Author Topic: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)  (Read 51176 times)

Offline damaxer91

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #120 on: July 12, 2015, 08:15:31 PM »
Great stuff!

Pretty sure that the Great Wall Sheraton was the first Western hotel to open in Beijing

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #121 on: July 12, 2015, 08:29:47 PM »
Great stuff!

Pretty sure that the Great Wall Sheraton was the first Western hotel to open in Beijing
thanks!

not sure much has changed in the hotel since that time

Offline Tzfas

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #122 on: July 12, 2015, 08:40:02 PM »
Great report !! Thanks for taking the time to write and post.

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #123 on: July 12, 2015, 08:46:23 PM »
tnx, yw

Offline Moshe123

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #124 on: July 12, 2015, 09:22:18 PM »
Awesome TR

Offline morgs

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #125 on: July 13, 2015, 08:14:29 AM »
Amazing TR-Thanks again for taking out the time!! Could not stomach the pics of those creepy crawlies (totally blew the appetite I worked up from Dan's TR ;D :P)

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #126 on: July 13, 2015, 08:26:17 AM »
Awesome TR
thanks

Amazing TR-Thanks again for taking out the time!! Could not stomach the pics of those creepy crawlies (totally blew the appetite I worked up from Dan's TR ;D :P)
yw

Offline sammy n

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #127 on: July 13, 2015, 09:12:00 AM »
Unreal! Thanx for writing such an amazing TR!! Did you book all those hotels on points?

Offline Proisrael

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #128 on: July 13, 2015, 10:19:37 AM »
Great TR!!!

How bad was the smog? The pics from the hotel made it look pretty bad...

Also how much was it to hold the Panda?

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #129 on: July 13, 2015, 11:25:27 AM »
Unreal! Thanx for writing such an amazing TR!! Did you book all those hotels on points?
thanks!, your welcome, either points, cash + points, or free nights

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #130 on: July 13, 2015, 11:28:39 AM »
Great TR!!!

How bad was the smog? The pics from the hotel made it look pretty bad...

Also how much was it to hold the Panda?
thanks!!!

i didnt really notice it

arm + leg, as i said, it was a splurge.  since this was a solo trip, for all intents and purposes it was 75% less than what i am accustomed to. thus, a splurge here and there didnt sting as much

Offline sammy n

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #131 on: July 13, 2015, 11:45:47 AM »
thanks!, your welcome, either points, cash + points, or free nights
Wow! That must have been a lot of points.

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #132 on: July 13, 2015, 11:48:08 AM »
Wow! That must have been a lot of points.
whoops, my bad. the sun-thurs at the rosedale in beijing was paid (group rate)

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #133 on: July 13, 2015, 02:35:29 PM »
After around a 3 hour flight on Air China,



I arrived in…


Taipei, Taiwan

I quickly exited the airport and got on the Express airport bus to my hotel, the W Taipei.



This was my first time in a W and I didn’t particularly enjoy it. The hotel was nice; it was hip and cool, but maybe a bit too hip and too cool for me. I felt out of place. I guess I’m officially over the hill, certainly not young and hip. The part I most enjoyed was the Toto.





Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #134 on: July 13, 2015, 02:35:54 PM »








Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #135 on: July 13, 2015, 02:36:02 PM »
Since the hour was late, I put my stuff down and then headed out to the National Palace Museum. It houses the world's best collection of Chinese historical artifacts and antiquities. It was established in Beijing in 1925 but was smuggled to Taipei in the 1940’s, under the noses of the Communists. Even today, China demands its immediate return.





Although I’m a museum guy and can spend days oohing and aahing in quality museums, the Chinese antiquity just doesn’t talk to me. I don’t understand the antique jade dragons, the calligraphy, and the paintings don’t do anything for me. Although I did appreciate some of the early ceramic stuff.

I wanted to visit the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, but time didn’t allow for it, so I went directly to Taipei 101.

Completed in 2004, the building is designed to resemble bamboo rising from the earth and was the world's tallest building until 2010 when it was eclipsed by the Burj Khalifa.







Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #136 on: July 13, 2015, 02:36:13 PM »
It boasts the world's fastest elevators, which will zip visitors up to the 89th-floor observation deck in a mere 37 seconds at 37.7 mph.





The ideal time to visit would be in the late afternoon when you spend a couple of hours and see both day and night views of Taipei.






« Last Edit: July 13, 2015, 02:39:32 PM by moish »

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #137 on: July 13, 2015, 02:36:19 PM »
I then took the subway to the Shilin night market. I had thought it to be a typical Asian night market, but that was not the case. It was just stores selling regular clothing and lots of food. It was also very packed. I finally found a store selling a limited variety of souvenirs in which I did my obligatory souvenir shopping.









Original and cleverly named beer


I headed back to the W for the night before making my way to the airport the following morning…
« Last Edit: July 13, 2015, 02:40:16 PM by moish »

Offline srf60

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #138 on: July 13, 2015, 03:38:23 PM »
Great TR, but being that you went solo, your wife let you out for some three weeks?!?!

Offline moish

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Re: Hopping Around Asia (Mostly)
« Reply #139 on: July 13, 2015, 03:54:49 PM »
Great TR, but being that you went solo, your wife let you out for some three weeks?!?!
more like 2 weeks

not taking away from her for allowing me to go, which im grateful for, but she was enjoying the extra time spending with her family in the US. a classic win win