Jasmine's China Adventure Tours - Journey to the (North) West

Tibetan women, Xiahe grasslands
(Photo courtesy of the Lane family, Elk Grove, CA)

Journey to the (North) West

Beijing—Datong (Yungang Grottoes; Hanging Temple)—Pingyao Old Town
—Lanzhou—Linxia (home of Hui people) –Xiahe (Tibetan Town)—Shanghai
17 days
Monthly departure on the 2nd Saturday of June - September, 2010-2011
$3,450 USD per person, double occupancy
Guaranteed departure with a minimum of 6 people
Land cost only; does not include international airfare
(Special Note 1: Jasmine Zheng-Behrens will personally guide the departures in September, 2010 and July 2011. The group size will be limited to 12 people.)
(Special Note 2: Those joining this trip between May 1 and October 31, 2010 will have the chance to visit the Shanghai Expo!)

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In the classic 16th-century Chinese novel “Journey to the West”, the Buddhist monk Xuanzang, accompanied by the martial arts master the Monkey King, travels west beyond the borders of the Chinese Empire in search of precious scriptures, encountering magical adventures along the way. This special tour follows their footsteps on a journey to China’s remote northwest, a fascinating and beautiful borderland region where Chinese, Moslem and Tibetan peoples mingle in an atmosphere (and landscape) reminiscent of the American frontier. Taking you from a remote gate on the Inner Mongolian Great Wall to the northern grasslands of the Tibetan Plateau, with stops along the way at a temple magically suspended from the face of a sheer cliff, the massive battlements of a walled Ming Dynasty commercial town, and the opulent mosques of a hidden Moslem enclave, this tour will be your own magical adventure.

Begin in the heart of imperial and modern of China, Beijing, with visits to the major monuments of the Chinese Empire, including Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and, above all, the Great Wall. But China’s capital is also a city of hidden residential alleyways where families live quietly in ancient courtyard homes, city parks where elderly people gather to do morning exercises, crowded street markets bursting with unusual produce, and night food streets offering unsuspected culinary treasures. You’ll have the chance to experience the life of Beijing by walking through some of these hidden neighborhoods, and by tasting the city’s world-famous culinary specialty, Beijing roast duck, in a neighborhood restaurant, where the local people enjoy it in a lively atmosphere.

Yungang Grottoes

Yungang Grottoes, Datong (Photo courtesy of Paul Behrens)

From Beijing, your journey to the northwest begins with a trip by day train to Datong in Shanxi Province. Along the way, views of the Great Wall running along distant hillsides remind you that you are near the historical northern border of the Empire, and following the route of the “Northern Silk Road”. Datong is a large industrial city seldom visited by foreign groups, but it is the site of one of China’s great artistic treasures, the Yungang Buddhist grottoes. This complex of 51 caves filled with magnificent sculptures, ranging from tiny guardian spirits to monumental seated Buddhas, has been described as the “first and grandest” of China’s three major Buddhist cave sculpture complexes. The earliest carvings date back to the 5th century, under the Wei Dynasty. Just north of Datong, on the border of Inner Mongolia, you will also visit a customs post and gate complex that was part of the Outer Great Wall. There, you’ll also have the chance to wander through an undeveloped rural village and climb to the top of the monumental gate to spy watchtowers on the distant hills.

A day of travel through the tortured landscapes of Shanxi’s loess plateau will give you a sense of the difficulties of life in this tough land. A highlight of the trip is the chance to climb the narrow stairways and suspended catwalks of the so-called “Hanging Temple”, a series of six prayer halls suspended from the face of a cliff, supported by poles and beams driven into the rock. Uniquely, the Hanging Temple contains shrines for all three of China’s major religions—Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism—including a Hall of Three Religions in which figures of the Buddha, Confucius and Lao Zi sit together in harmony.

Hanging Temple, Datong (Photo courtesy of Paul Behrens)

The next stop is Pingyao, one of the best-preserved walled cities in China. Inside the virtually intact six-kilometer circuit of the walls, the town preserves the street grid, and many of the individual buildings, from its heyday as the premier commercial banking center of China during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Much of the area inside the walls is a vehicle-free zone, making it an ideal place to wander on foot to enjoy the restored Qing-era architecture, or to climb atop one of the four imposing gate towers to look over the tightly-packed courtyard buildings. Just outside Pingyao is another remnant of the area’s glory days: the opulent residential compound of the Qiao Family, built during the 18th century by a rich merchant family and later used in the filming of the Zhang Yimou film “Raise the Red Lantern”.

