China in Summary

Well, we are preparing for our last train ride in China (Shanghai to Hong Kong). We've bought our Thailand Lonely Planet and found our China patch, so it's time to say goodbye.

Like everyone says, China is growing fast! You can see this in all the construction everywhere. You even see bridges with no roads connecting them yet. All in the near future I am sure. It's going to be really interesting to see how China's one child policy is going to affect their fast growth. From all the manual labour used to do everything, I'm thinking they will need major amounts of automation to take over the small things like making bricks, light bulbs, earth moving equipment etc...stuff no one wants to do anyways.

In terms of travel, I would recommend everyone to start on the west side before coming out east. The west has much more to offer in terms of old traditions, old architecture; basically the old ways. It was extremely cheap, and we didn't have too much trouble getting around. It's also less crowded! :)

Guangzhou can pretty much be experienced in most Chinatowns around the world. I think most people have already experienced Cantonese food and dim sum.

Guanxi is as beautiful as everyone says and a trip to Yangshuo is definitely worth it.

Yunnan, Tibet, Xinjiang are all beautiful provinces which should be experienced. Now that the Qinghai - Tibet railway is open, Tibet may begin to change even faster than it has in the past (we hear 1500 more people per DAY into Lhasa). A ride on that line would be amazing in itself. Imagine being over 3000m for the majority of the trip and travelling through some of the most beautiful and oldest mountains in the world. Don't forget the overland trip to Everest! I'm pretty sure there will soon be a paved road from Lhasa to EBC within 10 years! Load up on the mutton skewers and nan bread while doing some Uighur watching as they watch you! :)

I wouldn't bother with Inner Mongolia unless you don't plan to go to Mongolia at all in the future.

Beijing and Shanghai are a must. The capital has just too much history not to go and Shanghai is just cool to be in. The rest of the east is up to you. In to beer? Qingdao of course. Into seafood? Take your time down anywhere on the coast. Just make sure you have enough money. It's much more expensive (at least double) than the west.

Next stop: Hong Kong and Macau!