Pingyao
After Beijing we headed to a small town called Pingyao which is famous for its walled old town, it was a lovely spot and the perfect place to recover from an overnight train ride!
Xi’an
Xi’an is best know for being home to the Teracotta Warriors, and although they’re no doubt a cool piece of history it wasn’t my favourite spot that we visited, maybe because it was like a mix of the new (Beijing) and old (Pingyao), both of which we’d already experienced!
Shanghai
I wasn’t expecting to like Shanghai too much, I’d heard it wasn’t particularly interesting and just felt like another big city. Instead I loved it, I think if I were to live in a Chinese city it would be Shanghai, it feels a bit more modern and fun than Beijing and the old colonial buildings give it an urbane and European feel in many areas, particularly the Bund. I also ended up having one of my favourite nights out here, I wasn’t particularly excited about going out and wasn’t in the mood to drink, but not wanting to be a party-pooper I tagged along. The club ended up being really modern and lovely, LCD screens on the wall and flower motifs everywhere, the music was amazing and it had the perfect number of people so you could dance without feeling crowded or awkward. Just like at the other Chinese clubs I’d been to watching locals get bottle service was amazing, they often have entire meals on the table and just as we were leaving one table got a tower of champagne glasses made with sparklers included and then it was set on fire!
