Category: 旅のエッセイ / Travel Essay

I managed to find a low-cost ticket to Taiwan for the last New Year’s holiday. However, for this year, the days passed by without finding a good plan. I thought departing on December 31 or January 1 would be best to avoid the year-end peak, but due to my work schedule, I had no choice but to return on January 4. The schedule was a bit tight, but it was too long to laze around at home. I knew I should do something, but I did not know what to do. In other words, I knew that I knew nothing. This may be Knowledge of Ignorance according to Socrates.

After returning from a trip to Uzbekistan in late September of last year, I noticed that All Nippon Airways (ANA) was running a campaign offering award tickets at half of the usual mileage. Since New Year’s holiday was a peak season, I assumed it would be excluded from the campaign, but mainland China routes were actually eligible even during the period. However, I had visited Sichuan in August and was planning to go to Guilin in November. I had a feeling that I should find a place other than mainland China.

That was when Hong Kong came to mind.

That said, the Hong Kong route was excluded from the campaign during the New Year holiday period. However, Guangzhou in Guangdong Province, where is also serves as a gateway to Guilin, is surely in mainland China. Taking a high-speed rail from Guangzhou to Hong Kong takes just over an hour. The award ticket was on the waiting list, but on the campaign’s final day, I decided to take a chance on Guangzhou route.

When I looked into it again afterwards, I found that ANA also flies to Shenzhen, right next to Hong Kong. I remembered that I had taken a high-speed boat from Hong Kong International Airport when I went on a business trip to Shenzhen few years ago, so it was an unexpected airport option. Moreover, the Shenzhen route, operated by Boeing 787, likely had more available seats than the Guangzhou route, which used Boeing 767. Shenzhen may be a better workaround for getting to Hong Kong than Guangzhou. Unfortunately, by the time I realized this, the promotion had already ended an hour before. Since it was just a spur-of-the-moment idea, I suppose that’s all it was.

There was no point in fretting, so I decided to just wait and see what happened.

It is said that good things come to those who wait, but there was no way I could do that. On the next day, I found a way to check the number of people on the award ticket wait lists. According to that, there were only two people on the outbound flight, apparently just my wife and me. The problem was the return flight, which had over 25 people on the waiting list.

I did not think things would go that well, so I decided to buy a ticket to/from Shenzhen while prices were still low. It was about half the price of direct Hong Kong ticket. Since January is the dry season in Hong Kong, I would say I found a real bargain.

In any case, this is the exact opposite of “good things come to those who wait.” In a way, though, it was exactly as I expected.

My last stay in Hong Kong was on my way back from a tough business trip to Shenzhen, so I treated the air ticket as a freebie and stayed at the InterContinental. It was a hotel with a convenient location and stunning views of Hong Kong skyline. This time, I checked a booking site without giving it much thought and found that rates seemed to reflect Hong Kong’s economic slowdown was offsetting the impact of the weak Japanese yen. I decided to stay there.

As expected, the hotel on December 31 was expensive, so booking a flight on New Year’s Day was probably the right call. My flight departed from Terminal 2 at Haneda Airport in Tokyo. There was a temporary “Akafuku” shop in the domestic departure hall, I bought some. Since I love Akafuku sweets, this was a good omen right at the start of the new year.

Although many flights including mine were delayed due to congestion of boarding gates, it did not have a serious impact and arrived at Shenzhen Airport. I entered China at the airport and cross into Hong Kong by land. The itinerary to Hong Kong was set up like a package tour, so I got off designated bus at Tsim Sha Tsui and took an Uber to the InterContinental.

I felt something was off when the car pulled up to the hotel entrance. The front desk where I checked-in also felt different somehow. Once I entered the room, I found it was clearly diffrent. I felt like I would make a mistake right at the start of the new year. Was my feeling of good fortune at Haneda Airport just an illusion?

Digging into my memory, I realized I had previously stayed at the InterContinental Hong Kong, but this hotel was the InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong. Just as I remembered that there were two InterContinental hotels on the Tsim Sha Tsui side of Hong Kong, it was already too late.

For the time being, I went for a walk along the seaside promenade. After walking for a while, I finally found the hotel I initially had thought. It had been rebranded as the Regent Hong Kong, and when I checked later, I found out that the rates had been rebranded as well.

Had I known this, I might have decided not to go to Hong Kong. It was the power of I knew nothing. Although I may be interpreting differently from Socrates, I suppose my theme for this year is the Knowledge of Ignorance.

I enjoy planning trips as much as I enjoy traveling itself. Although the initial spark for a trip often comes from a sudden whim, I tend to create nearly perfect itineraries concentrated on photography. Of course, photo shooting depends on the weather, I plan trips to avoid the rainy season. Besides, I gather detailed information beforehand and build in a reasonable time margin for weather. This is why friends say my vacations resemble reporting trips.

For the Guilin trip, which was decided based on mileage award ticket availability, I stayed in the less-known town of Xingping located between Cities of Guilin and Yangshuo, two major tourist cities in the region. In post-COVID-19 days, latest tourist information for China is still limited, and details of minor towns are extremely limited.

