Where to Visit the Great Wall

There are several places in which to visit the Great Wall near Beijing. Badaling section is where the large group tours go to because there is a freeway out to it and is the closest section to Beijing. It is also the most crowded with usually 60 to 70 buses in the parking lot. Simatai section is where the avid hikers go to hike from Jinshanling to Simatai sections but is a bit difficult and not for strolling on the wall. Going from Huanghua to Zhuangdaokou Guar is a 3 hour loop is quite wild with lots of unrepaired sections. My choice for a nice hike or walk on the Wall is the Mutianyu section shown here. Usually no buses and has a cable car to take you up onto the Wall. The view here is to the left once you are on the Wall and if you go about 100 yards out, you will probably be alone since few people hike out that far. It is fairly level until you get to a section that is quite steep

where the Wall has been left as it was found. Tours to China is my business and the Great Wall is one of those MUST SEE sights to be included in all tours.

Temples and Churches in China

Like churches in Europe there are many temples of all kinds in China. One of the best ones I like is the Lama Temple in Beijing. It is close to the central part of the city and extremely interesting with a 5 story tall Buddha carved from one Tree Trunk and the temple built over it. It is an active temple with many monks and prayer time is interesting usually in the late afternoon. It was so important that Chou EnLi had it protected during the Cultural Revolution so it is kept in tact. Yes, there are churches in China as well and worth a visit too. On Wangfujing street there is a church with services in the early morning and many other churches and Cathedrals throughout the country with interesting history behind each one. The Jewish section of Shanghai and Ohel Moishe Synagogue are often visited and tours can be conducdted in English or Hebrew. For more information contact us at

interlak@eskimo.com Tours to China for over 20 years.

Picture Day in Mandarin Class

Mandarin is very difficult, but very exciting as well. The pinyin is coming well, but the characters still aren’t registering with me. I know a few, but I don’t feel like they are solidly in my memory. Professor Xiao is an amazing teacher. She is probably even better in her native language and I’m so impressed that she had the courage to come to the U.S. and teach in a foreign language. I keep expressing to her my fear that I won’t be able to communicate while I’m in Changsha. She assured me that it will be difficult at first no matter how much I learn and that knowing some Mandarin is better than knowing none at all. I can’t imagine how frustrating it is to teach us something so simple to her.

I was reading Peter Hessler’s book River Town and he talks about how frustrated his teachers in the Sichuan province were when they tried to teach him Chinese. I imagine it’s a bit like parents teaching their children how to use the bathroom. Ok, maybe that isn’t the best example. She is so patient with us, though. She’ll often say things like, “You guys are so cute” when we make mistakes. One time, she said that our pronunciation of the words for mother and father actually sounded like a little baby. She sort of chuckled at us, but it doesn’t bother me. I’m resigned to the fact that I will have to be brave in trying to express myself even when sometimes it might be amusing to the people in Changsha.

Today in class, Professor Xiao asked to take a picture with the entire class and afterwards gave everyone a gift. It was a traditional Chinese knot that the people make by weaving a single thread of string into beautifully ornate patterns. I’m a bit sentimental about things and so I was delighted to receive it. I have attached the class photo below. Everyone seems to get a long well and it may be because we all feel a bit out of our elements. However, I am definitely the black sheep in the class. I found out the students decided not to invite me to their study group because my “status” was intimidating to them. One kid named Thomas has always been very kind to me and we chat frequently before class about how our studying is going and about the Utah Jazz.

Ms. Li, A Naxi Guide in Beautiful LiJiang

Now and then I find a special local guide that I like to use not only for myself but for my clients who really want to get into the culture. Ms. Li is such a guide in LiJiang city north of Kunming in the mountains. Her and I went out to the remote Naxi and Yi people's villages this past November. Li is a Naxi minority person who was born in one of the villages that we visited. No western tourists were there and all was around a beautiful lake some distance from LiJiang. Li speaks very good English, chinese and of course the Naxi and Yi languages. We visited several homes, a farm where a vet was giving the animals their shots, and a wonderful new Monastery where we saw the artists painting fantastic scenes on the walls. For lunch we ate at a local restaurant where Li cooked a nice hot pot lunch herself on a Naxi traditional Hot Pot stove. I like clients to be able to have experiences like this and Li has been a great provider of same. For great Tours To China, I plan customized tours to your interests

and needs and have all over China and Tibet for the past 25 years.

Shortest Air Flights to China from the U.S.

Many people think that they have to fly across the ocean to China from the U.S. Would you believe the shortest route is actually over land? Look at the maps or a globe and you will note that it is a straight line from Seattle to Beijing. Up the coast of Canada, Alaska, over Siberia and into Beijing. Hainan Airlines flies that route in just 11 hours flat from Seattle to Beijing. There are low priced international connection rates also from most U.S. cities to Seattle that connect with the international flight. You can return from Shanghai or Hong Kong also going through Beijing that can be included in your international ticket back to your city. Start your tour to China with a total China Experience with Great Service and Great Food on Hainan Airlines...and Interlake China Tours with 25 years experience in travel to China with great tours. Let us do a customized tour to your interests and needs.  Click on the map for full size screen!.

Update on China Preparations

So, the kids are doing great with the Fluenz program.  There are a total of 75 lessons (Mandarin Levels 1, 2, 3) and they have almost completed all of them.  Plus, they seem to be retaining it well and their pronunciation is very good.  Stacie and I are in the twenties somewhere, so we have a lot of work to do, but we are having a great time with it.  For myself, I am plugging away at the Beginning Mandarin class here at SUU.  Professor Xiao is such a great teacher and her enthusiasm is unmatched.  As a foreign speaker, she says many things that I find incredibly endearing.  For example, after a student answers a question well, she will say "Ah, you are so clever!"  Also, when calling on people, she'll say "Yes, you the beautiful girl in the front."  Just a really sweet lady.  She is apparently going back to Changsha at the same time I will be arriving, so it will be nice to have my lǎoshì (teacher) with me while I am there.  The pinyin is going fine.  I have no trouble with remembering the pinyin words that I am learning and the pronunciation seems to be going ok.  The real difficulty is remembering the simplified Chinese characters.  Professor Xiao will write things on the board and we are supposed to remember what they mean, but honestly I don't.  I've made flash cards and hopefully that will help.

Art Work in China

As I travel through China I am always looking for the unique and interesting things to bring home. Chinese people do fantastic detailed art in many medias. One of them is Embroidery. You can

find many pieces of hand embroidery in China but there is a difference. Some are done my machine and programed. Others are done in workshops and more production oriented. Others such as the one here are done by real artists in their homes. The difference is in the details. There is an Embroidery institute in Suzhou outside of Shanghai where it is specialized in doing two sided pieces with the same design. The one here was done in a small village outside of LiJiang north of Kunming. The woman took several months to do this one using silk threads that are extemely fine and are dyed with local natural colors. The shading of the flower is fantastic and it all pops out and shines with lighting on it too. I love finding special art pieces in China for our home and I hope I can do a tour for you as well that includes finding special pieces for your home. Tours to China is my business and this ancient culture has become my passion for over 25 years.
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