Seaside blues
Careering down a mountain along a metal half-pipe track, loosely strapped into a flimsy plastic sled, you can't help but have a little giggle to yourself.
I kept having flashbacks of the tragic finale to the Disney film Cool Runnings, where the Jamaican bobsled team's hopes were dashed due to mechanical tampering from jealous rivals. Still, hurtling down this looping course was about the best fun I had yet had in Dalian and an amusingly novel way to descend into the fun park below after taking a cable car up to the top of the local TV Tower.
Locals enjoy the beautiful sunset on the Xinghai Beach, one of the most popular sandy destinations in Dalian. Lu Wenzheng |
However, my childish glee was about to be snuffed out by a timid little girl. On any joyride like this, you can only go as fast as the people in front of you are willing to go.
After screaming down the first half of the track like Sylke Otto, I had to squeeze the breaks to avoid rear-ending the spoilsport kid in front of me who was commandeering her cart with the caution of a 95-year-old sight- and hearing-impaired driver at a busy intersection. It's a little infantile of me to be cranky at the child, but perhaps she would have been more at home on the Merry-Go-Round in Labor Park, which we were ever-so-slowly approaching.
A few days before, when we first touched down in Dalian, in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, it was bright - so bright that I had to squint behind dark glasses. We had just spent two hours in a plane from Beijing and touched down at Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport.
But my eyes and those of my travel partner were redder than what you'd expect after such a short trip. We were both nursing heavy heads after staying up the entire previous night watching the World Cup Cricket final. But what better place to rest than in a sun-kissed destination of which travel brochures make seductive promises of tranquil surroundings and succulent seafood?
Speeding towards Tiger Beach, about a 20-minute cab ride from the airport, this city of a little under 2 million people was surprisingly smoggy. During the late 19th century it was a mining town, and in the mid-20th century the Soviets transformed Dalian into an industrial hub specializing in shipbuilding.
These days, it is a major petroleum port and home to several oil refineries. No wonder that the air was more consistent with Beijing on one of its hazier days than an idyllic sand and surf getaway.
Arriving at the Dalian Regent (418 yuan, $52.25 per night for a double) we were escorted to our waterfront room. Unfortunately, the lack of visibility on this particular morning obscured our view of any undulating blue surface. Not to worry, we thought. Let's check out the town.
A taxi back to the city center with a cabbie who prescribed to the Michael Schumacher school of driving cost us 25 yuan ($3.12) and we were dropped off out the front of the New-Mart Shopping Mall.
According to our travel guide there was a decent coffee shop inside, and thankfully, the espressos at Karffer Coffee gave us just the perk we needed to pound the pavement for the rest of the day and night. After exploring the main shopping thoroughfare of town, which featured many of the world's most expensive brand names, we trampled through an underground retail strip.
Here, the more middle-market stalls sell everything from tea to DVDs and toiletries and after finding our way out of this labyrinthine den of commerce we popped out into Victory Square, which is surrounded by a few upmarket hotels and restaurants.
Nearby, you can cruise and peruse along alleyways filled with fashion boutiques and eateries. These little streets would not be out of place in any number of European cities. In fact, walking through much of the inner-city, the architecture could fool you into thinking that you were anywhere on that particular continent.
The thumbprint of Russian influence is evident in the overall aesthetic of Dalian, yet the gaudy giant soccer ball that sits in Labor Park is probably not something that Muscovites erected.
This city boasts one of China's best football teams, Dalian Shide, and in the popular Zhongshan Square you'll often pass groups of youngsters either toeing a ball to each other or playing hackysack.
After a tough day of kicking a lump of leather around, you can retreat to any number of bars and nightclubs near the square. There's even a microbrewery where beer connoisseurs can wet their whistles with brews other than those that come out of a bottle.
Those looking to hang five on a surfboard may be disappointed, as the beaches here offer little in the way of swell. You might need a large bunch of friends to bomb-dive of an anchored boat to generate even a modest wave.
There are several sandy destinations to choose from, such as Jinshitan Beach, Fujiazhuang Beach, Xinghai Beach and Tiger Beach. Those looking for a dip are best to head to Xinghai Beach and be sure to pack a hat and sunscreen, as the mercury rises quite high.
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Other attractions around town include an aquarium, a zoo, golf courses and, as mentioned previously, the rides and fairy floss inside Labor Park. Here, you can catch the cable car for 35 yuan ($4.30) and go on most rides for around 6 yuan ($1), the best of which sees you spinning in a big circular floating device that crashes along artificial wild water rapids.
There are also the requisite machines that throw you upside down and in other positions that make you wish you didn't have eight tacos and three milkshakes for lunch.
A notable mention, however, must be made for an unintentionally hilarious horror house that is about as scary as an episode of Happy Boy. No wait; Happy Boy is actually pretty scary.
(China Daily 06/07/2007 page19)
