Day 14: Yulong River

The next morning, Jack picked us up at 9a and we drove upstream the Yulong River, the one that flows in front of our inn, to get on a smaller bamboo raft that’s poled by the boatman. There’s only room for two of us, so after a 1 1/2 cruise up to Fulli Bridge (600 years old), we got off for a quick look from the top of the bridge to admire the karst scenery. Then, back on for the return trip...a very peaceful and quiet river experience.
Jack met us and was excited to show us a recently born water buffalo calf in a field nearby. I was amazed that the mother let us get so close to the calf. We hiked along more farmers‘ fields and small villages until we met up with our driver. Walking through these orchards and rice paddies, surrounded by karst mountains, is a wonderful way to experience natural China.

After a lunch break at our inn, Jack picked us up again at 3p for what he said was a 1 1/2 hour bike ride. We were provided good bikes and this was a most interesting journey. Some paths were unexpected, but welcome, concrete paths weaving through rice paddies surrounded by towering karsts...I marveled at the beauty. Others were gravely and uneven, especially going through villages where there were other bikes, scooters, tuk tuks, roosters, dogs and people to avoid. The worst was a very narrow path through a high sea of grasses with a bit of a drop off on each side. I had to walk my bike through this, but I do have a balance issue. We walked into an empty classroom, saw the Moon HIll rock formation and really enjoyed, during the first hour or so, a most beautiful ride through gorgeous countryside warmed by the setting sun.

Around the time I thought we were almost done, Jack announced we had another hour. By this time I’m very tired and sweating and the uneven ground and uphills are taking their toll. I carry on until we get to a school near Moon HIll that I recognize from our outbound journey and realize it’s still a long way back. I was exhausted and my foot had already slipped off into the spoke a little and I was afraid I’d injure myself if I kept going. So, we asked Jack if he could leave me there and send a driver to pick me up. He got on his cellphone and arranged the bike vendor to arrive on his little truck in the rice fields to pick up the bikes and we all waited for a tuk tuk to take us back along the roads to the inn, which was surprisingly far and cold as the sun was going down. He was very apologetic that our ride had turned into 2 1/2 hours, but he thought we were up to it because we’d been such good hikers. So, if you’re not a great biker (like me) be clear about your expectations.

We just had time to take a quick shower and a quick dinner at our inn, and Jack was back to take us to the acclaimed “Impressions of Liu Sanjie” light and sound show on the banks of the Li River that lights up the background karsts. The theatre holds 3500 people and it’s bedlam at the entrance, but Jack orchestrated everything perfectly and escorted us to great seats and then met us afterwards to return us to the hotel. He also explained what the story line of the show was and what to expect in each act. I seriously would have hated to buy tickets and enter this venue on my own. We had previously seen the Lijiang Impressions show, but I preferred this one (but my husband preferred the other) This was more beautiful and dazzling, especially the silver women twinkling that looked like a huge, twisting diamond bracelet and the bamboo boatmen gliding along the river with the glistening red fabric that evoked water. We were utterly exhausted when we got back to inn.

We were very happy with Jack, who is a very nice young man and we appreciated his enthusiasm and competence is providing a very unique, private experience that let us experience the natural beauty of the countryside.

Next: Yangshou cooking class and shopping

Day 15: Yangshou Cooking School

The Yangshou Cooking School offers a morning class on the banks of the Li River in Yangshou and an afternoon class in the original countryside location. I wanted a morning class so booked that one ahead of time. Jack commented that he thought the countryside location was better, but the timing worked better for me. We were picked up at 9:20 and driven to class. This was the best cooking class we had since it was the most hands on and we cooked items that were more different than the usual stir fries. It was also a bargain at 200 Rmb or about $30 a person including transportation.

We first went to a large covered market where I opted out of visiting the fresh meat/poultry section. Then, we each had a cooking station in a building separate from the dining/reception area with windows that overlooked the Li River. We first made steamed chicken with mushroom that were put in a steamer basket and taken away to steam in a wok for 20 minutes. Then, we made egg wrapped dumplings that were harder to make and delicious. We ate those right away as an appetizer. Next, Eggplant Yangshou style, again excellent, followed by Green vegetables with garlic...just OK; and Stir Fried Pork with Vegetable and Oyster Sauce.....delicious. Of course, we finished with lunch and enjoyed talking with the rest of the travelers. A great value and experience.

