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Post by amewupp on Aug 1, 2005 8:43:59 GMT 7
Hey all, My mom and brother are coming this friday to visit for 2 1/2 weeks and, being the master procrastinator that I am, I have yet to really plan anything. I figure we'll head up to Beijing, as well as go to Shanghai, as it's so close. But other than that....  I'd like to show them a variety of things/places, but there's just so much to do, that it's been hard making a decision on what to do in the time they are here. Soooo, any suggestions? Any must-see, don't-leave-china-without-doing, things? Keep in mind that this will only be my second time out of Suzhou (hey, I haven't been here that long!), so I'm still trying to figure out this whole china travel thing. Thanks  |
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Post by Raoul Duke on Aug 1, 2005 10:53:49 GMT 7
On my must-see list:
1) The Great Wall (BJ)
2) The Forbidden City (BJ)
3) Tiananmen Square (BJ)
4) The Terra Cotta Army (Xian)
5) The area around Guilin, Guangxi
I also recommend some areas of Yunnan- Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, Xishuangbanna.
The latter might be nice since they're up in the mountains and relatively cool. August is the absolute bonehead worst time to come to China...it's stinkin' hot out there.
I know because I did my first tourist trip here in August, 1987....
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Decurso
Barfly
Things you own end up owning you
Posts: 581
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Post by Decurso on Aug 1, 2005 11:05:18 GMT 7
Yup...can't come to China without seeing the Terra Cotta warriors.Hong Kong is a must see as well...though I'm not sure how the visa situation works if you have a Residance Permit.I went to get my Z visa and used my "Single Entry" going back to the mainland.Also,Guangzhou is worth a visit.And Qindao is a really popular getaway in my neck of the woods.Hopefully I'm going to check it out next weekend.
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Post by Mr Nobody on Aug 1, 2005 17:31:19 GMT 7
Yunnan is apparently quite wet right now, maybe not so pleasant as usual. Guilin is great. Guangxi is decidedly more pleasant right now than other places around southern China. Also, take them to a temple eg the one in Shunde if you are going anywhere near HK/etc. Or one of the huge buddhas, eg the one in near Foshan, I think, or the one on Lantau Island off HK. Guangzhou this time of year is a hellhole of pollution and a miasma of hot smelly bodies. But then, I don't like Guangzhou, except really short visits. If you like history, then Guangzhou has a lot of Sun Yat Sen stuff. And Guilin is a LOT further than you think it might be. (Near to me though) |
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Da Dan
Barfly
the weather is here............ wish You were beautiful
Posts: 105
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Post by Da Dan on Aug 1, 2005 17:50:58 GMT 7
If ya do the Great Wall, and ya Should... Don't listen to the travel agents when they tell you Badaling is the Only place to see it. Badaling is a full on Chinese tourist trap along with the 12 million Chinese tourists daily... & the wall you see there is all restored, you can see the Real wall in the distance but where they take you is all new. They will make all kina excusses to get you on their bus for commissions, don't listen to them & demand that you... Go to Simatia. That part of the wall isn't restored, you can actually see "The Great Wall" that was built long ago & many less people will be there. It's a little further away but well worth the little longer bus ride. Don't forget to wave to the guys on the shuttle once you're on the wall, `you Do Know that The Great Wall can be seen from space, yes?  |
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Post by Raoul Duke on Aug 1, 2005 18:31:27 GMT 7
Yeah. I saw the Wall at Badaling, but this was 18 years ago and back then it was still pretty cool. These days Badaling- the "default" place for tourists to see the Wall- reportedly resembles 3,000 miles of the crowd out in front of Suzhou train station.  Insist on going somewhere else. |
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Post by Canuck on Aug 1, 2005 20:24:43 GMT 7
The first time I went to see the wall it was raining and it was beautiful.. and there were only about 4 people on the wall. It was at Mu Tian Yu. Another great place to see the wall is a few kilos south of Ba Da Ling. I liked BaDaLing for the view if you could see past the crowds of people.   These pics were taken at BaDaLing. |
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Post by con's fly is open on Aug 1, 2005 20:56:31 GMT 7
God, i love the wall. We went to the tourist stretch of it near Beijing back in 1986. No bad lines, and there was this one part that was so steep we had to climb with our hands as well as our feet.
