1-4: Beijing: The Wall, the Square, the Duck

We arrive in Beijing in the afternoon and transfer to our fine hotel near the heart of the city. We may start our introduction to this great city by taking a short walk to get a feel for this great city. Depending on arrival times, you may want to rest after a long flight.

Our tour of China begins at the spiritual, emotional and patriotic heart of China, Tiananmen Square. We'll take a morning tour of the Forbidden City, home to emperors for centuries, then head off to the beautiful Summer Palace for a walk down the intricately painted Long Corridor. We return to Beijing for our Welcome Dinner, featuring Peking Duck.

We'll start the next day with a rickshaw tour of an old neighborhood just north of the Forbidden City. Once home to workers at the palace, these small alleys called “hutongs” are lined by the walls of courtyards shared by several families. We will be privileged to share tea with one of these families. Our unique lunch will include the favorite foods of the last emperor at the Fangshan Restaurant in Beihai Park. This evening we close out the day with a performance of the acrobatic Peking Opera.

One day we'll drive north of Beijing to step foot on the Great Wall, built to protect China from Mongolian nomads – only sometimes successfully, as Genghis Khan proved.

5-7: Xian and the giant warriors

Fly to Xian (pronounced “shee-an”). Depending on arrival time, we may stop at the new museum of Han Dynasty warriors en-route to the city. We will spend three nights at the Xian Sheraton Hotel.

We'll have a full day tour to explore Xian’s 2200-year imperial history, and observe the excavation of a 6000 year old matriarchal civilization at the Banpo Museum. The day’s highlight will be an in-depth exploration of the three huge pits containing 6000 terra cotta warriors unearthed after a farmer digging a well uncovered the first one in the 1970s.

The next day we'll take a city tour of Xian, including the South Gate of the well-preserved Tang and Ming Dynasty City Walls and the picturesque Small Goose Pagoda with a fascinating array of contemporary Chinese art on display. We also visit the Chinese-style 8th century mosque of Xian’s 100,000 strong Moslem community. This evening we will attend the Tang Dynasty Dinner Show.

8: Chongqing

We fly to Chongqing (pronounced “Chong-ching”) and get our first view of the mighty Yangtze River. We will be spending the night at the Holiday Inn that overlooks the river and the rapidly developing city. After a restful night, we get to know Chongqing and its environs. Depending on weather and road conditions, we may take a unique tour into the Chongqing countryside where tour director Phil Sheldon will introduce you to the North Hot Springs Park where he lived for much of 1985. We may also visit the pandas and Tibetan bears at the Chongqing Zoo, or pause for a Chinese foot and body massage. We board our ship in the evening and spend our first night onboard.

9-11: Cruising the Yangtze

This morning we may take in some local sightseeing and then head to the harbor to board our ship later in the day. Each day’s schedule is subject to change based on river and weather conditions. While we sail the ship’s staff offers a variety of cultural activities such as tai chi exercises, Chinese music, traditional Chinese medicine, and local arts and crafts.

This afternoon we are scheduled to disembark in the city of Fengdu, one of the largest cities that will be completely inundated by the waters of the Three Gorges reservoir. Fengdu’s most famous feature is the Ghost Temple, featuring numerous gaudy (and scary!) figures of devils and torturers, and now the old city itself is a ghost city as buildings are taken apart brick by brick to avoid navigation hazards when the city is under water.

The next morning we awake to view the Qutang Gorge. This is the shortest of the three gorges, but perhaps the most dramatic. An hour or two later we pass Wushan’s twin cities on the left bank. The old, gray, gritty town by the river has seen no new building for a decade and is now leveled, but the gleaming white city above has become the home for Wushan’s residents. After traversing the Wu Gorge, our ship docks and we board small “peapod boats” for an unforgettable trip up a small tributary, pulled or rowed by strapping young men of the local minority group and accompanied by the singing of beautiful young women.

We return to the ship for our passage of the third and longest Xiling Gorge. As we approach the dam itself, we see how the riverside has been cleared of all buildings and vegetation up the level where the lake will be backed up in June 2003. (The reservoir is scheduled to be filled to its final level by 2009.) Since the water is now flowing through the dam itself, and the large ship locks will not be operational until late summer 2003, our ship will dock for two nights at the river port of Maoping, just above the dam.

Having traversed the entire length of the Three Gorges Reservoir from its upper end below the steep hills of Chongqing, we now get a close-up view of the huge dam itself, already a decade in the making. From an overlook, we can not only see the entire dam, but also the massive five-stage ship lock that has been carved out of a mountain to lift ships up to the new lake. In the afternoon there is an optional visit to see daily life in one of the new towns for people relocated from the riverside villages.

12-14: Shanghai

This morning we take a five hour bus ride to Wuhan. Depending on the time of our flight to Shanghai, we may visit the Hubei Provincial Museum. Upon arrival in Shanghai we will transfer to our hotel, the famous Peace Hotel on the waterfront, or Bund.

We will enojoy a city tour of Shanghai, including the Jade Buddha Temple, the Yu Garden, the exceptional, modern Shanghai Museum, and (weather permitting) a short boat ride to experience the magnificent harbor of this world-class port city. There will be time for you to explore Shanghai on your own. On one of our evenings in Shanghai we will be treated to a spirited acrobatic show. Tonight will be our farewell dinner as we fondly remember our two weeks in China.

15: Departure Day

Transfer to Shanghai’s new Pudong Airport to return home. Immigration formalities for U.S. residents will occur at our first port of entry in North America.

NOTE: for those who are interested, we will offer an additional night in Shanghai at the end of the trip, including a full day tour to the nearby city of Suzhou, known for its silk, classical gardens, and the Grand Canal. Please contact us for details if you are interested.