Saying goodbye to Wuhan, China

In a city full of people, in a country very far away. I was amazed at that all the friendly smiles I got. Saying good bye to Wuhan didn’t mean much to me at the time I experienced it, versus the time I write this. It’s very heartbreaking knowing what happened to this beautiful city after I left.

The subway station photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Got off randomly at a stop near the airport. Wanted to see a little more of Wuhan before I go. Everything was so clam and quiet in this neighborhood. Almost like a suburban area. You wouldn’t think that you were in the middle of a city with a population of 50 million. It’s hard to believe how calm and quiet was everything. Felt like some areas in queens NYC.

The local neighborhood sign photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Saw a huge sign and had a hint I was in wuhan’s linkong green ecological district. I mean it had large letters in English. It was hard not to know where I was at. Lost in my thoughts, I kept thinking about my time in China. Such a beautiful city that I hope to visit again. From the friendly people on the streets to the little girl in the subway that wanted to take picture with me because she never seen someone who looked like me in person. I had a great time learning and experiencing the chinese culture.

Marriott hotel photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Kept walking forward until I found a Marriott hotel. It was in the color red to match China. I have gotten so used to seeing american chains around the world that it didn’t surprised me to see a Marriott here. It was just another sign that the airport is nearby. Also, another reminder that I was leaving. Had to face reality, my time was up. I wanted to explore a little bit more. However, there was a seat on a plane headed towards NYC that had my name on it.

The sunsetting as if it’s saying good bye photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Saying good bye is always hard. Especially, now that I know what this city went through after I left. It’s currently happening where I live now. To the awesome people I met here, I hope they are okay. Grew so much as a person here. This is a trip that changed me in so many ways. During my time there and after I left. I will truly treasure my time in Wuhan and can’t wait to go back, once this virus settles down.

Got to the airport on time and went through the security line. As planned, my seat was waiting for me. Wuhan will become a thing of the past. A part of china nobody talks about. Or so I thought, who would had known the events that would happen here the months following.

Much love and safe travels! Please keep clean everyone!! Wash your hands!!

Check out our eBook “How to Travel for Dirt Cheap” by Hugo Morel for ways to make your dreams of traveling come true without breaking the bank. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07M848M47?ref_=pe_3052080_276849420&fbclid=IwAR0_mRF-eE9tODIshljVr7CQ8h6vKT6hHn_8gZfJ94DySY1ylPO2Itu2Qe

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April 1, 2020 27

New york city during “lockdown” Being socially isolated

So, we are here. What feels like a movie, as if we are in the start of “I am Legend.” The world has made a semi-stop. New York City has felt the impact. The whole world is feeling this virus. Wheather by being sick, losing money or stuck at home. I’m here, in the USA’s biggest city. Trying to stay positive without being positive of corona. Sadly, I’m not talking about the beer.

In front of Bryant Park photo courtesy of Hugo Motel

I just couldn’t be stuck inside my home. I love being free. It almost feels like house arrest. Never actually experienced it and I never want to. Left my home to just get my mind off of things. It’s sadden me to what is happening. Never seen midtown New York City look so empty. There very few people out and walking.

Usually this street is packed photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Not sure if people are overreacting or this virus is really that bad. It’s crazy how I went to Wuhan and never got sick. Now, I have to worry about it at home. The irony is strong in this situation. Thought I dodged a bullet but now I need to be careful once again. While inChina, I was suggested by locals to go to the market in Wuhan where it all started. Luckily, I declined it.

Nyc Subway station being empty due to the corona virus photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Went underground to catch a train to get to another part of midtown. What really shocked me was the lack of people. This what a midtown station looks like after 3 am. I was there at 1 pm on monday. This station is usually packed at that time. This was 34th street pen station. Where you can catch all the trains! Crazy how lonely it looked.

