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Detailed
Itinerary
Click here for brief
itinerary, costs, enrollment info
DAY 1
DEPARTURE FROM ST. LOUIS, MO
Enjoy full meal service
on your scheduled wide-bodied flight to Beijing.
DAY 2
BEIJING (3 NIGHTS)
We will arrive at the
ancient imperial city of Peking (Beijing), which has flourished as the
prosperous capital of China for a thousand years and where elaborate
dynasties gave birth to a unique culture of imperial splendor and
opulence. China will reveal itself as a kaleidoscope of unforgettable
experiences and from the moment we journey to our hotel along streets
teeming with bicycles, their bells all ringing, you will know you have
arrived.
DAY 3
BEIJING
Beijing is one of the
most fascinating cities in the world and our sightseeing will start at
Tian An Men Square, center of the Modern capital and together with the
Gate of Heavenly Peace very much the symbol of modern
China. We will pass through the gate into the Forbidden
City. The Forbidden City dates from the 15th century and served as the
Imperial Court for the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Twenty four emperors lived
in luxury and splendour beyond the imagination of the common people in
what are now the largest and best preserved Palace buildings in China.
This evening we will feast upon the famous local delicacy, Beijing Duck.
DAY 4
BEIJING
Our first visit is to
the Temple of Heaven, considered to be the perfection of Ming
architecture where the Emperor traveled twice a year to inform Heaven of
his plans. We will continue northwards through mountain scenery to one of
the world's great architectural wonders, The Great Wall of China,
almost 4000 miles long and the only man-made object visible from the moon!
We will visit the most famous and magnificent section of the wall at Ba Da
Ling and this will prove to be an experience that you will never forget.
As we return to Beijing we will visit the Ming Tombs where 13
Chinese Emperors are buried in an exquisite valley setting. Construction
started in 1409 and ended in 1644. An evening Circus Acrobats
Performance is also in our schedule.
DAY 5
FLY FROM BEIJING TO XI'AN (2 NIGHTS)
Xi'an dates back over
2,000 years as an ancient capital and was the seat of the royal court for
11 dynasties. As the starting point of the Silk Road, it already had
become by the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD) a major city in China's exchanges
with foreign countries. In the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD) Xi'an saw more
frequent exchanges between China and the outside world. Reputed as the
world's oriental metropolis, the city once had over 6,000 foreign envoys,
students, monks and merchants. In the heart of Xi'an the 36 metre high
Bell Tower first built in 1384 has three layers of eaves, with four
corners of the topmost roof towards the central spire graced by a gilded
pinnacle. Sitting on a brick platform all the storeys are decorated with
brackets and delicately carved doors and windows. The tower provides a
vantage point for a panoramic view of the city. Other sites in Xi'an
include the seven-storied Greater Wild Goose Pagoda that rises 64
meters in the Boundless Kindness Temple. It was built in the Tang Dynasty
to store the Buddhist Scriptures brought back from India by the monk Xuan
Zang.
DAY 6
XI'AN & TERRA COTTA WARRIORS
Xi'an also preserves
the ruins of four imperial palaces belonging to Western Zhou, Han and Tang
Dynasties; but it is for the Terracotta Warriors at the Qin
Tombs, that Xi'an is perhaps best known today. Here about 1,000
life-like pottery warriors are buried at the site, which can now be viewed
by the public. Arranged in columns and files that have a vanguard,
rearguard and flank columns, the terra cotta army displays the power of a
grand army on an expedition. The entire effect of the site is awesome,
especially because of the vast scale and the skill with which the warriors
and horses were sculpted over 2,000 years ago. In the Shaanxi Province
Museum the Stelae Forest houses the largest collection of stelae in
China (over 1,000 pieces). On display are a group of 114 stelae, engraved
in 837 and known as the `Kaicheng Stone Classics', which bear 600,000
Chinese characters on both sides. The stelae are meant to serve as models
to prevent errors in copying the original classics.
DAY 7
FLY TO CHENGDU (1 NIGHT)
Today we take a flight
to Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan Province, on arrival we will
have a City orientation tour and visit the Thatched Cottage of
Du Fu the famous Tang dynasty poet. He composed more than 240 poems
here in the home at the side of the Flower Washing Brook in west Changsu.
