Wuhan 2012: The City and the Food

This is a very special blog post because this was my very first visa-required travel! I previously talked about here that I travel for work and this is just one of many exciting opportunities. I love my job!

For this trip, we went to Guangzhou and Wuhan, China, but I will tackle the latter first. Believe me, it’s tempting to do both in one post but these wonderful cities deserve separate spotlights.

Anyway, it looks like I’m ready to go…




Since, there is no direct flight from Manila to Wuhan, my teammate and I had a quick stopover at Guangzhou. I am eternally fascinated by the layout and efficiency of foreign airports.



After a quick plane ride to Wuhan, we had a 30-minute drive to our hotel, Shangri-la. Along the way, I saw that Wuhan is a big city with smoggy skies and clean streets… and the traffic was manageable.






Shangri-la smells the same at any location, that is why it felt like I was in Manila the moment I stepped in. It felt like home.





We really didn’t want to venture out into the city alone due to the fact that we didn’t speak a word of Mandarin. The safest bet would be to have dinner in the hotel. Good thing Shangri-la has lots of options.

How ironic, we chose to have Japanese cuisine on our first night in China.









On our second day, we traveled by car to the office. Here is just a random photo of a suspension bridge.



We promised to try the local cuisine the next chance we get. Still, we were in the hotel, at Shang Palace restaurant. I do love Chinese food and this dinner was such a treat!



Peking duck, naturally.



I forgot what dessert this is. I remember it was something unconventional but surprisingly delicious. I checked their website and I couldn’t find the dessert menu either.



On our last day, our client took us out to a special lunch at Gourmet Paradise.





It’s perfect because our Chinese clients selected all the food. They do know what’s best.



Rice pancake.



I feel like I need to include a photo of the China flag just to commemorate my visit.



Our last dinner was again (surprise) at Shangri-la. It’s the first time we tried their buffet dinner. It didn’t disappoint.





The Wuhan trip ended sooner that I’d like but I was excited to go to Guangzhou at the same time.



We’re flying China Southern Airlines. Goodbye, Wuhan! Xiexie!