This is the final piece in my series Christmas in China Is it my imagination or does the air smell sweeter on the Vietnamese side of the border? There’s certainly more greenery around. China seemed suffocating now looking back but it’s only 200 meters away. The austere concrete high-rises stop suddenly at the river and …
Author Archives: Will Holland
Shangri-La
This is part 5 of my series Christmas in China To my surprise the man tending the yaks on the hill near Shangri-La spoke to me in English. He didn’t want to be photographed but asked me what I was doing and told me about his nomadic lifestyle. The name Shangri-La was made famous by …
Tea in Lijiang
This is part 4 of my series Christmas in China Smoke fills the room from the wood-burning stove in the centre. Mama says the chimney is cracked and needs repairing but I enjoy the smell of the wood-smoke. The stove has a large flat metal top that acts as a table. Around it are old …
Coronavirus Update
I haven’t finished writing about Christmas yet and then I have Chinese New Year to write about…. However I thought I should do a quick update on the coronavirus situation. Let me start by saying I haven’t caught the virus and neither has anyone I know. There have been surprisingly few cases in Vietnam. At …
Dilly Dali
This is part 3 of my series Christmas in China I grew up in the countryside and I’m definitely a country boy at heart. I love to get away from the roads, noise and crowds of city life and lose myself in the wilderness. In the novel and film Lost Horizon, Shangri-La is a place …
Santa Claus is Kunming to Town
This is part two of my series Christmas in China. Like Chita in Russia, I didn’t have any expectations of Kunming and ended up having a great time because I met friendly people by chance. With Christmas Day and Boxing Day spent in Chengdu, I left for Kunming on the 27th. I left the hostel …
Pandering in Chengdu
This is Part One of my series Christmas in China. School term dragged on from August to December without a break. I was more than ready for a holiday and so decided to fly to Chengdu rather than take the train so that I could relax for a few days over Christmas before hefting my …
Advent & Adventure
The term is coming to an end. This term from August to December with no half-term or break of any sort has been exhausting and I’m ready for a rest over Christmas. Yet being as self destructive as I am I’m planning another adventure! My next adventure is back to China in search of the …
Mui Ne and the Holy King of the Sky
Mui Ne Straight after work on Saturday we caught the bunk-bed equipped bus from Saigon up the coast to the fishing town come resort of Mui Ne. I was with a motley crew of Hanh and Kel (both Vietnamese), a young Kiwi English tutor Alice and Jonas; the Ozzy surfer dude. Although not as developed …
Mr Saigon
I’ve been living here in Ho Chi Minh City (AKA Saigon) for a couple of months now. I have moved into a flat and have established a bit of a routine but it’s still a bit disorganised because I’ve not got used to working evenings. Saigon has a population very similar to London (9 million) …
Eastward Ho! 