Times sqaures photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Went to times Square, it was business as usual. There weren’t that many people as normally would be. However, that didn’t stop the street performers. Saw transformers break dancing. There is always something weird going on here. Let’s see what’s more to come of this.

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels!

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For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

March 17, 2020 37

Wuhan, China pre-coronavirus: On the journey to find the yellow crane tower part 2

The further one goes into this park in Wuhan, the more you are reminded of China’s Communist past. One of the cool things about going into parks are the statues. The historical meaning of them have always made my inner nerd happy (yeah, I got an inner nerd….so what?). I truly wished I could had read Mandarin at the time I was here. I would loved to have know what these statues meant.

Statues of national pride photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Being an outsider in a forgien country is always interesting. However, being an outsider that doesn’t speak nor read the local language is a whole other experience. You can only really guess what the signs mean. In order to survive, you have to learn to adapt and read people. It’s a skill that everybody should learn! These survivor skills have helped me in so many ways. I have gotten out of some diffcult situations because I read the energy people were throwing out. Put me any where in the world and I will survive.

The garden at the park. (My shadow looks like it gained 100 pounds) photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Kind of got lost while looking for this “epic” landmark google told me to go. Nothing wrong with the landmark, I was just annoyed about google knowing where I was going. To the point, I had a few notifications from the “know it all” empire. It’s like they are saying, “hey, we know where you going at all times because we got you on a gps.”

Anways, started asking people where this yellow crane tower was. I kept getting pointed to the same direction. I was surprised at how well some of the locals knew how to speak English. The others that didn’t just pointed. It’s really crazy how warm and welcoming the Chinese were to me. To be blunt, I was expecting some form hostility. Not even from the immigration officers at the airport, not once was I treated with disrespect. I’m sure you all can understand why I feel the way I do. Hearing about the virus on the news is one thing; however, meeting the people effected in a warm light can really cause conflicting emotions.

Old man statue photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

After some time, I eventually found this statue. Once again, my feeling of wanting to read the local langague pop out. There was a level of disconnect. I felt this before in other countries. If only humans didn’t have to sleep, imagine the possibilities of learning.

The area where the statue is located was a square. Looked like a lovely place to just relax and let the minutes pass by. It was calm like people didn’t have a care in the world. An atmosphere some people around the world can only dream of. Makes me wonder how the park looks like now during the civil unrest.

Entrance to the museum with interesting flag photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Kept walking and I found this entrance. It looks like some type of museum. I loved how the flag looked. One of the people that told me where to go, tapped my back and waved no. Well, more gestured no. She pointed me to the right direction. After about 2 mins, it was clear I found the yellow crane tower.

Ps: Update on some of the friends I met here. So right now, they are doing fine. Worried but they are doing fine. Currently, there is a civil unrest. The people of Wuhan feeling like they are not being told the truth about the media. There has been alot of push back on censorship. They are speaking through social media before the government can censor. This started because a doctor died from the censorship. He was told to be quiet about it. For you want to read more about this here is the link.

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

We have partnered up with booking.com and working on TripAdvisor. Here are some links for each hope you all enjoy!

Here are links to hotels and other deals.

For Hotels, make sure to click here. For apartments make sure to click here. For Resorts click here. For villas click here. For bed and breakfast and for Guest houses, make sure to click the links!

February 12, 2020 15

An Inside look of Wuhan, China pre-coronavirus: On the journey to find the yellow crane tower

After looking like a crazy lost tourist, I was able to make some new friends at Starbucks. Looking back, it kind of hurts to think that these kind people are probably in a hospital now. It’s crazy how everything can change in such a short time. I was here in December 2019. Fast forwarded a month into the future and the corona-virus took over. It’s really sad to think about. However, getting back into the story, my new friends gave me directions and sites to see in Wuhan. They were surprised to see someone that looks like me in this part of china. I was seeing a pattern, I started to noticed they do not get travelers from all over the world here. The more time I spent in this central Chinese city, the more I enjoyed it. I’m just lost for words at how nice the people were to foreigners. Especially me being an american citizen, did not expect this type of treatment.