It is now a commemorative shrine within a pleasant park. Some buildings
date back to the Ming and Qing dynasty.
DAY 8
CHENGDU - WOLONG -
PANDA PARADISE
(1 NIGHT)
This morning we will make our way to the first Giant
Panda Breeding Research Base in Chengdu. Here we will take a guided
walk through the center. We will then continue to Wolong for a visit
o the panda sanctuary at Wolong Nature Reserve, the largest natural
reserve for giant pandas. Set up in 1979, this reserve is a key area
designed mainly to protect and reproduce pandas. Nowadays, it is no longer
possible to view pandas in the wild, but we can get a close up look at
pandas living close to nature. In the afternoon we will take a Guided
Walk through the Panda Breeding Center at Wuyipeng.
DAY 9 WOLONG - CHENGDU
(1 NIGHT)
Today is mostly a travel day, as we will be leaving Wolong
for Chengdu, and tomorrow we will be leaving Chengdu for Lhasa. Upon
arrival in Chengdu, we will have free time to explore anything that we
feel might have been missed the other day when we were in Chengdu.
DAY 10
FLY TO LHASA (3 NIGHTS)
Today, we fly to Lhasa, the exotic capital of Tibet. After
transferring to the hotel and some time to acclimatize to the high
altitude, we take a City Tour and the Potala Palace, set
high upon Parpo Ri hill 130 meters above the valley of Lhasa. This
Tibetan religious structure has been extended by various Dalai Lama’s over
the years and we will see many of the chapels and well preserved
artifacts.
DAY 11
LHASA
Today, will visit Barkhor Street, the plaza
in front of the Jokhang Temple. The morning will continue with a visit the
Kora of the Jokhang Temple, the most sacred of Temples. The area
around the Jokhang was once the oldest living area in Lhasa, but is
gradually being razed and losing its heritage. In the afternoon we will
tour The Sera Monastery (sera means wild rose garden in Tibetan) is
in the foothills of Hill Tatipu. The center is the main assembly hall or
Tsockchen nad is the grandest hall. We will see the collection of murals
in original condition and statues of Maitreya, Bodhisattvas and Arhats.
There are also scriptures, scroll paintings and thangkas that are
characteristic of Sera.
DAY 12
LHASA
On our final day in Tibet, we will visit The Norbulingka
Park, Lingka means park, or ‘jeweled garden’ was a former summer
palace of the Dalai Lamas. We will be driving to the Drepung
Monastery. The Drepung is the largest and richest Monastery ever to
be found in Tibet. We will see many of the structures in the monastery
including a Tantric College and Ganden Potrang Palace, the former living
area of the Dalai Lama. Tshomchen, with 183 pillars and covering 4,500
square meters is at the center of the monastery. Our final visit will be
to the Suglakang Temple.
DAY 13
LHASA
–
CHENGDU –
BEIJING (1 NIGHT)
On our final day we journey back to Beijing for our final
night in China.
DAY 14
DEPARTURE FROM
BEIJING
We bid China farewell as our tour guide/manager accompanies
us to the airport.
Click here for brief itinerary,
costs, enrollment info
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Highlights
(admissions included in
package price)
BEIJING
Tian
An Men Square
Gate of Heavenly Peace
Forbidden City
Temple of Heaven
The Great Wall of China
Ming Tombs
Circus Acrobats
Performance
XI’AN
Bell Tower
Greater Wild Goose
Pagoda
Terracotta Warriors
Qin Tombs
Shaanxi Province
Museum
CHENGDU
City orientation tour
Thatched Cottage
of Du Fu
Giant Panda Breeding
Research Base
guided walk
WOLONG
Wolong Nature Reserve
Guided Walk
Panda Breeding Center
LHASA (Tibet)
City Tour
Potala Palace
Barkhor Street
Jokhang Temple
The Sera Monastery
The Norbulingka Park
Drepung Monastery
Suglakang Temple
Click here for
brief itinerary
costs, enrollment
info |
