offpeakfang

The New Golden Bridge VII ferry at Weihai, China, before its crossing to Incheon, South Korea.  There is precious little English-language information online about how to get from China to South Korea by ferry: there are several ferry links, some of which have been mentioned on various English-language travel websites, but no information post-pandemic. For that matter, it seems there's only one company (Weidong Ferry) that has useable information even on the Chinese-language internet. So, here's my experience: I believe this will be the only English-language post-pandemic information on this ferry link on the internet as of publication.  First, the schedule: ferries run Qingdao-Incheon or Weihai-Incheon on alternate days: the ferry runs from Qingdao at 1900 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, arriving in Incheon at 1100 the following morning. They also run from Weihai at 2100 on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Sundays, arriving at 1000 the next morning. From Weihai, passenger check...

Arrival at Beijing West railway station In the space of 10 years, China went from having no high speed rail at all to then having more than the rest of the world combined. Like many things in the country, it's all at enormous scale: having a billion people in a country the size of Europe tends to do that.  KCR clock tower, next to the Kowloon waterfront One of Hong Kong's symbols is the clock tower of the former 1910-built Kowloon station of the Kowloon - Canton Railway, closed and demolished in 1975. It's a shame, especially given how it's right next to the Star Ferry to Hong Kong Island.  Star Ferry approaching from Hong Kong Island The Star Ferry is a HK institution in its own right and is such a scenic way of arriving at Hong Kong Island. It reminded me of the Mersey Ferry in Liverpool, a similar crossing on similar-era boats.  View from Victoria Peak One of the classic views of the city is from Victoria Peak, accessible from the Peak Tram. Circumnavigating the peak...

Flying over Iraq: possibly Najaf Out of all the London airports, Gatwick Airport is the most annoying airport to get to from East Anglia. I'd have much preferred going from Norwich or literally any of the other London ones, but leaving from Gatwick was considerably cheaper and my Ipswich - Gatwick Airport rail ticket was £11.90 - a similar price to the Ipswich - Stansted coach. At least Gatwick is an airport where one can turn up 1¾ hours before the scheduled flight departure for a long-haul flight without getting nervous.  LGW - DOH: BA2033, 1405-2350 There was a time - not that long ago - when I quite liked flying with British Airways. Long-haul economy class isn't that different between most airlines, but for a long time they'd even offer Worcestershire sauce with their tomato juice and had a doing-things-properly kind of vibe. Alas, not any more. The in-flight entertainment was quite good, with a strong British focus and I could even listen to BBC Proms on the way to Do...

Hong Kong, as viewed from West Kowloon Cultural district, September 2023.  After three years of zero-Covid policy, quarantines and closed borders, I had some paperwork to do in mainland China that required me to visit for the first time in four years. This was also at a time when I have friends living in nearby Hong Kong and Japan. Hence formed an idea for my usual kind of epic overland adventure, but on the other side of the world: Hong Kong to Japan without flying. How hard could it be?  Overall, this was an outstanding trip, and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It was very fun to experience so many cultures and traverse several countries over the space of three weeks, covering 5355 km by rail and another ~600 km by ferry. The fact that China to South Korea passenger ferries only restarted a few weeks before I used it, together with how the vast majority of passengers were local traders, means that I strongly suspect I am the first person to have done this journey since at l...

Prince's Palace, Monaco, March 2020 Monaco is the second-smallest country in the world, after the Vatican City. I visited on the last day of my truncated microstates itinerary around Europe.  Having arrived in Nice on a surprisingly pleasant and memorable overnight coach journey from Lyon, I made the short walk through the deserted Niçard streets to a train station. Conveniently, the coach station is right next to the Nice Riquier commuter rail station, which even happens to be one stop closer along the line to Monaco than the main Nice Ville station. I'd even arrived in Nice an hour early, so had some extra time to play with in the microstate as well.  TER from Nice Riquier The journey from Nice Riquier to Monaco Monte Carlo was only 21 minutes. The train was somewhat busy as it was very much the morning peak, but that didn't really matter for such a short journey.  Monaco Monte Carlo station. It even has direct trains to Moscow on the Nice-Moscow route, t...

  Rowing-boat ferry from Butley to Gedgrave and Orford, June 2022 My local OS map of Ipswich and southeast Suffolk - Explorer 197 - was what I used to plan my cycling trips around the rivers, heaths, village greens and medieval churches of Suffolk through the various 2020-2021 lockdowns. The Butley River snakes around the eastern edge of the map on its way into the River Ore and onward to the sea next to historic Orford Ness. The other side of the river was beyond the scope of the challenge I'd set myself, but the "Ferry P (limited service)" shown on the map almost sets a challenge to those who enjoy such explorations. So, I decided that on this pleasant summer's day, what better excuse for a bike ride than a rowing-boat ferry.  Dating from the Norman era, the part-thatched church of St John the Baptist at Butley was a pleasant place to rest for a while cycling to the ferry.  Butley village is already quite remote, with its few houses and its medieval church and abbey...