China’s verison of forever 21 photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Following the directions of my new friends, I ended up in a commercial strip. Saw stores from all over the world. Brands, I was familiar with and others not so much. As shown in the picture above, you can see a lot of local stores take inspiration from American brands. It’s really hard to believe this is a “communist” china. I even saw people openly wearing cross necklaces and the Muslim hats called kufi. China is not like what the media tells us. I keep getting told that most Chinese have to be atheist. From just looking around, I see that people practice religion here. To what level of freedom, I will explain in another post.

Sign pointing where the yellow crane tower exit is photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Got back on the subway, the original subway worker that I asked directions from. It looks like what she said got lost in translation. I ended missing the stop I was supposed to go. It wasn’t that bad because it was only like two stops away. I followed the poster pointing to what exit I should take. As seen above, everything was in Mandarin. Expect for some reason, the word “exit” was translated. I guess they want tourist like me to figure out the yellow crane tower might possibly be that way.

Got out of the underground and I was taken to the front of a park. I really wished I knew what these signs meant. They looked very important. Luckily, there were pictures of what not to do on the right. Still, the red banner made me wonder. Are they saying, “we don’t like Americans!” Or maybe, “All Americans eat cheeseburgers and french fries for breakfast!” Jokes aside, it could be government propaganda or just stating the park’s name. Which, I still do not know the name of this place. If any of you can read Mandarin, please let me know what the banner says. It would be greatly appreciated.

Art- I have no idea what that means photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Walked more into the park, everybody seemed at easy and stress-less. I’m sure a complete 180 degree to the current events happening right now. Still, it’s hard to believe how peaceful everything was. Old people watching the birds and kids running around without a care in the world. Everybody was just enjoying their day. An atmosphere, I just had to sit down and enjoy. For once on my recent trip around Asia, I felt relax. No one wanted to scam me and no one harassing me. Wuhan, China isn’t so bad, it’s actually very enjoyable. I just hope everything calms down, so that you all can experience this someday.

The beautiful nature photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The one thing that stood out to me about china is the natural beauty. You see it on the subway. The leaves and plants look so beautiful. I always thought China was nothing but apartment buildings and packed streets. So far, I have been wrong! Couldn’t wait to see what else China had to offer.

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

We have partnered up with booking.com and working on TripAdvisor. Here are some links for each hope you all enjoy!

Here are links to hotels and other deals.

February 5, 2020 34

Arriving at Wuhan, China before the coronavirus

After a long flight, the plane landed in Wuhan, China. If you asked me about a month ago that I would be going to China, I probably won’t have believed you. Well, I had to believe it because I was here. In the land of the dragons, kung fu and panda bears.

Southern China airlines screen letting us know we are near Wuhan photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

For those who don’t know, if you are coming from certain countries you can go to China through Wuhan’s international airport visa free. You get 144 hours to travel around all of China. Which equals about 6 days of time. The crazy thing is that Wuhan is just a train ride away from almost all the major Chinese cities. So this is a great way to get into China visa free (as of 2019, hopefully it doesn’t change). If you want to see if your country applies for the 144 hours entry click here. Definitely, visit after the virus dies down.

Advertisement for gold at the Wuhan Airport photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

After going through customs, my first impression of China is it’s not as communist as I thought. Actually, the economy is very capitalist. They love capitalism so much that they do not provide free toilet paper in public bathrooms. You have to buy it in a vending machine. Nor do they have the water hose. I had to learn the hard way. Which is a topic for another story. Still, China is a lot nicer than I expected. Compared to Cuba, which runs on a pure Communist system.

