Exploring the Best of Suzhou Water Town
From the evocative cobblestone-lined canals of Old Town to the stunning, world-famous classical gardens, Suzhou has a multitude of attractions waiting to be explored — all just a short trip from Shanghai.
China
Traveling to China?
Here, you’ll find all our China travel stories, budget travel tips, posts on backpacking destinations, and top sights.
Visits to the Great Wall, Yunnan (Tiger Leaping Gorge & Lijiang), Pingyao, Terracotta Warriors, and beyond.
Things to do in cities like Shanghai and Beijing, off-the-beaten-path places to visit, and more.
A wealth of information to plan your vacation!
Breaking-in Baby (Pt.2): Trans-Pacific Air Adventures with Two
15 hours over the Pacific with a toddler and an infant. This is going to be interesting…
Visiting Hong Kong’s Tai O Fishing Village
Visiting Tai O fishing village offers a rare glimpse into the Hong Kong of years past. Check out our top picks for what to do in this special place.
Hong Kong Big Buddha
We made our way to Lantau to cast our eyes on one of the biggest Buddhas in the world. Like the meaning of a deceptively simple parable, Big Buddha remained just out of sight until the very last moment.
China Budget & Trip Report
Our itinerary, lodging info and detailed budget from our time traveling through China from 29 June to 29 July 2012.
Trekking Tiger Leaping Gorge, Day 3
The last post in a series of three ends on a high note, as we descend deep into Tiger Leaping Gorge and literally climb back out, dodging and clambering over fallen boulders on our way back to rainbows and civilization.
Trekking Tiger Leaping Gorge, Day 2
Our second day hiking on this amazing mountain path in southwestern China offers fair weather, fantastic views and an escape from the crowds.
Trekking Tiger Leaping Gorge, Day 1
Tiger Leaping Gorge is often considered quite simply THE BEST trek in China, and for good reason: it’s an amazing place. Day one leads us through lush hillside and small villages.
Exploring Lijiang Old Town
We head to Old Town Lijiang. Surrounded by lush green hills and sheer jade peaks, this incredibly enchanting and well preserved mountain town (and UNESCO world heritage site) is a must visit.
Xian and the Terracotta Warriors
Despite Xi’an being a virtually unrecognizable shadow of its former glorious self, it is nonetheless a modern and very agreeable city, not to mention host to a very old and famous subterranean army.
Pingyao Ancient City
Pingyao is a world in itself, frozen in time somewhere in the middle of the last two Dynasties. If we had to choose one place in China to spend almost a week of our trip, we certainly could have done a lot worse.
The Wild Wall – Great Wall of China (Without the Crowds)
Most visitors to the Wall visit the Bādálǐng stretch near Beijing, but we opt to venture a bit further afield, visiting an all but deserted portion higher up in the mountains between Jīnshānlǐng and Sīmǎtái.
Beijing
Beijing turned out to be a great place to lay low for a few days, and turns out our timing was perfect. 10 days after our departure the entire city was submerged by massive widespread flooding.
Climbing Mount Tai (Taishan), Day 2
Sunrise as viewed from the summit of Taishan is the undisputed main event atop the mountain, even if you never actually see the sun through the “haze.”
Climbing Mount Tai (Taishan), Day 1
We knew two things about Taishan before our climb: The process of climbing the mountain involves ascending over 6,600 individual stair steps, and Taishan is very, very popular with Chinese.
Four Train Stations (and One Big Mistake)
A traveler’s nightmare — racing to catch the last train out of town with only minutes to spare, only to discover you’ve made a horrifying error.
Shanghai: Nanjing Road & Pudong by Night
More from Shanghai, including Nanjing Road (by day and by night), People’s Park (revisited), French Concession, the Bund and Pudong by night, and Hailun street food.
Shanghai Old City
Yu Yuan Garden, coupled with a meander around Shanghai’s Old City, made for a perfect morning excursion before the afternoon heat (and crowds) set in.