The new tourist thing will be to visit obscure stretches of the Wall, near a poor, quintessentially Chinese town. Big bucks to be had for the soul who can be bothered.
Ame, while in Shanghai, go for the obvious: a walk along the Bund. Those are all the Europian buildings along the river. After it gets dark, pop up The Pearl, that hamster-tube tower that's the second tallest thing in Shanghai. The view of all the lit-up skyscrapers is well worth the 100 yuan admission.
(Funny: i keep drinking, but Im still not drunk)
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Post by Raoul Duke on Aug 1, 2005 22:56:37 GMT 7
The Bund is interesting if you're in town. And the view of Shanghai from atop the Oriental Pearl tower is indeed spectacular.
But I don't think I'd travel here from Xian or Seattle just to see them. The 5 things I listed above, I would.
Con, you were here in '86?
Nice pics, Canuck! That's where I saw it too. My picture of me there is back in the States...wish I had it with me now.
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Post by amewupp on Aug 2, 2005 15:19:36 GMT 7
Hey guys, Thanks for all the advice! I just got my train tickets to Beijing and I hafta say, I'm excited  I have Beijing pretty well planned (well, as planned as anything can be here) and can't wait to see the Wall-thanks for all the suggestions on where to see it at. Canuck-great pics! I want to go to Xi'an as well, but I wasn't sure if it was do-able in the time they are here. I know they really wanna go, though, so any suggestions on what to do there besides the terra cotta soldiers? (never fear, I'll check out the "cities" thread as well). And thanks for the info on Shanghai since I haven't been there yet. My co-worker is from Nanjing, and he's been talking so much about it that's it's now a possibility as well. Oh hey, my fellow Suzhou-ites, any little cool places that a relative newbie to Suzhou might not know about but should check out? Sorry for all the questions and thanks all! Drinks on me tonight |
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Post by con's fly is open on Aug 2, 2005 16:20:18 GMT 7
Yeah, 1986. I never mentioned it?
Hey, that gives me an idea for a new thread...
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gengrant
SuperBarfly! 
Hao, Bu Hao?
Posts: 1,818
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Post by gengrant on Aug 2, 2005 20:45:46 GMT 7
I prefer mine in a tall, frosted mug, but thanks for the offer...can I take a raincheck?  |
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Post by Raoul Duke on Aug 3, 2005 0:13:43 GMT 7
Amewupp: We gotta talk. I'll call when and if my schedule ever clears a bit. Life in the fast lane...
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Post by Seth on Aug 3, 2005 11:30:38 GMT 7
I want to go to Xi'an as well, but I wasn't sure if it was do-able in the time they are here. I know they really wanna go, though, so any suggestions on what to do there besides the terra cotta soldiers? (never fear, I'll check out the "cities" thread as well). One of the main train routes from Beijing to Shanghai goes through Zhengzhou in Henan province. From what I remember you can get trains to just about anywhere from Zhengzhou, very central city. Xi'an is pretty much straight west of Zhengzhou, probably around 9 hours. So I don't think Xi'an is too far out of the way. Xi'an has a different feel to most cities, as the inner walled city is pretty old and is one of the few cities to have the original city wall still intact. It's a big tourist city with many people selling tourist maps, so it's not hard to get around or to know what to see. |
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Newbs
SuperDuperBarfly!
If you don't have your parents permission to be on this site, naughty, naughty. But Krusty forgives
Posts: 2,085
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Post by Newbs on Aug 3, 2005 13:41:05 GMT 7
G'day amewupp
If your co-worker is from Nanjing and insists on going to Shanghai, ok, but I'd check out Nanjing first. Nice "little" city with a bit of history, most of which are to the east in the Zijin Shan area (if memory serves me correctly). Also check out Fuzi Mao, the restaurant drag. You may consider it a bit touristy, but after Shanghai you'll probably think it pretty quiet and laid back.
Re Shanghai. I've posted on the Shanghai thread some stuff about the French Concession, Huai Hai Lu, and also where you can buy good propoganda posters.
