Chinese fortune cookie moment at the Great Wall Ancient Chinese saying says, “one who fails to reach the Great Wall would not be regarded as a hero.” Or the quote might have come from Mao Zedong who said, “he who has not climed the Great Wall is not a true man.” Either way, I tried. [...]
Chinese fortune cookie moment at the Great Wall
Chine's must-see sight: The Great Wall.
Ancient Chinese saying says, “one who fails to reach the Great Wall would not be regarded as a hero.” Or the quote might have come from Mao Zedong who said, “he who has not climed the Great Wall is not a true man.” Either way, I tried.
Wise local woman offers cold drinks and plenty of smiles with her eyes.
Good thing I selected the Great Wall shore excursion offered by Princess Cruises during my cruise call to Tianjin, the port city serving Beijing.
Princess Cruises offers three shore excursions to the capital city of China: Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, the Great Wall and a City Tour of Tianjin.
The Great Wall – aka “the wonder” as I liked to refer to it, was a great choice. After a three hour bus ride to Huangyaguan, we arrived to the newly restored section of one of the wall’s battlements.
We visited the newly restored section of the wall's battlements in Huangyaguan.
The Great Wall is an UNESCO cultural heritage site. There were a fair amount of locals available to sell trinkets, limited western-style washrooms, and a huge maze up uphill fortifications to explore.
The Great Wall of China is one of the manmade wonders of the world. While walking around the stones making up the wall it is inspiring to contemplate the wall’s history.
When we visited the Great Wall, there were no other tour groups, just our Princess Cruises shore excursion. Lucky us.
One of the most famous sections, which we did not visit, was built between 220-206 B.C. by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. The purpose of the wall was for protection from invaders that threatened tribal communities. The wall has been in existence for more than 2 millennia. Impressive.
Snow puts a damper on romance in Dalian Dalian is a typical Chinese city that has a label and is trying to make a statement. The branding of Dalian as “the romantic city” appeals to those that flock to the beaches during the summer. However, it wasn’t the sizzling heat of the beaches that greeted [...]
Snow puts a damper on romance in Dalian
Everyone working together to keep the streets clean in Dalian.
Dalian is a typical Chinese city that has a label and is trying to make a statement.
The branding of Dalian as “the romantic city” appeals to those that flock to the beaches during the summer. However, it wasn’t the sizzling heat of the beaches that greeted us today when the Ocean Princess called on this coastal port town located at the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula.
Ocean Princess in Dalian, China.
Normally the city is very clean and there are many beautiful squares and green space for visitors to enjoy. The seaside showcase, which is one of the national resorts of China, was covered in snow.
There are about as many opinions about Shanghai as there are dialects to the Chinese language. Part of my Asian enrichment program for 2011 is to see how the ports and the ships that are serving them are fairing. The basics: Time Zone: GMY + 8 Size: 3,705,472 square miles, slightly smaller than the United [...]
There are about as many opinions about Shanghai as there are dialects to the Chinese language.
Shanghai skyline: photo by brandnliu
Part of my Asian enrichment program for 2011 is to see how the ports and the ships that are serving them are fairing.
The basics:
- Time Zone: GMY + 8
- Size: 3,705,472 square miles, slightly smaller than the United States
Meet Shanghai
I should ride a bike in Shanghai too - photo by James D. Schwartz
- Shanghai is situated at 31°41′ north latitude and 121°29′ east longitude.
- There are 16 districts and 3 counties in the city, comprising of 205 towns, 9 townships, 99 subdistrict committees, 3,278 neighborhood committees and 2,935 villagers’ committees. Apart from being a major business center (http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/facts-about-shanghai-1769.html)
- Shanghai is on the Yangtze River delta with an elevation of about 4 meters.
- Shanghai is the largest city of the People’s Republic of China and the eighth largest city in the world.
- Shanghai is also known as the ‘Paris of the East’ and the ‘Queen of the Orient’.
Finding Shanghai City Center
Shanghai - Old City by jaaron
Central Shanghai is divided into two areas: Pudong (East of the Huangpu river) and Puxi (West of the Huangpu river). On the east side of the Huangpu is Pudong, a special economic zone of banks, skyscrapers and new residential compounds.
The bund lies on the historic Puxi side of the Huangpu river and looks across to the new skyline of Pudong business district. west of the old town and hidden in the backstreets north and south of Huaihai street (Shanghai’s premier shopping street) is the former French concession, with tree-lined streets, 1930s architecture, and cafes and bars.
Not to be missed:
Jade Buddah
I read that we can't take photos of the Jade Buddha, so how about some monks? Photo by rahuldlucca
Yu Garden
16th Century Yu Gardens, a crowd favorite. Photo by occam.
Trip of a Lifetime: Ocean Princess 12 day China and Japan cruise