Mosque in Linxia

A Mosque in Linxia (Photo courtesy of the Lane family, Elk Grove, CA)

Far to the west lies the tour’s next destination, Gansu Province. When the monk Xuanzang made his journey to the west, Gansu was the outer limit of the Chinese Empire, the place where intrepid travelers crossed the Yellow River, symbolically leaving civilization for the mountains and desert wastes, and the alien cultures, of the far west. Today, Lanzhou, the administrative capital of Gansu, is a bustling industrial city strung out along the banks of the great river, with a surprising number of skyscrapers making the most of the limited buildable land area. The new electrified railways and four-lane expressways that now speed the traveler west from Lanzhou across the vast spaces of this region follow the track of the ancient Silk Road. It was Silk Road traders who most likely brought Islam to China; the striking modern mosques of Lanzhou give you your first taste of Chinese Muslim culture.

As the tour turns south from Lanzhou into the hills leading up to the Tibetan Plateau, your first stop will be a remote valley with a substantial population of Chinese Muslims, known officially as the “Hui” minority people. An overnight stop in Linxia, the largest town in the valley, will give you the chance to visit a local mosque and its attached school, and to experience the night food market with its unusual specialties.

Pilgrims turning prayer wheels

Pilgrims turning prayer wheels, Xiahe (Photo courtesy of the Lane family, Elk Grove, CA)

From Linxia, the tour route leads south and west, following a river up the valley onto high mountain grasslands. As the valley narrows and the river’s current picks up, the minarets of village mosques give way to Buddhist prayer flags, and the traveler crosses into a new cultural realm, that of Tibet. The climax of the tour lies at the top of the valley: Xiahe, the home of the great Labrang Yellow Hat monastery. Here, Tibetan people constitute the majority of the population, but there is a strong mixture of Han Chinese and Hui Muslim Chinese, especially in the towns. The mixture of peoples and cultures, along with the remoteness of the region and the ruggedness of the landscape, combine to create a kind of "Old West" frontier atmosphere that is especially strong in Xiahe.

The dominating feature of Xiahe, the Labrang Monastery, is one of the six great monasteries of the Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Founded in 1709, the monastery is the home and center of worship and study for several hundred red-robed monks, ranging from young boys to old men. Monks are a frequent presence in the "new town", and on the grounds of the monastery itself, travelers frequently meet monks hurrying to or from study or prayer sessions, their crested yellow hats under their arms, and their massed voices can be heard rhythmically chanting prayers from within the beautiful red and black assembly halls.

Monks from Sichuan

Visiting Monks from Sichuan Province, Xiahe (Photo courtesy of the Lane family, Elk Grove, CA)

As one of the most important Tibetan monasteries, Labrang is a major center for pilgrimage. Tibetan families come from far away to walk the three-kilometer circumambulation route, turning prayer wheels as they go. Some, equipped with carpetlayers' kneepads and thick woolen mittens, prostrate themselves every few steps along the way. The sense of faith and devotion in Xiahe is palpable, and was one of our strongest and most lasting impressions of the town when we first visited there several years ago, just after it was opened to foreign visitors.

Tibetan women

Tibetan women at the temple festival, Xiahe (Photo courtesy of the Lane family, Elk Grove, CA)

Over the range of hills to the north of Xiahe lies one of the vast expanses of grassland where the summer camps of nomadic herding families set up. There are a few remote and lonely villages on these grasslands, including an ancient walled village that you will visit for a close-up look at Tibetan life that includes a stop at a family home. Scramble up to the top of the wall for a view of distant peaks dusted with snow, cloud shadows passing over the grasslands, and tiny puffs of smoke rising from the white tents of herding camps, and collect indelible memories of your journey to the northwest.

The tour ends with a “return to civilization”: two days getting to know the dynamic metropolis of Shanghai, from the Art Deco buildings of the famous riverfront Bund to the amazing towers of the Pudong New Development Area. From May 1- October 31, 2010, travelers will also have the opportunity to experience the Shanghai International Exposition, with its motto “Better City, Better Life”.

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 (Saturday): Depart from the United States or Canada.

Day 2 (Sunday): Arrive in Beijing. Transfer to hotel.

Days 3-4 (Monday-
Tuesday): Sightseeing in and around Beijing, including: an all-day excursion to the Great Wall; a visit to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City; wander around in some old neighborhoods of "Hutong" homes; walk through the lively Wangfujing area with its interesting night food street. In the morning, get up early to take part in local people's morning exercises at the park--you will be surprised how many people there are! In the evenings, enjoy a performance of Chinese acrobats and taste the famous Beijing Roast Duck in a neighborhood restaurant--where the local people enjoy it.

