CHINA 7: Hebei Province

Hebei is the last province I went through before taking a boat to South Korea. It was nice to get out of the desert and back into some lush mountains. I opted to go around Beijing rather than go through it, in part because I didn't want any run-ins with police. The mountains north of Beijing were quite nice and the area around Beijing was far more developed than the rest of China, which annoyed me for some reason. Highlights of Hebei province were eating donkey meat and being extremely baked; reading books all day.

Hebei Province

A boulder sits on top of a mountain waiting for the right victim

One night I had to relocate after setting up camp because I noticed hundreds of these guys in the trees around me. Not sure if they are poisonous or not but by the looks of them I would assume so.

Sunset in a small industrial town north of Beijing

Setting up camp about 50m from the road

I hung out in this 'ancient town' for 4 days near Qin Huang Dao while waiting for a boat to Korea

Finally a sign I can understand! No need to try to ask directions in my piss-poor Chinese at this fork in the road!

An old couple selling breakfast from their bicycles; hers makes the tofu soup and his makes the bread!

Nothing like some fresh air early in the morning

Rain clouds loom nearing the mountains north of Beijing

A mountain

 Here are some photos of the food in Hebei:

Pan seared dumplings, and the owners even gave me a boiled crab!

Won ton soup

This lady is cutting up sheets of pasta fried with egg and meat...

...and then fries it all up with peppers, onions, tomato and chili.

Breakfast from the above mentioned old couple: Soft tofu in a mushroom broth with fresh fried bread

A very rustic meal: Fat fresh noodles with a hot dog, whole hard boiled egg (overcooked) and whole red chilis.

DONKEY! I was half way through these amazing sandwiches when the lady selling them was trying to tell me what the meat was. I didn't recognize the kind of meat (I only know pork and beef in Chinese) so she pointed to a picture of donkeys on the wall!

Donkeys on the wall at a donkey restaurant