Afterwards, we walked back along the Li River to West Street, the main drag, and did some souvenir shopping. I found a Sun Lu CD that I had listened to at the Linden Centre and I really liked her lovely, more contemporary love songs accompanied by traditional instruments. We also found a patisserie with excellent chocolate cake that we took back to our inn to enjoy along the banks of the Yulong river with cappuccino. All in all, a perfect day and a perfect end to our Yangshou experience.

I’ll post these photos soon.

Next: Shanghai

I am so enjoying your report and lovely photos. Looking forward to more...

Thanks marya...it's so nice to know that someone's actually reading this!

I'm here too, barefoot, enjoying.

Me too, can't wait for Shanghai section. Happy Chinese Lantern Festival today, the Yuan Xiao Festival celebrating the first full moon of the Lunar New Year!

Barefoot - I'm also reading along and enjoying. Keep it coming.

Thanks so much Marija, Shanghainese & dgunbug,
I think you all know the feeling of writing and writing without a comment and you wonder if it's worth it.

Shanghainese, I really wanted to buy some Chinese Air lanterns (there was a recent special on Groupon) ...for those of you who don't know what they are....they're biodegradable and you light a little candle and they are airborne for about 15 minutes....but in many States they're illegal as a fire hazard..many people have thought they saw USO's...and I just read they're banned in Sanya because they're in the flight path....but they look so cool! So, happy Lantern Festival if you have the land based ones!

Barefoot - I understand the difficulty in writing without feedback. For those reading this and other trip reports, please know that the smallest comments are greatly appreciated as is a mere grunt to let the writer know you are reading along.

Barefoot your report is most appreciated. We are still considering Linden Centre for our trip in May. If we do, what do you recommend to get the most out of it? Many thanks.

laurie_ann, I'd look at their website and under the heading "Plan Your Stay" you can browse through their themed cultural programs, which are group things related to a particular interest like cooking or photography, or they also list a lot of possible activities that you can customize to meet your needs under "short stays". They have a 3 night minimum for those programs and you'll Skype with one of their staff to figure out what you'd like to do. We stayed 4 nights and I thought that was the right amount of time. Hope this helps.

You can view my photos from Yangshou on this link:

http://barefootbeach.smugmug.com/Oth...8162617_vKChvt

Wonderful report, which brings back memories of my trip to Yunnan four years ago. The photos were great, thank you for including them.

Thank you marymai....Yunnan was truly a beautiful region of China.

laurie_ann,
Re: the Linden Centre,
I'd also go into Dali for dinner one night, something we didn't do. That way you could try a different type of restaurant since dinner at Linden did get a little repetitive. I also wish we'd walked around the village more by ourselves...but, if you go biking, take a guide with you!

Lovely pictures. I'm enjoying your posts. Brings back memories of our 2007 trip.
My daughter lives in Shekou-about 30 minutes from Hong Kong. She says it's very rare to find an apartment to rent with an oven in the kitchen. The Chinese don't bake as a rule.

chris45ny,
No wonder I couldn't find any good cake!!! (Except for SweetTooth in Dali!)

Warm greetings again barefootbeach, and thank you for your wonderful writing; just had a chance to catch up with your report on this fine San Francisco Sunday.

Looking forward to more; particularly your Shanghai impressions, as I had the privilege of experiencing a very small slice of that city early last month during a business trip. (Sadly, like most of my Asia working trips, it largely entailed an office building, a hotel - Pudong Shangri-La; rather large property, but such marvelous staff, amenities and views - and an airport.) At present, scheduled to return to Shanghai for additional meetings in May; your thoughtful impressions, always most appreciated.

[And if my memory serves correct, you stayed at that cherished Peninsula hotel in Bangkok during an earlier Asian holiday. You had enquired about traditional Thai "Khim" music, and I suggested the gift shop at the nearby Shangri-La. At the time, fine selection of music at that little place.]

Always fun, reading thoughtful trip reports like yours during breaks in business trips. (Also looking forward to your Hong Kong impressions, as will be returning to that fine city for meetings at week's end.) Should you ever desire lodging (and airline) suggestions in our fine home of Singapore, pleased to assist.

Thanks again barefoot,

macintosh (robert)


... Singapore Airlines, You're a Great Way to Fly ...

Hi Robert,
very good to hear from you again!
I will try to get to Shanghai soon, but just returned from a domestic trip so have much to do first.
I hope to get to Singapore someday and I'll be sure to ask for your recommendations! Hope you enjoyed San Fran....I just got back from San Diego but the weather was marginal!

