewing his Chinese visa next. Hmm, ongah ano, bahala na if I course it through their ofc. Even with travel docs kasi mahilig pa din ako magDIY, except when my dad was still active in the mil. LOL.

I asked an agent a couple of days ago, which handled my friend's applic (we come from the same korean air carrier, she's still working there), the LO told me it's ok even if no specific date, first time, extra docs, etc. 4days nga daw regular processing. On the form naman I saw the entry there..probable date of entry...

Hey, super thanks for all the info!  Sa uulitin!

[superbe]

just came back from beijing...bad experience coz we lost 1 of our bags sa airport. too valuable ang laman and i don't want to think about it anymore. One thing lang..you can never depend on the people to understand you. Even people who are supposed to be required to at least understand simple words. We reported it asap but too bad talaga. Good thing there is a chinese lady na marunong mag english. She became our interpreter sa lost and found section ng airport but still no positive response. In the end, we never found it.

Bring lots of wet tissue with you coz cr nila is really gross. Nasuka nga yung isang foreigner na kasabay ko. And to think na its a tourist place pa. Notice ko lang walang tubig kasi sa cr nila. Bring hand sanitizer din. Weather is cold na so bring thick clothes and boots. we took cathay pacific with 12 hr stop sa hk kaya we were able to do some quick shopping sa hk. Beijing shopping was a struggle kasi there are a lot of good stuff to buy kaya lang you need to bargain hard. Pag hindi price is more than double. Kaya nga lang they won't understand you kaya di ko magawang tumawad so less buy ako. Dami ko tuloy natirang yuan.

We took cebu pacific on our way back kaso close na money changer nila and nawalan pa kami kaya dala dala ko mga yuan sa bahay. Baka may gusto jan sa inyo.

By the way..mahigpit ang cebu pacific sa mga excess luggage. Strictly 15 kilos each lang. And 7 kilos ang hand carry. Take note..even hand carried bags are weigh. Mahal ng excess nila!

Have fun sa travel nyo mga sis!

[mama squeak!]

^sis sad naman nangyari sa yo.     I'll be going to Beijing next week with my hubby. I am confident di mawawala bag namin since operating crew sya. Naku magwawala yun pag may nangyari sa bagahe namin!
 

[sweetviolet]

we're back from beijing!
not as lively as Hongkong but the greatwall and other places of interest  worth the visit.
Sa Great wall, we joined a small group tour cost USD30/person. includes 13 emperors tombs. greatwall (mutianyu side)chinese food lunch at Mr. Yangs restaurant. jade factory, silk factory and the birds nest stadium. we stayed at Capital hotel club room. free in room internet, free  buffet breakfast were great, afternoon high tea, free beer, juices, coffee, etc at the club floor lounge. Good that it's near Wangfujing shopping area, walking distance to tiananmen square, forbidden city, china museum etc. may nadiscover pako na shopping area called Dazhalan daijie that sells super cheap china products . ang saya ng place lalo na sa gabi, feeling ko nasa Ming and Qing dynasty era ako LOL. we tried the subway train going to Xidan (shopping area too) Silk street is a must... dito masusubukan ang galing mo sa pagtawad, i bought one LV wallet (really look like an original) priced at 500yuan then super tawadako hanggang nakuha ko sa 30yuan hehe. i also bought a super nice pashmere winter trenchcoat for me (3 degrees ang lamig sa Beijing eh) also for hubby. priced 2800yuan, then kakatawad ko eh nakuha ko sa 120yuan! (saw the same brand sa greenhills priced at 4500pesos) peso to yuan conversion is P6.4 to 1yuan
i bought pasalubong like beijing assorted candies/dried fruits and preserved peking duck.... sooo yummy! 

downsides: very few people understand/speak english. if you will use taxi, be sure to have your destination written in chinese characters (use google translator) or ask help from your hotel reception, better if may map kayo to show .  noticed that some public restrooms are dirty/smelly. as in 
beijing airport super dull, and may tendency nga na mawala bags mo kase they didn't check baggage claim stubs.

overall, our Beijing vacation is one great experience! 

[mama squeak!]

^sis would you remember how long it took you to get to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall? Mas gusto ko kasi dun kasi it's not as touristy as the Badaling section. But mas accessible and nearer naman daw kasi ang Badaling. Hubby and I will be DIYing lang. We don't like tour groups kasi.

 

[mama squeak!]

Just arrived from Beijing. What a beautiful city! Can't wait to get back. Here's our short but funfilled IT.

We only had 2 full days in Beijing. We arrived past midnight of Tuesday and left early morning of Friday. I took Cebu Pacific kasi sumama lang ako kay hubby.

Departure MNL 09Nov/Tue 1935H, arrival Beijing 0005H/Wednesday

Wednesday morning - Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. We hired a taxi from the hotel for RMB500. Less hassle than commuting by train or bus. Left the hotel at 1100H arrived Mutianyu around noon. Took the skylift going up and toboggan going down the wall for RMB220/2 pax na. Stayed until 1400H. Back at the hotel by 1500H. Rested a bit at the hotel then rode the subway to Wanfujing (shopping area). Had dinner at the Donghuamen Night Market (still at Wanfujing area). After dinner rode the subway to the Olympic Park. Stayed there until 10PM. Then uwi na sa hotel.

Thursday - Left the hotel at 10AM and rode the subway to Tiannammen Square and Forbidden City. Had a late duck lunch at one of the restaurants at the area. Went back to the hotel around 4PM. Would have wanted to go around some more kaya lang hubby had to rest up a bit kasi he was flying the plane going home to Manila. At 1030PM left for the airport for our 1AM flight. Our hotel's just 15 minutes away from the terminal.

Friday - 1AM flight back home. Arrived Manila at 5:30AM.

Bitin-bitin talaga but looking forward to going back again. Sana may flight ulit si hubby next month so we can go back to the Great Wall when it's all covered in snow. Brrrr!