Saturday, October 29, 2011

Day 13 Xian





















We had an easy flight to Xian, so easy that I actually don't remember it at all. Quick background: Xian is located in the Yellow River Basin and is one of the birthplaces of civilization. It has seen 3,100 years of development and 13 dynasties, giving it equal fame with Athens, Rome, and Cairo as one of the four major ancient civilization capitals. After landing, we dropped our bags off at our hotel and then headed to a Tang Dynasty dinner and show, which was filled with traditional song, dance, and colorful period costumes.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing






















We are now in Pippa Hill, the center of Chongqing City, in People's Square. In the 1st and 3rd photo you can see the Great Hall of the People. It was built in 1951 and is used as a performance venue. The long wings on either side are the People's Hotel. The other two photos show the Chongqing Museum which opened in 2005 to replace the old museum. This was a nice last stop before heading to the airport to board our flight to Xian.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing




















On the way out, James was reunited with his Australian relatives.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing



















This was highly disturbing to me. Visitors were pouring whatever drink they had into the bear's mouth. It's fur was all matted and sticky from the beverages. It was obviously commonplace because the bear was begging for a drink.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing


























As part of our tour we sat through an art presentation and then had a chance to tour their gallery.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing


















Above: the only non-panda or non-bear that made the cut. Last: don't expect to see kiosks selling snow cones and hotdogs.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing




















Proof we were actually there :)

Friday, October 21, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing





















Awwwwwww! Surprising as it may sound, I actually edited out a lot (more than half) of my panda shots.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing



















The inferior Red Panda.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing


















I'm very excited for today. We are visiting the Chongqing Zoo to see China's national treasure (and my favorite animal), the Giant Panda Bears. Warning: there will be ridiculous amounts of Panda photos in the next few days.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Day 13 Chongqing



























After our final breakfast on the ship, we disembarked and did a quick tour through Chongqing. It's located on steep hills at the confluence of the Yangtze and its major tributary, the Jialing River, this proud mountain city was the capital of China during WWII, when the American Volunteers Air Group, "The Flying Tigers," was based here.  

Friday, October 14, 2011

Day 12 Fengdu New Town




























The ladies wearing their new purchases from today and another delicious dinner.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Wednesday, October 12, 2011