After our week-long stay in Tianjin, we travelled 6.5 hours to the intriguing city of Jinan, known both as “the city of springs” and as the capital of the province of Shandong. After the bus journey we were all glad to start our stay in Jinan with dinner, which involved a range of traditional foods, some of which weren’t entirely unpleasant and some of which were rather dire.

After a great night’s sleep at the Liangyou Fulin Hotel, we were prepared for a day of absorption and exploring. Due to unfortunate weather conditions, our plans for the two days in Jinan were changed last minute. We started the first day by going to the Shandong Museum, where we were shown around rooms containing various rocks and Chinese masks. We also did a bit of calligraphy.

After lunch we travelled to the Nishan Academy and the Daming Lake.  Here, we were shown archery, artwork and paper printing, a traditional Chinese instrument and tried our hands at puppetry, before walking around part of the lake. The lake itself was lovely and offered lots of candid photo opportunities.

That night, we hoped to hit the nearby karaoke, but Mr Allan told us we wouldn’t be allowed unless he came to sing too. We didn’t go. So instead, we decided to spend our 2 hours after dinner going to a shopping centre to enjoy a cheeky Starbucks. Whilst we were there, we noticed an interesting sight outside: a flash flood! We took it upon ourselves to go and stand outside whilst it was occurring (churlish not to really) which resulted in us becoming completely soaked. In approximately 2 minutes, the road looked as if it were a river. It was a fabulous experience all-round.

For the second day in Jinan, we went to the famous Baotu springs within the city. The climate felt very tropical in this stunning area. We very much enjoyed the springs, the surrounding architecture and the exotic vines that hung above them. We have just arrived in Qufu, and are excited to see what the next few days will hold…

Ellie Lang