This content chronicles a year-long bicycle tour of North China by an American woman and her husband from Xinjiang, highlighting their diverse experiences with local culture, landscapes, and unexpected encounters, often marked by humorous misunderstandings due to their perceived Russian heritage.
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Look what I just found. It's Washington
DC. We got a double whammy here. It's a
Stalin nesting doll.
>> We wouldn't take the cigarette, so he
went to the store and got us little popsicles.
popsicles.
>> It's time for a nightlife tour.
>> I'm Catherine, and I've just embarked on
a year-long bike tour of North China
with my husband, Asagon. Even though
we're both constantly being mistaken for
being Russian or Soviet.
>> I don't have the heart to tell them the
Soviet Union is gone. comrades. I'm
actually from the US and he is from
Qashqar which is on China's farthest
farthest farthest western edge. Yeah,
the US and Singinjang is kind of an
unusual combination and in terms of
cultural background, we are about as
different as possible. But one thing we
do share is a love of biking. Today's
vlog is over 300 km worth of the rust
belt scenery, friendly strangers, and
lush landscapes of Mudanang. From the
Russian knickknack warehouse to the
forest growing in a volcano crater. From
the mundane to the spectacular, many
>> Last night, we stayed in the little city
of Mulling, which isn't known for
anything in particular except maybe
corn. But it really charmed us with its
interesting architecture and its
non-pork versions of traditional
northeast Chinese dishes. Love me some
sauerkraut, but it's just so hard to
find it without pork in it. But I found
us this halal restaurant in this tiny
tiny city.
>> It's okay.
>> Devastating. He doesn't even like it,
but I like it. So, it's a win regardless.
regardless.
From the city of Muling, we are headed
in the direction of a little town also
called Muling.
>> So, it's pretty common to see random
political slogans all over the place in
China. But, I'm not going to lie, that's
a lot of text to have to digest in like
3 seconds as you're driving past it.
They're at it again with the billboards.
That is so many letters to read when
you're whooshing down this road. This
place is actually only about 30 km away
from the China Russia border. Although
you don't really feel any Russian vibes
in the villages, there is some
interesting architecture to be found in
the towns. Don't mind me guys, just
having a lovely afternoon hanging out at
the Russian church themed gas station.
The architecture here really is unlike
any other part of the country I've been
to. Lots of columns, lots of little dome
things. It definitely gives the place an
exotic vibe, that's for sure.
>> We're passing through another roadwork
zone and they added eyeballs to the
little flag wavy guy to give him more
character, but he just looks depressed.
My man just looks miserable. He's like
Little taste of home right here. An
abandoned railroad track. There were a
bunch of these near my university in the
US. We used to like go walk around on
them and there are a bunch of them in my
grandma's hometown too. But now that I
think about it, I've actually never seen
these in China. It's not common to see
an abandoned railroad and it's basically
turned into the local hangout spot. Like
grandma's just chilling here. There's
just random people like walking around
on the track as though it's like a trail
to go on a stroll. I love looking at
these billboards. This one says Sa
Chunza Town, National Specialty Town.
>> people are always asking if we're lost.
We are almost never lost. We just enjoy
wandering in these tiny places cuz it's
these kind of roads that make the trip
interesting. If we were just on the main
roads the whole time, it's like what is
there to look at, you know? There's
nothing there. All the good stuff is on
these tiny roads. Love the granny's in
the clashing floral prints. Never gets
old. We are moments away from today's
destination. This tiny town. This is our
last place we'll be staying in before we
Mudang. [Music]
Everywhere you go in, make a friend and
get offered a cigarette. [Music]
>> We wouldn't take the cigarette, so he
went to the store and got us little popsicles.
Oh my goodness.