Day 16: Shanghai

Shanghai blew me away with it’s fascinating night time views along the Bund. I’m definitely in the camp of loving Shanghai more than Beijing although we really just scratched the surface of both cities.

We were picked up at the Shanghai airport by Bob, from China HIghlights, who would be our guide in a few days for our day trip to the water towns, Suzhou and Tongli. A note about domestic flights, they usually change, but in our case, for the better, so instead of our scheduled late night arrival we got in mid-afternoon, and drove through the heaviest traffic we’d experienced to our hotel, Les Suites Orient on the Bund.

When we walked into our corner studio suite, we gasped at the views from the bedroom across the river to the futuristic Pudong skyline and also from the bathroom with a view up the curving Bund side with it’s classical and neo-classical Western style architecture. The bathroom’s views were really amazing because you could look up the Bund, from the bathtub’s picture window, while seeing the whole Pudong skyline reflected in the large mirror over the sink so it seemed like you got a panoramic view. When you factor in one of those new combination toilet/bidet things with heated seat, an LCD TV over the marble bath tub, and a marble rain shower, I was in heaven! Just a few more notes about the hotel...it was relatively reasonably priced...technically located just south of the Bund...the entrance is non-descript, there’s not much of a lobby, and the concierge didn’t seem that helpful..but if you want a modern, luxurious room with amazing views and a great location...it’s a find. The room itself wasn’t large but was laid out very efficiently. From the very comfortable bed, you could raise and lower the window shades, control the larger LCD TV in the bedroom, and control the lights & dimmers. Breakfast was included and also very good.

Our first order of business was to walk north along the Bund to enjoy the art deco ambience of a gorgeous city promenade. We walked all the way to the Hyatt and wanted to have a cocktail at the Vue Bar, but it was 5p and the bar didn’t open until 6p....really??! So, on the way back we stopped at the Peninsula Hotel and sat outside on the 4th floor terrace at Sir Elly’s to enjoy a cocktail and marvel at the evolving light show that entertained us on the sides of the Pudong skyscrapers and the ever changing colored lights of the tourist boats that ply the river. The scene puts Disney to shame!

As I’d been craving Western food for awhile, I knew I could get my fix in Shanghai. We took a taxi to the French concession area to eat at Mr. Willis, a casually upscale bistro type establishment, that had lost my reservation, but still managed to cram us into their busy Friday night. I thought the food was excellent...an Australian braised lamb shank and a salmon dish.

Of course, the evening always ends with enjoying the most incredible lighting spectacle I’ve ever seen.

I am also a fan of Shanghai. Glad I didn't listen to the advice to skip it. Shanghai's different from Beijing but very much China. Thanks for writing.

Thanks Marija!

FYI, I just saw that Travel & Leisure, April 2013 issue, has an article "Our Definitive Guide to Shanghai"...which I had read this before I went!

Thanks, Marija!

FYI, I just saw that Travel & Leisure, April 2013 issue, has an article entitled, "Our Definitive Guide to Shanghai". Wish I had read this before I went!

Day 17: Shanghai

Ah, the bliss of a day on our own, not that we didn’t enjoy our guides, but we’re independent travelers at heart. We really didn’t want to do a lot of sights, but just wanted to walk around and experience some of Shanghai.

We set off for the Shanghai Museum, about a 30 minute walk west of our hotel and spent maybe two hours there. Then, I wanted to get to the French Concession and just wander around shopping. By now though, my feet were aching, so we did grab a taxi to take us near to Xintiandi so we could sample dumplings at Din Tai Fung. I say “near” because I didn’t have the address written in Chinese characters which is essential if you want to get somewhere specific in a taxi. Even arriving at 2pm on a Saturday afternoon, we had a 30 minute wait at this famous, if expensive, dumpling house located inside a mall. We ordered too much, several portions of pork and hairy crab dumplings, wan ton soup and springs rolls...so the bill came to about $40 for these excellent soup type dumplings and accoutrements.

The shopping around there looked too much like home, so we grabbed another taxi to the more atmospheric Taikang Lu neighborhood, where you wander around narrow, twisty lanes with low hanging electrical wires looking at little boutiques and junky shops crowded with the rest of affluent Shanghainese enjoying their Saturday. I wanted to check out some previously recommended shops like Pling Palang and Pure, but didn’t buy anything...too expensive and nothing called out to me.

