Visit China Now!

[kinntj]

AR=Autonomous Region. A handfull of areas with high minority populations are deemed Autonomous Regions, although in reality it doesn't amount to anything much different from being a province.

Nanchang wasn't my favorite city. We were there for 10 days in 98 and there wasn't much to do. The airport was a hoot--basically a concrete military stop with a neon sign slapped on the front. I'm sure it's been upgraded since. In fact, when we got our first referral, and I told a Chinese colleague were were going to Nanchang, she apologized! Nanning was a different story. It was very beautiful.

Thanks for the definition. I could have looked it up, but I'm too lazy today. I'm not sick yet, but my eyes feel tired and like they want to close.

Yep, Nanchang...industrial and tech universities/colleges. It is very concrete and blah there. I wasn't sick though, so I had a better time that trip. Did you go to the park with the statues of "the year of the..."? We posed for a picture by the Horse, since my DD was born in the year of the horse. We went to Nanchang in '03 and Nanning in '05.

I need to go back and spend some time in Shanghai and Hong Kong. We'll be there much longer next time.

Is your little one from Guangxi spicy? I know they say girls from Hunan are spicy, but my little one is very strong willed.

 

[legalsea]

Our visit to Xi’an.

To get to Xi’an we were driven out to the Beijing airport, to the China Eastern Airlines gate. I was somewhat apprehensive about flying within China, since I had read various reports about the strict security, including no liquids or pastes whatsoever (even in checked baggage!), and a strict limit on the size of your carryon (no more than 11 inches tall, said one person).

However, it was actually easier to get through security than in the USA. There was no problem with my having small vials of liquids or paste (shampoo, toothpaste, etc), and my carryon suitcase sailed right through. You did not have to remove your shoes. I did set off the alarm and so was ‘wanded’.

The flight to Xi’an was one hour fifty minutes. The airplane (I have no idea what type) was very clean and comfortable, and all announcements were made in Chinese and then English. We were served a very nice meal consisting of sliced beef in a sauce, with yummy noodles and a roll (my wife loved the roll, which she said was potato bread, and was very fresh and soft to the touch).

There was also a small, round yellowish ‘cake’ (orange flavor). One of our group decided that it must be butter and so stuffed it whole inside his roll (since it would not spread with the plastic knife), to the amusement of the surrounding passengers (he complained that it was the worse butter he had ever had). I did not notice the flight being ‘bumpy’, although we certainly hit the runway a little harder than I was expecting.

Xi’an is a ‘small’ Chinese city of 8 million people. Traffic was not quite as heavy as in Beijing, yet the drivers seemed a little more frantic; possibly due to the easier traffic conditions. We were escorted to the Xi’an Sheraton Hotel, a beautiful building with two wings.

One of our activities in Xi’an was walking the city wall. The city wall is nine miles long, and seems almost as wide. I have walked other city walls, including York, England, and they always seem to be very narrow, sometimes only wide enough for two or three people to walk abreast. Not in Xi’an .This wall (with original foundations going back to the 600s) is 40 to 46 feet wide at the top. It is also some 40 feet tall. We visited the wall at one of its gates. As I said, the wall is nine miles in length. Were we visited the wall was straight as an arrow for what must have been a mile. Literally, if you looked left or right you saw nothing but a straight walkway, interspersed with elegant guard houses, for as far as you could see. I wish we had time to actually do some walking, for I wanted to see how far you had to go before the wall actually turned in some direction. Doing a ‘google’ search I see where the wall appears to be a square, with 90 degree corners.

Anyway, right inside the city wall at the gate we visited was a splendidly-looking hotel. Totally oriental looking. Right in the middle of the action. Small stores, restaurants, vendors, etc., all around. The Xi’an Sheraton is not centrally located (although there was a nice ‘pub’ across the street). If ever we return to Xi’an, I shall look up that hotel next to the wall.

One thing the Chinese have learned well from Westerners (and probably Walt Disney) is the value of well-placed gift shops. Not only at the end of an ‘attraction’, but also at the beginning. At the gatehouse we visited was a very nice gift shop; if you climb up on the wall and walk along to an old guard house, you will find another gift shop. One thing I loved about Chinese gift shops is they always have plenty of personal eager to show you their wares. Indeed, in some places I discovered that if you merely give the faintest glance at some item, a salesperson will pick up that item and ask if they should wrap it up.