>> That's a first. That's a first. [Music]
>> We're on our way to the public bath,
which was not in today's itinerary
originally, but it turns out the hotel
we're staying at, you actually can't
take a shower in the evenings recently
because there's a water shortage in that
section of the town. So, they gave us
the address of a public bathing place. I
mean, we don't have to take a shower. We
could just like not take a shower, but
like we've liked 60 km today. Look how
bougie the front of it is. I have not
been to one of these things in years. Oh
my gosh. I don't think I can even
I keep getting asked if we're from the
Soviet Union. I don't have the heart to
tell them. The Soviet Union is gone,
>> There's a scale in here. And the minute
he walked in the door, he's like, "Ooh,
So, while we wait for to emerge from the
bathing room, let me tell you guys about
my public bath experience. It was very
bougie in there. It was some kind of
like marble or granite. Felt very fancy
in there. And I encountered a lady in
the changing room who was like, "How old
are you?" And I was like 30. And she's
like, "Oh, you're in such good shape."
And I was like, "Well, just wait until I
reproduce. I know that's when it gets
tough." It was just this lady like completely
completely
naked, just everything out there
striking up a conversation with me. Oh,
a foreigner. Let's chat. It's fine. It
was chill. I just thought it was funny,
[Music]
We're on our way to Mudandang. We have
heard mixed reviews about the road.
Trust me y'all. I searched the Sally map
up and down. There is no other way to
get to Mudandang than this one road. So,
we're stuck with it. Whatever it is,
[Music]
rolling hills,
beautiful countryside,
perfect sky. The road just sucks.
>> Never give up. [Music]
Today has been a rough day for sure. The
road conditions were not it. It keeps
raining on us over and over again, but
it's definitely been interesting. We've
seen a lot of interesting things and we
just stopped at this convenience store
to hide from the rain. Trying some local
bread. Doesn't really taste like
anything, but the texture is like a donut.
>> Saying goodbye to this lovely grocery
store that sheltered us for so long. We
got like 3 hours left.
Let's go. It's literally sunny outside.
Why are we being rained on?
Stop raining. [Music]
[Music]
from that rainy hellscape and that road
that looks like it's been through three
wars. Everything's been great. Look at
[Music]
>> Rural China ice cream truck.
>> You might be wondering how I could
possibly pass up the rural China ice
cream truck on a hot summer day. Well,
that street was actually right on the
outskirts of the city of Mudanjang. And
Mulan has bubble tea. Yep, it's time to
live the big city life for a couple
days. So, what I find interesting about
this mall is that there are these little
cart things that are just like roaming
around freely. Like most malls I've been
to will have a designated section for
like kids to drive these little carts
around, but not in this mall. They are
just in the hallway. This is their home
base, and they all disperse from here
like little soldiers scooting around.
So, we rented out this tiny apartment
for me to edit videos and for us to rest
for a couple days. We get an interesting
little view across the street. You can
actually see into the windows of all the
people across the road. And he is fascinated.
>> The city life watching the drama of the
other people from across the street. Is
Sadan's first authentic Shinjzang kebab
place since Harbin? We have not been
seeing these around cuz we've been in
like such tiny places. They just don't
have them. But finally found one here in
Mudanjang. He's giving the guy a free ad
on Dowian. It looks like
the guy who runs it is actually from
Qashqar, which is already a coincidence.
And he's also from Yang Shahara, which
is the exact same district that Astone's
Yeah.
>> So, this restaurant under ordinary
circumstances would have a lot of
singing jang dishes, but because most of
their customers are students and
students are having summer break right
now, they're actually operating at a
much smaller scale than usual and they
don't have anything but skewers. So, the
owner actually was like, "Hey, if you
guys want like a proper Shinjang meal,
you should go to this other place." and
he called us a taxi and showed the
address of the driver and was like,
"Hey, take them to this restaurant." He
sacrificed potential customers and wages
so that we could have like the best 10
out of 10 shinjang meal. Is that not the
cutest thing ever? Cute or not cute?
>> Yes. Cute. >> Lovely.
>> Lovely.
>> He's so excited. Wow.
>> Wow, look at those beautiful noodles.
That is a classic handmade noodle. And
speaking of noodles, the romance between
Asadon and my noodle loving cousin is
alive and well.