I was only able to gather limited information about Xingping beforehand. However, this town lies along the highlight section of the cruise route from Guilin to Yangshuo and is apparently famous as the location depicted on the 20-yuan banknote. There seemed to be short cruises originating from this town, offering a chance to enjoy the boat trip as well.

The reason I deliberately chose to stay in Xingping was the information that sunrise view from Xianggong Mountain was beautiful. However, specific details were scarce, and even the access to Xianggong Mountain was unclear. While Chinese-language tours seemed available from places like Guilin City, by looking at the map, the nearest town was Xingping.

Although I still did not fully understand everything, I decided to stay in Xingping for all three nights of the itinerary. I had a feeling that just staying in Xingping would make me fully enjoy Guilin.

Entrusting everything without full understanding. Consider this as an investment, it would be arrant nonsense. However, since the airfare was free, I figured I had little to lose even if it failed.

Arranging sunrise trip by myself seemed difficult, I made inquiry to the hotel. They referred to me a company that handles their tour desk services. When I contacted the company, I was told that they were able to arrange sunrise tour at Xianggong Mountain. They also supported me with various other inquiries, which were big help for gathering information.

Although I would stay in Guilin for three nights, the schedule only allowed for two sunrise viewings. Since photography was the main focus of the trip, I booked sunrise tours for both days. Getting up early on weekdays is tough, but I can manage the early rise during the travel.

The tour company contacted me via WeChat the day before. I needed to walk 15 minutes to the meeting point. Since I would cross the river by a small boat and then travel overland, this likely avoids unnecessary expenses.

The meeting time was 5 AM. I boarded a ferry operated by the village on the opposite shore and then drove to Xianggong Mountain. The driver waited for me at the parking lot near the ticket office. I suppose this meant he was not a guide, but since tickets can be purchased using gestures and Alipay, this was actually more relaxed and preferable.

However, relaxed feeling ended here.

To reach the viewpoint of Xianggong Mountain, I had to climb steep stairs. According to my iPhone, it was equivalent to climbing 20 floors. After struggling up the stairs, the viewpoint was extremely crowded. I managed to get a spot around the third row, but the photo shooting conditions were poor. Even worse, clouds were thick too. While it could be called fantastic scenery, it was a major letdown.

Feeling sulky, I went down the mountain and returned to the car. On the way back to the pier for Xingping, the sun emerged at a spot with great views. Perhaps sensing my bad mood, the driver stopped there, letting me to take some great photos.

This lifted my spirits. I returned to the hotel for a nap and woke up after noon. Xingping has an ancient town where historic buildings house cafes and shops. I had a light meal at one of the cafes.

Walking through the town, I found a tourist boat terminal next to the ferry landing. Several tours seemed available, but I was not sure which one to choose. I opted for a 90-minute tour which seemed popular. I thought gestures and Alipay might suffice to purchase tickets, but surprisingly, Alipay was not accepted. If gestures and Alipay do not work, then translation apps and credit cards will do. Even using airline miles, getting free tickets are tough, but paying for works out most of the time.

The weather had already cleared up to a beautiful sunny day. I thought it might be a bit disappointing since the boat had no windows opened, but on the way back, they let me ride on the rooftop observation deck. It was quite spectacular.

After getting off the sightseeing boat, it was getting close to evening. I headed to the second main spot in this town for sunset photography. It was the location depicted on the back of the 20-yuan banknote. While several spots claimed to be the “scenic painting location,” I found a spot ideal for photography. Facing west, the evening view was beautiful.

In the early next morning, I headed to Xianggong Mountain again. I requested an earlier time since it was too crowded on the previous day. Ultimately, it was bound by the ferry schedule, it did not make much difference. The ferry had about half the passengers compared to the previous day. Came to think of it, last day was a Sunday.

The crowd at Xianggong Mountain was also about a half of the size, which allowed me to secure the front row at the spot I found the day before. Being at the front means I was able to use the fence as a tripod substitute, so shotting by slow shutter speeds were not problem. This day was clear, letting me enjoy everything from the pre-sunrise glow to the moment the sun peeked over the mountains.

In my research beforehand, I found that there were raft boats in Xingping. There were several ticket sellers in Xingping, but I was not sure which one to pick. I asked the tour desk to book my ticket. Since I was able to specify the boarding time, I chose the latest departure. It coincided perfectly with sunset time.

Perhaps because the raft boat operation is managed by another village, the boarding point was a little too far from the hotel. The raft was low to the water, offering a more immersive experience than sightseeing boat on previous day. The sunset unfolded near the spot depicted on the 20-yuan banknote.

Despite going to Xingping with limited information, I ended up extremely satisfied. I probably enjoyed more than if I would go to Guilin City and follow the standard tourist route.

The choice was almost a gamble. If I had paid for plane tickets, I might not have taken the risk. Although it is said that there is no such thing as a free lunch, but a free lunch is really tasty.