I will also note that if you enter a Chinese restaurant you do not have to hunt down a hostess to seat you. At the average restaurant we visited there would be no less than three attractively dressed Chinese women, all smiling at your arrival, as if they had been waiting just for you. The pub we visited in Xi’an (which also had a small restaurant) had three young girls at the entrance to greet and seat guests. When not engaged in seating customers they stood and talked and giggled among themselves. They bowed quite nicely to my wife and myself as we left.

I mentioned that the pub was ‘across the street’ from our hotel. True. A nice, wide, busy street, with not a stop light in site. To cross you simply had to head out, stopping in the middle of the street to let the cars rush past until you see a favorable opening.

The real danger, to my mind, was not the cars (which you could easily see coming), but the bicycles and mopeds, which usually had no lights and ran silently (to save gas a person on a moped will get up a head of steam and then turn off the engine, hence gliding, silently, through the night). Since these two-wheeled vehicles were just as likely to be on the sidewalk as on the road, they were doubly-deadly.

The Terra Cotta Museum was outside the city a ways (some 20 miles). We were fortunate in being able to park our bus very close to the museum entrance; Michael pointed out the regular packing lot as we passed it; it was a good mile away from the entrance.

The story of the discovery of the Terra Cotta army is simple to relate: in 1974 three farmers were digging a well when they come upon some pottery fragments. They reported their find (probably to their regret, below) to the authorities. After some investigation was the discovery of a fabulous life-sized ‘army’ of terra cotta soldiers and horses. It was discovered that this army was built by Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of all China.

I had only seen the photographs of the soldiers. I was surprised to find that there are actually three ‘pits’. The largest pit holds the vast majority of the terra cotta army: the common soldier along with some horses. The second pit holds the archers (and a few horses), while the third pit held the generals (some 48 in all). In short, the army is arrayed for battle, with the infantry in front, the archers behind (who would shot their arrows up and over the army, hopefully) and the generals rather far in the rear (nothing has changed in thousands of years) . The soldiers and archers are all facing the same direction (if they had built a terra cotta model of me, I would be in the back, facing backwards). Each soldier is a distinct individual. The horses all appeared to look the same. Why would you go to the trouble of making sure that each of the 8000 or so soldiers had individual facial expressions, yet make the horses all the same?

Most of the soldiers (and horses) were in pieces when found; some more so than others. In the back area of the main pit you see large areas that have been partially evacuated, showing how the figures are being ‘found’. Some soldiers, still partially buried, are obviously in pretty intact shape, will others have not fared as well. Indeed, looking at the standing army you will see several ‘headless’ soldiers, indicating that the heads have yet to be found, or were so busted up that they could not be put back together again. Inside the museum they have several soldiers that were uncovered intact and in marvelous condition; indeed, one archer even had remnants of color on his back. How grand this army must have been when new! Each soldier holding his wooden spear (all the spears have long deteriorated) and each soldier being painted! The color on the archer was red. It must have been a very colorful army. Perhaps the horses had all been gaily and differently painted, hence explaining the lack of distinct characteristic between horses. I imagine each horse was a different color.

The three farmers were brothers. The government thanked them for the find; then ejected them from the land. The brothers were gifted with a house close-by, and with a job in the museum. One brother was a janitor, another a cook, while the third was a groundskeeper.

Two of the brothers have died. The surviving one was given a new job a decade or so ago: every day he sits in the museum gift shop and signs books detailing the discovery, etc., of the terra cotta soldiers (not written by him). He does not speak to anyone. For years he tolerated photographs, but the flash bulbs finally harmed his eyes. He now prohibits photographs of any kind and he has a large fan that he holds up in front of his face if he even suspects you may take a photograph. I had my camcorder out (no flash) and was filming the gift shop; when he saw me start to point the camcorder towards him, up went the fan.

