China 2006
In and around China
In the summer of 2006 I spent two and a half months in China.
Route taken and entries by Real Traveler MattHartzell
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1
Hong Kong
I'm in the Central Library in Hong Kong right now. Above me there are containers containing books moving on tracks in the ceiling. When I entered t... Continue reading »
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2
Hong Kong Disneyland
I'd already been to Disneyland in Anaheim, Orlando, and Paris so I figured I shouldn't pass up crossing Disneyland #4 off my list whilst here in Ho... Continue reading »
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3
Shenzhen
Riding the Kowloon-Canton Railway north through the New Territories to the border with mainland China, I realized that not all of Hong Kong is so i... Continue reading »
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4
Guangzhou
Express train from Shenzhen lasted 90 minutes. Guangzhou used to be known as Canton. After Hong Kong, it is the other major historical city and port i... Continue reading » -
5
Macau
I met a Spanish backpacker named Esther in Guangzhou who was also heading to Macau, so we decided to travel together. We split a room in a funky old h... Continue reading » -
6
Guilin
I feel like my journey has now really begun. Everything up until now has been in the vicinity of the Pearl River Delta, and my time there revolved aro... Continue reading » -
7
Longji Terraces, Ping'an Village
The last two days have been fantastic. I am so happy to be where I am right now, in Ping'an, a Zhuang minority village high up in the mountains surrou... Continue reading » -
8
Yangshuo
To get to Yangshuo, I had to backtrack from Ping'an back to Longsheng and Guilin, then take a third bus to Yangshuo. On this bus, the bus "stewardess"... Continue reading » -
9
Kunming
To reach Kunming I spent nearly 25 hours in transit.
Woke up in Yangshuo at 5:30am. Hopped on a 6am bus to Guilin, where my train was to leav... Continue reading »
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10
Dali
It was another overnight train to Dali, this one only lasting 7 hours and on the same type of nice, new train I took from Guangzhou to Guilin. I ar... Continue reading » -
11
Tengchong
The bus ride from Dali to Tengchong lasted six hours, careening through some of the most breathtaking scenery I have seen so far in China. It began wi... Continue reading » -
12
Ruili, Chinese food, and toilets
It was another 6 hour bus ride to Ruili. Actually, it was listed as 6 but it only took 5 because my bus driver was a speed demon. He looked about 20 y... Continue reading » -
13
Lijiang; Tiger Leaping Gorge
Left Ruili on an all-night bus. It was a luxurious bus with beds. I met an Indian jewel-trader from Burma on his way to the jewel market in Dali. He h... Continue reading » -
14
Zhongdian (Shangri-La)
Zhongdian has been officially renamed "Shangri-La" by the Chinese government, but I feel kind of silly saying that, so I'm just going to call it by it... Continue reading » -
15
Sichuan-Tibet Highway, Part 1
My waking up in time for the 7 am bus depended on my new alarm clock working. I spent $2 for it (a lot in China) so I figured I was in good hands. I e... Continue reading » -
16
Sichuan-Tibet Highway, Part 2
The more I strolled around little old Daocheng, the more I liked it. People were friendly. Kids greeted me with a warm hello. There was virtually no t... Continue reading » -
17
Chengdu
The eight hour bus ride from Kangding to Chengdu was the easiest of the three all-day bus rides between Zhongdian and Chengdu. It was entirely on qual... Continue reading » -
18
Lanzhou
The train ride to Lanzhou was 22 hours. I was happy to be back on a train. For nearly the last month or so, I had been in lands devoid of trains. And... Continue reading » -
19
The Silk Road: Jiayugyuan
This time the train was only 14 hours. When I awoke I was truly in the desert for the first time. And truly on the Silk Road. The Silk Road, of cou... Continue reading » -
20
The Silk Road: Dunhuang
There is no direct train to Dunhuang. The Dunhuang train station is actually 2 hours away from Dunhuang city by bus. So I thought it would make more s... Continue reading » -
21
The Silk Road: Turpan
Leaving Dunhuang, I took a two hour minibus ride to the train station in Liuyuan. I had seven hours to kill before my train. I spent three in an in... Continue reading »
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22
The Silk Road: Kashgar
The 22 hour train ride from Turpan to Kashgar was loads of fun, easily my favorite train ride thus far in China. I expected this to be a pretty drab j... Continue reading » -
23
Karakorum Highway: Karakul; Tashkurgan
I had some extra time in Xinjiang so I embarked (along with my new friend David) on a journey up the Karakoram Highway. The KKH is one of the world’s... Continue reading » -
24
Urumqi, China
Urumqi is the capital of, and largest city in, Xinjiang Province but culturally it’s a world apart from the other places I have been in Xinjiang th... Continue reading »
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25
Shanghai
Upon arrival in Shanghai, it was pouring cats and dogs. At the baggage claim, I noticed that my fellow passengers from Urumqi had checked box after bo... Continue reading » -
26
Hangzhou
Hangzhou is a short two hour train ride from Shanghai, so I bought the cheapest ticket available, called a “hard seat”. I'd seen the hard seat cars on... Continue reading » -
27
Beijing
I reserved my train ticket from Shanghai to Beijing a full week in advance, but that was still not early enough to get the hard sleeper ticket I desir... Continue reading » -
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What I Liked, and Didn't Like, About China
WHAT I LIKED ABOUT CHINA
Safety
Friendliness
Geographic and cultural diversity
Cleanliness
Ga... Continue reading »
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