So, we started walking back along Sinan Road admiring some of the old mansions, now partially obscured by road construction, and saw Zhou Enlai’s house from the outside. It was starting to get dark ( this is the end of October), so we grabbed a taxi (harder than it sounds because you have to be standing in exactly the right spot) to call it a sightseeing day. Ah, but the seductive lights of the Bund/Pudong still beckoned.

The night began with cocktails in the historic Long Bar of the Waldorf Astoria, a very dark wood, clubby type atmosphere that evoked the 20‘s and we were lucky to get a table near the windows overlooking the river, which is where the well-connected were allowed to sit back in the day. The lobby of the hotel was very elegant.

Tonight, we dined at Mercato on the Bund, which is an Italian restaurant owned by three-starred Michelin chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The atmosphere was very hip & trendy, but the tables were very close together. We had a very thin crust pizza and lobster ravioli, all very good but not exceptional, and an excellent espresso affogato sundae. We were seated in the middle of the room so couldn’t really get the view across to Pudong.

Since we normally live in FL, it’s fun to have a vibrant, exciting city to visit for a change.

So happy you are enjoying Shanghai!

Day 18: Shanghai

This morning we took the ferry across the river to Pudong and walked to the Shanghai World Trade Center (aka the Bottle Opener Building) to take in the view from the world’s highest observation deck on the 100th floor. The smog cooperated and we were able to get a pretty good view of Shanghai from up high. I liked looking at all the tight rows of different colored apartment roofs which reminded me of Monopoly pieces, the intriguing architecture of various skyscrapers, and the curving bend of the Huangpu River....now I just picture 13,000 dead hogs floating down it, courtesy of recent news reports of northern farmers dumping their sick pigs.

We then walked to find the subway station that would take us back close to the French Concession area. While sitting underground at People’s Square, trying to figure out which connecting line to take, the cutest little preppy smiling boy plopped down next to me on the bench and asked in perfect English where we wanted to go. Kevin proceeded to tell us his favorite subject was English, he thought a D was a bad grade, and that he was in 2nd grade. I can’t imagine a similar experience happening to a Chinese tourist in New York....what 2nd grader Anglo-American would speak perfect Mandarin? When his father appeared, Kevin asked him to take our photo with him....too cute.

We found our way to Xintiandi again hoping for a Western lunch....I know, it’s shameless. We came upon Kabb’s, crowded with Sunday brunch outside diners, but it was cooler today, upper 50’s to low 60’s so opted to devour our burger and Mimosa inside. Today, we checked out these shops but only bought a few small items. Then, we walked on to Fuxing Park to observe Sunday in the Park with locals. Such a variety of activities going on, from children rollerblading around a fountain, to adults ballroom dancing in what looked like pajamas, to others practicing their spinning plates routine, playing badminton without nets, and of course, men playing card games or checkers.

I made one final shopping stop at a must-see, Suzhou Cobblers, just off the Bund, which makes handmade silk shoes in cute and colorful Chinese styles and bought a pair of flats.

Tonight, we started the night with cocktails at at the Glamour Bar, below M on the Bund restaurant, with a window view of Pudong and the river. Then, we enjoyed one of the best dinners of our trip at Lost Heaven, which specializes in Yunnan cuisine from the Tea Horse Trail with a dark and exotic decor with heavy wood furniture. We had a Yunnan wild vegetable cake, jicory mushrooms with vegetable salad, spicy cod steamed in banana leaf (too many bones) and simmered vegetables in a Tamarind sauce....all excellent! I sure didn’t experience this quality of food while we were in Yunnan.

Barefoot - glad you enjoyed shanghai. It is a beautiful city. Our favorite restaurant of the trip was also Lost heaven.

Shanghainese & dgunbug, Thanks for still reading!


Day 18: Tongli & Suzhou

Bob, our guide, picked us up at 9a for the 1 1/2 hour drive to the historic water town of Tongli. We wandered through the old streets, up and down the small stone bridges, and snapped many photos in this charming, small town. Then, we got on a little wooden boat and a woman poled us through the narrow canals...very atmospheric.

