Zhuhai Adventures

We can now access all modes of Chinese transport- but it’s been a complicated process getting to this point. Everything here is done using your mobile phone…and everything has an App which must be linked to everything you are trying to do.
WeChat is not just another App for communicating with your friends like WhatsApp, it does that too yes, but, WeChat is linked to your Chinese phone number, your Chinese bank account and has a raft of ‘mini-programmes’ inside this app which allows you to pay for goods – every shop or stall uses WeChat or ‘Wexin Pay’ which is the Chinese payment section of WeChat. If you want to buy groceries online, get food delivered online, use bike, bus and taxi services you need WeChat- and if you try to do any of these things without using the correct app or Wechat… well you can’t -it’s very frustrating. There is a second payment App called Alipay which is linked to a lot of the same ‘mini-programmes’ but also some completely different ones…so it’s important to have this one too for when your WeChat doesn’t work.
My Alipay and WeChat were definitely not working for quite some time- so no payment methods -no bike, taxi or bus. Rob and I had set up a Chinese bank account which had taken 3 hours but I haven’t been issued with a card – so I could just not get my ‘ducks in a row’ i.e. Chinese phone number, bank account and Apps- all of which must have personalised face recognition to activate them too!
Also, the other thing to remember is, that if you are going to break the Chinese law ( which of course I would never do ) and use any kind of British App that is banned in China, like WhatsApp, Google search / translate/ maps, Hotmail, BBC iplayer or BBC Sounds, then you have to download a VPN (Virtual Private Network) which hides your IP address and allows access to these services. And if you were to use a VPN (which would be illegal in China and very wrong) then every time that you want to use the Chinese Apps – you would have to turn off the VPN on your device or the Chinese App will detect it and stop working. Confused…yes, it is very confusing – like trying to do a Rubik’s cube in the dark.
Finally, after some time of relying on cash and having to walk everywhere, we both managed to get all of our Chinese Apps working and activated and now finally we can use bikes, buses and taxis, and pay for goods without people looking at us like we are poor simple English folk from the backwoods of the UK who can’t use a mobile phone!
So…we are off to see the Zhuhai Opera House, setting off on a bus, swapping to a bike and then coming home later in a Didi (the taxi App).
It is a glorious hot sunny afternoon and we hop off the bus in downtown Zhuhai- at the coast you pass under a massive ornate Chinese Gateway and cross the short road bridge to Yeli Island. This hilly island has a recreational park with fabulous walks amongst the exotic plants and trees. It is very hot and many families have paid for the 4-seater covered bicycle carts- they are piled high with extra family members, as well as picnics and beach paraphernalia. We walk along the curved causeway to the main Plaza, and there is the resplendent Opera House.
Designed by Urban Design Centre of Peking University the brief was captured in their statement ‘We took inspiration from the colours and textures associated with this heritage: the lustre of mother-of-pearl, the graduated translucency of a shell and the way light appears when viewed though rippling water’. The enormous Sun and Moon ‘scallop shells’ stand upright almost flanking one another and from a distance look like solid forms, closer up it is a surprise to see that they are covered structures- a bit like if the Kelpies of Falkirk were wrapped in white cotton.
Underneath there are two venues, the Opera House and a smaller theatre venue. The programme comprises of traditional opera like ‘Carmen’ as well as visiting international dance companies including Nacional de Danza of Spain and ‘Riverdance’. In the theatre there’s a familiar diet of Musicals ‘The Bells of Notre Dame’ and ‘Matilda’ Etc.
On the large plaza we admire this amazing piece of architecture and try to work out if we can get tickets for anything in this season’s programme. We spend some time taking photos and enjoying the atmosphere, but we resist the bars and restaurant here as we have an alternative plan.
Now that our Apps are working, we can access blue bikes on the ‘My Bike’ App – a similar scheme to the ‘lime’ bikes of London – you scan a QR code on the bike, and hop on and ride. There are also yellow, green and pink bikes, but at the moment this is our App of choice and it actually and finally works. We choose a blue bike, scan and when the bike says ‘Hello’ (in a very cute ‘voice’) we know that it is unlocked, you must then adjust your seat height and off you go.
We are so happy, finally cycling on part of Lovers Walk – which fully extends 30 kilometres from the tip of Gree Coast in Tangjia to the Port of Zhuhai. Lover’s Walk has many romantic sections with palm tree lined promenades past beautiful sandy beaches, but we are cycling along a very busy esplanade at this point, with many families and couples enjoying the setting sun and cooler temperatures. We are dodging people but still enjoying the freedom of the bike- we plan to travel about 2 kilometres further on, up to FisherGirl bay where we have previously spotted a lovely plaza, perfect for a relaxing drink and watching the sunset.
Parking the bikes…we are soon enjoying an ice-cold drink on a balcony high above the beach. We’ve timed it well; the sun is setting and the lively buzz of people on the plaza and down at the seafront is very entertaining. There is a full moon dipping a long trail through the sea towards us….Ah! Perfect.
Next, we are back on another blue bike: ‘Hello’!
We are heading back through the throng again, stopping only at a viewing point, as now the sun has set, a projection is showing on the side of the moon shell of the Opera House, it is very striking and really draws the crowds. Once we are at the North side of the Opera House the crowd thins out considerably, and we are soon cycling along a well-lit bike path past the sea front and gradually the Station restaurant draws closer, this is our goal.
Tonight, the owner is in, Hubert, the French businessman who has swapped tech entrepreneur for restauranteur, he is very charming and chats with us for some time, sharing his plans to offer special events and deals. We find that the location speaks for itself…with the Opera House glowing at the far end of the bay, the golden beach below and the moon shining across the sea…it is perfect. When Hubert rejoins his friends, we look at the menu, wait… there is no menu? You must order on the App!