I will mention that there was a fourth ‘pit’ found, but that it did not contain anything. It was determined that a revolution had broken out and that the workers had all fled, hence the Emperor could not finish the task. I do wonder what the fourth pit would have contained. It was between the second (archers) and third (generals). Elephants? Artillery? Geisha girls? The mind boggles.

The main pit is very, very large. Give yourself at least thirty minutes to make the circuit. Note: you are not allowed to enter the pit and drag out a soldier as a souvenir. Nor are you allowed to mount a horse. The Chinese guards may appear small, but they deceptively quick and strong.

Next: to Shanghai and Tongli.

 

[Jenvenza]

Pictures please.

 

[robinb]

Welcome back! We went to Asia in August 2007 for 2 weeks. We visited Hong Kong and Beijing in China then Osaka. Hiroshima, Yokohama and Tokyo in Japan. We loved Beijing! Everyone was so nice and they all wanted to meet us. My blond DD was asked to have her picture taken with an endless parade of children.

 

[Pigeon]

Is your little one from Guangxi spicy? I know they say girls from Hunan are spicy, but my little one is very strong willed.

Mine are the opposite. The food from Jiangxi is generally much spicer than that of Guangxi, which tends to be more like Cantonese food. And I'd say the same is true for my daughters. My eight year old is the easiest kid going. She's happy all the time and generally no drama. My 11 year old from Jiangxi is much more of a handful, and has been from Day 1. She's always felt the adoption related stuff more intensely. We don't have attachment issues, but she is one strong-willed young lady. And we are entering the pre-teen phase with all it's delightful issues. I'm sort of glad they came in the order they did, because it would be harder for me to go from easy to tough.

But they are both healthy, bright and happy, so it's all good.

 

[kinntj]

Welcome back! We went to Asia in August 2007 for 2 weeks. We visited Hong Kong and Beijing in China then Osaka. Hiroshima, Yokohama and Tokyo in Japan. We loved Beijing! Everyone was so nice and they all wanted to meet us. My blond DD was asked to have her picture taken with an endless parade of children.

So true. We traveled with a couple with their children who both had blond/white heads and they got afraid to go out, because their pictures would be taken constantly. It's funny, because one minute you're standing talking and a Chinese mom will put her son next to the blonde boy and take their picture.
The boy was so confused by what was going on. By the end of the trip he didn't mind.

 

[kinntj]

Our visit to Xi’an.
Next: to Shanghai and Tongli.

Thank you for your China trip report! It sounds like a fascinating place. I always love the stories and history behind each place.

It's like the story of the Forbidden City with the 999 1/2 rooms. He didn't want to build 1,000 rooms, because that is how many the emperor in Heaven had. I had to laugh at that one and the guide thought it was funny too. It may be a smaller room and he counted that as 1/2, but I saw it as 1. Oh well, details are important.

 

[robinb]

Opps! I meant 3 weeks .

So true. We traveled with a couple with their children who both had blond/white heads and they got afraid to go out, because their pictures would be taken constantly. It's funny, because one minute you're standing talking and a Chinese mom will put her son next to the blonde boy and take their picture.
The boy was so confused by what was going on. By the end of the trip he didn't mind.

Celia was very gracious about everything. The Chinese moms would put their kids right up to her and make them hold hands:

One little boy didn't want anything to do with Celia and he ran off!

 

[kinntj]

Mine are the opposite. The food from Jiangxi is generally much spicer than that of Guangxi, which tends to be more like Cantonese food. And I'd say the same is true for my daughters. My eight year old is the easiest kid going. She's happy all the time and generally no drama. My 11 year old from Jiangxi is much more of a handful, and has been from Day 1. She's always felt the adoption related stuff more intensely. We don't have attachment issues, but she is one strong-willed young lady. And we are entering the pre-teen phase with all it's delightful issues. I'm sort of glad they came in the order they did, because it would be harder for me to go from easy to tough.

But they are both healthy, bright and happy, so it's all good.

Funny, how you see the provinces/AR much differently than I do. Our guide brought up the spicy thing first and then I tended to agree because of my DD and her being so difficult.

Yep, it sounds like our girls are in different order, but I'm glad the difficult one came last. I don't think I would have gone back to get a 2nd if she was my 1st.