My two jiaos worth
Newbs
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Post by amewupp on Aug 5, 2005 15:01:29 GMT 7
Thanks again, guys. My vacation starts tomorrow, and my family gets in tonight so off I go for a few weeks. The only place that's definite is Beijing-otherwise I'm just going to play it by ear. Nothing quite as "exotic" as Lotus Eater's trip, I'm sure, but I'm looking forward finally seeing some more of China. I do find it amusing that me and my handful of mandarin will be the "guide" for this trip-should be good times So have a good couple of weeks all PS:gengrant~hardy-har-har |
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Post by contemporary dog on Aug 5, 2005 15:59:07 GMT 7
On my must-see list: 1) The Great Wall (BJ) 2) The Forbidden City (BJ) 3) Tiananmen Square (BJ) 4) The Terra Cotta Army (Xian) 5) The area around Guilin, Guangxi I also recommend some areas of Yunnan- Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, Xishuangbanna. The latter might be nice since they're up in the mountains and relatively cool. August is the absolute bonehead worst time to come to China...it's stinkin' hot out there. I know because I did my first tourist trip here in August, 1987.... My mother, and 4 friends, have just been over to China to visit me. They stayed in Wuhan for a few days and then we went Yangshuo-Kunming-dali-Lijiang. They all had a brilliant time. One had been to Thailand before, but said this even easily topped it. Dali in particular was a wonderful place. I'm so glad I took them to places like that rather than a load of big industrial cities in the north/east. Sod the real china. The best places are the laid back ones. |
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Post by con's fly is open on Aug 5, 2005 17:07:37 GMT 7
Ame, take photos! Post the best ones here!
Say, Dog, where's Dali? Never heard of it.
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Post by CarryAnn on Aug 5, 2005 19:18:42 GMT 7
Yunnan province (Kunming, Dali, Lijiang) and Guilin and Yangshuo are sublime. I took a trip to Yangshuo in May and to Yunnan a few weeks ago - well worth it. I blissed out. Spend more time in Yangshuo and less in Guilin is my tip.
The bus trip from Kunming to Lijiang is 9 hours of postcard scenery - flocks of white ducks, herds of goats terraced rice fields, traditional rustic villages and villagers, yakking with the yaks.
Even got to play on the glacier at 4680 metres on the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (Yulong Xueshan) near Lijiang.
Both Lijiang and Yangshuo have loads of cool cafes and great western food.
It's the vibe Jerry, the vibe.
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Post by Mr Nobody on Aug 5, 2005 20:21:17 GMT 7
I have been to Guilin, Yangshuo, only a couple ofhours from here.
We are going to Yunnan, depending on the weather, shortly.
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Post by amewupp on Aug 30, 2005 23:07:42 GMT 7
Just wanted to say thanks again for all the suggestions. We ended up in Beijing for about half of the trip-Forbidden City, Tiananmen Sq, and the Great Wall (at Mutianyu-which was great) were all covered. We also ended up in Hangzhou and Shanghai. Wanted to go to Xi'an, but alas, China travel is a complicated thing and we didn't make it...guess I'll just have to head that way later on. I was all about trying to go to more "off the beaten path" places, but Mom didn't seem to eager at that prospect...oh well, more for me later!  But all in all, not bad for a first "China trip" |
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Post by Mr Nobody on Aug 31, 2005 2:40:04 GMT 7
Xi'an is great, and a few of the locals are greater, but I forgot their names. I think they occassionally post here, one might have some authority if you give a poo. I recommend it highly. Watch it, though, they are ozzies, so they dance quite badly.
On the other hand, the mutton is pretty greasy there, and the noodles are slightly undercooked and oversized. Needs work. Some bread was great. Don't know the chinese for it, since the girlie just pointed.
(only some of the above information is accurate)
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Post by George61 on Aug 31, 2005 3:45:18 GMT 7
It's a part of El Salvador, innit??
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Post by Mr Nobody on Aug 31, 2005 15:26:22 GMT 7
No, he was a spanish artist. Did some sculptures. Nearly bought one once, at an exhibition in Rome. Only cost about 2,000 aus. nice. He did multiple castings of his art, so it isn't highly priced. When he died, some of his familly even ran off a few more from the moulds. They lack the signature, though, but then, some of his student's work has the signature. Dali's stuff is much in demand now.
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Post by George61 on Aug 31, 2005 21:15:55 GMT 7
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I'd like to show them a variety of things/places, but there's just so much to do, that it's been hard making a decision on what to do in the time they are here. 
I have Beijing pretty well planned (well, as planned as anything can be here) and can't wait to see the Wall-thanks for all the suggestions on where to see it at. Canuck-great pics!
But all in all, not bad for a first "China trip" 