A set lunch was served in an ancient, wooden tea house...a delicious pork shoulder dish that the town is known for (the few non-fatty pieces were so tender and flavorful), grilled shrimp, chicken and peanut stir fry, a Chinese celery dish, a cabbage stir fry, tasty thin bread sprinkled with sesame seeds, and for dessert, a dish of longan fruit, which you easily peel to reveal a lychee or grape-like fruit center. I should mention that all of the lunches we had when touring with China Highlights were included in the price and most were very good and featured local food.

After lunch, we drove another 45 minutes to Suzhou, today a large city with 6 million people. We were handed off to a rickshaw driver and I didn’t like the first 1/4 of the ride because it was through busy city traffic (almost got hit by a bus) until we could turn off onto the old town lanes. I actually would have preferred to walk along this street because there appeared to be some interesting crafts and clothing shops. There were also several models being photographed, and our rickshaw driver actually knocked down a young woman with a huge camera lens who I think stepped back and he clipped her. He asked if she was OK, but it still looked like a bad fall.

About 40 minutes later, we met up with Bob at the entrance to the acclaimed Humble Administrator’s Garden, a huge complex with different rockeries, pools, crooked bridges and pavilions that’s a UNESCO heritage site and considered to be the finest garden in southern China. It was originally built in the 1500’s. My favorite spot was a building with windows of various shades of blue colored glass. The garden was pretty crowded and seemed to have several high school tour groups. I think Bob told them my husband was a US rock star (well, he was wearing a hoodie) because a lot of giggling girls suddenly wanted to have their picture taken with him...he loved the attention! It took about 2 hours to drive back to Shanghai and we returned at 5:30. Although I enjoyed the day, I could’ve skipped the time spent driving and spent more time in Shanghai.

For our final night in Shanghai, we ate at Mr. & Mrs. Bund, a French restaurant with a hip & trendy vibe...the wine list is brought out on an I-pad. We requested and received a window table so we could again enjoy the evening light show. I never tired of watching the side of the Citibank building constantly changing it’s colorful images, or the Pearl TV tower that looks like something out of the Jetson’s morphing into different shapes and colors, or the tourist river boats changing from blue to pink to green to pirate ship or wedding cake. Inside the restaurant, several birthdays caused the lights to dim, a disco birthday song to play and sparking candles carried out by the wait staff. Our food was excellent: tuna mousse in a can as an amuse bouche, French bread, scallops, pork chops, and Chocolate Liegeois ice cream. Truly, a great end to a fun Shanghai experience.

My regrets...that I didn’t discover where the interesting shopping was...and I don’t mean high-end designer shops which were rampant. That my husband didn’t find a cricket basket, which he read about in “Years of Red Dust” by Qiu Xiaolong, a recommended book of short stories about life in Shanghai from1949-1990’s. He was bemused by the whole concept of cricket fighting matches. We might have found one in the streets around Yuyuan Garden, but we skipped the garden because of visiting the one in Suzhou.

I'll post the link to photos from Shanghai shortly.

Next: A vacation from our vacation... Sanya, Hainan Island

One question I've been meaning to ask others who've been to China...did you find that the transaction fees for ATM debit cards were unusually high compared to other countries? it seemed like it to me.

Don't recall high ATM fees, but we went 10 years ago. I'm still enjoying your report. Thanks!

Don't know that they were especially high, but entrance fees to most places were very high for foreigners. Lucky that my husband turned 70 just before getting to china as he was able to enter most attractions free of charge!

Here's the link to photos from Shanghai, Tongli and Suzhou.

http://barefootbeach.smugmug.com/Tra...8515577_hnrgsC

Thank you

Thank you

Lovely photos. For interesting shopping, I don't know what you are interested in, there is not much bargain shopping anymore, you pay less but get poor quality, the city is filled with middle-class who live well.

JuliannPM,
I posted some remarks on your question about Beijing.

Shanghainese, I think part of the problem was that I wasn't in a shopping mood...but I love my silk flats from Suzhou Cobblers!
Thanks too for recommending that book "Life & Death in Shanghai", which I'm only now reading...it's so hard to reconcile what happened then with the people that we met today. I couldn't help but look at others who are slightly older than me and wonder...were you one of the Red Guards that carried out such destruction?

barefootbeach: I know the feeling after you read that book, it's hard not to blame the Red Guards but they were brainwashed by the Chairman.

that's true...teenagers are generally too immature to think logically and for themselves and are very susceptible to having their unbridled energy and raging hormones used as pawns in carrying out political leaders' twisted agendas.

Thanks you for the great trip log.

JuliannPM....You're more than welcome!