Life sure isn't boring for us, is it?

 

[Planogirl]

I just read the first part of your trip report. Fascinating!!!!

 

[maelstrom]

My school is having a trip to China this summer. According to the flyer, they'll be going to Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, Shanghai, and Suzhou. The cost is $3,818 for two weeks.

 

[figment52]

My school is having a trip to China this summer. According to the flyer, they'll be going to Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, Shanghai, and Suzhou. The cost is $3,818 for two weeks.

That would be a great trip. Reasonable price too, especially if it includes all your air and "in China" travel.

My sister adopted twice and I went on both trips. We went tp Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Chongqing and of course, Guangzhou (all adoptions end there don't they - most of them at the White Swan, what a great hotel). I hope to return some day and see Xi'an.

When we were in Chongqing I was interviewed by the Chinese news. We were walking down the street in the city center and the reporter came right up to me with camera and mic in hand and just started asking me questions.

Yes, children were always being place by us or in our arms for pictures. We were the novelty. We thought it a bit odd at first since we were in very large cities but where ever we would go we always drew a crowd.

Please keep posting. And pictures too.

 

[Sweet]

then we flew Easter China airlines to Xi’An; What wonderful people! The food was great (although I am sick of “Chinese food”).
I am open to any questions. I shall try to submit a more detailed account soon on this thread (jet lag is severe!).

Don't miss the museum of Terra - Cotta warrior, and the Chinese food is really healthy and delicious. I love it.

 

[JJsmama]

So true. We traveled with a couple with their children who both had blond/white heads and they got afraid to go out, because their pictures would be taken constantly. It's funny, because one minute you're standing talking and a Chinese mom will put her son next to the blonde boy and take their picture.

This is our life every day. The worst is that my oldest has curly hair and strangers love to touch it, which freaks him out. There is no real concept of personal space here. We draw a LOT of attention when we go out - especially since we have three sons. We have gotten used to China, but China will never get used to us.

I find it interesting that people reported loving the food. In my experience, only in Beijing is the food at all like the 'chinese food' in America. In Shanghai and other cities, it is very different. I have had some delicious food here but only in a few select places. We still have to be careful where we eat because, well, I won't go into that...

It is an interesting country though and the people can be quite lovely if you are not freaked out by massive crowds. The more we learn to speak the language, the more pleasant it is to interact with them, as they become less 'scary strangers' and more curious people just thrilled to see our children. The Great Wall and the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, etc really are amazing sights to behold. It is humbling to be such a small part of something so huge and old. After 4 years here, I don't feel much more enlightened that I did when we arrived. There is still so much I don't understand. It is indeed a huge, mysterious place and the cultures are so much more different that I even expected that I am often left just scratching my head.

 

[1rocky]

I went to China in December with China Best tours from Australia a group tour but there were only three of us. My sister, daughter and myself we then went to Hong Kong and went to Disneyland Hong Kong. Climbed two different sections of the wall and it was great . Did you do the Yangteze River as well. We also had lots of photos taken of us and put it down to experience and just had fun. I have also been to China with my 11 month old and did this over 23 years ago. our trip to China was one of the best we have done. Our next major trip before Disneyland USA is to Egypt has anyone been.

 

[GoofyBaseballMom26]

I'm going to Shanghai the first week of June for work. I will have a lot of free time and can't wait to see the World Expo. Any tips will be very welcome because I'm nervous about the flight over there and being in a country where I can't speak the language. I will be with someone who has been there before so that helps.

Any suggestions on foods to leave alone, can I drink the bottled water without any trouble and most important what souveniers should I look for in Shanghai that really represents that part of the country.

Again, any suggestions and advice will be very, very much appreciated!

 

[Deb in IA]

legalsea, I am really enjoying your reports. As you may know, I am a second generation Chinese-American. My parents were born, raised, and went to school through college in Shanghai. After the Communist revolution, they fled to Hong Kong, then a British colony, and got their exit visas through the British government. They came to the US, where they married and I and my sister were born. They speak the Shanghai dialect at home, so I still understand it and can speak some.