Day 5 (Wednesday): Mid-morning departure by air-conditioned train from Beijing northwest to Datong, in Shanxi Province. The trip takes approximately 6 hours, and we will travel in the so-called "soft" class (i.e., first class), arriving at approximately 4:30 p.m. The rail line is quite an engineering feat, passing through the mountains north of Beijing with many bridges and tunnels, and after it leaves the mountains gives you the chance to see the northern Chinese countryside, including distant views of the outer Great Wall. After arrival, transfer to the hotel and enjoy a special Shanxi style dinner featuring many noodle dishes made of local multi-grains. Overnight in Datong. If time permits, we will have a walk to get to know the lively neighborhoods around the hotel, where much of local life in the evenings is still lived in the street, with children playing games, older people playing chess and cards, and small stalls selling all sorts of interesting snacks.

Day 6 (Thursday):
The highlight today is a visit to the famous Yungang Buddhist grottoes just outside of Datong, a set of Buddhist sculptures carved into the side of a sandstone cliff, housing an estimated total of 50,000 religious statues. Afterwards, drive north (about one hour) into the countryside to visit Deshengbao Village, near the border of Inner Mongolia, for another glimpse of rural life and a chance to explore an impressive gate complex in the "Outer Great Wall". Overnight in Datong.

Day 7 (Friday): In the morning, drive (about 1.5 hours) from Datong to the Hanging Temple, which clings perilously halfway up the side of a sheer cliff face, supported by wooden stilts. Uniquely, this temple contains shrines to all three of China's main religions, Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. After the visit, travel on to Pingyao (about 4.5 hours), an ancient walled town that was a prosperous banking center in the Qing Dynasty (18th-19th centuries). Overnight in Pingyao.

Day 8 (Saturday): Sightseeing in and around this old town, including: visit the well-preserved Qing Dynasty residential compound of the Qiao Family, which was featured in the famous Zhang Yimou film "Raise the Red Lantern", starring Gong Li (1991); walk on the city walls; visit some of the preserved merchant bankers' offices and temples. Overnight in Pingyao.

Day 9 (Sunday): Drive from Pingyao to Taiyuan in the early morning (about 1.5 hours) to catch your flight to Lanzhou (approximately 1.5 hours). After arrival, drive south from the Lanzhou airport to Linxia (about 1.5 hours), the center of an enclave of the Hui, or Chinese Muslim people. After arrival, visit to its lively local market. Overnight in Linxia

Day 10 (Monday): After a visit to a large Mosque on the outskirts of Linxia, with its boys' and girls' schools and nursery school, drive south into the mountains, climbing steadily along the way, to the Tibetan area at Xiahe (about 3.5 hours). The base elevation at Xiahe, which lies in a river valley surrounded by mountains, is about 9,000 feet. Overnight in Xiahe.

Days 11-12 (Tuesday-Wednesday):
Sightseeing in and around Xiahe. The highlight of the town is the large Labrang Monastery, with numerous prayer halls and temples, which stretches for over a mile along the valley floor, surrounded by arcaded passages lined with prayer wheels. Local people and pilgrims from far-away Tibetan regions come to Labrang to prostrate themselves before its larger prayer halls and stupas, and to make the three-kilometer circuit of the monastery, turning prayer wheels as they go. We'll have a chance to see monks reciting prayers, debating points of scripture, and even practicing musical instruments for performances at temple festivals, and to visit some of the larger halls and even the yak-butter sculpture hall. On the second day, we'll make a special excursion to the grasslands north of the town, to see a glimpse of the life of nomadic Tibetan herdsmen, and to make a visit to an ancient walled Tibetan village. There, we will have chance to visit its village primary school, where classes are taught in both Mandarin and Tibetan. And how about visiting one of my local Tibetan friends in their home! (On the way to these grasslands, we'll cross a pass where we reach elevations of over 10,000 feet.)

Day 13 (Thursday): Morning departure to drive south from Xiahe to Lanzhou (about 5 hours). After arrival, city tour of Lanzhou (a surprisingly large city of over 3 million people), including a chance to see the Yellow River up close. Overnight in Lanzhou.

Day 14
(Friday): Fly from Lanzhou to Shanghai in the morning. Balance of the day for an introductory city tour of Shanghai. Overnight in Shanghai.

Days 15-16 (Saturday-Sunday): Sightseeing in Shanghai, including: the riverfront Bund, the Pudong new development area, the former International Concession and Jewish ghetto areas, and the lively Yu Yuan Gardens; the famous Shanghai Museum.

Day 17 (Monday): Depart from Shanghai and fly to Canada or the United States, arriving home the same day.