>> I really miss those noodles. I cannot go
to noodle restaurants anymore unless
it's handmade. Every noodle other than
these are ruined for me.
>> I tried to make some and it was such joy.
joy.
>> People around here are so generous. This
is the naan that the Shinjang restaurant
from last night gave us. They gave us
all this naan got a haircut last night
and they gave him this. Not just one,
they gave him four of these local
pineapple drinks. So, we're about to
like take these with us to the Singong
restaurant and have them with lunch cuz
we can't bring all this glass. It's too
heavy for the bikes. But I'm just like,
"Oh my gosh, how cute is this place?
>> We're getting ready to leave and the
restaurant owner is like, "Watch out for
tigers." Apparently, he's actually seen
Off we go into the wilderness to be
eaten by the tigers. Just kidding. They
said the tigers probably won't eat us
cuz we're too bony.
>> We're crossing this bridge that was
built during like the Roman Empire or
something. Whoa, graffiti. I think that
might be my first ever like westernstyle
graffiti sighting in China. It looks
like a gang symbol.
Yo, check this out. Washington DC vibes
in these corn fields.
It's Washington DC. It feels abandoned
because of how high the weeds are, but
the sign does say it belongs to some
sort of university. though. I don't
know. Anyway, right down the street from
Wish.com, Washington, DC, is something
even more exciting. The Russian
Knickknack Emporium. Yeah, they have
other products, too. But come on now.
I'm here for the knick-knacks. Other
than the really annoying beeping going
on in the background, this place is
pretty nice. Right off the bat, they led
me into the makeup area, which I felt
was not really the vibe. Kind of boring,
but I have now found the place where I
belong. I'm in the ornate knickknack
zone. This is solid. Like, this is not
[Music]
And there are some things in here that
are familiar to me from the US, but not
in the same context. This, for example,
is like haunted house gothic theme, but
maybe to a Russian person, this is just
So, yeah, the nesting dolls go so hard
in this place.
Look how tiny the final little guy is.
Look at this little nugget. All right,
folks. Say goodbye to the Knickknack Emporium.
Emporium.
>> Just left the Russian Goods place and
[Music]
>> In typical Halo John style, he offered
us a cigarette. They actually roll them
>> He was like, "Put my chickens in the
vlog." So, here I am putting the
chickens in the vlog. [Music]
>> They give us pimmens. [Music]
People keep talking about tigers and
stuff, but like I really mean it that
the scariest thing on this bike tour is
northeast drivers. Like the tigers are
not even in the back of my mind in the
slightest. Like if I see one, we'll deal
with it when the time comes. So the
people here, as long as they're not in a
vehicle, are so nice. They're so warm
and welcoming and friendly. But the
moment they have enclosed themselves
within the confines of a vehicle, they
just become ruthless. So yeah, we are
being careful trying to stay on the
quiet roads. [Music]
said goodbye to our last patch of yard
corn and we are officially in the city
of Nan. Just arrived at our hotel. Look
at the tiny tiny hobbit door. And it's
not that people around here are super
short because there's literally padding
on here. And the owner has warned me
like 17 times now to watch out for this
low thing here. It's just the way the
building was designed. There's this
really really tiny door.
>> There's another one here. So, you have
to like duck under this thing. And look
at this cute little sitting area down
We only spent one night in Ningan and
first thing the next morning we headed
I love how basically wherever I am in
China, even in these really far-flung
random places, the riverbank is always a
place you can count on for some cute
community vibes. [Music]
[Music] >> Hello
Everywhere we go, he gets some
>> Why do so many convenience stores around
here have a mirror? This is not a thing
in Honjo, but it is here.
>> Quail eggs in a jar.
>> Fish. How
This was definitely one of our quietest
days. The corn fields stretched
infinitely into the horizon and we saw
more birds than people. [Music]
Although we didn't really get a chance
to chat with any friendly strangers
today, the quiet landscape was a good
opportunity to ponder the meaning of
>> Hello. >> Hello.
