Taishan International Youth Hostel 泰山国际青年旅社

I went to the city of Tai’an in Shandong province for two things, first is that I have a former colleague who I worked with for several years and she happens to be in town, the second was that there is a major tourist attraction here and I am eager to see it. But first things first, I needed to secure a place for the night, since my friend doesn’t even have a grass mat for visitors at her place. Anyway, the train station at Tai’an wasn’t as modern as the one in Beijing which was kind of a letdown. Outside the train station was lots of construction so the whole place is a mess.

As usual when one out of a train station there will always be a huge group of touts asking you where to go. I refuse to be pressured by these people and just walked past them to compose myself. I walked into a small snack store hoping I would be able to ask some questions. I also needed to break my CNY 100 bill. The store owner was extremely friendly and I ended up talking with him for fifteen minutes. I got my information too. He instructed me to get a motorcycle taxi near the train station and ask him to bring me there.

True enough I got a motorcycle taxi. It has been a while since I rode these things and I must say that they are quite handy. I got him to bring me where Wanli Building 万里大厦 was and I immediately saw my hostel’s sign. The trip cost only CNY 5. The Taishan International Youth Hostel is located in a old street type of establishment. The hostel itself look quite new and very homey. The common area has a large LCD TV. Since this trip was a budget trip, I only went for the dorm bed. This time it was only four to a room.

The room had two doulbe decker beds, this time I managed to land the bottom bunk. The whole room was designed with a wooden theme and it does feel like a log cabin of some sort. The bathroom was a pleasant surprise since they had very nice shower areas with a separate area for keeping the clothes dry. It also has hot water shower. The toilet was also very nice, and it probably proves that a lot of foreigners come here since there is a western style toilet here, much to my relief. I would be in town for a few days and I’m glad this place turned out to be very nice.

The staff are also extremely friendly and helpful. I tried speaking to them in English and they do speak decent English but obviously they preferred speaking in Chinese when they found out I can speak the language. They then “pressured” me into speaking Chinese ever since that. The immediate area of the hostel is lined with numerous shops and restaurant though it looks like this “old street” seems to be quite new.

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