Once you get out the Wuhan Airport you see this sign photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Finally, I completely got out of the airport. I didn’t really had any plans to visit China. So everything was last minute on this trip. I just wanted to make sure I get to see the Yellow Crane Tower. Everybody kept telling me about it, even Google. A notification came on my phone suggesting I should visit the tower. Google knows everything…. Had to ask one of the Wuhan subway workers for directions. She didn’t speak English and I had no idea how to even read mandarin. So, we spoke through google translate. Through my surprise, it actually worked. I was having a full blown conversation with someone who doesn’t speak any of the languages I spoke. Yay, thank you technology.

Wuhan Subway train photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Getting tickets on at the ticket machine was easy. They translate everything in English. When I got on the train, I was surprised to see how advance China is. You hear it in the news; yet, seeing it in person is another experience. Their subway system is a lot more advanced than most cities in the USA. I got a few looks from the locals. It wasn’t of hate like you get in other countries. It was more of curiosity. They don’t get much tourists that look like me in this part of China. I must had looked like a rare limited edition Pokemon card to the people of Wuhan. Had a little girl wanting to take a photo with me. She got shy and the mother just smiled. The mother thanked me. No words were exchanged just simple hand gestures. It hurts me to think that the mother and her child might be sick or possibly worse as I write this.

Street of Wuhan photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

As I stepped outside of the subway station, I was instantly hit with air that made my eyes tear up. Little did I know, Wuhan has an air quality issue. The first three minutes were just me rubbing my eyes trying to keep them open. Still kept walking around just wandering. Eventually, I found a Starbucks. I knew people had to speak English there. Walked inside and started asking for directions like a wild crazy lost tourist. My adventures in Wuhan were just starting! Couldn’t wait to see what this place had to offer.

As I wrote this, I kept holding back tears. I try to keep everything positive for you all. It just hurts knowing that the people who were so kind to me are probably in a hostipal somewhere on their death beds. Please remember to enjoy life. It’s a gift and not a right. So, enjoy it doing the things you love with the people you love.

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

We have partnered up with booking.com and working on TripAdvisor. Here are some links for each hope you all enjoy!

Here are links to hotels and other deals.

January 29, 2020 51

The Corona virus outbreak: Knowing someone is looking out for you

For those who are aware of what’s going on in the global news. There is a virus getting passed around China and Southeast Asia. It started last month in December. Someone infected started spreading the virus internationally. The first case of an international infected person was in Thailand. Eventually, more case were found throughout South East Asia.

Asian woman with mask

Chinese studying the virus

The reason why I’m writing this is because I was in Wuhan last month. Actually went there twice in one week. This means I was there when the outbreaks first started happening. Currently after about 30 days, I feel amazing and healthy! I have no signs of the sickness. Another close call that I have escaped. Looking back on all my experiences, I’m truly blessed. Someone or something has been looking out for me on all my travels.

Wuhan_dot — The yellow dot marks where Wuhan is on the Chinese map

As I write this, an estimated of 1, 723 people are infected. Currently there are screenings for flights coming from Wuhan. I went to get a medical check up and nothing showed up as alarming. All this is mind blowing when I sit down and think about it. About a year and half ago, I was on that Dubai Flight full of sick people. How I traded seats with two different people to seat away from those who were infected. Still to this day is hard for even me to believe it happened. Which at the time of the flight, I had no idea what was going on. As crazy as this sounds, I always follow my gut feeling. If I do not feel anything wrong, I’m usually at peace. That “sixth sense” has helped me out on multiple situations. Which a lot of you have read some of them. The one time I didn’t paid attention to that feeling, I broke my arm.

Regardless of what is happening, I will be posting about my time in Wuhan, China. So please do not read the posts with negativity. I really enjoyed my short stay there. It is a beautiful city with very friendly people and a rich culture. I hope when things die down, some of you will get the chance to visit this part of china. It will make you rethink about the Chinese stereotypes and what is heard on the news.

Happy early Chinese New Years everyone! Much Love and safe travels!!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

We have partnered up with booking.com and working on TripAdvisor. Here are some links for each hope you all enjoy!

Here are links to hotels and other deals.