Day 3: Walking Through Qingdao's Colonial History
For those who aren't aware of Qingdao's history, back in the 1898, the Germans managed to persuade China to lease them land in the northeast. The Germans then proceeded to plan and build the streets and buildings that stood to this day. Remnants of German architecture is still very much visible in the city, which is what I think makes Qingdao unique from other cities in China. You walk through the old parts of town and it would not feel like China, other than the fact that all signs are written in Hanzi.
Anyways, after being well-rested from a day of hiking in Laoshan, we planned ourselves a "German Architecture Walk", with the help of Baidu Maps :p
As it turns out our hostel were really not to far off from the old landmarks. Our first stop was St. Paul's Cathedral. It wasn't too big of a cathedral, but it was a pretty nice red-brick architecture, something you don't really see much in China. The church itself is still used for services. Unfortunately we were not able to enter the church, but we did manage to snap some pictures. Except for me, and I really don't know why :p
Moving on, next on our itinerary was the Qingdao Governor's Guesthouse. Unfortunately, the house was renovated and we could not go in. And so, that was heartbreaking. After figuring out where to go next, we walked on to the Governor's Office, which was only a 10-minute walk away. And I have to say, it was a majestic building and was very European. Tall pillars, big floor-to-ceiling windows, an apparent symbol of power. As I snapped pictures of the building, it got me a bit nostalgic of Cardiff Uni's main building. We weren't allowed to go inside, but I could imagine what a maze it would be in there.
Our next destination is the German Prison Site Museum. Sounds like a grim place to visit, but hey, at least we learned a bit of its history. I have to warn you though, the exhibition features pretty grim images of brutality, so be prepared for that or skip through the exhibition entirely and go straight to the detention cells. The prison is a great site to go to and learn about Qingdao's history, especially the famous people in the region who fought against the German imperialism. So, if you're a self-proclaimed history buff like me, the German Prison is a must visit in Qingdao. Plus the tickets are really cheap at 10yuan for a student price.
After learning a bit of history at the Prison, we went on to Qingdao's Art Museum, which was again, unfortunately (surprise, surprise) under renovation. Yeah, so maybe we weren't really that lucky with our so-called architecture walk. But, at least we tried. The weather was also very nice that day so we have that to appreciate.
The next stop on our walking route is Lu Xun Park (鲁迅园), a nice little area right by the shore. We went out into where the waves hit the rocks and took a bunch of pictures. It was a pretty great view, although it was a shame that there was just so much smog. We went to walk along the boardwalk from Lu Xun Park to the no.1 Public Beach. The beach weren't as great as the Golden Sand beach, and it was very crowded. Regardless, it didn't look like it was too dirty. We decided not to join the throngs of people in the water, though, as we got very hungry.
Therefore, in order to prevent hangry-ness, we went to one of the most recommended restaurant in Qingdao. It's like the Waipojia (外婆家) of Qingdao, called Chuange (船歌). It appears to be famous for its fish dumplings (鱼水饺). Now, I've had all kinds of dumplings before from beef to duck. I never had fish dumplings before and I have to say this first one I had was great. It didn't smell fishy at all ha. We ordered a shrimp dish and noodles there too and it really was good quality food. Definitely a recommended restaurant in Qingdao.
We really didn't have much planned for the day, so we went shopping for a bit at the mall and headed back to our hostel.
After a bit of rest, we headed out to the beer street (啤酒街). However on our way there we were pretty disappointed as it was really just a row of overpriced seafood restaurants. At this point we pretty much have had enough of the same seafood menu. So instead we headed to a night market nearby and got some street food. I had the cheapest grilled squid I've ever had at 10元 for 3. We went through the street market just to look around and grab some cheap stuff that you don't really need but you buy them anyway because they were unbelievably cheap.
As it was getting late and the vendors started closing down their stalls, we took a taxi back to our hostel and finally rest.
It was pretty obvious that the next day was going to rain all day so we didn't really plan anything special. That last day was literally spent at the mall and chilled in our hostel, watching movies and have some bonding time.
Despite the really sad rainy last day, I have to say that it really was a great trip. Qingdao doesn't appear to be the most popular tourist destination in China. I mean, at least among the international student community here, it doesn't really seem to be. And as far as seaside destinations go in China, most people would go to Xiamen or Hainan Island instead of Qingdao. What I enjoyed about Qingdao is the different "colour" to the city, it didn't seem like China when I was there. Well, at least the China that I've gotten to know so far.
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Interesting blog, it reminds me of Huangdao, with the Park located in Huangdao is a beautiful park around the bay of Tang Dao Wan, which serves as a place for family recreation, picnic, cycling and gathering.
ReplyDeleteI tried to write a blog about it, hope you also like it https://stenote.blogspot.com/2018/07/huangdao-in-summer.html.