G'Day, Started off in Shanghai, took the Italian Diva on a early weekend morning run to Suzhou / Tongli (Jinjii, Taihu, Diashan Lakes) and the way back turned somehow into a temple run ending at the HQP Roadhouse Cafe & Restaurant Shanghai, brilliant day out with great weather.......
G'Day, Our Jialing JH600B-A sidecar (600cc, fuel injected, water-cooled, 4 forward gears / 1 reverse gear): http://www.jialingmotor.com , as used by the People's Liberation Army China: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People's_Liberation_Army
G'Day, Our Jialing JH600A (600cc, fuel injected, water-cooled, 5 forward gears) China ADV touring bike, will be extensively modified for long distance ADV touring around China.
Great pics. Are you based in Shanghai. I get up there a bit for work and am fascinated with the old BMW copy bikes that the Sideways Tours people operate. Recon I'm going to get me one. You have a lot to explore keep the pics coming
G'Day, Would stay far away from the POS Chang-Jiang sidecars, unreliable crappy bikes, owned a few and they are just nice to look at..... Get in touch next time your up in Shanghai, no worries....
Some pictures taken during a Moganshan Mountain weekend ride near Hangzhou (Zhejiang) for the usual trail riding....
Good Morning China!!! The picture shows part of Sanya Bay / Hainan Island, what an can I say, it's just another warm and sunny day in Sanya "Forever Tropical Paradise"..... Sidecar was picked up on Wednesday outside Sanya (Hainan Island) from a shipping company depot. Had to go over to Haitang Bay for a meeting and took the sidecar for a run in loose sand to check the capabilities before hitting the beach for a cruise. The JL sidecar is quite heavy (approx.400kg) and slow speed has the wheels digging in badly and loosing grip.....
On the way back to Sanya (Dadonghai District) checked out a bike shop apparently fixing HD's, CJ and JL's, typical crappy China bike repair shop with no spares in stock the way the shop looked. In case someone needs to visit the shop in the future, GPS: N018°14'332" / E109°31'181" (not far from the Sanya Downtown Duty Free Shopping Mall). Mate living in Sanya is trying to get his Chang-Jiang 750 sidecar (CJ750 = China BMW R71 1938 Copy) going again with the help of the bike shop but the rotten electrical system is quite a challenge for some time....
Lazy Saturday afternoon cruise picking up some moonshine rum from a well know Sanya bootlegger.... Some nice beach bars and guesthouses off the beaten track hidden away near Serenity Marina Sanya (Hainan Island). GPS: N18°12'888" E109°29'545"
With all the Xmas cheer and Santa in the sun around Sanya it was about time to dress up with one off my all time favorite t-shirts and hit one of the swanky Yalong Bay 5-star hotels for a ritzy Xmas eve dinner.
Great Mandarin Oriental hotel beach setting (Dadonghai) for a healthy boxing day breakfast with mates overlooking the East China Sea.....
Hainan Island is quite deserted off the beaten track, overcrowding only takes place at the hotel resorts located along Yalong Bay, Haitang Bay and the touristy spots like Yanoda Rainforest Park, End of the World, Nanshan Big Buddha, etc.... Spent two days up at Riyue Bay / Shimei Bay area (1.5hrs. from Sanya City) with our son surfing with the guys at Surfing-Hainan (RiyueWan). Brendan (Surfing-Hainan) and some guys hang out at some really deserted beaches with decent swells especially after a windy tropical downpour. Some Surf web-links for Hainan Island: http://www.surfinghainan.com http://www.surfinghainanopen.com http://www.sanyasurf.com http://travel.cnn.com/shanghai/play/hainan-riyuewan-best-surf-beach-china-217067
Some random pics taken in a hotel ruin with graffiti art on a hill top separating Riyue Bay from Shimei Bay.
Back at Sanya city and Yalong Bay area. Besides tourism and the ongoing scams and rip-off in seafood restaurants, Sanya's other big business is wedding pictures. Any day of the week you can find hundreds of wedding picture studios and couples along the beaches / parks taking tons of pictures. ******************************************************************* Weddings sky-high as costs of banquets, extras double By Hu Min | 2012-12-30 | Shanghai Daily Newspaper _________ SHANGHAI couples are expected to spend more on their weddings next year as prices of wedding banquets and other services spiral upwards. The costs of banquets have doubled compared to five years ago, whereas such service fees as photography has soared almost 90 percent in the past two years. The price for a wedding banquet stood at 4,000 yuan (US$645) to 6,000 yuan per table on average at local four- star hotels. At local five-star hotels, the cost is 6,000 yuan to 10,000 yuan per table on average.The Westin Hotel in Shanghai quoted about 6,888 yuan to 10,888 yuan, including a 15 percent service fee. The Yan'an Hotel prices banquets around 4,000 yuan to 6,000 yuan. In 2008, a table cost only a little more than 2,000 yuan on average for most four-star hotels in Shanghai. The increase will range between 10 to 15 percent next year, the Shanghai Wedding Service Association predicted. Despite soaring prices, some popular hotels said they have been almost fully booked next year except for a few days in July and August. The association said newlyweds' pursuit of lavish weddings has boosted the price in recent years, even as fewer weddings are held. It has been a trend for a year or two, He Lina, secretary general of the association, said yesterday. She said the price of wedding banquets has grown even though the prices of ingredients have not risen nearly as quickly. Menus vary slightly every year. The surging prices have been a burden on parents who have already saved money for an apartment for newlyweds. Higher prices force them to dip into their pensions, she said, even as they hope youngsters will stop trying to "keep up with Joneses." A July survey by Shanghai Wedding Exposition organizers that polled 3,000 couples who had booked banquets or were planning for weddings found local couples host 16 to 17 tables on average and many ask for help from parents. "Local couples are decreasing the number of tables as they are 'running a deficit' with cost outpacing 'red envelopes' with money gifts," He said.
After a couple of days business meetings and hanging out with mates in greater Sanya / Yalong Bay area made my way up north from Yalong Bay to Wuzhishan: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuzhi_Shan passing by the tropical rainforest park called Yanoda: http://www.yanoda.com/language/English/ Skipped Yanoda Park this time as I had to take overseas visitors twice to the park in 2012 and the two visits last me properly a life time, noticed quite a lot of real estate (villas / hotels) going up in the immediate area surrounding Yanoda Park.