In 2000, I, DH, and our 2 children, then 8 and 4, went to Shanghai. I convinced my parents to come with us. They had not been back to their hometown for 50 years. It was truly a trip of a lifetime. We were fortunate to find their old homes still standing, although it was quite a feat. Not only had the landscape changed so dramatically, but all the street names had been changed, so it was very difficult for them to describe to our driver where they wanted to go. We also met many of our relatives that we had never seen before.

The most moving part of our trip was when we hired a van and a driver and went to Suzhou. There we located, again with some difficulty, the gravesites of my maternal grandparents. It was very emotional, especially for my mom, as both her parents were still alive when she left Shanghai 50 years before. My father's best friend is my mom's brother, so he was also very close to my mother's parents. Once we found the grave, we laid flowers and paid homage in the traditional Chinese way of bowing three times, slowly and deeply.

I went back with my parents 2 years later, and we went to Shanghai and Beijing. My parents had never travelled to Bejing when they lived in China, so they were seeing it for the first time as well. It was quite different from Shanghai - much more steeped in Chinese history and culture.

My parents went back one more time after that, but now they are not in good health and so I don't know if they will make it back again. I have to admit, it is certainly helpful to go with someone who speaks and reads the language, however, it was a bit of a struggle even for my mother, as many of the characters have been altered and "simplified". I would LOVE to visit Xi'an, Nanking, Hangzhou, and Hong Kong.

Some other observations about China:
The sheer mass of humanity there is astonding. There are more people there, in a smaller area, than anywhere I have ever seen - and I have been to some pretty big cities. My father always said that after he retired, he was going to move back to China, where he could afford to buy a big house and hire people, since the dollar buys a lot more there than here. But after his first visit back, he quickly decided against that idea. They have gotten so Americanized, that they appreciate being able to drive over to go shopping, buy groceries, etc., which they could not do in China. And my dad is a huge sports fan, and was sorely missing the NCAA March Madness - he could not believe that no station in China was carrying US sports!

Car horn honking is an art form. Honking is ubiquitous. But, unlike the US, honking is more of a friendly reminder - like, 'hey, not so close, I'm back here'. Not like the US, where honking is more like, "You #*%^@! Get your *+$@ out of my &*$#%^ way!!!"

Other things we had to adjust to were not drinking the water from the tap. Not even to brush your teeth. ONLY drink boiled water or bottled water.

Squatting toilets. Remember to build up your quad muscles. Also, bring your own toilet paper to the public restrooms.

Finally be prepared for lots of curious stares. Especially for our kids, since they have rather exotic (and beautiful, I think )Eurasian features - they always attracted a lot of attention. Also my 6' 1" blue-eyed husband .

If you ever go back, legalsea, I would encourage you to hire a private tour. Even though my parents speak and read Chinese, we did this and it was worth it. The price is so reasonable - not much more than what you paid for the group tour - and they provide transportation to and from the airport, and includes a customized tour, a translator/tour guide, van, and driver.

I will disagree about the food though. It was horrendous. I am a supremely picky eater and MANY MANY of our athletes have texture or sensory issues.

I would suggest that anyone who is NOT an "adventurous" eater really think hard about visiting China.

The cuisine is such an integral part of any China visit, that maybe "picky eaters" should not go.

 

[CapeMayMommy]

I visited China in 2002. It was quite a nice vacation. I would definately go back in a heartbeat.

I'd highly recommend a tour agency called "China Focus"

 

[taterules]

My mom would like to go to China with me, but she tires out easily, and I'm worried one of these tours would be too much for her. Can anyone recommend a tour that would still hit the major highlight spots, but she wouldn't have to do a lot of walking and there wouldn't be a lot of flying involved within China? Maybe something that just goes at a slower pace, even if we didn't see everything?

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Well Deb, you would be the one to ask since my 18yodd is going in July for a college Geology class. She will be in China for about 4ish weeks.

They certainly recommend her getting the Typhoid shot. Anything else? That is my main concern, her getting sick.

So no using water unless from a bottle.

She cannot wait to go and eat real Chinese food. Not picky at all and excited to try new foods, hence the Typhoid shot. She already has the Hep A & B and the regular shots except for Pertussis since she is allergic.