poatina lonely planet

10 Places I LOVE Which Aren’t Even In The Lonely Planet!

I use the Lonely Planet Guide Booksquite a lot when I travel and I like them. Usually they are correct, mostly they are useful but sometimes they are horrendously wrong and ill-informed. As soon as they go to press they are out of date, as prices go up, bus timetables change, visa regulations change etc. Read more about 10 Places I LOVE Which Aren’t Even In The Lonely Planet![…]

jinjiangli village china kaiping

Kaiping Diaolou Tour: Jinjiangli Village, Guangdong Province, China

If you have read my first two posts (Chikan and Majianglong) on the Kaiping Diaolou Tour in China’s Guangdong Province and were awaiting the next installment, then here it is finally. A little later than billed but you know how it is. On the second morning in Kaiping we headed out to Jinjiangli Village to Read more about Kaiping Diaolou Tour: Jinjiangli Village, Guangdong Province, China[…]

Hong Kong to China Hung Hom Guangzhou train

World Borders: How to get from Hong Kong to China (Hung Hom to Guangzhou Express Train)

In my ongoing series of World Borders, I give you the ins and outs of crossing borders around the world. Having spent 2 years living in Hong Kong and having been to China over 10 times, I know a bit about the different borders that exist between these two countries or two parts of the Read more about World Borders: How to get from Hong Kong to China (Hung Hom to Guangzhou Express Train)[…]

Kaiping Diaolou Cluster Village World Heritage Sites

Kaiping Diaolou Tour: MaJianglong Cluster Village, Guangdong Province, China

Continuing on from my first post on the historic town of Chikan on the Kaiping Diaolou Tour, we headed to MaJianglong next. This is basically a cluster village within the Kaiping Diaolou range of World Heritage Sites. The Cluster village contains scattered towers and is situated deep in the countryside. You will need a ticket Read more about Kaiping Diaolou Tour: MaJianglong Cluster Village, Guangdong Province, China[…]

Relaxing at the historic town of Chikan in Guangdong in China

Kaiping Diaolou Tour: The Historic Town of Chikan, Guangdong Province, China

My recent China adventures have been wide, varied and definitely “off the wheaten craic“. I feel blessed by my visits to the country which houses a sixth of the world’s people and I’m happy that I can share all these stories with you. This will be the first of an installment on the incredible Kaiping Read more about Kaiping Diaolou Tour: The Historic Town of Chikan, Guangdong Province, China[…]

eel fried rice in Kaiping in China

Friday’s Featured Food: Eel Fried Rice in Kaiping, China

Today I head back to China (a country I LOVE visiting) for Friday’s Featured Food. I was loving the Kaiping Diaolou Tour in and around the city of Kaiping (called Hoi Ping in Cantonese) and it was time to eat. China with its endless range of foods needs to be sampled. I admit to not Read more about Friday’s Featured Food: Eel Fried Rice in Kaiping, China[…]

Jonny Blair heading to China from Lam Tin

World Borders: How to get from Hong Kong to China (Kwun Tong to Huanggang, Shenzhen)

In my ongoing series of world borders, I basically write about the ways to cross various borders, aiming to give an account of my personal journeys and help you to copy me and get into a new country without fuss. Having crossed the Hong Kong to China border so many times and in almost every Read more about World Borders: How to get from Hong Kong to China (Kwun Tong to Huanggang, Shenzhen)[…]

Jonny Blair peeking behind the scenes at a Chinese factory

Exclusive: The Day I…Went Behind the Scenes in a Chinese Factory!!

You know all those things you hear about Chinese factories? Over working, long hours, bad rates of pay, moaning staff, slavery and that stupid term “sweat shops” (which I hate)…well it was time to try and dispel some of these myths, or indeed prove them to be correct as I got an exclusive visit – Read more about Exclusive: The Day I…Went Behind the Scenes in a Chinese Factory!![…]