We saw so much in Beijing, that I decided to break down this part of our trip into different parts for my blog. One of our first stops in Beijing was the Olympic Park. Beijing hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics. We saw the cauldron where the Olympic flame burned during the summer games. We also saw the five mascots for the games, each dressed in one of the colors of the Olympic rings. The swimming and diving events were held…
One of the places we visited in Xi’an was the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. It was built in 648 AD to house the Buddhist supras, which are scriptural doctrines of Buddha. The pagoda pictured below is part of a large temple complex where monks still worship. Another picture is one of several statues of Buddha we saw during our visit. We also saw people lighting incense as they prayed. The highlight of our time in Xi’an was seeing the terra…
After leaving Shanghai, we went on a four-day cruise up the Yangtze River on the Yangzi Explorer. We sailed through three gorges: the Xiling, Wu and Qutang. Like many other passengers, we spent a lot of time on the observation deck, enjoying the beautiful scenery and taking pictures. The Three Gorges Dam was built on the Yangtze River to prevent flooding, generate power and improve navigation. Because of the dam, a series of five locks were constructed. We visited…
One of our favorite Tauck trips was a tour of China. The tour was provided through Tauck and was called the China, Yangtze River and Hong Kong (westbound) tour. We took the tour in 2011 and it still ranks as one of our most memorable trips. After visiting Hong Kong, we flew into Shanghai and took a high speed maglev train into Shanghai. A magnetic levitation train allows the train to travel without actually touching the ground. It can reach…