C & C globetrotting around the world…

All paths lead to Beer… I mean Qingdao. This is where the famous Chinese Beer “Tsingtao” comes from, which was first brewed by the Germans around 1900 when they built this settlement. The architecture in the city really testifies to the German times and it’s nice to see. Although some buildings are not in very good shape, some of them are really nice. There are also a Catholic Cathedral, a Protestant Church and the former residence of the German’s governor’s which is a replica of a German palace now called Qingdao Ying Binguan. The legend says, that when the German Emperor received the bill for this luxurious mansion he sacked the governor!

The weather was also better (blue sky! and breezy). Here we finally gave in to the temptation: KFC. It is the sign most often seen since we got to China and today we were hungry, so we didn’t feel like searching for a restaurant and gave in. The alternatives we came across were all very fishy (literally!), there is fish, dried fish, live fish, ugly fish everywhere. We also went to the Zhanqiao Pier and its Huilan Pavilion (which is now the symbol of Tsingtao beer) and walked along the boardwalk. It’s funny to see people bathe in water where we wouldn’t even put our little toe, but I guess it’s all relative. Walking further along the water through Lu Xun Park we got to Little Qingdao (an artificial island built by the Germans in the bay) and its Lighthouse (the old symbol of Tsingtao Beer). From here the view of the city was very nice and Christoph was able to take his panorama pics again.

We must say so far the hostel in Qingdao was the best. The atmosphere was great, we met lots of people and in the evening there was a dumpling-making party. We made jiaozi filled with pork and some with carrots and eggs. It was hard making the round shape (Christoph’s had no shape at all) , but it was fun and they were also pretty yummy. The next day we headed with our new “dumpling”-friends to the Tsingtao Brewery for a tour and beer. We got to sample an unfiltered brew and then the original one. The funnest part was the “drunken room”, a room with an inclined floor. Unbelievable, but it really did feel like being drunk. We then chilled at the brewery bar, had the stout and saw kids drinking beer with their parents. The following day the Tsingtao Beer Festival was starting, so a lot of people were in town for that. We had our own little party at a small street “restaurant” in front of the hostel to have cheap beer and food ($8 for food and drinks for both of us all night!). Good times! The funny thing about Qingdao is that people buy and carry beer in plastic bags.

Qingdao (and the beer) certainly helped to lift our mood after 1 week in the middle of nowhere. We also got some good tips from other travelers and the good air of the coast certainly helped our lungs, too.