For the complete story:  see the Tip Journal in (PDF)  7 Pages

IMPERIAL JEWELS OF CHINA
A Viking Cruisetour
Beijing to Shanghai
1-14  October  2010
Chuck, Laveta, Jim, Carol

          
Departing San Francisco and in route.  The trip began in University Place, WA  USA (Seattle)    

                        
Our hotel in Beijing: the Ritz Carlton located in the Financial District

                   

        
Views of and from our rooms    

        

          
Walking around the Financial District,  "Financial Street"  on a Sunday morning

   Charles Wang: our Viking Tour Guide

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Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City

           

              

                

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Leaving The Forbidden city and lunch

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The Summer Palace

                   
               

            

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 The Great Wall

"Everyone has an obligation to present authentic personal information"

  Roadside Census promotion sign on the way to the Great Wall
 
(taken through the bus window)

           
Far right: The group photo of us and our bus-mates at the Great Wall

      "Serial Downgrades" and the dreaded "Black Spot"

                    
The Sacred Way to the Ming Tombs

                
Peking Duck and the Peking Opera
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Lindgang Hutong  We were the guest of a local resident- who dyed her dog's ears orange.
Hutongs are very old communities with narrow streets. Beijing is trying to preserve some of them.

           

                           

                      

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   Beijing Airport  & arrival in the city of  Xi'an.   Lots of construction and dirty air.

               

                
    
    From the Tang Dynasty Dinner and Show,  which was just outstanding!
               
The Kempinski, our hotel in Xian

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The Terra Cotta Army Museum,  Xi'an

              

                    

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The smoggy city of Chongqing (metropolitan area population ~31 million) where we boarded our river boat.

               
The Viking Century Sun

    Counterfeit Jack DanielsIt tasted kind'a like whiskey   

       Ivy- our server on the Century Sun

          On the Yangtze

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Shibaozhi Pagoda and Temple

             

               
We walked from the boat through part of the town to the pagoda.

          A pedestrian bridge leads to the pagoda
                     

               

                    
Shibaozhi temple from the top of the pagoda and inside

     Local card game near the temple

       

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   On of many contracted boats skimming junk from the Yangtze

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The Three Gorges  (Qutang, Wo & Xiling)

             

      

           

            

            

      The Hanging Coffins

     

          
Last lock on the river at the city of Yi' ChangNote the drop!

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The city of Jinzhou  and the small town Viking sponsored elementary school 40 minutes from the city.

       

        

                

           

           

           

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          Captain's Dinner

       Arrival in Wuhan

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Hubei Provincial Museum  A simply marvelous place!

        

     Extraordinary 2400 year bronze casting

       

       The 2400 year old Bells of Wuhan

      A concert with bell replicas (video)

   It seemed that everyone wanted to be photographed with a Westerner.

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         Our hotel- the Portman Ritz Carlton- Shanghai

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Old Shanghai and Yuyuan Gardens

           

           

           

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Modern Shanghai   Wow!

          

      

      Typical whimsical and beautiful architecture

       
Silk Embroidery

           
Farewell Dinner

        Shanghai Airport  and our flight home

 

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