[Music]
We are milking the teeths of the last
[Music]
Finally, I can see the lights of human
civilization in the distance.
Okay, so it's pretty lit over there.
Apparently, they're setting off fireworks.
Upon arrival, we have been greeted by
this giant deer head and a green laser
sweeping back and forth. [Music]
[Music] [Applause]
[Applause] [Music]
[Music]
>> We finally emerged into this.
>> Except our hotel isn't over there. It's
over here in a quieter area. As much as
I do love the noise and the excitement,
I also don't know how I'd feel about it
if it was like 2 a.m. And you never know
how late these karaoke people are going
to go. So, yeah, we're heading into a
[Laughter] [Music]
[Music]
Let me show you guys our room.
Super cute log cabin style.
Love this wood aesthetic. It is very
nostalgic for me. Brings back those log
cabin memories. This is the yard. Also
really cute. More log cabin vibes.
Freshly grown veggies back there. Look
at those vegetables. I love staying in
cute rural places like this. They have
so much character and every single place
is totally different. It's not like when
you're in the city and you're staying in
a hotel and you forget what it looked
like the next day. These kind of places
you'll remember because every single one
has its own unique cute vibe. Oh, and
because we're next to a lake, everywhere
you can see these big fish tanks full of
live fish. The fish here is fresh to the
max. And speaking of the lake, it's time
to go check that puppy out. Jingpo Lake
is known for having this waterfall that
attracts a lot of cliff divers. And
every day at a few set times, there will
be a cliff diving performance to
entertain us peasants. So many people
come to watch this spectacle that
[Music] [Applause]
[Applause] [Music]
And apparently there's tigers around
We have entered the cave forest and it's
like 10° cooler down here than it is in
the rest of this place. Look at this thing.
thing.
>> This is crazy.
>> Nature's air conditioner. We're not even
fully in the cave. We're still outside.
We're just next to the cave and it's
radiating coolness off of it. Fascinating.
Fascinating. [Music]
We are hiking up to the top of this
forest inside a volcano crater. So many stairs.
stairs.
[Music] Yeah,
Yeah, [Music]
>> you can also leave this lovely place
with a big chunk of wood of your very
own. Ooh, she's thick.
And if you don't have space for these,
you can take a little nugget, a
fun-sized piece of wood, take one of
Of course, there's a gun.
>> There are so many guns here. Even this
place, which is just selling like
berries and stuff, they even have guns.
In case y'all need a reminder that we
are in a Russian border zone, we have a
double whammy here. It's a Stalin
nesting doll. In retrospect, I really
regret not buying this. I'm sure this is
the kind of thing you would never see in
an actual Russian person's house, but I
mean, it just has so much character.
All right, we've seen forests and caves
and waterfalls and even a bit of
wildlife, but we still haven't really
seen the lake yet. So, we're moving a
couple hours down the road. The previous
place we stayed was closer to the
waterfall. This time we're staying on
the lake for maximum scenic vibes. [Music]
[Music]
Okay, so completely different vibe from
the place we just came from. The place
with the laser deer and the people
dancing with fans outside of 100
restaurants with flashing lights. Yes,
this is a completely different
aesthetic. Not that that place was bad
or anything, but I also do want to feel
closer to nature, and I think we have
found that here. We have arrived at our
hotel in this forest on a lake. As a lot
of you all know, my grandma is from
Vermont, so we have a family trip there
every summer. And like 90% of my Vermont
memories are being on little beaches
like this in front of a lake that looks
just like that with mountains in the
background. This is like maximum
childhood memories right here. >> Hello
>> Hello [Music]
Hello. >> Hello.
>> Night has fallen. Of course, there's karaoke.
karaoke.
>> Is this karaoke? What is this?
>> Very traditional. [Music]
And that is all for today's vlog
everyone. Hope you guys enjoy the change
of scenery. In the next vlog, we are
actually heading to the neighboring
province of Jillin. In other words, it's
time to say goodbye to the Russian
border vibes and say hello to the North
Korea border vibes. Can't wait to share
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