The Kindergarden Children

To our delight the teacher came out with her key. She undid the padlock, removed the chain and opened the gates. The childrens' response as the ‘big noses’ from Malvern entered the playground was to run away shrieking and laughing, something we did not expect at all. But we were almost certainly the first westerners they had ever encountered and we must have seemed huge to these diminutive tots of the Sandouping kindergarten. The hour or so we spent photographing and engaging with these tiny children was a real highlight of our trip to China, especially as it was an unscheduled addition to the tour programme, as was the opportunity to eat home grown oranges and meet the family at the small farm we had visited earlier.

But how can there be one highlight in a trip with so many highlights and special moments? Standing in the vastness of Tian’anmen Square in Beijing only an hour or so after arriving from the UK. Were we really in China? Mobile phone calls were made describing our safe arrival and incredulity. Beijing was cold but the people were friendly and warm although it was a little disconcerting for us to be the object of so much curiosity; we were meant to be the tourists after all. People stared and followed us; some wanted their photographs taken with us but all was done with excellent humour and we never felt threatened.

The Great Wall

It has been said that a change is as good as a rest. Certainly change perforce substituted for rest as the intrepid party sped across the vast country by air, train and coach. We were ‘blown away’ by the immensity of the country; by the sheer beauty of the mountains with the Great Wall clinging to the ridges like an unending tentacle; by the colour and splendour of the architecture and decoration within the Forbidden City; by the size of Beijing – 63 kilometres across; by the finesse and skill of the silk spinners and weavers; by the intimidating cold silence of the Terracotta Warriors and not least by the punctuality of the overnight sleeper across 1200 kilometres of featureless plain.

The highlights and special moments of the trip are almost too numerous to mention. Walking along the Great Wall was for many a special experience; we had heard so much about it; to actually be there was fantastic and we could marvel at its huge scale and the solidity of its construction. We were fortunate to have had whole sections of the wall almost to ourselves, except for the touts and hawkers selling souvenirs.

The Forbidden City

In Beijing the Forbidden City was another highlight. This was, until the fall of the Manchu dynasty in 1911, the Imperial Palace of the emperors of China. This huge complex was home to the emperor and his entourage of eunuchs and concubines; splendour and opulence amidst the poverty and squalor of the surrounding city. Now, after many years of restoration the palace is a popular tourist attraction.

In Xi’an we were able to visit another of the world’s great wonders. In a huge aircraft hangar stand row upon row of terracotta warriors, each one different, each one modelled on a real person, each one empty handed as all of their weapons had been stolen. Together with their horses they guard the tomb of a long dead emperor.

The group at The Three Gorges Dam

After a short flight to Wuhan, much delayed by Xi’an’s thick fog and a long and uncomfortable coach journey to Sandouping, we visited, amidst great security, China’s new ‘Great Wall”. The Three Gorges Dam is a controversial project. The Chinese government’s decision to dam the Yangtse river has three stated purposes: to generate significant quantities of electricity to supply homes and industry in the Yangtse basin, to enable large shipping to travel far upstream and to help control the regular and frequently devastating floods that blight the region. Opponents of the project are concerned about the environmental impact of the dam, the destroyed towns and villages and the large number of archaeological sites that will be submerged by the huge lake that is forming. What is probably beyond dispute is that The Three Gorges Dam is a modern wonder and every bit as impressive as the ancient Great Wall.

A great view of Hong Kong

Hong Kong was a very different experience; a very modern and westernised city, the views of the fragrant harbour from Victoria Peak is one of skyscrapers as far as the eye can see. For many Hong Kong was “shopping heaven”. The designer stores gave us the opportunity to stock up on electrical goods; iPods were a very popular purchase, and the markets allowed everyone to hone their haggling skills as they bought fake designer watches and handbags. It was in Hong Kong that we experienced another great unscheduled moment. Through the generosity of a parent we enjoyed a wonderful cruise in tropical sunshine in the waters off Hong Kong island; a lovely opportunity to relax and unwind from our hectic touring schedule in mainland China. Hong Kong was the highlight of the trip for several of us.

There are so many great memories. Throughout the trip we had excellent hosts and few of us will forget Henry, our guide in Beijing with his ever present red flag and cry of “too dolla?” to check we were all safely back on the coach.

We ate in a different restaurant every day; the food was, for the most part, excellent although we eyed some dishes suspiciously and some of us never really mastered the art of using chopsticks or preventing the lazy susan from knocking over our drinks. In the markets we managed to resist the temptation to sample scorpion kebabs although the toffee coated strawberries were delicious. After a while many yearned for a hamburger and almost ran to the nearest MacDonalds in Hong Kong. The acrobats and contortionists we saw in Beijing were awesome, the beggars in Xi’an horrible. The traffic was chaotic and we had never seen so many bicycles.

Happily posing for pictures at The Great Wall

Most of all, the trip to China was huge fun. The group rapidly gelled into a happy unit. We all enjoyed the trip enormously. It was a great educational and cultural experience for everybody, seasoned travellers and novices alike. Every member of the group will have their own personal memories of our short stay in China but all will remember the sights, sounds and smells of a fascinating country. Anna Stanley sums up the feelings of the group when she says “It was the most memorable experience I have had. I never thought I would enjoy something so much, but I absolutely loved it from the first minute we got there. Many of us have vowed to go back.”

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