C.S.T. Number 2034611-40

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Day 1 (Saturday):	Depart from the United States or Canada.
Day 2 (Sunday):	Arrive in Beijing. Transfer to hotel.
Days 3-4 (Monday- Tuesday):	Sightseeing in and around Beijing, including: an all-day excursion to the Great Wall; a visit to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City; wander around in some old neighborhoods of "Hutong" homes; walk through the lively Wangfujing area with its interesting night food street. In the morning, get up early to take part in local people's morning exercises at the park--you will be surprised how many people there are! In the evenings, enjoy a performance of Chinese acrobats and taste the famous Beijing Roast Duck in a neighborhood restaurant--where the local people enjoy it.
Day 5 (Wednesday):	Mid-morning departure by air-conditioned train from Beijing northwest to Datong, in Shanxi Province. The trip takes approximately 6 hours, and we will travel in the so-called "soft" class (i.e., first class), arriving at approximately 4:30 p.m. The rail line is quite an engineering feat, passing through the mountains north of Beijing with many bridges and tunnels, and after it leaves the mountains gives you the chance to see the northern Chinese countryside, including distant views of the outer Great Wall. After arrival, transfer to the hotel and enjoy a special Shanxi style dinner featuring many noodle dishes made of local multi-grains. Overnight in Datong. If time permits, we will have a walk to get to know the lively neighborhoods around the hotel, where much of local life in the evenings is still lived in the street, with children playing games, older people playing chess and cards, and small stalls selling all sorts of interesting snacks.
Day 6 (Thursday):	The highlight today is a visit to the famous Yungang Buddhist grottoes just outside of Datong, a set of Buddhist sculptures carved into the side of a sandstone cliff, housing an estimated total of 50,000 religious statues. Afterwards, drive north (about one hour) into the countryside to visit Deshengbao Village, near the border of Inner Mongolia, for another glimpse of rural life and a chance to explore an impressive gate complex in the "Outer Great Wall". Overnight in Datong.
Day 7 (Friday):	In the morning, drive (about 1.5 hours) from Datong to the Hanging Temple, which clings perilously halfway up the side of a sheer cliff face, supported by wooden stilts. Uniquely, this temple contains shrines to all three of China's main religions, Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. After the visit, travel on to Pingyao (about 4.5 hours), an ancient walled town that was a prosperous banking center in the Qing Dynasty (18th-19th centuries). Overnight in Pingyao.
Day 8 (Saturday):	Sightseeing in and around this old town, including: visit the well-preserved Qing Dynasty residential compound of the Qiao Family, which was featured in the famous Zhang Yimou film "Raise the Red Lantern", starring Gong Li (1991); walk on the city walls; visit some of the preserved merchant bankers' offices and temples. Overnight in Pingyao.
Day 9 (Sunday):	Drive from Pingyao to Taiyuan in the early morning (about 1.5 hours) to catch your flight to Lanzhou (approximately 1.5 hours). After arrival, drive south from the Lanzhou airport to Linxia (about 1.5 hours), the center of an enclave of the Hui, or Chinese Muslim people. After arrival, visit to its lively local market. Overnight in Linxia
Day 10 (Monday):	After a visit to a large Mosque on the outskirts of Linxia, with its boys' and girls' schools and nursery school, drive south into the mountains, climbing steadily along the way, to the Tibetan area at Xiahe (about 3.5 hours). The base elevation at Xiahe, which lies in a river valley surrounded by mountains, is about 9,000 feet. Overnight in Xiahe.
Days 11-12 (Tuesday-Wednesday):	Sightseeing in and around Xiahe. The highlight of the town is the large Labrang Monastery, with numerous prayer halls and temples, which stretches for over a mile along the valley floor, surrounded by arcaded passages lined with prayer wheels. Local people and pilgrims from far-away Tibetan regions come to Labrang to prostrate themselves before its larger prayer halls and stupas, and to make the three-kilometer circuit of the monastery, turning prayer wheels as they go. We'll have a chance to see monks reciting prayers, debating points of scripture, and even practicing musical instruments for performances at temple festivals, and to visit some of the larger halls and even the yak-butter sculpture hall. On the second day, we'll make a special excursion to the grasslands north of the town, to see a glimpse of the life of nomadic Tibetan herdsmen, and to make a visit to an ancient walled Tibetan village. There, we will have chance to visit its village primary school, where classes are taught in both Mandarin and Tibetan. And how about visiting one of my local Tibetan friends in their home! (On the way to these grasslands, we'll cross a pass where we reach elevations of over 10,000 feet.)
Day 13 (Thursday):	Morning departure to drive south from Xiahe to Lanzhou (about 5 hours). After arrival, city tour of Lanzhou (a surprisingly large city of over 3 million people), including a chance to see the Yellow River up close. Overnight in Lanzhou.
Day 14 (Friday):	Fly from Lanzhou to Shanghai in the morning. Balance of the day for an introductory city tour of Shanghai. Overnight in Shanghai.
Days 15-16 (Saturday-Sunday):	Sightseeing in Shanghai, including: the riverfront Bund, the Pudong new development area, the former International Concession and Jewish ghetto areas, and the lively Yu Yuan Gardens; the famous Shanghai Museum.
Day 17 (Monday):	Depart from Shanghai and fly to Canada or the United States, arriving home the same day.